What type of camera can work in extreme weather conditions?

Question

Are there camera out there that are capable to withstand at least some of the following type of weather conditions and are able to take good quality photos (not necessarily the most high quality photos)?

1. Hot weather where temperature might hit at least 50 degree Celsius
2. Underwater condition in a swimming pool (able to take good photo during day / night)
3. Sandstorms condition
4. Thunderstorm condition
5. Earthquake condition
6. Underwater condition in sea
7. Able to withstand hard knocks
8. Snowing condition
9. During nuclear meltdown or post nuclear conditions

Asked by Jack

Answer

Yes — at least on the more realistic side of each extreme situation. There are many ruggedized cameras, almost any of which will cover some degree of each item on your whole list — although none will take being actually hit by lightning. A sandstorm is a tall order and you may want additional protection, if you're really out in it. Likewise, these will handle snorkeling, but if you're going down where there is significant pressure you probably need additional precautions.

For nuclear disaster, assuming your own safety is either adequately dealt with or that you are past caring, no off-the-shelf camera will help. Radiation will fog film and can destroy digital sensors (and flip bits on memory cards). When photographer Igor Kostin illegally went into the Chernobyl site days after the explosion, he wore a lead suit and protected his camera gear with lead boxes — something similar would be recommended were you in a similar situation. Years later, a Chernobyl tour site notes that putting camera equipment on the ground is forbidden as it risks contamination, but doesn't offer further words of warning on protecting camera gear; presumably the tour is short enough and stays far enough away from high radiation areas as to minimize the risk.

For the more realistic scenarios, though, a camera feature search at Digital Photography Review turns up almost two dozen shockproof cameras, and I believe all of these results happen to be waterproof as well — which also means sealed against dust. You can narrow down the search from there.

Answered by mattdm

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How do you photograph rain hitting a surface?

Question

I live in Manchester, UK - notorious for its rainy weather!

I would like to achieve something like this

http://www.flickr.com/photos/vlad259/4541663932/

or

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29099055@N04/2728793882/

What lens should I use? what settings? how should I set-up?

Luckily my flat is ground floor so I can get nice an low to the floor - which seams to be a common element - but that's probably because the splashing is the cool aspect and really what i'm looking to achieve

Asked by Rob

Answer

Many options. What you consider looks best is very much a matter of personal preference and experiment will tell you more than straight instructions, but the following may help.

In this case - not the only way, in the 1st image note that the depth of field is narrow and centred around the front duck, making it and a band of ?water? sharp. Background ducks are blurred as much by focus as by rain. Rain that is seen is in focus band. Given the depth of field a moderately long focal length and largish aperture was probably used - no way to be sure but maybe 100-200mm and f5.6 ish. Maybe. A flash can help to make rain stand out sharply (as it freezes it) but be aware that system may tend to expose for rain exposure in foreground pushing background brightness down. Manual or semi manual exposure control will allow greater control.

In the 2nd photo they have again used depth of field to give a sharp foreground with background blur being caused both by rain and defocusing. Really high speed will freeze drops so they are separately discernible - you'll find out that they are NOT drop shaped as usually drawn but fall in a much more flattened form die to air pressure distorting the drop. Slow shutter speed gets long streaks/runs with loss of drop detail. You need to play and decide how much you want the drops to be visible versus streaming. Careful use of flash so the photo is not dominated by it but so it tends to freeze indivudual drops even when overall shutter speed is slow enoughto cause "runs" to show gibes a mix of both worlds. balance with flash level control.

Note that while the "gate" photo is monochrome, the above "duck" photo may appear almost monochrome at a glance but is far from it. Background foliage has substantial green in it. Front duck has lots of brown and white and colour variation.

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Some good material here D Photo - Capturing images of rain
This describes a systematic investigation of the effect of shutter speed and aperture and more on rain images ! . Not much re rain on ground, but much else which is relevant.

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There are some useful thoughts in this PHOTOGRAPHING RAIN article - only the 4th photo down directly relates. (Nikon D50, 1/125s, f/5.6, 50 mm

but the 5th photo (bride and groom) and the associated writeup here provide some useful thoughts.

