Thursday, July 11, 2013

Why I don't like the Olloclip Lenses for iPhones

Now that I have your attention, I really do like the Olloclip lenses. Just not for use in a school. https://www.olloclip.com/order/iphone4/

Bea Cantor's free book on using the Olloclip for macrophotraphy of insects got me intrigued. If you haven't seen her book, take some time to download it to iBooks on your iPad and read it.
Bea Cantor - Calling Nature (Free) - https://itun.es/i6x72cq

The problem with using the Olloclip lenses in school is that they can only be used with the iPhone. You have to order it specifically for the iPhone 4s or the iPhone 5. They are not interchangeable. I have the Olloclip for my iPhone 4s, but it won't work with my wife's iPhone 5. Also, few of our students, especially at the elementary level, have iPhones they can bring to school, and we are not going to purchase iPhones for use by students.

I have the Olloclip lenses for my iPhone 4s, but prefer to use the Photojojo lenses instead. These are the lenses that I would suggest schools consider purchasing.
http://photojojo.com/store/awesomeness/cell-phone-lenses/

Why?

There are several reasons.

The Photojojo lens kit is less expensive. The list price is $49 vs $69.99 for the Olloclip.

The Photojojo lens kit can be used on any iPhone, iPad, or Android device. They can also be used on the 4th Generation iPod Touch.

The Photojojo lens kit can be used on three different iOS devices at the same time, where the Olloclip can only be used on one device at a time.

Since we are most interested in the maco lens, we can purchase the Wide/macro lens for $20 instead of purchasing the entire lens kit. We just ordered 20 of the Wide/Macro lenses to be used with iPads, iPad Minis and 4th Generation iPod Touch devices.

The Photojojo lens kit includes a 2X Telephoto lens which is not available with the Olloclip. We ordered five of these lens kits to get the telephoto lens and five more macro lenses.

If you aren't aware of the Photojojo site, take a look. They are starting a Phoneography 101 course (Note: not an iPhoneography course) August 1st.
http://photojojo.com/university/

Photojojo University is a 4-week course that teaches you the principles of photography through the lens of your phone. Twice a week you’ll get an email with a simple and fun lesson that ends with a challenge to help you solidify your new skills.

Whatever you decide to do, take a look at Bea Cantor's book and see how you can use macro-photography in your classroom.

6 comments:

  1. I agree Craig, love my Photojojo lens. Since you have used with kids.. How is the durability? Any problems with that?

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    1. No issues other than losing or misplacing them. Since they are magnetic it is easy to have one knocked off and not notice it. We ask they remove the lens when not in use, just like we ask them to put a lens cap on a lens when not using it.

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  2. Sounds like a good buy with a gift certificate! :-)

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  3. I've used the PhotoJojo for the same reasons you mention, but now I'm hooking on my Mobi-Lens because I don't need to worry about the metal ring and can use it with my iPad, iPhone, loan it to someone with a *shudder* Android... check it out! http://mobi-lens.com

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    Replies
    1. *hooked on
      Caffeine hadn't kicked in...

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    2. Looks interesting, I will have to order one in a check it out.

      Personally I don't mind the metal ring, but we would need to put one on every iPad that we want to use the Photojojo lens on.

      Doesn't have the 2X telephoto option but that isn't used much compared to the macro lens.

      Thanks!

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