Hi all,

I have a project coming up filming for several weeks in Africa. I'm looking at buying a protection cover the XH-A1, and wondered if any of you had any good advice/tips about good ones:

this one for example is good value but not sure if you can even record while it's on!

Creative Video Portabrace QS-M4 (QSM4) Quick Slick Mini for Canon XH-A1, Canon XH-G1, Sony HVR-V1U and Sony PMW-EX1 plus similar sized cameras (http://www.creativevideo.co.uk/public/view_item_cat.php?catalogue_number=portabrace_qs-m4)

many thanks

Good value? These covers are far from good value! I have one and I can honestly say you'd be better off using a plastic bag to cover your camera.

point taken Phil, but i'm imagining a worse case scenario that we experience a long storm (dust/rain) and we want to keep filming....i can't see myself using make-shift plastic bags for the duration (although i'd take some anyway)

anyone with experience, or tips?

Well, at least it looks easier to get on the camera than a regular rain-slicker!! And you should be able to film with it on, but using the viewfinder rather than the screen.

I have a portabrace body armour for my Canon A1. It gives some protection against knocks, as well as against dust and rain (has it's own rain cover stashed in a side pocket. Nothing is 100% water and dust-proof, except underwater housing of course.

I feel reluctant to take the camera any further than the garden without this protection even if it does make operating the camera a bit more fiddly.

Hi Richard,

My name is Chris and I actually work for Portabrace. I would recommend the Camera BodyArmor that Annie has. You can see it here on our site:

PortaBrace - Product Detail:CBA-XHAG1 (http://www.portabrace.com/productB-CBA-XHAG1)

You can also watch the CBA video here:

http://www.portabrace.com/uploads/Spotlight_CBA.swf

The BodyArmor is great because, as Annie mentioned, you have the full-time, padded protection of the BodyArmor, plus you have the added weather protection of the deployable Rain-Top. The Rain-Top that comes with the CBA is similar to the Quick Slick that you saw on Creative Video's website. It offers solid protection from rain and dust, especially if you get caught in a shower. If you need more advanced protection (constant filming in the heavy rain) I would recommend the RS-XHA1. You can see it here:

PortaBrace - Product Detail:RS-XHAG1 (http://www.portabrace.com/productB-RS-XHAG1)

This case is custom fit to the camera and has a neoprene gasket around the lens. All other openings are secured with Velcro and overlapped material so the water is actually redirected away from openings.

Kata doesn't have a direct equivalent to the Camera BodyArmor but here is a link to their equivalent rain-cover:

Video bags camera bags Kata - Manufacturer of camera bags (http://www.kata-bags.com/product.asp?p_Id=39&Version=Video)

Keep in mind, all our cases are hand-made in the US. We've been making cases for the film and video industry for over 30 years and we fully guarantee your satisfaction.

Best of luck in your case search and safe travels.

If you have any questions please feel free to email me directly at chris@portabrace.comor post them here.

Cheers!

Chris

Yes the body armor is all very nice,but £220(that's $US450)? I'll stick to plastic bags and gaffer tape.

It's gone up in price since I got mine, then. But if you're taking a £2,400 camera into nasty conditions, then £220 isn't that much to pay for decent protection!

Phil, the link says $US299, but we're in europe, so it is $US450 for us i guess.

I have the rainslicker. It is a very usefull piece. It is difficult to get it on the camera fast. All manual controls can be reached, but it is difficult also, especially the rings are hard to reach. Most of the time i end up turning the wrong one. But i can continue shooting.

It's gone up in price since I got mine, then. But if you're taking a £2,400 camera into nasty conditions, then £220 isn't that much to pay for decent protection!

I agree - you can't take any chances with your camera.

I've only got the Kata raincover, but it goes with the camera everywhere. Apart from the rain there's snow, mist, spray, dust, sand, grit and even bird poo when outside shooting. There's a good few times I've been very glad I took the small trouble to put it on.

It also makes a good "bio hazard emergency helmet" for a hallowe'en costume - very scary.

I recommend the kata RC 15. It is big enough and you have enough space for both hands to go in to operate the camera.

Skip the Porta brace.

I've tried putting one on , and it took me about 3mins or more to put it on. The 3mins is really crucial when it starts to rain. The Kata took me just 10 sec to put on.

And the bodyamour is abit bulky to my liking. I'll go for the body glove instead from Kata.

But then these are just my option. I'm sure some might not think that way...

It looks like the main difference between the Kata DVG-57 (http://www.kata-bags.com/product.asp?Version=Video&p_Id=404) and the Portrabrace CBA-XHAG1 (http://www.portabrace.com/productB-CBA-XHAG1) is that the Portabrace can cover almost the entire camcorder (especially with the rain slicker on), while the Kata only covers the main body of the A1/G1. I haven't used either, but that's what it looks like from the online photos.

[EDIT] David, do you know if the Kata RC 15 fits on the A1/G1 camcorders?

I'm still pretty happy with this cheap option:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/canon-xh-g1-a1-hdv-camcorders/102058-cheap-rain-jacket-a1.html

Works like a charm.

I swear by the Portabrace CBA-XHAG1 Camera Body Armour. I leave it on my camera all the time for protection from bumps and pop on the rain cover when I need to. The Kata doesn't provide any camera protection for anything but rain. It has a little flap on the bottom which allows me to keep the CBA on when mounted on a tripod.
I paid < $250 CAD from Cinequip White. Pictures attached

hi all,

I've had some serious problems trying to log back into this forum, not sure if anyone else is having that?

but anyway...


THANKS for all the advice and links, absolutely superb....it's either the rain slicker, the portabrace, or something from a camping/fishing shop (cheers Bill :)

i'll report back!

Good value? These covers are far from good value! I have one and I can honestly say you'd be better off using a plastic bag to cover your camera.

I am a big fan of plastic bags! IMO, it's the way to go and certainly a good alternative.

I use the 18" X 24" 8mil ziplock bags available from McMaster Carr, about $17 USD for 10 of them. This thickness gives the plastic a milky appearance rather than clear like a sandwich bag, so very poor to shoot through. The thinner ones might be clear enough to shoot through.

For rain or sand protection, there is nothing better. The camera fits perfectly and the heavy plastic provides a little scratch free protection. When Im transporting in dirty conditions, I also put the camera in a plastic bag in my normal bag. If you get caught in the rain, the bag pulls over the camera on the tripod in seconds and drapes down greater than one foot.

Also great for the laptop.

McMaster-Carr (http://www.mcmaster.com/)
see page 1514

hi all,

I've had some serious problems trying to log back into this forum, not sure if anyone else is having that?


Yes, I keep getting "invalid link" messages when trying to log in or reply to several of the threads. I've reported it to CH.

[EDIT] David, do you know if the Kata RC 15 fits on the A1/G1 camcorders?

Yes the Kata RC 15 fits it fine. I even tried the 14 , it fits ,but it was a bit too tight for my liking when you need to put the hands inside to operate the camera

From my experience, you may want to avoid plastic as dust protection in Africa. Static charge can attract dust. I use the portabrace rainslicker. It does make it harder to get to the controls, but with practice, this is not a serious problem.

You might also consider a cotton pillow slip as a bag to keep the camera and/or accessories in when you are not shooting. It does a pretty good job of keeping down the dust.

Rick