Cold Weather Advice - SL2 and lenses

[NightPix]

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Next month I’ll be in Northern Canada after polar bears and other wildlife and with luck maybe the northern lights. This will naturally require some periods (up to several hours) outside in below freezing temps (15-30 degrees F). Any advice on how to manage my SL2 and lenses under these conditions? I plan on taking a Sigma 150-600 Sport for reach and a Leica 24-70 for all around use. What do I need to watch out for equipment wise for the periods in the cold temps? It’s a heavy kit - would I be better off with the Leica 100-400 which is 1 pound lighter than the Sigma? How well do adapted m-lenses on the SL2 perform in the cold? Any and all advice will be appreciated. 

[Chuck Albertson]

Carry a spare batt (or two) in an inside pocket and swap frequently with the one in your camera. Cold weather will take the capacity down to one bar pretty quickly, but it will rebound quite a bit once it warms up in your pocket. If you're taking pictures of auroras, try a custom white balance setting of 3900K for a better green (predominant color of the lights). Before taking your cold gear into a warm (and presumably humid) environment, try to squeeze it into a sealable plastic bag first to reduce condensation on your body and lenses.

Use the longest possible telephoto for any polar bear pictures. Don't be a meal.

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[MarkP]

I used my SL-2 in Antarctica and had no problems with the cold.  Battery life was fine. However it may be colder where you’re going !

Agree with advice keeping spare batteries warm close to body.

main issue is to put camera snd lenses in waterproof sack before coming inside to a warm environment and not opening the sack till the equipment warms up or it’ll take ages for the condensation to clear.

have a great trip,

Mark

 

[RoySmith]

2 hours ago, MarkP said:

I used my SL-2 in Antarctica and had no problems with the cold.  Battery life was fine. However it may be colder where you’re going !

Agree with advice keeping spare batteries warm close to body.

main issue is to put camera snd lenses in waterproof sack before coming inside to a warm environment and not opening the sack till the equipment warms up or it’ll take ages for the condensation to clear.

have a great trip,

Mark

 

I agree with the above. Any airtight bag will work. A large ziplock bag works. I’ve used a garbage bag and twisted and tied the top.

condensation hasn’t been a problem  for SD cards so you can remove them before you seal up the camera, 

Roll top dry bags are great, and more durable, but they are bulkier and more expensive.

 

 

 

[MarkP]

2 hours ago, RoySmith said:

I agree with the above. Any airtight bag will work. A large ziplock bag works. I’ve used a garbage bag and twisted and tied the top.

condensation hasn’t been a problem  for SD cards so you can remove them before you seal up the camera, 

Roll top dry bags are great, and more durable, but they are bulkier and more expensive.

 

 

 

Indeed but not as expensive  as fogged lens out of action for a day or two. The hiking stores sell very light weight waterproof sacs that weigh next to nothing.  Personally I’d avoid a normal plastic or garbage bag because of the risk of coming undone, holes or tears 

Edited October 13, 2023 by MarkP

[MarkP]

I forgot to add, the advice about colour balance is excellent.  Certainly in Antarctica which is such a foreign environment it can sometimes be hard to recall the correct colours. I took a pocket plastic flip-open Macbeth colour chart. Used it a bit - should have used it more.

[_Olivier]

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Just to add to the above recommendations, I keep a bunch of fresh silica gel packs in my camera bag and plastic pouch to absorb moisture out of the environment more quickly. 

[Stuart Richardson]

I am sure that all this advice is useful, but I have to say that unless you are out all day, 15-30 fahrenheit is not extremely cold and should be well tolerated by the SL2. Clearly keeping a battery warm is helpful, but at least living here where the temperature is often in that range, I have never needed/bothered using any sort of waterproof bag for the camera when going from outside to inside. Maybe this is not best practices, but I have been doing it this way for ages without any ill effects. I am generally not going from outside to inside and shooting directly after, however, other than in a car, for example. 

