preparing to shoot in 40 below

[PatrickWebb]

I have also shot in those conditions many times. I actually had "cozy" make for the camera. Much like a tea cozy it wrapped the camera and had flap with velco for the fan. Never turn it off it takes too long to get back up to temp. But my Epic dragon worked flawlessly. The rest has been well covered in the other posts.

I would be interested in seeing photos of your camcozy. I was thinking about making one up for my cameras when I do outdoor shoots in the winter here.

As it is icycold winter here in Norway, I have been thinking about wrapping up the EPIC. I took my scarlet out on some occasions and it was just fine. However, that was -5 ish, so the camera worked great without issues. The brick cooled down though and worked only for an hour. Next time I want to have a jacket for somethings like the batteries and maybe the camera.

Here are some BTS photos of that scene: https://www.heapsgood.no/2021/01/22/scene-in-the-snow/

Cheers.

 

[Mike McEntire]

Maybe multiple monitors that you can rotate out as they get too cold to use. I have had lots of issues with monitors in -20 to -30 temps. The image will get stutter and glitchy the colder the monitor gets till it freezes up. The actual recorded file is fine though. Baffin ice fishing boots with heating packs are part of my arctic kit. Also get the thickest gloves that still have screen touch control to change settings. Most importantly is to pay attention to frostbite. Happens quick and will be a nuisance for the rest of your life if it happens.

good luck on that shoot.

 

[Mark A. Jaeger]

I offer an idea that comes from an alternate re-positioning of my monitor -> The monitor is a big sail and promotes camera shake in strong wind. I use my monitor cable in windy conditions to get the monitor off the camera body. I use a clamp mount on a tripod leg.

So, to avoid monitor "freezing": Wouldn't it be productive to use a brain-to-monitor cable to enable the monitor to be a warmer location than the top of the camera where exposure is more-or-less maximum?

Another idea: If you're handy with a bit of glue and neoprene you could fashion a monitor jacket that would thermally insulate the monitor backside. You could configure the jacket to hold hand warmer packets.

 

[Christopher A. Bell]

Call Porta-Brace. They used to make insulated shoulder cases for ENG cameras for extreme cold weather shooting and still make them for current cameras. They also do custom designs, as well, if they don’t already have one that works for you.

https://www.portabrace.com/search-results/q-Polar%20bear/qc-products/page-2