Review: Moment Battery Photo Case and Lenses

As much as it makes photo enthusiasts grit their teeth, iPhoneography is a thing. Unlike in the early days of mobile photography, the cameras inside phones are now so darn good, they easily meet the needs of the serious hobbyist. Software is largely to thank for the explosion of great-looking photos spewing out of our mobile devices. But, if you want to greatly improve the technical quality of your pictures, software can only get you so far. That's why attachment lenses for phones are still relevant—products like the Moment lenses I recently got to use are the perfect example of why that is.

A typical smartphone has a slightly wide-angle lens, usually with a 28mm equivalent focal length. That's not too wide, but also not terribly "zoomed-in." With that typical lens, it's more likely that you'll need to step closer to your subject than back away when framing a shot on a smartphone. If you want to get a wider or narrower field of view, or if you want to zoom in on a subject without resorting to resolution-killing digital tricks, you'll need to snap a supplemental lens on top of your phone's built-in camera.

Moment

The two Moment lenses I tested, in conjunction with the company's iPhone Battery Photo Case that has a special slot for attaching the lenses, made for a delightful combination that captured a wide variety of shots. I very much enjoyed shooting with this setup. I used an iPhone 7 for my tests. The same Moment Battery Photo Case fits both the iPhone 7 and 8, and there are unique (non-battery) photo cases for the iPhone X, Galaxy phones, and Pixels. For my testing, I attached the 18mm wide-angle lens and the 170-degree super fisheye lens, both of which securely slot into the case's bayonet mount.

The Battery Photo Case is a pretty nice piece of kit. Made from a dark charcoal silicone permeated with some kind of silvery fleck, it boosts your iPhone's battery to almost double its normal runtime (with Moment bragging a 90-percent additional charge). Unlike some battery cases, it's neither ugly, nor does it make your iPhone look like it's carrying tiny, lithium-ion stuffed backpack.

Most importantly, the Battery Photo Case adds a two-stage shutter button. Though the shutter button works with the stock iOS camera app, you get way more features out of the case when you use Moment's own app to control the camera. It's the only way to get the half-step autofocus from the shutter button, and the Moment app also lets you select which battery you want to be active—the one in your phone or the one in the case. On the bottom of the case are two handy lanyard attachment points so you can wear the assembly around your neck or wrist, and there's a standard Lightning port that lets you charge up with your regular, run-of-the-mill iPhone charger.

Since the app is the only way to get the most out of the shutter button. it's a good thing then that it has other useful features too. Not only does it come with a gaggle of shooting aids, it also lets you pick your file format. You can shoot in JPEG, TIFF, and even DNG RAW. I found the easy-to-use app reminiscent of my favorite alternate iOS camera, Halide. And yes, it can shoot video too.

One surprise with this package of Moment gear was the high quality of the lenses. Made of metal and glass, and including a front lens cap, these attachments feel excellent to carry inside a hoodie pocket, and solidly mount and detach from the case. Image quality itself is also surprisingly good—even though the two wide lenses I carried had an expected amount of distortion, both acquitted themselves very well. Other lens options include a 60mm-equivalent 2X telephoto lens made for shooting portraits, and a 25mm-equivalent macro lens for close-ups.

Since I'm not making 1990's skateboard videos, I used the 18mm lens for some street photography while exploring the sidewalks of San Francisco's SoMa neighborhood. In the late afternoon sun, I noticed some lens flare (despite the lens's built-in petal hood) but upon closer inspection, the pictures were impressively sharp.

Everything wasn't perfect. For instance, one time I went to go shooting with the battery case disconnected from the Moment app. Unbeknownst to me, the case had lost most of its charge just hanging around in my bag for a few days, rendering the shutter button absolutely useless. I guess I expected it to work whether or not it had a charge, but in my experience, it won't.

Then there's the price. As someone who's shot with tens of thousands of dollars' worth of photo equipment over the years, I understand that there's a direct connection between optical quality and price. The Moment Battery Photo Case for iPhone, the two wide lenses, and lens carrying case cost around $300 together.

If you love photography that much, you should seriously consider getting a standalone camera. Throwing no shade on the miraculous state of miniaturized mobile cameras, a way more powerful photo setup could easily be within your budget for that much green. $300 could get you an older, used DSLR—and at that point you could save a bit more and spring for a new Sony RX100 point-and-shoot. Sure, shooting with a phone is remarkably convenient and, with the help of lens attachments, can produce some great results. However, even the best lens attachments can't juice up an iPhone's small sensor to achieve the levels of detail you can get with mirrorless or DSLR cameras, and even the best camera apps can leave creative opportunities on the table.

So, even though this photo snob came away impressed with Moment's premium kit, I'm still unconvinced it's for everyone looking to further explore photography. If you've come to love photography by shooting with your iPhone, now might be the moment to take the plunge and treat yourself to a camera.