When it comes to photography, there are literally thousands of accessories to choose from. In most cases, many of these accessories don’t actually add any value or functionality to ones photography.
However, when it comes to lens hoods, they are an extremely affordable and highly valuable piece of kit that can benefit your image quality in an instant. There are also some other benefits which you may not have even thought of!
So as lens hoods are such important items for any level of photographer. I have decided to round up the best lens hoods for Canon 18-55mm lenses and other 58mm thread lenses. Lets get stuck in!
How a lens hood can benefit your photography
- Prevent lens flare: Have you ever taken an amazing photo, only to realise there is a big lens flare across the whole image? Well a lens hood is a great way to remedy that as it blocks out rays from the corner of the lens.
- Protects the lens: Another great benefit of using a lens hood is that it helps to protect your lens when not using a lens cap. If you were to accidentally drop your lens, the lens hoods helps to protect the corners. It also prevents scratching of the front element.
- Great for landscape: When using a lens hood, it opens up a lot of oppurnities to capture different surroundings. In particular landscape photography. It allows you togo to your widest focal length with minimal glare.
Top 3 Best Lens Hoods For Canon 18-55mm Lenses
1. Offical Canon EW-63C Lens Hood For EF-S 18-55mm Review
First up on my list, is an offical Canon lens hood which is made specifically for Canon kit lenses. It is sporting a 58mm thread so it is compatible with the Canon 18-55mm and Canon 75-300mm lenses.
Being an authentic Canon product, it connected seamlessly to my Canon lens and can also be attached to a UV glass protection filter. All in all, it took about 20 seconds to attach. Now I can go capture images with no lens flare!
This particular hood is called a petal or tulip shaped lens hood due to its blossoming like design. I have also used cylinder and retractable hoods, but I find the tulip design to be the best.
When using the other designs, there is sometimes some vignetting in the corners when going to the widest 18mm focal length. This can really ruin a photo as you cannot get back those pixels in post production. Overall, this is my top recommendation!
2. Altura Photo Collapsable Rubber Lens Hood For 58MM Filter Thread Review
Next up only my list of best lens hoods for 18-55mm lenses is the Altura collapsable rubber lens hood which is great for a wide range of uses! Even better is that this lens hood is incredibly cheap.
While the above tulip hood is great for wide angle photography, this hood is great for telephoto images. This is mainly due to the wide bowl like design that wont impede any vignetting, but still blocks out glare in telephoto mode.
However when it comes to wide angle, I did notice that some vignetting came into place. But that is easily fixed as this is a collapsable hood which has 3 seperate levels of extension. So I could easily adjust it to my desired focal length.
What I also liked about the collapsable design and rubber build was that I can squeeze this or compact it down to fit easily into my camera bag. Just be aware that the sun may cause some damage over the long run to the rubber. A great pick!
3. Goja 58MM Professional Lens Filter Accessory Kit Review
Last but not least on my roundup is the uber value packed Goja 58mm lens accessory kit. Seriously, this thing is jam packed with items and I’m not even sure how they are making money on this.
That doesn’t go without saying that all these items are extremely cheaply made, but they still each serve a purpose and are better than nothing. All in all, this kit has a lens hood, lens cap, 3 x filters, strap for the cap, microfibre cloth and a pouch.
So while its not the best quality stuff available. It covers the bases for beginner photographers who need these items while keeping within budget.
As for the lens hood itself, it is made of cheap plastic, but it still easily attached to my Canon EF 18-55mm lens. I now keep this hood on my other kit lens permanently. This means I don’t always have to swap. Overall a great kit on the cheap!
Final thoughts
When it comes down to it, all of the above lens hoods would be great options to reducing lens flare and protecting your lens. Even better is that they are extremely cheap and really bring a new layer of professionalism to your photos. If you really want to up your game, you can also check out my guide on the best budget tripods from $15!