Posted by William Vrolyk on February 14, 2007 at 12:21 PM
This question is for the hardy NPN'rs who live in colder regions.
Should I be concerned about condensation when I bring my Nikon D80 inside from the cold weather? According to the manual the D80 is a bit of a fair weather camera. How does the drastic and abrupt change in temperature affect the intricate inner parts of the DSLR? Could condensation cause problems?
I thought of keeping it in an insulated "cosy" camera bag prior to taking it inside so it can "adjust" better to the warmth the indoors. And probably I should keep the camera there at all times until the moment I need it. That would mean some changes to my way of photographing.
I never was too concerned about condensation before except my annoying habit of breathing on the viewfinder .
You have every reason to be concerned with cameras and lenses. The easy solution is to slip your camera and/or camera bag into a large plastic garbage bag, squeeze the air out, and seal it before bringing it indoors. Once the gear has warmed to ambient indoor temp, you can open the bag without concern.
Right with you on the breathing issue. Try working under a dark cloth on a LF rig!
Cold weather photography does bring it's own special issues. When going from warm to cold I don't worry except to make sure my batteries are fully charged and maybe having a warm backup battery in my pocket if I'm out for quite a while and the first battery might slow down or die altogether. Going from cold to warm the main worry is condensation of moisture in the warm air onto the cold camera/lens surfaces (both inside and outsite). Having condensation inside your camera or lens can be a major problem. When I bring gear in from the cold I make sure it's either in my usual gear bag where it can warm up slowly and avoid precipitation or I may put it in an air tight plastic bag which will keep the moisture containing warm air from contacting the gear until it has warmed up. Then I don't do anything with the gear until it has warmed up. I don't generally worry about the cold adversely affecting the moving parts. It might slow them down but I expect that when the gear warms back up everything will be fine.
Hope this helps
Keith
Posted by Steve Foss on February 14, 2007 at 1:21 PM
I use a padded photo equipment backpack when I'm out shooting in the cold, so when I'm headed into the house or a warm vehicle, I pull my memory cards so I can download immediately upon getting to a computer and make sure all my camera gear is stashed in that backpack. It's insulated enough that the gear warms slowly, and condensation doesn't appear.
I don't worry about condensation on the lens and moving parts so much, but if you have dust on the sensor and you get a film of condensation over it from taking the camera unshielded from cold to warm, it can embed those dust specks, and they are very stubborn to get off once that happens. I've actually had to rub a lens pen over portions of the sensor a couple times when the Copperhill system wouldn't get off embedded dust. Talk about nerve-wracking!
When I'm out guiding clients or shooting myself in a way that involves a lot of winter driving down back roads, I keep the vehicle very cold and my warm weather gear on, specifically so the camera gear can't warm up enough in the vehicle to cause condensation. It's about the only way I've found in the cold to hop in and out of a vehicle to shoot photographs and not worry about condensation. If we're just plain cold and need to warm up seriously, we can put our camera gear back in the bags and bring it inside the car, or just leave it outside until we're warm enough to start going again.
Posted by Paul Wegemann on February 14, 2007 at 1:25 PM
I do exactly what Steve does; pull the CF cards and leave my gear in the padded pack to warm up slowly. I've never had a problem with condensation. I do live in Colorado though and it is drier here.
Paul
Posted by William Vrolyk on February 14, 2007 at 5:04 PM
Thank you, all. The suggestion of sealing the camera in an airtight plastic bag is the obvious solution.
Steve, concerning your suggestion of keeping the vehicle very cold, I am assuming that you are using a van of some type. I think I can stash the gear in the trunk of my car and still stay nice and warm in the vehicle.
Right with you on the breathing issue. Try working under a dark cloth on a LF rig!
Hank, I have. Hmmm, I wonder if wearing a surgical mask would work
Thank you all again.
Will
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada
Posted by Steve Foss on February 14, 2007 at 7:35 PM
William, I leave the vehicle cold (usually a pickup or SUV) because when driving back roads in the deep woods up here there often are opportunities to shoot wildlife right from the vehicle through open windows and no time to stop and retrieve gear from a trunk before the shot disappears. When I'm alone, the camera sits on the seat right next to me. When I'm with clients, all but the driver (me) have their cameras in their hands or on their laps. Never know when a moose or wolf is going to show itself right next to the road, and it happens often enough. I'd hate to see the looks we'd all exchange if a wolf lingered by the road and our gear was in the trunk.
Posted by David Prichard on February 14, 2007 at 11:03 PM
William,
Cold? Edmonton is supposed to be -1C tomorrow.Tropical!
Up here I use two cases, a Pelican hard shell and a canvas Billingham. The hard shell I use snowmobiling and other similar activities and take a cloth along to wipe the edges before I open it. The foam insert is great for a slow warm up
The Billingham I take walking and find it is sturdy enough to resist snow and damp. It is sufficiently heavy canvas not to need wrapping in plastic when I come in.
Also have a desiccating pack I throw in before I go out. If I have to go into warm places for brief periods of time I won't use the camera.
If you find a solution for the condensation, apart from not breathing, let me know. I've found that at -30C and below a thin film of ice may form on the camera back and LCD just from body heat and moisture from my face.
