Saskatoon Winter Photography Tips
Winter offers beautiful scenic views and is one of the best seasons to take nature photos. While Winter photography is popular, mastering it takes a lot of work.
Capturing the perfect Winter pictures can be challenging with less natural lighting than in other seasons and potentially harsh temperatures.
Here are some expert tips to improve your Saskatoon Winter photography:
Keep Your Batteries Warm
When exposed to low temperatures, batteries can quickly lose their charge. The number of shots you can take in one charge can significantly lower during the cold season.
If you want to take more photos outdoors, try to extend your battery’s life by keeping it warm. You can keep the extra batteries in a warm storage container or place them inside your pockets to absorb your body heat.
Increase Your Exposure Compensation
If you want to capture Winter’s bright and sunny weather, set your exposure compensation to +0.3 or +0.7. This strategy is especially useful if you want to photograph fresh snow.
Since most cameras can’t easily recognize what you are trying to capture, you have to adjust your camera's specs so it will capture the proper brightness and whiteness according to your subject.
If you don’t adjust your camera’s exposure, the snow in your pictures might end up looking gray instead.
Use Camera-Friendly Gloves
When it’s cold and windy outside, it’s difficult to hold your camera steady, especially when you’re shooting outdoors. You can wear gloves to save your hands. However, regular gloves may not be ideal for shooting photos.
If you use regular gloves, you may not be able to use all the dials and buttons on your camera because of their thickness, and the material may not be touchscreen-friendly.
The best option is to invest in camera-friendly gloves that you can use for Winter photography when you’re shooting outdoors. In most photo stores, you can find special camera gloves with thin thermal fabric around the fingertips.
This type of glove allows you to control your camera easily. What’s more, these special gloves are made of special material that lets you grip your device securely.
Plus, camera-friendly gloves will protect your hands against frostbite. The next time you plan to do a Winter photo shoot, visit your local camera store and invest in a set of camera-friendly gloves.
Avoid Lens Fog
It’s challenging to shoot outdoors when it’s freezing cold. You’ll likely need to warm up indoors from time to time. However, when you warm yourself up, be mindful of your device and try to prevent it from fogging up.
For the best results, use a 200mm lens, or higher, and set the device to a shallow aperture ranging from f/4.5 to 6.3. In addition, remember to set up the fastest shutter speed on your camera, for instance, 1/400 per second or faster.
Although lens fog won’t necessarily break your device, it may take time for the lens to defog so you can use it again.
If you have to wait for your lens to defog, you could miss out on capturing unique photos. Before you go indoors, store your camera inside a photo bag and cover your lens with its lid.
Invest in a Telephoto Lens
Snowfall is one of the more beautiful things to photograph. If you want to immortalize falling snow's beauty, invest in the right tools. A telephoto lens with a focal length of 70mm and up will ensure your photos are crisp and clear.
With this depth of field, you will be able to capture the snowflakes in front of your camera lens and behind the focal point, making them appear larger.
In photos, when snowflakes appear large and slightly blurred in front and behind your intended subject, it creates a magical effect!
Photograph Landscapes During Sunrise and Sunset
If you plan to photograph Winter landscapes, the best time to do it is sunrise and sunset.
Shooting at these times can result in more dramatic photos, and Winter is the easiest time to capture them. Also, Winter sunrise and sunsets are stunning right before or after snowstorms.
Since the sun rises later in the day and sets much earlier during Winter, landscape photographers can sleep in and don’t have to wake up early for sunrise photoshoots.
In fact, the sun sometimes rises after 9 am during Saskatoon’s Winters.
Buy a Snow Cover
If you plan to do a lot of outdoor photoshoots when it’s snowing, it’s important to invest in a reliable cover that can protect your device from the weather.
A good cover will keep your camera and lenses dry during your shoots. Using a cover will help reduce the chance of moisture getting into your device.
Keep Yourself Warm
Shooting outdoors during the Winter can be dangerous, depending on the temperature.
Make sure to layer your clothes to protect yourself from extreme cold when in places like Saskatoon’s many walking trails. You can always shed layers or unzip your coat if it's warmer outside.
Bottom Line
Winter photography is a great hobby to pick up when you’re in Saskatoon before you get into Spring activities. Following the above tips will help you have a great experience and take dynamic photos!
Leenan Property Management is proud to serve Saskatoon property investors and landlords all year long. For more information on our comprehensive services, reach out today!
