How do you take photos in snow and cold weather?

Why does snow come out grey, and how do you fix it?

Nikon says modern camera meters are designed to recognise snow and expose it as white, and that a Snow or Snow/Beach scene mode, or matrix metering, will usually get it right.¹ If snow still looks grey on the screen, Nikon suggests overexposing with exposure compensation in steps: a third of a stop first, then two-thirds, then a full stop.¹

Which way to adjust depends on the picture. Nikon Japan's examples show three choices:

• Falling snow. +1.3 exposure compensation so the snow does not turn grey, with a lens hood to keep flakes off the lens and a fast 1/800 second shutter, handheld, to catch snow in the air.²
• A bird against snow. +0.7 exposure compensation because the snowy background is white.³
• Texture on a snow surface. -1.0 exposure compensation to emphasise the sunlit parts, in low light just after sunrise, with a 20mm lens close to the surface at f/11.⁴

Researched, not travelled. We have not tested these settings; they are the makers' own examples, given as starting points. We do not recommend any camera, phone or accessory.

What white balance works for snow?

• Sun or cloud. Nikon suggests the Sunlight white balance on sunny days and Cloudy when it is overcast, to avoid a colour cast.¹
• Blue snow. On overcast days snow can take a blue cast; Cloudy white balance corrects it, though Nikon notes you may prefer to keep the blue, because it reads as cold.¹
• Deliberately cool. A Nikon Japan snow-surface example sets 4760K to give a slightly blue tone.⁴
• Why cameras struggle. Google's engineers describe white balance as ambiguous: a camera cannot easily tell blue snow from white snow lit by a blue sky.⁵
• RAW. Nikon suggests shooting RAW if you are comfortable with it, so exposure and white balance can be adjusted later without degrading the file.¹

How do you keep camera batteries going in the cold?

• Start full, carry spares. Nikon says cold can drain batteries of any kind; start with a fully charged battery, carry one or two spares for long days, and keep them in an inner coat pocket.¹
• Warm, then insert. Sony says battery performance falls in low temperatures, so run time is shorter in cold places; it suggests warming the battery in a pocket close to your body and inserting it just before you start shooting.⁸
• Watch the pocket. Sony warns that metal objects such as keys in the same pocket can short-circuit the battery.⁸
• Spares somewhere warm. Fujifilm's manual says battery capacity falls at low temperatures and a depleted battery may not work when cold; keep a charged spare somewhere warm and swap as needed.⁹
• No hand warmers on batteries. Fujifilm says not to put the battery in direct contact with hand warmers or other heating devices.⁹
• Charging. Sony recommends charging between 10 and 30 degrees Celsius.⁸ One Fujifilm model's manual says its battery will not charge below +5 degrees Celsius; check your own camera's manual.⁹
• Long exposures. The Planetary Society warns that long exposures and cold nights drain batteries quickly.¹³

What does cold do to a phone?

• iPhone. Apple says iPhone and iPad are designed for ambient temperatures between 0 and 35 degrees Celsius. Below that, battery life may shorten temporarily and the device could turn off; battery life returns to normal when it warms up. A very cold device may not charge.¹⁰
• Pixel. Google says a Pixel below 0 degrees Celsius may shut down suddenly, and advises letting a cold phone warm up gradually.¹¹

For night and star photos with a phone, see Night and star photos with a phone.

How do you stop condensation when you come indoors?

Moving a cold camera into warm air makes moisture condense on and inside it. Sony gives the example of coming from a ski slope into a heated room, and warns condensation can cause a malfunction.⁶

• Seal it before you go in. Sony says to put the camera in a plastic bag, seal it tightly, and remove it once the air inside has reached room temperature, after about 1 hour.⁶ Nikon suggests zipping the camera inside its bag or backpack so it warms gradually; if it warms too quickly it will fog up.¹
• If it happens anyway. Sony says to turn the camera off and wait about an hour for the moisture to evaporate; with moisture left inside the lens, pictures will not be clear.⁷
• Drones too. DJI's winter guidance says condensation can form on a drone's battery and lens surfaces when brought indoors, and to wipe them dry promptly.¹²

How do you protect the camera while it snows?

• Lens hood. Nikon says a lens hood keeps raindrops and snowflakes from landing on the front of the lens.¹
• Lens and battery changes. Change lenses, batteries or cards indoors if you can; outdoors, block wind and snow from getting inside, and only change lenses outside if you must.¹
• Improvised cover. Nikon suggests a large zip bag or a shower cap held on the lens barrel with a rubber band, and a small towel for drying.¹
• No flash in falling snow. Flash lights up flakes close to the camera, which show as bright spots.¹

Will the camera itself cope with the cold?

• Most cope with freezing. Nikon says most current digital cameras are designed to work in weather down to at least freezing.¹
• Check the stated range. Sony's guide says shooting in extremely cold or hot places beyond the camera's operating temperature range is not recommended; check your own camera's specifications for its range.⁷
• Slow screens. Sony notes that in the cold the monitor image may appear to trail, and that this is not a malfunction.⁷
• Cold can help at night. The Planetary Society says colder temperatures give cleaner star images, because the sensor heats less during long exposures.¹³

What changes for drones in the cold?

DJI's winter guidance, written for its enterprise drones, gives these points.¹² For the flying rules themselves, see drone rules for the EU and Japan.

• Battery chemistry. Below 15 degrees Celsius a lithium battery's internal resistance rises, cutting its discharge capacity; DJI suggests preheating the battery to above 15 degrees Celsius.¹²
• Warm-up. Warm the drone up for about 1 minute after powering on, and hover for about 1 minute after take-off to finish warming the battery.¹²
• Margins. Keep more battery in reserve for the return flight than in normal temperatures, and avoid long spells at maximum thrust.¹²
• Snow and sensors. Avoid flying low, within 5 m, over thick or highly reflective snow, which can confuse the vision sensors; clear snow and ice off the aircraft before flying.¹²

What makes a good snow picture?

• Simplicity. Nikon notes that fresh snow covers clutter and gives pictures a graphic simplicity; tracks and patterns make abstract images.¹
• Low light for shape. A Nikon Japan example waits for calm, low light just after sunrise to show shadows on a snow surface shaped by the wind.⁴
• Reflections. Calm water acts as a mirror; Nikon's example places the horizon in the middle for a symmetrical picture.¹
• More shot types. See Travel photography shot types.

How do you keep yourself warm enough to keep shooting?

Nikon says the most important thing for comfort is warm hands and feet; some photographers use fingerless gloves, others thin gloves while operating the camera and warmer gloves or mittens between shots, and it suggests dressing in layers.¹ Nikon Japan's snow examples list gloves, a hat and hand warmers among their preparations.⁴³

What are the common mistakes?

• Grey snow. Not checking the screen and adding exposure compensation when snow looks grey.¹
• Taking a cold camera straight into a warm room without sealing it in a bag first.⁶
• Hand warmers pressed against batteries. Fujifilm says not to.⁹
• Flash in falling snow. It lights up nearby flakes.¹
• Charging a frozen phone. Apple says a device that is too cold may not charge.¹⁰

What this page cannot tell you

• Model differences. Operating and charging temperatures differ by camera and phone; the figures here are from the named maker's documents. Check your own manual.
• Drone guidance is for enterprise drones. DJI's winter page was written for its commercial range; its consumer cold-weather page could not be reached when we checked.
• Not tested by us. We have not taken these photos or tested these devices in the cold.
• Personal safety. This page is about equipment. For cold-weather safety, follow local official advice.

Related: Off-season Iceland · Off-season Hokkaido · Off-season Finland · Off-season Norway.