How can I take photos in the winter?

laingsoft

Member
Joined
Apr 30, 2020
Messages
184
Location
Edmonton
Format
35mm
I live in a place where winter is long, cold and dark. I'm really struggling with finding subjects, compositions, and exposure on top.

During the winters up here we generally get around 6-8ish hours of sunlight. Sunrise and Sunset shots are difficult because the white snow tends to blow out because they can be so much brighter than the lowlights and mids. Midday sun is difficult as well because of the brightness of the snow and the long shadows.

Do you guys have any advice on getting good shots in winter? I feel like I wasted all of winter 2020 and only shot a few rolls.
 

TheFlyingCamera

Membership Council
Advertiser
Joined
May 24, 2005
Messages
11,546
Location
Washington DC
Format
Multi Format
Embrace the long shadows and use what you have. Start thinking in terms of abstract photography - you can get very interpretive with them. To deal with the snow issue, try a little bit of overexposure and then pull your development by 2-3 stops. That will help tame the contrast. Or just embrace the high contrast (see previous comment about abstraction).
 

Nicholas Lindan

Advertiser
Advertiser
Joined
Sep 2, 2006
Messages
4,219
Location
Cleveland, Ohio
Format
Multi Format
Moonlight pictures? I always liked Andreev https://photophilia.net/shergal/andreev/andreev.shtml Portraiture at a north window? Blizzards? Still lifes? Frozen stiffs?

I have more luck with snow B&W scenes in cloudy weather. Surprisingly, color slides of sunny winter scenes come out quite well.

And long nights are good for working in the darkroom.
 

AgX

Member
Joined
Apr 5, 2007
Messages
29,973
Location
Germany
Format
Multi Format
Bring your own light with you. One or two flashlights and make your own sun.
 

doughowk

Member
Joined
Feb 11, 2003
Messages
1,809
Location
Kalamazoo, MI
Format
Large Format
Contrast is good for alt. processes [high density ranges]. My biggest problem is freezing fingers. Last Winter got a 5X7 Shen Hao which has easy finger controls; but took very few shots even at otherwise comfortable temps [30f]. Need to get special gloves.
 
OP
OP

laingsoft

Member
Joined
Apr 30, 2020
Messages
184
Location
Edmonton
Format
35mm

Alex Benjamin

Subscriber
Joined
Aug 8, 2018
Messages
2,270
Location
Montreal
Format
Multi Format
Hi Iaingsoft

I'm in Montreal, and because of the bloody cold I don't shoot outdoors in the winter as much as I do at other times in the year, but I still enjoy it when possible. First advice I can give you is accept the way things are, that is, that because of the snow the contrast range might at times be extreme. I see it as an opportunity rather than an obstacle - to go out of my comfort zone, to explore contrast and not to be stuck with rules and principles - in photography, snow doesn't have to be white, some times, grey or grey-ish snow is what is best for the photo.

Second, and more practical advice, would be to bracket more often, if not systematically. I do much more often in the winter because I find scenes with snow much more difficult to meter accurately.
 

wiltw

Subscriber
Joined
Oct 4, 2008
Messages
6,364
Location
SF Bay area
Format
Multi Format
Use an incident lightmeter, so you know the level of the ambient light, rather than the reflected light readings fooled by a brighter-than-'average' scene.
 

MurrayMinchin

Membership Council
Subscriber
Joined
Jan 9, 2005
Messages
5,456
Location
North Coast BC Canada
Format
Hybrid
Plates...as in sheet film?

David Kachel's Selective Latent Image Manipulation Technique (SLIMT) works really well on contrasty scenes. I used it with sheet film, but you could use roll film if you had one body for 'normal' contrast scenes and one for 'contrasty' scenes.

Benefits are:

- once the contrasty film has been treated, it can be developed normally with normal contrast film, and

- doesn't effect contrast in the shadows like typical "minus development' does.

http://www.davidkachel.com/assets/cont_pt3.htm

I love winter light.
 
