What to point your camera at
In a kaleidoscope the source matters far more than the settings. Point the same setup at a blank wall and you get a boring disc; point it at a flower petal and you get something closer to stained glass. The sources that work all share three traits: crisp edges, distinct colour and a little bit of disorder.
Outdoors
Leaf veins, bare branches, moss, gravel, seashells and petals are the most reliable sources there are. Water is especially good: a reflection in a puddle animates the pattern by itself as the surface ripples. Sunlight filtering through foliage turns into bright specks that give the pattern a glowing centre.
In the city
Neon signs, headlight reflections on wet asphalt, shop windows, rusted metal, graffiti and brick joints are the city's most productive textures. At night, letting light sources sit inside the frame leaves burning cores in the pattern. Shooting while walking also works well — the source keeps changing, so the pattern flows on its own.
At home
The kitchen is a small studio for this: sliced citrus, spices, sparkling water, crumpled foil, the rim of a glass. Fabrics, rug patterns, book spines, soap foam and frosted glass all perform beautifully. Shining a flashlight through a coloured glass makes a homemade source that is surprisingly rich.
Frequently asked questions
Does it work in the dark?
It does, but the pattern turns grey. Including a small light source in the frame — a candle, a phone torch, a streetlamp — turns darkness into an advantage.
How close should I get?
The closest distance your phone can still focus at is usually best; the closer you go, the larger the texture and the more abstract the pattern.
Can I use a human face?
You can, but the result is often unsettling. Hair, eyelashes or a detail of colourful clothing looks far better than a face.
How do I add colour filters to the pattern?
Pre-mirror controls like hue shift, saturation and contrast are applied to the source before the mirroring happens, so the filter shows up across the whole reflected pattern.
How do I get different patterns from the same source?
Keep the source still and change the segment count, mirror mode or rotation angle instead; even a small adjustment produces a completely different pattern.
Turn your camera into a kaleidoscope. PATTERN builds a living, fluid symmetry out of one small core square in the middle of your screen. Save photos and videos; nothing leaves your device.
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