This is the coldest winter I have ever had to dealt with, and the first winter I've made an effort to get out and shoot. I'm in the area of Peoria, IL. I have a pair of fingerless gloves/mittens that are warm enough for the weather. But I don't have a pair of gloves to wear under them flexible enough to let me operate the dials on the camera, so I strip down to bare hands anyway, my fingers get very cold very fast in the teens and -0 weather F, and I freak out and go home.
Any recommendation on "liners" that would help me out from you hardy souls who have encountered these temperatures before?
There isn't anything other than mittens that work at those temps. My son bought me some nice gloves that just the fingertip of the thumb and index finger fold back for operating 'touch'. They are also thinner at that point and so my fingers get cold very fast anyhow.
Last time I went out in the very cold, I put hand warmers in my gloves and curled my fingers down to keep the tips warm until I needed to use them and again right after. That way I didn't risk frost bite, which I have come close to in the past.
I wear a pair of stretchy gloves under down mittens that have the option to flip back and let your fingers out. Works really well, because my fingers are never exposed, and they warm back up really quickly inside the down.
I have "touch gloves" for just such an occassion. They are all over the market now, so lots of choices and built for texting and using other touch screen electronics. Some are quite flexible, but give you a "grip" area for buttons.
You won't have the flexibility of bare hands, but at those temps, you will have control over using dials and buttons and touch screens.
@archaeofrog What brand of stretchy gloves, please? Aquatech photographer's gloves were recommended by @richardhoeg in a discussion on one of his photos.
@therubysusan I honestly just use the kind that cost about $1 from the bin at the fabric store ... the key is having the down mittens around to keep them warm, at least for me!
Have a look at sealskinz, I think that is how you spell it but not sure if they are available in the US. They have different types and are extremely close fitting so allows movement of fingers.
Like Sheila I use "touch gloves" and I got mine from Marks & Spencer and I wear fingerless gloves over the top as I suffer from really really cold hands. I don't know whether you have Marks & Spencer in US
@therubysusan how about some ski liners. They were made of silk and worked well under a ski glove. Only problem is that metal and silk will be very slippy.
@therubysusan I've just come back from a trip to northern Norway and used fingerless mittens with a "flip top" and silk glove liners underneath and it worked a treat, I could use all the dials on the camera with ease without having the bare the flesh!
I like the Aquatech gloves because they are a bit heavier, and allow one's index finger and thumb to fit into a little pocket where they are exposed. This allows a person to work the camera settings if required. Beyond that, I have a pair of heavy line deerskin choppers / mittens which are size XXL and easily fit over my gloves. I used these mittens just this morning when it was -10F for a sunrise photograph of the lighthouse at the entrance to the Duluth harbor. For those interested, here is the photo: http://365project.org/richardhoeg/minnesota-musin/2014-02-06
@judithdeacon ... I actually don't like the flip top mittens for use here in northern Minnesota. If I'm outside for even 15 minutes or more in sub zero weather I find these kind of mittens allow too much heat to be lost from the hands. Please understand I am talking about severely cold conditions. I have often been dealing with -10F to -25F conditions this winter (not including windchill). One plus for the flip tops, many of them have a pocket in which to insert a chemical hand warmer.
I use a thin pair of liner gloves for manipulating the camera. They fit well under all of my other gloves and mittens, ranging from some regular thin gloves good at around the freezing point down to the mountaineering mittens I have that will handle 70 below. You can find liner gloves just about anyplace that sells hiking and camping gear.
I have a pair of ski gloves - very thin fleece with rubber grips on the palms (usually for holding ski poles). I also have some Lowepro woollen ones in a similar vein but they don't have the feel but they are warmer.
Glad you asked. I have this same problem. My hands are always freezing. My boys have an extra pair of the mittens that open up to reveal bare fingers. Now, I have to find silk ski glove liners to wear under them. Good to know! Now, I've gotta go shopping! LOL!
@lynnb@richardhoeg Hand warmers! They were completely off my radar, good suggestion. Richard, I found the Aquatech, I'm considering them, @homeschoolmom Naturally I'm asking this question at the end of the season - Wintersilk's thinkest glove liners are available only in S and Xs now!
@grizzlysghost thanks, Aaron. I've got them bookmarked! @rosiekind , no Marks and Spencer's here, I'm afraid, but "touch gloves" rings a bell. I'll be on the lookout!
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Last time I went out in the very cold, I put hand warmers in my gloves and curled my fingers down to keep the tips warm until I needed to use them and again right after. That way I didn't risk frost bite, which I have come close to in the past.
You won't have the flexibility of bare hands, but at those temps, you will have control over using dials and buttons and touch screens.
@homeschoolmom Naturally I'm asking this question at the end of the season - Wintersilk's thinkest glove liners are available only in S and Xs now!