photoxels
Ever wondered how they can squeeze a camera into a wafer-thin smartphone? That’s because the camera module itself is very small, even tiny. The “lens” (if it can be called a lens) is also miniature, some a plastic one, others a glass one. Since the thickness of the phone prohibits many lens elements, that is why we see smartphones with multiple cameras modules, each with a lens of different focal lengths to allow a semblance of zooming from wide-angle to tele.
Take a look at the Raspberry Pi, basically a circuit board with a CPU, memory, and graphic driver — in essence, a modern-day computer, all fitting on a small square circuit board. Connect it to a keyboard, mouse and monitor, and you have a fully functional computer.
While Raspberry still sells its webcam, they have now announced a new camera, one that accepts interchangeable lenses. This ILC (Interchangeable Lens Camera) features 12MP resolution on a 1/2.3″ sensor. The “Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera” outputs RAW images and even accepts interchangeable C-mount and CS-mount lenses using the optional C/CS lens adapter.
The Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera is priced about US$50 (CAD $69.95). There are two lenses available for purchase: The 16mm Telephoto Lens (US$50 / CAD $69.95) and the 6mm Wide Angle Lens (US$25 / CAD $34.95).
Raspberry Pi High Quality Camera
Third-party adapters are available from a wide variety of lens standards to CS-mount, so it is possible to connect any lens that meets the back‑focus requirements. I told ya, it’s not a big deal these days to manufacture a basic digital camera, much less a basic mirrorless camera.
