Canon EOS IX Lite

aka Canon EOS IX 50
aka Canon EOS IX 7

35mm AF film SLR camera

Canon EOS IX Lite

Specification

Production details:
Announced:March 1998
System: Canon EOS (1987)
Format:
Maximum format:35mm full frame
Film type:135 cartridge-loaded film
Mount and Flange focal distance:Canon EF [44mm]
Shutter:
Type:Focal-plane
Model:Electronically controlled
Speeds:30 - 1/2000 + B
Exposure:
Exposure metering:Through-the-lens (TTL), open-aperture
Exposure modes:Programmed Auto
Aperture-priority Auto
Shutter-priority Auto
Manual
Physical characteristics:
Weight:360g
Dimensions:123x80x64mm

Manufacturer description #1

NEW ORLEANS, LA., February 12, 1998 - Canon has quickly distinguished its Advanced Photo System products from the competition with their innovative styling and compact design, as well as a perfect combination of EOS System and Advanced Photo System features. This tradition of excellence is once again evident in the new EOS IX Lite Advanced Photo System SLR camera. The new, ultra-compact camera is smaller, lighter and less expensive than the EOS IX while offering several additional APS features including: a locking film chamber, improved viewfinder C/H/P masking, print quantity selection and additional greetings in several languages.

In addition to the new EOS IX Lite, Canon is introducing two new EF zoom lenses for use with EOS Advanced Photo System and conventional 35mm EOS System cameras: the EF 22-55mm f/4-5.6 USM and EF 55-200mm f4.5-5.6 USM models.

Beyond its ultra-compact body and elegant design, the EOS IX Lite provides users with many of the advanced technologies, features, and performance that have made the Canon EOS System the preferred choice of professional and amateur photographers worldwide.

"The new EOS IX Lite furthers Canon's commitment to the Advanced Photo System and the photographic industry, said Ted Ando, vice president and general manager of Canon's Camera Division. It also represents our commitment to consumers by continuing to develop products based on new and existing technology which better serve their needs and help bring the EOS System full circle as a truly integrated SLR system," Mr. Ando added.

While offering consumers numerous Advanced Photo System features, the EOS IX Lite also incorporates unique features which are distinctly Canon, including: a high-speed selectable 3-point autofocus system with AI Focus for improved performance; and Canon's exclusive AIM (Advanced Integrated Multi-Point control) system linking the 3-point autofocus system to multi-zone metering for available light and flash. The camera's built-in flash automatically pops up in low-light and back-lit situations when set in the Full Auto, Portrait, Close-Up and Night Modes. The built-in flash covers a wide-angle of 22mm, making it ideal for use with Canon's new EF 22-55mm f/4-5.6 zoom lens. As with all Canon EOS System cameras, the IX Lite is completely compatible with Canon's line of more than 50 EF lenses.

Canon engineers were able to reduce the overall size and weight of the EOS IX Lite by replacing the stainless steel exterior found on the EOS IX with a silver polycarbonate resin body and optimizing the camera's internal structure.

The EOS IX Lite provides all the Advanced Photo System features found in the EOS IX, along with additional high-performance functions including: drop-in film loading with safety lock to prevent accidental opening of the film chamber; Print Quantity Setting for pre-selecting the number of prints desired for any exposure made; Title Selection of up to 100 titles in 12 languages; and black mechanical masking for easily setting C/H/P formats in the viewfinder.

Other Advanced Photo System features include: Mid-Roll Change (MRC), Print Quality Improvement (PQI), Selectable Fixed Time Printing Method (FTPM), Photo data back printing; date and time imprint options; and three print sizes - Classic, High Definition wide-angle and Panorama.

Three-Point Autofocus System

The autofocus system is based on Canon's latest generation Multi-BASIS (Base-Stored Image Sensor) technology. Utilizing the camera's three-zone autofocus system, the BASIS system features a cross-type sensor at the center, coupled with vertical line sensors to the left and right, which encourages spontaneous photography with more emphasis on capturing the peak moment and less on the mechanics of the camera.

