To the folks who take their camera everywhere..heat and cold issues?

[joekr]

I have always thought about bringing my gear with me everywhere I go. A missed opportunity occurred last night to shoot downtown Kansas city from a high rise roof top and I wanted some one to kick me in the behind...

What's been holding me back is weather conditions. I can't realistically carry my gear into a client site with me for my day job and I'm very hesitant to leave my gear in the car in extreme heat or cold..

Does everybody literally carry their bag with them or do you leave your gear in the harsh elements of the car during winter and summer?

[Tdragone]

My gear stays in my truck all the time. I've never had an issue with heat (NOT in direct sunlight) inside with windows rolled up.

Now; cold is a different story; but only when it's REALLY cold. When on east coast I've noticed that below 40 degrees battery life goes down in a hurry; but if you keep one battery in your pocket while shooting with another, the batteries tend to rebound when warmed up.

I'm in San Diego, so my camera's have been through a lOT of heat.

[redbutt]

We are seriously spoiled here in San Diego (Southern California in general). There really is no such thing as weather extremes here. The worst experience I've had was on a cruise in the Carribean. I was VERY thankful that I was using a 1D series camera with L lenses. When I would go from inside the ship to outside, the temperature and humidity difference would *instantly* cause the ouside of my camera to fog over with condensation. However, since the 1D bodies with L lenses are sealed, the inside of the camera stayed dry, and once the camera equalized (about 5 min) everything was fine.

I talked with some photogs from the cruise line, and they were jealous of my gear. Apparently, they are all using Nikon gear...which isn't sealed like the Canon gear, and they get condensation on the sensors!

Anyway, if possible, you don't want to bake your gear in a hot car (can get way over 200 F on a sunny summer day). I have a Lowepro backpack that I use to cary my stuff with me if I know it's gonna be a hot day. I think the manual has the recommended heat tolerances.

[chrishunt]

I spent 7 days in temperatures between 8-13 degrees Fahrenheit backpacking in the Grand Tetons with a 20d. I arrived with two batteries in the grip and they lasted the whole trip. I did notice that my breath would instantly freeze on the outside of the camera, but it caused no problems at all. You have to be careful not to breath in the viewfinder as well because that will freeze and you won't be able to see.

Everything worked great, no problems.

[joekr]

Cool. Thanks for the info everyone. I wish the 5d I'm contemplating buying had the weather sealing, but I'm probably going to keep my old 10d in the car all the time..

I'm thinking it should be fine..

[PIXI_666]

I used to take my gear EVERYWHERE i went, it came to a point though, in 45 degree celcius heat, in the hot Aussie sun, that it was a bit of an issue. I had a card die on me for nor eason and my ext flash also got a bit of issues on the screen - its all cleared up now but i have limited where i take my camera these days. With so many weddings and portraits that i do now - i don't get time to take many artistic shots for myself...

[Tandem]

I have a large cooler in my trunk that put my camera bag in when I'm out for the day. There is a noticeable temperature difference late in the day between the interior of the car and the inside of the cooler.

I've only been using the cooler for the past month and it has been relatively mild so I can't comment on how well it would work for extreme conditions.

[mvrekum]

The normal operating environment for a Canon 350D is 0 – 40 °C, 85% or less humidity. In this environment the camera should work flawlesly. That however does not mean that the camera does not work outside this temp. range, only that Canon does not garantee it.

The main problem you can get is battery problems at below zero temperatures, the colder it gets, the shorter the battery life. With high temperatures you can get trouble with lubricants (shutter) inside the cam that can get to liquid, but the electronics should work normal up to temperatures of about 55 degC. At this and higher temperatures however your batteries can explode, the isolation of wires can get soft which can lead up to shorts etc.

Another problem can be LCD screens. At lower or higher temperatures the information on the screen might disappear. This is not distructive and the screen should work normal when the temperature gets back to normal values.

My cam worked fine in the hot aussie sun of the Northern Territory :)

[chrishunt]

Another problem can be LCD screens. At lower or higher temperatures the information on the screen might disappear. This is not distructive and the screen should work normal when the temperature gets back to normal values.

Yes, I noticed that too. When I was in the cold, the screen would 'fade' into the on position instead of just turn on. It was kinda weird, but I got used to it fast.

[Wilt]

<<Does everybody literally carry their bag with them or do you leave your gear in the harsh elements of the car during winter and summer?>>

You could take this approach...when not 'in the field', keep all your equipment indoors at room temperature. Then when going 'into the field' put all your equipment into an insulated picnic cooler and place the cooler into the trunk of your car. Cooler keeps the equipment cooler in summer and warmer in winter, in the buffered enviroment which is insulated from the surroundings.

[Wilt]

<<Anyway, if possible, you don't want to bake your gear in a hot car (can get way over 200 F on a sunny summer day).>>

The car would have to be in the Mojave Desert at 110 degrees for it to get anywhere even close to that unreasonable a temperture! I have measured 120-130 degrees in an enclosed car's passenger compartment in the sun with ambient air temp in the 90s.

[joekr]

Thanks Wilt. The cooler idea is a good one and I had not thought of that. In KC it gets pretty hot..

Time to make a stop at Walmart and pick up a Coleman cooler.

[Wilt]

In summer, you could even put a single small container of the 'Blue Ice' to keep the temperature inside the cooler down (but not chill things)

[staciecd]

I've always taken my camera everywhere and do have the battery running down quickly problem. How did you only use two batteries in the Tetons?????

Stacie

[chrishunt]

How did you only use two batteries in the Tetons?????

I'm actually not sure. I was worried about them dying, but they lasted the whole trip. I didn't even see the 'partially' charged logo, they appeared full the entire time. I had the camera in a small form fitting case when not in use and had SterlingTek batteries in the grip.

[sharpshootr987]

I carry a Pentax W10 with me all the time.

[PhotosGuy]

How did you only use two batteries in the Tetons Turn off the LCD & IS, & the cam when you aren't using it & you can shoot for days with a 1800 mAh battery.

[chrishunt]

Turn off the LCD & IS, & the cam when you aren't using it & you can shoot for days with a 1800 mAh battery.

Yep. I turned off the LCD review the first time I used the camera. I always run out of memory before I run out of battery.

[Seefutlung]

Remember that heat will cause noise on the CF card(s). I tend to keep my camera in the car ... but try to remember to bring the memory inside.

[20DNewbie]

I tend to bring my camera almost everywhere, luckily I've found the locker room at work. I just lock everything in there and I'm all set.

I always seem to see something I want to capture when I don't have it, so it's usually stuck to my hip. Of course that's when I don't see the things I want to.:rolleyes: I'm still to paranoid to just leave it in the car out in the open, and the girls at my insurance agency seem to get nervous when I mention I leave it in there overnight.:lol: Man, I love messing with them.

[Kristy]

I would never leave my camera in the car... It is soooo hot here during th summers, I'm afraid the camera would fry... Too bad because I leave it home more often than I would like to... just can't carry it around everywhere... with kids, diaper bag, purse, etc.. somthing's gotta give.