Stupid Hood Question at DVinfo.net

Steve Tapping · April 10th, 2004, 08:14 PM

This may sound absolutely ridiculous.
But those of us who are still in our teens and everyone that has experienced these years realises that money is something we lack and there is nothing worse than wasting money.
I'm not confident anyone is going to give me a definite answer here but which lcd hood would you suggest for the PDX.
The
Petrol
or
Hoodman.
Yeh I know what your thinking who cares they do the exact same thing.
Does any of them do a better job though. The design of the Petrol looks nice however the Hoodman looks more efficent.
Anyone have experience with both of them?
And no I cannot get it free from sony.

Boyd Ostroff · April 10th, 2004, 08:23 PM

I've only used the Petrol. One thing you should realize however is that any LCD hood on the PDX-10 will block all those buttons on the side of the camera. Very annoying if you want to use custom presets, display color bars, set the zebra pattern or turn the info display off...

Steve Tapping · April 10th, 2004, 08:27 PM

I did not think of that.
Can you not just swing the lcd around to face the other way to access the buttons while the hood is on?
I gather you have had success with the petrol.

Boyd Ostroff · April 11th, 2004, 08:46 AM

The petrol I'm using is the one that was offered as a free promotion by Sony. I think it's quite inexpensive to purchase however. I find it really effective while shooting outdoors. Even in the bright sun you can still use the LCD screen.

Sure, you can swivel the LCD screen to get at the buttons, but while shooting on a tripod at telephoto you'll probably shake the camera in so doing. This isn't insurmountable, just a bit annoying. It's really a Sony design flaw... why did they decide to bury the custom preset button behind the LCD screen?

Sean McHenry · April 11th, 2004, 07:38 PM

I'm not one to recommend "field modifications" to newbies but, here goes... Since the side of the camera body itself mostly blocks light falling on the viewfinder from the right side (as operating the camera), why not just take an exacto knofe to the one edge and trim it mostly off to leave an area that's open on that side?

I was at somebodys home made sitwe just a few minutes ago where they made a simple one from black painted cardboard but left the right side exposed for their AG-DVX100 for this same reason.

Sean

Wayne Orr · April 11th, 2004, 08:24 PM

I have both the Petrol and a Hoodman. After you figure out how to assemble the Petrol, you may want a good stiff drink. Would including a simple "how-to" have been such a big thing? I had to search the net to find a picture of the Petrol to use as a guide. I would never be any good at origami, despite my last name.

Anyway, the Petrol is a bit larger, which is nice, but the Hoodman folds flat, which is great for stowing it in your camera case. The Petrol takes up way more space than its worth. I vote for the Hoodman.

Wayne Orr, SOC

Boyd Ostroff · April 11th, 2004, 08:41 PM

Me too Wayne! I had to dig around B&H's website to find a photo of the Petrol Hood! Sean, if you had a look at the Petrol hood I think you'd realize that cutting off the side would make it totally fall apart. Yes, it's a pain that the Petrol doesn't fold up easily. Of course you could take it apart and flatten it out (it ships like this) but then you would have to start all over again figuring out how to assemble it!

Ignacio Rodriguez · April 11th, 2004, 09:18 PM

Steve, here on this board there is no such thing as a stupid question. From time to time though, you may have the chance to see a stupid answer, like this one :-)

Tom Hardwick · April 12th, 2004, 01:36 PM

The hoodman on the PDX stops you accessing the touch-screen three-level-deep menu too. A right pain.

Steve Tapping · April 13th, 2004, 11:26 PM

Hah some funny answers.
No one really gave me a straight answer only suggestions and flaws which is ok I guess.
I work in the field where I have to walk long distances so my camera bag is small I need something you can slide on & off easily. Main thing is I have an outcome.
If the Hoodman does the exact same job quality wise I'll get that.
Thanks for your input.

