Jumat, 28 September 2012

How To Prepare And Protect Your Camera In Winter

Winter is fast approaching and as always, many people are looking forward to celebrating the holidays with their friends and loved ones. Naturally, picture-taking will be one of the most frequent activities during this season as families get together to celebrate Thanksgiving, Christmas and the New Year.

Before you get too excited, however, there's one important device that you need to prepare for the coming winter period -- your digital camera, what else. You have to make sure your photographic device is in good condition so it won't conk out in the middle of a special occasion where you're celebrating, having fun and capturing happy memories.

Protecting your camera is most important particularly if you see yourself shooting outdoors in cold and wet weather. Making sure you have the right accessories is as vital.

Keep batteries warm

The batteries should be your priority. Remember they won't perform well if exposed to extremely cold weather so better keep them warm at all times. If you're going out, place them in a warm pocket or in a compartment inside your camera bag. Do not let the batteries come in contact with metals such as your keys and coins. You have to fully charge them as well before you head out.

What batteries are ideal for winter use? The Lithium type normally does well in cold weather. You can get the rechargeable ones for DSLRs notably the lithium-ion.

Protect memory cards

Many of today's memory cards can withstand low temperatures and can resist water. But even then, you still need to take care of this storage media. Clean and dry your hands before holding them and avoid changing them when you're outdoors particularly during wet weather. Never allow moisture to get inside the card or even more, inside your camera.

Use underwater housing and rain cover

Don't be overconfident that you won't get your camera wet while shooting outdoors. It's still best to take precautions whenever possible.

To keep your device from getting wet, you may use an underwater housing. Normally, this accessory is meant for DSLRs and is capable of withstanding water up to 200 feet deep. Another option is to get a rain cover, cape or camcorder glove. These are better to use compared to the underwater housing because they let you operate the camera controls easily.

Use plastic bag

A condensation is a likely issue when you expose a camera from a warm to a cold environment, you need to have something to protect your device from this problem. The best solution is a plastic resealable bag. You can use this by placing your camera inside making sure you squeeze the air out before you move to a place where the temperature is different from where you came from. This will keep the device itself and it lenses dry.

Bring a dry cloth

Do bring with you a small piece of dry cloth every time. This will come handy should your viewfinder becomes foggy while shooting indoors or outdoors. Avoid breathing into the viewfinder and then wipe away the fog as your breath will only freeze on the lens surface.

For information on photography digital cameras please visit http://www.42photo.com.

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