Winter is a beautiful time of year to photograph Big Bear Lake. When the snow starts to fall in the San Bernardino Mountains, Big Bear Lake becomes a winter wonderland that is amazing to witness in person. Capture those perfect moments on your next trip to Big Bear Lake by following these tips for winter and snow photography.
Dress for the Snow
Do you want some family shots with Big Bear Lake’s snowy mountains as a back drop? Dress your family appropriately so they both look good and stay warm. Everyone should be prepared with boots, gloves and layers of clothing that’s easy to shed when temperatures climb.
Keep the Camera Cold
Do you hate it when you get out of the cool car on a hot day and your sunglasses immediately fog up? The same thing can happen to your camera or smartphone camera lens if it’s left in a warm environment and you take it into cold weather for a photo shoot. Keep it in a cool place before you snap pictures and don’t leave it in a coat or against your body where it can absorb heat.
Keep the Batteries Warm
Batteries drain faster in colder climates. Carry extras and keep them in a pocket or coat near your body to keep them warm before you use them. This will prolong the life of your batteries and your photo shoot.
Have Your Gear Handy
Did you bring along a flash, a tripod or any other equipment? Use a backpack to keep your supplies in so you don’t have to set your bag down in the wet snow.
Watch Where You Are Walking
When you are walking through picture perfect fallen snow, make sure you don’t leave your footprints in a nature shot you want to capture. Nothing kills the vibe of a good winter nature photo like someone’s footprints in the middle of the shot.
Don’t Delete Your Images
We know not every picture is perfect. Resist the urge to scan your photos while you are outside in the middle of a shoot though. Images that look terrible in a small viewfinder may look great later on a larger screen.
Try Your Manual Mode
Snow is white and bright. It can overpower an image even in auto mode. Tinker with your camera in manual mode and try adjusting the aperture settings to create images that might make all the difference. Adjusting the ISO settings in manual mode can greatly improve your photographs in manual mode.
Learn how to set your white balance manually to make your snow nature pictures shine.
Use a Light Meter
If you have a handheld light meter, try using that instead of your camera’s internal light meter, which has trouble offsetting the brightness of the snow.
Try Overexposing Snow Images
Snow can be tricky. It looks beautiful and peaceful when you snap a picture of it but the photo may end up having a blue tint or look too gray. Do you have an image that didn’t turn out well on the color scale but you still love? Try using apps to overexpose those images to give them a cool vibe.
Erase Snowflakes
Are you trying to take pictures of actual falling snowflakes? Don’t get annoyed if some flakes were too close to the camera lens and take away from the rest of the image. Increasing the F-stop should keep them from looking too big near the lens. You can also always simply erase the snowflakes during editing.
Photograph Backdrops
We know it’s exciting to take pictures of snow. But don’t just get up close and personal photos of snow. Use great backdrops of the mountains and vistas to make your winter photographs shine.
Need some help finding some spots? Read our blog on the 8 best places to take pictures in Big Bear.
Book a Big Bear Vacation Stay
What are you waiting for? Charge up those camera batteries and start packing for your trip to Big Bear Lake. Schedule a Big Bear trip at Big Bear Frontier. We have cozy cabins and luxury hotel rooms ready for you so you can stay awhile and enjoy the winter season. Make your reservation today!
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