How to shoot with a camera after snowing
How to take beautiful photos of snowy scenes in winter?
Today we will discuss how to take photos in the snowy winter. Shooting in the winter is still fraught with technical and plot difficulties, which we'll try to address today.
1. Camera maintenance
Charging the spare battery
In cold weather, the battery life of the camera will be exhausted quickly. To prevent shooting from ending as soon as it starts, charge the backup battery. Also, try storing the battery close to your body, for example, in an inside pocket of your jacket. Even a discharged battery in the cold may be enough to extend use after an hour under the jacket.
Do not turn on the camera when entering the room from the outside
Sudden changes in temperature are harmful to photographic equipment. Once you get home, don't turn on your camera for a few hours to let it warm up. Before entering a warm room, wrap your camera (and other equipment) in a sealed plastic bag to prevent condensation.
Use a protective case and UV filter
To protect your camera from snow and humid air, use a special brand protective case and carry batteries, flashes and batteries in plastic bags and other moisture-sensitive equipment. A cheaper alternative to a branded box is common plastic wrap that can be used to wrap your camera. UV filter is used to protect the lens.
Don’t forget to wear warm clothes
You are more likely to freeze while walking with your camera than heading to the store to shop. Therefore, you will need to dress warmly as you will not be heading home for the next few hours. It is even recommended to bring spare gloves and warm shoes.
2. Shooting options
Exposure error
White snow usually occupies almost the entire frame area, which is misleading for the built-in photoreceptor. This results in the snow in the photo not being white but gray. So if you like to shoot in automatic and semi-automatic modes, increase the exposure compensation (+1, +2) to avoid darkening your photos.
To accurately determine the correct setting for exposure compensation (either +1 or +2, depending on the camera), evaluate the histogram of your photo. If there is a lot of snow in the frame, this graph should be to the right of the histogram field:
Manual shooting
After a long exposure, the falling snow in the photo will become blurry and Looks like stripes and can be used for creative effects. At shutter speeds above 1 second, depending on the background and time of day, the streaks will be very long, or the snow may not be visible at all.
In order to make the snowflakes round and not blurry, it is best to choose a shutter speed of 1/250 seconds. If the snow is falling quickly or it is very windy outside, the shutter speed should be no faster than 1/500. It also allows you to take it out of your hands instead of having to carry a tripod in adverse weather conditions.
White balance correction
White balance is another issue when shooting in snowy conditions. In auto white balance mode, photos may appear bluish. To avoid this, set your white balance to Cloudy or Shadows. Also, be sure to shoot in RAW to facilitate post-processing.
Lens choice
Focal length greatly affects the presence of winter in a photo. When using a telephoto lens, falling snow will be more obvious:
When shooting with a wide-angle lens, since the photographer needs to be closer to the subject, the falling snow will be less obvious, and the distance between the camera and the scene will be reduced. Small.
So it's better to shoot the same story at different focal lengths and choose the frame you like best. And don't forget to take multiple shots of the same frame - large snowflakes can close off the desired compositional element.
Zooms are best for shooting in the snow, eliminating the need to change optics in the field. No amateur photographer would risk changing lenses under heavy snow, and searching for a room is useless - condensation is possible when the temperature changes drastically.
3. Composition and Plot
For landscape photographers, snowfall is a huge advantage. It hides all distracting details, and falling snow obscures a busy background or makes it less eye-catching. Snow can highlight objects in the foreground, although normally they would be hidden among other objects or have no contrast.
During snowfall, photos are richer than on typically cloudy days because the snow creates tonal perspectives from dark flowers in the foreground to light in the background. Wet snow also has special properties - it makes colors more vivid and emphasizes stones and rocks, tree trunks.
On a clear day, it's best to shoot in the first few hours after sunrise, when the trees are covered in snow crystals. When the sun rises higher, they melt even in cold weather. Additionally, in the morning and before sunset, when the sun is lower, the light is softer, doesn't create contrasting shadows, and also creates an interesting orange-pink glow on the snow.
Photo Framing
If the land is completely covered in snow, at first glance the plot may look dull. To diversify it, include interesting objects, animals, people, tree trunks in the frame.
Various rhythms (repeating objects, sequences and perspectives) as well as those with shadows can be used in the shot.
If there is nothing interesting in the background, try shooting at a wide angle and be aware of objects and elements that might be peeking out from under the snow.
Finally, if nothing grabs your audience's attention, try changing the angle and shooting the drama from a lower point.
Lights
Another way to diversify your diagram is to find reflections. It can be either an object reflecting in a frozen pond or the surface of snow glistening in the sunlight. Ice reflects sunlight very well.
