Tips for shooting in Foggy Conditions

[JayWPage]

I'm planning a photography trip to the BC coast sometime this year and I expect that it will be foggy at least part of the time. I'm hoping to take some landscape shots of shorelines receding into the fog, etc.

In the past I have had problems in foggy conditions with condensation forming on the camera lens so I'm wondering what other photographers do to prevent this. I have a Kata rain cover which seems to be alright for keeping the rain off, but I haven't used it much since I prefer not to shoot in the rain anyway. However, fog has an altogether different set of problems from rain, with focusing being one problem and the other being condensation on the lens.

I have been thinking that maybe condensation might be less of a problem if the camera could be kept warm before using it, i.e. kept in a padded camera bag with a hand-warmer, hot water bottle or some such thing.

Any suggestions? There must be many people on here who live in foggy places and who deal with these kind of problems regularly.

[bassman51]

Condensation occurs when you bring a colder object (i.e. a camera and lens) into a warmer and more humid environment.  This can be when leaving an air conditioned room and stepping outside on a humid day, or coming into a heated space from a frigid outdoors.  The solution is the same in either case: bring the camera/lens up to the new warmer temperature before exposing it to the humidity.  Typically, this can be done by putting the camera/lens in a sealed baggy before going out (or in) and leaving it there until the temperature had equalized. 

[Rand47]

Jay,

While bassman is correct re condensation, his solution won't help much in drifting/blowing fog.  I will use a Uv filter in those conditions and carry a clean, plush microfiber cloth with me.  The 12" square, plush ones (look like terry cloth) are pretty absorbent and do a good job of mopping up the moisture w/o damaging the coatings. 

Rand

[sniper]

Somebody told me to use those chemical hand warmer pads on the lens hood to help reduce condensation, don't know if it works though.  We don't get much fog here.

[JayWPage]

Somebody told me to use those chemical hand warmer pads on the lens hood to help reduce condensation, don't know if it works though.  We don't get much fog here.

Thanks for the suggestion, that is sort of what I was thinking re keeping the camera warm.

I may also try putting some Saran wrap over the lens hood and "roughly" composing the picture before removing it for the picture. That might work for the first image anyway. I also have a clear plastic shower cap with an elastic around the edge, the type that you get in hotel rooms, to keep the condensation off the lens between shots.

[pcgpcg]

While bassman is correct re condensation, his solution won't help much in drifting/blowing fog.  I will use a Uv filter in those conditions and carry a clean, plush microfiber cloth with me.  The 12" square, plush ones (look like terry cloth) are pretty absorbent and do a good job of mopping up the moisture w/o damaging the coatings.  

+1
Exactly what I do. I also keep a couple active handwarmer pads in my bag to help prevent condensation, but you will need the cloth to wipe the moisture (which is not condensation) off your filter.

[chez]

Somebody told me to use those chemical hand warmer pads on the lens hood to help reduce condensation, don't know if it works though.  We don't get much fog here.

It's not condensation that is the problem. The fog just contains hugs amounts of water vapor in it. The trees drip from the noiseless almost like it's raining.

I've shot on the west coast of Vancouver Island in dense fog and I took a rain jacket for my camera and lens and had two UV filters which I continually changed and cleaned. Between shots, keep a lens cap on your lens.

[Rand47]

It's not condensation that is the problem. The fog just contains hugs amounts of water vapor in it. The trees drip from the noiseless almost like it's raining.

I've shot on the west coast of Vancouver Island in dense fog and I took a rain jacket for my camera and lens and had two UV filters which I continually changed and cleaned. Between shots, keep a lens cap on your lens.

Exactly!  If it is warm enough to be genuinely foggy on the coast, it isn't going to be cold enough for camera condensation to be much of a problem (unless you had the camera in a VERY warm place, prior).  Chez', idea is a good one, though I've done fine w/ the plush microfiber cloths to keep the filter clean and dry.

Rand

[sniper]

Exactly!  If it is warm enough to be genuinely foggy on the coast, it isn't going to be cold enough for camera condensation to be much of a problem (unless you had the camera in a VERY warm place, prior).  Chez', idea is a good one, though I've done fine w/ the plush microfiber cloths to keep the filter clean and dry.

Rand

If it's that wet your going to get some moisture on the lens front element while changing filters ( the lens cap has to come off at some point), and even with a microfibre cloth the filter you've cleaned will still have small traces left which is then going back onto the front element.
Personally I'd leave the filter on and just dry that best you can.

[chez]

If it's that wet your going to get some moisture on the lens front element while changing filters ( the lens cap has to come off at some point), and even with a microfibre cloth the filter you've cleaned will still have small traces left which is then going back onto the front element.
Personally I'd leave the filter on and just dry that best you can.

It take a full couple seconds to change a wet filter with a dry filter. I then dry the wet filter with a cloth. I don't see any moisture getting onto the lens.

I keep the lens cap on right until I'm ready to compose a shot. Obviously this reduces the amount of moisture that gets onto the lens.

I find trying to dry a moisture laden filter while on the camera frustrating. I can do a much better job at drying when the filter is in my hands.

[Gilgamesh]

Remove the UV filter, that cures a whole lot of issues.

I was recently taking pictures both in the thermal "fog" at Yellowstone National Park and also below Niagara Falls in all the spray.

One very foggy & one where I got soaked for two hours - removing the UV helps as does having the camera and lens "at temperature".

Lots of tissues to hand (be careful as some are coated in Balsam), a waterproof jacket and good boots. Ensure you've had a good meal and been to the loo recently  . A Thermos of soup / tea is always a blessing too.

[Some Guy]

Curious as to how to stop fungus growth if it is that damp?  I'm not too worried about wiping off exterior glass, but the internal fog bothers me.

Someone suggested leaving the caps off and let it sit in the sunlight.  They thought the fungus likes the dark and causes it to grow.  Maybe UV light?  I had a prism in an old film body get attacked.  When I got it back from repair along with the spider-web looking prism, it felt like it ate into the glass or coating.

SG