Introduction: Macro Lens for Phone Camera (iPhone)
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About: I don't think I'm necessarily cooler then anyone else, but I enjoy my life regardless. Tswee!
P.S.: I'm pretty cool though ;)
I am a film student, so one of the main reasons I bought an iPhone was for it's camera.
I saw a bunch of really cool instructables on how to make macrolenses and decided to do my own.
I didn't take step-by-step photos cause I just kinda did it on the fly. But I'll explain as best I can.
What you need is:
a lens: i took mine from an old digital camera. but apparently you can use the one's from laser-pointers too. I'm gna try that next
some sort of cover: I used the plastic shelf thing that came with the iPhone packaging cause I didn't want to go all out and buy a cover before I was sure this would work.
Some super glue
drilling materials: I used a small screwdriver and siccors and patience.
First you need to get the lens separate from the rest of the camera/laserpointer. this may take some prying and unscrewing. Be careful you don't scratch the lens.
Then u get the cover ready. This was the most difficult part for me as I had to create an opening (in the right place) in the plastic packaging. If you use a cover that fits your phone, it will already have the opening where the camera is so all you will have to do is make it big enough so the lens fits in snugly.
Be careful not to make it too big. You want the lens to fit tightly.
because the plastic of the holder is quite soft, i was able to use a cross-head screwdriver as drill. Once it became too small I used one "leg" of a scissors, which I turned around gently in the hole to make it bigger.
Once your hole is the PERFECT size, it is time for glueing.
I suggest using a thin paint brush to apply as this will limit the amount of glue you get on the lens. I put a few drops of superglue on a piece of plastic and then "painted" the glue on the inner rim of the hole and the outer rim of the lens.
Put the lens in the hole and let dry.
If you do get glue on your lens, use an earbud dipped in some nailpolish remover to clean away the blue. Dry with a soft cloth which won't scratch (the type of cloth you use to clean your sunglasses works great).
Because I used the plastic tray and not a cover (this now seems like a much better idea) I had to find a way to keep the cover on the phone while I was taking photos. So I made 4 grooves in the cover so I could use 2 rubber bands to keep it all together.
And it is done!
Remember to switch off the auto focus as you are taking pictures. on the Iphone you just hold the screen for a while until the AE/AF lock sign appears. Check your phone manual for tips.
Also remember that you will need a lot of light. Macro lenses tend to be very low in exposure, so taking photos of your beer in a nightclub, probably won't work all too well.
I added some of the photos I took. I hope you enjoy ;) if you need extra information, or you want to go fancier, check out the GREAT tutorials for iphone lenses which are on Instructables. They helped me a lot!
P.s.: sorry for the quality of some of the photos. i had to use my webcam to take photos of the phone, which is REALLY cheap, and thus complete crap.
I saw a bunch of really cool instructables on how to make macrolenses and decided to do my own.
I didn't take step-by-step photos cause I just kinda did it on the fly. But I'll explain as best I can.
What you need is:
a lens: i took mine from an old digital camera. but apparently you can use the one's from laser-pointers too. I'm gna try that next
some sort of cover: I used the plastic shelf thing that came with the iPhone packaging cause I didn't want to go all out and buy a cover before I was sure this would work.
Some super glue
drilling materials: I used a small screwdriver and siccors and patience.
First you need to get the lens separate from the rest of the camera/laserpointer. this may take some prying and unscrewing. Be careful you don't scratch the lens.
Then u get the cover ready. This was the most difficult part for me as I had to create an opening (in the right place) in the plastic packaging. If you use a cover that fits your phone, it will already have the opening where the camera is so all you will have to do is make it big enough so the lens fits in snugly.
Be careful not to make it too big. You want the lens to fit tightly.
because the plastic of the holder is quite soft, i was able to use a cross-head screwdriver as drill. Once it became too small I used one "leg" of a scissors, which I turned around gently in the hole to make it bigger.
Once your hole is the PERFECT size, it is time for glueing.
I suggest using a thin paint brush to apply as this will limit the amount of glue you get on the lens. I put a few drops of superglue on a piece of plastic and then "painted" the glue on the inner rim of the hole and the outer rim of the lens.
Put the lens in the hole and let dry.
If you do get glue on your lens, use an earbud dipped in some nailpolish remover to clean away the blue. Dry with a soft cloth which won't scratch (the type of cloth you use to clean your sunglasses works great).
Because I used the plastic tray and not a cover (this now seems like a much better idea) I had to find a way to keep the cover on the phone while I was taking photos. So I made 4 grooves in the cover so I could use 2 rubber bands to keep it all together.
And it is done!
Remember to switch off the auto focus as you are taking pictures. on the Iphone you just hold the screen for a while until the AE/AF lock sign appears. Check your phone manual for tips.
Also remember that you will need a lot of light. Macro lenses tend to be very low in exposure, so taking photos of your beer in a nightclub, probably won't work all too well.
I added some of the photos I took. I hope you enjoy ;) if you need extra information, or you want to go fancier, check out the GREAT tutorials for iphone lenses which are on Instructables. They helped me a lot!
P.s.: sorry for the quality of some of the photos. i had to use my webcam to take photos of the phone, which is REALLY cheap, and thus complete crap.