Characters
It would be better if the landscape could rejuvenate the human image. Instead of taking a close-up of the person, just include a small character in the plot and the photo will become more interesting.
Also of interest are the traces of people (and not just people) in the snow.
Summary
Of course, all techniques are good, but during the shooting process, you must not forget your own creative potential and find rhythm in a unique way that no one else has and landscapes, and do not repeat what was published on the photo shoot. This is perhaps the main component of any photo taken not just in winter.
When using a SLR to take pictures of snowflakes flying in the sky, based on your experience in photography, you should pay attention to the following points:
1. The shutter speed cannot be fast. The camera adopts shutter priority mode, and the exposure time can be determined first from 1/60 second to 1/100 second, and then adjusted appropriately according to the actual shooting effect and your own needs. At about 1/100th of a second or above, the snowflakes are still in the shape of dots. By 1/60th of a second, the nearby snowflakes have become short line segments.
2. The background should be dark. The snowflakes are white, so they need to be highlighted against a dark background. If the background is also bright, you won't be able to see the flying snowflakes.
3. The shooting range should not be too large. This is different from shooting snow scenes. The contrast between the size of the snowflakes and the size of the surrounding scenery is certain. When the shooting range is large, the proportion of snowflakes is very small, so you only see the snow scene and not the flying snowflakes. In some large-scale photos I took, you can see flying snowflakes when you zoom in, but when you zoom out to see the entire photo on a computer screen, you can't see the snowflakes. If you intercept a part of it and enlarge it, it would be better to directly shoot a small area for a clearer picture.
4. Focus. Some of the nearby snowflakes must be within the depth of field. When using autofocus, the focus point should be the nearby scenery. When there is no suitable close-up view, use autofocus to easily focus on distant scenery. At this time, you can use manual focus instead. You can see the flying objects nearby through the viewfinder. The snowflakes are clear. The reason for photographing nearby snowflakes is that they are "big near and small at a distance". Only the snowflakes near can be bigger. Furthermore, the angular speed of the snowflakes near is high, making it easier to create a flying feeling.
5. To take pictures of flying snowflakes, it is easier to take pictures when the snow is heavy. However, there is only diffuse light in snowy days, which is easy to be dull. When framing, you can choose some close-ups of snow and people wearing brightly colored clothing to enhance the atmosphere.
6. The final tip is that when shooting in snowy days, be careful to protect your photographic equipment from getting wet.
How to maintain a SLR:
1. Many people like to bring sunscreen and mosquito repellent when shooting outdoors to avoid the sun's poison and insect bites. But these two things will cause damage to your camera; because sunscreen is an oil-based substance, and insect repellent contains chemicals, they will cause irreparable damage to sensitive parts such as the camera lens, sensor, etc. .
So, when you shoot outdoors, be sure to wash your hands that have come into contact with sunscreen and mosquito repellent with water in time. This will ensure that your camera will not be damaged by them.
One more thing, please don’t put your camera, sunscreen and mosquito repellent in a bag. If these things leak out, the life of your camera will end immediately. Therefore, please prepare a sealable bag to seal liquid substances.
2. Some parts of digital cameras can move. If sand enters the inside of the camera, they will quickly jam the camera or scratch many parts.
So, you must protect your camera well in places with sand; you can use a sealed bag to cover the camera, and remember to turn off your camera and keep your clothes free of sand.
Of course, the above measures are not enough to protect the camera in a sandy environment. You also have to look around to see if anyone is playing football, throwing a Frisbee, or there is strong wind. If so, you should consider not taking out the camera to use it.
3. In addition to sand, dust is also a powerful weapon that destroys cameras. Dust will not scratch the internal parts of the camera like sand, causing the SLR camera to not work. It generally just contaminates your lens and image sensor, preventing you from taking quality photos.
4. Water can cause damage to your camera in various ways. The most severe damage is that it can end the life of the camera in an instant. Therefore, when using the camera, be sure to observe the surrounding environment and keep the camera away from water.
Moisture can also cause damage to the camera. Generally, when the outside world is humid, moisture will be generated when you move the camera from one temperature to another. One solution is to carry your camera in a plastic bag while you move from one temperature to another. In fact, this solution is not practical, you cannot keep your camera in a plastic bag at all times.
When using it in a humid environment, in order to avoid moisture damage to the camera, we can only keep the camera warm as much as possible and wipe it regularly.
How to take photos of snow scenes
Many people have written about taking photos in their daily study, work or life. Taking photos of snow scenes is a hobby of many photographers. So how to photograph snow scenes? Below I have compiled some tips for photographing snow scenes for your reference!