Canon's Exclusive AIM System

At the core of the EOS IX Lite is the AIM (Advanced Integrated Multi-point control) system which provides greater accuracy and creative flexibility than ever before. While in the camera's AI Focus mode, operation begins in the One-Shot AF mode and automatically shifts to AI Servo for predictive autofocus if the main subject begins to move. Manual focus is available by moving a switch on the lens.

Sophisticated Metering System

Using the EOS IX Lite's 6-zone Evaluative Metering system, photographers can be assured of proper exposure of the main subject, while rendering a natural exposure for the rest of the image. The three main zones of the 6-zone system correspond directly to the camera's three-zone autofocus system, ensuring proper exposure of the main subject. Another feature of the EOS IX Lite is its ability to use Partial Metering in the center of the picture area.

Center-Weighted Average Metering is possible only when the camera is set in its Manual exposure mode. In this mode, the camera will view all the light available in a particular scene, placing emphasis on the camera's center zone.

E-TTL Flash System Offers Tremendous Creative Latitude

While conventional TTL and A-TTL flash systems measure and control flash illumination reflected from the film's surface during exposure, Canon's EX-Series Speedlites provide even greater convenience and accuracy.

With E-TTL, flash exposure is measured and controlled by the EOS IX's 6-zone evaluative metering sensor in combination with the AIM system. Ambient light levels, subject position in the frame and pre-flash data are instantly analyzed, providing a natural balance between subject and background. Working in conjunction with Canon's AIM system, E-TTL flash metering is linked to the active focusing points for precise exposure of the subject.

High-Speed Flash Sync To 1/2000 Second

When attached to the new EOS IX and set in the "FP" mode, the Speedlite 220EX or 380EX flash units give photographers the ability to select a shutter speed for synchronized flash up to 1/2000 second. This feature provides photographers with the same shutter speed range available with daylight photography and can be used in conjunction with several "creative" modes of the EOS IX Lite camera including, Shutter-Priority, Aperture-Priority, Intelligent Program, and Manual.

Canon Adds EF 22-55mm f/4-5.6 USM and EF 55-200mm f4.5-5.6 USM Lenses to Line

Canon is introducing two new compact EF zoom lenses to its EF line, bringing the total number of lenses to more than 50. The Canon EF 22-55mm f/4-5.6 USM and EF 55-200mm f/4.5-5.6 USM offer professional and amateur photographers a wider selection of focal lengths for use with Canon EOS System cameras.

The wide angle setting of the EF 22-55mm f/4-5.6 USM lens matches perfectly with the EOS IX Lite's built-in flash covering power, making it an ideal standard zoom lens for this new camera.

Its compact, lightweight design features a replica aspherical lens which enables its ultra-wide angle coverage of 22mm and when mounted on the EOS IX Lite, the lens has an equivalent 135-format focal length of 28-69mm. The EF 55-200mm f/4.5-5.6 USM lens is a perfect companion lens to the EF 22-55mm model. Photographers can now cover a wide range of focal lengths from 22mm ultra-wide angle up to 200mm, using only two lenses. When mounted on the EOS IX Lite Advanced Photo System camera, the 135-format focal length equivalent is 69-250mm.

Both lenses feature Canon's exclusive Ultrasonic Motor (USM) technology for high speed and extremely quiet autofocusing functions. Full-time manual focusing enables deliberate manual control by the photographer at all times to allow fine focusing adjustments immediately before the shutter is released. The Canon EOS IX Lite measures 4.91 (W) x 3.20 (H) x 2.54 (D)-inches and weighs 12.85 ounces. The camera will be available at dealers in March. The EOS IX Lite Kit will include the EF 22-55mm f/4-5.6 USM lens.

