LOCALadk Magazine

TEK Towel – These are fast drying micro fiber towels that are typically used by backpackers and can be found in most outdoor stores for about $16. These towels can be used to wipe moisture off your camera and lens, and to also cover them while rain or snow are falling. This towel can also be used to wipe snow and ice off your tripod legs before you retract them. Moisture inside your tripod legs can create havoc after it freezes. A Clear Shower Cap – This is the cheapest piece of photography gear you will ever purchase. In snowy or rainy conditions, place a clear shower cap over the front of your lens and pull it back to cover most of the camera. Lift the section covering the viewfinder when you're ready to compose the scene and set focus. Once these steps are completed, quickly remove the shower cap altogether, take the shot and then re-cover the camera and lens. Prior to taking your next image, check the image on your viewfinder for water droplets and also make sure that the front of the lens does not contain any as well. A water droplet in the wrong spot can easily render an image unusable. Op-Tech Rain Sleeve – is basically a plastic sleeve that fits over your lens and camera body. It contains a draw string that cinches around the front of the lens and has a cutout for your cameras eyepiece. They are available in various sizes to fit different lenses. They are sold in packages of two and retail for about $9. Micro-Fiber Lens Cloth – Used to clean the front of your lens and your camera's eyepiece. When wiping moisture away, be sure not to leave any streaks. Plastic Ground Cloth - Purchase a three or four millimeter thick plastic drop cloth at your local hardware store and cut a piece that will comfortably fit under your pack with room to spare on all sides. This will protect your pack from the elements and also give you a place to layout your gear. It easily folds up and will fit inside one of your pack's external pockets. After a few hours of photographing your equipment is going to be pretty cold. As you enter a warm building, you will want your gear to warm up gradually, in order to avoid a build-up of condensation. I typically remove my cards from the camera while still outside and place them in my pocket allowing me the flexibility of downloading images shortly after I get home. My gear will remain in the camera bag which I place inside a plastic garbage bag and will not open for a couple of hours. This allows my camera bag and gear to slowly adjust to room temperature. During the times I am photographing close to my car and sporadically There are five pieces of gear that I carry in my camera pack year-round to help me keep my gear dry: When photographing in snowy conditions remember to leave your lens shade on, keep your camera pointed down when not shooting, and continually check your lens for water droplets. LOCALadk 44 Winter 2014

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