Correct time
Don’t think that the first keyword we proposed is nonsense. Do you take it for granted that the correct time for shooting is when it snows? At this time, you need to learn to think like a photographer: When will the light that is conducive to shooting appear during the entire snowy period?
When snowflakes cover the ground, the covering will reflect light from many angles when it is illuminated by the sun, so we should avoid the time when the sun is too dazzling and choose a sunny day in the early morning before or after sunrise or in the evening. Scattered light is better at photographing the texture and layers of snow.
Practical equipment
The temperature of the environment for shooting snow scenes is low, so it is recommended that you consider bringing a more professional and reliable SLR. When it comes to shooting landscape works, telephoto and wide-angle lenses are the main ones. In addition, equipment that often needs to be carried includes tripods, polarizers, hoods, etc.
The temperature should be below zero
"Below zero" is the best temperature for taking close-ups of snowflake crystals. In the middle of winter in the north, this is when you have to prepare to look for these little things. . We can find many reasons for the formation of snowflake crystals from search engines such as Baidu and Sogou, but I will not explain them in detail here. Everyone just needs to remember that photographing crystals requires a cold environment with as little wind as possible, a lot of water vapor, and temperatures below zero.
"Snow Scene" White Balance
When professional photographers shoot snow scenes, they will habitually check the white balance setting of the camera before shooting. If your camera is still set to Regular "auto white balance", then you have miscalculated! The pictures you get in this mode will be "full of blues"!
If your camera does not have the function of manually setting the white balance, or you are not yet proficient in manual settings, you can directly select the "Snow/Cloudy" automatic white balance mode at this time; If you are already proficient in using your own camera, you can take custom white balance pictures against pure white snow according to different camera setting modes, so as to set the most correct white balance in the environment.
Step-by-step metering
When shooting, do you often see pictures of "white snow"? Don't worry, there is nothing wrong with your camera, the problem is that the "auto exposure mode" it uses is malfunctioning! In such a high-contrast scene, in order to reflect the dark and bright parts, you can meter the exposure separately and then combine it to get a more accurate exposure value.
"Background" comparison
When we shoot in the snow, you will find that the foreground to the background is all white. At this time, in order to reflect the level of the picture, it is often necessary to add the foreground to the background. Or add some pops of color to the background for contrast.
Backlighting and side backlighting
When shooting, you can boldly use some backlighting and side backlighting to depict the scenery. Even when shooting distant views of the sky and mountains on the ground, they can produce a profound effect. atmosphere.
Avoid condensation
Photographic equipment is the favorite of photographers. Due to the low temperature when shooting snow scenes, it is easier to move the camera from a cold place to a warmer place. When moisture condensation occurs, the camera will be temporarily disabled and unable to take pictures, so try to avoid this situation.
Give up the flash
When photographing snowflake crystals, in order to prevent the snowflakes from melting due to the hot temperature emitted by the flash being too close to the tiny crystals, we need to give up using the flash and turn on the flash to make the crystals more beautiful. An approach with light and texture.
Appropriate foreground
In snow photography, the choice of foreground is very important for photographers to create an atmosphere. Due to the special nature of the snow scene, it is difficult to have layers. Using icy branches, or roads, flowers, buildings, etc. covered with thick snow as the foreground of the shooting can increase the depth of the space, improve the expressiveness of the snow scene, and make the entire picture The connotation is richer, and you can also make a shaped border like the example picture to make the scene more emotional, so that the viewer will not be bored by the white snowy sky.
The generation of snowflake spots
When we shoot snowflakes flying in the sky, when the snowflakes are closer to the lens, and the focus area we choose is in the background area farther behind the snowflakes , then you will take a picture of a snowflake light ball.
Beware of water vapor
Have you ever found that when shooting with the viewfinder in cold weather, the water vapor you exhale sometimes makes the camera lens hazy? So you'd better carry a lens cloth with you to clean the camera at any time. Of course, it’s best to wear a mask while filming!
Smart use of polarizers
A good thing to make "the sky bluer and the white clouds whiter"? That’s right! When taking pictures of snow scenes, it is best to bring this good friend - a polarizing filter. The exposure compensation after adding a polarizer needs to be reduced by 1/4 to 1/3 compared to before without adding it.
Looking at snowflakes under a microscope
British scientist Hooke saw clearly the appearance of snowflake crystals under a microscope for the first time. And these snowflake crystals photographed by a microscope have become rare works of art in the world.
If we have a microscope with a magnification of 100,000 times, we can also try to take pictures of the crystals with a camera.