He agrees with my observation re flash (always nice to know :-).) He says:

• As for taking the first photo, keep in mind that although long shutter speeds can add a cool effect to a photograph, shorter shutter speeds can stop raindrops right in their tracks. (first article) and

• The backlight will illuminate the rain and freeze it giving you this amazing backdrop of raindrops. (second article)

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ADDED:

Len's comment got me to view the flickr version of the ducks and EXIF data is available here.
1/250th s exposure. f/4 and 500mm! The modest but not too narrow depth of field indicates that the subject was some distance away but not vastly so (no to mention the subject size). Maybe tens of metres.

Answered by Russell McMahon

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What type of filters should I get for high sunny conditions?

Question

I'm planning a trip in Sri Lanka and Maldives Islands next month. In such sunny conditions, I would like to buy filters for a Pentax K20-D, to be able to take pictures of the sea, the beach, etc. (but not underwater) in the best possible way.

What type of filters are the most suitable in this situation? Do you know specific model/brand/recommendation for Pentax DSLR?

Answer

If you have trouble with to much sun, a ND (Neutral Density) might be want you want. This gives you the option of having a higher aperture even when there is much sun.

A polarization filter might also be handy. This way you could get rid of the reflections from the ocean. Also you could get that postcard feeling with a more blue sky.

There are many people who put on a UV-filter for protection. But this is a widely debated issue. I will not go into detail about that, but here is an article on the subject. Bear in mind that a UV filter might introduce a lens flare, especially when there is much light.

You can stack several filters, like the ND and the polarization filter. However there might be problems with vignetting. This also depends upon the lens you are using.

Personally I use Hoya filters because I consider they to be of high quality. However I have no scientific evidence that they are better than other brands.

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What kind of gloves to use for operating a camera in freezing temperatures?

Question

I am wondering what kind of gloves are practical to operate a camera (a GF3 in my case) in sub-zero temperatures (down to -20°C). Ideally it should be possible to both operate the touchscreen, take off lenses (or at least lens caps) and of course operate the mechanical parts of the camera (dials, shutter activator, etc.).

Anyone got experience with that?

Answer

I'm involved in a research project on glaciers and as such often have to use a computer in the cold, although thankfully never that cold. One thing I've found works well is wearing thin glove liners under fingerless gloves. This way you can use the equipment fairly easily but if you have a short break you can flip the mitten bit of the fingerless gloves down for added warmth.

The other thing I've found handy is having multiple pairs of gloves. So I have the combination described above but also carry a pair of thick ski gloves, using any equipment is impractical in these, but they are good for when you know you won't need to do anything requiring fine motor control for a while.

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How do you protect a camera and lens while photographing in rain or snow?

Question

I've been trying to photograph lightning lately, as we have had some great storms in Colorado. I've had some difficulty getting a good vantage point, however, as almost all of these storms include rain as well. To keep my camera from getting drenched (I have weather-sealed lenses, but my camera body, a Canon 450D, is not weather sealed as far as I can tell), I've had to shoot under the eve of a building or under a thick canopy of trees, however that has greatly limited my ability to adapt to the changing weather and get get a vantage point on the best lightning.

Is there any equipment, something I can purchase or something home-made that has easy-to-find parts, that can help me protect my lens from the rain while still being able to shoot? Additionally, I've been getting rain on a UV filter I have on the front of my lenses, simply to prevent rain from getting on the front lens element itself. However, once a storm really gets going, so does the rain. Is there a simple solution to keep rain off the front of the lens?

Answer

There is actually quite a few products designed specifically for this purpose, ranging in prices.

Most of the products are glorified rain ponchos, and as such, if you have the DIY spirit, you can save yourself major bucks.

This is a really good instructional on making one out of rain pants.

If you'd rather buy an OTS solution, then consider the ThinkTank Hydrophobia, or similar products.

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What are some tips for photographing rainbows?

Question

The few times I have tried to capture a rainbow the results have been washed out. Although I have found a polarizing filter to be very useful for sky photography, I'm guessing that it would wipe a rainbow out, since it is basically a scattered light phenomenon. What are the aperture/shutter trade-offs?

Any rules of thumb would be helpful, but I'm especially looking for the gotchas to avoid, since time tends to be limited when a rainbow makes an appearance.

Answer

I don't think there's a lot you can do photographically. I think the quality of the photo will come down to how strong the rainbow is, and how you process the image (either by the choice of picture style/JPEG saturation level in camera, or Raw processing).

