Lens Hoods

[floridafan]

Do people notice a significant difference shooting with the Lens Hood attached? Outdoor, wildlife, Birds, Waterfalls?

Do you use them?

 

[ac12]

I use a hood all the time.
Beside blocking stray light, it helps to keep your fingers off the filter or front element.
And it will take a hit before your lens does, so you bend/break the hood rather than the lens.

 

[Jeff15]

I agree with ac.......

 

[stapo49]

I use a hood all the time.
Beside blocking stray light, it helps to keep your fingers off the filter or front element.
And it will take a hit before your lens does, so you bend/break the hood rather than the lens.

Yep, summed up nicely.

Sent from my SM-G965F using Tapatalk

 

[Fujidave]

I use a hood all the time.
Beside blocking stray light, it helps to keep your fingers off the filter or front element.
And it will take a hit before your lens does, so you bend/break the hood rather than the lens.

Agree 100%, ALWAYS use a lens hood.

 

[Dean_Gretsch]

Also keeps any rain off the lens. Use it!

 

[zombiesniper]

Always use them for the above stated reasons.

There is no downside to a lens hood.

 

[john.margetts]

There is no reason not to use a lens hood apart from the price. I threw my Sigma 150-600 lens across some rocks a few weeks ago and smashed the lens hood. A new one is going to cost me £31 for a plain tube of black plastic with no moving parts. Should cost less than £1.

 

[Derrel]

I think a lens hood is critical when the camera is pointed in the direction of s strong light source, or when there's a bright field of light and a dark field subject...I think the lens hood, also called a lens shade, can be a critical accessory in many situations. Now, some lenses flare or ghost pretty badly when shot right toward the light.

One tip: the Nikon 70-200mm VR lens, the first generation model, flared badly when shot toward the light. When shooting sunsets, or shots at twilight, I found that the Mamiya R-system's rubber lens shade for the 360mm lens was perfect for pressing inward with my fingers, to literally bend the shade down a bit, and thus throwing a literal shadow onto the front element.

When you need the absolute-best from a lens, a good lens shade is necessary to make sure you get all the contrast the lens can deliver. That's why compendium lens shades still exist, for demanding still and cinematography uses.

 

[ac12]

There is no reason not to use a lens hood apart from the price. I threw my Sigma 150-600 lens across some rocks a few weeks ago and smashed the lens hood. A new one is going to cost me £31 for a plain tube of black plastic with no moving parts. Should cost less than £1.

Look for a cheap eBay or Amazon replacement.
Some work well, some don't.

 

[Strodav]

I use a hood all the time.
Beside blocking stray light, it helps to keep your fingers off the filter or front element.
And it will take a hit before your lens does, so you bend/break the hood rather than the lens.

Nailed it. Whether a hood helps you optically depends on where the various sources of light are coming from, but even if the sun is behind you, reflections can still come into your lens at strange angles so it always makes sense to use one.

 

[ACS64]

I wear glasses with multicoated lenses and have noted improved contrast wearing a hat with a black bill vs. a light tan bill when standing in a parking lot at noon in the summertime. Needless to say my camera lenses always a hood installed.
A. C.

 

[Strodav]

I wear glasses with multicoated lenses and have noted improved contrast wearing a hat with a black bill vs. a light tan bill when standing in a parking lot at noon in the summertime. Needless to say my camera lenses always a hood installed.
A. C.

The ONLY time I MIGHT recommend taking it off is in high and gusty wind conditions as they do tend to act like a sail.