When we started planning our upcoming trip to Iceland, there were a number of things to think about: winter coats (not often found in the closet of us Florida girls!), boots, gloves, all that fun stuff. But as a photographer, there were a few other things I had to add to my packing list.

• The weather in Iceland can change in the blink of an eye, so in my quest to protect my camera gear from what sounds like frequent rain, I’m planning to pick up Lowepro’s DryZone 200 camera bag. It’s waterproof and it floats - even when fully loaded with gear. Let’s hope I never have to test that!

• I’m also looking into a rain cover to keep my camera dry for shooting while it’s raining.

• Hand warmers - easily tucked into gloves to keep fingers extra warm.

• My next purchase? Extra camera batteries. The cold saps batteries faster than normal so keep extra batteries in your pocket (and thus warm) until you’re ready to use them.

• Repeat after me: condensation is evil. Going from the cold outdoors to the toasty warm hotel will cause massive amounts of condensation on your camera. To minimize this put your camera in a sealed ziplock bag before heading in. Give it plenty of time to come up to room temperature before taking it out of the bag. Be sure to also bag your camera up before heading out into the cold.

• Next up, dorky but practical fingerless gloves/mittens. In extreme cold, remember not to touch metal (your tripod!) with bare hands. Ouch!

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Tags: Iceland, photos, tips