Nokia had the world in awe when it released the Lumia 1020 back in 2013, thanks to its ahead-of-the-time imaging hardware. The Windows Phone 8-running device came equipped with a 41-megapixel 2/3-inch BSI sensor with optical image stabilization (OIS) that used a spherical f/2.2 all-aspherical 1-group Carl Zeiss lens. It relied on the famed PureView technology and offered lossless digital zoom, something unheard of on smartphones back in the day. It was lauded for its imaging capabilities, and continues to be a worthy collector’s item for smartphone history geeks. One mod-loving geek has actually modified the Nokia Lumia 1020’s camera hardware to make it accept detachable SLR lenses, and it actually worked.

Image: Facebook / Peraho Qeurtes

Shared by a user named Peraho Qeurtes on Facebook, we have a full video on how the Nokia Lumia 1020’s camera hardware was tweaked to accept SLR lenses for more creative controls, alongside a few camera samples to showcase the results of the hard work. The user appears to have removed the circular camera housing that also features the Xenon flash, exposing the internal assembly that only houses the huge 41MP sensor.

Image: Facebook / Peraho Qeurtes

The user then proceeded to attach some sort of a lens mount ring on the back of the Nokia Lumia 1020. The ring appears to have been glued to the rear panel, as is clearly evident from the base which looks a bit out of place. But hey, if it works, who cares? Once the lens mount ring is attached, we can see the user easily fitting a SLR lens kit by gently rotating it into its place, just the way you would do on a DSLR camera. (For old time’s sake, you can read our Nokia Lumia 1020 review here).

Image: Facebook / Peraho Qeurtes

There is apparently no software tuning involved here, and the image sensor assembly on the Lumia 1020 was left untouched. The goal here is to take advantage of the aperture, zoom, and focus controls you get with a SLR lens, and from what we can see in the video, it works surprisingly well. We also get a look at how the point of focus and background blur intensity is easily adjusted using the ring controls of the lens, and how the light intake is played with. The whole mod project appears to work in the same way as the mobile camera lens attachments for macro or zoom effects that you can find readily available on Amazon or electronics stores. 

Image: Facebook / Peraho Qeurtes

Source: Facebook