Edited October 13, 2023 by Stuart Richardson

[Timkr]

Antarctica is not northern canada. We had -70f windchill in wapusk.  Invest in the warmest clothes you can afford, bring lots of chemical hand warmers and keep batteries close to you body.  Enjoy

[RoySmith]

20 hours ago, MarkP said:

Indeed but not as expensive  as fogged lens out of action for a day or two. The hiking stores sell very light weight waterproof sacs that weigh next to nothing.  Personally I’d avoid a normal plastic or garbage bag because of the risk of coming undone, holes or tears 

In our winters the outside air is quite dry so my norm is to bag up the camera and lens outside or in the garage before I go into the warm house. The job of the bag is to keep the dry outside air around the camera and lens till they warm up. Any type of sealed bag will prevent the dry air from circulating and mixing with the moist air. I have about a dozen roll top dry bags of various sizes for kayaking where their durability is needed.. 🙂

[NightPix]

Thanks everyone for the thoughtful advice. I have purchased an extra dry bag to help keep gear separated, and a bunch of silica desiccant bags to keep the insides nice and dry.  Also stocked up on warm socks and got some good polar boots. In the past when I've shot outdoors in the winter (I live in the Colorado Rockies) I've always had my jeep within a reasonable distance to keep things warm and I could shuttle gear back and forth. Unfortunately, that's not an option for me this time  .

[Shawn30]

I just did the opposite and went from my frosty hotel room into the humid hot Florida swamps. Being from Colorado where we don’t have much humidity I didn’t think about it. 
If it were me I’d take the 150-600 for the long shots. I was taking pictures of a Moose in Grand Lake in September and you still have to be fairly close even at 600mm. Have fun sounds like a great time.

[Eclectic Man]

Thick, mountaineering gloves, with fingers not mittens, if you can still use the controls while wearing them might be worth considering.  If you intend to use a tripod, then tripads to insulate it from your hands, gloved or not, may also help keep your digits warm. (Both metal and carbon fibre are efficient conductors of heat.)

Be careful with exposure, bright snow and dark sea can confuse light meters.  Polar bears are slightly golden / cream coloured rather than pure white.

Wear lots of layers, I used Icebreaker merino wool base layers, shirt, sweater/fleece/down jacket and waterproof over jacket, woollen socks, long johns, hiking trousers and waterproof over trousers, gloves and still got cold just standing around when I was in Svalbard.

And remember that polar bears meander along at about 5mph and can run at up to 40mph, so be aware and listen to your guide.  In the event you are bing followed I've been told that the best thing to do is to  run away dropping the occasional item to distract the bear.  it will spend some time investigating a discarded hankie or glove or SL2 come to that while you scarper and live to tell your story.

Have fun!

Oh, and my personal experience is that Arc'teryx gear is significantly warmer and better fitting than Canada Goose , but that may just be my experience.

Edited October 18, 2023 by Eclectic Man
Last line on clothing added

[NightPix]

When I was hiking with my son in Svalbard a couple of years ago our guide arrived with a backpack full of food, a high powered rifle slung on his shoulder, and a 22 handgun on his hip. He explained that the rifle was to protect us in case we wandered too close to a polar bear. When I asked about the 22 handgun, he explained his backup plan, which was to shoot me in the leg if he missed the polar bear with the rifle. 

Edited October 19, 2023 by NightPix

[NightPix]

7 hours ago, Shawn30 said:

I just did the opposite and went from my frosty hotel room into the humid hot Florida swamps. Being from Colorado where we don’t have much humidity I didn’t think about it. 
If it were me I’d take the 150-600 for the long shots. I was taking pictures of a Moose in Grand Lake in September and you still have to be fairly close even at 600mm. Have fun sounds like a great time.

In the winter I sometimes flee the icy winds and snow of Colorado for the Florida swamps. You are right, the humidity problem is reversed there. Inside my condo there the AC keeps humidity down, but I have a dry cabinet for storage anyway. 

[NightPix]

4 hours ago, Eclectic Man said:

Thick, mountaineering gloves, with fingers not mittens, if you can still use the controls while wearing them might be worth considering.  If you intend to use a tripod, then tripads to insulate it from your hands, gloved or not, may also help keep your digits warm. (Both metal and carbon fibre are efficient conductors of heat.)

Be careful with exposure, bright snow and dark sea can confuse light meters.  Polar bears are slightly golden / cream coloured rather than pure white.

Wear lots of layers, I used Icebreaker merino wool base layers, shirt, sweater/fleece/down jacket and waterproof over jacket, woollen socks, long johns, hiking trousers and waterproof over trousers, gloves and still got cold just standing around when I was in Svalbard.

And remember that polar bears meander along at about 5mph and can run at up to 40mph, so be aware and listen to your guide.  In the event you are bing followed I've been told that the best thing to do is to  run away dropping the occasional item to distract the bear.  it will spend some time investigating a discarded hankie or glove or SL2 come to that while you scarper and live to tell your story.

Have fun!