Manufacturer description #2

The stylish EOS IX 7 is an ultra compact and lightweight Advanced Photo System SLR camera combined with the ease of use features of the EOS range. Advanced Photo System features include three print formats C/H/P, mid-roll change and print quantity setting.

Two ultra-fast focusing zoom lenses, an EF22-55mm f/4-5.6 USM and an EF55-200mm f/4.5-5.6 USM have been developed especially for the EOS IX 7. And with its innovative EF lens mount, the camera accepts the entire range of EF Lenses.

Manufacturer description #3

EOS IX50 was developed as the introductory model for IX 240 single-lens reflex camera, integrating the excellent basic features of New EOS Kiss and the advanced functions of IX 240. Its volume is reduced by 5% compared to New EOS Kiss and it weighs as light as 360 g. It can be used with EF lens and accessories. It also inherits wide-angle three focusing-points, 6-zone evaluative metering and E-TTL. It also comes with a number of magnetic IX functions, e.g. Mid-Roll Change (MRC), PQI function to record 9 types of shooting information on the film and improve the print quality, 100 types of caption in 12 languages, specification of the number of prints and printing of all the frames under identical conditions (FTPM). This model pursues the simple and easy operability by single-operation film loading, the function to prevent the film cover to open during the shooting and providing the operation buttons for setting magnetic IX functions on the back of the camera (IX position) intensively. EF22-55mm f/4.5-5.6 USM and EF55-200mm f/4.5-5.6USM, the light-weight compact lens, are to be marketed simultaneously for replacement.

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Chromatic aberration

There are two kinds of chromatic aberration: longitudinal and lateral. Longitudinal chromatic aberration is a variation in location of the image plane with changes in wave lengths. It produces the image point surrounded by different colors which result in a blurred image in black-and-white pictures. Lateral chromatic aberration is a variation in image size or magnification with wave length. This aberration does not appear at axial image points but toward the surrounding area, proportional to the distance from the center of the image field. Stopping down the lens has only a limited effect on these aberrations.

Spherical aberration

Spherical aberration is caused because the lens is round and the film or image sensor is flat. Light entering the edge of the lens is more severely refracted than light entering the center of the lens. This results in a blurred image, and also causes flare (non-image forming internal reflections). Stopping down the lens minimizes spherical aberration and flare, but introduces diffraction.

Astigmatism

Astigmatism in a lens causes a point in the subject to be reproduced as a line in the image. The effect becomes worse towards the corner of the image. Stopping down the lens has very little effect.

Coma

Coma in a lens causes a circular shape in the subject to be reproduced as an oval shape in the image. Stopping down the lens has almost no effect.

Curvature of field

Curvature of field is the inability of a lens to produce a flat image of a flat subject. The image is formed instead on a curved surface. If the center of the image is in focus, the edges are out of focus and vice versa. Stopping down the lens has a limited effect.

Distortion

Distortion is the inability of a lens to capture lines as straight across the entire image area. Barrel distortion causes straight lines at the edges of the frame to bow toward the center of the image, producing a barrel shape. Pincushion distortion causes straight lines at the edges of the frame to curve in toward the lens axis. Distortion, whether barrel or pincushion type, is caused by differences in magnification; stopping down the lens has no effect at all.

The term "distortion" is also sometimes used instead of the term "aberration". In this case, other types of optical aberrations may also be meant, not necessarily geometric distortion.

Diffraction

Classically, light is thought of as always traveling in straight lines, but in reality, light waves tend to bend around nearby barriers, spreading out in the process. This phenomenon is known as diffraction and occurs when a light wave passes by a corner or through an opening. Diffraction plays a paramount role in limiting the resolving power of any lens.

Doublet

Doublet is a lens design comprised of two elements grouped together. Sometimes the two elements are cemented together, and other times they are separated by an air gap. Examples of this type of lens include achromatic close-up lenses.

