Shooting in SNOW

[dcmoody23]

Okay, so I get to bring my black lab pup home a week from friday, and I really want to make sure I get plenty of shots of him playing outside... I know that snow can be quite evil, and with the contrast between a black lab and illuminated white snow I'm expecting it will be quite a challenge..

Any tips on how to approach this?
Also, will a filter do me any good? They threw in 3 different filters w/ my Sigma 70-200mm lens for no extra cost (Polarized, UV, and one other).. they seem quite solid, but not multicoated.. Was wondering if it would help or only make things worse..
Thanks!

 

[Dominantly]

Scenes with large amounts of black and white are a nightmare for cameras light meter.

I would have to give a couple things a try depending on how much ambient there was available. BUt I would surely be using the spot meter and shooting in manual (most likely metering off the dogs face), and of course shooting raw.

 

[Natalie]

I don't have much experience shooting in snow, but I would avoid bright sunlight that will make the whole shot look blown out. The morning or late afternoon would probably be best, and maybe if you're lucky the light might be at a good angle to highlight the texture of the snow (so it's not just a big white area in the photo).

 

[SLRJoe]

maybe try taking photos on a cloudy day?
That way the shadows won't be so pronounced, the snow won't be so white to contrast with the darkness of your dog?

 

[Big Mike]

Black dog in snow...That is just about a worst case scenario in terms of exposure. (Sort of like a white wedding dress and a black tux )

In a situation like this, you need to decide which part of the scene is more important....which I'm sure is the dog. So you need to find the exposure that will work for the dog, and lock in those setting by using manual mode.
It's likely that the snow will be blown out in many shots, but if the exposure is good on the dog, the shots should be a success.

 

[itznfb]

Depends on your camera and other equipment. For instance... a good flash could save you. On the D300s I have the option to go H+ with ADL and an additional bump +1 Exp exposes black dog on snow perfectly. Was shooting my parents black lab in the snow the other day. I know with Nikon's software as long as you shoot RAW you'll have some form of dynamic light control.

 

[Dominantly]

Make sure when you are adjusting your exposure, you aren't in Matrix. It will try and bring the scene to a neutral gray VS white and black... So it will lie to you and tell you your exposure is good when it isn't.