Though I have often been asked why it is that I continue using my lens hoods even in doors and after dark I haven’t yet put them aside during daily use and here’s the reasons why.
1. A lens hood protects the front lens element from scratches/dings.
2. The darker the front element can be kept, save the exposure to the exact scene that you want to capture the better.
3. Let’s be honest they simply look dang cool (kidding of course)
Len’s hoods add almost zero weight to the overall lens and aptly perform the first two points listed above without any cost to you so why not keep them with your lens and being used so that you notice when you have misplaced them. If you happen to misplace a lens hood there are a couple of options one that inspired this post and a couple of other homemade options that I’m certain trial and error can help you produce with some searching on the internet. I won’t be dealing to much with the trial and error method.
The printable lens hoods found here are great, they even offer the flower petal looking lens hoods, there is only one problem with the design and idea though, they are to be printed on white paper so that you can cut them out and assemble them for use on your nice, high, quality lens. While I love the idea I think that it requires just a little modification, go ahead and print the lens hood out and cut it out but only to use it as a template to create a second lens hood from a more dense and much darker material. In this way you will much more simulate the intended purpose of the lens hood.
A homemade petal style lens hood made of black heavy card stock will almost perform the exact purpose of your original lens hood, unlike the suggested white paper “printable” lens hoods. A white, printer paper, lens hood would only actually stop direct sunlight, or other high intensity light, from hitting the lens beyond a direct light source it would actually bring much more light closer to the lens than you would actually want. Professional lens hoods even come with black fir, felt, on the inside of them to further dampen any source of light not directly in the direction of the intended photograph.
Just food for thought and a good like for a good resource if you are stuck up a creek without a lens hood.
Printable Lens Hoods for Crop Cameras
Photographs of my attempts to make a digital lens hood are forth-coming.