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DPChallenge Forums >> Tips, Tricks, and Q&A >> Bad weather shooting
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09/20/2007 11:58:49 PM · #1
With fall on the way (sorry to spoil it if you are still trying to stay in summer mode :P ) thought i pose the question to find tips and tricks for shooting in not so ideal conditions.

During fall and winter it rains a lot here and also get heavy winds with it now and then... by the water heavy winds = awesome waves but also lots of sea spray or sideways rain... so that rules out golf umbrellas for keeping the equipment dry while going for the shot.

Thx in advance


09/21/2007 01:20:59 AM · #2
Try a Storm Jacket.



Also, keep your lens hood on to help (somewhat) with keeping rain from directly getting on the front of your lens. The longer hoods for telephoto lenses work fairly well, as compared to the shorter wide angle lens hoods.

eta: photo

Message edited by author 2007-09-21 01:24:45.
09/21/2007 01:25:27 AM · #3
Screw something expensive. A 1-gallon ziplock with a cut in the end for your lens. Make the hole smaller than the lens so you have to stretch it through. Tape the bag to the edge of the lens. If you use a tripod mount, mount that on the bottom through the bag. The ziplock opens and closes for you to get at controls, but you can do most through the bag. It also opens so you can see through the viewfinder.

I do this all the time in adverse conditions.
09/21/2007 01:27:44 AM · #4
I've also heard of folks (in a pinch) using the free shower cap from their hotel room. The elastic opening is great to wrap around the lens, and the clear see-through plastic is thin enough to feel and use the controls as if nothing were there.
09/21/2007 01:29:40 AM · #5
Originally posted by AperturePriority:

Try a Storm Jacket.



Also, keep your lens hood on to help (somewhat) with keeping rain from directly getting on the front of your lens. The longer hoods for telephoto lenses work fairly well, as compared to the shorter wide angle lens hoods.

eta: photo


Holy crap that's pricey! I keep a heavy duty commercial grade garbage bag in my backpack just in case it rains. I've got another bag with a hole in one end for the lens to stick through.
09/21/2007 10:16:26 PM · #6
Originally posted by DrAchoo:

Tape the bag to the edge of the lens.

What kind of tape do you use? Duct tape? Won't that leave some nasty residue on the lens barrel? It would have to be something waterproof. How about a small bungie or a thick rubber band?

The reason I'm asking is that I'm shooting a soccer match tomorrow and the forecast calls for showers and I wouldn't want to get my new 40D all wet. :-O

By the way, here is another commercial rain cover:



Message edited by author 2007-09-21 22:24:11.
09/21/2007 10:56:03 PM · #7
Originally posted by EyeTrap:

...During fall and winter it rains a lot here and also get heavy winds with it now and then... by the water heavy winds = awesome waves but also lots of sea spray or sideways rain... so that rules out golf umbrellas for keeping the equipment dry while going for the shot...


Well, Danny, since you live in my neck of the woods, I know what kind of conditions you're talking about. There are only two rain covers I want to recommend:

1) (the best and very expensive): aquatech

2. (better than most and not cheap either): Kata

I use 2.

Message edited by author 2007-09-21 22:58:03.
09/21/2007 11:02:59 PM · #8
I keep a cloth diaper in my camera bag. Great for wiping the mist off your equipment, and in a downpour it is amazingly absorbant (have shot as much as 2 hours with only a white cloth diaper covering my camera). Also great for wiping sweat on a hot day, polishing a lens that's been to the beach, and oh so many other things. Nobody knows its a diapper, just looks like white cloth. Dye it blue or black if you have issues. lol
09/21/2007 11:07:14 PM · #9
Originally posted by idnic:

...Dye it blue or black if you have issues...


You think it would help?
09/21/2007 11:07:31 PM · #10
Originally posted by zeuszen:

...since you live in my neck of the woods


Cool... i def recognize your shot of the Van waterfront....crane included :P although they have pro-created and multiplied now lol.

Thx for the advice so far... please keep it coming.

When protecting gear is safe for the lens to be exposed to the weather? Obviously you need to expose lens to take the shop lol, but what i'm referring to is the very front (non joint area of the lens), is there chance for water/salt to seep in or is that dependent on the type of lens? For example if i have everything covered up to the filter or lens hood area am i safe leaving it exposed while setting up the shot or should it be covered and only exposed for very brief periods of time?

Message edited by author 2007-09-21 23:08:03.
09/21/2007 11:13:35 PM · #11
Originally posted by EyeTrap:

...When protecting gear is safe for the lens to be exposed to the weather? Obviously you need to expose lens to take the shop lol, but what i'm referring to is the very front (non joint area of the lens), is there chance for water/salt to seep in or is that dependent on the type of lens? For example if i have everything covered up to the filter or lens hood area am i safe leaving it exposed while setting up the shot or should it be covered and only exposed for very brief periods of time?


L lenses are water-resistant, some more (1-400), some less (70-200). I use a UV filter in front of each one, with a hood in front of that and a lens cover (Kata) secured just beyond it, over the hood.

I often get raindrops/spray on the front filter. If I can clean those off from time to time, I feel my equipment is safe. When the drops start running, I do too... off to the car or some dry place.

Message edited by author 2007-09-21 23:18:49.
09/22/2007 12:48:23 AM · #12
Originally posted by AperturePriority:

Originally posted by DrAchoo:

Tape the bag to the edge of the lens.