Shadows create a sense of hierarchy
Although winter feels soft but lacks details, in order to break the blandness, you can use shadows to balance the light and dark of the white picture. The shadow shape can also make the scenery more three-dimensional. feel.
Face exposure
① Choose a time when the light is not too strong, so that the subject’s face and background are moderately exposed when the light is smooth;
② , carry out bracketed exposure;
③. When the light is strong, use backlighting to shoot, and rely on fill light for dark parts.
Take some small scenes
While everyone is busy taking pictures of the vastness of the snow, you might as well focus your attention on the small scenes in front of you, such as the cute snowman and the ice crystals on the windows. , chairs covered with snow, etc. are all perfect winter themes.
HDR synthesis
When you want to shoot the colorful light and shadow of the sunset through the white trees under strong backlight, but you always struggle to grasp the dark details in the shade. , when the bright details near the sun in the sky can be fully reflected, HDR synthesis will be the best way to solve this problem.
We only need to make three exposures under this light: insufficient, normal and excessive, and then we only need to combine these three exposures to get a beautiful sunset and snowy scene with vivid details!
Shutter selection
When taking photos of flying snowflakes with people in the frame, choose a shutter speed below 1/60s to condense the snowflakes into lines, and set it to 1/ 80s to 1/120s can record the flying process of snowflakes; if there are walking characters in the picture, the above shutter speed can also prevent the characters from being blurred.
How to use a camera on snowy days
The tips for using a camera to take better results on snowy days can start from the following aspects:
Selection of equipment . The temperature of the environment for shooting snow scenes is relatively low, so it is recommended that you consider bringing a more professional and reliable SLR. When it comes to lens selection for shooting landscape works, telephoto and wide-angle are the main options. In addition, equipment that often needs to be carried includes tripods, polarizers, hoods, etc.
Equipment protection. Cold weather is bound to be a difficult challenge for both people and cameras. The first is temperature. People are afraid of cold, and machines are also afraid of cold. When shooting, you should consciously protect the camera with both hands to prevent snow and water from entering the fuselage. You can also prepare a camera anti-freeze thermal sleeve and put on a thick cotton coat for the camera. In addition, cameras have a certain operating temperature, and so do batteries. To keep warm, some camera battery packs can be placed in a warm pocket and then connected to the camera via a cord. This keeps the battery warm without interfering with shooting. If you find this troublesome, or if the camera is unable to do this, then the most primitive method available is to warm the battery beforehand.
When you return from shooting, don’t assume that your camera is safe. When returning from a cold place to a warm place, remember not to start taking pictures right away. Cameras, like people, need to adapt to new environments. If you take them out directly, the lens will be covered with a layer of moisture. Before taking a photo, wait a few minutes for the camera to warm up. In addition, when shooting with the viewfinder in cold weather, the water vapor exhaled by yourself may sometimes make the camera lens hazy, so don’t be lazy, wear a mask when shooting, and carry a lens cloth with you to clean the camera at any time.
Snow exposure techniques. Snow exposure is different from conventional exposure. The snow will reflect light very strongly under the sunshine on a sunny day, so it is difficult to set an exposure value to shoot a scene. The standard metering method that restores 18% gray will make white The snow surface becomes dark and gray in the picture, which will cause certain difficulties in shooting.
So at this time, you need to adjust the exposure of the shooting or use the backlight correction function to compensate for the amount of light on the subject to achieve the ideal shooting effect. You need to set the gain of the machine higher and at the same time when shooting Choose a darker control so that you can shoot better.
If you want to express the crystal clear temperament of the picture, you need to use snow as the side light benchmark, use spot metering to side light the snow surface, and increase the exposure value by 1.5 to 2 stops on this basis. , while restoring the bright white color of the snow surface, attention is paid to retaining the texture details of the snow surface. Of course, if you have the conditions, you can purchase some filters for shooting to achieve the best results.
Tips for setting white balance in snow. The automatic white balance of digital cameras is generally set to about 5600K to adapt to shooting in most light environments. However, the automatic white balance of digital cameras often fails when it comes to light that is too dark or too bright and complex light. The snow scene falls into the category of "too bright". Therefore, it is recommended that you try to manually control the white balance when shooting snow scenes, and try adjusting the white balance of the camera to a position of 8000K-10000K.
Scenery shooting skills. Since it is a snowy day, snow scenes are naturally the best theme to choose. Whether it is the crystal clear snowflakes falling on the shoulders or the goose feathers flying in the sky, they all give people a sense of inviolability and holiness. If you have photographed foggy scenes in autumn, you might as well try it again in winter. The looming haze in the snowy mountains is completely different from that in autumn.