Lens hood or no lens hood?

ALWAYS

I will always shoot with a lens hood either outdoors or indoors.

The hood protects the lens from both stray light and from physical damage.

I will use round, screw-in hoods for my lenses that are for full frame cameras such as my 70-200mm f/4L IS and my 24-70mm f/2.8L. The round hood is smaller but doesn't vignette my image. It facilitates the use of a CPL because you just twist the hood in order to rotate the filter AND it really protects the lens from damage.

I was recovering from knee surgery but JUST HAD to shoot an airshow. I tripped twice, hitting the round filter on my 24-70L on some steps to a grandstand and onto concrete with the 70-200mm f/4L IS taking the fall on its round screw-in filter.

I learned three things that day:

1. I was too darned confident of my abilities
2. The L lenses are built really well
3. The round filter protects the lens very well. In both cases, the hoods were toast but, neither lens was damaged at all. I replaced the hoods at $5 and $8 each which was the best $13 I have ever spent on photo gear.

I now shoot with a 17-55mm f/2.8 lens and cannot use a round screw-in filter because of vignetting. A round filter also vignettes on my 12-24mm Tokina. Both of these lenses are made for 1.6x cameras.

When I am shooting, I carry the 17-55mm IS lens around my neck on an Optech strap and carry the 70-200mm f/4L IS lens in a holster case at my left hip. I have a hand strap and the lens is equipped with the round screw-in hood and an Optech Hood Hat. It is very easy to slip my hand into the strap, yank out the camera, whip off the Hood Hat and shoot. The OEM hood would not fit into the holster case when fitted on the camera and if it did, it would be difficult to slip the camera out of the holster.

As an added bonus, the round screw-in hood is a lot less imposing on the 70-200mm lens than is the big OEM hood.

Always. They are there for a reason, so why not use them. The only time they are a slight hinderance is when I am using a CPL

funk1196 wrote in post #5625160
Which lens do i NEED a lens hood on?
I'm planning on buying my first lens (outside of the kit lens).. and thought i might need a lens hood. I'm getting the 10-22mm.
Are there certain lenses that should almost always have a lens hood when taking pictures outdoors? Like..telephoto/wide angle?
I've never seen anyone with a macro lens use one ... so i assume only certain lenses.

funk1196,
Actually I do use a home made hood for my 100mm f/2.8 macro lens (however I don't use a hood on my MP-E 65mm f/2.8 macro). I also use a hood for my 100-400 f/4.5-5.6L but my ultra wide angles (10-22 f/3.5-4.5 and 17-40 f/4L) I don't use a hood, and use a B+W UV filters instead. For me I have found the hoods for ultra wide angles don't do enough, they don't block all stray light (like the hood on my 100-400L & 100mm does), they don't really protect the glass as they are very short and they don't fit well in my camera bags.

But of course its a personal choice...

John_B wrote in post #5627670
For me I have found the hoods for ultra wide angles don't do enough, they don't block all stray light (like the hood on my 100-400L & 100mm does), they don't really protect the glass as they are very short and they don't fit well in my camera bags.

I see you have both a 5D and a 40D, but if you're using the 17-40 on the 40D you might want to consider the EW-83J hood (for 17-55) which works perfectly with that lens on 1.6x crop bodies without vignetting. Just a thought.

Alright, so i guess the EW-83E is the right hood for the 10-22mm lens?
$35? is that about right for a hood?
I know some people were saying that they replace damaged hoods for $5 or $10... am i just not looking in the right places?

funk1196 wrote in post #5627842
Alright, so i guess the EW-83E is the right hood for the 10-22mm lens?
$35? is that about right for a hood?
I know some people were saying that they replace damaged hoods for $5 or $10... am i just not looking in the right places?

That's the right hood, and that's the price for it ($34 @ B&H).
When people say they bought a hood for $5 or $10 they are not talking about Canon hoods but third party hoods. Those hoods doesn't have the same built quality and is missing the felt inside the hoods which helps to cut down stray light etc.
Personally I would spend the extra money for the real Canon hoods, others like to save as much as possible and will go for the third party solution - what you choose is just personal preferences.

