Smartphone cameras are certainly getting better every year, but the problem of a small, poorly located flash is still a problem. Enter a new project by Joe Waines and Alex Lukashevich from Chicago called ‘Nova'.

The flash system attempts to stop washed out images with hard shadows. It is a portable flash that wirelessly syncs with the iPhone, and is small enough to fit in a wallet – being around the same size as a credit card, only slightly thicker.

The Nova Flash system connects to an iPhone through bluetooth, so has a range of around 20 feet. You can take a photograph of the person from further away and use the flash in different locations, for various styles of image.

It also has various light settings so you can optimise the shot depending on what you are trying to achieve, the subject and lighting conditions at the time. It is capable of soft lighting at the lowest setting, and then as the flash strength is increased, either warm or brilliant. There is a custom mode available to let the user blend the base lighting modes for other effects.

The little panel has 40 points of light diffused behind a white sheet. This means people won't be blinded when it is triggered.

The two guys have been funding the device on Kickstarter for a while now, and it has already achieved its goal of $25,000, already at close to $38,000. If you want to purchase a flash, it costs $54. Joe and Alex will be putting the extra funding into improving battery life, using better LED's when the product is set to ship in February 2014.

Kitguru says: Would you carry a flash in your wallet or is it too much hassle?

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