Skiing in low light

HomerPimpin

HomerPimpin

Member
A legitimate question though it might be stupid, can I put a light or like a headlamp on my helmet to ski in low light conditions at a resort? I remember seeing people in Nikolai Schirmer's videos that had like flood lights on the side of their helmet sometimes when they skiied gnarly couloirs in low visibility, obviously I don't ski like that so I wouldn't go as far as getting flood lights, but I really can't see shit in low light and my depth perception is all messed up. Is this something that people do or am I just like stupid?
 
14312841:Biffbarf said:
Are you talkin during a storm when there's cloud cover and flat light? Or like when it's getting dark at night?
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I was wondering that as well. Best thing to do in cloud cover is find the trees.
 
Guys who wake up to summit by sunrise usually wear headlamps so they can see when they’re climbing up and their first run or so. If you mean low light as in cloud cover in exposed areas, a headlamp wouldn’t really help. If you’re talking about early morning when the sun physically hasn’t risen all the way above the horizon, it would help for sure.
 
14312849:animator said:
Guys who wake up to summit by sunrise usually wear headlamps so they can see when they’re climbing up and their first run or so. If you mean low light as in cloud cover in exposed areas, a headlamp wouldn’t really help. If you’re talking about early morning when the sun physically hasn’t risen all the way above the horizon, it would help for sure.
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would a headlamp not do anything because it's not bright enough or would the white light just not make the ground any easier to see in flat light?
 
14312863:HomerPimpin said:
would a headlamp not do anything because it's not bright enough or would the white light just not make the ground any easier to see in flat light?
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Flat light isn’t necessarily lack of light, it’s lack of contrast generated by fog/condensation in the air. It’s like when your driving in thick ass fog and you turn your brights on, it doesn’t really help. Using a headlamp in flat light wouldn’t illuminate anything because there is natural light present but a headlamp wouldn’t help to increase contrast/shadows.
 
14312871:animator said:
Flat light isn’t necessarily lack of light, it’s lack of contrast generated by fog/condensation in the air. It’s like when your driving in thick ass fog and you turn your brights on, it doesn’t really help. Using a headlamp in flat light wouldn’t illuminate anything because there is natural light present but a headlamp wouldn’t help to increase contrast/shadows.
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that makes sense, thank you. i figured there has to be a reason why i've never seen anyone with a headlamp on when it's cloudy and stormy
 
14312880:HomerPimpin said:
that makes sense, thank you. i figured there has to be a reason why i've never seen anyone with a headlamp on when it's cloudy and stormy
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You need to boost contrast as much as possible in those situations. Without sounding like I’m trying to sell you something, I’ve found that Oakley’s Prizm does the best job. They filter out all wavelengths of light except for blue and orange, which they enhance and are the highest contrasting. Smith’s Chromapop enhances ALL wavelengths (that is the key difference in performance) which does not help to boost contrast as much, due to the presence of all wavelengths (including blue and orange). The boost in blue and orange helps, but without filtering out the other wavelengths, it does not increase contrast as much.

Other than buying lenses that help boost contrast, there’s very little that one can do really. Some people like clear lenses but I can’t stand them due to the fact that there’s still light present and clear lenses have a 100% Visible Light Transmission (VLT). Glare is still a thing in flat light and clear lenses don’t help in my opinion (some people love them, I don’t).
 
I will back you up on this 100%. For the past couple seasons I have found that the best solution to flat/low light conditions is the Oakley Rose Prizm lens. I have tried quite a few different goggles with different tinted lens (and clear lens), but the prizm rose is by far the best for flat/low light. I like these lenses especially because they work great for low light as well as super sunny blue bird days. Like you said, i'm not trying to sell anything, but from my personal experience this is the conclusion I have reached.

14312884:animator said:
You need to boost contrast as much as possible in those situations. Without sounding like I’m trying to sell you something, I’ve found that Oakley’s Prizm does the best job. They filter out all wavelengths of light except for blue and orange, which they enhance and are the highest contrasting. Smith’s Chromapop enhances ALL wavelengths (that is the key difference in performance) which does not help to boost contrast as much, due to the presence of all wavelengths (including blue and orange). The boost in blue and orange helps, but without filtering out the other wavelengths, it does not increase contrast as much.

Other than buying lenses that help boost contrast, there’s very little that one can do really. Some people like clear lenses but I can’t stand them due to the fact that there’s still light present and clear lenses have a 100% Visible Light Transmission (VLT). Glare is still a thing in flat light and clear lenses don’t help in my opinion (some people love them, I don’t).
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14312887:junior1derful said:
I will back you up on this 100%. For the past couple seasons I have found that the best solution to flat/low light conditions is the Oakley Rose Prizm lens. I have tried quite a few different goggles with different tinted lens (and clear lens), but the prizm rose is by far the best for flat/low light. I like these lenses especially because they work great for low light as well as super sunny blue bird days. Like you said, i'm not trying to sell anything, but from my personal experience this is the conclusion I have reached.
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I ski 90% of my days in the HI Pink Prizm lens. They’re insane in flat light and the only time I don’t wear them is when the sun is directly in my face.
 
14312895:animator said:
I ski 90% of my days in the HI Pink Prizm lens. They’re insane in flat light and the only time I don’t wear them is when the sun is directly in my face.
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Are they the same as the old Oakley Pink Irdium lens? Those are by far the best all around and low light lens I have ever used. If I wasn’t so invested into Squad XLs right now I would buy more Oakley.
 
14312979:CatdickBojangles said:
Are they the same as the old Oakley Pink Irdium lens? Those are by far the best all around and low light lens I have ever used. If I wasn’t so invested into Squad XLs right now I would buy more Oakley.
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No it’s the same on the outside (when you look at me wearing the goggles they look very similar, as an example) but the contrast boost is the biggest difference and that’s internal. I used chromapop for a long time and it’s good, but once I switched to Oakley it was night and day
 
14312895:animator said:
I ski 90% of my days in the HI Pink Prizm lens. They’re insane in flat light and the only time I don’t wear them is when the sun is directly in my face.
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This is true. This is your answer. OP. I skied in Finland last season where it was low light ALLLLLL the fucking time and my smith chromapops helped lot. Had the storm lens in all season.

14312884:animator said:
You need to boost contrast as much as possible in those situations. Without sounding like I’m trying to sell you something, I’ve found that Oakley’s Prizm does the best job. They filter out all wavelengths of light except for blue and orange, which they enhance and are the highest contrasting. Smith’s Chromapop enhances ALL wavelengths (that is the key difference in performance) which does not help to boost contrast as much, due to the presence of all wavelengths (including blue and orange). The boost in blue and orange helps, but without filtering out the other wavelengths, it does not increase contrast as much.

Other than buying lenses that help boost contrast, there’s very little that one can do really. Some people like clear lenses but I can’t stand them due to the fact that there’s still light present and clear lenses have a 100% Visible Light Transmission (VLT). Glare is still a thing in flat light and clear lenses don’t help in my opinion (some people love them, I don’t).
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Ayyy OP mentioned headlamps!!

A quality headlamp is a life changing investment.

The Black Diamond Storm 400 is a good place to start for anyone interested.
 
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