PAINTMAPS.comHow To View 3D Stereograms (Magic Eye)
At first look a stereogram is similar to nothing more but a tiled pattern, however, with a proper look you can discover amazing 3D image hidden inside. And it's not just a play of imagination, the hidden image is very realistic! Basically you need to “unfocus” your eyes and look through the stereogram. The picture becomes blurry and doubled and that’s exactly what we want. This will make pattern tiles to overlap each other and each eye will be seeing slightly different image. “Disparency” in views will make your brain see hidden 3D image. When you have been able to see one, you can stop looking for more and more, it becomes obsessive!
There are different methods to learn seeing stereograms, one or another may work out better for you, though all will require some patience.
1. METHOD - FACE IT 1. :
Put your face close to the stereogram. Try to look through the image, pretending it doesn't exist. Of course you won't be able to see anything yet because image is too close to the eyes. 2. Always hold stereogram horizontally, do not turn and do not bend it. Don't tilt your head and try not to blink. 3. Then start to move back from the stereogram very slowly. Your eyes naturally will try to refocus back on the stereogram image but you will need to force your eyes not to do so. Keep looking through the image and moving back from it slowly at the same time. If it happens that eyes focus on the image start Step 1 again. 4. Once you can keep looking through the stereogram, keep moving your head back and force very slowly. At some distance, when patterns overlap each other, you will notice that something strange is happening to the image. That's a very good sign and after a while you will see blurry levels of depth or some 3D images. 5. Once you can see blurry 3D picture, keep looking at it this way. Don't force your eyes to focus yet, they will need some time to adjust. After a few seconds or minutes you'll see how image snaps and becomes very sharp. When it happens you will be totally surprised by what was hidden just in front of your eyes!
2. METHOD - RELAX YOUR VISION :
1. Place yourself in front of the stereogram, let's say 30cm (1 foot) and start relaxing your vision. You can remember how you did the same when you were reading book too long and your eyes couldn't concentrate on the text anymore. Try to do that again with a stereogram, relax your eyes until picture becomes blurry and doubled. 2. When you relax, your eyes naturally diverge (look apart or to infinity). Using this trick try to relax eyes a little and then some more. This will make your eyes to diverge on different angles. At some angle you will see that a hidden image appears. When it happens eyes should stick to this angle and you'll be able to see the hidden 3D. 3. Once you can see the blurry 3D picture, keep looking at it this way until it becomes sharp and recognizable.
3. METHOD - LOOK THROUGH :
1. Find some object in the room, for example a picture on the wall, or a glass on the table, could be anything you can look at. 2. Take a stereogram in your hands and start looking on the object you picked. 3. Start moving the stereogram from low to high slowly, until it blocks your view to the object, but keep looking at the object all the time. In other words you need to cover your view of the object with the stereogram, while keeping yourself “looking at the object” as if looking “through” the stereogram. If your eyes switch to the stereogram, lower the stereogram and try Step 2 again. 4. Once you can keep looking at the object and the stereogram doesn't distract you, try various distances between you and object. At some distance you will see the hidden image in the stereogram. 5. Once you can see a blurry 3D image, keep looking at it this way until it becomes sharp and recognizable.