Dynamic range

Dynamic range is the maximum range of tones, from darkest shadows to brightest highlights, that can be produced by a device or perceived in an image. Also called tonal range.

Resolving power

Resolving power is the ability of a lens, photographic emulsion or imaging sensor to distinguish fine detail. Resolving power is expressed in terms of lines per millimeter that are distinctly recorded in the final image.

Vignetting

Vignetting is the darkening of the corners of an image relative to the center of the image. There are three types of vignetting: optical, mechanical, and natural vignetting.

Optical vignetting is caused by the physical dimensions of a multi-element lens. Rear elements are shaded by elements in front of them, which reduces the effective lens opening for off-axis incident light. The result is a gradual decrease of the light intensity towards the image periphery. Optical vignetting is sensitive to the aperture and can be completely cured by stopping down the lens. Two or three stops are usually sufficient.

Mechanical vignetting occurs when light beams are partially blocked by external objects such as thick or stacked filters, secondary lenses, and improper lens hoods.

Natural vignetting (also known as natural illumination falloff) is not due to the blocking of light rays. The falloff is approximated by the "cosine fourth" law of illumination falloff. Wide-angle rangefinder designs are particularly prone to natural vignetting. Stopping down the lens cannot cure it.

Flare

Bright shapes or lack of contrast caused when light is scattered by the surface of the lens or reflected off the interior surfaces of the lens barrel. This is most often seen when the lens is pointed toward the sun or another bright light source. Flare can be minimized by using anti-reflection coatings, light baffles, or a lens hood.

Ghosting

Glowing patches of light that appear in a photograph due to lens flare.

Retrofocus design

Design with negative lens group(s) positioned in front of the diaphragm and positive lens group(s) positioned at the rear of the diaphragm. This provides a short focal length with a long back focus or lens-to-film distance, allowing for movement of the reflex mirror in SLR cameras. Sometimes called an inverted telephoto lens.

Rectilinear design

Design that does not introduce significant distortion, especially ultra-wide angle lenses that preserve straight lines and do not curve them (unlike a fisheye lens, for instance).

Focus shift

A change in the position of the plane of optimal focus, generally due to a change in focal length when using a zoom lens, and in some lenses, with a change in aperture.

Transmittance

The amount of light that passes through a lens without being either absorbed by the glass or being reflected by glass/air surfaces.

Modulation Transfer Function (MTF)

When optical designers attempt to compare the performance of optical systems, a commonly used measure is the modulation transfer function (MTF).

The components of MTF are:

The MTF of a lens is a measurement of its ability to transfer contrast at a particular resolution from the object to the image. In other words, MTF is a way to incorporate resolution and contrast into a single specification.

Knowing the MTF curves of each photographic lens and camera sensor within a system allows a designer to make the appropriate selection when optimizing for a particular resolution.

Veiling glare

Lens flare that causes loss of contrast over part or all of the image.

Anti-reflection coating

When light enters or exits an uncoated lens approximately 5% of the light is reflected back at each lens-air boundary due to the difference in refractive index. This reflected light causes flare and ghosting, which results in deterioration of image quality. To counter this, a vapor-deposited coating that reduces light reflection is applied to the lens surface. Early coatings consisted of a single thin film with the correct refractive index differences to cancel out reflections. Multi-layer coatings, introduced in the early 1970s, are made up of several such films.

Benefits of anti-reflection coating:

Circular fisheye

Produces a 180° angle of view in all directions (horizontal, vertical and diagonal).

The image circle of the lens is inscribed in the image frame.

Diagonal (full-frame) fisheye

Covers the entire image frame. For this reason diagonal fisheye lenses are often called full-frame fisheyes.

Extension ring

Extension rings can be used singly or in combination to vary the reproduction ratio of lenses. They are mounted between the camera body and the lens. As a rule, the effect becomes stronger the shorter the focal length of the lens in use, and the longer the focal length of the extension ring.

