Photographing In Winter

Photographing in the winter can be a challenge. My biggest challenge this year has been not much snow! Normally we would have a few feet of snow by now. We have had only a few inches and it didn’t last long. There are a few things to remember when photographing in cold weather. First protect yourself from the elements dress for the weather!  Mittens keep your hands warm but are a bit hard to take pictures with. My son has a pair of  hunting gloves that are mittens but you flip the top over and inside they are gloves that cover your fingers except for the tips. These work great! Take a picture and just flip the top back over and keep your fingers warm.  You also need to protect your  camera gear.  If you are photographing when the snowflakes are falling you can use a rain sleeve to protect your camera from getting wet.  

Cold weather can drain batteries quick so have a spare and keep it warm.  An inside coat pocket close to your body works well. Keep your camera tucked inside your coat until you need it.  Be aware of your surroundings. You don’t want to be out in the country looking for a subject to photograph and you take a step only sink down or fall because there is a deep ditch! Watch for slippery ice patches also. Condensation can be an issue. If you wear glasses you know what I mean. You walk into a warm house and your glasses steam up! This can also happen with your camera and lens. Before going inside put your camera in a zip lock bag, seal it up and leave it in your camera bag a couple of hours. This allows your camera to slowly warm back up.  Don’t forget about macro photography. The image below was ice forming on an old window.

So dress warm, be safe and start shooting!

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