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Going To Antarctica
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Jan 17, 2023 13:27:24   #
KerryF
 
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the experience of going from an a/c room to hot and humid outside and my lens fogged up. So my question for Antarctica, should I be concerned by going from a cold outside to a warm room? I had one person tell me to put my camera in an insulated lunch bag.

Also, I have been looking at silica gel packs to help absorb moisture and I wanted to know if the Ruggard Desiccant Silica Gel Pack (or Pelican or any other brand) is any better or same as the standard gel packs (reuseable)?

Thanks for your input/help.

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Jan 17, 2023 13:36:12   #
Bigmike1 Loc: I am from Gaffney, S.C. but live in Utah.
 
As far as I know silica gel is silica gel. I don't think it matters what brand.

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Jan 17, 2023 13:44:53   #
KerryF
 
Bigmike1 wrote:
As far as I know silica gel is silica gel. I don't think it matters what brand.


Actually, it wasn't so much the brand as comparing the little silica synthetic packets (30 of them) vs the silica packets that are in metal tins (1 of them for the same price). Both are reuseable, but the metal tins last longer. It's not a price comparison that I am after, just if one works better/more convienent or it's just personal preference.

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Jan 17, 2023 14:11:04   #
tonyjag Loc: Bolton, Ma.
 
We were in Antarctica in 2019 December on the Nat Geo Explorer. I don't recall any problem with cameras or glasses fogging up. The inside of the ship was not very humid. But silica gel sounds like a good idea. BTW
Here is a link to our pix
2019 Antarctica Collection (Andy & Tony): 
https://www.flickr.com/photos/tonyjag/collections/72157713758443993/

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Jan 17, 2023 15:47:56   #
Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States
 
If the camera goes from a hot humid place to a cold place, nothing will condense on the lens (or camera).

If the camera goes from a cold place (where the camera got down to ambient) to a warm humid place, the lens may fog, depending on the moisture in the air in the warm place.

Moist air condenses on a cold surface. It does not condense on a warm surface.

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Jan 17, 2023 23:43:03   #
hpucker99 Loc: Anchorage, Alaska
 
KerryF wrote:
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the experience of going from an a/c room to hot and humid outside and my lens fogged up. So my question for Antarctica, should I be concerned by going from a cold outside to a warm room? I had one person tell me to put my camera in an insulated lunch bag.

Also, I have been looking at silica gel packs to help absorb moisture and I wanted to know if the Ruggard Desiccant Silica Gel Pack (or Pelican or any other brand) is any better or same as the standard gel packs (reuseable)?

Thanks for your input/help.
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the... (show quote)


You want something that will prevent warm moist air condensing on your camera gear. When coming indoors, I remove the battery (for charging) and camera card (for reviewing). The camera body and lens goes into a sealable (ziploc) bag that I tightly compress to minimize the amount of warm air that is in the bag and amount of water that can condense on cold surfaces.

No recommendations on silica gel.

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Jan 18, 2023 06:00:06   #
sroc
 
KerryF wrote:
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the experience of going from an a/c room to hot and humid outside and my lens fogged up. So my question for Antarctica, should I be concerned by going from a cold outside to a warm room? I had one person tell me to put my camera in an insulated lunch bag.

Also, I have been looking at silica gel packs to help absorb moisture and I wanted to know if the Ruggard Desiccant Silica Gel Pack (or Pelican or any other brand) is any better or same as the standard gel packs (reuseable)?

Thanks for your input/help.
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the... (show quote)


I am currently in Ushuaia having just completed a nine day Antarctic cruise which included both Zodiac landings and cruising. I did nothing special with my cameras. Lenses did not fog going from ship to Zodiac to land.

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Jan 18, 2023 07:38:02   #
timbuktutraveler
 
KerryF wrote:
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the experience of going from an a/c room to hot and humid outside and my lens fogged up. So my question for Antarctica, should I be concerned by going from a cold outside to a warm room? I had one person tell me to put my camera in an insulated lunch bag.

Also, I have been looking at silica gel packs to help absorb moisture and I wanted to know if the Ruggard Desiccant Silica Gel Pack (or Pelican or any other brand) is any better or same as the standard gel packs (reuseable)?

