The most unusual camera I possess is the Viewmaster Personal Stereo Camera. I purchased it in 2004 as a reward for my hard work in a crankshaft factory during the summer. The camera can take tiny stereo images on 35mm slide film, which are then cut out and placed into special holders for use in a Viewmaster viewer.
I
ran a roll of slide film through the camera when I first got it, but never developed it. Since then, it has remained a novelty item on my camera shelf until recently. Thanks to having plenty of time due to the pandemic and an abundance of bulk-loaded 35mm film, I have finally been able to try it out. I've been taking it on walks and bike rides around town to capture images.
Each frame of the Viewmaster is considerably smaller than the standard 35mm frame. The two stereo lenses shoot along the top half of the frame until the film has been fully spooled out of the cassette. Then, the small knob on the front of the camera is turned to move the lenses down to shoot on the bottom half of the frame as the film is shot and spooled back into the cassette.
One of the camera's interesting features is the EXPO-SURE exposure calculator on top. Once you set the film ASA, you can adjust the shutter speed and aperture until the subject's darkness and environmental conditions align, negating the need for a light meter.
I use standard black and white negative film instead of slide film, since I'm not creating Viewmaster reels. I scan the film with my flatbed scanner and combine the left and right images in photoshop to create anaglyph and crossview images. While the anaglyph versions are entertaining, I prefer the crossview images, which take some practice to view but appear cleaner and do not require any special glasses. A smartphone is ideal for viewing crossview images because you can move the image back and forth to get the correct eye distance, like a 21st century stereoscope.
