Tag: lens

Categories
Cell Phone Accessories

DreamMe has your smartphone display dancing on the ceiling

For many smartphone owners, the alarm clock has become yet another device that the versatile device has replaced alongside the camera, camcorder, music player, navigation device and even flashlight. After all, one generally has to charge it at night. Why not keep it at bedside? But there’s at least one alarm clock feature used by some that smartphones couldn’t answer — the ability to project the time on the ceiling.

DreamMe is a lens that’s designed to sit atop your smartphone’s screen at bedtime. When used with its companion app, it can outdo projection alarm clocks by projecting a range of things on the ceiling, including the time in different cities, weather, social media or other messages. DreamMe requires no batteries or other power to do its thing. The device can be manually focused by twisting its halves. DreamMe’s creator seeks $10, 872 by September 23rd. DreamMe can be topping your smartphone for €18 (about $20) with the devices slated to be shipped in December.

The DreamMe is a clever little accessory that will fill a gap for what has proven to be a resilient alarm clock feature Its versatility could be a bit of a drawback as a social media stream, for instance, might do more to keep one awake than keep one asleep. But of course that’s up to the owner.

 

Categories
Imaging

New Petzval 58 lens is out to ring in more bokeh fans

The company Lomography ran a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2013 for a modern, 85mm version of the old Petzval camera lens that was known for its swirly blur effect known as bokeh. Lomography reinvented the lens as the New Petzval 85 Portrait Lens for Nikon F and Canon EF Mount analog and DSLR cameras.

patent-claimedLomography has now created the New Petzval 58 Bokeh Control Art Lens that it says offers more control over the bokeh effect and a more standard, 58mm focal length. The lens features a new bokeh control ring that allows the user to determine how pronounced the bokeh effect will be in each photo. The lens will start shipping to early bird backers in December and will cost non-early-bird backers $750 for a brass lens and $850 for a black lens when they ship in early 2016. Lomography set a Kickstarter goal of raising $100,000 by June 26.

The lens should appeal to the very niche photographer audience it’s aimed at. Minor drawbacks include the fact that the lens can’t be used with both Canon EF and Nikon F cameras because each lens is equipped with either a Canon or Nikon mount and will only work directly with one.

Categories
Imaging

LensRacks holds camera, lens, flashes and more; makes life easier for photographers

Any photographer knows that changing lenses quickly can be an important part of getting the best shot. One can’t be fumbling around with camera bags and costly equipment, or else they’ll miss a great photograph. However, there isn’t a great way to keep the camera’s accessories organized.

patent-claimedFor lenses, flashes, monitors, cameras and more comes LensRacks. This product is modular and customizable, using rails to hold camera accessories in place. To use, place lens holders, flash holders, camera adapters and more in between the rails. The lenses and other accessories easily twist on and off. This way, all the accessories needed are quickly and easily accessible to the photographer. LensRacks is currently only compatible with Canon and Nikon products. Backers can pay $49 for the triple rail kit with estimated delivery in August of this year.

There are plenty of products out there aimed at keeping lens caps safe—like the Hack x Tack—but few that focus on larger accessories. While perhaps a little bulky to tote around, LensRacks is still great for any photographer who has a long day of picture-taking ahead of them. Its customizable and modular design make it especially appealing.

Categories
Cell Phone Accessories Imaging

MAGcro is another smartphone macro lens ready for extreme close-ups

It’s amazing how the world of photography has opened up to anyone who owns a smartphone or tablet these days. In fact, even macro photography is an option because of products such as MAGcro. This item was created by a couple of ophthalmologists and works with a smartphone or tablet, offering up to 10 times of magnification. The aspheric lens is fire-polished and made of high quality crown glass. The micro suction base makes it universal, compatible with most smartphones and tablets.

One of MAGcro’s best features is that it’s easy to transport since it is small enough to attach to a key ring. Though one might want to consider the possibility of a scratched lens before carrying it around that way. This campaign seeks to raise $5,000 NZD (~$4,000 USD) by December 13, 2014. For $25 NZD (~$20 USD), early bird backers get one lens with an expected delivery of February 2015.