It takes a combination of factors which all have to come together to form a strong rainbow — you need strong direct sunlight, but the sun also has to be low in the sky. If it's above 42 degrees then the rainbow will fall below the horizon. Generally, when the sun is lower in the sky, it's not as strong. Midday in the winter, or morning/late afternoon in summer will give you the best strength to angle ratio, though it depends on your latitude. You also need an abrupt boundary between clear sky and rain, such as you get with a heavy thunderstorm. These also tend to bring wind, which disperses the cloud — making the rainbow shortlived. This is why really good rainbows happen rarely: they require many competing factors.

Aperture/shutter speed aren't going to make a huge difference, provided your shutter is fast enough to avoid camera shake. You're going to need a fairly wide lens to capture a rainbow, so depth of field is not going to be a problem. I'd opt for a usually-optimum aperture of f/5.6 (or maybe f/8). The main arc of a rainbow is always 42 degrees from the centre, so you need an 84° FOV to capture an entire rainbow. This corresponds to at least 20mm lens (full frame) or 12.5mm lens on a crop body. Rainbow light is strongly polarized, so take off the filter (as mmr states).

For post processing, a contrast/saturation boost will help bring out the rainbow colours and give the image some punch.

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How do I get proper focus when photographing lightning strikes?

Question

I've been lucky to have the opportunity to photograph several large thunderstorms in Colorado recently, however I ran into a couple issues. The first issue I've run into is getting proper focus.

As a landscape photographer, I've become accustomed to using the hyperfocal setting on my wide-angle lenses, as it makes it easier to get good focus for very distant mountain ranges and the like. I started trying to do the same thing to photograph lightning, however, setting my lens right to the hyperfocal mark does not actually seem to capture the lightning itself in focus. The landscape in the distance behind seems to be in focus, but it seems to be a bit too far out otherwise.

Most of the time these thunderstorms happen late at night, and it is nearly pitch black except for the light from lightning itself. Are there any tricks I can use to quickly focus properly so I can capture lightning without it looking like chains of bright white bubbles? I've tried a trial and error approach, however I've ended up missing many really great shots because I was fiddling with my camera trying to get it in proper focus. Even slightly out of focus, I wish I had been able to get some of the shots I missed.

Above is the best ground strike shot from a set taken a few days ago. You can best see the lack of focus in the non-main streamers. This was a smaller bolt, struck probably less than 500 feet away. The tree in the foreground, probably about 10 feet from the camera, is also a bit out of focus. I had originally tried to focus on the landscape well behind near hyperfocal focus...at least, as best I could tell in the dark. I made several adjustments successively through numerous shots to finally get this shot as clear as it was. I missed plenty of much better shots, however, due to the lack of focus. If there was some quick trick to set a correct focus in near darkness, I'd LOVE to know about it.

Answer

I'm writing down some of the ideas that are scattered here and there:

• Hang something heavy below your tripod to minimize wind (and possibly shockwave) shake
• Check whether you can trust your focusing scale for manual focusing (see my comment below Guffa's answer)
• Stop down your aperture as much as you can (you probably want to stay in the 30 sec AE limit so it might not be applicable)
• If possible check whether something is in focus in your picture to understand where the focus was set. It's really easy to loose focus by accidentally touching the focus ring (sorry if it sounds too obvious, just I've lost more shots I'd like this way myself).

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What should I consider when using DSLRs in cold weather?

Question

What temperatures can consumer-level DSLRs and lenses typically handle? Are there any precautions one should take too minimize potential problems (e.g. condensating water)? What about moving in and out of the cold multiple times a day?

Answer

A lot of dSLRs are rated to 0 degrees celsius or 32 faranheit, though some more pro ones are rated to lower temperatures. Most of this is about the battery life, it will suffer in the cold.

However, in general, condensation is going to be your enemy when moving from cold back into warmth, so the best way to handle that is to put the camera and lens into a plastic bag and seal it before going inside and then leaving it in there until the camera comes up to temperature.

Anyways, some good tips can be found here: Protecting your camera in winter so go outside and shoot!

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How to use wide-angle lenses on cloudy days?

Question

For this question, I am mainly interested in architecture photography, but it may concern other subjects.

When I go for a day or two to a city, I try to limit my weight and for this purpose I usually only take one lens with me. Sometimes I choose to take wide-angle lenses.

