Microscopic Photo Acccessory

Cell Phone Macro Lens Attachment

In a previous post, I wrote about the advantages of using jeweler's loupes in the 20-40X range to identify species when anatomical structure cannot been determined with the naked eye.  Since then, I always have taken along my 20X and 30X lenses to view the microstructure of colonial ascidians, bryozoans, red algae, and small crustaceans.  One of the disadvantages of the jeweler's loupe is that, although they are terrific for identifying and recording, they do not provide satisfactory in-focus images for documentation. 

Last fall, I had the opportunity to try a macro lens mobile phone attachment for my iPhone 6s, the olloclip Macro for 6/6s, which offers a 7x, 14x, and 21x lens adapter.  It proved valuable for producing quality in-focus images worthy of cataloging with the caveat that numerous, multiple images need to be taken to get suitable photos.  The focal plane is fairly narrow, so the camera needs to be held at the exact distance from the object, and any movement will give an out-of-focus image.  Ideally, structures with three dimensional features will have in-focus features in the center and out-of-focus features around the periphery.  The seawater around the subject also needs to be shallow so the camera lens can get close enough to the object to obtain focus such as in a shallow tray.  It is best to have the subjects as close to the surface as possible without disrupting the smooth surface level. 

Olloclip Macro Lens Attachment

 

These images show the Olloclip Macro lens attachments for the iPhone 7/8 Series.  The adapter has a 2 piece 7x and 14x (7x + 2x) lens on one side, and a single 21x objective lens on the other side (a single 15x Macro lens is available for the iPhone X).  Note that the case must be removed in order to place the adapter on the camera lens.   These lenses were useful for approximating images possible by a stereoscopic light microscope.  

Macro Images of Botrylloides violaceus

Macro images of Botrylloides violaceus collected from the floating docks at MacMillan Pier, November, 2017 showing chains of orange zooids against a contrasting dark background.  Numerous incurrent siphons and several shared excurrent siphons are evident. Also shown are orange ampullae of the blood vessel system in the common tunic.  Images were edited with Photoshop by cropping and slightly adjusting brightness and contrast.

Enlarged Macro Images of Botrylloides violaceus

Enlarged macro images of Botrylloides violaceus collected from the floating docks at MacMillan Pier.  In the upper photo, the solid orange endostyle can be discerned on a few zooids.  These photos were more cropped and resized, giving an enlargement effect. 

LINKS:  

Olloclip Macro Lens for iPhone available from Apple or online retailers:  Apple adapter for iPhone 7/8. Adapter for iPhone 6/6s being phased out.  A 10x + 15x macro lens pair also available as part of a 4-in-1 lens.
Olloclip Macro Lens for iPhone X:  Fisheye + Macro 15x Lens
Review of the Olloclip 4-in-1 Wide-Angle/Macro Lens:  https://9to5mac.com/2014/12/22/review-olloclip-4-in-1-lens-for-iphone-6/.
Olloclip Macro Lens Introduced:  Macro 3-in-1 lens.
Helpful Monitoring Accessories:  Jeweler's Loupe for Specimen Identification.
Tunicarium:  Microscopic images of Botrylloides violaceus.