Taking skiing/snowboarding photos

[OlieL]

Hi there

Am new to the board having recently taken out a subcription to the magazine. I'm off to Chamonix this weekend with some mates and would really appreciate some advice on taking photos of skiers / snowboarders. I have a number of questions:

1. Are there any equipment issues I should expect / plan to deal with when taking my Canon 600D up the mountain? Clearly I need to protect it in case I fall, and I also understand that I need to be careful about condensation forming on the camera / lens when coming in from the cold - any practical tips or points to watch out for would be much appreciated!

2. I have a Canon 17-55 2.8 IS USM and a Tamron 18-270 PZD. My thoughts are currently that I'll leave the 17-55 lens at home (or at least in our appartment) because it's expensive, heavy and being a 77mm lens, pretty chunky. Also there will be plenty of light on the hill with all that snow around and changing lenses on the mountain with gloves etc. on will be tricky to say the least. Would you agree?

3. Is it worth taking a polarizer with me - I understand that at altitude they can over darken the sky, and that a UV filter is probably best?

4. My Olympus Mju Tough has a dedicated snow shooting mode. The 600D lets you set up custom Picture Styles - by doing that, can I approximate a similar sort of effect, and what settings should I change?

5. Am I correct in thinking that If I change the metering mode to spot metering, then so long as the "spot" is on my subject then he or she will be correctly metered and that will avoid the main issue of the TTL metering system being misled by the reflections off the snow?

6. Finally, any technical / compositional tips and tricks would be much appreciated!

Thanks very much in advance for your help!

Olie.

[Troy]

Hi Olie,

I completely missed this, so it is probably too late now, but i shall give my thoughts on this anyway.

1. Equipment issue would all depend on yourself. Obviously protecting the kit is important, and allowing it to become used to new temperatures before being used. When you've come in from the cold, leave the camera in the bag for a while and allow it to get used to the warmer temperature.

2. The 17-55 will obviously give you a better image, but i think you're right. In that situation i'd just use the Tamron.

3. I'd take a UV filter if it was me, depending on what sort of thing you're planning on shooting. If anything it will add that extra bit of protection for your lens.

4. Custom pictures styles - no idea

5. Using spot metering should do this, yes. This will ensure your camera exposes for the subject rather than the sky and the snow too. However, this can be difficult to use properly if you have fast moving subjects!

6. Technical tips - shoot fast! Fast shutter speeds, continuous AF and continuous shooting. This will get you the best photos i think, and ensure you don't return home to a bunch of blurry shots. Composition, get down low for some cool action shots, and pick your backgrounds! There is nothing worse than a plain white background of snow, especially when a scenic landscape would look better in the background.