In 2015, Mercury Works brought 3D printing and radical systems engineering to the world of photographic camera design, and we have been innovating ever since. Now, we are proud to introduce the culmination of our engineering advances and worldwide customer feedback...

Introducing the Mercury Stereo 12, a medium format (6x6 frame) stereoscopic camera system featuring interchangeable lenses and interchangeable backs for the first time in history. Now you can shoot IMAX quality 3D photos with a professional tool that puts you in control of the entire process.

3D photography was the norm 100 years ago. Somehow the camera and smartphone industries have convinced photographers that flat, two-dimensional photos are good enough. We aren't buying it. Once you've experienced high-end stereoscopic photography you will see not only image-making, but the world itself, in a different way. We want to give you the tools to do that.

3D photography is a physical, analog form of expression that is inherently shared with your friends, whether through a vintage stereoscope, on a screen, or in a high-end Mercury viewer. Pass it around and listen to the gasps as three dimensional scenes envelop them!

Medium format 3D photography is about as good as it gets. Now, finally, there's a camera system that is affordable, powerful, and fun! The Mercury Stereo 12 combines elements of medium format and large format camera design to bring professional flexibility and control to stereography.

Photograph taken with Mercury Stereo 12

Some of the features of the Mercury Stereo 12:

• Completely modular design. The front stack of the camera that holds your shutters and lenses is completely reconfigurable and customizable. Likewise, the camera is compatible with a wide range of extensions, accessories, and electronics. Not only does this give you an enormous number of options now, but it will also grow in the future.

  

• Interchangeable Lenses. The Stereo 12 is compatible with many leaf shutters (Copal 0, Compur 0, Compur 00, Seiko TLR, Seiko LF, etc.) and many lenses. You no longer need to be content with just one lens choice. You can now shoot ultrawide, portrait, or anything in-between. We have tested and can recommended over 30 different lenses so far. The list continues to grow, and there are of course many other lenses can be easily used with the camera.

  

  Legendary Super Angulon 47mm Lenses

• Electronic Shutter Actuation: Though you can use many mechanical shutters with the Stereo 12, internally it uses a fully electronic system to actuate them. Only electronic actuation can perfectly sync the two shutters to stop motion, enable the use of flash/strobes, and give you precise, instantaneous triggering via the onboard handheld trigger or external triggers.

  

• Interchangeable backs. The Stereo 12 uses the Graflok 45 / International back mount, with additional sheet holder capability. It is compatible with 120 film (via the amazing Horseman 6EXP back, the DaYi 612 back, or 3D printed backs), with large format film via standard 4x5 sheet film holders or Grafmatic backs, with 65mm and 70mm long roll film (via the Mercury 65mm/70mm Panoramic Back), and even with panoramic 135 film (via a really special Mercury back), glass plates, tintypes, 4x5 instant film, etc.

  

• Quick-attach side handle. The Stereo 12 is compatible with the SmallRig side handle standard for cinema rigs, giving you a number of options for a quick-attach left-side handle for flexibility and ease of use when shooting handheld. It takes only seconds to add or remove the handle when stowing the camera.

  

• Ground Glass system. We've designed a line of ground glass options to enable ultra-precise control when shooting on a tripod. Unique among stereo cameras, our ground glass backs enable you to preview both the left and right stereo “views” that the camera will expose. This is the only way to preview the exact edges of those separate views, as well as to preview the stereo divergence at different depth planes. This information enables advanced, precise stereography.

  

• Precise zone focusing and DOF information at your fingertips. The Stereo 12 uses a fast-interchangeable spacing system that gives you complete, customizable depth of field information for each zone. Stereo shooting is all about this information, as you usually need to maximize depth of field and know exactly where your subjects fall within your range. The goal is not to choose a single subject and isolate it, but rather to compose relationships between subjects/objects in space. While a continuous focusing option will be offered in the future, we've designed the camera in its currently offered form to meet the needs of stereography rather than flat photography.

  

• Flexible triggering. Besides the built-in handheld button trigger, the Stereo 12 incorporates an external trigger port compatible with a range of wired triggers, including our own Deluxe External Trigger, designed specifically for this camera and capable of mounting on a top or side cold shoe until you are ready to expose your shot. You can also connect wireless flash triggers such as PocketWizard to this port to trigger wirelessly.

  

• Built-in Arca-Swiss compatible QR foot. Not only does this provide a stable platform to set your camera down on flat surfaces, but natively mounts to any Arca-Swiss QR plate (including very inexpensive generic ones, which in turn can be mounted on any tripod, monopod, etc. If you find you need to mount your camera on a different type of tripod plate, a standard 1/4-20 thread on the bottom side of the foot enables that as well.

  

• The Little Details. From a film plane indicator to quick release camera strap compatibility to various ergonomic details to a range of viewfinders and other accessories, we've learned from years of experience and customer feedback from the amazing Mercury community what makes a camera a joy to use.

  

The Mercury Stereo 12 camera includes a fully functional camera, an electronic lensboard of your choice, and a basic ground glass back. The Deluxe camera kit upgrades the ground glass back to a Deluxe model that accepts rail-mounted accessories (and comes with a protective cap and sun hood), and also includes our Deluxe External Trigger. In both cases you will need to provide two shutters and lenses, and a film back.

Photograph taken with the Mercury Stereo 12

It is very important to read the Mercury Stereo User Guide. The Guide, as well as our full lens info spreadsheet, lensboard assembly instructions, a number of instructional videos, and downloadable 3D printable parts, can all be found on the Downloads page.

Camera kits, viewers, and accessories can be purchased in the Store.