Extreme cold on Camera

I am aware that extreme cold does affect electronics that have moving and none

moving parts eg.we have signal boxes/switches that mess up in the subways and

traffic lights and so on.

 

So what happens when i go out and photograph great snow scenery at minus 10C

in Canada?Will metal freeze to metal inside the camera?I am refering to the

flick up mirror and telelens that move as we focus and snap.Using manual focus

is ok but i can't do much for the flick up mirror,horrors!

 

 

I have read of Xti armour and wondered if that does help in some small way to

keep the cold from freezing small precision made devices.This might be a good

thing if one has a camera costing C$1,500 or IS lens that cost even more!

Imagine the motors in your IS lens frozen to each other or your mirror jammed

in the close position.Precision made devices don't take kindly to being stuck

at all as it throw carefully set up configurations out of calibrations.

You're over-thinking this. :)

 

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00OUBb

Hi Robert,

 

I have been shooting for two years now in Montreal (Quebec) and surroundings at -25C and lower with my Rebel XT (350D) without any issues. My lenses are L class and also use a Sigma 70-200 f/2.8 EX USM APO DG from time to time. Two weekends ago it was -26C in the morning and it warmed up to -10C by mid-day in the Laurentians.

 

 

I just leave them overnight in my backpack brefore reusing them and so far so good.

 

Regards,

 

Luis

yea, if you expose the camera outdoor -10 for hours, it will fail. If you just take pics and when you are done, put it back in your bag, that will be ok. For the 1D series, I think it has a better spec to survive in extreme cold weather.

[[yea, if you expose the camera outdoor -10 for hours, it will fail.]]

 

This is a very misleading and poorly worded statement. Your batteries will be exhausted more quickly but, baring any other conditions (moisture being a big one) your camera will not "fail."

Anson - can you please provide a source for this information. It contradicts the experiences of so many here, so I'm curious as to the source of it.

 

My suspicion would be that there's either more to the story, it was a defective camera, or it was a heck of a lot colder than -10C.

If you are worried, get a handwarmer pack and attach it to the camera with a rubber band.

I used my Olympus E3 two weekends ago at the start of the Yukon Quest, it was -45f. The camera worked great, I didn't! I did need to change the battery after 40 minutes, but that was expected. I have been amazed how well digital cameras work in very cold climates.

Don't worry so much. Go out and take some pictures. Besides, your fingers will probably give out long before the camera fails.

I second Luis-Miguel statement, having myself used my 300D and 40D at minus 25C many many time, for many hours without any failing. I even used my 40D under heavy snowing, once the camera body is cold the snow doesn't melt on it.

 

I not sure about Bob advice has the heated body and cold weather would cause some condensation inside the camera body.

<I>I not sure about Bob advice has the heated body and cold weather would cause some

condensation inside the camera body.</i><P>

 

No, heating the body will probably REDUCE the likelihood of condensation. You get

condensation when the camera surfaces fall below the dew point temperature of the

surrounding air. So a warmer camera = less chance of condensation. On the other hand, I

can see how using a heating pad could cause snow to melt onto the camera, but that's not

the same thing as condensation.

I photographed bald eagles on the Mississippi river last year in -5 degrees F and I had no issue. I used a 5D body with a 400 mm L.

One thing you have to remember is that you want to keep your car cold so when you go in and out of your car with your camera, the condensation does not damage/rust the internal parts of the camera. A very large zip-lock bag is what I use. I put the camera with lens attached in it, seal it and THEN I put the camera in the car. The condensation will not build up on the bag and not so much on the camera and its internal part.

Does anyone have a spec regarding operating temperature of canon lenses/bodies/flashes?

Robert, don't worry, -10 C is just perfect weather for crisp winter shots - good possibilities for clear skies and bright light but you won't freeze.

 

Robert Tan: "I have read of Xti armour and wondered if that does help in some small way to keep the cold from freezing small precision made devices."

 

I guess it could buy you a couple of minutes. ;)

Something to remember:

 

Good gloves.

 

Extra batteries, keep them warm.

 

Don't breathe in the vf.

 

Handwarmer pack? For you if you like, for the camera, no.

 

+ What Hadi said.

 

 

 

Anson Ko, I think most manufacturers say that you shouldn't use your gear below 0 C. Some sort of blah blah clause. I don't know about the actual specs but I do know that millions of people use their gear in sub zero temps with no problems.

I have gone out at -30 celsius (even colder with the wind chill) and stood on a frozen river several times taking pictures of geese for 1 - 2 hours and my Nikon coolpix s10 worked fine. The autofocus, zoom etc never stopped at all.

 

None of the manufacturers would recommend this type of thing.

 

The only real problem is batteries get exhaused quickly at that temperature and changing them is scary. You better know exacly how to change it and quick or you will get frostbite.

Another vote for the acceptability of using EOS gear in these conditions. I've used my 5D/24-105 combo in -5F temperatures for lenghty chunks of time with no mechanical problems. I would just avoid removing/swapping the lens until the camera has had time to fully warm back up after you get inside. Battery grips are your friends, as everyone is right to say that cold like that burns through batteries (especially with IS lenses.) Finally, good gloves that preserve dexterity and have a nice lining are essential. I use a pair designed for cold weather EMT/Law Enforcement/Military use and they are a godsend. They are designed with less material on the tip of the index finger, which helps me to manipulate the little buttons on the camera (I believe this feature was put in place to allow the finger to slide more easily into a trigger guard but hey, whatever works for us.)

The gloves are called "Winter Specialist," manufactured by a company called Hatch, and are available at www.tacticaltailor.com if anyone is curious.

I photographed the recent lunar eclipse with a 30D with the BG-E2 batter pack. I kept the camera on tripod outside during the eclipse and the outdoor temp was a nice, steady minut 22 farenheit. I timed the battery performance because I was going in and out to keep warm while waiting to shoot at regular intervals.

 

The batteries died down to almost nothing right at 25 minute intervals. Three sets of batteries, different ages per set with the newest being six months old and the oldest five years old. All charged fully within two days before the event.

 

I brought them in to warm up and they showed a good charge after warmup. I did not use the hand warmer on the grip as I usually do when outside nor did I have the camera in hand where just holding it helps keep the batteries a bit warmer than ambient temperature.

 

Camera, lens and batter holder sitting out on the tripod for two hours in the cold. No wind, clear skies and minus 22 the whole time.

 

Carry a spare set of batteries and keep them in an inside pocket of your jacket and you will probably be fine for almost anything. The camera did work well and the photos look good. The fast depleted battery was the only problem. The camera machanics had no troubles at all nor did the telephoto lens.

The following photos were shot at about -25C to -30C with a Canon 300D. I had the camera out all day. It performed just fine.<P>

 

<IMG SRC="http://www.frontrange.ca/arie/campbell/pics/EPStan.jpg"><P>

 

<IMG SRC="http://www.frontrange.ca/arie/campbell/pics/EastPeakPanoSmall.jpg">

I've done a lot of winter photography. Others have recommended a spare battery - carry the spare in an inner pocket to keep it warm. I use Zip-Loc bags - one for the camera body, one for each lens. Before coming indoors I put them in the bags and keep them sealed until the body + lenses are room temperature. That way there's no chance for moisture to condense on them. If you're carrying a BIG zoom (100-400 for example) put it in its case and leave it alone.