Lens shade

I often see pro photographers, amateur photographers, and everything in between, using and not using, lens shades. What is your feeling about using them? Really necessary, or another money making idea for camera and lens companies. I can, maybe, see using them on telephoto lenses because their deep, but UWA almost seems like a joke.

i assume you are talking about lens hoods? I always use them. Cuts glare coming at the lens surface.

They also give protection to the front element, so yes, always.

I use them always, protection, and shade
I use them even in dark!

Keeps my grubby fingers away from the lens surface.

Yes, a majority of the time.

Always except when I've got a CPL mounted.

Always use them.

Lens hoods are both protective and functional, so I use them as often as I can.

Unless I'm using my filter systems which makes it impossible to use the hood I use mine all the time. I even leave my hood on the 50 f1.4 in shooting position when it's stored to protect the focus.

All the lenses I've owned in the last decade have come with hoods but I never use them. People swear by them so I've tried to like them, but they always get in the way. Many run hoods all the time for protection, removing caps until the end of their session. I use caps semi continuously, covering the glass between shots:

https://photography-on-the.net …p?p=16158328#po​st16158328


For the 1% my of shots where the sun actually gets in the lens, the resulting effect usually compliments the shot, giving a sense of squinting as if you are actually there:

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com/​photos/towhit/92993748​14/

I use them all the time except on my 17-40 because the hood takes up too much space in my bag and is too shallow.

As I have UV filters on my lenses, no, I don't always use one, especially if I'm inside.

Also- I've found out that in some instances, having a lens with a giant hood gives off a negative vibe to those around you or gets in the way if seated in a crowd for an event. For example, my daughter has has various events which were indoors (swimming, soccer), therefore the 70-200 2.8 II was taken, however the hood stayed home. The big white lens was enough of a distraction to people around me by itself.

I checked off "all the time" because I think it would be utterly foolish not to use a hood most of the time and I virtually always do.

If a lens I'm buying doesn't come with a hood, I buy one for it immediately.

In virturally any situations, indoors or out, there can be oblique light effecting metering, degrading image quality/causing various types of flare, even effecting autofocus... a hood can help prevent that (a fitler can't, might even make matters worse).

A hood also provides good physical protection against bumps. Most of my lenses are in great shape, even ten year old ones in my Canon kit, 30 and 40 year old ones in some vintage kits I keep... some of their hoods, however, are pretty beat up (but comparatively cheap to replace if I ever feel the need).

When using a filter, especially one like a polarizer with two layers of glass (four glass-air boundaries for light to cross), it's even more important to use a lens hood, than when using the lens without any filter.

About the only time I don't use a lens hood is if it's in the way... such as trying to shoot through a fence... or if it's partially obscuring a flash with a close-up subject.

When I'm shooting outside I always use a lens hood. Inside, I will take it off if there isn't a crazy amount of light that can cause flaring.