Photography tips

There’s nothing like a real-life winter wonderland to get you in the festive spirit, and whether you’ve been enjoying a spot of snow or not, there’s no doubt that snowy scenes make for a really striking image. We’ve put together our top tips for creating truly beautiful snow photography that you can cherish winter after winter.

Getting the gear right

Get your gloves on

You’re working with your hands, so make sure to keep them protected. These Kaiser Photo Functional gloves are perfect for snow photography as they let you cover your fingers with a mitten to keep them warm, but also allow you to remove the mitten so that you can accurately use the shutter and wheels on your camera.

Big boots

It’s simple, but we can’t stress this enough. Big, sturdy boots will keep you warmer for longer, which mean you can stay out longer to get that perfect shot.

Protect your camera

Keep your lens cap on your camera when you’re not using it to stop snow from melting on your lens. This prevents smudging, fogging, and even the possibility of condensation damaging your camera from the inside out. If your camera lens does get fogged up, don’t blow on it – use a microfiber cloth to wipe your lens. You should also keep your camera cold to stop condensation developing, and protected from the elements in a bag (plastic or otherwise) when not in use.

Dress warm – not hot

Make sure that you’re warm and covered, but remember that you’re likely going to be trekking around and building up a sweat. Avoid hypothermia and dress warm enough that you don’t freeze, but cool enough that you avoid heating up and cooling down rapidly.

Getting the right shot

Watch where you tread

Be mindful of where you walk when you’re out shooting snow – unless you want to have footprints going right through your shot, plan your steps carefully.

Create contrasts

As pretty as it is, snow upon snow does not make a great image. Create contrasts with trees and buildings, or props such as a bright umbrella or yellow wellington boots. Think ahead before you go out to shoot and prepare a few creative ways of getting interesting shots.

Shoot in RAW

This may be obvious, but shooting in RAW will get you the best results in the snow. This gives you greater flexibility to get better detail in the editing stages, as when you shoot RAW you have access to sharpening and noise algorithms in Lightroom that are more powerful than those in your camera.

Use your histogram

In snowy conditions, it’s best not to rely on your camera’s LCD screen as it’s unlikely you’ll be able to make a judgement about the photo. Often, slightly off backlighting, or the brightness reflected from the snow can make under-exposed images look really bright and correctly-exposed photos look washed out. Don’t delete any images in the field, and use your histogram to determine the actual exposure.

Now you’ve captured some beautiful snow photography, there are many ways to use it to spread a little Christmas cheer – why not print your image on a Foto Card, or mount it on a striking black background with a deckle edge for an extra frosty feel?

Want more ideas on how to improve your photography and prints? Check out the rest of our blog, or get in touch to see how Fotospeed can help!

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