Viewing through a Stereo Microscope

[75RR]

I was wondering if people who have difficulty viewing stereo images i.e. viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3441
would also do so with a stereo microscope, and if so, would any decollimation present be more troublesome?
The reason I am asking is that it occurred to me that the eye strain I feel, particularly at max magnification,
may have more to do with me than with the stereo microscope, which might well be within collimation tolerances.

[gekko]

At least so far, I've not succeeded in viewing stereo images (as 3D) but have no difficulty using my stereo microscope. On the other hand, when I was working, I could not use one particular stereo microscope because I could not merge the two images, whereas other people did not notice anything wrong with it. More recently, I bought an inexpensive stereo microscope and I also could not merge the two images from it; I asked my son to look through it and he noticed nothing wrong, so he now has it. I don't know that any of that helps answer your question, though.

[75RR]

Thanks gekko,
interesting experience with the different scopes.
I suppose it depends on whether the reason we can't see that type of stereo 3D is the same for both of us.
As in is it an eye thing or a brain thing or both!

[gekko]

Thanks gekko,
interesting experience with the different scopes.
I suppose it depends on whether the reason we can't see that type of stereo 3D is the same for both of us.
As in is it an eye thing or a brain thing or both!

With me it is both .

[charlie g]

Hi, gekko and 75RR...75RR..I'm curious..you know that with unaided eyes..or with your normal use of corrective eyeglasses...you know you can not percieve :'3D'? Or is it just a thing with stereo scopes?

If you ever had the chance to try..have you ever tried 'stereo eye-loupes'...eg:2X stereo eye loupes like the plastic surgeon, the fine watch maker might use?

When you reach across for the salt and pepper in a dinner..do you sense 'stereo'...ie depth of field?

Stero microscopes can be off in so many settings...not just the interpupilary setting. all the best, charlie guevara

[75RR]

Hi charlie g,

I don't have a problem with depth perception or indeed with every day 3D :)
I was referring to the images placed side by side, that when looked at give a 3D image - well not to me.

See link: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=3441

I can see 3D through the stereoscope as well - it is just that it is not strain free viewing.
I had assumed the stereoscope collimation was out (still think it is a bit) but am now wondering if it could also be me.

[KurtM]

It would sure be interesting to learn why some people can discern the 3D effect in cross-eye stereo pair images while others can't. I'm one of those who has no difficulty whatever with it.

As for stereo scopes, I occasionally run into a bit of trouble when first peering into the eyepieces, but it quickly sorts itself out. I use a variety of stereo scopes, of a variety of vintages, and of various optical arrangements, some of which I suspect to be more or less out of collimation. But I believe my eye-brain mechanism normally engages automatically to merge images without my ever thinking about it, and any image anomalies (seeing double or eye strain) being temporary, are possibly due to this mechanism simply "missing a beat" for whatever reason. Being an unconscious, pretty much involuntary reaction, then, it's not entirely possible to tell what's really going on - and for that matter, for me to know if a scope is really out of collimation or not.

[75RR]

Thanks KurtM,
that is a lot of stereoscope testing you seem to have done, with such a variety I can quite imagine that some of them may be a little out.
You seem to have the ability to compensate for that.
It is beginning to look as if stereoscopes and stereo-viewing is not a simple nor a straightforward thing.

[apochronaut]

Out of collimation gets magnified proportionately with the magnification, so sometimes a 10x image which seems to be good, turns into a 50X image that isn't. Bausch and Lomb made a 240X stereo microscope for use in aerial photography. It was basically a standard stereozoom 3 adapted to receive a pair of adjustable rhomboid arms, that could take pairs of various supplemental objectives up to 8X, I think.
The microscope could therefore achieve 240X. Due to the collimation precision required and the individual user's interpupillary differences, the microscope was equipped with a pair of 10X W.F. eyepieces that could be micro-adjusted on a sort of cam, so that collimation trimming could be achieved at the time of use.

[75RR]

Out of collimation gets magnified proportionately with the magnification, so sometimes a 10x image which seems to be good, turns into a 50X image that isn't.

That could well be what is happening as at 6x viewing is pretty stress free but as one heads towards 50x it becomes less so.