3D camera with three lenses

Leonard Goh | May 05, 2008

It's amazing what the factories in China can churn out. From budget power-packed digicams to iPhone clones, they got it all. We reported a 3D camera some time back, and now China company 3DWorld has developed a medium format 3D camera coupled with three lenses on the front.

We all know it looks like something out of Star Trek, but the 120 Tri-lens Stereo Camera is really using an old technology. It is not a digital camera (although on its Web site it mentions "high resolution") and accepts only 120mm format film. The two lenses at the bottom capture two images on one frame, each slightly skewed, while the top lens is reserved for viewing. One interesting feature about the lenses is that they are interlinked, meaning you can turn any one of the lenses to focus and the other two will follow suit.

Specifications for this camera look good, with three 80mm lenses at F2.8 and a wide range of shutter speed from Bulb mode to 1/500 second. A prism is mounted on top to let you focus on the scene and the shooter has a built-in exposure metering system.

While 3DWorld claims that this behemoth of a camera will be a "blockbuster in the worldwide stereoscopic photography", we are not so sure who will want to lug this almost 2kg beast around. If you are interested, this piece of old technology can be yours for US$1,795 at 3Dstereo.com.

Filed under: Digital Cameras
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