Guide to winter sports photography and winter action photos
Your winter vacation is coming up and we want to give you a few tips on how to take impressive shots for your photo album or your next Instagram post. You don't always have to have a super-telephoto lens on your camera. Here we give you the best tips for successful shots around the ski slope, toboggan run and other winter adventures.
The perfect Lens for your winter vacation
A zoom lens is an excellent compromise between sharpness and flexibility, as you can easily adjust the image section from your position. However, action-packed shots work particularly well with a wide-angle lens in the 16-35mm range. A perfect zoom lens offers a good aperture with a wide zoom range, for example from 35-150mm or 50-400mm.
Taking action photos on the ski, toboggan or snowboard run
If you want to take some impressive photos in the snow, you can do this using the "panning" technique. This involves panning the subject as you take the photo, blurring the background and creating a motion blur. For this exposure technique, we need a relatively slow shutter speed, which of course depends on the weather and brightness. You can use the following values as a guide:
- Slow moving objects: 1/30 to 1/60 second.
- Faster moving objects: 1/100 to 1/200 second.
The aperture should be from f/2.8 to f/8 so that the subject remains sharp during panning.
Another way to create action in your pictures is to use a wide-angle lens under 35mm, the distortion creates more dynamics in the shots, which gives the picture more action. The closer you are to the subject, the stronger this effect becomes. Flying snow also helps to create more action; for example, another person can throw snow into the picture. Also try to take the lowest possible position. Because the lower you are, the more heroic the picture looks.
Snowboard shots in deep snow
Heroic images with snow and backlight / sidelight
Merge series shots into one large image
POV fisheye photos - taking the viewer along in vlogging style
Making the most of dramatic lighting situations on the ski slope
The action cam for the aftermovie!
Do you remember your last school trip? Did you also have that one classmate who cut a video with a camcorder or action cam as a souvenir of the school trip? Every 10 years you unpack this video and simply remember all the great moments of that trip. That's exactly why you should take the time to record a few shots and create your own aftermovie later.
Nowadays, action cams not only offer excellent image quality, but also solid image stabilization and an impressive range of accessories. With the Osmo Action and the Osmo Pocket, DJI now has two devices on the market that make it child's play to capture vacation moments cinematically.
DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro Adventure Combo
- Lens: 155° field of view
- Aperture: f/2.8
- max. photo resolution: 7296 x 5472 px
- 4K video resolution up to 120fps
- Diving depth: 20 m without the waterproof housing
- Diving depth: 60 m with the waterproof housing
- Pre-recording, never miss a moment again
- Image stabilization and horizon compensation
- Innovative charging cradle for 3 batteries
Realizing long exposures and light pullers in winter
Use the dark time of year to take a few experimental long exposures, for example to take a photo of cars coming off the ski slope and driving down into the valley to their hotel. To capture the car lights as light trails in the serpentines. Some ski slopes also offer descents in the evening. Many skiers wear a headlamp, which can also be used to create interesting light trails on the ski run.
Photography accessories for winter
When we think of the best accessories for winter, there are a few things you don't want to miss in your photo backpack. What we won't list here, but should definitely be present, are a few more batteries, as they discharge more quickly in the cold.
PGYTECH photo gloves
Warm hands and good control of the camera, with gloves for photographers the camera can be operated perfectly.
- Glove design ensures greater comfort when using devices
- professional waterproof and breathable HIPORA lining
- 3M Thinsulate high-performance cotton against cold
Rollei F:X Pro Magnetic Round Filter MK II Gray Filter Set 82mm
- comprehensive gray filter set with CPL, ND8, ND64, ND1000 and magnetic base ring
- magnetic: no screws or jammed round filter threads
- Filter types printed on the outside of the filter ring
- including practical, magnetic caps for easy and safe transportation
Hoya Sparkle 4x 82 mm
The star filter is celebrating its renaissance this year. This star filter splits the light sources into 4 star-shaped beams.
- creates four stripes of light
- gently highlights light sources
Hoya Fusion One Next Protector 82mm
Contrary to a UV filter, the protective filter from Hoya actually offers protection against stone chips and the like, as this glass is hardened differently than the glass of a UV filter. It is recommended to use such a filter if you want to work with flying snow and co. Because snow is not always 100% free of stones or other hard impurities or ice.
- Protects the front lens of your Lens
- Dirt and water repellent
- 18-layer coating for very high light transmission
- Made from Hoya's professional-quality optical glass
Zeiss anti-fog set
Lens and camera displays tend to fog up in winter when the temperature varies greatly, especially the viewfinder and the display tend to fog up from breathing. The Zeiss anti-fog set can prevent or rather reduce this.