What kind of tape do you use? Duct tape? Won't that leave some nasty residue on the lens barrel? It would have to be something waterproof. How about a small bungie or a thick rubber band?

The reason I'm asking is that I'm shooting a soccer match tomorrow and the forecast calls for showers and I wouldn't want to get my new 40D all wet. :-O

By the way, here is another commercial rain cover:


I use masking tape. No residue there. I don't worry about it being perfectly watertight as I shoot with L-glass and I'm less worried about that getting wet than the body.
09/22/2007 01:29:50 AM · #13
That storm jacket looks pretty nice. I think I'll order one...

If any of you have ever had to shoot in bad weather (namely rain), there's another problem to deal with, especially in warmer weather. I haven't sorted out how to deal with it yet, so any tips would be appreciated. On assignments I have had to shoot in the rain, my biggest problem is that the viewfinder fogs up to the point I can't see through it. With or without something like the storm jacket, it's a problem...
09/22/2007 08:53:51 AM · #14
Huh? Call me stupid if you want but what's an L-glass lens? I'm very interested in this thread as I read that shooting fall colors in the rain brings the saturation up but I'd hate my material to get wet. So far, I was using the same method as DrAchoo. I'm just confused by the lingo :S
09/22/2007 08:57:28 AM · #15
Originally posted by Caroline69:

what's an L-glass lens?

Here is some information on Canon "L" Lenses

09/22/2007 10:12:09 AM · #16
An EWA Rain Cape is an inexpensive option ... Plastic cape with holes for camera straps and lens, and full access to all the camera controls while shooting.

That Storm Jacket looks pretty cool too, but I noticed the product details say its designed for emergency use, not as an all day solution for shooting in wet weather.
09/22/2007 10:16:42 AM · #17
badweather paperback edition
09/22/2007 10:16:58 AM · #18
I bought a plastic golf club cover at Wal-Mart a few years ago just before covering a Steelers game up in Buffalo. Total cost: $3.

It has a big end that opens up and has velcro, and the other end has a circular elastic band that stretches over the lens. It works PERFECTLY in the rain!

I took it to Cleveland three weeks ago since it was raining for the Steelers season opening game, and I had numerous pro photographers asking me where I got my rain guard. They were a little surprised by the answer... :)

I was thinking I should buy tons of them, stick a name on them like "Pro Camera Protector" or some such thing, and jack the price up to $80.
09/22/2007 11:28:12 AM · #19
Originally posted by alanfreed:

I bought a plastic golf club cover at Wal-Mart a few years ago just before covering a Steelers game up in Buffalo. Total cost: $3.

It has a big end that opens up and has velcro, and the other end has a circular elastic band that stretches over the lens. It works PERFECTLY in the rain!

I took it to Cleveland three weeks ago since it was raining for the Steelers season opening game, and I had numerous pro photographers asking me where I got my rain guard. They were a little surprised by the answer... :)

I was thinking I should buy tons of them, stick a name on them like "Pro Camera Protector" or some such thing, and jack the price up to $80.


I have never seen a plastic golf club cover. I don't golf but all the ones I have ever seen are "fuzzy". You don't happen to have a picture of it so I know what I am looking for at Wal-Mart? Thanks!
09/22/2007 08:01:44 PM · #20
I shoot Sony, that's why I could not understand what you guys were talking about :D Thanks AperturePriority for the answer.
09/23/2007 01:18:07 AM · #21
Originally posted by alanfreed:

I bought a plastic golf club cover at Wal-Mart a few years ago just before covering a Steelers game up in Buffalo. Total cost: $3.

...

I was thinking I should buy tons of them, stick a name on them like "Pro Camera Protector" or some such thing, and jack the price up to $80.


I wonder whether that's what some of the existing manufacturers are already doing. :)
09/23/2007 02:28:52 AM · #22
Originally posted by EstimatedEyes:

An EWA Rain Cape is an inexpensive option ... Plastic cape with holes for camera straps and lens, and full access to all the camera controls while shooting.

That Storm Jacket looks pretty cool too, but I noticed the product details say its designed for emergency use, not as an all day solution for shooting in wet weather.

Now that looks like a very practical cover, and it's not expensive!

I was at my local Smmy's Camera this afternoon and saw some foul-weather covers from Pelican (you know--from the makers of the Pelican hard cases)...

Light Rain Cover

Camera Protector Cover

Message edited by author 2007-09-23 02:30:00.
09/23/2007 02:29:47 AM · #23
Originally posted by Caroline69:

I shoot Sony, that's why I could not understand what you guys were talking about :D Thanks AperturePriority for the answer.

You're welcome, Caroline. ;-)
09/23/2007 08:46:43 AM · #24
I use a rain cover by This company and it works well. I am getting ready to order another one that they make that can be used with my telephoto and my monopod.

MattO
09/23/2007 08:47:43 AM · #25
Originally posted by DrAchoo:

Screw something expensive. A 1-gallon ziplock with a cut in the end for your lens. Make the hole smaller than the lens so you have to stretch it through. Tape the bag to the edge of the lens. If you use a tripod mount, mount that on the bottom through the bag. The ziplock opens and closes for you to get at controls, but you can do most through the bag. It also opens so you can see through the viewfinder.

I do this all the time in adverse conditions.


Sorry Doc but with your record of water and your equipment, I dont think I'd be giving advice to others on how to protect it from water. :D

MattO
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