jeetsukumaran
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 p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · Rain Covers/Coats/Sleeves for Wildlife Photography | |
Ok, just got the TT Hydrophobia and the LensCoat RainCoat (Pro) for evaulation:
TT Hydrophobia: Perhaps over-engineered. As a result, it is bulkier and clumsier, and worse, some of the engineering that adds to the bulk is not really needed by me and also non-removal. E.g., the inner strap and the hard rubber tab to which it is attached. It is pain stretching the rubber cover over the eyepiece, and I can see damaging things if I do it in a hurry (e.g., while being rained on! though, actually putting it on is much easier than taking it off). But the most damning flaw, IMHO, is the fact that even though there is a plastic backing, the rubber/neoprene around the eyepiece hole blocks half the LCD screen. What? What is the reasoning behind that? I understand the need to balance protection and access, but by simply better locating the clear part of the back or making it bigger, they could have actually tried to get a balance. Here, as far as I can tell, the only useful function of the LCD viewport is to make sure that the camera still exists. The other next most damning design flaw is that it is not easy to use a speedlight, and no way at all to use it mounted on camera. Am I missing something here? For the telephotos, I like using an extender for fill.
LensCoat RainCoat: Simpler, and perhaps this is a case of less is more. One weirdness is the waterproof material on the inside and fuzzy (presumably non-water resistant material) on the outside. Weird, but I think I actually like it. It reduces the rustling noise of the material, which is important when stalking wildlife. The open back design has its pros and cons, which are probably obvious: pros = incredibly good access, cons = less protection. But while I think the TT design kills any attempt at balance between access and protection by blocking half the LCD, the LensCoat achieves a reasonable compromise. I think a neat feature would be if the draw closure could come with a clip: the idea is you could close the back tight, roll up the excess material and clip it down, so you get temporarily get a 100% waterproof protection, with the ability to relatively quickly open things up again when you want. Useful when you are moving from place to place and can find quieter/more sheltered conditions for actual shooting (e.g. small boats in chop, where there is splash when moving). Also nice is that I can mount the speedlight (which will, of course, need its own protection in rain).
I will play around with the TT Hydrophobia, but unless I discover I am doing things wrong, it is probably going back. The LensCoat I am not so sure about either way yet.
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