Winter Camping Photography

This past weekend, my dad, brother and I decided to brave the cold and try our hand at winter camping. Armed with a few down jackets and sleeping backs, we loaded the packs and strapped on the snowshoes for a trek up to Boulder lake. After few exhausting miles of breaking trail, we were able to setup shop and hunker down right before a series of storms hit. Fortunately, as the sun began to set, the clouds cleared and the sky lent itself to the shot below. While I’d take a fly fishing rod and shorts in August over winter camping, it had its moments of bliss.

All of the photos below were shot with a Canon EOS 5D Mark III, EF 24-70mm  f/2.8, TS-E 45mm f/2.8, EF 14mm f/2.8 and processed using VSCO. And a few quick tips for anyone interested in a little winter camping photography…

• Take at least one battery per day of shooting & keep them inside a coat pocket and close to your body. The cold will kill them.
• Practice hand holding at slow shutter speeds because backpacking usually doesn’t allow for you to bring a tripod. If you have room/weight, bring one.
• Bring a minimal kit. I got along fine with a mid-range zoom lens and an ultra-wide. Wildlife is scarce, so there is no need for a telephoto lens.
• If it snows, your front lens element is going to get wet, so a microfiber cleaning cloth is nice to clean it up.
• Lastly, be sure to bring at least three Nalgene water bottles. Because water is scarce, you’ll have to melt snow in order to get water. You can do this with a camp stove or by lightly packing them with snow and placing them in the sun.