Porta Brace Polamitten for EX3 at DVinfo.net

Bryce Comer · January 13th, 2013, 06:03 PM

Hi all,
Just wondering if anyone here uses, or has used the Porta Brace pola mitten for the Sony EX-3. What i would really like to know is if i am using a long lens with the camera, will the cover actually fit over the lens as well, allowing me to pull focus with my hand inside the cover. The longest lens i am using would be the Nikon 50-300mm F4.5, so a rather long lens at about 20cm or 8" from the camera to where i need to grip the focus ring!
If anyone could tell me if this will work with the polar mitten i would very much like to hear from you, as i am about to pull the trigger & order one, but need to know first if it will work.
Thanks in advance,
Bryce

Bryce Comer · January 14th, 2013, 09:14 PM

Well to answer my own question, unfortunately it looks like it won't work.
I contacted Porta Brace & they have told me that their cover won't fit with the long lens on. They can actually customise one at an extra cost of $100. Unfortunately that will bring it up to almost $500, infact over with shipping & taxes, so i really need to think hard about it before i go ahead.
Are there any other options available that anyone can guide me to?
What temperature does it need to be before i actually need to be thinking about something like the polar mitten? I was thinking as much about being able to keep my hands inside it & warm while shooting as much as keeping the camera & batteries warm!
If anyone has experience shooting in cold (< -10degC) conditions, could you please let me know what you use to deal with conditions.
Thanks in advance,
Bryce

Robin Probyn · January 15th, 2013, 02:08 AM

I might have to be shooting in cold conditions soon.. hopefully not as bad as -10C .. !! and thinking of the polar bear cover for PMW500..
Having shot in pretty cold before.. apart from batts really dying quickly.. keep them in your coat.. from cold to warm esp your going to get condensation.. if the cover helps with this.. then i think its worth the expense..

Interesting to hear what other say..

Alister Chapman · January 15th, 2013, 04:35 PM

Not sure it's worth the expense for warmer than -10c. A normal rain cover will provide a small amount of insulation and the camera generates enough heat internally for -10c not to be a significant issue. I don't bother with thermal protection unless it's colder than -10c and I've used EX1's etc at -20c without covers A polar bear won't make a significant difference to condensation issues as even if it does keep the camera a little warmer than the ambient temperature, when you go indoors it's likely to still be quite a bit warmer than the body of the camera, so you will still get condensation.

Robin Probyn · January 15th, 2013, 06:23 PM

OK ..Thanks for your time and advise..

Bryce Comer · January 15th, 2013, 08:37 PM

Thanks for the responses! While i would be using the camera in temperatures anything down to -25degC, maybe even -30, most of the time i think i would be looking at temps around -10 to -15. Actually i had wondered if the rain cover would give me some protection & was going to try that out in the next few days. Mornings here have been around minus 10-15 lately, so i should be able to get a fair idea how it goes. The other thing i had thought of was to simply make something myself similar to the polar mitten, but not as high tech, something that would allow me to operate the camera without gloves or atleast very light gloves, inside it. I was thinking something from fleece perhaps?? I'm not too worried about the condensation as i will be in a tent, so things aren't going to be warming up too much! Batteries i will have on me at all times though. Will probably need to be taking them to bed with me too! Looks like i will be doing a lot more testing around here first to make sure i have things sorted out before i head further up into the mountains, miles from nowhere with all this gear!
Thanks for all the info so far!
Bryce

January 13th, 2013, 06:03 PM	#1
Bryce Comer Trustee Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Rossland, British Columbia Posts: 1,024	Porta Brace Polamitten for EX3 Hi all, Just wondering if anyone here uses, or has used the Porta Brace pola mitten for the Sony EX-3. What i would really like to know is if i am using a long lens with the camera, will the cover actually fit over the lens as well, allowing me to pull focus with my hand inside the cover. The longest lens i am using would be the Nikon 50-300mm F4.5, so a rather long lens at about 20cm or 8" from the camera to where i need to grip the focus ring! If anyone could tell me if this will work with the polar mitten i would very much like to hear from you, as i am about to pull the trigger & order one, but need to know first if it will work. Thanks in advance, Bryce __________________ There's never enough hours in the day!

January 14th, 2013, 09:14 PM	#2
Bryce Comer Trustee Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Rossland, British Columbia Posts: 1,024	Re: Porta Brace Polamitten for EX3 Well to answer my own question, unfortunately it looks like it won't work. I contacted Porta Brace & they have told me that their cover won't fit with the long lens on. They can actually customise one at an extra cost of $100. Unfortunately that will bring it up to almost $500, infact over with shipping & taxes, so i really need to think hard about it before i go ahead. Are there any other options available that anyone can guide me to? What temperature does it need to be before i actually need to be thinking about something like the polar mitten? I was thinking as much about being able to keep my hands inside it & warm while shooting as much as keeping the camera & batteries warm! If anyone has experience shooting in cold (< -10degC) conditions, could you please let me know what you use to deal with conditions. Thanks in advance, Bryce __________________ There's never enough hours in the day!

January 15th, 2013, 02:08 AM	#3
Robin Probyn Major Player Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Tokyo Posts: 590	Re: Porta Brace Polamitten for EX3 I might have to be shooting in cold conditions soon.. hopefully not as bad as -10C .. !! and thinking of the polar bear cover for PMW500.. Having shot in pretty cold before.. apart from batts really dying quickly.. keep them in your coat.. from cold to warm esp your going to get condensation.. if the cover helps with this.. then i think its worth the expense.. Interesting to hear what other say..

January 15th, 2013, 04:35 PM	#4
Alister Chapman Inner Circle Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Bracknell, Berkshire, UK Posts: 4,957	Re: Porta Brace Polamitten for EX3 Not sure it's worth the expense for warmer than -10c. A normal rain cover will provide a small amount of insulation and the camera generates enough heat internally for -10c not to be a significant issue. I don't bother with thermal protection unless it's colder than -10c and I've used EX1's etc at -20c without covers A polar bear won't make a significant difference to condensation issues as even if it does keep the camera a little warmer than the ambient temperature, when you go indoors it's likely to still be quite a bit warmer than the body of the camera, so you will still get condensation. __________________ Alister Chapman, Film-Maker/Stormchaser http://www.xdcam-user.com/alisters-blog/ My XDCAM site and blog. http://www.hurricane-rig.com

January 15th, 2013, 06:23 PM	#5
Robin Probyn Major Player Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Tokyo Posts: 590	Re: Porta Brace Polamitten for EX3 OK ..Thanks for your time and advise..

January 15th, 2013, 08:37 PM	#6
Bryce Comer Trustee Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Rossland, British Columbia Posts: 1,024	Re: Porta Brace Polamitten for EX3 Thanks for the responses! While i would be using the camera in temperatures anything down to -25degC, maybe even -30, most of the time i think i would be looking at temps around -10 to -15. Actually i had wondered if the rain cover would give me some protection & was going to try that out in the next few days. Mornings here have been around minus 10-15 lately, so i should be able to get a fair idea how it goes. The other thing i had thought of was to simply make something myself similar to the polar mitten, but not as high tech, something that would allow me to operate the camera without gloves or atleast very light gloves, inside it. I was thinking something from fleece perhaps?? I'm not too worried about the condensation as i will be in a tent, so things aren't going to be warming up too much! Batteries i will have on me at all times though. Will probably need to be taking them to bed with me too! Looks like i will be doing a lot more testing around here first to make sure i have things sorted out before i head further up into the mountains, miles from nowhere with all this gear! Thanks for all the info so far! Bryce __________________ There's never enough hours in the day!