What will happen to a camera if the relative humidity drops to less than 35%?

Question

What will happen to a camera that is stored in an environment with a very low relative humidity?

Will the camera crack, or what will happen?

Will it be the same for DSLRs, non-weatherproof point & shoot cameras, and for weatherproof point & shoot cameras?

Asked by Jack

Answer

In a word, static.

Digital cameras are electronic devices, and they also have moving parts, both plastic and metal. This is a great combination for build-up of static charge and for sparks to fly.

These sparks — even very, very tiny ones — can cause malfunction of the electronics or even permanent damage.

If the camera is just stored in low humidity and not powered on, a problem is less likely.

Your original list-based question implied that there's some sort of magic level, with different behavior at each threshold. That's not the case. It's just that the risk goes up as humidity goes down.

Answered by mattdm

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Can condensation be formed in the camera sensor?

Question

When entering a hot place after leaving a cold place, some condensation can be formed in the lens and manufacturers recommend you to avoid using the equipment in this state.

So, if condensation can be formed in the lens, could it be also formed in the sensor? Is this dangerous? Will this condensation have any impact in the final image?

Answer

Condensation occurs when warm air meets a cold surface and when that air cools down, its ability to carry moisture reduces, so the water will distill and cling to the nearest surface (the same cold one).

As long as you don't detach the lens while the inside of your camera is colder, you should be fine. The little amount of air oozing through between lens and mount won't contain enough moisture to do harm.

You might also want to limit zooming actions to minimum - many lenses act as air pumps during zooming.

Using the camera, especially with live view or for capturing video, will heat up the sensor fairly fast. The rest of camera takes a bit longer to heat up, however; so ventilating its inside might still condensate some other important electronics, or the mirror.

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What precautions should I take when taking a camera into humid conditions?

Question

My camera's manual warns about sudden changes in temperature, but there are a few cases when I can't see how to avoid this.

These include entering a reptile house in a zoo, or a trip to tropical house such as in the Eden Project, where the outside temperature is 15° C and inside it's 38° C.

On a recent trip, I did not take my SLR but I saw may others with them although the lenses were all steamed up initially and unable to get a shot.

Will the sudden change in temperature harm the camera beyond just fogging up the lens, and are there any precautions to take against this possible harm?

Answer

Condensation is the biggest risk, and prevention is always better than cure. One thing I do prior to entering such environments is to place a lens cloth over the front element, and heat it with the heat from my hand prior to entry -- the target is to get the front element above the dew point for the area you're going into.

With the specific case of the Eden Project, the trick is to go into the arid Mediterranean house first where the humidity is lower than the rainforest house (but the temperatures are generally similar).

If anything, I'd suggest SLR (and bridge) cameras are easier to remove condensation from the lens (but it would take longer to warm through). It would be a "very bad idea" to change a lens inside an area with elevated humidity, as humid air could then condense all over the place.

It is worth remembering that some SLR cameras have professional quality weather sealing

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