Olloclip have a great range of lenses available for the iPhone 6 and 6s, as well as the iPhone Plus models. But with many different lenses to choose from, how do you know which one will best suit your needs? Whether you want to shoot close-up macro photos, flattering portraits, or wide-angle landscape photos, there’s a lens kit to suit every photographer. In this article you’ll discover which lenses are included in each olloclip iPhone 6 (and 6s) lens kit, and what kind of iPhone photography these kits are most suitable for.
Before we explore the different olloclip lens kits, let’s take a quick look at the features which are common to all of these lens systems.
The Olloclip Lens System
All of the olloclip lens kits are robust and well-designed. Each one features olloclip’s ingenious mount (or clip) which supports two offset lenses on opposite sides of the iPhone.
One lens lines up with the iPhone’s front lens, and the other aligns with the rear lens. Switching them round is quick and easy.
The lens kits come in a range of different colors, some of which are shown below.
In addition to the lenses and mount, you’ll also get several different colored plastic pendants which allow you to easily carry your olloclip around.
You simply clip the lens mount onto the pendant, allowing you to wear it around your neck with the supplied lanyard, or even clip it onto your bag.
A small plastic insert is provided with each kit, and this is required when using the lens kits with the iPhone 6, but not the 6s. This is due to the different sizes of the iPhone models.
Due to the way that the olloclip mount clips over the phone, these lens kits can’t be used with third-party iPhone cases. So you either have to use the olloclip without a case on your phone, or purchase one of olloclip’s specially designed cases.
Now you’ll discover the range of olloclip iPhone 6 and 6s lens kits, so that you can find the perfect combination of lenses to suit your iPhone photography needs.
Overview Of Olloclip iPhone 6 Lens Kits
Let’s start with a brief overview of each olloclip lens kit for the iPhone 6 and 6s – so that you know what’s included in each one. After that, you’ll find detailed reviews of each lens kit, together with example photos taken with these lenses.
Macro Pro Lens: The perfect lens kit for capturing extreme close-up macro shots of flowers, insects, textures and other small details. Includes three different Macro lens magnifications: 7x, 14x and 21x. Cost: $69.99
Telephoto + Wide-Angle + Macro 10x Lens: Probably the most useful and versatile lens kit from olloclip. Get closer to your subject with the Telephoto lens, get more into the frame with the Wide-Angle lens, and shoot beautiful close-ups with the Macro lens. Cost: $99.99
Telephoto + Wide-Angle + Macro 10x + CPL Lens: Even more versatile than the lens kit above due to the addition of the CPL lens which reduces glare and reflections, boosts colors, and darkens skies. Perfect for landscape photography and shooting outdoors. Cost: $119.99
Active Lens: Shoot further and wider with this Ultra-Wide and Telephoto lens combo. Great for landscape and travel photography, as well as portraits. Cost: $99.99
4-in-1 Lens: Comprising a Fisheye, Wide-Angle and two Macro lenses, this lens kit can expand your creativity – from extreme close-ups to ultra-wide fisheye shots. A fun lens kit, but don’t expect outright image quality. Cost: $79.99
ollo Case: The perfect partner to any of the olloclip lens kits mentioned above. It protects your phone, looks really smart, feels great, and accommodates all of olloclip’s lens kits. Cost: $29.99
Macro Pro Lens
This is the perfect lens kit for capturing stunning close-up macro shots of flowers, insects, textures and other small details.
Macro lenses open up a whole new world of photography subjects as they allow you to see the intricate details of tiny objects.
They work particularly well for capturing small detail in nature, such as leaves, petals, insects and feathers. But they’re also great for revealing tiny detail in small and textured objects, such as wood grain, rust, sand, coins and fabric.
The olloclip Macro Pro Lens kit offers three different macro magnifications: 7x, 14x and 21x. The higher the number, the higher the magnification.
As with all olloclip lens kits, the mount has a lens on each side. On one side of the mount is the 7x macro lens – which can be extended to 14x by adding the removable 14x lens. On the other side of the mount is the 21x lens.
One of the best design features of this lens kit is the InstaFocus hood. You can use this hood to press up against the surface you’re shooting in order to keep the subject at the near optimal distance from the iPhone while still allowing light to reach the subject.
