Poor man's Document camera

I needed a document camera for presentation. Typical camera cost about $100 on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/INSWAN-Document-Camera-Auto-Focus-Supplemental/dp/B07PQJZK66

That is a bit too much for occasional uses. So I decided to make my own.

It is made with an old webcam that I have around and an old desk lamp that I bought for $20. 

Held in place by rubber band

A new webcam can be bought for about $30 but I particularly like my old Logitech C270 because it is fixed focused. A small problem is that the webcam is factory calibrated to focus from about 18" (a typical distance for web chat) to infinity. Unfortunately, 18" is too far for presentation because a typical drawing on paper will be too small. Fortunately, there is a simple fix for that.

Changing it, however, means that the webcam will not focus to infinity and will start becoming bluring about 3 ft or so. To me, it is an acceptable trade off, and it is reversible. Not that I really need the old webcam.

It should be noted that the webcam must not be too heavy. As the lamp is not design to withstand weight, especially when it is attached to the tip.

Also, the webcam is supported across multiple platforms. I have tried MacOS, Windows and ChromeOS. They all worked. Software-wise, no issues with Zoom, WebEx and Google Meet. The 2 former allows me to switch between built-in webcam and external webcam with ease. Google Meet can be done via its settings menu.

The reason for choosing the lamp is that it is adjustable and also, surprise, surprise, has a light function. So it helps illuminate the writing/drawing.

I thought of making it such that I can flip the webcam so that I use it for conference. But the problem is that the video would be upside down. Some application like Zoom let me flip the video but it is too cumbersome. 

That's it for now!