Gloves for Photography

[RustyTheGeek]

WOW!  Great thread.  Since I do so much of my photography outdoors in all kinds of weather, this is a great read.  In my experience, the biggest challenge is achieving adequate warmth to the fingers but still being able to use the camera controls without much effort.  My solutions have evolved and change based on the situation, how cold and how long I'll be in the cold shooting.  It may have already been said but this is some of what I do....

-  Golf Gloves (For mild cool weather, low wind.  They are thin and light.)
-  Fingerless Wool (For cool to cold but not a long time.)
-  Seirus - HYPERLITE™ ALL WEATHER™ GLOVE  (Best solution so far.  Thin enough to wear under the wool fingerless if necc.)

http://tinyurl.com/b3fkl5g

The Seirus Hyperlite gloves I originally carried for hiking and trek pole use.  But they are thin enough to work the camera and still warmer than other alternatives due to the use of high tech materials.  They are designed for tactical gun use but also work great for holding trekking poles and cameras.  I used them this past weekend on a hiking trip for several hours shooting pictures in nighttime astronomy upper 30's temps, low to no wind.  Hands/fingers still got cold but only after an hour or more and very little exertion.  They aren't a perfect solution but so far, I haven't found a *perfect* thin glove solution.  (Where *perfect* means no long term finger/hand chill whatsoever.)  You still need to alternate the hands/fingers in and out of a warm pocket every so often to maintain comfort.

Keep in mind, even thick wind proof Snow Ski Gloves will eventually allow your fingers to get cold.  Mittens are the best way to keep warm but they are worthless for finger use.  So a warm pocket can usually help you keep fingers warm if you keep your gloved hands in pockets or under arms when not in use.

In general, look for the use of high tech synthetic moisture resistant materials like PolarTec, etc.  Stay away from cotton.  Wool is good but not thin enough.

[Don Haines]

Living up in "the great white north", I have lots of practice freezing my fingers in the cold, It's a warm day today at -12C

I use a lightweight liner glove so I can feel the buttons and twirl the wheels easily... After my shot I tuck my hands back into a warm mitten. With gloves, even heavier ones, you have too much surface area to radiate heat from... a mitten gives your hand a chance to get warm.

[wle]

Want thoughts on cold weather photography from somebody who does quite a bit of it, and does it quite well, scope out -

http://www.expeditionsalaska.com/ramblings/2011/11/21/cold-weather-photography-clothing/

If interested in Aurora photography, scope out the articles following the one in the link above.

[PhotographAdventure]

Great ideas for the gloves.  I could use some right now in the cold winter.

[E-Bahn]

Those Arc-Teryx ones look nice.

I've lived in all manner of cold and the two pairs of gloves I use consistently with my camera are firstly, a pair of leather gloves I was given for christmas some time ago (probably purchased at Sears or someplace similar.  They aren't super warm, but, for me are fine down to -10/-15 C.  I find the dexterity they give me is great. Also, the soft leather gives me a  great grip. 

The second pair are called trigger mitts. The pair I have comes from Newfoundland, and I've always associated that style with newfoundland, but I'm sure they exist elsewhere. They separate your index from the rest of your fingers, so you get a bit more dexterity than a full mitten, but still give you the nice warmth of full finger coverage.  It's good enough for changing aperture/shutter speed once you get all the rest of your settings figured out on a shoot.  Warm enough to get down to -20C and beyond (These were my preferred gloves in the -40 of Saskatchewan), but still thin enough to keep in your pockets when you aren't gripping your camera.