Four cheap ways to do macro shots

Even a disgusting fly looks oddly gorgeous upclose.

I've been fiddling around macrophotography lately using different techniques without buying an actual, professional macrocamera or macrolens. Here are four ways I've done so, DIY.

1. Carefully place a drop of water on the smartphone lens. This is obviously impractical and more like a science experiment. You also run the risk of damaging your phone if you're not careful. The magnification is also quite powerful you need very stable hands. But hey, it works!

Water droplet on thr front camera. Also, WTF are those smudges?

Toothbrush bristles

2. There are cheap clip-on macrolenses from online shops such as Lazada. I got two sets from Miniso which also include a separate fish eye lens. One set comes with a built in rechargeable LED light, which comes handy when the phone blocks the light source when it is too close to the subject. These lenses have been my bread-and-butter, especially when taking macroshots outdoors. They can also be stacked on top of each other for better magnification.

These clip-on lenses work so well I have no other wish but steady hands.

 3. Open a laser pointer (or an old DVD drive) and pluck out the lens. I secure the lens by placing it in a hole that I cut in to an old ATM card. This method is very cheap and offers greater magnification than my clip-on lenses, which is both great since I get better detail, and not so great since it's more difficult to focus.

Things just got rocket science ... ish.

Detail of a 25c coin

4. Hack open an action cam, remove the glue which keeps the lens in place and turn the lens counterclockwise. There are Youtube tutorials on how this is exactly done. You can customize your magnification by simply turning the lens further. I've done this to my Xiaomi Yi, which doesn't have a built in screen, and hence one downside is that I have to keep the camera connected to my phone via wifi to make sure it is not taking out-of-focus shots. This drains the battery of both devices quickly.

Cool!

My next project is to make a DIY gyro/rig of sort where I can attach my phone to make more stable shots.