View camera

A large-format camera with a ground-glass viewfinder at the image plane for viewing and focusing. The photographer must stick his head under a cloth hood in order to see the image projected on the ground glass. Because of their 4x5-inch (or larger) negatives, these cameras can produce extremely high-quality results. View cameras also usually support movements.

135 cartridge-loaded film

43.27 24 36
  • Introduced: 1934
  • Frame size: 36 × 24mm
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Diagonal: 43.27mm
  • Area: 864mm2
  • Double perforated
  • 8 perforations per frame

120 roll film

71.22 44 56
  • Introduced: 1901
  • Frame size: 56 × 44mm
  • Aspect ratio: 11:14
  • Diagonal: 71.22mm
  • Area: 2464mm2
  • Unperforated

120 roll film

79.2 56 56
  • Introduced: 1901
  • Frame size: 56 × 56mm
  • Aspect ratio: 1:1
  • Diagonal: 79.2mm
  • Area: 3136mm2
  • Unperforated

120 roll film

89.64 56 70
  • Introduced: 1901
  • Frame size: 70 × 56mm
  • Aspect ratio: 5:4
  • Diagonal: 89.64mm
  • Area: 3920mm2
  • Unperforated

220 roll film

71.22 44 56
  • Introduced: 1965
  • Frame size: 56 × 44mm
  • Aspect ratio: 11:14
  • Diagonal: 71.22mm
  • Area: 2464mm2
  • Unperforated
  • Double the length of 120 roll film

220 roll film

79.2 56 56
  • Introduced: 1965
  • Frame size: 56 × 56mm
  • Aspect ratio: 1:1
  • Diagonal: 79.2mm
  • Area: 3136mm2
  • Unperforated
  • Double the length of 120 roll film

220 roll film

89.64 56 70
  • Introduced: 1965
  • Frame size: 70 × 56mm
  • Aspect ratio: 5:4
  • Diagonal: 89.64mm
  • Area: 3920mm2
  • Unperforated
  • Double the length of 120 roll film

Shutter speed ring with "F" setting

The "F" setting disengages the leaf shutter and is set when using only the focal plane shutter in the camera body.

Catch for disengaging cross-coupling

The shutter and diaphragm settings are cross-coupled so that the diaphragm opens to a corresponding degree when faster shutter speeds are selected. The cross-coupling can be disengaged at the press of a catch.

Cross-coupling button

With the cross-coupling button depressed speed/aperture combinations can be altered without changing the Exposure Value setting.

M & X sync

The shutter is fully synchronized for M- and X-settings so that you can work with flash at all shutter speeds.

In M-sync, the shutter closes the flash-firing circuit slightly before it is fully open to catch the flash at maximum intensity. The M-setting is used for Class M flash bulbs.

In X-sync, the flash takes place when the shutter is fully opened. The X-setting is used for electronic flash.

X sync

The shutter is fully synchronized for X-setting so that you can work with flash at all shutter speeds.

In X-sync, the flash takes place when the shutter is fully opened. The X-setting is used for electronic flash.

Unable to follow the link

You are already on the page dedicated to this lens.

Cannot perform comparison

Cannot compare the lens to itself.

Image stabilizer

A technology used for reducing or even eliminating the effects of camera shake. Gyro sensors inside the lens detect camera shake and pass the data to a microcomputer. Then an image stabilization group of elements controlled by the microcomputer moves inside the lens and compensates camera shake in order to keep the image static on the imaging sensor or film.

The technology allows to increase the shutter speed by several stops and shoot handheld in such lighting conditions and at such focal lengths where without image stabilizer you have to use tripod, decrease the shutter speed and/or increase the ISO setting which can lead to blurry and noisy images.

Original name

Lens name as indicated on the lens barrel (usually on the front ring). With lenses from film era, may vary slightly from batch to batch.

Format

Format refers to the shape and size of film or image sensor.

