I Have Brought To Life Unseen Stereographs Of Ellis Island Immigrants.

Stereographs were the latter day virtual reality, an inventive means to immerse the viewer into another place and time. Two photographs are exposed simultaneously but from slightly different perspectives. When the final print is viewed through a stereoscope a depth of field is introduced that brings the photograph to life.

In 2018 I digitally re-imagined many dozens of American Civil War scenes using an animation process that essentially reveals that same depth of field but on more common 2D screens. In doing so, the need for specific viewing equipment is eliminated and the immersive nature of the stereoscope is maintained.

The results can be visually arresting and offer a new sense of relatability that is ordinarily eliminated with a flat, two dimensional photograph. This year I have been fortunate to work on a series of stereographic images taken at Ellis Island. They were made available by the University of California at Riverside’s California Museum of Photography. A part of the Keystone-Mast Collection, these are undated scenes of mostly nameless people that document their immediate experiences upon arrival in the United States in the very early 20th century.

The video serves as a somewhat short visual documentary, complete with environmental effects to match the scenes.

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At first glance you'd be forgiven to think these images are two of the same, however they are exposed to the negative a slight distance apart, not dissimilar to the way our own eyes work. Thus a depth of field is created that gives a 3D effect when viewed through a stereoviewer.

Animating the stereographs themselves is not straight forward, as many dozens of frames have to be created in order to reveal the depth of field. This is a process of alignment, contrast correction and patience. The ending file sizes are very large, so the animation files are converted to a video format that is compatible on smartphones, tablets and desktops.

Faithful animations of a series of stereographs taken at Ellis Island. The animations themselves present a whole new level of relatability. These are unknown persons, however the scenes in general speak for themselves. From simple health checks, a Christmas Mass being said, luggage inspection, queuing for the money exchange and more. Immigration is always a keen topic and much discussed in the social and political arenas. I think these scenes will give viewers something to think about and stretch the muscles of relatability.