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Lens hood vs filter: everything you need to know about using them
Lens hoods and filters are essential accessories for any serious photographer, each designed to serve specific purposes. Lens hoods primarily protect your lens from stray light and physical damage, while filters can control the light entering the lens to achieve different effects. This blog will explore what is better to use, a lens hood or UV/polarizing filter and all the questions related to combining them.
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Lens hood vs UV filter
Lens hood vs polarizing filter
Lens hood and ND filters
Using lens hoods with filters
Lens hood vs UV filter: what’s better or should you use both?
To answer all the questions above, you need to know the basics about how they work. Lens hood and UV filter have different purposes:
- Lens hood: A lens hood is a simple yet effective accessory that attaches to the front of your lens. Its primary function is to block unwanted stray light from entering the lens, which helps prevent glare and lens flare. Additionally, a lens hood offers some level of physical protection against accidental bumps and scratches.
Discover our lens hoods - UV Filter: Originally designed to block ultraviolet light, UV filters are often used as protective covers for camera lenses. Modern digital cameras are generally not sensitive to UV light. That’s why UV filter is used for protection mainly.
Discover our UV filters
If you shoot outside and want to prevent flare on the lens, then the lens hood is for you. But if you are looking for a “protection accessory”, read further.
What is better for protection: lens hood or UV filter?
When it comes to protecting your lens, both a lens hood and a UV filter have their merits but they protect a bit differently.
A lens hood primarily protects against physical impacts and stray light. By extending beyond the front of the lens, it provides a physical barrier against accidental bumps, knocks, and even minor drops. This can be particularly useful in crowded or rugged environments where your lens is at risk of being hit.
A UV filter offers a different type of protection, serving as a transparent shield over the lens glass. It protects the lens from dust, dirt, moisture and scratches. This is especially beneficial in environments with harsh conditions, such as sandy beaches, dusty trails, or rainy weather.
So, which is better, the lens hood or UV filter? A lens hood provides good physical protection against impacts, while a UV filter is good for protecting from environmental elements. So, it fully depends on the conditions where you shoot and what is more convenient for you: to take the lens hood and use a lens cap to protect the lens when not used or put on a UV filter and forget about it (joking, do not forget, you still should clean it). Ideally, using both can provide the best protection for your lens.
About image quality: A lens hood can potentially improve the image quality (if it’s used for its main purpose to prevent flare), while with UV filters you won’t notice changes. Quality UV filters with coating do not degrade image quality like cheap plastic ones.
Read more about whether it’s worth using a UV filter or not.
Lens hood vs polarizing filter: what to use for removing reflections?
When it comes to removing reflections, a polarizing filter is a superior tool compared to a lens hood.
A polarizing filter is specifically designed to reduce reflections and glare from non-metallic surfaces, such as water, glass, and foliage. It works by filtering out polarized light waves that are reflected at certain angles. It selectively blocks and reduces these reflections, allowing you to see through water surfaces, minimise glare on the glass and enhance the saturation of the sky and foliage.
A lens hood primarily blocks stray light from entering the lens. This helps reduce lens flare and glare, which can occur when light hits the lens from angles outside the frame (e.g. side or overhead lighting). However, a lens hood does not specifically target reflections on surfaces like water or glass.
Discover our polarizing filters
Are lens hoods necessary when using polarizing filters?
They are not absolutely necessary, but using a lens hood with a polarizing filter can be beneficial. It helps reduce any additional glare or flare that the polarizer alone might not eliminate. This ensures the highest possible quality of your images by minimising unwanted light interference.
Lens hood and ND filter: choose or use them at once?
As with other filters, the lens hood has a different purpose than the ND filter. ND filter reduces the amount of light entering the lens, allowing for longer exposure times or wider apertures without overexposing the image. A lens hood just prevents the flare.
It can be beneficial to use a screw-in ND filter with a lens hood. The lens hood will help prevent unwanted light from hitting the ND filter, which can cause reflections and flares. This combination ensures high image quality even in challenging lighting conditions.
Can you use a lens hood and filter at the same time?
Yes, you can use lens hoods and circular filters simultaneously if there is a need for it. Most lens hoods are designed to fit over filters without issue. In some cases, you can mount the lens hood over the filter by screwing it or magnetically (as with lens hoods from Kase, for example).
What to consider when using a lens hood and filter at the same time:
- Vignetting: Using multiple accessories can sometimes cause vignetting, especially on wide-angle lenses. Ensure your lens hood and filter combination does not obstruct the field of view.
- Compatibility: Make sure your lens hood is compatible with the filters you are using. Some lens hoods might not fit over thicker filters like variable ND filters. Some hoods are bayonet-mounted and fit only specific lens models so you need to have filters of the same size as your lens, while others screw onto the filter thread and can be used with various lenses as long as the thread size matches.
- For polarizer: If the lens hood is too long for you to reach to rotate the filter, you can either adjust the filter and attach the hood after or use the lens hood that attaches to the filter.
A lens hood or filter? Both!
To sum up, both lens hoods and filters are invaluable tools in a photographer's kit, each serving distinct purposes. If you need to choose only one, consider your frequent shooting conditions. Also, feel free to combine both and experiment!
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