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WHY EVERYONE SHOULD USE LENS HOODS
By Elliot Stern
HEY! HOW ABOUT THOSE BIG UGLY TAKE UP TOO MUCH SPACE LENS HOODS???? ARE YOU USING THEM????
I know! I hear from so many photographers almost every day and in my classes and work shops how they just don’t have the room for all of these big lens hoods that the lens manufacturers are putting in the boxes. They are so big. As a matter of fact some of them are as big as the lens. What is that all about?
Many, many years ago, lens hood were small, shaped like a tube and took up very little room. As a matter of fact, you could buy collapsible rubber hoods that took up just about zero room in the camera bag.
Now they are huge, FLOWER SHAPED, and incredibly long and fat.
Ok! Now that we have gotten all of that into the open and more of less out of our systems, let’s get down to the real nitty gritty of WHY YOU SHOULD BE USING LENS HOODS, A L L T H E T I M E……..
Lens hoods serve several purposes, the primary one is the shading of the lens from direct light on a sunny day, reducing or eliminating lens flare.
Light hits the front element of your lens from all kinds of angles, and reflects back and forth inside the lens, producing lens flare. Flare shows up as a series of shapes either circular or matching your aperture blade layout across the frame or it can be a misty circle.
AN ISSUE OF GREAT CONCERN TO ANY PHOTOGRAPHER IS THE OVERALL LOSS OF CONTRAST caused by the way light can bounce off of the front element and internal elements.
It does not matter where the sun is. Front, behind, to the sides, or even if the sky is overcast. The impact of light bouncing off of the front element or internal elements is going to be detrimental to your overall image quality.
The only way to eliminate these problems is have your lens hood on all the time.
Now! There will be times when it just isn’t possible to use a lens hood. If you happen to be using rectangular filters like the Cokin type, or Sing Ray type which have there own special holders, you will not be able to put your lens hood over the holder.
In cases like that, I carry a small 4x6 black matte board and try to shield the lens from the light. It can be most effective but of course not as effective as a big flower shaped lens hood.
So improving image quality is a biggy. But using a lens hood has other benefits. It can protect your lens. Bumping my lenses against doorways, trees, rocks is pretty normal on anyone of my shooting days. Lens hoods protect against those kinds of hits. A lens hood also acts as a shield for your lens. It can keep raindrops or pollen from landing on the front element. For lenses having really deep hoods, i.e. 70-200 2.8 this is particularly true.
Be alert to both indoor and outdoor lighting situations that could impact your photography in a negative way. It is just so simple to just keep your hood on. There may be situations where even the hood is not enough. In those cases be prepared to use additional shading techniques, or if possible change your position.
So stop thinking of your lens hood as the enemy. It is a part of your lens and it really is your friend. It just wants to help you achieve the photographic results you want.
Now with all of that said. Your favorite camera store stocks most of the lens hoods you may have already ditched or lost or misplaced or perhaps was not included with the lens you purchased. They also have off brand lens hoods, which are smaller than what came with your original lenses. Go to your camera store and ask any salesperson to show you some of the OTHER hoods. Make sure you bring your lenses with you.
Elliot Stern
I know! I hear from so many photographers almost every day and in my classes and work shops how they just don’t have the room for all of these big lens hoods that the lens manufacturers are putting in the boxes. They are so big. As a matter of fact some of them are as big as the lens. What is that all about?
Many, many years ago, lens hood were small, shaped like a tube and took up very little room. As a matter of fact, you could buy collapsible rubber hoods that took up just about zero room in the camera bag.
Now they are huge, FLOWER SHAPED, and incredibly long and fat.
Ok! Now that we have gotten all of that into the open and more of less out of our systems, let’s get down to the real nitty gritty of WHY YOU SHOULD BE USING LENS HOODS, A L L T H E T I M E……..
Lens hoods serve several purposes, the primary one is the shading of the lens from direct light on a sunny day, reducing or eliminating lens flare.
Light hits the front element of your lens from all kinds of angles, and reflects back and forth inside the lens, producing lens flare. Flare shows up as a series of shapes either circular or matching your aperture blade layout across the frame or it can be a misty circle.
AN ISSUE OF GREAT CONCERN TO ANY PHOTOGRAPHER IS THE OVERALL LOSS OF CONTRAST caused by the way light can bounce off of the front element and internal elements.
It does not matter where the sun is. Front, behind, to the sides, or even if the sky is overcast. The impact of light bouncing off of the front element or internal elements is going to be detrimental to your overall image quality.
The only way to eliminate these problems is have your lens hood on all the time.
Now! There will be times when it just isn’t possible to use a lens hood. If you happen to be using rectangular filters like the Cokin type, or Sing Ray type which have there own special holders, you will not be able to put your lens hood over the holder.
In cases like that, I carry a small 4x6 black matte board and try to shield the lens from the light. It can be most effective but of course not as effective as a big flower shaped lens hood.
So improving image quality is a biggy. But using a lens hood has other benefits. It can protect your lens. Bumping my lenses against doorways, trees, rocks is pretty normal on anyone of my shooting days. Lens hoods protect against those kinds of hits. A lens hood also acts as a shield for your lens. It can keep raindrops or pollen from landing on the front element. For lenses having really deep hoods, i.e. 70-200 2.8 this is particularly true.
Be alert to both indoor and outdoor lighting situations that could impact your photography in a negative way. It is just so simple to just keep your hood on. There may be situations where even the hood is not enough. In those cases be prepared to use additional shading techniques, or if possible change your position.
So stop thinking of your lens hood as the enemy. It is a part of your lens and it really is your friend. It just wants to help you achieve the photographic results you want.
Now with all of that said. Your favorite camera store stocks most of the lens hoods you may have already ditched or lost or misplaced or perhaps was not included with the lens you purchased. They also have off brand lens hoods, which are smaller than what came with your original lenses. Go to your camera store and ask any salesperson to show you some of the OTHER hoods. Make sure you bring your lenses with you.
Elliot Stern