Winter is upon us and I, for one, love photographing in the snow and cold. There is a magical quality to the world when it is blanketed in a beautiful white cloak…
By taking some precautions against the winter elements your equipment will perform beautifully providing you the opportunity to make some winter magic.
-LensCoat: One of the first things I do when I purchase a new lens, camera or tripod is to contact my friend Scott at LensCoat to get a cover for it. Not only do LensCoat covers protect your equipment from the elements to some degree, the LensCoat covers keep my equipment in tip top condition by protecting it from bumps and bangs that sometimes happen in the field. their leg wraps for tripods are great in cold weather. Even though carbon fiber does not transmit the cold as much as metal a little neoprene wrap certainly helps to take the chill of when handling my tripod in the cold.
-Rain cover: Whenever I am traveling to a location that may have inclement weather I pack my LensCoat rain cover. It is by far the easiest cover I have found and protects my camera and lens against the elements.
-Plain white hand towel: I have a clean towel close at hand to blot any moisture off my equipment should it get wet. Blot don’t wipe to avoid pushing water into your equipment.
-When I have finished photographing for the day, I remove my CF cards and battery from my camera and re-pack it into my bag. Once I go into the warmth of my hotel room I will leave my equipment in the bag for a couple of hours to let it warm to room temperature inside the bag to prevent condensation forming on (or worse, IN) my equipment. *Note: The same technique applies to those living in warm climates who go from an air conditioned house to the warm outdoors.
-Batteries: The cold saps our batteries. I keep a spare battery inside my coat where it is warm. When the one in my camera begins to show signs of exhaustion, I replace it with the warm battery and put the drained battery inside my coat where it will regain some of it’s power. I can switch back and forth as needed.
Take care of your equipment and it will take care of you when you venture outside into the winter wonderland that awaits you.