35mm is the common name of the 36x24mm film format or image sensor format. It has an aspect ratio of 3:2, and a diagonal measurement of approximately 43mm. The name originates with the total width of the 135 film which was the primary medium of the format prior to the invention of the full frame digital SLR. Historically the 35mm format was sometimes called small format to distinguish it from the medium and large formats.

APS-C is an image sensor format approximately equivalent in size to the film negatives of 25.1x16.7mm with an aspect ratio of 3:2.

Medium format is a film format or image sensor format larger than 36x24mm (35mm) but smaller than 4x5in (large format).

Angle of view

Angle of view describes the angular extent of a given scene that is imaged by a camera. It is used interchangeably with the more general term field of view.

As the focal length changes, the angle of view also changes. The shorter the focal length (eg 18mm), the wider the angle of view. Conversely, the longer the focal length (eg 55mm), the smaller the angle of view.

A camera's angle of view depends not only on the lens, but also on the sensor. Imaging sensors are sometimes smaller than 35mm film frame, and this causes the lens to have a narrower angle of view than with 35mm film, by a certain factor for each sensor (called the crop factor).

This website does not use the angles of view provided by lens manufacturers, but calculates them automatically by the following formula: 114.6 * arctan (21.622 / CF * FL),

where:

CF – crop-factor of a sensor,
FL – focal length of a lens.

Mount

A lens mount is an interface — mechanical and often also electrical — between a camera body and a lens.

A lens mount may be a screw-threaded type, a bayonet-type, or a breech-lock type. Modern camera lens mounts are of the bayonet type, because the bayonet mechanism precisely aligns mechanical and electrical features between lens and body, unlike screw-threaded mounts.

Lens mounts of competing manufacturers (Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Sony etc.) are always incompatible. In addition to the mechanical and electrical interface variations, the flange focal distance can also be different.

The flange focal distance (FFD) is the distance from the mechanical rear end surface of the lens mount to the focal plane.

Lens construction

Lens construction – a specific arrangement of elements and groups that make up the optical design, including type and size of elements, type of used materials etc.

Element - an individual piece of glass which makes up one component of a photographic lens. Photographic lenses are nearly always built up of multiple such elements.

Group – a cemented together pieces of glass which form a single unit or an individual piece of glass. The advantage is that there is no glass-air surfaces between cemented together pieces of glass, which reduces reflections.

Focal length

The focal length is the factor that determines the size of the image reproduced on the focal plane, picture angle which covers the area of the subject to be photographed, depth of field, etc.

Speed

The largest opening or stop at which a lens can be used is referred to as the speed of the lens. The larger the maximum aperture is, the faster the lens is considered to be. Lenses that offer a large maximum aperture are commonly referred to as fast lenses, and lenses with smaller maximum aperture are regarded as slow.

In low-light situations, having a wider maximum aperture means that you can shoot at a faster shutter speed or work at a lower ISO, or both.

Closest focusing distance

The minimum distance from the focal plane (film or sensor) to the subject where the lens is still able to focus.

Closest working distance

The distance from the front edge of the lens to the subject at the maximum magnification.

Magnification ratio

Determines how large the subject will appear in the final image. Magnification is expressed as a ratio. For example, a magnification ratio of 1:1 means that the image of the subject formed on the film or sensor will be the same size as the subject in real life. For this reason, a 1:1 ratio is often called "life-size".

Manual focus override in autofocus mode

Allows to perform final focusing manually after the camera has locked the focus automatically. Note that you don't have to switch camera and/or lens to manual focus mode.

Manual focus override in autofocus mode

Allows to perform final focusing manually after the camera has locked the focus automatically. Note that you don't have to switch camera and/or lens to manual focus mode.

Electronic manual focus override is performed in the following way: half-press the shutter button, wait until the camera has finished the autofocusing and then focus manually without releasing the shutter button using the focusing ring.

Manual diaphragm

The diaphragm must be stopped down manually by rotating the detent aperture ring.

