Why don't you come on over Vallerret?

Vallerret are a young Norwegian company trying to conquer a niche market. Their core product is an insulated glove with up to two fingertips that can be slipped back to allow fingertips to more easily operate camera controls. There are two gloves and one mitt in the range along with some inners. Refreshingly they offer a women’s specific glove but sadly not alternatives to every model. In every case the hinged fingertip can be secured out of the way by use of sewn in magnets. Having found the perfect glove setup as described here, it was with much interest that I decided to investigate these specialist gloves from Vallerret. I’m fussy if not obsessive about gloves and as the years go by this seems to be increasing. Increasing partly because I see no justification for accepting anything less than the best I can manage and increasing because I seem to feel the cold more and more. I’m also fussy about the fit of gloves and so waited until The Photography Show, last April,  so as to be able to try them out under a number of permutations with various liners. The model I was interested in was the iPsoot, their premium glove. This is their top of the range glove, designed for deep winter. It uses a combination of Merino wool as a lining and Thinsulate as the primary insulation. Thinsulate has been a round for a considerable length of time but has been very low profile for many years as advances and advertising have driven a search for more down like synthetics. The glove is advertised as being suitable for the addition of a liner glove but oddly the sizing guidelines suggest that no size adjustment is needed to accommodate such a liner. I was a little nervous from the outset as the advertising equated ‘deep winter conditions’ with deep powder snow and we know that for those of us who are UK based,  deep winter usually means low temperatures but accompanied by wind and wet. Two very different scenarios and a thoughtful purchaser should note that these gloves are not sold as waterproof, it isn't even hinted at. If the buyer is considering using these in the mountains the presence of magnets should also be noted. They hold the fingertips back nicely but also wreak havoc with compasses. The first note of caution is in the sizing as thought has to be given to the balance between length and breadth. I preferred an XL for the relaxed fit and space for a decent liner but in XL, the fingers were so long that when the tip was peeled back, my own finger didn't reach out of the end.  Delivery was very swift as promised but a large stock shipment had just come in to the warehouse, I’ve noticed a regular set of ‘out of stock’ notes over the time I’ve been looking. First impressions at the show were very good. A high quality product, well made and thoughtfully designed.The stitching and assembly were neat and well finished. Unfortunately the show had been a great success for Vallerret and they had run out of stock in many sizes. Having tried on demo models, I had to pay and wait for delivery.My own hand measurements are Length 19cm Girth 21.5, they equates to a size Large as detailed above.  I struggled to get a good fit as the XL size was better around the palm but the fingers were so long that my finger didn't even reach the peel back flap.In use there are issues with which to contend. As mentioned above the gloves are not waterproof in any useful way. Few gloves are, even among those that claim to be, these don't make any such claim. This is not a failing of the glove of course, it simply means the information needs to be read carefully before purchase and our typical winters taken into account along with a realistic set of expectations. I don't knock any points off for waterproofing as the description is accurate and honest. We therefore have a product that has had substantial design work done, high quality materials and as far as I can see very good workmanship. They look superb. However the biggest issue that I have with the gloves is the substantial lack of dexterity that results from their thickness and lack of flexibility. This came as a bit or a surprise having tried them on at the show and the only reasonable explanation that I can come up with is that the gloves were warm. In normal cold outdoor use I found them to be unusable for my purposes, destroying any real dexterity when trying to handle camera, lenses, filters or other smaller items. Although very personal, I also didn't find them nearly warm enough for the advertised deep winter conditions. As a comparison, the Rab baltoro Glove  is much, much more flexible for a similar if not better warmth and allows small items to be handed precisely and confidently. Finally and of course it is a highly personal perception, I didn't' find them nearly warm enough for use when there was snow lying on the ground. Adding a liner increased warmth but reduced dexterity still further. I liked these gloves as  a piece of thinking and design but could see no reason to keep them and they have now moved off to the well known auction site. I'm much, much happier with my existing MacWet/Montane combination and so far have found nothing that improves upon it. I do see that Vallerret now offer a zipped mitt with a primaloft lining which will probably tempt me to investigate a little more closely. I am also mulling over the Heat Company's Heat 3 Smart Mitt which may also offer an interesting alternative. 

