Photographing in Winter

Pentax 67, 200mm f-4 lens, Fuji Velvia 50, Bogen tripod and ball head. Incident metering with Minolta Autometer IIIF, 1/125 sec at f-11.

Most people like to stay home under a blanket in winter. For me, it's a time for great outdoor photography. I regularly check the weather report and head out to any location which had snow the previous night. I've driven as far as 200 miles to a location just to photograph snow scenes. Rain, snow, or fog produce muted colors which can flatten landscapes. This can be used to show a sense of extreme cold. On a good day, nothing beats the winter light. Cold, fresh winter days gives clear colors. Fresh snow turns everything into a perfect photo opportunity. At times I get so excited that I can't decide whether to shoot the snow covered landscape or go for close-up details. On a good day, I easily shoot 10 rolls of film. Everything stands out more boldly against snow or sky. Winter light changes the mood of each scene rapidly. Morning light is perfect time for capturing all the details. Afternoon light, can give a low orange light which gives unusual colors. Sunsets are a mixture of brilliant orange, pink, and red colors. Storms are another excellent time for great photography. Many photographers pack their equipment and leave. Heavy clouds can produce unusual light, highlighting parts of a scene which can produce a wide tone of contrast.

First thing you need to do, is to protect your equipment from the cold weather. I cover my tripod legs with padded foams to make it easier to carry. Battery performance drops in cold weather. It is best to keep extra batteries in a warm pocket. Carry a few plastic bags to cover your equipment in case you get caught in the rain or snow. You need to be extra careful with your exposures. Snow can easily fool a camera meter by several stops. You can meter the snow and open up 1/2 to 2 stops for proper exposure. In shade 1/2 to 1 stop open from your meter reading should give good exposure. In bright sun, snow reflects a lot of light which can result in severe under exposure. In this case open up 11/2 to 2 stops from suggested reading. You can also meter something medium tone in the same light as your subject to take a reading. I always carry my hand meter to take incidents reading and compare it to my camera's meter. Incident light meters are excellent tools, especially for snow scenes as they are not fooled by the reflected light. If you want to include heavy clouds, expose for the highlights so the shadow areas are left dark. This gives a full range of contrasts in the picture. Carry slow ISO films for general winter photography where faster shutter speeds are not required. I prefer ISO 50 films for better sharpness. Carry a few faster films such as ISO 200 to capture falling snowflakes, otherwise they won't record on film with very slower shutter speeds or record as streaks. I like to carry minimum of equipment. Keeping my equipment and myself working in the field can be a big problem in very cold weather. A pair of zooms cover most of my subjects when I take my 35mm cameras. I use my 24-50mm and 80-200mm zooms, plus a 100mm macro lens for some close-ups. If the weather is not too cold, I add my Pentax 67 and lenses and use the medium format system for better details.


Minolta Maxxum 9000, 100mm macro lens, Kodachrome 25.

Winter days are short, so you need to start early and cover as much as you can. Be at your location before sunrise which is also a great time for photography. Wear warm comfortable clothing otherwise you can't concentrate on your photography. Pick a good spot at least half an hour before sunset if you want to capture great sunset colors in winter. Approaching storm can give some excellent sunset shots. Remember, there is no such a thing as bad weather in photography. Don't be discouraged by the cold weather, or you'll miss some of the most unique photo opportunities that only winter can offer.