Is it safe to use HPX to shoot in cold / snow (skiing) ?

I

Isaac Brillant

New member
Hi,

Do I need to buy some sort of protective gear if I'm going to be shooting skiing? I'm not skiing with it myself, - its more an issue of the temperature and condensation...

Whats the best way to prevent condensation? The one I've heard is to put it in a plastic bag for 10 minutes or so after coming in from the cold. Do I need to do anything when bringing it out into the cold?

Also, could anyone recommend good scene file and switch settings for shooting around snow? Anything other than ND and stopping down? Is there a rule of thumb for how high of a shutter speed, or low shutter angle, you can go with, without it looking jittery?

Thanks
 
I have found the best way to prevent condensation is to let the camera gradually cool down and (more importantly) warm up to the next shooting conditions. i keep my cam in a insulated Lowe Pro bag that acts like an igloo cooler. it cools down and warms up slowly instead of having such a steep temperature gradient.
I dont think putting the camera in a plastic bag will eliminate the condensation factor.
As far as shooting in snow pay attention to your zebras and do some tests before hand.
Oh yeah and prey for snow.
 
I shoot in snow every week. Like BG said, just make sure your temperature changes are gradual. I let my camera sit in my bag in my garage overnight before bringing it inside. Bringing a cold object into warmer air is where you'll get the worst condensation. That's where you need to pay attention.

As far as getting snowed on, if it's heavy, I use a Kata rain cover.
 
thanks for the replies.

My situation is that I'll be shooting inside for a while, then going outside in the cold for an hour or 2, and then coming back in.

So, is this a big problem? I have a Petrol camera bag - I dont know if it's insulated - it's just a normal bag.

So, am I OK with bringing the bag outside, leaving the camera in the bag for a half hour, shooting, putting it back in the bag, waiting a half hour and then going back inside? Or does it need hours to adjust?

Is this the sort of thing that would cause permanent damage, or just cause the camera to not perform perfectly while its getting used to the temp?

Thanks
 
Really depends on humidity and temperature changes. You'll definitely have to wait out the camera whether it's a half hour or two or six.
Jim
 
I go from warm to cold all the time with my hpx and have never had a problem. It's cold to warm where you have to be careful. Just make sure you put your camera in the bag outside, and make sure the bag has had time to acclimate to the cold temps. Then, just leave the cam in the bag when you bring it inside, give it about an hour to warm up in the bag.

I always expose snow just under 100 ire, anything higher will be over exposed.
 
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