Photoshop Insider

Cool Gear: The Hoodman Loupe Rocks!

By Scott on Thursday, June 21st, 2007 at 10:15 am | updates.

That wonderful LCD screen on the back of your camera is just about useless if you’re shooting outdoors in daylight. Last week during my first location shoot in Santa Fe, I would take a shot, look at the LCD and just laugh because it was so washed out with sunlight you really couldn’t see if there was a photo there or not.

On Friday’s shoot (at Pecos National Historical Park), I remembered that I had been traveling (for the past month or so), with a Hoodman Loupe in my bag, but I had never tried it (since I hadn’t tried it, I kept forgetting I had it). It works like a regular loupe (it hangs from a cord around your neck), but out in the field (in the daylight), you put it over your LCD, and it covers the entire screen; blocking out the light so you can see your screen perfectly. It worked WAY better than than I expected and everybody in my class who tried it out fell in love with it, so I thought I’d pass on my experience with it. (By the way, the Loupe itself is about the same size as a normal loupe and it’s very lightweight–you forget you’re even wearing it).

So, now that I’m sold on it, I have a new philosophy; either I take this Hoodman Loupe with me outdoors, or I turn off my LCD altogether and save the battery life. Here’s the link to their site for more info. Kudos to the people at Hoodman for coming up with such a clever gadget.

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^#1

OMG - another must have gadget, what a great idea - thanks for the tip! I’m gonna look like such a camera nerd on holidays between this, the Expo Disk and the camera around my neck.

Rob Prins on June 21st, 2007 at 10:23 am

^#2

I use this gadget everyday. Permanent part of my camera bag.Best way for looking at the LCD in daylight. I travel alot so everything I carry has to have a reason because of space and weight. Also if you do a lot of Macro take a look atthe right angle arm for the rear eyepeice.

vincent versace on June 21st, 2007 at 12:32 pm

^#3

AND the loupe has magnification on it. (Just turn the eyepiece to adjust.) My Hoodman rep suggests carrying an extra one to let your client use it–very cool.

Janine Smith on June 21st, 2007 at 1:12 pm

^#4

Scott, normally I would agree that the Hoodman would be worth it, but I find that even when I am not in harsh sunlight, the picture on the LCD is so inaccurate with regard to color, I simply check sharpness by zooming all the way into the parts that I care about being sharp, and ensure the histogram is okay and move on. I can see where the Hoodman would help with the sharpness viewing, but I am not sure it would be worth carrying around one more thing. Thoughts?

Pat Flanakin on June 21st, 2007 at 3:35 pm

^#5

Hi Pat:
Although my LCD is far from “dead on” for color, it’s not off so far off that I can’t at least make reasonable decisions based on what I see (remember; most people don’t calibrate their monitors, so it’s at least as close as that).

Besides, I’m not using it primarily to look at color; I’m looking at my LCD for tone, contrast, exposure, composition (highlight warnings), and just making sure I ‘got the shot” and for that I love my LCD, and the Hoodman Loupe lets me use this tool I love more often.

Also, as for Vinnie’s post above; I’ve seen all the stuff Vinny carries, and if he has made room for it, believe me—it’s worth carrying. Give it a try; I think you’ll be surprised at how much you like it.

Scott on June 21st, 2007 at 4:32 pm

^#6

I see no disparaging comments, so I will add mine. Any loupe I ever owned magnifies. This one doesn’t. I have a 20D with a little tiny screen, and the Hoodman gives me a darker little tiny screen.

Al Marsh on June 21st, 2007 at 10:38 pm

^#7

Just as a note back to Al, Janine Smith above indicates that the Loupe does magnify. Who is right? I may get one if the Loupe magnifies.

Pat Flanakin on June 22nd, 2007 at 10:15 am

^#8

Perhaps I didn’t play with it enough to find the magnifier part.

Al Marsh on June 22nd, 2007 at 10:35 am

^#9

Twisting it is a +/-3 Diopter adjustment I believe (for your vision).

Phil on June 22nd, 2007 at 3:44 pm

^#10

Re: Magnification: If the Hoodman loupe actually magnified much, you’d get pixillation. My 30D’s display has only 230K pixels. As the images are 8 MP, one pixel on the LCD corresponds to more than 32 on the image. (It’s more because the image doesn’t use all of the LCD.) Magnify that and you just get a larger fuzzy image.

In a sense, the Hoodman loupe does “magnify” the image, as it gets your eye a lot closer to the image. Halving the distance is the same as magnifying by two. Most photographers I’ve watched view the screen from 18″ or so. Using the loupe puts you about 3-4″ away, “magnifying” by 4-6 times.

George on May 6th, 2008 at 4:45 am