3 ms·

I Kickstarted Fractal Filters in 2014 and still derive ~90% of my income from it — www.getfractals.com. Amazon's widespread adoption in the US and foreign marke

I Kickstarted Fractal Filters in 2014 and still derive ~90% of my income from it — www.getfractals.com. Amazon's widespread adoption in the US and foreign markets has terrible implications for several industries; but it has really been helpful for my business. This xmas I'm doing the biggest numbers I've ever done which has been fantastic.

wcarss 6y ago
I almost bought this just now on impulse as a gift, but I couldn't see anything on your site's product, tutorial, or resource pages about whether I can attach them to an iPhone, which is what the person I'm buying for has. If they work as made with phones, in my opinion you should say so, and if they don't ... well, I imagine there's money to be found in that market!
- nikkwong 6y ago
  I'm working very hard on that, thank you so much for the kind feedback. Hearing stuff like this is really what encourages me to keep moving forward. Thank you!!
- nikanj 6y ago
  " The filters are hand held with an ultra-clean, reflective aluminum handle allowing you to position the filter in front of your lens exactly as you'd like. " I think this means any camera would work, because you just hold the thing in your hand. I almost impulse bought before I realized it doesn't attach to your camera at all.
ashkankiani 6y ago
What I always wonder with selling physical goods is how the process of getting production lines going went. There have been times when I've wanted to sell a physical product, but the lack of experience in that area and relative risk (for financial buy in and mistakes) made me hesitate.
- nikkwong 6y ago
  When I started this I was too dumb to know better. It was incredibly difficult and all of the money I raised on Kickstarter went down the drain due to bad suppliers and inexperience. Without the upfront investment of many people, I probably would have been put off; as getting production lines up and running, mold costs, etc. are in the 5 figures. Once you have a bit of a backing though, you can afford to make some investments that may or not pan out. For example the glass I prototype needs molds made just to see if the idea in my head will work, each of which is a few thousand bucks. A lot of times, they don't pan out and the mold is trashed. But when it does work out, it makes up for all of the failures. Happy to answer any specific questions if you want to reach out via email (in profile).
leobakerhytch 6y ago
Even though the full-size filter would surely work with a phone camera, if you could scale it down to a form factor that clips onto the phone, I can see this selling like hot cakes. Might be one of the rare cases where influencer marketing is really effective too. Is it feasible to grind the glass at a physical scale to make that work? All in all, very cool product, and congrats on making a living from it!
psalminen 6y ago
Thanks for this! Just ordered it as a perfect christmas gift for my dad.
- nikkwong 6y ago
  Thank you so much I really appreciate it. I just shipped out the order so I hope you get it soon and would love to hear what you think of it. Thank you!
elliotbnvl 6y ago
Just ordered a set for a Christmas gift. Awesome product.

wcarss 6y ago

I almost bought this just now on impulse as a gift, but I couldn't see anything on your site's product, tutorial, or resource pages about whether I can attach them to an iPhone, which is what the person I'm buying for has. If they work as made with phones, in my opinion you should say so, and if they don't ... well, I imagine there's money to be found in that market!

nikkwong 6y ago
I'm working very hard on that, thank you so much for the kind feedback. Hearing stuff like this is really what encourages me to keep moving forward. Thank you!!
nikanj 6y ago
" The filters are hand held with an ultra-clean, reflective aluminum handle allowing you to position the filter in front of your lens exactly as you'd like. " I think this means any camera would work, because you just hold the thing in your hand. I almost impulse bought before I realized it doesn't attach to your camera at all.

ashkankiani 6y ago

What I always wonder with selling physical goods is how the process of getting production lines going went. There have been times when I've wanted to sell a physical product, but the lack of experience in that area and relative risk (for financial buy in and mistakes) made me hesitate.

nikkwong 6y ago
When I started this I was too dumb to know better. It was incredibly difficult and all of the money I raised on Kickstarter went down the drain due to bad suppliers and inexperience. Without the upfront investment of many people, I probably would have been put off; as getting production lines up and running, mold costs, etc. are in the 5 figures. Once you have a bit of a backing though, you can afford to make some investments that may or not pan out. For example the glass I prototype needs molds made just to see if the idea in my head will work, each of which is a few thousand bucks. A lot of times, they don't pan out and the mold is trashed. But when it does work out, it makes up for all of the failures. Happy to answer any specific questions if you want to reach out via email (in profile).

leobakerhytch 6y ago

Even though the full-size filter would surely work with a phone camera, if you could scale it down to a form factor that clips onto the phone, I can see this selling like hot cakes. Might be one of the rare cases where influencer marketing is really effective too. Is it feasible to grind the glass at a physical scale to make that work? All in all, very cool product, and congrats on making a living from it!

psalminen 6y ago

Thanks for this! Just ordered it as a perfect christmas gift for my dad.

nikkwong 6y ago
Thank you so much I really appreciate it. I just shipped out the order so I hope you get it soon and would love to hear what you think of it. Thank you!

elliotbnvl 6y ago

Just ordered a set for a Christmas gift. Awesome product.