Choosing a beginner's Camera

'I'd like to buy a proper camera, what should I get?' - This is one of the more commonly asked questions for anyone who is known to be a photographer.I have two standard answers in the form of two further questions:How much do you want to spend?What is it that you cannot do with your current camera?It presents no challenge to find cameras that will cost more than a brand new car. Buying cameras can be a slippery slope leading to a black pit that absorbs money. In my view there needs to be a budget set and an attempt to reach clarity about what the buyer seeks to achieve with their new camera.The last 2-3 years has seen an immense simplification in the process of buying cameras as the category of ‘compact camera’ has all but disappeared. In almost every case these have been completely replaced by the ever improving and spectacularly competent camera in even modest smart phones.Most people have an excellent camera already in their phone. £300-£500 buys an entry level camera with interchangeable lenses and from then on the bank balance or credit card is the limit.The crucial questions become:What do you want to photograph?What does your current camera (or phone camera) NOT do?Often, buried deep within the original enquiry, is the perennial problem - the belief that a ‘better’ (more expensive or more technological) camera will result in ‘better photographs. This is a false promise in which the greater part of the Magazine industry is also complicit. I often refer enquirer to the outstanding work of Julian Calverley using only an iPhone http://www.juliancalverley.com/personal/#north-northwestFor other aspects of photography (travel, portraits, etc) a quick Google will generally yield fabulous results from a phone camera.Who definitely needs an upgrade? You may well get better results from an upgraded camera if you want to photograph the following:Sports especially if the action is some distance awayInsectsWildlifeInteriors in small spacesAircraft, motor racingSome landscapes especially if you want to exploit different angles of view provided by wide or telephoto lenses.Finally, the experienced, analytical and reflective photographer who is able to identify a highly specific feature may well see improvements.Canvas as many views as you can but be wary of anyone who insists that any one brand is the best. It's pretty hard to buy a poor camera currently. The number of cameras being sold and the number of makers is reducing, by and large the best are surviving. There is a great deal to be said for a specialist camera shop but again be aware that the salesperson may be on greater commission for some brands.If you return home with a camera that feels right and looks right to you, it will have the potential to produce fine images. Most cameras on dealers shelves come from Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus and Fuji; all will produce fine images. The current models will represent the ‘state of the art’ but the previous models will also represent high quality and better value.Tips:Do your research. If you are considering spending hundreds of pounds on a camera, make some effort.Look for the previous model in every case. These will always be cheaper, always have better deals, always represent good value for money and in an occasional case, may even be the better camera.By all means ask for views on Social Media but don't set yourself up as an easy target. Express clearly what your budget is, what you want to photograph and if possible what it is about your current camera that fails you.Make sure you are getting the best out of what you have now. Many people express a desire to get ‘clearer’ pictures: if that's the case, holding your phone more steadily and using a handkerchief to clean its lens will often bring rapid improvements.Consider the investment in some tuition. A 1:1 workshop may well pay for itself in terms of money saved on needless or ill considered expenditure. Many providers are happy to answer a continuous stream of questions that lead to you getting the resits for which you seek.Read the reviews by all means but remember that many of them are written by people who are in the pay of the manufacturer, many are written by people without any real experience, many in print and online are designed to increase circulation and so are controversial or provocative.Getting off the fenceWhat would I currently recommend for a newcomer to photography?(May2017)If you want to spend less than £300, I'd be very tempted to either stick with your phone camera or consider an upgraded phone.If you are ready to spend £350 then I'd look very hard at the Nikon D3300 with an 18-55mm lens. ( the current model is the D3400 so previous model is cheaper). Depending upon what you want to photograph, you may need to budget for a tripod, a remote release and protective filters for the front of the lens. A little more will allow you to add a telephoto lens for those more distant objects. A camera such as the above ( or Google for whatever the nearest Canon equivalent might be) will certainly cope with most holiday photographs, pets, family, walks, festivities etc. When you can't make the picture you want, the time may have arrived for additional lenses. Bear in mind however when seeking additional lenses that most of the greatest photographs ever taken throughout history were taken on focal lengths within the range of that supplied kit lens.