Is it ok to take my Nikon D3100 out in the snow?
I just purchased a Nikon D3100 and I'm still learning about it. I was wondering if its ok to take it outside to take picture of the falling snow. I don't want to ruin my camera because it was cheap but I'd love to get pictures of the falling snow.
If you have any tips or tricks for using the camera those are greatly appreciated also.
If it were me I wouldn't risk it and get a waterproof case
Sure.
As the battery gets cold, you will need to warm it back up.
Most of us who shoot in cold weather, carry a spare battery in a pocket nearest our skin so we have a warm one at hand when the other gets cold and stops working.
The only thing I would watch out for is condensation. Moving the camera from cold to warm environments can cause harmful condensation.
Sure, it'll be fine in winter weather.
If a bit of snow falls on the camera or lens, dry it when you get inside with a microfiber cloth or a towel. Also, leave it out of the bag and let it warm back up before returning it to the bag. Also, as was mentioned, be aware of battery temperature. If the battery gets cold, it will stop working until it warms back up.
I wouldn't take it out in blizzard or white-out conditions without some protection. But for just a regular snowfall, you'd be fine.
If it's really snowing (blizzard) and the snow is very wet, cut a lens-sized hole in a large ziplock bag. Peek the lens through the hole and rubber-band the bag around the lens barrel. Then, zip the camera in the bag with the strap sticking out of either side of the zipper. Tape around the zipper where the straps are out, and use the camera as normal. Composing through a ziplock and the viewfinder, and working the controls will be difficult, but your camera will be safe.
I've had my D60 and D90 in snow, and even in -30 and -40 weather, and except for cold batteries, they work great!
Cool the camera down to below freezing so the snow won't melt on the camera.
I've had my D40 in -10 to 25 deg F temperatures for hours at a time and it worked fine. Even shooting in moderately heavy snow conditions. When outdoors, I keep my camera in a knapsack to keep it as close to the outside temperature as possible.
When you bring the camera in to a warm environment, condensation will build up if it's humid inside. If there's people inside, it's humid, even if you think it isn't. You can seal the camera in an air tight plastic bag (brush off the snow!) before you bring it inside and let the camera warm up in the plastic bag for an hour. This will avoid condensation since the dew point outdoors will be pretty low compared to the indoor temperature.
Shooting tip: use the camera in manual mode. Your exposure will usually be incorrect shooting in any of the auto modes (scene, auto, or PAS modes) due to the snow. Set the LCD view to highlight mode so you can see overexposed areas. Histogram mode can be useful, but I find highlight mode to be easier to assess the overexposure issues.