A Unique Perspective. The Lens Ball Review. Samples and thoughts.

A Unique Perspective. The Lens Ball Review. Samples and thoughts.

By Steve Huff

So one day while answering messages on Facebook I saw an ad in my news feed for a “lens ball”. It looked to be a glass ball and nothing more. You know, almost like a “crystal ball”. But when I saw some samples of some who have used it, I thought “wow, that’s sort of cool”! Even though I figured it would be a gimmick and I would use it for a few days and never again, I bought one from the Facebook ad. $30 or so and 2 weeks later I received my lens ball. Just as it was marketed, it was a glass ball that one can use like a lens, a very ultra wide lens to fill the ball with your subject while being different, unique and fun.

My Video Overview of the Lensball

Now this is just a glass ball but when I started using it not only was I wowed by this, so were my son, my mom, Debby and others I was snapping away at. It’s a cool concept and not one to use all the time but when you want to have some fun, maybe at a family gathering, holiday party or get together… a cool way to add something different to the normal photos. It’s also pretty cheap to get into. Here is some info on the lens ball, from lensball.com (where I bought mine):

“Lensball is an ultra-clear sphere made out of K9 crystal. K9 crystal is incredibly hard, scratch resistant and most commonly used in lenses and optics. Generally, the 80MM Lensball gives you the best possible result. However, the 60MM Lensball weighs only 250 grams, and is therefore perfect for travelling, or when you just don’t feel like carrying around its 650 gram big brother! Think of Lensball as a gorgeous accessory that sparks the interest of everyone around you with the added benefit that it allows you to capture breathtaking images.”

With that said, I bought the largest 80mm version, and it is what I would recommend. At $34.95 with free shipping, it’s a very cool photo accessory to have in your arsenal. I can see some cool wedding shots coming out of this. Maybe 1-2 shots in a wedding portfolio? Yep.

The ball itself is high quality, scratch free and clear as can be. I have seen some on Amazon but they may or may not be of lesser quality. See the amazon version HERE. 

So below you will see a few fun samples from my 1st couple of days with a lens ball. CLICK THEM for larger versions. Some were shot with an Olympus PEN-F and the Venus Optics 7.5mm f/2 lens from LAOWA lens. Other were shot with a Leica SL and 24-90. Doesn’t matter though as the lens used here for the subjects was the lens ball! Cheap, fun, solid, and great quality. I recommend this for anyone looking for something different to shake up their creative minds a bit ; )

CLICK IMAGES FOR LARGER VERSIONS!

Getting Spooky with the Crystal Ball

Add some water underneath, a light source and some agitation and you never know what you will capture in this thing… I placed a jar underneath with 2″ of water, some red food color, shook the glass and snapped these photos (yes really). Many of you may not know I also run Huff Paranormal and have been doing paranormal work for seven years. Visual and audible communication with those who say they are the dead (yes, really). Below are images caught using the lens ball in this scenario and is part of water scrying, mixed with crystal ball scrying. So the lens ball can be used for many things, and for under $35, or even $15 it is a great buy if you want to boost you creative mind or are in a slump. This can help bring you out of a slump. It’s fun, cool and I would bet that many of you have never tried this! I haven’t, so for me it was a nice surprise.

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