Andrew says “instantly the HilO Lens presented me with a completely new perspective in the camera viewfinder. It was like using a completely new camera”.Andrew used HiLO Lens to capture photos of city architecture that would otherwise be difficult using the iPhone camera in a conventional way. For example, this photo below was taken by simply standing directly under a street lamp.

Andrew found it easy to walk around with HiLO Lens. In this case the HiLO Lens app re-orientated the camera viewfinder upwards to the sky. Andrew could look at the screen of the iPhone in a conventional fashion while still viewing what was above him.

Without HiLO Lens these types of shots would typically require much more set up. Firstly, you would need to ‘imagine’ what your shot was going to look like and try to achieve that by – stopping, positioning the the iPhone vertically overhead while craning your neck to see the screen before taking the shot.

With HiLO Lens you simply see the shot on the iPhone’s screen right in front of you, exactly how the framed shot will appear. This means your shots can be set up instantly and in real time – you can see their perspective and the composition easily. This makes taking shots above you or down low much more intuitive, creative and exciting – you will discover shots you would not have imagined or would not have been easy to accomplish without HiLO Lens.

Andrew says “When visiting large cities I always take photos of the architecture. This can often make you stand out as “the tourist” in a crowd (when you are holding your phone up to get a perspective shot). HiLO Lens makes it much more comfortable to get great controlled shots without unwanted attention and looking like a gymnast in the process. I’ve only started using the HiLO Lens in the last week and its like having a light go on – once you get your hands on one and start using it the opportunities for some very cool shots become clear. It is the sort of thing that makes you want to get out and shoot, just to see what you are going to find!”

Here’s one more photo from Andrews perspective:

It’s a challenge to take good photos without becoming the spectacle in a restaurant. Typical photos can look cluttered because of the angle.

HiLO Lens allows for more discreet photos. Sitting at the table, holding the iPhone at eye level and viewing the screen, we can get a real “bird’s eye view”.

I’m not a great photographer. But one thing I’ve noted is that changing the angle of view makes for more memorable photos. Here are a couple of examples, taken with HiLO Lens last night at Adriatico:

Even if there are 21 Reasons You Should Never Take Pictures With An iPad a lot of people are pulling the iPad out for photography.

Using the iPad for photo and video editing is a great idea. This is often what people mean when referring to iPadography.

Maybe HiLO Lens can make the iPad cool for photos/video because you could “shoot from the hip” ?

Instagram uses square images. So HiLO Lens offers a wider angle shot. The following images will help explain. I took the first photo with the iPhone4 camera, then cropped it to show what Instagram would upload. I took another photo with the HiLO Lens attached, from the same position, then cropped it like Instagram.

The HiLO Lens App does not yet have an Instagram mode. But if there is enough interest it would be easy to add.

Taking photos with the camera well above eye level makes for high angle photography. This is very difficult if you can’t see the screen. Cameras with swivel screens make it much easier. HiLO Lens makes high angle photos much easier with an iPhone.

You may be wondering how the lens is holding on to the iPhone ? A magic material know as polyurethane gel has a tacky surface structure. One side of the gel pad is stuck permanently to our lens. The other side sticks temporarily to the iPhone. It does not leave any traces when you remove it. If the gel pad gets dirty then clean with soapy water and after drying it is as good as new !

The optics container is machined from a block of aluminium, then powder coated in matte black. Matte black helps reduce stray light.