I say “near” optimal because the depth of field is so shallow with these macro lenses that only perfectly flat subjects will be in perfect focus. However, the hood still gives you a good starting point for three dimensional subjects where a little bit of experimentation with the focal distance is usually required.
Another benefit of the hood is that it’s perfect for preventing small insects from escaping while you photograph them. Please note the InstaFocus hood can only be attached to the 14x and 21x macro lenses.
As with most lenses in this price bracket, you can expect to see a certain amount of blurring around the edges of the image.
Even with a completely flat subject, you can get quite heavy blurring around the corners – especially when using the highest magnification lens.
To minimize the effect that the edge blurring has on your photo, it’s best to avoid placing your subject too close to the corners of the frame.
The blurring becomes more evident at the higher magnifications, so shooting with the lower magnification lenses will give you sharper images.
When working with three-dimensional objects, such as the blueberries shown below, the depth of field is so shallow that only a small part of the subject will be in focus.
Because the depth of field is very shallow with these lenses, you’ll need to hold the iPhone very still once you’ve got the subject in focus. Any small movement of the lens will likely render your subject out of focus.
It can take a lot of patience and fine adjustment of the camera-to-subject distance to get the focus just right. However, if you can achieve sharp focus on your subject, the extremely shallow depth of field can be used for creative effect, and it’s especially useful for drawing attention to the subject of your photo.
Achieving excellent optical quality with the olloclip Macro Pro Lens system can be difficult, especially at the highest magnification. But if you accept its limitations, then what you have here is a wonderfully creative tool to add to your iPhone photography toolkit. In addition, it lets you into the amazing world of the very small that we rarely see up close.
For more information about how the this lens kit performs, check out our full in-depth review of the olloclip Macro Pro Lens.
You can purchase the olloclip Macro Pro Lens kit for $69.99 from the olloclip website.
Telephoto + Wide-Angle + Macro 10x Lens
This is probably the most useful and versatile lens kit that olloclip have to offer. It allows you to get closer to your subject with the Telephoto lens, get more into the frame with the Wide-Angle lens, and shoot extreme close-ups with the Macro lens.
This olloclip lens kit includes a 2x Telephoto lens on one side, and a Wide-Angle lens on the other. As an added bonus, you can unscrew the Wide-Angle lens to reveal a Macro 10x lens.
It’s worth remembering that the iPhone’s built-in lens is fairly wide-angle. While this is great for getting more into the frame, it means that distant subjects can appear very small in your images.
The olloclip 2x Telephoto lens can help with this as it allows you to capture a closer view of your subject without having to walk any closer to it.
Below is a photo of a castle that was shot with the built-in lens of the iPhone. Unfortunately it also includes some of the carpark in the foreground.
Rather than walking closer to your subject, the olloclip Telephoto lens allows you to effectively zoom in on the scene – as you can see in the photo below.
These two photos were shot from exactly the same position, demonstrating that the Telephoto lens allows you to capture a much closer view of the subject without having to move physically closer.
Like most of the olloclip lenses (and other iPhone lenses in this price bracket), you’ll probably get some blurring around the edges of the image, but the central area should be nice and sharp.
The Telephoto lens is also perfect for situations where getting closer to your subject isn’t an option, such as when photographing wildlife or a candid moment with your child where to get any closer might distract them.
Another downside to the built-in lens on the iPhone is that it can make facial features appear distorted. Have you ever noticed that your subject’s nose looks disproportionally large when you take a close-up portrait shot? This is caused by the wide-angle nature of the iPhone lens.
Using a telephoto lens for portrait photography is often a better option as it doesn’t produce the distortion that you get with wide-angle lenses. The result is a more realistic and flattering portrait. A telephoto lens also means you don’t have to hold your iPhone camera so close to your subject’s face.
The left-hand photo below was shot with the iPhone’s built-in lens. Notice how the subject’s face is somewhat distorted and his nose seems enlarged.
The right-hand image was taken with the olloclip 2x Telephoto lens. With this lens you don’t get the distortion, and his facial proportions are more life-like and flattering.
Flipping this lens kit over allows you to use the Wide-Angle lens. This lens lets you fit much more of your subject and the surrounding area into the frame.
A wide-angle lens is perfect for shooting landscapes, group shots, and any situation where you’re restricted from moving further away from your subject – perhaps because you’re in a small room or there’s a busy road behind you.
