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bowhuntingboy
Jan 18, 2006, 10:30 PM
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What kind of cameras, be it video or still cameras, do you use when in the cold (high in the mountains, etc.)? I've used a video camera while bow hunting up in Minnesota in the winter and it will shut down from the cold... usually in temps less than 15 degrees or so. So what kind of cameras are people using in extreme temperatures? I don't get how these people are getting pictures or video footage on mountains like Everest and Denali in that cold!? Any advice or opinions would be appreciated. I like to document things on film like my hunts and whatnot, and now that I'm getting into mountain climbing I will like to get some footage and pictures. 10-4 over and out:)
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bowhuntingboy
Jan 18, 2006, 10:30 PM
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What kind of cameras, be it video or still cameras, do you use when in the cold (high in the mountains, etc.)? I've used a video camera while bow hunting up in Minnesota in the winter and it will shut down from the cold... usually in temps less than 15 degrees or so. So what kind of cameras are people using in extreme temperatures? I don't get how these people are getting pictures or video footage on mountains like Everest and Denali in that cold!? Any advice or opinions would be appreciated. I like to document things on film like my hunts and whatnot, and now that I'm getting into mountain climbing I will like to get some footage and pictures. 10-4 over and out:)
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kobaz
Jan 18, 2006, 10:46 PM
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I've used my canon digital rebel down to 10 degrees so far, seems to be no problems.
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fortfun
Jan 18, 2006, 11:04 PM
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Usually it is the battery that quits from the cold unless there are parts of the camera that get wet and frozen.
If you can keep the battery warm you should be in good shape.
That is why the headlamps for cold weather always have a remote battery pack to store next to your body
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cam
Jan 18, 2006, 11:11 PM
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The thing is, your camera's battery will be affected resulting in malfunction far sooner than the actual camera will. Cold temps can have a major effect on battery life so if possible, keep the power source inside your jacket or failing that, keep the camera inside your jacket between shooting sessions. The longer you can maintain a good battery temperature, the longer the battery will maintain its abillity to deliver power on demand.
cam out.
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glyrocks
Jan 18, 2006, 11:16 PM
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LCD screens will crap out in the cold too. I've got a point and shot digital I take just about everywhere. I haven't had any real problems with it on ice or alpine trips, but the manual warns that the LCD screen may quit working somewhere around 10F... I think it's 10F. I do notice the LCD screen is sluggish any colder temps, but it has worked so far.
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tattooed_climber
Jan 18, 2006, 11:23 PM
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i've had my old HP self delete itself after its second day of ice climbing...-20ish C..stored in my down jacket......
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tweek
Jan 18, 2006, 11:32 PM
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I've had my digital rebel in -30 C for four days straight. If the wind was really blowing I would have to switch batteries back and forth (just keep a couple in you inside pocket.)
What I noticed that helped the most was not taking the camera in and out of the warm air (i.e. moisture will get all over the place) and keeping the LCD off except when really necessary. The crystals freeze in any case so the screens go real slow.
For short burst I had it out in less than -40 but I couldn't take it as long as the camera. That is just plain cold.
I did have a friend drop a little Olympus point and shoot on a glacier in Antarctica and find it about 4 hours later (it was a warm day like around -20 C but not on the glaciers surface) and the thing still works to this day. He just couldn't focus for a few hours because of the LCD screen freezing thing.
All of the cameras I have talked about say their lowest temperature that they work at is 0 degrees C if that so that is a conservative estimate.
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hoofers_andy
Jan 19, 2006, 12:27 AM
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i've got an olympus C5050 digital that i have kept outside for two+ days on ice climbing trips when it is about 10F. i never noticed any change in performance- not even in the LCD screen.
i can usually get about 200 shots out of a battery charge, and took no where near that many, so that may explain why i didnt have my batteries crap out quickly.
when it got really cold, i just put one of those 'hot hands' packets in the camera case. this prevented needing to keep it in a jacket or worry about it freezing.
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macherry
Jan 19, 2006, 1:24 AM
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macherry moved this thread from General to Climbing Photography.
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roshiaitareya
Jan 19, 2006, 1:44 AM
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I have a Sony Cybershot. And besides a shortened battery life, and a slow LCD I've never had a problem with it around 0F. I keep it inside my coat when not taking pictures, and in my sleeping bag at night. But the camera has never shut down from the cold.
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pico23
Jan 26, 2006, 3:45 AM
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In reply to: I like to document things on film like my hunts and whatnot, and now that I'm getting into mountain climbing I will like to get some footage and pictures. 10-4 over and out:)
Everest and Denali are bitches. If you read Dave Brashears biography it pretty much explains that the batteries don't last long in that type of cold for video. Granted these were giant IMAX cameras 10 years ago but the point is video is tough in extreme cold.
For still you have more options. I like something bomber like the Nikon F4 which has been used successfully on expeditions to the south pole. But even my trusty old manual pentax bodies have never let me down into the -10s or possibly colder. Lithium batteries help A LOT. But my lithium button cells have never went dead in the cold on a manual camera. For something with a motor drive like the F4 I'd use lithium double AA's.
Anyway the reason I like the manual cameras in that cold isn't that autocameras can't work, it's just that motor drives tend to wind very fast and either create static electricity or sometimes break the film. Manual winding cuts this down.
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