Forgive me if everyone knows about this or if this is an inappropriate post. I have nothing to do with these people but thought others might be interested. In my search for a cheap, light-weight lens shade device, I came across something called the Flarebuster (see www.flarebuster.com). It's a plastic covered annealed aluminum wire with a clip on one end (i.e. onto your front or back standard) and either a clip or a hotshoe attachment (for Ebony users!) on the other. Either one can be had for about $23-$27.

-- Matthew Cordery (cordery@sonic.net), March 18, 2002

Answers

Works like a third hand - or the dark slide from your film holder...

Works in a pinch, but a lens shade that keeps away stray light from all sides is far more effective...

-- Per Volquartz (volquartz@volquartz.com), March 18, 2002.

The dark slide works just as well

-- George Huczek (ghuczek@sk.sympatico.ca), March 18, 2002.

Expensive lens shades are the one of the biggest scams in photography. AA shaded his lens with his hat. -jb

-- jeff buckels (jeffbuck@swcp.com), March 18, 2002.

Tried a flare buster but found that the clip on the end was so small that even a large (8 inch sq) piece of card slipped out of the grip! The shades supplied with it are next to useless! IMHO purpose built bellows hoods are the way to go - they are expensive but they do work better than anything else I've tried. I use a Lee Wide Angle hood - it pained me to pay so much for it but I think its money well spent.

-- paul owen (paulowen_2000@yahoo.com), March 18, 2002.

I dont know if mine is a Flarebuster, but I swear by mine, is cheap you can ste it at any angle, and also you can make vigneting masks and put them in front of the lens if that tickles your fancy. I know because mine came with some masks, i never use them but it was cool to know. Dont be afraid to get one, you will love it. THe only draw back is that you do have to have a hot show type holder to install. I have one on my Linhof TK45, but not on my Gandolfi.....so most of the time I use the dark slide...but have messed up some shot doing it that way....

-- Jorge Gasteazoro (rossorabbit@hotmail.com), March 18, 2002.

This is not too different from the Ebony lens shade clip:

http://www.ebonycamera.com/acc.html

I have the Ebony device, and it works quite well. You can mount your ground glass protector as the shade in the clip. The Ebony clip is easy to adjust to block top or side light flares (I've never tried bottom).

The Ebony shade clip looks more rigid than the flarebuster.

It works on non-Ebony cameras. All you need is a flash bracket on the front standard.

-- Michael Chmilar (chmilar@acm.org), March 18, 2002.

A perfect post Matt. I also was in demand for a lense shade recenly at issue was not somuch for cost as I simply needed it within the hour. My new flare killer looks like a rocket booster, found in the hvac section at homedepot.Cost? Under $5..Does it serve it's purpose? You Betcha!

-- John Forrest Grunke (johngrunke@msn.com), March 19, 2002.

What's wrong with two croc clips and a length of fencing wire? Cost - about £1 ($1.5 US).

-- Pete Andrews (p.l.andrews@bham.ac.uk), March 19, 2002.

Years ago I made a lens shade from an empty box (100 sheets) of 4x5 Tri-X. Using the inner and outer boxes, you cut the bottom out of the larger outer lid and then insert the inner boxes into the rectangular hole, making a sort of bellows shade. Then I cut a hole into the bottom of the box and used an adapter ring to screw it onto my lens. I still use my cardboard shade to this day.

-- Ben Calwell (bcalwell@aol.com), March 19, 2002.

I plan on experimenting with a cardboard tube, cut to size and spray painted black. Either I will hold it with one hand or try to figure out some way to attach it so I can use it for more than one lens. At least with a cardboard tube, slots for filters could be cut. Anyone else try this idea before?

-- Roger Urban (roger_urban@yahoo.com), March 20, 2002.