Keep in mind that wide-angle lenses create distortion in your subjects. So straight lines – such as horizons or the edges of a building – are likely to appear curved.
You can see the effect of this wide-angle distortion in the photo below. Notice how the castle appears to be leaning or curving in towards the center of the photo.
This distortion is to be expected with all wide-angle lenses, so it isn’t a fault with olloclip. However, the softening or blurring around the edges of the image is due to the fact that these are mid-range lenses which don’t produce professional quality results.
Unscrewing the Wide-Angle lens reveals a Macro 10x lens for capturing extreme close-up shots. This lens behaves in the same way as the lenses in the Macro Pro Lens kit.
You’ll need to experiment with the subject-to-lens distance until you achieve the best possible focus on your subject. Remember that macro lenses produce a very shallow depth of field, so only a small part of your subject is likely to be in sharp focus.
If you want a versatile lens kit that allows you to shoot anything from wide-angle to extreme close-ups, this lens kit is a great option.
You can purchase the olloclip Telephoto + Wide-Angle + Macro 10x Lens kit for $99.99.
Telephoto + Wide-Angle + Macro 10x + CPL Lens
This lens kit is the same as the kit shown above, but with an additional CPL (Circular Polarizing Lens).
A circular polarizing lens is basically a filter that reduces glare and reflections. This makes it perfect for photographing water and other reflective surfaces.
For example, if you’re photographing a river, the glare from the sun can create significant reflections that might overpower the photo – as shown in the photo below.
Using a CPL can can remove most, if not all, of the glare from the water’s surface. Below is the same scene photographed using the olloclip CPL.
Reducing or removing the reflections allows you to see more color and detail on the water’s surface. And if the water is clear and shallow you’ll be able to capture the detail of the riverbed.
Below is another example of using the olloclip CPL to reduce the glare on a shiny leaf. Notice how the reflected glare in the image on the left is completely removed by using the Circular Polarizing Lens.
As well as reducing glare and reflections, a CPL also makes the colors in your photo look rich and true to life. When shooting outdoors, you’ll notice that it can also make skies appear darker.
The left-hand photo below was taken with the CPL. The photo on the right shows how the olloclip CPL makes the colors more vibrant and the sky a darker blue.
To use the olloclip CPL, simply point the iPhone at your subject and rotate the CPL’s outer ring until you achieve the result you want.
You’ll get the best results if you shoot perpendicular to the sun, i.e. with the sun at 90 degrees to where you’re pointing the iPhone.
The great thing about the olloclip CPL is that it doesn’t create any blurring or distortion in your image – like some of the other lenses do. This is because it’s really just a filter (which filters out a certain type of light) rather than an optical lens.
The CPL is a really great addition to any lens kit as it allows you to capture a punchy, more color-saturated image with less glare and fewer unwanted reflections.
Combined with the olloclip Telephoto, Wide-Angle and Macro lenses, this is a really great kit for landscape photography. You can shoot wide-angle scenery shots, get closer to distant subjects, and capture extreme close-ups of nature – all with reduced glare and colors that really pop.
The olloclip Telephoto + Wide-Angle + Macro 10x + CPL Lens kit can be purchased for $119.99. The extra $20 that you pay for the Circular Polarizing Lens is definitely worth it, compared to the same kit without the CPL.
Active Lens
If you’re not interested in taking close-up macro shots, the olloclip Active Lens kit might be of interest to you – especially if you enjoy traveling and shooting landscapes.
This lens kit only has two lenses: a 2x Telephoto lens and an Ultra-Wide lens.
The Telephoto lens lets you quickly zoom in on a distant subject. And it’s also great for shooting more flattering portrait photos without any facial distortion.
The Telephoto performs well, however, as you’ve probably guessed, you’ll likely notice some softening at the corners of the frame. It’s therefore advisable to keep your main subject fairly central in the composition.
If you flip the lens around you’ll be able to use the Ultra-Wide lens which lets you capture much more of the scene within the frame.
This is perfect for wide open landscapes as it captures more sky and foreground, allowing you to tell more of a story in a single shot.
Below are three photos of the same subject that were shot from the exact same position. The image on the left was shot with the Ultra-Wide lens, the middle photo was taken with the iPhone’s built-in lens, and the right-hand picture was shot with the 2x Telephoto lens.
This comparison shows what a difference using these two olloclip lenses can have on the final image.
