Cold Weather
travie digital
Registered Users Posts: 13 Big grins
How should a camera be handled in cold weather? I live in Mt. Washington Valley, NH - so not way up north, but still pretty cold. Could I leave a camera in my car (in a teflon bag, zippered closed) from 8:30-3 ? Will that be alright?
ARe there any recommendations to how long to use a camera in the cold, any rules of thumb or guidlines? All help greatly appreciated. Thanks !!!
ARe there any recommendations to how long to use a camera in the cold, any rules of thumb or guidlines? All help greatly appreciated. Thanks !!!
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The battery will lose a lot of capacity of it is allowed to get very cold, so carry at least one spare, and keep it in an inside pocket if possible to keep it warm.
Going from warm to cold is OK, but going from cold to warm risks condensation, which is a real no-no. (If you live in NH and wear glasses, you know this: walk in from the cold and your glasses fog up.) I had this once on a moderately warm day, when I walked into a much warmer and more humid bug zoo with my camera. Carry a big enough plastic bag, pack the camera in it, and let it come to room temperature before opening it. Some people recommend a 2 or 2.5 gallon zip-lock, which is what I am going to carry this winter, if it ever gets cold. (it was 56 today in Boston!)
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Althought the specificiation did not specify the "storage temperature" for the camera, it tells that it operate between 32 - 104 F. In general, the storage temperature for electronic is about -10 -60 deg C.
I did shooting in -25 deg C equivalent to -15 def F for 1 hour and my 5D II work and the battery dropped 1 bar after 150 pictures. My usual practice is take out the batteries and CF cards and put in my jacket pocket to let it warm up slowly. Store the cameras and lenses in the bag, zip in nicely, put in a big plastic bag and bring into the hotel room. Charge the battery and download (backup) the files. Open the bag at the site only.
Althought with the "great care", the electronic circuit of my 24 -105 spoiled twice in past 5 years due to "humidity problem". No issue for other lenses : 70-200 IS F2.8, 17-40 F4, 500F4, 100 macro and Sigma 18-200, even the 15 years old humble 28 -180 F5.5-5.6.
Good luck!
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