Gloves and photos

I will be making two trips where the water temp will be 60-74 degrees. I was wondering what gloves work best when taking underwater photos. I will be using a Sea&Sea DX3000G digital camera. I was thinking of a 3mm glove as a compromise between warmth and dexterity in taking pics. Any suggestions? (my trips are to the Galapagos Islands and a great white shark trip off the coast of Baja Calif)

Hi
I use 3mm gloves in 50 - 65 degree temps and the flexibility is fine - fingers get a bit cold but I notice that once I am out rather than while diving.
Alison

I haven't had trouble operating my housed digital camera even with 6.5mm gloves. I use the "My Mode" feature to pre-set a couple of scenarios, which I can easily switch between underwater.

The problem I have had with gloves is holding on to the camera. In the tropics, I hold the camera (with attached tray & strobe) by the grip on the end of the camera housing. With cold water gloves, I can hold it this way but my fingers get very tired because of the pressure necessary to grip it through the gloves.

So I finally got a handle to attach to the tray. Haven't dived with it yet to see how well it works.

-Mark

I thought the 7mm might be a problem but they've been fine and I can work all buttons and levers.

DSDO

Alan

I use 5 mm gloves with my 3000G. No problem working the buttons. You most likely won't be able to use your thumb though. I have to use my index finger for operating the buttons on the back. My thumb with the glove covers more than one button in the 4 button diamond.

Since you are going shark diving, and I have never done that, I cant tell you how the chain mail gloves work with the camera

Just a suggestion but when fly fishing in extremely cold water I often wear 5 mil neoprene gloves. The fingers have the slits where the 1st joint is on your finger so that you can pull the tip of your finger out of the glove and have a little better dexterity and feel with the tip and pad of the finger, when you are done you just slip the tip back onto your finger again. I am sure that if you wanted better feel for either your thumb or your finger to feel the steps of the trigger button you could easily modify an existing pair of gloves. Another suggestion I would make is to try a pair of the Hederson Hyperstretch gloves, the stretch allows you to grip easier than regular neoprene gloves.

TTSkipper

I use 5 (7?) mil gloves for photography and I can handle the controls just fine. So Cal divers are used to thick gloves, though.

60-74 degree water is not that cold and going gloveless should be fine if the rest of your exposure protection is otherwise adequate. As long as your core is warm, your body won't limit blood flow to your hands and they should stay warm.

You could also consider looking at the local Wal-mart for neoprene fishing gloves. You can normally find a pair with no holes that are 5mm but very well shaped to your hand. They tend to be very flexible, form fitting and allow more dexterity than the average scuba glove. Price is usually between $6 and $10. They will also often have a pair of fishing gloves with holes in them at the joints for even better flexibility.

With either type you also have the option of cutting off the finger tips to allow more feel. Assuming a reasonably snug fit ,the remaining glove still offers decent thermal protection for the rest of your hand. Climbers for example often use gloves that only cover the back and palm of the hand and the fingers and thumb up to the first joint leaving the rest of the fingers and thumb free.