Using your hand as a lens hood

**Marc Sabatella** · 05-07-2009, 11:57 PM

For those wondering what a lens hood is for, whether it's worth the trouble, and whether there are any other options...

Here's a shot from the M28/2.8 with no hood. It's rather washed out due to flare:

The effect was clearly visible in the viewfinder. But simply holding my hand up in front of the lens to shield it from the sun improved what I saw in the viewfinder. Did it improve the picture too? Let's see:

A hood saves you the trouble of shooting with you hand up like that. And I don't know that the hand method works all the time. But it's actually pretty effective quite often, I find.

HGMonaro · 05-08-2009, 12:06 AM

Do this all the time... even with a lenshood on! Have even trained the wife to perform this without being asked! Your example demonstrates is well!

Sean Nelson · 05-08-2009, 12:31 AM

Yeah, this is one of the tricks I pull out of my sleeve an awful lot. Just like HGMonaro, I often use it even when I have a hood on the lens. Zoom lens hoods are designed not to vignette at the widest angles, so they're not nearly as effective as they could be at longer focal lengths. And my P&S camera doesn't have any sort of hood, period - so the hand method is pretty much de rigeur for it when shooting into the light.

Mike Cash · 05-08-2009, 02:23 AM

My most commonly used lens hood with my TLRs (when using a tripod):

**roentarre** · 05-08-2009, 02:40 AM

Sometimes I use my hands as reflector for camera flash as well.

Mike Cash · 05-08-2009, 05:36 AM

I noticed something recently that really surprised me. I do most of my shooting from inside my truck and have always considered that having a roof over my head like that eliminated the need for a lens hood for combatting flare. I do always use one, just to make the camera sit flat, however. A couple of weeks ago I went to work and forgot to take my lens hood with me. When I got home and reviewed the photos I could immediately see the difference in contrast.

*NaClH2O* · 05-08-2009, 06:04 AM

Originally Posted by Marc Sabatella

For those wondering what a lens hood is for, whether it's worth the trouble, and whether there are any other options...

*snip*

A hood saves you the trouble of shooting with you hand up like that. And I don't know that the hand method works all the time. But it's actually pretty effective quite often, I find.

not to get...er...extraneous objects in the picture!

NaCl(be careful when the lens being 'hooded' is a fisheye!)H2O

Dom · 05-08-2009, 08:55 AM

Lens hood are a must. Not just because of flare/contrast but they can increase the effective resolution of the lens as well.

**Marc Sabatella** · 05-08-2009, 09:40 AM

Originally Posted by roentarre

Sometimes I use my hands as reflector for camera flash as well.

I've done that too! Although it really colors the light quite strongly; I prefer using a piece of white card. Or the opaque back my otherwise-mostly-useless Lumiquest Softscreen (just so I can feel like I got my money's worth). But the effect can be blinding - I have to close my eyes when I hit the shutter.

I sure wish someone would make a tilting popup flash! I suppsoe they imagine it wouldn't be strong enough to be useful, but as we both know, that's silly - if you can get enough light (at f/2.8 anyhow) bouncing first off your hand and then the ceiling, you can certainly get enough light bouncing directly off the ceiling.

TaoMaas · 05-08-2009, 09:53 AM

Hoods are the cheapest route to better sharpness, color, and contrast in your pics! It just amazes me that some folks won't use them.

kerrowdown · 05-08-2009, 01:11 PM

You mean to tell me, hoods come off.

Mike Cash · 05-08-2009, 01:54 PM

Originally Posted by NaClH2O

not to get...er...extraneous objects in the picture!

NaCl(be careful when the lens being 'hooded' is a fisheye!)H2O

Bless you. You brought back memories of my grandmother and her Instamatic.

*NaClH2O* · 05-08-2009, 02:12 PM

Originally Posted by Mike Cash

Bless you. You brought back memories of my grandmother and her Instamatic.

A different kind of vignetting!

What really irks me is that the damn finger has got CA!

NaCl(is this a handsome photograph?)H2O

*heliphoto* · 05-08-2009, 02:53 PM

Nice demo Marc...

This brings up something which irks me whenever I see it (which is all the time when out in Yosemite and similar places)... People with obviously expensive lenses (big, constant f/2.8 zooms with VR/IS by the looks of 'em) walking around taking photos with the hoods reversed. If they simply left the hood at home, I could understand it - maybe their pack is too full for the bulk of the hood, maybe they don't like the look of a hood... but they brought it - it's right there!... Reversed, adding weight, obstructing part of the zoom ring looking bloody ridiculous, but not helping with the images they're taking, or protecting the front of the lens since they can't be bothered to spend two seconds turning it around!!! Arrggggg!

Sorry for the rant

. I know it's not you... hmmm well I'll just assume Pentax shooters wouldn't do this since I've never actually seen another of us "in the wild" I don't know for sure

...

BTW, these same people will walk a trail, snapping wildflower shots by the dozen without so much as kneeling down - I can't imagine what they're getting from head high, but I doubt it's all that interesting.

*Ratmagiclady* · 05-08-2009, 05:38 PM

Originally Posted by kerrowdown

You mean to tell me, hoods come off.

Gotta clean lenses occasionally.