Photography in the Snow

Whilst it may have been causing all sorts of chaos, I've been enjoying the snow recently and especially now I'm back in York. Snow transforms the landscape, makes wildlife easier to spot and track, and can creates potential for beautiful photos out of otherwise mundane scenes. With the rapidly changing weather from sun to blizzard and back again, I've captured many photos I'm pleased with. Here's some from yesterday:

With the exception of the first photo, they all feature lighting that compliments the subject. Decent lighting makes a shot, and snow is very helpful for this. If you look at the last two pictures of the moorhen and mallard duck, you'll see how the light is bounced upwards from the snow. The ground acts as a massive reflector, filling in the shadows with light, enhancing the colours and giving the photos a soft flash look. In the third and fourth shots, the warm late afternoon night compliments the bluish colour of the snow. This colour combination is pleasing to the eye and also helps the exposure of the image. When shooting coots, early morning or evening shots are best as the harsher light during the day makes it difficult to expose for both the bright white beaks and the black feathers.

Here are some tips for shooting in the snow:

1. When setting your camera, compensate for the bright snow. I add in +1/3 stop for most photos, or +2/3 going up to +1 if a lot of the image is white. Even though most modern cameras are accurate with exposures, they don't know that you're shooting a picture full of snow that needs to be kept white and will darken the image otherwise.

2. Use the light. Get down low to make the most of the snow's reflections. Get up early or head out before sunset for the warmest light which will improve your photos massively. During winter you don't have to get up early or stay out too late either!

3. Don't let the weather put you off! Wrap up warm and wear gloves (that you can control the camera through!). If you're cold, you'll be shivering, won't want to hang around or lay down on the floor and you'll be thinking about a cup of tea and a warm mince pie when you get in more than your photos. None of which helps creativity...

4. Don't get snow on your lens' front element unless the "artistic" results are desired!

5. When you're out in the countryside, take more time to look around you. Stay still and really look for movement. There's more wildlife around than you think and moving slowly will help to put it at ease as well as reveal things you would otherwise have missed. But remember, if snow makes it easier for you to see animals, it also makes it easier for them to see you!