Best Cold Weather Film Camera

[neal3k]

From my Ad and Camera collection:

Leica I

Byrd Antarctic Expedition Leica Ad by Neal Wellons, on Flickr

Leica Standard

Wilkins Arctic Submarine Expedition Leica Ad by Neal Wellons, on Flickr

 

[Doug A]

Edmund Hillary used a Kodak Retina I for the first ascent of Everest, so that's one option.

My preferred solution- wear thin gloves under outer gloves. Remove outer gloves, take photo before frostbite sets in, replace.

My solution this past winter (10F on the coldest days) was light silk gloves inside ski mittens shooting a Nikon F6 in Program mode. Nothing to adjust. Pull the right mitten off with my teeth. Point the camera. Press the shutter button. Replace the mitten. I was never out in the cold for more than 10-15 minutes and had no issues with the Lithium CR123A batteries.

 

[rfaspen]

I'll say again. Zorki-C. Proven effective at 44 degrees Fahrenheit below zero. I wore medium thick gloves and we were active so blood flow was good (imagine vigorous Nordic skiing). I had the lowly I-22 lens on the zorkii but managed the elmar like aperture just fine. The camera was kept in a pocket of my shell jacket so it got plenty cool.😱 At -44F I found it uncomfortable when we stopped and stayed inactive for several minutes. Serious frostbite begins to affect the nose and ears rather quickly when I uncover them during rest breaks. My eyes wanted to freeze shut if I wasn't careful. I knew it would be wise to wind on the film very slowly, and worried it would break with each shot. I don't know if the shutter speeds were that close to the indicated speed on the dial, but sounded close. I took several shots in these conditions. I have come to admire my little zorkii-C. It has come through for me in other situations as well.

 

[raid]

I'll say again. Zorki-C. Proven effective at 44 degrees Fahrenheit below zero. I wore medium thick gloves and we were active so blood flow was good (imagine vigorous Nordic skiing). I had the lowly I-22 lens on the zorkii but managed the elmar like aperture just fine. The camera was kept in a pocket of my shell jacket so it got plenty cool.😱 At -44F I found it uncomfortable when we stopped and stayed inactive for several minutes. Serious frostbite begins to affect the nose and ears rather quickly when I uncover them during rest breaks. My eyes wanted to freeze shut if I wasn't careful. I knew it would be wise to wind on the film very slowly, and worried it would break with each shot. I don't know if the shutter speeds were that close to the indicated speed on the dial, but sounded close. I took several shots in these conditions. I have come to admire my little zorkii-C. It has come through for me in other situations as well.

WOW. This is very impressive.

 

[Hari]

Nikon F2. In cold weather, the battery pack MB-1 is separated from
the motor drive MD-2 and attached via cord MC-7 (hard to find cord).

 

[Alpsman]

Nikonos 3, doesn't even need a battery

 

[farlymac]

I think leaf shutter rangefinder cameras work better in low temps than most others. The one thing that has to be watched out for is the lubricant in the rangefinder levers getting stiff, thus the mirror may not turn correctly. But that's usually an issue on something that a "repair person" has over lubed, and can even happen in warmer temps if it's cheap lube and dries out.

I had a little Paxette that worked fine down to 20°F, and was easy to handle with gloves on. But it did not have a rangefinder, so you wouldn't like it, Tim. I've used other cameras in cold weather, and as long as the batteries were warm enough they functioned well. But a camera that will work with or without batteries is some thing like the Nikon F which only needs power for the meter, and will operate just fine without it. I try to use the thinnest gloves I can find that will still keep my fingers functioning, as they start to shrivel and stiffen below 40°F. I finally wore out the pair I was using this past winter, so will be looking for some new ones next season.

PF