Nikon D70 in extreme weather

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

<mike@karin-mike.com> wrote in message
news:1122257445.138227.248950@g14g2000cwa.googlegroups.com...
>I just received my Nikon D70, and as I was reading the owners manual I
> noticed the operating range goes down to 32F.
>
> Any experience out there in colder conditions?
>
> I'm climbing Mt Kilimanjaro in Sept, and expect it to be around zero F
> at the summit.
>
> Thanks!
>
> Mike at karin hyphen mike dot com

You might want to talk to Nikon, as they do a lot of mods for extreme
conditions, but I think your problem will be the main battery holding a
charge at very low temps. Not sure what the best plan is. We used to wrap
the camera in hand warmers when I worked in the cold a lot. Maybe they make
something specific now.

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

On 24 Jul 2005 19:10:45 -0700, mike@karin-mike.com wrote:

> I just received my Nikon D70, and as I was reading the owners manual I
> noticed the operating range goes down to 32F.
>
> Any experience out there in colder conditions?
>
> I'm climbing Mt Kilimanjaro in Sept, and expect it to be around zero F
> at the summit.

Your best bet would be to get the accessory handle that allows the
use of AA batteries. Energizer Lithium AAs are not the same as
other primary or secondary (rechargeable) lithium batteries. Check
the data sheets (it's on the package in the store too) where it
states that the operating temperature range goes down to 40 degrees
below zero. That's the same temperature on either scale, Celsius or
Fahrenheit. Like all lithium batteries, they weigh much less than
other battery types for the energy they contain, which should be
another advantage for climbers. Not enough to offset the added
weight of the handle though, unless you'll be taking many sets of
batteries. I read an account not too long ago of a photographer's
experiences shooting in Antarctica. He was fortunate that he could
resort to NiCad batteries after discovering that his alkaline
batteries lasted for only 2 or 3 shots per set (if I recall
correctly). Lithiums would have been much better.

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

cathode <servolockedit@DESPAMhotSPAMmail.com> wrote:

>I can tell you from my experience that a D70 will keep kicking at very low
>temperatures. I was in Ottawa, Canada in Feburary this year during their
>annual Winterlude festival. As the name suggest it was deep winter there.
>The weather forecast for the three days I was there was no greater than -15
>celcius which I think is about zero farenheit.
>
>I shot with my D70 at sunrise, during the day and after sunset with do
>dramas at all. Factoring in windchill, no direct sunlight and knee-deep snow
>I'd estimate the temperature at times I was shooting was more like -20
>celcius (-4 farenheit) or even less.

I've used my old FE2 in at least -30C (no windchill, real temp)..
haven't tried the D70 yet. It's a good idea if possible to keep
the camera under your jacket or outer layer, where it will be a
bit warmer. Otherwise, your breath (or even just the warmth from
your face) will ice the viewfinder and possibly objective when the
temp is right down there. Lithium or other rechargeables will
supply current okay at low temps, but must not be recharged at
temperatures below 0. The LCDs will also react slowly at low
temps, but if you keep the camera generally under your jacket,
the heat retained in the camera ought to keep them from failing.
Probably best not to use the back LCD at really low temps.

--
Ken Tough

Archived from groups: rec.photo.digital (More info?)

On Mon, 25 Jul 2005 21:12:23 +1000, "cathode"
<servolockedit@DESPAMhotSPAMmail.com> wrote:

snipped
>Altitide is a whole other kettle of fish though and I can't even guess what
>that could do, if anything at all.

It will do bad things to microdrives.

http://www.steves-digicams.com/microdrive.html

Using the Microdrive Above 10,000 FT
The following came directly from IBM Support in answer to a user who
was thinking about using the microdrive on a vacation in Napal:

The Microdrive does need "AIR" to float the heads and typically
above 10,000 ft the mass of the air is too low and the drive requires
a pressurized environment similar to an aircraft or spacecraft. At
high altitude the air bearings begin to loose support from the air
molecules needed to provide the "air bearing" for the Negative Air
Bearing Surface (NABS) design of the head. If this "air bearing" is
removed or lowered (as is the case with low density air at high
altitudes) the head damages the media and you could have loss of data.
The drive is vented to maintain equal pressure inside and outside to
provide the air and to maintain the same pressure. This eliminates the
need for sealed and rigid covers that can tolerate pressure
differences.

The OEM Functional specification defines the warranty range for
operating altitude as 3,000 M or 9,000 ft (3ft/M). If the customer is
mountain climbing with a GPS or digital camera above 9,000 ft the
drive might have problems. (Mt Fuji ~ +13,000ft, Mt Raineer ~ +14,000
ft). Please note, this is the operating environment. Non operation at
high altitudes, including vacuum, have no ill effects on the
microdrive. Within passenger aircraft, the cabin is pressurized to
9-10,000 feet hence the drive would experience no difficulty operating
in an aircraft cruising at 35-45,000 ft !
******************************************************

"I have been a witness, and these pictures are
my testimony. The events I have recorded should
not be forgotten and must not be repeated."

-James Nachtwey-
http://www.jamesnachtwey.com/