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digital cams and cold weather Anonymous
I was thinking of buying a new camera and take lots of photos this winter. But then I was reading specs and realize many cams are not supposed to be used outdoor during winter or else you void the warranty.

Do digital cams actually fail in cold weather? Has it ever happen to you? Or do the memcards fail?

If I'm gonna be outdoor for a whole day in cold temperature, which camera would be good? Weather proof cams usually only mean moist and slight rain, not sub zero temps.
>> Anonymous
really i dont see why they should fail. most modern IC's are ok at temps down to about -40ish i think...
there are rules with digital photography and temperatures:
the colder the temp, the shorter the battery will last. the hotter the longer
the colder the temp, the less image noise you will get. the hotter, the more noise.

the other thing you might get is fogging up of the lens and possible screen and sensor(depending on how well built it is)
its more common going from hot to cold and back again....
>> Anonymous
minus FORTY degrees? where you at, antarctica?
>> Anonymous
There are 2 things that fail in cold weather:
- lithium-ion batteries (below -10 celsius means huge loss of capacity, below -20 may damage the battery permanently)
- LCD screens (the lower the temperature, the slower they become, until finally blacken out)

Sensor and electronics are pretty resistant to cold temperatures, but they can be damaged by moisture when the camera is brought from cold to hot place.
>> eku !8cibvLQ11s
>>87742
In Finland, it can get as cold as -30 celcius (-22 fahreinheit) for weeks.

>>87747
That is why you must cover your gear in plastic bag to prevent it from happening when you take it inside.
>> thefamilyman !!rTVzm2BgTOa
Apparently Canon L lenses (fluorite glass) is not suitable for temperature extremes.

Lithium based batteries handle low temperatures much better than any other batteries, but it is true that they greatly lose their capacity. But from my understanding they dont become permanently damaged.
LCD's will become slower and eventually stop working the colder you become, but its a normal thing, nothing to worry about.

>>87742
When i was in Heilongjiang Province in china, the AVERAGE temperature was -30C :/ but my D70 powered along like nothing was wrong, but the more i had my camera out in the open air, the slower my LCD became, and battery would only last about a day, but the same battery is still going great now.
>> Anonymous
>>87760
Yeah. Cover in plastic bag, take the battery out and let it lie there for a couple hours.
>> ac !!VPzQAxYPAMA
My SLR survived a Buffalo/Niagara winter. My hands stopped functioning long before the camera had a chance to.
>> Anonymous
When you're shooting in cold weather, the camera won't freeze because it's heated both from inside (electronics give off heat) and from outside (unless you're cold-blooded lol). But leaving your camera outside when it's -30C is a bad idea; a couple of my friends did that with their mobile phones and had to replace the batteries afterwards.
>> Anonymous
one the plus side your uncooled CCD's read noise will decrease dramaticly and signal to noise ratios (what the industry calls equivalent ISO) will improve, unless you have the new digital hasselblad.