Preset diaphragm

The lens has two rings, one is for pre-setting, while the other is for normal diaphragm adjustment. The first ring must be set at the desired aperture, the second ring then should be fully opened for focusing, and turned back for stop down to the pre-set value.

Semi-automatic diaphragm

The lens features spring mechanism in the diaphragm, triggered by the shutter release, which stops down the diaphragm to the pre-set value. The spring needs to be reset manually after each exposure to re-open diaphragm to its maximum value.

Automatic diaphragm

The camera automatically closes the diaphragm down during the shutter operation. On completion of the exposure, the diaphragm re-opens to its maximum value.

Fixed diaphragm

The aperture setting is fixed at F/ on this lens, and cannot be adjusted.

Number of blades

As a general rule, the more blades that are used to create the aperture opening in the lens, the rounder the out-of-focus highlights will be.

Some lenses are designed with curved diaphragm blades, so the roundness of the aperture comes not from the number of blades, but from their shape. However, the fewer blades the diaphragm has, the more difficult it is to form a circle, regardless of rounded edges.

At maximum aperture, the opening will be circular regardless of the number of blades.

Weight

Excluding case or pouch, caps and other detachable accessories (lens hood, close-up adapter, tripod adapter etc.).

Maximum diameter x Length

Excluding case or pouch, caps and other detachable accessories (lens hood, close-up adapter, tripod adapter etc.).

For lenses with collapsible design, the length is indicated for the working (retracted) state.

Weather sealing

A rubber material which is inserted in between each externally exposed part (manual focus and zoom rings, buttons, switch panels etc.) to ensure it is properly sealed against dust and moisture.

Lenses that accept front mounted filters typically do not have gaskets behind the filter mount. It is recommended to use a filter for complete weather resistance when desired.

Fluorine coating

Helps keep lenses clean by reducing the possibility of dust and dirt adhering to the lens and by facilitating cleaning should the need arise. Applied to the outer surface of the front and/or rear lens elements over multi-coatings.

Filters

Lens filters are accessories that can protect lenses from dirt and damage, enhance colors, minimize glare and reflections, and add creative effects to images.

Lens hood

A lens hood or lens shade is a device used on the end of a lens to block the sun or other light source in order to prevent glare and lens flare. Flare occurs when stray light strikes the front element of a lens and then bounces around within the lens. This stray light often comes from very bright light sources, such as the sun, bright studio lights, or a bright white background.

The geometry of the lens hood can vary from a plain cylindrical or conical section to a more complex shape, sometimes called a petal, tulip, or flower hood. This allows the lens hood to block stray light with the higher portions of the lens hood, while allowing more light into the corners of the image through the lowered portions of the hood.

Lens hoods are more prominent in long focus lenses because they have a smaller viewing angle than that of wide-angle lenses. For wide angle lenses, the length of the hood cannot be as long as those for telephoto lenses, as a longer hood would enter the wider field of view of the lens.

Lens hoods are often designed to fit onto the matching lens facing either forward, for normal use, or backwards, so that the hood may be stored with the lens without occupying much additional space. In addition, lens hoods can offer some degree of physical protection for the lens due to the hood extending farther than the lens itself.

Teleconverters

Teleconverters increase the effective focal length of lenses. They also usually maintain the closest focusing distance of lenses, thus increasing the magnification significantly. A lens combined with a teleconverter is normally smaller, lighter and cheaper than a "direct" telephoto lens of the same focal length and speed.

Teleconverters are a convenient way of enhancing telephoto capability, but it comes at a cost − reduced maximum aperture. Also, since teleconverters magnify every detail in the image, they logically also magnify residual aberrations of the lens.

Lens caps

Scratched lens surfaces can spoil the definition and contrast of even the finest lenses. Lens covers are the best and most inexpensive protection available against dust, moisture and abrasion. Safeguard lens elements - both front and rear - whenever the lens is not in use.