When I use wide-angles on cloudy days and try to take architecture photos, the result is dull, wih a lot of diffused light and little contrast. It is a pity, because where I live, the sky is actually very beautiful on cloudy days, with a lot of tones and shades, but the contrast with buildings makes that all this subtle shades of white/light grey are lost when trying to find a correct exposure for the scene.

I am looking for ways to overcome this issue or more generally for advices on what to do with wide-angle lenses on these cloudy days (like "just avoid to take the sky and concentrate on building close-ups")?

I try to avoid post-processing fixes as long as I can, just as a personal choice (but I still use basic post-processing like histogram equalization), so I would appreciate non-processing issues maybe a bit more, but all advices are welcome.

I use mainly prime lenses, and have no hood for them. I suppose it may help to limit the issue to use one but I suppose it won't completely fix it. Also this issue concerns digital cameras - film is great on cloudy days!

Answer

It sounds like the light metering in your camera is the prime source of problems on cloudy days. You should be able to take great pictures too in overcast weather. In fact, clouds will often bring the entire dynamic range of a composition down to a range where you stand a better chance to capture it all in a single photo, from the deep shadows to the brightest areas, and with more saturated colors to boot.

If your camera has multiple metering modes (spot, center weighted, average), then try to experiment with each of them to see the result. Also, if you are not already using the histogram functionality, learn to use that too in combination with exposure combination. The light metering modes in the camera will attempt to compensate for average situations, so in any given composition, you ultimately have to trust your own eyes and your own artistic direction. Use the exposure compensation dial or manual mode to adjust the decisions made by the light metering algorithm. Then you are completely in control of the image the camera captures.

Higher end cameras will have dedicated buttons or dials for quickly setting the exposure compensation, or for controlling both aperture and shutter speed in manual mode. On a lot of entry level dSLRs it is possible to program other buttons to serve as metering mode selectors and exposure compensation controls.

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How weather resistant is the Canon EOS 7D?

Question

Canon states that the 7D is weather resistant and built to resist water and dust.

There is even a blog which shows a EOS 7D covered in snow, during a field trip. But reading trough the comments of this blog post, there are many cases of people who are desperate because their 7D broke due to damage by rain or water(even with a class L lens attached).

So, my questions:

• Are there any experiences regarding the Canon EOS 7D and heavy rain, snow or splash water?
• Can I be sure that my equipment will survive a photo shoot in the rain or in a very dusty location?

Answer

Unfortunately, very few camera models specify the amount of resistance as anything measurable.

Water and dust resistance, as specified by Canon, means very little. If it said waterproof and dustproof that would be a stronger statement. I also feel lawyers got involved somewhere in the writing of these things. For example, some Nikon manuals say 'resistant to dust and casual humidity'. Again, it has very little meaning.

The 7D falls among those cameras with vaguely specified resistance. Unfortunately, you have to try to find out. The 7D I used was subjected to snow without any problems. Actually, falling snow rarely is a problem even for non-weather-sealed camera as long as you wipe it off before you go into an environment where it would melt. I have no experience with a 7D under rain.

To be sure about your equipment's resistance you have to try it and even there, bring a backup. I used a Pentax K-7 in a shoot during a sand-storm and it worked perfectly. When I got to the hotel, I rinsed it under the tap for a minute or so to clean it. The polarizer I had though took a beating and I could hear sand in it between the rings for weeks after. It probably saved my lens though :) On the other hand, it took less than 15s for a Canon Rebel (not sure which model, probably XSi) to stop working completely in the storm. Canon asked for $150 or so to clean the sand out.

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How weather-resistant is the Canon EOS 600D?

Question

I have many friends with Nikon D300s and Canon 7Ds and they say they can handle pretty much anything they throw at them. I know the 600D is way less fit for this but I just would like to know, out of curiosity, what conditions that it could maybe withstand. I am only interested in how much the body can take, because I know that the total weather resistance depends a lot on the lens (let's assume I have a EF-L tele lens attached).

Also possibly, how does it compare to the 60D in terms of weather resistance?

Thanks in advance
Fred

Answer

It's basically, not (weather resistant). I don't believe any Canon Rebel series is weather sealed or resistant to any appreciable degree more than it looks.

It may survive a light spray of water or a little beach sand depending on where it goes, how much, and how long, but its simply not sealed against such things. If you're going to be shooting in any harsh conditions consider something to protect your camera (trashbags or the like) or a sealed camera + lens.

