Photography clothing

Droolinggimp · 4 Feb 2008 at 12:28

I will be looking for some hard wearing comfortable and above all, warm trekking gear.

My needs are, Boots, trousers and a coat/jacket. Hopefuly making my way to Wales again this week for a few days, probably the Snowdonia region. I know the weather is far from perfect but it will be a welcome break and there will be some photographic opportunities at some point.

I will be needing to wrap up warm and will be doing a lot of walking too. Any other essentials that you can think of please post here.

What are your suggestions and where would you reccommend to purchase them. I live in Derby so I have a large selection of shops to get things from.

thanks

V-Spec · 4 Feb 2008 at 12:32

Fishing shops!

I used to do a serious amount of fishing, you can get some seriously well padded clothing from any big fishing tackle shop and it doesn't cost a million pounds,
I have a pair of fleece lined waterproof trousers and a jacket which cost £70 together.
If you're walking a long way any of the hiking shops sell good clothing but it can be very expensive.

SilverPenguin · 4 Feb 2008 at 12:32

I have some gortex walking boots (the ones that cover your ankle too), some windproof trousers and a gortext North Face coat that I use for Scotland and any real cold weather. I usually have a couple of tshirts and a fleece on under the jacket and if its really wet I'll stick some waterproof waders on (need some better ones of these though). With this lot on I have sat quite snug and warm on a rock face right along the shoreline in windy weather. In fact, I nearly feel asleep I got some comfortable lol

Gloves and a hat are also essential!

Messiah Khan · 4 Feb 2008 at 12:45

I tend to wear long johns (top and bottoms) a fleece jumper, combat trousers, a thick ski jacket. I then often wear a thin and cheap set of cammo trousers and jacket that stops everything else getting dirty as I roll around. As said, a good hat and set of trousers are essential.

-TA- · 4 Feb 2008 at 13:08

http://www.rohan.co.uk/

Amp34 · 4 Feb 2008 at 14:21

Try Cotswold or if on a bit of a budget Blacks. Jacket wise anything with either eVent or Gore-tex from one of the above shops would be fine. Go for just a raincoat without any padding then stick a base layer and fleece or two under it depending on how cold you are. Boots, Leather or (my preference) Gore-tex again, you can get some good deals from Cotswold as they usually have some on sale, just make sure they fit properly.

What bag do you have? If you only have a camera bag then unless you are literally just nipping from the car you need another bag that will fit at least a spare thick fleece and some food/safety kit as there pretty much no camera bags have enough room for this.

And as otheres have said some good gloves, and probably a pair of touch gloves (thin gloves that you can wear under your thick gloves so when you take them off to manipulate the camera your hands don't get as cold) and a hat are essential.

Droolinggimp · 4 Feb 2008 at 14:45

Thanks for the replies and ideas. I will venture into town later to have a mooch around. I have a hat and rucksack already. I think I will have to write a shopping list out.

Messiah Khan · 4 Feb 2008 at 15:17

Amp34 said:
If you only have a camera bag then unless you are literally just nipping from the car you need another bag that will fit at least a spare thick fleece and some food/safety kit as there pretty much no camera bags have enough room for this.

The Lowepro Pro Trekker I use is pretty good and can hold a day's worth of kit, comes at a weight though (Around 17Kg fully loaded).

A.N.Other · 4 Feb 2008 at 15:21

http://products.lowepro.com/product/Photo-Gloves,1990,44.htm#

Buy them (or a decent equivalent).

Amp34 · 4 Feb 2008 at 18:41

Messiah Khan said:
The Lowepro Pro Trekker I use is pretty good and can hold a day's worth of kit, comes at a weight though (Around 17Kg fully loaded).

Where do you fit your non photographic kit? In with the lenses or is it the same as the Pro Trekker AW (which just looking at seems to be over £300. :confused:

) which has bits on the side?

The only other specific camera bags I have seen that could actually hold enough 'survival' kit would be the Rover AW (just) and the Rover Plus AW (plenty big enough).

3dcandy · 4 Feb 2008 at 18:47

righty ho!
Gore-Tex is probably the best material, windproof, waterproof and breathable. Berghaus make good if slightly old fashioned jackets etc. North Face probably more fashionable.
Boots, gore-tex lining can make your feet sweat, but they will be waterproof. fabric boots are lighter than leather, but colder. best way is to layer up, base layer followed by a mid layer (fleece is light) then jacket. you can take the mid layer on/off if needed then. my favourite mid fleeces are by mountain equipment, though north face and berghaus are ok too. any more questions, feel free, used to work in an outdoor wear shop!

Messiah Khan · 4 Feb 2008 at 18:47

Amp34 said:
Where do you fit your non photographic kit? In with the lenses or is it the same as the Pro Trekker AW (which just looking at seems to be over £300.) which has bits on the side?

The only other specific camera bags I have seen that could actually hold enough 'survival' kit would be the Rover AW (just) and the Rover Plus AW (plenty big enough).

Yeah its the Pro Trekker AWII (Can be had for less than £200 btw.) I can fit all the clothes and food I need in the side and back attachments. If I need to take my big waterproof jacket, I tend to attach it to the top via the elasticated straps.

The Pro Trekker is WAY bigger than the Rover Plus btw.

Vertigo · 4 Feb 2008 at 18:56

Dont forget a big brolly for those of us who can't afford a weather-sealed camera

Amp34 · 4 Feb 2008 at 18:56

Messiah Khan said:
Yeah its the Pro Trekker AWII (Can be had for less than £200 btw.) I can fit all the clothes and food I need in the side and back attachments. If I need to take my big waterproof jacket, I tend to attach it to the top via the elasticated straps. The Pro Trekker is WAY bigger than the Rover Plus btw.

That explains it then, I didn't realise the Trekker came with the side bits until just now. I always wondered how people could possibly take it out into the wilds without another bag.

As for it being bigger, is that because of the camera space or does it have more space for non camera gear as well? The Rover plus has 20L which I think is plenty big enough (most of the time) for a day out.

greengiant · 4 Feb 2008 at 21:35

Amp34 said:
Where do you fit your non photographic kit? In with the lenses or is it the same as the Pro Trekker AW (which just looking at seems to be over £300.) which has bits on the side?

The only other specific camera bags I have seen that could actually hold enough 'survival' kit would be the Rover AW (just) and the Rover Plus AW (plenty big enough).

While my Lowepro mini trekker is a good pack for short rambles, if I'm going on a long hillwalk / photography session then my cunning plan is to put my old Lowepro Nova 2 AW Shoulder pack into the bottom section of a hiking backpack which has a lower compartment with seperate access flap.

I suppose it depends on how much photography gear or non photo kit you need to take.