Will a lens hood alter a shot in anyway

I saw a member ask if a photo was taken with a hood and he mentioned something about saturation.

What are the + amd - of using lens hoods?

Pros:
Protection. You'd rather damage the hood than the lens. Especially if its around your side and you are moving quickly, or if you have two bodies, you defintely have one by your side always, for instance.

Getting rid of glare. Blocks the sun from hitting the glass and causing glare. Without glare your colors will be rich and contrasted and saturated. Obviously it depends on what lens you have, but that's the general idea.

Cons:
If you buy Canon lens, you have to shell out some money for them. I know with my 50 1.4, I will need to buy a hood which is like about 30 dollars extra. 3rd party however usually gives you one, so it might not necessairly be a con.

If its not put on properly, it will get in your shot. And on a wide angle, it will show for sure it its not on properly.

I'm probably missing some stuff, but there are many other helpful people on here that can add extra info.

Actually, not all Canons lack a hood. Basically all of the professional grade Canons come with a hood. Sure, the replacement is stupidly expensive, but they do come with them.

Its primary purposes is to prevent lens flare. This is an issue with many wide angle lenses, but all lenses are prone to it..

However, on some lenses, which is usually down to an imperfect hood, it can lead to some vignetting.

Cheers.

I guess I should have been more specific when I said professionally. L lens all come with it. But the lower priced ones don't.

There's no downside to using a hood, and they provide protection, prevent glare, and increase contrast.

If you are walking through a crowd of people with your camera in front of you, they will get out of your way faster if the lens has a long hood on the front of it.

---Bob Gross---

One negative is that it makes using a polariser a bit more difficult. It's not easy turning the front ring with a hood on . Another is simply that you have to put it on. Not an issue if you're walking around with the lens, but an extra step when changing. Getting the right hood for the lens is important. For example, the one that comes with a 17-40 isn't very effective on a camera with a 1.6x sensor. It does however work well on the 10-22 and doesn't get in the way even at 10mm. The biggest negative is that the Canon hoods are expensive for what they are and that they only come with some lenses.

A hood is the single most important accessory for improving your photographs. If you ever shoot outdoors then a hood is an absolute must for reducing lens flare, which significantly enhances contrast. I never, ever shoot without a hood. It is the best money you will ever spend on photographic equipment (in terms of bang for your buck).

Just a side issue, but I purchased an Optech hood hat. It goes over the hood and protects the lens from dust, etc.. without taking off the hood. It has been great as I can now protect the lens without having to take the hood off and place the lens cap on. It was also extremely cheap for the peace of mind it provides.

I guess I have small hands (or small lenses) but I have no problems putting the cap on inside the hood. I have hoods for all my (few) lenses, even the nifty fifty (except the 18-55 kit). I bought them in Tokyo at Yodabashi camera where they were about 30% cheaper than B&H (most electronics in japan are about 30% more expensive than B&H). Lens hoods are great for reducing flare and keeping stray fingers off the lens. Never leave home without them! I leave them reversed on the lenses in my bag.

-- Scott.

Same here.

I don't have any problems to put on the lens cap on my 50/1.4 or Sigma 30/1.4 with the hood mounted.

It's even easier on the Tamron lenses, as they have the so-called 'pinch style' lens caps.

One more negative: they can be flimsy and difficult to attach and detach. The hood for my recently purchased 24-70 F2.8L is not easy to attach securely. This can slow you down when you're trying to do a quick lens change.

A bit disappointing for such an exxy lens. (The hood on the 70-200 F2.8 locks on with a nice reassuring firmness...)