Compact & Clever Camera Phone Lenses

Today, Jane (also of see jane blog) shares an awesomely compact and clever tech find:

I am obsessed with technology. At the heart of this obsession is my cell phone. Specifically: my iPhone. If you would have told me five years ago that I would put away my DSLR camera in place of my iPhone camera I would have cringed. I would have thought, {gasping} "never!" Yet, the reality is just this: most days I only carry my iPhone, and not just for my phone/email/apps, but because of the camera. I use that baby everyday, all day long -- usually to photograph my family. Which is why when I spotted the photojojo camera phone lenses, I had to order them immediately.
The lenses are so easy to use, they simply attach with a sticker/magnet right over your cell phones lens. To test each lens that I purchased, I took a before/after picture without and with each lens, standing in the exact same spot. Click on each image below to see a larger version.

1. Wide-angle lens. I stood in my daughter's room pressed against the wall as far away as I could get from her bed to take the picture. The left image below shows you what the picture looks like with my basic camera lens. The picture on the right shows how much more space/room the lens could capture by attaching the wide-angle lens. I love this! Pictures like this are so great, because they not only capture more of the surroundings, but give the room a perspective that it is larger. Looks so much better.

2. Fish eye lens. Did I tell you I have a thing for fish eye images? They are so hip. Needless to say, I was really excited to try this one out. Look at the pictures below: without and with the lens. Incredible! The new image is awesomely warped + gives a wider view of the room.

3. 2x telephoto lens. I was skeptical about this lens. I have not been pleased with the "zoom in" feature on any of my iPhone cameras -- when I zoom in I typically lose a clear picture. The images become pixelated or unfocused. So I really didn't think it was possible to improve the quality of the zoom on a camera phone plus keep the picture crisp. I took my youngest daughter outside on a trail near our home to test it out -- see for yourself:

Admittedly, this is my least favorite lens of the three. I don't think I would use this lens very often. With the difference in images above, I would most likely just walk ten steps closer to my subject instead of going to the trouble of adding a lens for the photo. What do you think?

Conclusion. I love these lenses -- they're a compact and clever way to make your everyday photos more artful. And I think they'd make a perfect gift for the techy-camera-loving-person in your life. Practical yet fun!