Cool lens hood solution - Konica Auto S3

[teamsc10190]

Never been happy with 51mm clamp-on hoods for the Auto S3 that obscure too much of the rangefinder, and don't accept a lens cap so the meter is always drawing down the battery. The net consequence is that I need to remember to carry the lens hood separately and put it on and off for every shot while still having the impaired rangefinder issue.

I recently located a Minolta D49ND lens hood that has provided the ideal solution. Minolta made the D49ND for the Hi-Matic C/E/F (1969-1977) and they are a short cylindrical, screw-in design that is difficult to find. It's only 9mm's long, but screwed on top of a UV or Haze filter yields a 16.7mm effective lens hood length.

I never take the hood off and it's the exact same diameter as the lens barrel so it doesn't obscure the rangefinder. As added benefit: the D49ND fitted with filter still accepts the OE lens cap and fits in the OE ever-ready case. Perfect solution!

[farlymac]

That's great to hear. But maybe you had a hood for some other Konica model, like one of the older, larger cameras. I recall they had nice, rectangular hoods, and I never had a problem when using them on a Yashica Electro G series camera, other than you had to take it off for storage.

PF

[teamsc10190]

Originally Posted by farlymac

That's great to hear. But maybe you had a hood for some other Konica model, like one of the older, larger cameras. I recall they had nice, rectangular hoods, and I never had a problem when using them on a Yashica Electro G series camera, other than you had to take it off for storage.

PF

While the diminutive body of the Auto S3 has always been an asset in a full-frame 35mm camera for stealth, a consequence is that a portion of the viewfinder is blocked by the lens barrel. A lens hood that adds width to the lens barrel increases the view obstruction. It's less of a problem on your Electro G because the camera body is wider and you have more physical separation between the rangefinder lens and the lens hood.

The fact that the front lens element on the Auto S3 is not recessed means that there is no natural shade to fight flare without use of a lens hood. The challenge has been to find the right one to minimize compromises.

I do have Konica’s 51mm clamp-on “KoniHood” that was offered as an accessory for the 1959 Konica S. The 51mm KoniHood is exceptionally rare and works and looks perfect on the Auto S3 but you can't use a lens cap or the case so you wind up carrying the hood and putting it on and off constantly whereas the Minolta lens hood just stays on at all times.

[daniel~]

Great info, thanks. I have the same problem finding the "ideal hood" for my Auto S3.

Today I've just received a vented hood I ordered online, but then found it still very obstrusive on S3. So I just go back to my old solution: use a thick filter ring( that belonged to an cheap old rubber hood) as an 8mm deep shade. Comebine it with a UV filter is about as much as I'd bear, on an already obstructed VF like S3's.

[teamsc10190]

Originally Posted by daniel~

Great info, thanks. I have the same problem finding the "ideal hood" for my Auto S3.

Today I've just received a vented hood I ordered online, but then found it still very obstrusive on S3. So I just go back to my old solution: use a thick filter ring( that belonged to an cheap old rubber hood) as an 8mm deep shade. Comebine it with a UV filter is about as much as I'd bear, on an already obstructed VF like S3's.

Same idea that works just fine. Sounds like the shade from the rubber hood added to the UV filter gives you an effective 13-14mm lens hood that gets the job done and helps make a great camera even better!

[daniel~]

The Minolta D49ND hood you discovered looks right at home on Konica Auto S3. Successful Konica-Minolta merging in this case!
Until I find one of those, I'd just use my recycled ring as a cheap alternative.

[daniel~]

The problem with the typical vented hood is that, not only it still obstructs the VF, but also appears over-sized on a compact RF camera. That kind of defeats the whole idea of a compact.

On the other hand, I have a 46mm plastic Konica hood. it's very small & thin with a cut-out. Not sure which model it was made for, but it fits perfectly on Konica C35. Now if only there were a 49mm version of it...


Konica 46mm lens hood, tilted vented hood, vented hood

[teamsc10190]

Originally Posted by daniel~

The Minolta D49ND hood you discovered looks right at home on Konica Auto S3. Successful Konica-Minolta merging in this case!
Until I find one of those, I'd just use my recycled ring as a cheap alternative.

Excellent point! Mating the Minolta D49ND hood with a Konica Auto S3 yields a better outcome than much of what emerged for photo enthusiasts from the merger of Konica and Minolta in 2003.