April 10th, 2004, 08:14 PM	#1
Steve Tapping Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Australia WA Posts: 41	Stupid Hood Question This may sound absolutely ridiculous. But those of us who are still in our teens and everyone that has experienced these years realises that money is something we lack and there is nothing worse than wasting money. I'm not confident anyone is going to give me a definite answer here but which lcd hood would you suggest for the PDX. The Petrol or Hoodman. Yeh I know what your thinking who cares they do the exact same thing. Does any of them do a better job though. The design of the Petrol looks nice however the Hoodman looks more efficent. Anyone have experience with both of them? And no I cannot get it free from sony.

April 11th, 2004, 07:38 PM	#5
Sean McHenry Trustee Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Hilliard, Ohio Posts: 1,193	I'm not one to recommend "field modifications" to newbies but, here goes... Since the side of the camera body itself mostly blocks light falling on the viewfinder from the right side (as operating the camera), why not just take an exacto knofe to the one edge and trim it mostly off to leave an area that's open on that side? I was at somebodys home made sitwe just a few minutes ago where they made a simple one from black painted cardboard but left the right side exposed for their AG-DVX100 for this same reason. Sean __________________ ‘I don’t know what I’m doing, and I’m shooting on D.V.’ - my hero - David Lynch http://www.DeepBlueEdit.com

April 11th, 2004, 09:18 PM	#8
Ignacio Rodriguez Contributor Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Santiago, Chile Posts: 932	Steve, here on this board there is no such thing as a stupid question. From time to time though, you may have the chance to see a stupid answer, like this one :-) __________________ Ignacio Rodríguez in the third world. @micronauta on Twitter. Main hardware: brain, eyes, hands.

April 10th, 2004, 08:23 PM	#2
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	I've only used the Petrol. One thing you should realize however is that any LCD hood on the PDX-10 will block all those buttons on the side of the camera. Very annoying if you want to use custom presets, display color bars, set the zebra pattern or turn the info display off...

April 10th, 2004, 08:27 PM	#3
Steve Tapping Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Australia WA Posts: 41	I did not think of that. Can you not just swing the lcd around to face the other way to access the buttons while the hood is on? I gather you have had success with the petrol.

April 11th, 2004, 08:46 AM	#4
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	The petrol I'm using is the one that was offered as a free promotion by Sony. I think it's quite inexpensive to purchase however. I find it really effective while shooting outdoors. Even in the bright sun you can still use the LCD screen. Sure, you can swivel the LCD screen to get at the buttons, but while shooting on a tripod at telephoto you'll probably shake the camera in so doing. This isn't insurmountable, just a bit annoying. It's really a Sony design flaw... why did they decide to bury the custom preset button behind the LCD screen?

April 11th, 2004, 08:24 PM	#6
Wayne Orr Major Player Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Northridge Ca Posts: 734	I have both the Petrol and a Hoodman. After you figure out how to assemble the Petrol, you may want a good stiff drink. Would including a simple "how-to" have been such a big thing? I had to search the net to find a picture of the Petrol to use as a guide. I would never be any good at origami, despite my last name. Anyway, the Petrol is a bit larger, which is nice, but the Hoodman folds flat, which is great for stowing it in your camera case. The Petrol takes up way more space than its worth. I vote for the Hoodman. Wayne Orr, SOC

April 11th, 2004, 08:41 PM	#7
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,802	Me too Wayne! I had to dig around B&H's website to find a photo of the Petrol Hood! Sean, if you had a look at the Petrol hood I think you'd realize that cutting off the side would make it totally fall apart. Yes, it's a pain that the Petrol doesn't fold up easily. Of course you could take it apart and flatten it out (it ships like this) but then you would have to start all over again figuring out how to assemble it!

April 12th, 2004, 01:36 PM	#9
Tom Hardwick Inner Circle Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Billericay, England UK Posts: 4,711	The hoodman on the PDX stops you accessing the touch-screen three-level-deep menu too. A right pain.

April 13th, 2004, 11:26 PM	#10
Steve Tapping Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Australia WA Posts: 41	Hah some funny answers. No one really gave me a straight answer only suggestions and flaws which is ok I guess. I work in the field where I have to walk long distances so my camera bag is small I need something you can slide on & off easily. Main thing is I have an outcome. If the Hoodman does the exact same job quality wise I'll get that. Thanks for your input.