What is lens hood for

Now you do not need to get the branded lens hood for your lens but please avoid any lens hood that states they are universal. They will not work as well as one made specifically for your lens. To find out what lens you have, simply look at the front of it and read off what it says. This is the name of that lens. Simply type that followed by lens hood into a search bar and the lens hood for that lens will pop up.

Easy as that! To learn about camera equipment please click here. To save you time we have compiled below the lens hoods needed for the most common beginner cameras. Please check the front of your lens to check the model of it before you buy the lens hood.

I hope this has explained why you use a lens hood, if it did, please leave us a comment and support us by sharing it with your friends and subscribe to our newsletter at the bottom of this page for more. We also have an excellent learning community on social media so please join us there as well.

Thanks for watching and remember — Learn more at The School of Photography. WHY US? Back Book Ebook Courses Merchandise. Camera Lens Hoods — Explained Camera lens hoods in photography might seem a simple thing, but they can be very confusing for the beginner photographer. Why use a camera lens hood? What does a lens hood do? Examples showing camera lens hood on and off. Light shielded by camera lens hood. When should you use a camera lens hood? Exceptions to this rule There are times when you might not want to use a lens hood.

Sunset with rocks taken without a lens hood. What types of camera lens hoods you can get? Telephoto lens with lens hood. While lens flares can be artistic and create interesting effects in photos, they can be distracting, especially when they end up covering your subject or most of your scene. For professional photos, e. Protects your lens A bonus to the lens hood is that it adds that extra layer of protection to your lens.

Though a lot of photographers settle for a UV filter or even a lens cap to protect the external lens, lens hoods provide an external layer of protection against accidental impacts, scratches, fingerprints, rain, snow, dust and other debris. It adds contrast When lens flares and strong glares hit your lens, they tend to block your view. Glares and flares wash out your image and produce discolorations, thus reducing contrast and picture quality.

With a lens hood, stray light doesn't enter the lens and ensures that you get a clear view of a scene. The difference between a photo that has been taken with a lens hood and those without can be seen, which you can test yourself. Make sure to use the same exposure settings in your comparison images, and see which photo you prefer.

You can use a lens hood in most circumstances, as they benefit most photography setups, but times that they are especially useful is when:. What good is the hood? The primary use for a lens hood is to prevent light from hitting the front lens element from the sides - reducing contrast and creating flare. Pictures taken with a lens hood installed can have richer colors and deeper saturation.

A secondary use for a lens hood is to protect the lens. Lens hoods are generally strong and stick out from the lens some distance.

Accidental touches and scratches to the front element are reduced simply because the glass is more difficult to reach with the hood in place.

Some impact protection is gained from having a sacrificial part taking the blow. Of course, ultra wide angle lenses have very short hoods that offer very little protection. Lens hoods on longer focal length lenses offer more front lens element protection from rain and dust.