Cheap Macro Photography

Once the cheap (actually free) laser pointer on my desk at work had run down its batteries, I did the obvious thing: I took it apart. Not just because I'm "like that," but mainly because the focusing lense of any cheap red laser pointer makes a passable approximation of a macro photography lense.

Don't believe me? After shoehorning said lense onto my cellphone camera using a bobby pin and some scotch tape, I ended up with the following images taken around the house (be sure to click the images for higher resolution):

A feather.

A flower. (I think it's a violet)

Leaf.

Ordinary fine table salt!

Wholewheat bread. Boring, yet strangely comforting.

Small font on a 1920x1080 LCD monitor.

Left index finger.

An ordinary South African 50c coin.

National coat of arms on the same coin.

Okay, so none of the above images are exactly breathtaking, but it's still a great deal cheaper than a $1,200 macro lense for your SLR.

Addendum: The cellphone in question is a Samsung Galaxy S2. Though its camera is rather ordinary, it does feature a "macro" feature which is, in all honesty, utter shit. I left it turned off while taking the above.