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Antarctica Trip

cedricd
Posted 28/12/2019 - 14:44 Link
Just looking for some advice and suggestions for a visit to the Antarctic region in their summer season. How to lower the risk of condensation etc. Keeping batteries warm and basically any thoughts would be most welcome.

Thanks in advance.
Enjoy life
Gwyn
Posted 28/12/2019 - 14:58 Link
Keep a spare battery or two in a pocket to keep them warm.
You probably won't have a problem with condensation. I never did on my winter Arctic trips, but if you do put the camera in a ziplock bag and remove as much air as you can before you take it back inot the warm. Add either a towel or those little packs of dessicant you get with various things.

Lucky you going to the Antarctic. I look forward to the photos!
laurencea
Posted 28/12/2019 - 15:04 Link
wow, nice one! I''ve only been to the Arctic, which has civilisation reasonably close to hand.

i did attend a talk by Nico Wills about his ant/arctic trips and i remember him aying he would wrap everything in plastic bags to stop them getting too soggy and try to store them away from too much heat/cold - so not near the fire/heating.

he also mentioned a battery device that was located on his body, the wires ran down his arms to a connector at the glove and then a lead into the camera. he said that was the best device as the batteries just died in the real cold, but being near his body, the power packs were fine. it also meant that the camera was stored without power, so not so prone to issues with heat and cold changes.

i seem to recall he had backup storage for the images at the 'base camp' and would copy everything as soon as he could each day, even uploading them to a laptop, so that any subsequent failure souldn't be too damaging.

personally, i'd also advise taking a film camera as the light in the polar regions is incredible and both my trips to the Arctic have seen the film shots capture it better than digital (medium format film was very good). alas, changing film in extreme conditions can be rather tricky.

good luck
Pentax k1000, MX, ME Super, K5iiD 18-55, Tamron 70-300, Tamron 500 mirror, pentax 10-17, 50 1:4, a manual 28, some extension tubes and a bagful of memory cards. That's all i need... and a load of film cameras too... that's it, honest.
swarf
Posted 28/12/2019 - 15:07 Link
In low temps., battery life will be MUCH shorter, so as Gwyn suggests - carry spare batteries with you and keep them in an inside pocket. I always carry two spares in very cold conditions. Also, take your camera outside to acclimatise a little before starting to shoot, i.e. don't keep it tucked up in a nice insulated case until you reach the Penguins (please substitute any other appropriate subject), but take it out in advance to let it cool down.

I have shot with both my K-r and K-5iis in well below -10oC with no problems (down to -20oC with the K-r).

Phil
K-5iiS; K-r; ME Super; ME; DA* 16-50 f2.8; DA 18-135 WR; DA 55-300 WR; HD DA 15mm F4 ED AL Limited; FA 50mm f1.4; A50mm f1.7; DAL 18-55mm; M40mm f2.8; + assorted non-Pentax lenses

My Flikr Page link
cedricd
Posted 28/12/2019 - 15:49 Link
Got to confess here that I`m gathering info for Daughter. I`m afraid it`s not me going, so, doing the dutiful parent bit I`m getting as much info as I can to support her visit. Dealing with a phone call from East Anglia is one thing but from The deep South is another.
Enjoy life
Gwyn
Posted 28/12/2019 - 16:41 Link
In that case recommend she takes her Pa with her as resident expert .
HarisF1
Posted 02/01/2020 - 00:38 Link
Utterly baffling first post ^

The link doesn't lead to anywhere remotely relevant so I'm very confused!
All the gear with no idea
womble
Posted 09/09/2020 - 06:49 Link
I have no idea how experienced your daughter is so this might be teaching grandma to suck eggs (if it is, ignore this), but I would make sure she knows how to read a histogram and use exposure compensation. All that snow will make exposure a little tricky.

When I went somewhere snowy, my favourite photos were taken using Portra 160 in a 1950s medium format folding camera. Go figure.
Kris Lockyear
It is an illusion that photos are made with the camera… they are made with the eye, heart and head. Henri Cartier-Bresson
Lots of film bodies, a couple of digital ones, too many lenses (mainly older glass) and a Horseman LE 5x4.

My website
Edited by womble: 09/09/2020 - 06:49
SteveF
Posted 09/09/2020 - 20:53 Link
womble wrote:

When I went somewhere snowy, my favourite photos were taken using Portra 160 in a 1950s medium format folding camera. Go figure.

Only you could make a statement like this, Kris!
womble
Posted 09/09/2020 - 21:22 Link
SteveF wrote:
womble wrote:

When I went somewhere snowy, my favourite photos were taken using Portra 160 in a 1950s medium format folding camera. Go figure.

Only you could make a statement like this, Kris!

I can't post the photos, but this is one of them: http://www.ipernity.com/doc/288579/41246680/in/album/874242
Kris Lockyear
It is an illusion that photos are made with the camera… they are made with the eye, heart and head. Henri Cartier-Bresson
Lots of film bodies, a couple of digital ones, too many lenses (mainly older glass) and a Horseman LE 5x4.

My website
Jonathan-Mac
Posted 10/09/2020 - 12:49 Link
If you have a camera that accepts a battery grip (such as a K-3 or K-5), then it might be worth getting one of the cheap knock-off grips (or a used genuine one) and modifying it to add wiring that runs to a battery pack that you can keep warm, similar to the idea mentioned in a post above. I don't think I'd want to do that to a genuine new one but wouldn't mind modifying a cheaper one.

I would certainly take a medium format film camera too, probably one that didn't need batteries at all, though I have the accessory for the original 645 that allows an external battery pack to be kept warm.
Pentax hybrid user - Digital K3, film 645 and 35mm SLR and Pentax (&other) lenses adapted to Fuji X and Panasonic L digital
Fan of DA limited and old manual lenses

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