Disclosed is a portable magnifier camera with both storage and deployed configurations. In the storage configuration, the entire assembly can be carried via an associated handle. The camera is designed to rest on a desktop, or other planar surface, in the deployed configuration. When deployed, a housing and camera arm are positioned in a cantilevered arrangement over top of an object to be viewed. A camera housing, with an associated camera, is pivotally connected to the camera arm and is positioned over the object upon the camera being placed into a deployed configuration.