Photographing in Crummy Weather

[john borrelli]

Bring a snorkel!

As a previous poster noted, this is no time to worry about looking good. A snorkel won't keep you warmer but it does help prevent your cold groundglass from fogging if you breathe through one while under the darkcloth.

Plastic Flask Frank.... Try the new carbon fiber flasks and save a couple of ounces! Bad pun intended.

[walter23]

Get a plastic flask so it doesn't freeze to your lips ;-)

A thin pair of "liner" gloves that allow you to operate the camera controls is very nice, something thin enough that you can slip your warmer mittens over the top. A jacket with big breast pockets can hold meters and other gadgets.

Check out brands like Patagonia or Google/search eBay for special forces gear (Patagonia makes a line of military gear called MARS which is on eBay at a discount compared to their retail line, only problem is it is kahki-green).

Or the cheaper heavier alternative is snowmobile gear!

Figure out a way to blow your nose without opening up your jacket. Seriously.

Don't forget large plastic bags for bring your gear into warm places so you don't get condensation on mechanical and electronic parts.

Heh, keeping the body warm is my least priority. It's the gear that I worry about; I can put myself by the heater when I get home. If my lens gets swamped with rain or slush, on the other hand...

[Wallace_Billingham]

The DIY version of this is tennis balls with an X cut large enough to put the leg in.

you can also use cheap plastic ashtrays, a lot of them also will stack

[Diane Maher]

Diane,
One of the biggest problems is the wind. Take some hiking or ski poles ... they will help you walk and by adding a painter's plastic drop cloth you can create a light weight wind break. Bury some of the bottom edge in the snow or hold down with rocks. Make sure to angle the setup into the wind to reduce wind pressure on the rig. I use a similar setup in Death Valley to protect from the winds and blowing sand.
Ric
Keep warm out there.

Fortunately, there wasn't any ice on the paved path which led to this place (yet) and the parking lot wasn't very far away. Believe me, I had a hold of the tripod at all times. There really wasn't a way to block the wind (I'm assuming you mean to block the camera/tripod from the wind with the wind break) and still shoot, as I was literally facing/shooting straight into it.

[Scott Davis]

The DIY version of this is tennis balls with an X cut large enough to put the leg in.

The lids to Chinese takeout containers are another good substitute- just spike the spike feet (if your tripod has them) into the lid, and the lids then act like a mini snowshoe.

[Michael Graves]

How about rain? Decent umbrellas?

I have a pair of umbrellas I picked up just for photography. One is very large and the other is positively HUGE. My wife and I do photography together, and I hold the big one over her and the camera while she's shooting and she returns the favor for me. If you shoot alone, a small tripod with a Larsen clamp will work as well as a wife.

For holding umbrellas, anyway.