There's a lot of conflicting information on the net about the 60d sealing, but I don't think it is. The official Canon website doesn't state it anywhere in their specs or features.

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What safety precautions should I take when taking photos in the snow?

Question

I’m going to Queenstown, NZ in a couple of weeks and want to take my (very new, very precious) Canon 7D with me. I’ve done a little bit of research on how to protect my baby from cold climate (e.g. How To Protect Your Camera From The Cold Weather) and found that the biggest problem is probably going to be condensation. Some suggestions have been to place the camera in a plastic bag or letting the camera gradually adjust to the new temperature or placing silica gel in the camera bag to absorb moisture. I am leaning toward the latter at the moment because it sounds like it’s the easiest, so I was just wondering if anyone has had any experience in this matter and could share their wisdom.

As an alternative I could take my Canon 350D, as I really wouldn’t care if that got damaged in the snow. However I’m a film student and tend to take just as many videos as photos – hence why I really want to take the 7D. But I would seriously regret it if it got damaged… dilemma!

So as I actually haven’t used a question mark in the body of text, I will specify that the question is: What safety precautions should I take when taking photos in the snow?

Cheers.

Answer

Generally speaking, condensation problems only manifest when moving your gear from/to a nice, warm interior to/from the cold outdoors. Once outside, once your gear has adjusted to the temperature, the concern is not nearly as great. The 7D is a professional grade camera, and as such is fully weather resistant. So long as you use professional grade lenses that are also weather sealed, and do not change your lenses while outdoors, you shouldn't have any problems with condensation building up inside your camera. You might still have to wait for any external condensation to dissipate before you can take any photos.

The real concern is when you have gear that is not weather resistant, and/or you need to change lenses frequently. When the weather is cold, it also tends to be fairly arid (moisture at freezing temperatures freezes and falls to the earth as snow), so simple cold is generally not a huge problem. When you encounter actual snowfall, windy conditions, etc. is when you should take particular care not to allow any snow, rain, or blowing particulate into your camera if you need to change a lens.

Finally, when you transition your gear from the cold outdoors to a warm interior, you will again have to worry about condensation. If you have fully weather sealed gear and never changed the lens while outdoors, you might find some condensation built up on the exterior, and dissipate as it warms. If you do not have fully weather sealed gear, then you should probably take some precautions to minimize condensation. Whenever I do any photography out in a cool humid environment or freezing temperatures, I try to bring my gear inside in stages, as I do not have fully sealed gear. I first make sure its all packed up in my camera pack, and leave it in a garage for a while (where the temperature is usually warmer than the freezing outdoors, but not as warm as my house.) I'll eventually move my gear indoors, where I leave it in my camera bag. I have several packets of silica in my camera bag, which helps to wick up any moisture brought in with my camera gear.

Once your gear is indoors, you should keep it in a dry place. Moisture built up inside your lens can result in mold growth, which can cause problems or render a lens useless. Professional cleaning services are available, but that usually costs something, and its always best to practice avoidance. If you worry that your lens picked up a fair amount of condensation even after carefully warming it up and bringing it inside via a camera bag, you might want to let the camera bag dry out before fully storing your gear.

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What technique and camera settings should I use to capture lightning strikes?

Question

I enjoy getting images of different types of weather and would really like to capture some good lightning shots. I have a feeling that I should be stopping down a bit and taking somewhat long exposures, but it's all just a guess. I saw a question regarding lightning color, but I'm looking for a little more general information.

What settings would you recommend for lightning photography?

Answer

Here is how I usually approach the subject:

I attach a remote cable release to the camera and set the camera to manual mode, and make a first guess on exposure (for instance 15 sec, f/11, ISO 100 or 200). Then I shoot a test frame and check the resulting image. I aim to make an exposure where the landscape looks like I want it to look in the lightning image. The lightning itself shines for such a short period of time that it actually does not illuminate the landscape very much in relation to the long exposure. Once I have settled for an exposure, I press the release button on the remote, and lock it. With the camera in continuous mode, this will capture frame after frame with very little waiting time in between. Now I just leave the camera there and hope :)

The image below was captured this way. It is taken around midnight in late summer in Sweden (which means that it was not pitch black, but quite dark). Exposure was 30 seconds on f/10, ISO 200.

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