Anyone tried the Wiggly Worm

[Ross Chambers]

Google "french flag"

Wouldn't that be "Freedom Flag" in the US ;-) ?

Dubbya is in my town at the moment, American idiosyncrasies are in the air.

Regards - Ross

[Dan V]

FWIW, the Ebony Lens Shade Clip is an okay remedy but the materials and execution are lacking; it’s also heavy and expensive.

Agree. I stopped using mine in favor of this which looks more cumbersome, but is far more useful: http://www.calumetphoto.com/item/LE5005/

[phil sweeney]

At best, it is merely a sun flare preventer and not an effective shade. The attached photo shows a shade that excludes practically all non-image forming light from hitting the lens.

I have read your posts on this subject before and now seeing this photograph I may try to make one. What are you using for hinges? I would think a stiff piano style hinge would be a good starting point.

[Brian Ellis]

For those who are using your hand, hat, dark slide, this gadget, or something similar to shield the lens from direct sun light and who think that's an adequate solution to the problem of extraneous, non-image forming light entering the lens. . . read what Robert Zeichner said. Using those kinds of things isn't the same thing as using an effective lens shade. In fact the time when you need a good lens shade the most often isn't when you're in direct sun light, it's when you're photographing in bright but diffused light (e.g. sun behind a thin cloud cover) so that extraneous light is entering the lens from all directions, something you can't prevent with just your hand, hat, etc. That's why they make compendium shades, pain in the neck that they are.

I owned the Ebony gadget that's similar to the one shown in the Robert White ad (or maybe that is the Ebony gadget, I didn't look closely). I found it to be at least as much trouble to use as a compendium shade and I don't think it's anywhere near as effective. The only advantage I could see to it was for someone who otherwise would use their hand, dark slide, etc. as a shade. This clip-on gadget allows you to be sure it isn't entering the picture, something that can be hard to do when using your hand, dark slide, etc.

[John Schneider]

Search for Loc-Line Coolant Hose from mcmaster.com or your local industrial hardware store. Works just like the Wiggly Worm, and is a great gadget for all sorts of applications. But, you can save a lot by going to the source.

[cyrus]

I use this sort of thing in night photography, when I want to minimize/block out a street lamp. I made it using a flexible goose-neck metal tube attached to an alligator clip. Its pretty easy to make and the material is available in a hardware store in Chinatown locally.

Once its is set up to block a lamp, I just thwack it so it shakes around a bit, and thus reduces the light.

[Mark McCarvill]

At best, it is merely a sun flare preventer and not an effective shade. The attached photo shows a shade that excludes practically all non-image forming light from hitting the lens.

Awesome design, Robert.

For those of us who missed your article on this, could you tell us briefly how it’s made, and how it attaches to the lens?

[Robert A. Zeichner]

The barndoor shade article was originally published in the March/April 2007 issue of Photo Techniques magazine. I highly recommend this publication (not just because I have contributed to it). You can visit their website at www.phototechmag.com. I will be happy to answer any questions about my barndoor shade.

Please note that to meet the file size requirements of the forum, I've attached a text version of the article which may be not as easy to read. My apologies. The two pictures I wanted to attach are of the comparison photos made with and without a barn door shade. I will try and figure out a way to attach these in a susequent post. Sorry to keep you in suspense.

[Robert A. Zeichner]

I have finally found a way to show the actual negatives and the difference the barn door shade makes compared to a round rubber shade. Lens was a single coated 165mm Angulon. Film was TMAX 400 and developer was straight D-76 in an Expert Drum, both processed and scanned at the same time. Sun was behind the camera. Foreground was reddish sand (shot on the shore of the Virgin River in Zion N.P.) Image on left is with the BD shade and the one on the right is with a round rubber shade.

[Mark McCarvill]

Thanks for posting these images, Robert. I see a significant difference; more shadow detail, less fogging with the fully shaded lens.

Mark