Thermal & Night Vision Lenses

About Lenses & Lens Adaptors

A camera is nothing without its lens. The lens is used to let light into the camera and construct an image, and this rule also applies to thermal imaging cameras.

Although thermal cameras don't use normal visible light to make an image and instead rely on IR light to construct a reading of the thermal energy around the camera, the lens is still needed to let this IR radiation into the camera and allow the camera to construct a thermal image.

Many models of thermal camera feature thermal lenses that are built into the framework of the camera, but many others also feature the ability to take out the lens and swap it for another. Depending on the lens that's equipped into the camera the capabilities of the camera might change; some thermal lenses are designed to narrow the field of view of a thermal camera, while others are designed to widen the view and allow users to pack more detail into every image.

Thermal lenses can also be used to extend the range of the camera, allowing you to get in closer to the target and spot differences in temperature much easier.