George S. Cook's Combat Action Photograph

This is a 3-D pairing of the first combat photographs ever taken. Charleston photographer George S. Cook was inside Fort Sumter on September 8, 1863 during a huge Naval battle. Cook kept his camera low on the parapet as he photographed hostile Union gunboats firing at Fort Moultrie. Cook had only a single-lens camera. He first took the photo on the left. Then he moved the camera a couple of inches to the right to attain the separation necessary for a 3-D view and exposed the image on the right. When cut to the same proportion and paired together, they make a 3-D view. Forty-six Union shells fell into Fort Sumter on the day Cook took his photos. He also captured a view of the smoke from an exploded shell.

Click here to see the "Exploding Shell" photograph.