Stereo viewing, or Stereoscopy, has long been used by

geoscientists to create the illusion of depth. Traditionally,

overlapping air photographs (stereopairs) have been
viewed with a stereoscope, where the stereo effect is
created from a slight offset in the viewpoint of each of the
stereopair photographs.
Investigating an area in 3D affords a greater
understanding of the processes involved that have shaped
the areas topography. This in turn can help geoscientists
understand the nature of the underlying geology. Recent
developments in technology, such as the Visualization
Walls used by major Oil and Gas companies E&P
departments, allow geoscientists to be immersed in their
data. The use of special glasses permits them views of
their data from the surface, or subsurface, in 3D, and they
can investigate the data by roaming around inside it.
Can we make a visualization wall with ArcGIS?
Not quite, but we can create worthwhile 2.5D perspective
views, and also generate pseudo-stereo anaglyph
images. For stereo anaglyphs, ArcGIS has good 3D
capability using the ArcScene software, which is part of
the 3D Analyst extension. It tends to be underused in E&P
since many geoscientists use other software for the
generation of 3D surfaces. In order to create and view
stereo images with ArcGIS, we need a grid of elevation or
depth values, and standard stereo red and blue glasses.
In the following example, you can see how we can use
freely-downloadable DEM and satellite imagery to create a
3D visualisation of an area. The greyscale image is from
an ASTER DEM; the colour image is an enhanced satellite
image from Landsat 8. These data are from the Zagros
fold belt in Iran, an area rich in oil fields.
Creating stereo images
To view a stereo image in ArcScene:
1) Load the grid, in this case a TIF file, containing the
elevation (DEM) values.
Tip 26: Viewing in Stereo
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elevation (DEM) values.
2) Now select Floating on a custom surface and use the
DEM as the source for the elevation data.
3) Improve the view by changing the vertical exaggeration.
Go to the Scene Properties and try a couple of values. In
this example, vertical exaggeration has been set to a value
of 2 to emphasise the geomorphology of the scene.
Additionally, an appropriate color ramp has been chosen
to emphasise topographic detail.
Though the perspective now looks correct, it is still
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Though the perspective now looks correct, it is still
diplayed on a flat screen in 2.5D, which means it gives the
impression of 3D, without the depth effect created when
using stereopairs in a stereoscope.
4) Load the satellite image. To drape it over the DEM, use
the DEM as the source for the height data by setting the
Floating on a custom surface value to the DEM again.
This gives the scene a more realistic view. You will need
to uncheck the DEM so that only the Landsat image is
displayed.
An image like this example shows a wealth of detail for a
geoscientist wanting to study the geology and
geomorphology of an area.
A View of Depth: from 2.5D to 3D
To go a step further and produce the impression of depth
similar to a 3D TV or a 3D cinema effect, you need to
convert the scene into anaglyphs.
1) Use View > View Settings and set Viewing
characteristics > Projection to Stereo View.
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2) Now use the dropdown option in Stereo view
preferences > Method and select Red/Blue
Anaglyphs which, as the name suggests, creates a red
image and a blue image, displayed with a slight offset.
Viewing in stereo
By default, ArcScene places the blue anaglyph to the left
and the red anaglyph to the right. If your stereo glasses
are not in the same orientation, switch the order of display
of the anaglyphs. When you have it correctly set it should
produce an enhanced 3D depth effect, with the image
appearing to stand out from the screen.
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Can we improve the stereo effect?
To get the best from this you may need to adjust the Eye
separation which is just below Stereo view preferences.
I found that with this set to 1.6 and the ArcScene window
maximised, the effect really worked with the image
appearing to float in front of the screen, in 3D.
Another way to fine tune is to move the Parallax slider to
the right to increase the movements of scene objects
relative to the observer, or to the left to decrease them.
Eventually you will find the perfect set up for your own
eyes.
Whilst this is not an immersion viewing system, for a quick
and easy to create 3D effect on a desktop, with only
ArcScene, stereo glasses and a minimum of set-up, it is a
useful function for virtual field mapping - and its fun to
use!
Posted by Mike Phillips, Senior GIS Consultant,
Exprodat.
References, acknowledgements, further information:
Stereo glasses image from USGS
DEM from ASTER DEM
Landsat Imagery
Related Exprodat course: ArcGIS 3D Surface Analysis for Petroleum
Pasted f rom <http://www.exprodat.com/blogs/blog_Tip-26-Viewing-in-
Stereo.htm>
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