Joel's Uni Days: Literature Review

Here is my first attempt at my Literature review. See what you think...

Literature Review

The projection of 3D images within cinema and television is increasingly becoming more popular. But certain critics strongly oppose it. Ebert (2010) states that 3D is an unnecessary format and a waste of time and money. “Our minds use the principle of perspective to provide the third dimension. Adding one artificially can make the illusion less convincing” (Ebert 2010).This highlights that the illusion of 3D is not necessary in the industry and can become almost too much for the viewer. However, Deneroff (2010) claims that 3D movies are here to stay, highlighting the fact that these movies, like ‘Avatar’, brought in a substantial profit. “The game changer was James Cameron’s Avatar, which seemed to legitimatize the process; if nothing else, its $2 billion plus box office receipts, with an overwhelming amount of domestic revenues coming from 3D theaters, made people realize that stereoscopic films were no longer a recurring fad” (Deneroff 2010). This strong support for the technology suggests that it is popular with cinema-goers and is set to continue for the foreseeable future.

There are concerns that watching 3D television or movies can be a threat to your health. Banks (2010) reported in an interview with ‘Voanews.com’ that viewing stereoscopic videos is making human eyes go against what they are made to do. “You're taking that normal relationship which has been coupled in the brain for years and you're changing it. And what we showed is that can cause fatigue” (Banks 2010). However, other research has concluded that viewing a stereoscopic format has no impact to health. In an article by Newman (2010), Salz concluded his research. “We’re not aware of, nor have we seen, any negative permanent effects, even in children, when viewing TV, games, or movies in 3-D” (Salz 2010). Different views of the subject are widely apparent.

There is also a problem with viewing 3D with a proportion of the population. The Eyecare trust (ND) states that 12% of people are unable to view a stereoscopic image. “More than one in ten of us (12%) have a visual impairment that means our brains are unable to correctly process the individual images that are transmitted to it via our left and right eyes” (The Eyecare Trust, ND). This statistic proves that there are problems with the stereoscopic format and that it does not benefit all viewers.

3D television is viewed as the next step forward with the format. Specialised 3D televisions and viewing glasses must be bought in order to view it. Dhanendran (2010) states that 3D television does not offer much to the consumer. “There is still little on TV to watch in 3D. Sky’s new channel is one, but only a handful of 3D Blu-Ray films or games have so far come out” Dhanendran (2010). This highlights that 3D TV is a step forward but when newly released it can be too expensive and a waste of money for many people. Parrack (2010) declares that the small screen is no place for stereoscopic viewing. “I cannot for the life of me see anyone spending an evening in front of the box wearing a pair of overpriced 3D specs. Movies and sporting events, sure, but sitcoms and reality TV shows? No thanks” (Parrack 2010). The statement suggests that not all television shows are suited for 3D and therefore suggests that the technology is not needed.

References

Ebert, Roger. 2010 “Why I Hate 3-D (And You Should Too)” [Internet]

http://www.newsweek.com/2010/04/30/why-i-hate-3-d-and-you-should-too.html [Cited 16-10-10]

Deneroff, Harvey. 2010 “The 3D Films Are Coming, the 3D Films Are Coming” [Internet]

http://deneroff.com/blog/2010/03/21/the-3d-films-are-coming-the-3d-films-are-coming/ [Cited 16-10-10]

Banks, Martin; Sinha, Vidushi. 2010 “Research Shows 3-D Movies, TV Can Cause Eye Strain, Headaches” [Internet]

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/Research-Shows-3-D-Movies-Can-Cause-Eye-Strain-Headaches-84909757.html [Cited 16-10-10]

Dr. Salz, James; Newman, Gene. 2010 “3D technology Won’t Damage Your Eyes” [Internet]

http://www.premiere.com/Feature/3D-Technology-Won-t-Damage-Your-Eyes [Cited 16-10-10]

The Eyecare Trust. (ND) “3D Vision” [Internet]

http://www.eyecaretrust.org.uk/view.php?item_id=566 [Cited 16-10-10]

Dhanendran, Anthony. 2010 “We Investigate: 3D television” from Computer Active (Issue Number 329, pp65)