ngrea Loc: Sandy Spring, Maryland

My niece is in Antarctica this season. She says the cold drains camera batteries very fast (sometimes 15 minutes). She was going to take her Nikon out today in a pouch with hand warmers. she is going to the South Pole Station next week, where today’s temperature was -53 with windchill “off the chart” .
Does anyone have suggestions for protecting battery life?
Thanks

mas24 Loc: Southern CA

In North Midwestern USA, there have been temperatures as low as -40F. Winter colds can not only affect the battery, but the camera too. The Pizza delivery person carries a certain kind of bag to keep your pizza warm. You need something similar to what that pizza bag is made of. To insulate the battery and camera. Good luck.

Bill 45

It just an idea, why don't she use a film camera that only need a battery to work the light meter or one of the German cameras made in the 1950s that had no battery at all. Tell her to use the sunny 16 rulers

ngrea Loc: Sandy Spring, Maryland

It’s too late to change camera now. She had to take everything she needed with her (including guessing what medications she might need) within tight weight limits. There are no stores and no shopping on-line. She’s there and it’s too late to mail packages for this season. October 15 is the deadline, with no guarantee that any mail will make the priority for shipping because science equipment goes first, then less important things like fresh food. Well, maybe fuel has a high priority.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

She may want to contact this guy and find out what he does:

https://www.antarcticimages.com/

Harry0 Loc: Gardena, Cal

Keep spare batteries in an inside pocket. Swap em when you feel the need to.
A camera can fit inside a large parka. Even if you have to take the lens off.
And a warm camera gathers no condensate.
Howsa bout battery packs? I have a couple 8x 18650 units. With a 3 meter cable, they get handy. Keep the pack in an inside pocket, and just the USB cable peeks out..
Seque:
I also have a water bottle with a strap carrier, that I also keep inside my jacket.
Filled with warm tea, it helps keep a tiny bit of chill off while I acclimate.
Then on, if I'm thirsty, I have 96degree tea available.
Yes I live by LAX. But I'm from Philly, and I have relatives and various progeny in NJ, PA, AR, AK and WA.
Who don't seem to mind me visiting in January, when flights are real cheap. Not too much, anyway.

Vietnam Vet

A couple of years ago I saw a battery pack that you could carry in your pocket that attached to a camera with a long cable. But I don't see it on the BnH site.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

Cold really effects batteries.... and there's not a whole lot you can do about it.

When I was doing a lot of cold weather shooting years ago, I'd simply carry spare batteries and keep them inside my coat where body heat would keep them warm.

After the battery in the camera succumbs to the cold, swap it out for a warm one.

After it warms back up, the original battery will recover some of it's power and be usable again.... so you can swap it back when the second battery stops working due to the cold.

Keep doing that with two or more batteries, alternating between shooting with them and warming them back up.

I didn't bother trying to keep the camera warm. Just the batteries.

Note: Cold also can effect the lubricants and mechanisms in cameras. It's not uncommon to have cameras specially prepared for cold weather shooting with lighter than usual oils or greases, to help them continue to work in the cold. (Don't make regular use of a winterized camera in warmer climates... it may wear faster than usual unless the lubricants are again changed to something more appropriate for the ambient conditions.) Modern cameras most likely use synthetic lubricants that are less prone to problems in temperature extremes, than the old petroleum based lubricants were.

ALSO when using a camera out in the cold, bringing it back inside where it's warmer can cause condensation that damages optics, circuitry and more. To prevent that, when done shooting out in the cold, seal the camera up thoroughly inside two layers of plastic bags before bringing it inside. Then allow it to warm up for 45 minutes or an hour, before unsealing the bag and taking the camera out. We used to use a couple large garbage bag to hold an entire backpack full of camera gear. If it's just the camera and one lens, smaller plastic bags might be used.

prg Loc: Palm Coast Fll

I kept my spares inside my innermost garment along with a hand warmer. It worked well.

fetzler Loc: North West PA

Keeping the batteries warm as suggested by others is a good idea. I have used film cameras in cold weather. Film becomes brittle in cold weather. I recall shredding the sprocket holes in 35mm film in very cold weather. I suspect roll film will fair a bit better. Antarctica is very cold. Thermal shrinkage and brittleness of many materials at low temperatures affects many mechanical devices. It would be good to consult professional photographers and the camera manufacturer with regard to camera performance. Camera manuals state a temperature range for proper operation. (remember this is the camera temperature) Antarctica and even cold winter weather in the northern US are outside this range.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

When shooting for UPI, we had photographers assigned to both area's from time to time. The Nikon F3 had a battery pack you could put inside your coat next to your body to keep warm and a wire went out to the camera, no issues. Nikon would take all the grease or oil out of their camera's that were to be used in very cold temperature's upon request. Today most pro's take two are three or four extra batteries with them and keep them inside there coat until they are needed. I do not know how long these warmed batteries lasted once they went into the body but, I heard no complaints. The electronics should hold up, I never heard about any break downs on that issue. I believe there is very little grease in today's mirrorless camera's.
Good luck and keep on shooting until the end.

ngrea Loc: Sandy Spring, Maryland

I appreciate your suggestions and am passing them on to my niece.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

If the pouch with the hand warmer doesn't do it, nothing will. I think the length of time she spends outside in those temperatures would be a limiting factor.

hpucker99 Loc: Anchorage, Alaska

Check out the external batteries and couplers at TetherTools. The coupler replaces the camera battery and has a cord that exits through a slot at the battery hatch. The exterior end is a 2.5mm (?) jack, so you need a 2.5mm to USB cable. The USB end will be plugged into the external battery that you can keep inside your jacket interior pocket with a hand warmer. If she doesn't have an external battery, the lithium ion batteries do better in the cold that a lithium polymer. I was shooting a time-lapse last winter and watched the Li polymer external battery die in 10 minutes in 20F. Brought the setup home, put it in the garage and it shorted right up.

ORpilot Loc: Prineville, Or

Some camera manufacturers make an external battery pack. Some 3rd party companies also make them. If it were me, I would take a dead battery or sacrifice one. Take it apart and remove the guts. Solder fine wires to its terminals. Drill a hole in the battery cover for the wire to exit. Then I would us gut a battery charger sodder the wires from the camera battery. Wa La , you have an external battery for your camera.
When I lived in Alaska. Teaching photography was always a cold weather challenge. Film gets stif and breaks. Advancing the film too fast can cause static electricity strike on the film. Petroleum lubrications get stiff or won’t move. Most cameras were stripped of oils and lubed with graphite or newer silicone. Lenses fog and freezing with your breathing or just from your eye. It’s tough out there. Fingers like to stick to cold metal. I was hoping to win a spot to go to the Antarctic this November but like thousands of other entrants, I lost. Enjoy the trip.