Oh, and my personal experience is that Arc'teryx gear is significantly warmer and better fitting than Canada Goose , but that may just be my experience.

When I was hiking with my son in Svalbard a couple of years ago our guide arrived with a backpack full of food, a high powered rifle slung on his shoulder, and a 22 handgun on his hip. He explained that the rifle was to protect us in case we wandered too close to a polar bear. When I asked about the 22 handgun, he explained his backup plan, which was to shoot me in the leg if he missed the polar bear with the rifle. 

[NightPix]

4 hours ago, Eclectic Man said:

Thick, mountaineering gloves, with fingers not mittens, if you can still use the controls while wearing them might be worth considering.  If you intend to use a tripod, then tripads to insulate it from your hands, gloved or not, may also help keep your digits warm. (Both metal and carbon fibre are efficient conductors of heat.)

Be careful with exposure, bright snow and dark sea can confuse light meters.  Polar bears are slightly golden / cream coloured rather than pure white.

Wear lots of layers, I used Icebreaker merino wool base layers, shirt, sweater/fleece/down jacket and waterproof over jacket, woollen socks, long johns, hiking trousers and waterproof over trousers, gloves and still got cold just standing around when I was in Svalbard.

And remember that polar bears meander along at about 5mph and can run at up to 40mph, so be aware and listen to your guide.  In the event you are bing followed I've been told that the best thing to do is to  run away dropping the occasional item to distract the bear.  it will spend some time investigating a discarded hankie or glove or SL2 come to that while you scarper and live to tell your story.

Have fun!

Oh, and my personal experience is that Arc'teryx gear is significantly warmer and better fitting than Canada Goose , but that may just be my experience.

When I was hiking with my son in Svalbard a couple of years ago our guide arrived with a backpack full of food, a high powered rifle slung on his shoulder, and a 22 handgun on his hip. He explained that the rifle was to protect us in case we wandered too close to a polar bear. When I asked about the 22 handgun, he explained his backup plan, which was to shoot me in the leg if he missed the polar bear with the rifle. 

[Coral Palm]

Just returned from Greenland where the SL2 performed very well, never a problem but never super cold except when wind kicked up. Anyway all the previous advice is good, and yes I would go for a waterproof sealed bag from outdoor store as though more $ than a garbage bag or big ziplock bag it will last unlike the others.  I have had the SL in very cold weather as in -30c in Siberia and never a problem. Once forgot to put it in a bag and went into a restaurant and looked over at the camera on the table and it was soaked wet all over. Took a napkin dried it off, ate my meal, and went back into the cold and no problems with the camera. Yet preventive maintenance as in a bag can never hurt. 🙂  Oh as far as lenses I used the Leica 100-400 on and off in Greenland, but I was not after polar bears per se and I have the Sigma 150-600 yet a beast did not want to carry it. So for the bears I would take the Sigma, that said a friend got amazing polar bear shots with a 24-70. Wear lots of layers, stay warm, and have a great trip!

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[jaapv]

On 10/19/2023 at 12:05 AM, Eclectic Man said:

Thick, mountaineering gloves, with fingers not mittens, if you can still use the controls while wearing them might be worth considering.  If you intend to use a tripod, then tripads to insulate it from your hands, gloved or not, may also help keep your digits warm. (Both metal and carbon fibre are efficient conductors of heat.)

Be careful with exposure, bright snow and dark sea can confuse light meters.  Polar bears are slightly golden / cream coloured rather than pure white.

Wear lots of layers, I used Icebreaker merino wool base layers, shirt, sweater/fleece/down jacket and waterproof over jacket, woollen socks, long johns, hiking trousers and waterproof over trousers, gloves and still got cold just standing around when I was in Svalbard.

And remember that polar bears meander along at about 5mph and can run at up to 40mph, so be aware and listen to your guide.  In the event you are bing followed I've been told that the best thing to do is to  run away dropping the occasional item to distract the bear.  it will spend some time investigating a discarded hankie or glove or SL2 come to that while you scarper and live to tell your story.

Have fun!

Oh, and my personal experience is that Arc'teryx gear is significantly warmer and better fitting than Canada Goose , but that may just be my experience.

There are electrically heated socks and gloves. Any ski or motorcycle store will stock them. 

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[hoolyproductions]

Yup, I often shoot here in Finland in -10 to -20 deg celcius (sometimes colder). I have some heated gloves without which I would not last long  The camera (SL2-S) has always been fine so far.