Categories
Imaging

Intrepid large format camera ditches digital, embraces gorgeous photos

Many new digital cameras use filters and special techniques to make the photos they take look vintage. There’s something about old photographs that evokes a sense of nostalgia and old world charm into our minds. The Intrepid 4X5 Camera is a redesigned version of an old camera model, updating technology that is over 100 years old. Made out of wood, the camera is lightweight and can be folded up easily for maximum portability. Intrepid is a film camera and uses the 4×5 format because of its depth and clarity of image. In digital format, 4×5 would be considered HDR to give digital lovers a sense of its sharpness. It’s able to capture both portrait and landscape photographs. While this British camera looks very cool and the campaign shows the magnificent images it can produce, many may opt for the convenience of digital with some old-time filters instead. Lenses and film are sold separately which also may act as a deterrent for backers. Still, camera enthusiasts will surely appreciate the mix of old and new technology to make a cool final product. Another bonus: the bellows come in different colors! One Intrepid will cost backers £129 (~$203) for delivery in March 2015 (not a bad price at all). Intrepid is looking to raise £27,000 (~$42,500) on Kickstarter.

Categories
Cell Phone Accessories

Snap 6 lets you activate the new iPhone’s camera remotely

Even though the age of the selfie has progressed to the word finding a home in the Oxford Dictionary, the process isn’t perfect. From dropped phones to fingers accidentally blocking the lens, a lot can go wrong with a simple selfie.

SNAP! 6 wants to fix the issues that come up when trying to capture that perfect self-shot. Aside from being a functional iPhone 6 case with a widened base grip to make the phone easier to hold with one hand away from the camera, SNAP! 6 includes an actual shutter button to make the process more intuitive and allows for interchangeable lenses to fit the situation. Taiwanese developers bitplay Inc. need $20,000 to manufacture the SNAP! 6. Selfie takers can pledge $35 to get one of these cases by December in a variety of four colors.

There are plenty of cases dedicated to making the photographic side of phones a more intuitive experience, and this seems to be one of the best at more closely emulating the traditional camera. iPhone users will be able to flaunt this one above their Android-loving friends with plenty of high-quality, braggadocious selfies.

Categories
Cell Phone Accessories Imaging

SELFIEME will help you capture the perfect social self-portrait

SELFIEMEAs the selfie grows more and more popular, people are looking for new ways to bask in the glory of… well, themselves. The SELFIEME is an iPhone 5 and Galaxy S4 case that comes with two detachable lenses. One is a fish eye lens while the other is a wide angle lens. The case comes in different colors and also has a separate slot for the lenses. It is unclear why this is just for selfies, however, when the lenses attach to the back camera and not the front “selfie” camera. For $49, vain backers can enjoy the SELFIEME with an estimated delivery date of September 2014. This product hopes to raise $21,000 in three weeks on Kickstarter. 

Categories
Cell Phone Accessories Imaging

C-Lens makes iPhone photography an encounter of extreme close-up kind

C-lensPhotography enthusiasts who like to whip out their iPhone camera when on wilderness excursions or outdoor adventures will appreciate the C-Lens experience. These little gadgets let phone photographers capture still life magnified up to 10 times its actual size. Of course, it works for other items one finds in nature, too. So taking photos or videos of creepy crawlies and grossing out friends and family is now possible not only when visiting with them, but also by posting it on their social networking sites. The iPhone photo lenses fit all iPhones and work with nearly any case. For $35, backers get one set with an expected delivery of October 2015.

Categories
Cell Phone Accessories Imaging

Lensbaby aims for the iPhone Sweet Spot with the LM-10 lens

Creative Focus LensLensbaby has created a lot of fans with its creative lenses for pro photographers; now it’s bringing its sometimes-blurred focus to the world of smartphone photography. The LM-10 Sweet Spot creative focus lens attaches directly to your phone’s camera and accomplishes a cool blurred effect as you take your photo. As with many other add-on mini-lenses for the iPhone 4 and 5-series phones, it attaches magnetically. One of these special attachments goes for an early price of $40 with an estimated delivery date of July 2014. Lensbaby hopes to raise $20,000 in its 30-day campaign on Kickstarter.

Categories
Cell Phone Accessories Imaging Video

Moment strives for new heights in mobile pics with add-on lenses

Moment LensAn early Kickstarter success story was the olloClip, a nifty add-on lens kit for the iPhone that earned more than four times its campaign goal in 2011. Since then we’ve seen other successful lenses.  But for the Moment, one team is using its cinematic lens design chops to devise a 2x telephoto and wide-angle lens that it claims will offer unparalleled quality. Alas, their output and perhaps honor has been tragically degraded by Kickstarter. As one might expect, they’re starting off with the iPhone but are working on a Galaxy option as well. Other phone users are out of luck as the right match of size and weight was paramount in the design process, according to the interview-centric pitch video. With great quality comes great aversion to cheapness. The lenses could be improving your iSight by February 2014 at $49 for either or $99 for the set.