Below you can see larger versions of these photos to give you a better idea of the quality, distortion and edge-blurring that you get with each lens.
First is the Ultra-Wide lens which creates a super-wide view of the scene. But as you’d expect with an extremely wide-angle lens, there’s noticeable distortion/curving, especially on the left-hand side of the castle. A small amount of blurring is visible in the corners.
Next is the photo taken with the built-in iPhone lens. This image is sharp from edge-to-edge, which is what you’d expect from the iPhone’s high quality lens.
And finally, you can see the photo taken with the 2x Telephoto lens which shows how much closer you can get to your subject. While the image is sharp in the center, there is some undesirable blurring around the edges.
For this reason, it’s best to keep your main subject centered, and maybe shoot from a bit further away so that you can crop away the blurred edges in post-processing.
The olloclip Active Lens kit costs $99. This does seem quite expensive compared to some of the other lens kits – considering it only consists of two lenses. However, it’s the only lens kit that contains the Ultra-Wide lens – so if this appeals to you, the Active Lens kit would be the one to go for.
4-in-1 Lens
This is a versatile lens kit which allows you to capture anything from extreme close-ups to ultra-wide fisheye shots.
The 4-in-1 Lens kit appears to come with only two lenses – a Fisheye lens on one side and a Wide-Angle on the other. However, unscrewing either of these lenses reveals a Macro lens beneath.
As you’ve seen with some of the other olloclip lens kits, the Wide-Angle lens allows you to get more of the scene into the frame. However, keep in mind that this lens does suffer from quality issues and you’re likely to see blurring around the edges.
The olloclip Fisheye lens could be considered as rather gimmicky. The Fisheye lens captures way more of the scene than the Wide-Angle lens, resulting in a circular image with a huge amount of distortion. Straight lines will appear extremely curved, and you’ll see a black border surrounding the circular image.
Below are some examples of a scene captured with the iPhone’s built-in lens (left), the olloclip Wide-Angle lens (center), and the olloclip Fisheye lens (right).
The uses for a Fisheye lens are fairly limited, however, it does allow you to produce some very creative images if you like this kind of look.
The two Macro lenses offer 10x and 15x magnification, which let you shoot close-up photos of small subjects and interesting textures.
These work in the same way as the other olloclip Macro lenses already discussed. Just remember that the depth of field is very shallow with these lenses, so you’ll need to carefully adjust the lens-to-subject distance until you achieve good focus on your subject.
Due to the blurring that you get around the edges of the photo with these lenses, aim to keep your subject fairly central to ensure it appears sharp.
The olloclip 4-in-1 Lens kit can be purchased for $79.99. There’s also a version of the 4-in-1 lens kit specifically designed to fit the OtterBox uniVERSE case.
While this lens kit can be used for expanding your creativity, it’s probably only worth purchasing if you think you’ll make use of the Fisheye lens.
If you don’t want to shoot Fisheye photos, but you want a lens kit with a Wide-Angle and Macro lens, a better option would be the Telephoto + Wide-Angle + Macro 10x Lens kit.
Ollo Case
Finally, it’s worthwhile mentioning this excellent case for your iPhone 6/6s or 6/6s Plus. Not only does the ollo Case protect your iPhone, but it has a special cutout designed to accept the olloclip lens kits.
You can’t use the olloclip lenses with other phone cases, so without the ollo Case you’d have to shoot with your iPhone unprotected.
The ollo Case is excellent quality, sturdy, and offers a rubberized edging which makes the iPhone much easier to keep hold of when shooting. You can keep the case on your phone even when you’re not shooting with your olloclip lenses.
The ollo Case costs $29.99 and is available in black, orange or clear.
Olloclip iPhone 6: Conclusion
While olloclip doesn’t offer the most superior professional-grade lenses on the market, their lens kits are extremely popular and they have a great range of different lenses for a wide range of uses.
Whether you want to shoot close-up macro shots or ultra-wide angle landscapes, you’re sure to find a lens kit that suits your needs.
Keep in mind that lenses in this price range tend to suffer from some blurring around the edges, and olloclip are no exception.
With lenses, you tend to get what you pay for. If you’re looking for the highest quality optics, check out the Zeiss Exolens range which offers exceptional image quality for an add-on lens – but expect to pay around double the olloclip prices.
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