South Central Loop photo printNow Available: 3D Prints
Part sculpture, part photography - no glasses required
Posted Feb 2, 2011
I'm excited to intro this new process - it's actually a long time coming...
Regardless of the methods I use when developing a print, I end up visualizing the captured environment in terms of perceived depth. I like to think of my prints as virtual windows, where I control the distance available to the viewer. For example, when I combine multiple exposures I end up tracing the edges of each structure. I then select the parts of each exposure that correspond with a visual sense of depth - these decisions are based on color and contrast. Areas of less contrast appear to fall back, away from the viewer while bold, brightly colored areas jump forward.
I started to wonder - could I use more than color and contrast to achieve this sense of space? What if I could actually place parts of the image closer to the viewer?
Above is a 6" x 6" prototype of this new process I've dubbed a 3D Print. When building a 3D Print I produce multiple instances of the image and and then physically cut them into separate layers - each layer is then affixed to a piece of anti-reflective glass. When viewed together, the glass disappears and the effect is a series of receding image planes (in this case, 8 layers). While it's difficult to convey the full effect of a 3D piece on a 2D computer monitor - the result is a highly immersive and realistic three dimensional space - no glasses required!
The exciting thing about this process is that it can be applied to any of my prints. So, if you'd like a 3D Print, please contact me at jj at planckstudios.com to discuss the details. So far, I've only produced the prototype you see above - but I'm happy to report that it's already sold and I've begun working on other versions.