I never use a lens cap with my DSLR. The reason? They are a nuisance. No matter how much in habit you are, there will be a time you will miss a good shot because the lens cap was on and it took some precious seconds to hastily remove it and stuff it in your bag. And sometime late, you will waste 15 minutes looking for where you kept it.
Also, I never use a hood. I know they reduce glare. But they are a problem themselves. They add vignetting for wide angle zooms. And, If they don’t, they don’t work at the highest zoom level! It also takes up precious space in your camera bag. Also, have you ever tried changing a filter with a hood on?
But here is a proposed design for an accessory may solve both of these issues. It’s called HoodCap and it has been designed by Rhie Hyi Joong and Lee Sang Hwa. HoodCap basically uses some magical wizardry to merge a lens hood into a lens cap. In a simple twist motion the Worm-Gear system opens the lens cap and makes it into a hood with petals, analogous to how a flower bud blooms into a flower.
Aside from the two problems mentioned above it also solves a basic problem people have with DSLR lenses. It allows you to use a lens without that unnecessary UV filter! If I had a lens cap on all the time I’d never want to put an extra layer of glass that practically does nothing to improve photos. For all I know, it might be reducing the light that goes into my expensive fast lens.
This indeed is a really smart design and if it works I wouldn’t be surprised if some major camera manufacturer integrates it into lens caps.
[via Gadget Lab]
