This is In response to Doug's request for Ghillie suit construction.
Although I encourage anyone who wants one of these to make their own, I got
mine from Cabelas (they sell someone elses brand of suit). The first
problem I had was with the smell of the material. I think they soak the
burlap strips in a preservative that has something like kerosene in it. I
am allergic to most petroleum-based products, but it doesn't seem to bother
my nose enough to make me sick. I would prefer not to have the smell. if
you make your own you won't have that problem. The second problem with the
commercial suit is that it sheds. It's bad enough to have to worry about
dust in Arizona, adding burlap dust and small threads falling into your
recorder or big lens is very distracting. Choose materials that don't shed.
I did not have too much trouble getting my headphones under the Ghillie
suit hood, but I think this could be a real problem. Make sure you leave
room in the hood for headphones. The hood has long strips of fabric that
hang in front of your face. It takes some getting used to because when you
move you can't see very well and it is easy to trip over stuff. Eventually,
I got to where I could move around without too much trouble, but it would
be better if the strips could be moved aside while you walk. Then, when you
are in place, you could move the face covering back. Lots of people use
camo gear that doesn't involve using strips of fabric. They break up the
face outline with a different kind of hood. You probably give up something
for concealment, but it might be worth it. Having the strips in your face
is no fun. There is one thing about the commercial suit that I did like,
and that is the built-in carrying straps. When you are done you can roll
the suit up into a bundle and secure it with the straps. Then you use the
straps like a backpack to hike back. I use this a lot. Once you get the
target recorded or photographed and you are done, you want to get out of
the suit when you hike. They are too hot in Arizona unless you are in the
middle of winter. In the morning it is not a problem, but once you get
above 90 degrees F, or 40 C, then you get over-heated when you walk for any
reasonable distance. The suit does a good job of keeping mosquitos off of
you. This is all I can think of right now. I do think a Ghillie suit is
great for some subjects. If a bird is really tough to approach, the suit
makes all the difference. But, you have to be dedicated to put up with all
the hassel. I only use it on tough subjects.
Greg Clark
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
|