In da Hood

[skywalkerbeth]

Hi!

I have heard that you should ALWAYS use a hood - it will save your lens if you bump things.

What do you do in dim light situations though?

It would seem that walking around inside a dim church for instance would be a good time to have that protection (I could just see myself walking into something with the lens right out in front...) but since there is no glare, why use it? Not to mention, won't the hood slightly reduce the amount of light coming in? Or is it too negligible to notice?

 

[D-50]

A hood is used to stop light from crossing your lens. I guess it offers some protection but I do not think many people use it for this purpose. Better protection for your lens is a simple UV filter. You'll break the filter before you break the glass on the lens.

 

[JimmyO]

Yup, theres really no reason why NOT to use a hood.

 

[Big Mike]

won't the hood slightly reduce the amount of light coming in

A proper sized hood will only block light from coming in from angles that the lens/camera doesnt see...so you don't have to worry about loosing light.

Personally, I use a hood as often as possible. Most of my lenses have a bayonet hood mount, so I just keep the hoods revered on the lens when in the bag, so I have to turn them around to use the lens anyway.

The one exception is my 10-22mm lens, which has a hood that is as big around as a plate. Because of the wide view of the lens, the hood is wide but not very deep. It probably doesn't do much...and it's too big to keep on the lens, so I don't use it too much. But I do use it for protection when I think it's needed.

 

[Socrates]

A proper sized hood will only block light from coming in from angles that the lens/camera doesnt see...so you don't have to worry about losing light.

Scratch "doesn't" and replace with "shouldn't."

The lens blocks light from coming in angles that the camera shouldn't see.

 

[Socrates]

A hood is used to stop light from crossing your lens. I guess it offers some protection but I do not think many people use it for this purpose. Better protection for your lens is a simple UV filter. You'll break the filter before you break the glass on the lens.

Better yet is a "protector" - a clear glass filter.