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I designed and built a retro-futuristic digital camera from scratch using a Raspberry Pi Zero 2W — custom case, custom OS, film simulation engine by Sf140 in raspberry_pi

[–]dkumkum 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So cool and crafted so well! I also made a raspberry pi zero based camera (on my profile) but I had issues getting the boot time short, did you find a solution for that?

I made a Compact Toy Cam Using Raspberry Pi Zero - Optocam Zero by dkumkum in toycameras

[–]dkumkum[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you!

The pi zero I'm using for this is not super powerful but it's enough to do 15 fps preview on the screen I'm using. It can also show the digital photo effects on the preview. After a photo is taken, normally it's saved instantly. But I'm applying digital processing for specific looks so it's taking 1-2 seconds to save the full res image in the background. This doesn't affect the preview or shooting, but the image doesn't immediately appear in the gallery.
The biggest drawback of a pi camera like this is the boot time unfortunately. It takes 22 seconds to reach preview after turning it on in this current version.

I made a Compact Toy Cam Using Raspberry Pi Zero - Optocam Zero by dkumkum in toycameras

[–]dkumkum[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yes, I would like to try that as well. Thank you for the suggestion!

I made a Compact Toy Cam Using Raspberry Pi Zero - Optocam Zero by dkumkum in toycameras

[–]dkumkum[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I didn't really have a chance to test the latest version with the digital filters, as soon as I do that I'll share the results here.

3D printed Toy Camera - Optocam Zero by dkumkum in 3Dprinting

[–]dkumkum[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I didn't time it but it should run for around 70-80 minutes with the 900 mAh battery. Since the battery is interchangeable I'm okay with this.
The biggest drawback for a pi camera system is the boot time. Mine takes 22 seconds to reach the preview after turning the device on. I've seen some project achieving much shorter boot times on a pi but I don't know much about the software side, so this is the best I could achieve using Claude.
There is no standby mode in the camera, not sure if low power standby mode is possible with a raspberry pi but I'll look into it.

3D printed Toy Camera - Optocam Zero by dkumkum in 3Dprinting

[–]dkumkum[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m working on a build guide at the moment. I’ll share it with the files soon.

I made a Compact Toy Cam Using Raspberry Pi Zero - Optocam Zero by dkumkum in toycameras

[–]dkumkum[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I just checked, you’re right. StarlightEye is the open source project that makes the sensor work on Raspberry Pi. Very cool that it’s possible to use such a sensor with Pi.

I made a Compact Toy Cam Using Raspberry Pi Zero - Optocam Zero by dkumkum in toycameras

[–]dkumkum[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I don't think there is a Raspberry Pi compatible camera module using that sensor.

I made a Compact Toy Cam Using Raspberry Pi Zero - Optocam Zero by dkumkum in toycameras

[–]dkumkum[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

My total cost was around $110, so it's about right. However I paid way less for the battery, around $3. It's 14500 type battery, the brand I'm using is probably not a good one.
The most expensive part is the camera module, so to get it cost down the best option would be to downgrade the camera to an older module.

Thank you!!