I shoot a lot outside in the winter.

Including the top of Mount Washington, home of the worlds worst weather (top windspeed world record 232mph). I have shot in -35℉ and 90 mph wind up there, it takes two people to hold down the tripod.

I have a PortaBrace Polar Pack I use for my EX3 and it has pockets for hand warmers. I got it originally for my DSR500 10 years ago or so. I still use it a lot it fits the EX3 great a bit big but that is nice, great place to keep your hands when shooting in the cold.

Lots of room for the NanoFlash too.

EX1 Shutting Down in High Heat & Humidity
 

Paul... In an effort to not create condesation, overnight the EX1 was kept in an enclosed garage which was still warm throughout the evening...Therefore the camera never had a chance to cool down from the days shooting. The camera wouldn't boot up until about 11pm when it finally cooled down a bit. We were out on the water of Laguna Madre Bay in South Padre Island, Texas in July. Usually 100 degrees by noon with 98% humidity. By about 1pm to 2pm the camera would shut down everyday. I'm guessing that since it runs hot, it would start the day from a warm beginning point and then it didn't take long to reach the point of the shut down. The first two days of shooting were fine. It wasn't until the last 4 days did I have the problem, which says the heat was building up each day. Next time I might not store it over night in the warm garage, but insteady bring it into the air cond. to cool down and do a slow step introduction to the outside air the next morning with it in a bag filled with dessicant packs.

Frank that is a problem have you told Sony and had it checked? Not a good thing to loose shots due to a overheated camera.

Olof wow that is one cold place. I have been up there in the summer with snow. The most dangerous small mountain in the world. How did you stay warm?

Paul,

When the weather is that nasty, you only go out for a few minutes at a time.

And you stay real close to the Observatory entrance. You can get lost in a whiteout where you sometimes cant even see your feet.

A few rules on clothing are. No cotton, lots of layers, crampons on your boots, keep extra gloves handy in a pocket, if yours blow away. A really sturdy jacket with hood. I also carry lots of heat packs for me and the camera.

I was up there shooting just a week ago, there was about 2-8" of rime ice on everything, but it was 50℉ and no wind. I got some nice shots. That would have been a nice day in August, very unusual.

Current conditions:

Mt Washington in the winter is on my list of places to visit. It is a wild place! I'm jealous!

Anyone interested in Mt Washington, can check my webcam. This is the view from our studio. Looking at the Presidentials from the south.

Westside A V Studios WEBcam

Today it is in the clouds. There is a time-lapse link there as well that shows a whole year.

Thanks for sharing the timelaps Olof. Let me know how much warmer we are only a few hours South. Hope to see you this winter.

Do you have the right angle SDI cables up on your site yet?

I shot with mine for 10 days on the iditarod. the coldest temp was -35f. The only problem I had was the LCD getting sluggish, like Alister pointed out. the solution was taping hand warmers to the viewfinder. This camera will take a beating too, had it in a pelican case (witout padding, just wrapped in a jacket) strapped to the back of my snowmachine, there were a couple trips where it got beat up pretty bad, and the only thing that happened was some paint chipped off.
I am really impressed with the camera.

Ian that is a great test for the camera not just the cold but the banging around shock load. Sounds like a fun gig.

I was out shooting all day today at Santa's Village, it is in Jefferson NH. But it may as well have been the North Pole.

It was 5℉ when we started but it went up to almost 30℉ by the end of the shoot. By then it was snowing pretty heavily with rain and sleet mixed in. Lots of it horizontal. I went through a lot of micro weave rags.

I was shooting with the new EX1R, I could not use the NanoFlash, because my Swit batteries are not here yet. I was only using a clear garbage bag to keep the snow off the EX1R. But it behaved perfectly. The large Sony batts lasted about 2 hrs each. I keep the camera on full time when in the cold. And I was not using heat pads on the batts. I had the Polar pack with me, but I did not use it. I wanted to see how the EX1R would do. I give it an A+. I shot 2 hrs on the SxS cards in about 8 hrs of running and gunning. I checked the footage when I got back, and it is all fine.

I was using my new shoulder brace when shooting the reindeer, it worked really well. It snaps right on or off in about 2 seconds and only adds about 6 oz to the cam. With the steady shot on the shots came out nice and fluid for such a light cam.

Snow looks great in slomo.

Paul, give me a call tomorrow about the SDI cables. I can make them, and I have all the fittings. I am just trying to decide how to sell them on the website. I can make them any size, with one or both ends 90º. I also have 90º connectors in stock.

I've shot mine down in Antarctica near the pole and it's been fine. Had it in a Polar jacket which as much was for my own hands as the camera's well-being. Batteries hold up surprisingly well (can't comment on Swit stuff, just the proper Sony batteries). Did get problems with snow getting in switches and jamming their position after a 120knot wind for 3 days, but I guess that's to be expected. It coped perfectly - a stunning camera and the ideal cold weather camera as it's solid state and energy efficient, plus you can charge the batteries easily from solar panels unlike their V-lock sisters...

Rob
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www.roberthollingworth.co.uk