Last edited:

MattKing

Moderator
Moderator
Joined
Apr 24, 2005
Messages
51,992
Location
Delta, BC Canada
Format
Medium Format

Paul Howell

Subscriber
Joined
Dec 23, 2004
Messages
9,520
Location
Scottsdale Az
Format
Multi Format
So far good advice, I can only add to make sure your gear is winterized, use a older selenium indecent meter like a Weston 5 or 6 with a inverse cone, follow the old saying, meter for the shadows and develop for the highlights use a compensating developer, Pyro or a divided developer like Diafine.
 

juan

Member
Joined
May 7, 2003
Messages
2,705
Location
St. Simons I
Format
Multi Format
I’ve probably taken fewer snow photos than anyone here, but I always found a yellow filter (K2, 8, etc.) to help control it. It reflects a lot of blue light whi the filter controls.
 

Alex Benjamin

Subscriber
Joined
Aug 8, 2018
Messages
2,270
Location
Montreal
Format
Multi Format

gone

Member
Joined
Jun 14, 2009
Messages
5,505
Location
gone
Format
Medium Format
Have you considered moving? Portland, Or was the wrong place for my photography and myself due to the weather. Maybe try some studio stuff inside? I do that when it gets above 110 degrees outside here in Az (yes, I am moving) and it's been challenging and humbling because I've never done any of that. It's a good way to see how different types of light affect the negs and printed images for sure.

Sometimes we get all caught up in developers and films and forget that photography literally means 'drawing with light' in it's original Greek form. If the light is right things are magical, and it's always fleeting.
 

mshchem

Subscriber
Joined
Nov 26, 2007
Messages
14,276
Location
Iowa City, Iowa USA
Format
Medium Format
Get no sympathy from me. Iowa has Hot and very humid summers, cold as hell winters. Sunday, yesterday, was the first decent day in a week. Cool enough I could shoot some casual pictures of my friend and his family.
I have a huge walk behind snow thrower. All my grass is dormant right now from the heat.
 

Two23

Member
Joined
Jul 4, 2010
Messages
660
Location
South Dakota
Format
8x10 Format
I live in South Dakota and love winter! I even shoot wet plate from my car. For plates remember UV light is weak so add a half stop at least. I often shoot at night, especially with snow covered ground. As for moonlight it's just reflected sunlight.

Kent in SD
 

MurrayMinchin

Membership Council
Subscriber
Joined
Jan 9, 2005
Messages
5,456
Location
North Coast BC Canada
Format
Hybrid
Way back in the mists of time, at pretty much the dawn of the Internet, I remember seeing a website by some unknown to me guy named Clay Harmon.

Besides having a very nice website (think this was back when you had to do the coding yourself) he had a series of winter photographs that were beautiful in composition and masterful in print quality. I say masterful because most of the images were taken of blowing, drifting snow, at night, and lit by streetlights. No easy task!

He probably pouted for a while because he had a job during daylight hours, gave his head a shake, found a motivating force/project, then just got out there and photographed when/what he could.

There’s a lesson in that for all of us.

What he's up to now: https://www.clayharmon.com/images
 
Last edited:

Paul Howell

Subscriber
Joined
Dec 23, 2004
Messages
9,520
Location
Scottsdale Az
Format
Multi Format
I do that when it gets above 110 degrees outside here in Az (yes, I am moving) and it's been challenging and humbling because I've never done any of that. It's a good way to see how different types of light affect the negs and printed images for sure.

Where to? My wife and I just returned from Morro Bay, summer temps in the 60s lows in the 50s, most days afternoon wind, costal marine layer, just 10 miles inland temps were in the 90s to low 100s. But I don't know if I take the overcast all year long. And snow don't get me started on snow, or the tropics, spend 3 years in Southeast Asia and covered Africa for the wires.
 

NB23

Member
Joined
Jul 26, 2009
Messages
4,307
Format
35mm
Who the hell shoots in the summer? Ugly light.

Winter? Much better. Just aim and shoot.
 

ic-racer

Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2007
Messages
16,485
Location
USA
Format
Multi Format
I take my 8x10 out in the winter. I pack a small kit with a single lens and only 3 film holders and a tripod. Good boots and gloves and winter jacket. Metering, development and printing are kind of a trial-and-error art. Some work and some don't. Here are a few 16x20" prints on Ilford MG FB. I especially like these two because the snow on the distant branches makes them more visible in large prints.
Also, I don't stop down too much, since I enlarge. So usually f32. I try to avoid 64 and 90 if I know I want a huge print with fine detail.

 

Sirius Glass

Subscriber
Joined
Jan 18, 2007
Messages
50,155
Location
Southern California
Format
Multi Format
To avoid blown out exposures, use an incident light meter.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn more…