3D for the masses?

First, a programming note. Internet difficulties have prevented me from posting most of this week. Take note: Verizon tech support (like most tech support) sucks.

I wanted to pass along this article I stumbled across about two Estonian brothers who've developed a relatively inexpensive 3-D camera system. By inexpensive, we're talking about $88,000 USD. You won't be filming Timmy's birthday party in 3-D anytime soon, but when you compare it to the tens of millions James Cameron sank into his Avatar technology, it's impressive.

No reliable word on the image quality yet, but I imagine this could open 3D up to indie filmmakers, which could be a very good or bad thing depending on your view of the technology. In my eyes, some films lend themselves to 3D and some don't. There's no justifiable reason (except financially) to retroactively 3D-ify a film like Clash of the Titans or splurge on a third dimension for a concert film or run-of-the-mill comedy. But it would've been interesting to see a film like Enter the Void with that extra dimension.

To no one's surprise, James Cameron is reportedly the first buyer of one of these 3D-in-one-camera set-ups and Werner Herzog already used the technology (rented) for Cave of Forgotten Dreams, his 3D documentary of the Chauvet caves in southern France.