It's incredible that you can make inexpensive, vintage-style lenses at home. Thankfully for us, getting a new camera lens is easy in just a few steps.
For those who don't know, photographer Matthew Stern is a huge camera lens collector and has used all kinds of weird and wonderful lenses from around the world. In his recent video, the featured lens was salvaged from the popular Kodak disposable camera Fun Saver. With his basic DIY skills, Stern was able to remove the lens from the original camera and attach it to the camera body's cap, allowing it to be used on the Sony A7 body.
The video goes on to show the early results, giving it a lo-fi, dreamy, cinematic look that many may like. Disappointing findings during initial testing showed that this his DIY lens lacked perfect focus and had somewhat limited close-up capabilities. For this reason, Mr. Stern decided to collaborate with one of his YouTube channel subscribers to build his 3D printed housing with a focus control mechanism. As a result, the results were significantly improved.
What I like about this project is the fact that there are several entry points for photographers to try adding this lens to their camera bag. There are full-fledged DIY versions that involve drilling and gluing, as well as 3D printed versions that you can buy ready-made or print at home using the necessary printing files. If you don't have a Sony FE mount, don't worry, you can easily make this retro lens work with your camera's compatible body cap.
While many photographers continue to strive for perfection in their images, I personally find something more authentic and approachable about images that have a lo-fi nature. Maybe it's just nostalgia on my part, but I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. This DIY creation of his doesn't replace your existing equipment, but with such an inexpensive lens you definitely have more creative options at your fingertips, so it's well worth a try.
What do you think about this DIY lens? Would you like to try shooting with this kind of work? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
