Tips for Cold Weather Photography

[MKreider]

This winter, I plan to spend several days in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in Colorado. I have done some winter photography, but it has usually been with a point and shoot where I could bring as many AA batteries as I needed. Now, I am using a DSLR. I have two batteries for the camera. Since I will be out in the wilderness and will not be able to recharge batteries, do any of you have tips on how to best make use of the battery power that I do have. I have considered buying a third spare battery. I assume that the temperature will be in the high thirties in the day and getting down into the teens at night. Do any of you have approximations for how much shooting one battery could sustain (I know that it widely varies on many factors).

Also, what can I do to help minimize the power the camera uses? I will turn off the display when I'm not using it and try not to review photographs much. I know that it saves power to focus manually - usually when I do this though, I use the live view to check focus or zoom in later to check focus. Will this approach actually take up more battery power than just using autofocus and hoping that it's all right? I also know that shooting long exposures saps up a lot of battery power - is it better to shoot long-exposure photographs conservatively?

Thanks for all you responses...

 

[DorkSterr]

All I have to say is be careful of condensation.

 

[MKreider]

All I have to say is be careful of condensation.

Will this be a big problem if I just going from the cold outside into a slightly warmer tent?

 

[amolitor]

Keep one battery against your skin for warmth. When the other battery gets low, there's a good chance that it's just gotten cold, so swap them out and warm the "dead" one up against the skin while using the warmed one. If your sunglasses are getting condensation, worry about the camera, otherwise, don't worry about it. Tents CAN get pretty moist, what with people breathing and so on in there, so keep an eye on it. A good sized ziploc bag for the camera would be a good thing to bring along - slip the camera inside it before you bring it in, and let it warm to the ambient in-tent temperature in its own private atmosphere.

 

[TCampbell]

^^ This

Lithium batteries have a much colder tolerance than most other battery technology, but in general... batteries don't like to be cold and they'll pretend that they're dead when really they're just too cold.

 

[ziggy84]

I think batteries are the least of your problems. If your bringing a SLR camera up to the mountains and it's getting that cold, it might not work. My friend went up to the mountains here in Cali last month and his mirror froze closed and he couldn't shoot anymore. Maybe bring something to wrap around the camera to keep it warm? I dunno. Just fyi. Hope it works out for you.

 

[tevo]

What camera do you have? Most newer Nikons (and DSLR's really...) are weather sealed to some extent.. I would say just to make sure your batteries stay warm, and to keep moisture away from your camera. If it is snowing, get a [rain sleeve](http://optechusa.com/skin/frontend/optechusa/default/images/Pilot/Rainsleeve.jpg) for your camera to keep your rig dry. In terms of maintaining battery life, just make sure if you aren't out shooting or your camera is in a bag, make sure it is off. Also, turn off any superfluous functions like the beep noise / af light, and turn the lcd brightness down. Investing in extra batteries and charging them beforehand will be beneficial. If there is a battery grip for your camera that has a double-A battery tray, bring that with enough double a batteries to get you a few charges worth.

 

[ziggy84]

What camera do you have? Most newer Nikons (and DSLR's really...) are weather sealed to some extent.. I would say just to make sure your batteries stay warm, and to keep moisture away from your camera. If it is snowing, get a [rain sleeve](http://optechusa.com/skin/frontend/optechusa/default/images/Pilot/Rainsleeve.jpg) for your camera to keep your rig dry. In terms of maintaining battery life, just make sure if you aren't out shooting or your camera is in a bag, make sure it is off. Also, turn off any superfluous functions like the beep noise / af light, and turn the lcd brightness down. Investing in extra batteries and charging them beforehand will be beneficial. If there is a battery grip for your camera that has a double-A battery tray, bring that with enough double a batteries to get you a few charges worth.

Well it was my buddy who encountered the problem. He has some Canon camera, not sure though.

 

[enzodm]

What camera do you have? Most newer Nikons (and DSLR's really...) are weather sealed to some extent.

Well it was my buddy who encountered the problem. He has some Canon camera, not sure though.

only some dSLR (Nikon and Canon) are weather sealed, typically all pro and maybe semi-pro bodies (plus Pentax that weather seals almost everything...). But if the lens is not, it provides a way for water and moisture to enter. And only pro lenses (e.g. Canon L) usually are weather sealed.

 

[Mike_E]

Nikon Fog Eliminator Cloths (3-Pack) 8073 B&H Photo Video

These help too.

 

[ziggy84]

Another point on the batteries. Batteries use chemical reactions to create electricity. When you cool them down, say in a fridge, it slows that process down. I.E. why flashlights aren't as bright when it's cold. Heat is bad when it comes to any type of battery, or electrical unit in general. That's why they say to put unused batteries in the fridge. So keep the battery out, but don't let it get frozen. Cold is good, frozen is bad.

 

[thuchton]

All of the above posts are pretty spot on. I have done a fair amount of COLD weather shooting in Alaska. Keep the batteries warm if possible in a coat pocket or closers to you.
Also for around the same price as a new battery you can but a solar panel to charge your existing batteries back up. I have used them for several things and they work pretty well. It does a dd a little weight to your pack but it can be worth knowing you have a safe backup.

 

[AgentDrex]

I wouldn't worry too much about battery drainage or condensation in the climate you are talking about. I live in Northern Minnesota and I barely worry about that. Zero degrees is a warm day here and you're talking about temps barely below freezing. Keeping the extra batteries near your body is a good tip though. If you're worried about condensation, carry a ziplock bag big enough to hold the camera (a gallon-sized freezer bag would work) and keep it open while outside. Before going in where it's warm, take out the battery (and card if you're going to be copying the data to a computer) and place the camera in the ziplock (the reason for taking out the battery is just in case condensation does occur, you don't accidentally turn on the camera and short anything out) and close it shut tightly. Having the ziplock bag open outside will allow the dry outside air into the bag to minimize any condensation from occurring once you go into the warmer location.

Also: Battery Refrigeration Debunked

 

[enzodm]

Keep the batteries warm if possible in a coat pocket or closers to you.

If I may add a tip from the times I was building and flying electric airplane models, be careful not to put keys and other conductive materials in the same pocket, to avoid short circuits. Batteries for models are less protected than camera batteries, however better to avoid risks (lithium batteries give nice fireworks when too quickly discharged).

 

[MiFleur]

I live in Northern New Hampshire and it is quite cold over here. During the holidays, I spent about 1 hour out in the cold (0F) with my 70-200 lens after that it stopped focusing on my Nikon D600, I don't know still if it is a cold related problem or a problem with either the lens or the camera, I could hear a hissing sound while the lens was trying uselessly to focus.

When I came back inside, I waited a few hours and tried the lens again ( it was not very warm yet) it still made a hissing noise, then I decided to try it on my D90, it made the same sound for a few seconds and started to work properly right after. I re-attached it to the D600 and it worked fine.

So I don't know if you can encounter the same problem, or if what happened to me is normal or not... I need to inquire some more.
I would definitely recommend that you have a warm bag to store your camera in, and keep it as warm as possible.