Tips for Beautiful Winter Photos

Adjust Exposure Compensation

One of the biggest challenges you’ll face when taking pictures in winter is color adjustment. If you don’t adjust the exposure compensation, the snow will look gray in the pictures instead of white. If you want the snow to look the gorgeous white that it’s in reality, you should adjust the exposure compensation by +0.3 or +0.7. This is because the light isn’t as bright in winter as in summer. 

Prepare Battery Back Up

Imagine being in a scenic location with your camera ready to take the shot of the year, but alas! Your camera battery just died! This is every photographer’s nightmare. Batteries drain a lot faster when it’s cold, so you should keep that in mind and keep extra batteries. Keeping batteries warm can also help keep them charged for longer. One way to ensure your batteries don’t die when you find the perfect landscape is to keep spare batteries in the inner pockets of your jacket, close to your body’s heat.

Make Sure Your Camera Doesn’t Fog Up

Another challenge that you’ll face when taking pictures in winter is the fogging on the camera lens. The moment you step indoors with your camera, the lens will fog up, and it can take several minutes before it gets defogged. A photographer knows how crucial these several minutes can be. You can miss the perfect moment. One tip that’s going to help you in winter photography is always to keep the camera in your bag with the lens cover. This will prevent fogging of the lens. 

Use a Lens with Greater Focal Length to Capture Snowfall 

Many photographers struggle to capture snowfall. If you’re one of those who just can’t capture snowfall in its true beauty, here’s a tip: use a lens with a focal length of 70mm or above. The best choice is a lens with a focal length of 200mm. Try shooting at a narrow curvature and fast shutter speed. The result will be blurred snowflakes right in front of the camera, giving a truly magical effect!

Capture Landscapes at Sunrise and Sunset

You’ll get the best landscape shots at sunrise and sunset. This is when the light will be the best, and you’ll get the most dramatic pictures. 

If you’re planning to get married during the winter, your first concern might be the pictures. But, if you’ve got an experienced NC wedding photographer like the one we have at Doug Burke Photography who knows how to take pictures in the winter, you’re pretty much sorted!