1. Snow, exposed.

As some  of you may know, your camera meter is calibrated for midtone values (18% grey to be exact). What this means is that the reading your camera gives you is such that the overall scene has a tone that is equivalent to grey. For most scenes, you can safely rely on your meter and not give it a second thought. However, many winter scenes are dominated by this white thing, can’t remember what it’s called….uhhh…Oh yeah, SNOW! So when you take your exposure reading, the camera will try to render the scene grey, which is not what we want. You have to compensate the exposure by 1 to 1 and a half stops above the reading in your camera.

For example, if your camera tells you to expose 1s at f/11, you should dial in at least one stop, so either take the exposure for 2s at f/11 or 1s at f/8. For one and a half stops overexposure, you could dial 3s at f/11. Always take a look at your histogram to make sure you haven’t clipped any highlights.

There is a simple trick when shooting on a nice and clear day. All you have to do is take a reading off the bright blue sky. That’s it!

2. Simpler is better

For as long as you don’t have a big driveway to shovel every morning, snow can actually be a lot of fun. Once snow covers the ground , it immediately renders any landscape more appealing by essentially removing most distractions. Now you no longer have tree stumps on the ground, some of the man-made trails have disappeared, all you can see is an immaculate cover of powdery white stuff (not to be confused with other powdery, less healthy alternatives). This is your chance to go for nice, minimalistic compositions, where peace and order reign uncontested.

3. Who said grey was dull?

I don’t know about you, but where I live, the sun doesn’t shine very often. Though I miss that warm fuzzy ball of fire (it isn’t really fuzzy, but the sentence sounded better), I have to say that I rather enjoy shooting grey days…yes I am also weird, but that’s a matter for another day. Just like in other seasons, an overcast day is a perfect opportunity to shoot streams, waterfalls and forest scenes, as the lower contrast is easier to handle than on a clear sunny day. Dark grey skies are also perfect to create equally dark and moody scenes, with unique and mesmerizing atmosphere.

4. Follow the leader

The secret behind good wide-angle photography lies in the choice of an interesting background combined with a leading line that takes the viewer through the photograph. While I often struggle to find such leading lines in the summer, I have no such trouble in the winter months. All you have to do is find a spot where ice meets water and you have your lead-in drawn for you. You just have to set your tripod, aim your lens and shoot away.

In the end, I really hate shoveling snow, breaking ice packs even worse, but I have to admit that winter is probably my favorite season for photography. Not only do photo opps abound, but you often find yourself alone to enjoy these great (and privileged) moments in Nature. If you are interested in more hands-on training, consult the workshop page for workshop and course schedules.

 1- Can my gear handle the cold?

One of the questions that comes up most often is whether camera gear,  digital in particular, can withstand the harsh winter climate. I live in Canada, where the temperatures often hover below the -20C, and that has never stopped me from shooting! In fact, the cold has the very desirable effect of reducing sensor noise: since the sensor cannot accumulate as much heat as in warmer climates, noise becomes a mere afterthought.

That said,  there are a few things you should know before you head out in the cold.

2- Batteries do not last nearly as long in the cold.

The trick here is to keep spare batteries in an inner pocket of your coat. When your battery gives up on you, just slide it in your coat pocket for a little while, you will be able to “milk it” for a few more shots.

3- Freezing LCDs? No worries.

In extreme temperatures (and I mean EXTREME) your LCD display may stop responding, don’t worry about it, it is only temporary, once you get back inside it will come back to life in an instant.

4- Tripod care.

When shooting in deep snow, keep your tripod legs together. As you push your tripod deeper, the snow will push the legs apart and may cause them to break. All you need to do is, slightly spread the legs  before putting the tripod down, the snow will take care of opening it fully for you! - I am very much a fan of the least effort fraternity!

Tripods can also be quite the hassle in winter as they can suck all warmth out of your hands even with the biggest mitts on! A very simple trick is to wrap the top of the legs with pipe insulation foam. Believe me, your hands will thank you. For the hockey fans reading this, hockey tape is a fairly useless alternative :).

5- Condensation is your enemy.

While this may sound dumb, be careful of your breathing: as you get close to your viewfinder, your breath will freeze around it and make it useless. By the same token, don’t try breathing on your lens or filters to clean them up ;).

However, the single most important issue to be wary of when shooting in the cold is condensation caused by temperature changes, specifically going from cold to warm. First, don’t try to “protect” your camera by putting it under your coat. All you will achieve is to risk damaging it due to water condensation. The issue is more problematic if you are in and out of your car often or when you get back home. If you shuffle in and out of the car during your shoots, either keep your car cold (it’s also more environmentally friendly), or keep the camera in the trunk. When heading back home, I usually put the camera in a sealed ziploc bag before I go inside and do not open the bag before at least 2h to give enough time to warm up. If I really want to work on my pictures faster, I will take the card out of the camera and put it in its own sealed bag in a coat pocket. Because it is smaller, the card will warm up faster.

This concludes the first part of my winter photography entry. In my next entry, I will provide some tips and tricks on how to get stunning winter photos. If you are interested in more hands-on training, consult the workshop page for workshop and course schedules.

Cheers,

Younes

Again this time, the workshops will be limited to a maximum of 5 participants to allow for maximum interaction. While the workshops will have some extensive shooting time, a few hours each day will be reserved for some post-processing, critique and analysis.

For more information and for registration, please go to http://younesbounhar.com/assignments-workshops/.

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