RPCrowe wrote in post #5627402
As an added bonus, the round screw-in hood is a lot less imposing on the 70-200mm lens than is the big OEM hood.

There's something you may not realise, though, about the threaded lens hoods on a typical zoom lens. If a threaded-on hood takes a hit (which it will sooner or later), ALL of the force is imparted to the rather delicate inner workings of the lens.

On the other hand, if you use a hood such as all the Canon "L" zooms that I have use, they fasten to the non-moving outer body of the lens and not to the lens barrel itself. Thus, any impact is absorbed by the rather rugged outer shell of the lens and leaves the inner works untouched.

SkipD wrote in post #5628223
On the other hand, if you use a hood such as all the Canon "L" zooms

When you say the hood such as the canon 'l'.... is this a special hood? i thought that the L was a lens type... am i wrong? if i get the 10-22mm i cant get a hood that mounts to the exterior of the lens rather than the barrel as you suggest, can i? and if so... ... you have a link or a model number for this hood?

funk1196 wrote in post #5628292
When you say the hood such as the canon 'l'.... is this a special hood? i thought that the L was a lens type... am i wrong? if i get the 10-22mm i cant get a hood that mounts to the exterior of the lens rather than the barrel as you suggest, can i? and if so... ... you have a link or a model number for this hood?

I believe he is refering to the hoods that come packaged with the majority of L lenses, and not a specific lens hood model.

wow... not a single response saying they don't use the hoods... guess i shouldn't admit that i've never used one? I never quite understood the thinking that the hood could really prevent stray light... they seem so small most of the time. Maybe i'll try them... thanks for the input.

Well, they won't eliminate all stray light, but they do seriously reduce the amount that can get in. Only time I don't use a hood is if I'm using a filter holder that would interfere, or if it'd get in my flash's way.

Always. even if there is no risk of flare or stray light. Its cheaper to replace a hood than repair a lens if damaged.

funk1196 wrote in post #5628292
When you say the hood such as the canon 'l'.... is this a special hood? i thought that the L was a lens type... am i wrong? if i get the 10-22mm i cant get a hood that mounts to the exterior of the lens rather than the barrel as you suggest, can i? and if so... ... you have a link or a model number for this hood?

dandan wrote in post #5628330
I believe he is refering to the hoods that come packaged with the majority of L lenses, and not a specific lens hood model.

Dan is correct. The Canon 16-35, 24-70, and 70-200 f/2.8 IS (my total Canon lens collection) all have hoods that mount to coarse bayonet-style "threads" on the outer shell of the lens. The hoods do not have any connection to the moving parts of the lenses.

The Canon 24-105 f/4L, even though it's an "L" family lens, has a bayonet-mount hood but mounts the hood on the portion of the lens that extends when zooming. Except for the fact that the hood can crush on impact, the way that hood is mounted does little to protect the rather delicate mechanisms (that move the lens while zooming) in the event of a crash. That is similar to how any filter-thread-mounted hood would function on a zoom lens.

SkipD wrote in post #5628223
There's something you may not realise, though, about the threaded lens hoods on a typical zoom lens. If a threaded-on hood takes a hit (which it will sooner or later), ALL of the force is imparted to the rather delicate inner workings of the lens.

On the other hand, if you use a hood such as all the Canon "L" zooms that I have use, they fasten to the non-moving outer body of the lens and not to the lens barrel itself. Thus, any impact is absorbed by the rather rugged outer shell of the lens and leaves the inner works untouched.

Like the old saying "You get what you pay for."

Molnies wrote in post #5627986
When people say they bought a hood for $5 or $10 they are not talking about Canon hoods but third party hoods. Those hoods doesn't have the same built quality and is missing the felt inside the hoods which helps to cut down stray light etc.

I have a 3rd party hood and it has the felt you're talking about. Maybe I was lucky and my brand was a not so bad one...