Using a fisheye lens with the Kodak Zi6
Last week, I got a couple of lens adapters meant for mobile phones in the mail. Today, while playing with my Zi6, I realized that the lens adapters fit perfectly on the Zi6. There is a little metal ring with sticky tape that the lenses attach to via magnets which fits perfectly on the Zi6 without affecting the image.
Simply pop the lens onto the Zi6 and you have a wide angle or fisheye lens:
Fisheye/Wide Angle lens adapters on the Kodak Zi6 from John Biehler on Vimeo.
The lens adapters come with a couple of the metal rings each so I can use them on a number of devices…even with a Mac’s iSight camera.
Update: These lenses should also fit the Kodak Zx1 or just about any pocket HD camera.
Update 2: Check out my Playland post to see a video shot almost entirely with the fisheye lens attached to the Zi6…although you may not like it if you’re not a fan of rollercoasters.
Thursday, February 5th, 2009 : Camera, Photography, Video : 22 Comments
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22 Responses to “Using a fisheye lens with the Kodak Zi6”
February 6th, 2009 at 12:59 pm
This is great! The wide angle lens would definitely benefit the Zi6 short field view.
February 6th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
[...] Biehler is working his way through some interesting photographic accessories, trying out a fisheye lens with the Kodak Zi6. The Zi6 is a pocket camcorder like the Flip and Vado, but popping on that fisheye lens produces a [...]
March 12th, 2009 at 8:20 pm
[...] suction cup gorilla pod mount for my Zi6 HD camera that you can see on the right. I also added the fisheye lens adapter to the [...]
March 22nd, 2009 at 6:31 pm
[...] macro feature of the lens adaptors I bought awhile ago for my iPhone (which I can also use on my Zi6 which has it’s own macro [...]
March 27th, 2009 at 8:22 pm
[...] like to stick my cameras onto things as well as stick things onto them so the size and form factor was [...]
April 3rd, 2009 at 4:59 pm
John, where did you get your fisheye lens for the zi6? Jay
April 4th, 2009 at 9:53 pm
It’s linked in the article (to a previous post about getting them)…usbfever.com
April 27th, 2009 at 11:27 am
dude… where did you find these lenses???
April 27th, 2009 at 11:55 am
Dude….see my comment right above yours with the link to them!
April 30th, 2009 at 12:44 am
Hey John, how does the Zi6 do with a good amount of movement?
Is there any stabilization tech. in the camera? (I’ve looked but haven’t seen any definite answers)
Are the magnetic lenses fairly secure? Would they withstand some serious movement?
One final question (unrelated to lenses), how’s the battery life on the 2 supplied AAs?
Ryan
April 30th, 2009 at 5:49 am
There is no stabilization tech in the camera. You’d have to define serious movement – they are rare earth magnets so they can withstand a fair bit but I don’t know if I’d trust them strapped to mountain bike. I certainly haven’t tested them by flinging the camera around. I haven’t opened the included AAs yet as I have a lot of Sanyo Eneloop batteries on hand already.
April 30th, 2009 at 11:23 am
Thanks John. Serious movement would be exactly what you said — mountain biking, or snowboarding. The fisheye looks like it really “tames” a bouncing image, even from your short comparison video. See more, focus on small abrupt movements less perhaps. Just off the top of your head, do the batteries cause any more annoyances than a Li-ion batteries?
Many thanks.
April 30th, 2009 at 2:09 pm
The batteries seem to last quite a while…hours in fact while the camera is on, recording or playing back. I’ve been quite impressed with the battery performance of the camera. The easy ability to swap out AAs is one of the main reasons I got the camera in the first place.
May 2nd, 2009 at 8:28 pm
Will this also work on the zx1 as well, or are the lenses different sizes? This is pretty amazing! (please forgive the duplicate comment on your iphone post, i was on the wrong page!)
May 2nd, 2009 at 9:30 pm
Bryan: The lenses will work the same as on the iPhone or Zi6 – you just need to attach the ring which fits them all.
May 15th, 2009 at 5:40 pm
John, Thanks for the great lens tips. I just got my wide angle lens in the mail today. Wow, it increases the Zi6 field of vision by at least 30%. That might not sound like a lot on the surface, but it is pretty dramatic, as you have demonstrated, when you do a comparison with and without the lens. I really like how easy it is to put it on and remove. The magnet works really well and stayed in place even with some fast and jerky motions. Have you tried the 2X Telephoto lens they advertise? I’m wondering if it would be worth getting one.
May 15th, 2009 at 7:04 pm
Jim: Glad I could help! Haven’t considered the tele yet…I’m more of a wide angle guy ;)
May 22nd, 2009 at 5:38 am
Hi, what is the exact model of the fish eye lens you purchased? Could you let me know,
Thanks
May 22nd, 2009 at 5:41 am
Fisheye: http://www.usbfever.com/index_eproduct_view.php?products_id=867
Wide angle: http://www.usbfever.com/index_eproduct_view.php?products_id=789
Both are linked in the article, although not directly…you would have had to click through and read my post about acquiring them for my iPhone which has more information.
June 12th, 2009 at 11:01 am
Hey John, are those lenses sold in any stores?
June 12th, 2009 at 11:09 am
I haven’t seen them in any stores but that doesn’t mean they aren’t.
July 2nd, 2009 at 7:40 pm
Thanks for the comment! Saw your video with the lenses before I made the purchase. Definitely thought that was pretty slick!
http://www.gabetaviano.com/videos/kodak-zi6-initial-test