Taking pictures in the winter cold

Taking winter pictures can be fun and rewarding, but it can also be as cold as a landlord’s heart, and it’ll require a little forethought if you plan to go out. If you’re going to be in the deep freeze for more than a few minutes, you’ll want to make sure you have the right clothing, some proper food, and that you’ve considered the limitations and special needs of your gear.

There’s nothing worse then seeing the picture you want, but being unable to take the picture simply because you haven’t thought it out or because you’re too miserable to try. So let’s revisit what you need to keep yourself working as a lean, mean, photo taking machine during those expeditions in the cold winter months.

Clothing

First and foremost in the list of priorities is to keep yourself warm. You head, feet, and hands are particularly important to insulate, but these extremeties are greatly reliant on your core body temperature – so if you can regulate that effectively, you won’t have as much of an issue with your extremities as you would if your core temp drops.

Typical you want to layer your clothing. Your core temperature is based in the torso. For your torso, you should have a windproof jacket covering a fleece or wool sweater mid-layer, covering a base layer – something that will wick away sweat and keep you dry. Make sure you don’t wear any cotton, as it absorbs and traps moisture. Layering is popular and beneficial because it allows you to easily adjust your clothing if you become too hot or cold.

Good boots, gloves, and a warm hat (or toque) are also important, of course.

Food

As you exert yourself, and your body burns up energy trying to keep itself warm, you’ll need to replenish your fuel tank with some food. Carbs are key. Sugars, chocolates, fruits… all your friend. Keep yourself hydrated as well. If you’re sweating, you’ll need more water!

Gear

You’re out there to take pictures, but snowy and cold conditions bring up some new concerns for your gear. Cameras generally don’t like the cold. The screens will start slowing down, the AF gears begin to freeze, and all sorts of other nasty side effects occur. Most cameras will come with an environmental rating which will cover temperature and humidity limits. While these are typically a little conservative, be aware that if you cause any permanent damage to your gear, it may void the warranty. I have a Nikon D70 that is rated to 0C/32F, but I’ve had it in negative double digits a few times – and while I don’t think the camera liked it, it functioned.

Keep your camera and extra batteries warm whenever you can (keeping them inside your jacket will help). A little body warmth will go a long way to preserving the charge in the batteries and keeping the camera casing from getting too cold, but don’t sacrifice making yourself cold to warm up your camera gear.

Moving from a cold location (outside) to a warm location (inside) will likely fog up the camera optics. Best way to avoid this is to place the camera in a plastic bag before moving it, and waiting fifteen or twenty minutes after you’ve moved before removing the camera from the bag. This way, any condensation will form on the outside of the bag instead of on the camera.