[Kryscendo]

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A buddy of mine happened to have the HoodEye from Hoodman which is a soft eyepiece that helps block out intermittent light between the viewfinder and our eyes. I was pretty impressed with it and went onto the website to order one for my K-r but alas, they only have made the HoodEye for Canon and Nikon cameras. For $20, this seems like an excellent investment and was such a tease because I do wear glasses and I do have issues with errant light distracting me when composing, let alone focusing manually. It is such a simple device but could be invaluable in certain situations.

I did call to inquire and the representative asked me to list my camera and my email and that they'd keep me posted. Of course, I prodded on for more and she mentioned that they were considering making the Hoodeye for Sony cameras next but appreciated the feedback. As much as I love my K-r. I wish there was more aftermarket support.

You Tube

You Tube

This is where the rest of you come in. Do not just bombard or harass, but I can't be only K-r or K-5 user with this issue. If you'd like one, might I suggest calling them up and adding your name to the list and showing Hoodman that Pentax users would also like to use their products when given the opportunity.

[Adam]

This might be a good DIY project- I'm sure something similar can easily be made using basic materials

[RobA_Oz]

A quick search on eBay produced a few options, like this one Eyecup Eye Cup for Pentax K100D K110D K200D K20D K10D | eBay and it's only about $5. Maybe that's why Hoodman doesn't bother much.

[Philoslothical]

Yeah, tonnes of these on Ebay. I wouldn't worry about getting a specific brand, they all do about the same thing, and are just a bit of molded plastic.

[mlatour]

I've had a Hoodman p/n: H-EYEC18L (for Canon cameras) HoodEye attached on my K-x for over a year now,
it simply required a little careful triming with a utility knife to fit into the Pentax eyepiece slots, works great.

[Docrwm]

I've had a Hoodman p/n: H-EYEC18L (for Canon cameras) HoodEye attached on my K-x for over a year now,
it simply required a little careful triming with a utility knife to fit into the Pentax eyepiece slots, works great.

And if you can do that so easily why is it so hard for the seller to offer them for Pentax? I know, I know, design, manufacturing, etc., etc., yadda, yadda.....

[mlatour]

I spoke with the Hoodman guy at last summer's (2010) 'D-Click' annual photography show here in Montreal,
when I showed him my modified HoodEye fitted on a Pentax he just said something like; "Ah that's nice, good for you".

I don't think the small percentage of lost Pentax specific sales matters to him, he probably figures
that if someone with another brand than Canikon really wants one, they'll just custom fit one like I did.

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Last edited by mlatour; 11-29-2011 at 07:33 AM.

[Kryscendo]

I'm just all about third party support and if something as simple as getting a camera in hand and making a simple rubber mold from it is too much work for the manufacturer, then I wonder what other shortcuts these guys take.

[hman]

I have a K100D and was curious- is the modification of the Canon HoodEye descibed by mlatour workable for K100D? Not sure if the eyepiece is same size as K-r. Thanks.

[Kryscendo]

Again guys, I made this thread so that we wouldn't have to mod our own products and instead have third parties actually support and strengthen our brand but it turned into "Oh why bother, I just use duct tape to make it work and its fine for me."

Our money is essentially a vote. We can either vote one way or another and if we make our ideal choices known but ohhh, so close. I was so ready to give you money, Hoodman but you stupid asses can't find a way to mold a malleable material to fit on my dslr or are too lazy to even consider my camera. Sorry! I guess I will go on and use this money to purchase something else instead.

[rbefly]

I agree with RobA, there's a source on eBay that works fine. Don't know if it's the same link as his, but here's the version I got;
Eyecup Eye Cup for Canon Nikon Sony Pentax Olympus | eBay
They come with 5 adapters and work perfectly on the K-110 D, K-10D, Me and Me Super.
For me, they're absolutely essential when shooting in bright sunlight, backlight/sidelight situations and especially at night or low-light. Whether you wear eyeglasses or not.
try one and you'll never take it off the camera!
Ron

[pentup]

Those eBay eyecups look like they're made of hard plastic; the Hoodman seems to be made of flexible silicon... just sayin'

[bobmaxja]

Forget is not silicone but flexible plastics(élastomer). Silicone is too expensive

The one from Ebay are probably flexible to.
What you forget is make a mold cost money. With Canon and Nikon the guy can récuperate his investment . A mold modificationto do this base on were it's made will cost probably $5000
I like better the idea of the ajustable attachement

[rbefly]

Hi Pentup,
I can't speak for every manufacturer, but the ones I got (bought 3 sets, I own 3 different bodies) are very flexible rubber, in fact you can easily fold the cup backwards-towards the camera body-while it's mounted.
It's about as flexible as the material that rubber lens hoods are made of, just not as thick.
Ron

[pentup]

Thanks Ron. I really need something like this -- unfortunately, I'm not sure whether any of them would fit well over the magnifying eye-cup tat I use. I think I need to figure out a way to fit some face-fitting extension on the eye-cup to accomplish the same thing.

What's really attractive about these things is you can use them with either eye. I've been wanting to switch to left-eyed shooting, because I can focus better that way, but with my current eye-cup, my nose would get in the way of using the green button and the AF button. I want to get my face further from the camera, and still block out light.