MAKING THORPE CARDS
FROM DIGITAL IMAGE FILES
One of the more interesting stereoview formats is the Thorpe Stereoview Standard:
This flexible format is designed to make optimum use of the 4 x 6 print format which is universally used at one-hour and other photographic processing outlets. This means that views can be created at very low cost ($0.20-$0.30 per print). The image pair can be viewed with a Lorgnette, a 4x6 print viewer (Loreo) or a standard Holmes Stereoscope with the use of a simple print holder/adapter. The upper part of the card provides an ample area for notes, credits, or other labels and also lets the view be manipulated by hand without leaving fingerprints on the image itself.
The Thorpe Stereoview Standard web-site has a complete set of tools and instructions for preparing cards, but, having worked up a set of procedures for making Realist-format Slides from Digital Camera Files, I thought it would be just as easy to work it out on my own. To use my approach, you need the following:
A digital file for a Thorpe Card Template which you can download by clicking on the link.
A copy of the Stereophoto Maker stereo editing software. If you are not already using this fantastic piece of freeware, you are missing a fantastic bet!
A copy of Adobe Photoshop Elements, a highly affordable piece of photo editing software
Keep in mind as you look at my description of the needed steps that all images are displayed just a fraction of their true resolution to speed loading of the page.
(1) The first step is to load an set of camera files into the Stereophoto Maker software:
Use the software to align the image pairs, balance the color, and resolve any stereo window issues. At this point, I always save a master image file in case I want to use it in the future. Note that this image is 2193 x 1681 pixels after all corrections (see lower left). Since this value will vary, depending upon your camera pair and how much correction/alignment is required, we want to set the image to a standard height before proceeding further.
(2) To do this, click on Edit ===> Resize to get the following window:
Make sure the Keep Aspect-ratio is marked, enter 1700 in the Y window, and click on OK.
(3) Now click on Edit ===> Crop ===>Custom Crop and you should see the following window:
...
Insert 1552 into the Width box, 1700 into the Height box and click OK.
(4) At this point a moveable cropping frame will appear:
Click and hold the LEFT mouse button and you can slide the window from side to side. When you have it where you want it, release the LEFT mouse button and the image will be cropped:
If you made a mistake and the composition isn't exactly what you wanted, reload the original image file(s) and repeat the procedure. Now click on File ===> Save Left/Right Images to save the individual chips.
From this point on, we will be using the Photoshop Elements software.
(5) Load the Thorpe Card file:
(6) Use the Magic Wand tool to highlight the RIGHT image window:
(7) Now Load the right image chip and click Select ===> All ===>Edit ===> Copy to copy the image to the clipboard. You can now close this image.
(8) Now click Edit ===> Paste and the right chip should end up in the right image window. Now click Layers ===> Merge Down to permanently add the chip to the Thorpe Card layout:
(9) Now repeat steps (6) through (8) with the RIGHT image window and chip and the photographic part of the Thorpe card is done:
(10) You can freeview the pair at this point to confirm that all is well, but if you have performed all the steps indicated, you should have a great stereo pair with all alignment and stereo window issues taken care of in advance. At this point, all that remains is to use the TEXT options in Photoshop Elements to add a suitable label:
The Thorpe Card layout has been set up with slightly wider margins to allow for the normal image bleed that the processors use to create borderless prints. What you should get back is a nicely formatted view that is easy to store, view, or send off to friends of various exchanges or competitions.
At this point it is legitimate to ask whether this approach to making the Thorpe stereoview cards is faster or more convenient than using the tools and steps that Thorpe has documented on his web-site. I'm not really sure about the answer to that question. I do know that it is very fast for me since I routinely make a complete library of L/R Realist-format images, just in case I want to make slides at some point later in time. As a result, I have already done the first four steps for any worthwhile image in my collection. Given that, when I'm really on a roll, I can crank out a new Thorpe format card every one or two minutes. Given the flexibility and utility of the format, I would urge you to experiment with both approaches to find out what works for you.
Speaking of flexibility, note that I converted the master image file to Realist format because it makes good use of the total image area of the print. If I were to scale the entire original image width to 1552 pixels, skip the cropping step, and paste them into the Thorpe Card windows, you would get something like this:
You will note that now you have full-width image chips, but because of the aspect ratio of the original image, there are blank areas above and below the image that are somewhat out of place. You can use the Edit/Cut function to clean these off and produce a cleaner picture:
While the Thorpe Stereoview Standard is flexible enough to let you do this, the resulting image will typically not be as immersive in terms of "feel" due to the excessive white-space.
If you find this site useful or interesting, please drop me a short note at the address shown below. It would be nice to know if the site were actually being used!
Ralph E. Taggart (taggart@msu.edu)
