When I purchased my Nikon 28mm f/1.4D AF Nikkor from Ebay, it came with a HK-7 lens hood. I later did some searching to determine which lens hoods were recommended for the 28mm. I found that most people by default used the Nikon HK-7 hood, but many found it to be rather shallow. Protection from any stray light or debris was minimal. Personally I found the HK-7 to be just fine when shooting pictures with regards to flair, but I did feel the Nikon HK-7 offered limited protection of the front lens area. Later I found two other options. One was the longer Nikon HK-4 lens hood and the other using a 72mm to 77mm step up ring which allowed the 85mm f/1.4 HN-31 lens hood to be used.

I found that the Nikon HK-4 lens hood was the preferred option recommended by several high profile photographers, however the HK-4 hood was extremely difficult to find. Luckily I found two HK-4 lens hoods on Ebay and picked them up right away for a good price. One I got new and the other HK-4 was used. I am very happy with them. The Nikon HK-4 lens hood I feel is a great hood for the Nikon 28mm f/1.4D and highly recommend using it in the place of the HK-7. Both the HK-4 and HK-7 lens hoods are however very difficult to find and you may have to pay a high price for them. Both HK-4’s that I found on Ebay were listed as “Buy Nows” for $35.00 each from separate sellers. I should also mention that both the HK-4 and HK-7 lens hoods are screw on hoods, but I have found them to be very sturdy.

I carry my Nikon D200 and 28mm f/1.4 everywhere now and definitely needed the HK-4 to protect the front end. The HK-7 was just too shallow and I’m glad I made the switch. For those of you who can’t find the HK-4, the 85mm f/1.4 HN-31 lens hood with a step up ring I have heard works very well. This would have been my second option in the event I could not located a Nikon HK-4 lens hood. Surprisingly I found two!!

UPDATE: I recently discovered another lens hood option. I found that the Nikon HN-20 screw-on hood with Hakuba 86mm snap-on lens cap will work excellent with the Nikon 28mm f/1.4D AF. In addition the Hakuba 72mm Rubber Lens Hood works great too, however I prefer metal lens hoods to protect the glass. Still it’s a very good and cheap alternative. In Japan I can get the HN-20, Hakuba 86mm cap, and 72mm Rubber Hood all for under 20 bucks so it was rather cheap to try all this out.

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