Dave
Posted by William Vrolyk on February 15, 2007 at 3:06 PM
Steve, although I have never seen a wolf, I did have that look on my face when I remembered I locked my gear in the trunk More often than not I have my gear on the backseat. (My wife insists on sitting up front ) And the gear, like ourselves, wears a seatbelt. Hate to have a sudden stop send my camera tumbling Compared to the outside, when it is cold, such as it is now in Yellowknife NWT , I keep the interior of my car comfortable, but I never have problems with condensation at that time.
Dave, Edmonton is not at -1C. It is at +3C right now.
I will investigate the Billingham further. I never had a descent pack for my gear.
Thank you.
Will
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada
Posted by Lenny Wells on February 16, 2007 at 10:31 AM
I found this at Adorama. A microwave rechargable silica gel. http://www.adorama.com/ZZSGC.html
Posted by Kent Staubus on February 18, 2007 at 1:22 PM
I've been out for hours, often at night, taking photos in temps from --5 to --25F. It hasn't got above zero F much for the past two weeks. I've simply been leaving all my camera gear in my car, all the time. I do take out the SD card from my D80 and bring it inside at night so I can transfer the shots. When I do bring my camera gear inside, I leave them in my zipped camera bag for an hour or two before opening.
I've noticed there is a problem with frost forming on the camera back. Since it's been so cold I have to wear a face mask which seems to make the problem worse. I do the same thing with the D80 that I do with my 4x5 when focussing. I take a large diameter straw with me and exhale through that. I can point it away from my camera very easily. I keep one battery in my inside shirt pocket, and one in the camera. I swap them out every half an hour when it's hitting --20. Sometimes I have to wait in the cold for a long time, ready for my shot. The battery can slowly freeze in the camera and be dead when my shot comes. So, I set my camera on my triopd, open the battery door and catch the battery in my hand. I leave the door open and keep the battery inside the glove of my right hand, against my skin. When I need to take a fast shot, I slip the battery back into the camera and take the shot.
Discussion
10 repliesShould I be concerned about condensation when I bring my Nikon D80 inside from the cold weather? According to the manual the D80 is a bit of a fair weather camera. How does the drastic and abrupt change in temperature affect the intricate inner parts of the DSLR? Could condensation cause problems?
I thought of keeping it in an insulated "cosy" camera bag prior to taking it inside so it can "adjust" better to the warmth the indoors. And probably I should keep the camera there at all times until the moment I need it. That would mean some changes to my way of photographing.
I never was too concerned about condensation before except my annoying habit of breathing on the viewfinder
Thank you for your response.
Will
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada
Right with you on the breathing issue. Try working under a dark cloth on a LF rig!
Hope this helps
Keith
I don't worry about condensation on the lens and moving parts so much, but if you have dust on the sensor and you get a film of condensation over it from taking the camera unshielded from cold to warm, it can embed those dust specks, and they are very stubborn to get off once that happens. I've actually had to rub a lens pen over portions of the sensor a couple times when the Copperhill system wouldn't get off embedded dust. Talk about nerve-wracking!
When I'm out guiding clients or shooting myself in a way that involves a lot of winter driving down back roads, I keep the vehicle very cold and my warm weather gear on, specifically so the camera gear can't warm up enough in the vehicle to cause condensation. It's about the only way I've found in the cold to hop in and out of a vehicle to shoot photographs and not worry about condensation. If we're just plain cold and need to warm up seriously, we can put our camera gear back in the bags and bring it inside the car, or just leave it outside until we're warm enough to start going again.
Paul
Steve, concerning your suggestion of keeping the vehicle very cold, I am assuming that you are using a van of some type. I think I can stash the gear in the trunk of my car and still stay nice and warm in the vehicle.
Hank, I have. Hmmm, I wonder if wearing a surgical mask would work
Thank you all again.
Will
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada
Cold? Edmonton is supposed to be -1C tomorrow.Tropical!
Up here I use two cases, a Pelican hard shell and a canvas Billingham. The hard shell I use snowmobiling and other similar activities and take a cloth along to wipe the edges before I open it. The foam insert is great for a slow warm up
The Billingham I take walking and find it is sturdy enough to resist snow and damp. It is sufficiently heavy canvas not to need wrapping in plastic when I come in.
Also have a desiccating pack I throw in before I go out. If I have to go into warm places for brief periods of time I won't use the camera.
If you find a solution for the condensation, apart from not breathing, let me know. I've found that at -30C and below a thin film of ice may form on the camera back and LCD just from body heat and moisture from my face.
Dave
Dave, Edmonton is not at -1C. It is at +3C right now.
I will investigate the Billingham further. I never had a descent pack for my gear.
Thank you.
Will
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada
I've noticed there is a problem with frost forming on the camera back. Since it's been so cold I have to wear a face mask which seems to make the problem worse. I do the same thing with the D80 that I do with my 4x5 when focussing. I take a large diameter straw with me and exhale through that. I can point it away from my camera very easily. I keep one battery in my inside shirt pocket, and one in the camera. I swap them out every half an hour when it's hitting --20. Sometimes I have to wait in the cold for a long time, ready for my shot. The battery can slowly freeze in the camera and be dead when my shot comes. So, I set my camera on my triopd, open the battery door and catch the battery in my hand. I leave the door open and keep the battery inside the glove of my right hand, against my skin. When I need to take a fast shot, I slip the battery back into the camera and take the shot.
Kent in SD