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Camera lenses for your smartphone: are they worth the money?

Manfrotto lenses that can be uses to enhance photos taken with your smartphone. (supplied)

Even the snobbiest of shutterbugs can’t deny smartphones are getting much better at taking photos and shooting video.

Over the years we’ve seen larger sensors to let more light in, more megapixels for greater detail, better image stabilization for sharper pics, faster processors to handle the task at hand and better all-around battery performance.

But even with these advancements, there’s still one obvious shortcoming to smartphone photography: the lens. There’s no optical zoom to get closer to a subject, nor is there good support for macro shots (extreme close-ups), fisheye support, or wide-angle photos on most phones.

In response to these shortcomings, there’s a growing market for lenses as an accessory, which clamp onto the phone’s existing lens.

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They sound like a great idea, but are they just a gimmick?

We set out to see for ourselves, and also enlisted some help from a professional photographer.

Snap on, snap off

“Quite simply, the lenses work like eyeglasses,” explains Jason Thomson, a Toronto-based pro photographer and owner of Jigsaw.

“You put them over the phone’s camera lens and they add capability — like super-wide angle or macro – in the same way you can change lenses on an SLR [Single Lens Reflex] camera or put an adaptor on a point-and-shoot.”

But does he recommend them? Yes.

“They work, and really well at that,” says Thomson. “Those little accessories like lens adaptors and wireless flashes – they actually can transform your phone into a great point-and-shoot camera. I use a little pocket flash all the time, and a fisheye lens can be a ton of fun with the kids.”

Testing out a fish-eye lens on an iPhone 6. (Marc Saltzman)
Testing out a fish-eye lens on an iPhone 6. (Marc Saltzman)

On a related note, Thomson says he gets asked all the time about mobile phone cameras replacing standalone cameras. “The truth is, ordinary people with high-end cameras was something of a fad.” “Most people just want to be able to shoot decent images with the gear they have with them, and by that measure, smartphones made a dent in the point-and-shoot market long ago.”

While he carries a mirrorless or SLR camera, Thomson concedes he still uses his smartphone “ten times more” than a standalone camera.

In the field

There are plenty of companies that make smartphone lens adapters, like Olloclip, Limelens and Manfrotto. Olloclip and Manfrotto both sent us lenses we could test for ourselves.

The Olloclip works on the front or back camera. (supplied)
The Olloclip works on the front or back camera. (supplied)

Used on an iPhone 6 Plus, the 4-in-1 Olloclip ($79) included these four glass lenses: wide-angle, fisheye, 10x macro and 15x macro. You can use these on the back- or front-facing camera – wherever it makes sense, of course. For example, the macro lens is more ideal for the main (back) camera, so you can get up close and personal with, say, a beautiful flower in your backyard, while the wide-angle lens could be used on either – such as a super wide selfie with friends on the front-facing cam or while trying to capture a city’s waterfront skyline.

The macro lens lets you get up close with your subject, without needed an expensive DSLR. (Marc Saltzman)
The macro lens lets you get up close with your subject, without needed an expensive DSLR. (Marc Saltzman)

It was easy to switch lenses as they simply glide over the corner of the phone. Then, open up any photo or video app and you’ll see what you’re about to capture through the attached lens.

The wide-angle was great for panoramic landscape shots, while the “hemispherical” fisheye lens offered a more playful look that rounds out the photo (not unlike some Snapchat filters). To access the macro lenses, you simply unscrew the fisheye and wide-angle lenses. There didn’t seem to be much of a different between the two macro lenses, however.

Example of a wide-angle shot using the Olloclip. (supplied)
Example of a wide-angle shot using the Olloclip. (supplied)

Included with the lenses are three wearable pendants, to keep the lenses accessible, which could be attached to a key ring, lanyard, or backpack.

While not tested for this article, Olloclip also has a telephoto pack of lenses ($119), which includes 2x optical magnification.

For $54, the Manfrotto 3-in-1 set included three lenses -- 0.28x fisheye, 1.5x telephoto, and 0.68x wide-angle – but requires a $20 bumper that houses the lens (which is screwed into the corner).

Made of aluminum and glass, these interchangeable lenses fared well, too, in both the ease of use and quality of the lenses. The bumper only worked with a couple of models, however, and won’t please people who prefer their own case, so the Olloclip may be a better pick overall. That said, the Manfrotto iPhone bumper also lets you slip in an optional LED light accessory ($49), and includes a tripod mount to screw the iPhone on top of, along with a small stand to prop up the device and hand strap – so it has its merits, too.

The Manfrotto lineup includes various lenses, a bumper case and a flash. (supplied)
The Manfrotto lineup includes various lenses, a bumper case and a flash. (supplied)

Assorted tips

A few thoughts to those interested in buying these lenses for smartphones:

  • Online or at retail, make sure you buy ones for your specific phone, as they’re usually fitted specifically for the model.

  • Many include a small carrying case, so be sure to place the lenses back in there to avoid getting lint on the lenses from your pocket, or worse, a scratch on the lens.

  • Keep in mind you probably need to remove your smartphone case to fit the lens on, though some might be on an adjustable hinge or with a clip (like the $9 SmartLens 3-in-1 Camera Lens System or $39 Insignia Phone Camera Lens Kit).

  • There’s also a clever thermal imaging camera accessory called the FLIR One ($249), which snaps underneath an iPhone or Android, and lets you see the heat emanating out of a person, pet or inanimate object.

Yahoo Finance Canada reader, have you ever used a smartphone camera lens? What did you think?