Changing lenses in the cold

[enriquegonzales]

Is there a risk of damaging anything on a DSLR by changing lenses when it's

freezing outside? There's no dust, wind, or snow at the moment.

 

Also, I seal my camera and lens in a ziplock bag when leaving the house, and

coming back. Is it more risky going from hot to cold or cold to hot?

[mark_chappell]

As long as it's not ultracold (way, WAY below zero C) I don't think there should be any

problem with lens changes if you don't breath near the camera and don't try to to it under

your coat. In both conditions, you could get condensation from breath or the humid air

under clothing condensing on exposed surfaces (not good inside the camera).

 

There's no problem taking a warm camera into cold air, so sealing the lens and camera in

a ziplock when leaving the house isn't necessary. The condensation problem arises when

you take a cold camera or lens into warm, humid air. You DO want cold cameras sealed in

airtight containers when bringing them into warm, humid air, until they warm to ambient

temperature (or above the dew point temperature at least).

 

Keep in mind that most DSLR manufacturers don't recommend use in freezing

temperatures but lots of people ignore this with fine results. Probably LCDs and

lubricants, and certainly batteries, will have problems if it gets really cold

[jay a. frew]

Hello Enrique:

 

I shoot in cold weather several months of the year (as cold as -30 on occasion). I do take more time and care when changing lenses, but, it is the small bits that are more prone to loss/damage (inserting/removing cables, flashes etc) because it is easier to fumble/drop these items when wearing gloves.

 

I often put a clean ground-sheet (probably 2 feet square or so) on the ground (snow) and reconfigure equipment over this sheet using my body to shield the equipment from falling snow/wind if required. A plastic bag will do in a pinch, but they are quite noisy in the cold. I use a home-made (back of an old nylon? jacket) groundsheet.

 

I carry my camera with lens ready to go (cap off & hood in place) in the camera bag, to protect it from snow/ice/branches etc. I use a LowePro Topload Zoom bag on a chest harness (my 70-200 2.8, with hood extended, will fit in the bag with the lid open). This bag also carries my flash, Off-Camera-Shoe Cord, remote shutter release cable, extra memory cards, two micro fibre cloths and a lens pen. I strap the pouch, for my longest lens, to the side of the camera bag and carry my second lens in there.

 

This chest-pack configuration keeps the weight off my neck and I often use the bag as a prop for my elbows when shooting hand-held. It also leaves my shoulders/back free to carry my tri-pod. Just remember to keep the lid closed when the bag is empty to keep the snow etc out.

 

I always use a "protective filtre" on the lens when I am out in the weather. This has saved the day on several occasions when I get the end of the lens wet (or snow covered), I just quickly remove the filtre and keep shooting and worry about cleaning the filtre later.

 

Batteries run-down much more quickly. I carry two spares in a warm pocket.

 

You have to watch-out for your breath on the back of the camera when you have the camera up to your face. Condensation from your breath will form beads of water (ice eventually) on the LCD and possibly on some of the buttons. You also have to be aware that any snow you get on your gloves will end-up on/in your gear if you are not careful.

 

My biggest problem is keeping my fingers warm. I cannot operate my camera with heavy gloves/mitts. I usually wear thin gloves under a pair of fingerless gloves. The fingerless gloves have a "mitt flap" that normally covers the finger tips, but, it can be folded back to expose the finger tips. I put chemical hand-warmers inside the mitt flaps. If it is really cold, I use heavy mitts over the thin gloves and remove the mitt (mostly just the right-hand mitt) when I need to shoot.

 

Believe it or not, if you keep your torso (especially the area around your kidneys) warm, your hands (and feet) will stay warm much longer.

 

Hope this helps...Cheers! Jay

[kin_lau]

Down to about -10C, I'll changed lenses if I need to, but I have a second body, so I use that instead.

 

At about -10C, I find that the metal really gets too cold for my bare hands since I don't change lenses with gloves on, so it better be worth it.

[enriquegonzales]

Great, thanks for your responses everyone.

 

Jay, I like the sound of the removable mitt flaps. I'll keep a watch out for some.

[Two23]

Dang, I hope not. I regularly photo in temperatures around zero degrees F. Last winter I was out in -25F for four hours, and I know I changed lenses pretty frequently on my D80. That was a year ago and so far I've seen no ill effects.

 

Going from warm to cold seems to have no risk, but going from cold to warm does cause condensation on both the outside and inside of camera gear. I just leave my stuff out in my car this time of year. That never seems to bother it.

 

 

Kent in SD

[lauren_macintosh]

try this site for foul weather stuff: and good luck

http://www.danalco.com/htmls/products/products.shtml

[greg_p.]

I always wondered if your LCD would crack in the cold. Obviously, water expands when

frozen, so leaving it in the car overnight has got to be a terrible idea. Same goes for laptops,

right?

[ed_fuhr]

You need also to be a bit careful going from, say, a warm car into really cold. If its cold enough you can get a quick light "frost" on your lens. Also want to be careful changing lenses into air that is greatly different than the temp of the equip.

[alasdair_turner]

I took my D80 to Alaska for the first time this year (previously have used Film cameras) and had no problems. I am often shooting in VERY cold temps. I have shot in -40 and not had problems. Auto focus is key however. Just putting the camera view finder up to the eye will fog the veiw finder in those temps. Changing lenses is no issue what so ever. I spent several weeks in the cold on Denali this year and the most important thing is not to ever warm the camera up. I leave the camera outside the tent, and outside my jackets with the batteries in my pockets and have no problems. Even the LCD work fine. As far as gloves go, I dont take my gloves off for fear of loosing fingers to frostbite, so I do what I can with the gloves I have.<div></div>

[mark_chappell]

<I> I spent several weeks in the cold on Denali this year and the most important thing is not

to ever warm the camera up.</i><P>

 

Warming it up is not a problem, except logistically (how to do it when out in a cold

environment). Exposing a cold camera to warm, humid air (or any air with a

dew point higher than the temperature of camera surfaces) will result in condensation or

frost formation.