Non-military camouflage?

[Garnett]

I like the idea of going less noticed when walking in the woods, but the wife (and most of our friends) would scoff (and, rightly or wrongly I always think I might be accused of being a Walter Mitty) if I took to wearing anything in a camouflage pattern.

It got me wondering whether I could get some T-shirts printed that would serve a similar purpose without being overtly military.

I've mocked up some examples that hopefully show the sort of thing I'm thinking:

I'd love people's thoughts on the idea generally but also any other good subject matter I could use for the images, and whether they are subtle enough/too subtle?

Thanks a lot.

 

[Chris]

Personally think that subdued colours of any kind are good enough for civilian applications. Greens and browns work well in most UK terrain, especially woodland.

There are other things than colour that most often alert me to someone’s presence in woodland:

- Sound: Rustling/rattling of kit/heavy footsteps/chatting
- Use of ground: Not following paths or walking through clearings

There’s the silhouette/shine/shadow/shape aspects to consider too of course, but they’re less of an issue in the middle of woodland.

As a feedback point for those tshirts - nature doesn’t do straight lines.

 

[Athos]

If you’re looking at t-shirts, it seems a little pointless unless you’re going to be camming up your bare skin too. Just stick with muted greens and browns.

 

[Broch]

Agreed with the above comments. Plain browns and greens work really well - even dark greys and black to be honest.

The only time I wear camo these days is when I go out specifically to photograph wildlife (or hunting) and then I use woodland Realtree. I think you can get away with the Realtree stuff anyway if you really want to use camo as it's definitely not military.

Once you sit for half an hour dressed in Realtree the wildlife comes to within a couple of metres or even closer.

As for your T-shirts - really nice designs, you could market them - but I wouldn't wear them in the woods.

 

[BumblingAlong]

Designs go against grey man camouflage principles

 

[Herman30]

Traditional non-camo camo is tweed. And a moose is dark grey with lighter colored legs and is well camouflaged in boreal forest when standing still. Go with dark green or brown is my advice.

 

[TLM]

Search for "Ianpat" definitely non military and surprisingly efficient.

 

[C_Claycomb]

Indeed...the answer is tweed and plaid. There are even some brown plaid t-shirts out there. Look pretty strange to me, I would rather plaid be on a long sleeve button down shirt.

Lots of the paisley shape fashion prints could almost be camo.

Best for your t-shirts is Return of the Jedi tie-dye!

 

[Wildgoose]

I like them. From a concealment purpose a plain green or brown would probably serve just as well but I feel they serve a real benefit of being very obviously civilian/non military and in my opinion portray an adventurous outdoor design rather than being too grisly Adams.
I have a green and beige Hawaiian shirt which serves the same purpose.

Remember there’s no straight lines in nature so the first design is better from a concealment point of view rather than the square.

I’d buy a few for sure

 

[Pattree]

I just take the view that no one gives a toss about me walking where they are and as long as I’m not fluorescent or ill mannered I shouldn’t scare anything.

If I don’t want to be seen then I shall not be where an observer can see me.

I was surprised how a combination of purple, pale green and orange became inconspicuous in fir plantation.

There is a difference between subdued and camouflaged. The latter requires that you make a decision about who and what you are hiding from. Much wildlife including humans are good at picking out human shapes so if you are going to decorate your green shirts think of something that cuts across your silhouette from different directions.

I’ll just keep going with an old brown leather jacket, olive green, or sand (or blue or black or brown) trousers and dark shirts - always with long sleeves.

No one is looking!

Edited to add:
I like your designs as casual wear anyway but get rid of the straight edges and right angles.

 

[Laurentius]

Not all walts play at soldiers, some play at being gamekeepers and lumberjacks There is nothing wrong with traditional country clothing providing it is made of traditional materials, tweeds, moleskins that sort of thing.

 

[Lean'n'mean]

I like the idea of going less noticed when walking in the woods,

Less noticed by whom ? You'll certainly stand out for both wildlife & humans with those designs.

 

[TeeDee]

I like the T-shirts. Well done.

 

[stonepark]

Neither Realtree or Mossyoak are military.

Plenty of similar patterns available.

 

[woodsorrel]

When you say, "less noticed," do you mean less noticed by people or by wildlife?

I agree with those who advocate for earth-tone colors. Solid beige (called "khaki " in the US), olive green, coyote brown, and federal tan are colors I wear when I'm outdoors. If you are still and silent, both animals and people will not notice you.

I also tend to wear clothes that provide countershading. Countershading describes how animals have darker coloration on the upper side of the body and a lighter color on the underside. One theory is that this is a form of camouflage providing a uniform level of reflected light across the animal's body. For me, I tend to wear a green shirt with beige or coyote brown pants. I don't only wear brown because I don't want any of the local predators to mistake me for prey.

Ultimately, if you are moving, making noise, silhouetted, standing in the sun, or casting shadows, you will likely be spotted by wildlife. You should be still, silent, and blend in to the background. Camouflage clothing is not needed for this.

The big reason I do not wear camouflage clothing is the way others react to it. It makes people I encounter on the trail wary. And I have been stopped by rangers to check if I was poaching -- just because I was wearing camouflage pants.

I hope this helps.

- Woodsorrel

 

[TeeDee]

I do think these sort of things would actually work but with the examples provided the main block of colour is center to mass , ideally you'd want some irregular patterns breaking up the shoulder and hips lines , at least on one diagonal but then you are going down the route of a very odd looking t-shirt.

As compared to these which I'd happily wear down the pub. If I was ever allowed out...

I've also been impressed by how lumber jack check shirts -even in the black and red work at distance - it seems as long as the main pattern of bright colour is interfaced with a black patchwork it blurs out the bright colour.

That sounds obvious now I've written it down but I know what I mean.

 

[Herman30]

Like woodsorrel said; mixed clothing = trousers in one color and jacket/shirt in another.

 

[Broch]

We judge camouflage by human sight wavelengths but, in reality, wildlife eyesight works way outside our capabilities. We probably all know that pigeons, for example, see in the ultraviolet wavelengths and you can have the best camo jacket ever but, if it's been washed in a modern 'whitener' detergent, will stand out like a lighthouse to a pigeon

Deer, we know, have difficulty seeing in the red end of the spectrum - so, bright red clothing (in a broken pattern) works well for them and has the benefit of being seen by anyone else out there with a rifle.

My point being, as others have hinted, camouflage is very dependent on the animal one wants to hide from, human or otherwise.

 

[TLM]

Then of course if you really want not to be seen thermal imagers have caused a whole set of new problems ...

 

[Garnett]

Thanks a lot for the constructive criticism that's been provided.

@woodsorrel - that's very much in line with my thinking - and thanks for teaching me about "countershading" - a great pointer.

@TeeDee - thanks for the kind words, and I agree about the check shirt idea. I got a Barbour shirt specifically for this reason, but I don't think it has enough contract in it to be as effective as it could be.

@Broch - really interesting info - I knew about hunters wearing orange, but not about the ultraviolet effect of whitening detergents!