Thanks for your input/help.
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the... (show quote)


I just came back from Antarctica last week.
Never a problem with cold /warm.
I did nothing but carry may camera around my neck.
It is summer time there now, with a temperature 30-40 degrees.
Many be got lucky, but everyone else in our group
did the same as me.

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Jan 18, 2023 09:07:18   #
V2volk Loc: St. Louis area
 
My Dream trip, what company did you go with? I need one that is single friendly if I ever go.

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Jan 18, 2023 13:40:39   #
jldodge
 
We went to Antarctica in December 2021. I took a Lowepro Waterproof camera bag. Inside was one of the Rugged Gel Pacs. Leaving the ship on one of the Zodiacs, there were a number of times that the camera bag came in handy given splashing water from the waves and rain. When I returned to the ship, I left the cameras inside the Lowepro bag while we ate dinner, usually 2 hours or so. After that, I took the cameras from the bag, cleaned them and inspected them. I never had a problem with condensation of any kind. Cameras worked fine the entire trip.

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Jan 18, 2023 13:51:04   #
Judy795
 
I was there in Dec 2019 with Muench Worksops. 90 pro’s and me. No one used any extra precautions except a wet bag on the Zodiac.

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Jan 18, 2023 14:48:49   #
BobHartung Loc: Bettendorf, IA
 
KerryF wrote:
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the experience of going from an a/c room to hot and humid outside and my lens fogged up. So my question for Antarctica, should I be concerned by going from a cold outside to a warm room? I had one person tell me to put my camera in an insulated lunch bag.

Also, I have been looking at silica gel packs to help absorb moisture and I wanted to know if the Ruggard Desiccant Silica Gel Pack (or Pelican or any other brand) is any better or same as the standard gel packs (reuseable)?

Thanks for your input/help.
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the... (show quote)


I'm preparing for my first trip to Antarctica in February and so far I have not heard of any problems with moisture. Although you will be on a ship the atmospheric humidity in the Antarctic is so low it is doubtful you will have a problem.

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Jan 18, 2023 14:49:16   #
JimGray Loc: Albuquerque, New Mexico
 
Judy795 wrote:
I was there in Dec 2019 with Muench Worksops. 90 pro’s and me. No one used any extra precautions except a wet bag on the Zodiac.


I have been on 3 polar cruises including Antarctica in Jan 2020 and never took any precautions regarding humidity and never had any problem with humidity. Sea water is a different matter. You need a waterproof bag (not just water repellent) for use on the Zodiacs. There will be times when you need both hands to hang on during some Zodiac rides. So you need to put your camera bag between your feet and not worry if some water puddles by your feet. I am sure the trip will be the trip of a lifetime.

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Jan 18, 2023 14:54:42   #
BobHartung Loc: Bettendorf, IA
 
JimGray wrote:
I have been on 3 polar cruises including Antarctica in Jan 2020 and never took any precautions regarding humidity and never had any problem with humidity. Sea water is a different matter. You need a waterproof bag (not just water repellent) for use on the Zodiacs. There will be times when you need both hands to hang on during some Zodiac rides. So you need to put your camera bag between your feet and not worry if some water puddles by your feet. I am sure the trip will be the trip of a lifetime.
I have been on 3 polar cruises including Antarctic... (show quote)


B&H carries a number of waterproof backpacks. I chose the one in the link due to its height(will hold a camera body with 70-200 zoom on end) the somewhat flat rather than round configuration and the roll close top with clip.

I placed a piece of 4" foam to line the bottom and will place my smaller camera+lens combination in a holster to protect the two cameras from one another. I'll throw in a couple of towels for good measure as padding.

Be sure to take some microfiber cloths or lens cloths to wipe moisture off the front lens element. And you might want to consider a lightweight camera rain cover.

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Jan 18, 2023 19:14:58   #
Brian45 Loc: Melbourne, Australia
 
KerryF wrote:
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the experience of going from an a/c room to hot and humid outside and my lens fogged up. So my question for Antarctica, should I be concerned by going from a cold outside to a warm room? I had one person tell me to put my camera in an insulated lunch bag.

Also, I have been looking at silica gel packs to help absorb moisture and I wanted to know if the Ruggard Desiccant Silica Gel Pack (or Pelican or any other brand) is any better or same as the standard gel packs (reuseable)?

Thanks for your input/help.
A number of years ago, I went to China and had the... (show quote)


Take warm clothes 😊

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