Do you use your cameras in the rain?

Do you use your cameras in the rain?

  • No, never.

    Votes: 73 9.4%

  • Sometimes, only when its slightly raining.

    Votes: 438 56.6%

  • I dont mind using my cameras in strong rain.

    Votes: 263 34.0%
  • Total voters
    774
To shoot this... yes!


After taking this shot and returning to the car, I remember tipping my Hasselblad upside down to pour out all the rain.

Stu :)
 

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Guys

One of my cameras is really rusty inside, it is a Kiev and built like a T-35/85 (the prime Ru anti tank weapon), I bought it like that.

If you let your camera go down to ambient temperature when it is cold outside it will be full of H20 which will cause internal rust or worse, dont worry about rain.

If you take street night shots in the rain it improves them no end, standing water fills in the shadows, with beautiful reflections. Alas no scanner no show.

I've had to turn bag upside down and leave camera on radiator, it seems to survive. The household hot room (airing cupboard) will get any condensation out of a lens.

An unbrella and 'water tight' bag are useful.

Noel
 
An afterthought.

Same Kiev in cafe, waitress spilt beverage into open case, I did not notice how much, forgot to dry off camera, next day leather (pre '72 Kiev) lifted off in patches, had to remove several parts and reglue. Dont use water proof glue it makes replacement easier, if you need to.

Had to put the case through the front loader, it was a Lowe gadget bag not the Kiev's smelly ERC.

Noel
 
When I visit Hong Kong it's unavoidable. This is where an everready case really comes into its own. Pop the camera out for a quick shot, and then back in the case to protect it.
 
Why not? A good photo is something tha you will miss more than your camera.
I admit I am picky about electronic cameras in rain, but mechanical RFs can take quite a beating (maybe the light meter will die though).
 
I confess to being rather harsh on possessions in general, and living in England take rain as a fact of life. Earlier this year took a Leica I to London (St Patrick's Day - superb day, thanks to ManGo), and during a short but sharp shower it suffered an ingression of water into its viewfinder that took 4 days of suspension over a radiator to clear.
Realised that older equipment deserved greater respect, and thinking that a modern camera would be less of a worry, bought a Bessa R from CQ.
Again, its the viewfinder that has suffered in the British rain over the summer - after drying out, a small but visible grease mark has been left on the inside of the front glass.
Its easy to open up the back of a camera and remove the lens to facilitate ventilation, but it can be a bitch to drive moisture from a viewfinder. I for one will be more careful when using a rangefinder in the rain.
 
I've voted "No", as I don't use my film cameras in the rain. However, the 350D has been used in a good number of rainshowers.

The bottom line is, my film cameras are pretty irreplaceable... especially the Leica Standard. :)
 
The rain has been very very thick and opaque round here these days, seems to stick to everything and pile up. 14" yesterday!
 
In the rain, on a train
in a boat, with a goat
I use my camera here or there
I use my camera anywhere.
 
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I said "sometimes" but it's really more about me than about my cameras. I don't want to stand outside long enough to get drenched unless I'm in raincoat and proper hat, at which point my camera is probably pretty well protected too. My sister tells me this is very unnorthwestern of me.
 
If it's a mechanical camera like an om1/leica/even my om2, I'll use it in the rain no worries. I mean you don't want to hold it out in the rain for hours, but if you generally keep it covered when not shooting and then pull it out for shots, theres no problem. Back when I had my 30d, we had pretty horrific thunderstorms down here during the middle of the year. I went out with a 17-40f4L to capture them. The camera spent 30 mins in the open rain and wind. I used a UV filter on the 17-40 (which is supposed to seal it from weather - it has a rubber o ring around the base where it goes onto the eos mount and the zoom/focus ring are sealed) and the 30d was sitting bare. After 30 minutes the camera and lens was well and truly wet. Every now and then I'd wipe the water off the uv filter, and wipe down the camera with a cloth.

Camera and lens were fine.

I'd have no problems using my 5d like that either - I think they're a lot more tolerant and resistant than people give them credit for.

Also I just read an article last night where a couple of explorers each took 2 5ds into the arctic circle with L lenses (generally weatherproof). They took 2 each in case the 1st one died from the massively cold temperatures. They said their breath on the LCD screen would immediately turn to ice, and that the LCD would be very slow to respond and lost contrast. The 5ds endured seriously well below freezing temperatures. They noted that below a certain point they would stop working. Can't remember the actual temperature but it was pretty ridiculous. Once it rose up a few degrees the cameras would work perfectly again. They had a shot showing one of the 5ds completely blanketed in frost and ice. One of the cameras had over 80K shutter actuations through it.


If I really wanted to work in the weather with a modern camera - in heavy rain and conditions, I'd just go out and buy an olympus e-1 or e-3. Both are weather sealed to the point where they could be called waterproof. There are people that actually wash the cameras underneath a tap to clean them.

Have a look:

e-1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmoskUtCnoY
 
If I'm brave (some say dense) enough to carry my DSLR into the ocean, I'm definitely not going to worry about a little rain or snow on my rangefinders.
 
I can't say I baby my cameras, but I wouldn't dunk any of them in a bucket of water, either. Except my (evil) 1v, that thing is amazingly weatherproof!
 
Just out the other day in a wet snow, with the .58 M7, probably the worst conditions other than a downpour- the camera was warm enough to turn the snow to water on contact, but cold enough to condense my indoor air when I came back inside. Put the camera in our cold pantry for a while, dried it off, then moved it to the warmer back stairway before putting it away. No ill effects, I shot the camera again yesterday and all was as it should be.
 
If you're worried about getting your camera wet get one of these! :D

cameraumbrella.jpg
 
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