Water Resistance Expectations for Professional Camera Equipment

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Alistair

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I was wondering what realistic expectations folk have of professional grade camera equipment used in wet conditions. I was photographing and videoing rugby games last week in persistent rain. I was out in the rain for 3-4 hours. I would not call it torrential, as one might expect in the tropics, but it was steady the whole time and there was no wind to speak of. I wore waterproofs but left camera and lenses unprotected and they were completely drenched and dripping. Overall they performed without issue other than when I had finished and went indoors, the camera remained on when I switched it off. I toweled it off and took the battery out. After a few minutes I put the battery back in and it had "fixed" itself and it reverted to normal operation. Left it overnight to dry out and it was fine again for the next day's duties.

Am I expecting too much using the equipment this way or should these outrageously priced professional level devices be designed and built for these conditions? Do others take precautions against inclemency of this nature? Thanks in Advance!
 
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At the bottom line, your decisions will most likely be driven by your budget (i.e. what gear you can afford to lose and replace) and your need for the image. There are a whole lot of IPX standards, but not all of the companies test their gear and/or publish the results. And, most of the companies will not honor warranty claims if they see water damage (which leads back to my first point). Based on reading past posts on a couple of forums, some of the better Olympus bodies and lenses seem to hold up well in wet environments, and I have heard a number of Nikon photographers say they have had no issues in moderate conditions. But, having said that, I have also hear of folks having issues in minor wet weather conditions with flagship bodies. It really comes down to you comfort with risk.

--Ken
 
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The only reviews I've found, which actually tested water resistance of ILCs is, rather was, Imaging Resource. But the website vanished last week, sadly.
The relevant pages might be buried in the Way back Machine. They developed a standardized torture test to simulate rain etc

Olympus came top I recall, then the Nikon Prosumer ILCs they tested direct, including the D850 and Z7. There's also this article, as Roger Cicala concludes, "this is engineering department weather resistance... "

www.lensrentals.com

Teardown of the Nikon Z7 Mirrorless Camera

We published our teardown of the Canon EOS-R and then had to decide which of the Nikon Z cameras to do. We decided to go with the top-end Nikon Z7. The Nikon Z6 would be the more appropriate comparison from a price standpoint; the Nikon Z6 is retailing for $2145, the Canon EOS-R for $2299, [...]
www.lensrentals.com

An important top is to blot gear dry, not wipe to minimize pushing water into joins. A pro camera or lens can only cope with so much before ingress and worse. Salt water is a different opponent, however! Including wave spray
 
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Alistair said:
I was wondering what realistic expectations folk have of professional grade camera equipment used in wet conditions. I was photographing and videoing rugby games last week in persistent rain. I was out in the rain for 3-4 hours. I would not call it torrential, as one might expect in the tropics, but it was steady the whole time and there was no wind to speak of. I wore waterproofs but left camera and lenses unprotected and they were completely drenched and dripping. Overall they performed without issue other than when I had finished and went indoors, the camera remained on when I switched it off. I toweled it off and took the battery out. After a few minutes I put the battery back in and it had "fixed" itself and it reverted to normal operation. Left it overnight to dry out and it was fine again for the next day's duties.

Am I expecting too much using the equipment this way or should these outrageously priced professional level devices be designed and built for these conditions? Do others take precautions against inclemency of this nature? Thanks in Advance!
Click to expand...
Here is a good article - basically the security industry design and test cameras to achieve IP Code (IEC standard 60529), which is sometimes known as the Ingress Protection rating, standards. Generally only cameras designed to be waterproof tend to declare what standard they have been design for and achieve -- typically in terms of water depth and period of immersion. These days smartphones come with a rating as well -- folk just seem unable to stop themselves dropping their devices. Well most cameras and lenses are at best weatherproof and many just are not.
I cannot remember seeing an IP rating for DSLRs or Mirrorless systems -- perhaps others have. Some review sites clearly indicate "Not Waterproof" -- not that this needs to be said for an ICL camera. Very clearly bodycaps do not have gaskets, but lenses do. So do the card, battery covers and port covers on my Nikon DSLR and Z9 -- but these must be in place to work. Cameras like the D6, Z9 and other "prolevel gear" is designed to go into harsh environments -- so can handle the weather and will do ok - but not last long if dunked.

Your approach is normal -- but the fact that the camera remained on after you switched it off is NOT GOOD. More specifically an indication that the weather sealing around the on/off switch would appear to be not good. First task is always to take out the battery, pad dry, blow dry (but not with direct heat) and remove all covers, cards and caps and place in a warm dry spot -- let the camera dry out -- in your case I would ask questions of the manufacturer or camera shop you bought it describe the issue "it would not turn off" and get their advice -- perhaps it needs a repair OR perhaps it has to be wipe dry as soon as it gets wet OR .....

However, I carry and use a rain cover -- basically a weatherproof blanket over my gear to deflect water and dust - mine has a drawstring to hold it tight on the lens and poppers/velcro to help it fit snugly to the lens. I also have more tightly fitting variants that I fit in harsh conditions -- lenscoat make a Rain Coat and ThinkTank Hydrophobia - where you can fit a front element over the lens to effectively seal the camera/lens against the weather (well somewhat more so that the bare camera or just a rain blanket). When using some lenses which act a little like bellows as the lens is focussed or zoomed in or out I use circular protection filters and covers as well. to reduce the amount of "stuff" that gets insider the lens.
Obviously there are housings and lens ports for diving and submerges shooting -- both these are both expensive and really clumberson to use in the dry -- however, one can buy sealed shooting bags that are a cheap alternative for small gear. The No 1 trick is not to drop your gear in the water -- so fix a lanyard to it and you that stops that.
I have a shoot at Cowes Week (a large sailing regatta) later this year on the Solent -- sp there will be sea water spray and worse. I just received the Kase front element protector (a UV filter) for my Z400/2.8TC -- the camera/lens will be placed inside a large "rain-coat" my rig will be tied to my lifevest and I will be tied to the vessel. So hopefully nothing will get a dunking - and if it does I can recover my gear quickly.
 
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StefanSC said:
AFAIK, the OMDS OM-1 with 12-40mm II lens is rated as IP53 and is the only mainstream ILC that has an IP rating.
Not even the Nikon AW1 (which was designed as an underwater camera) has an IP rating.
Click to expand...

Thanks -- so -- 5 = Dust – limited ingress (no harmful deposits) AND 3 = Sprays of water tilted up to 60 degrees vertically) -- I suggest that a D6/Z9 with any S-line of AF-S lens should achieve at least this rating (with all ports/covers etc correctly fitted. Same for Canon probodies and I suspect similar "performance gear" in the other brands as well. See the article I linked in my earlier post for more details.
 
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Alistair said:
I was wondering what realistic expectations folk have of professional grade camera equipment used in wet conditions. I was photographing and videoing rugby games last week in persistent rain. I was out in the rain for 3-4 hours. I would not call it torrential, as one might expect in the tropics, but it was steady the whole time and there was no wind to speak of. I wore waterproofs but left camera and lenses unprotected and they were completely drenched and dripping. Overall they performed without issue other than when I had finished and went indoors, the camera remained on when I switched it off. I toweled it off and took the battery out. After a few minutes I put the battery back in and it had "fixed" itself and it reverted to normal operation. Left it overnight to dry out and it was fine again for the next day's duties.

Am I expecting too much using the equipment this way or should these outrageously priced professional level devices be designed and built for these conditions? Do others take precautions against inclemency of this nature? Thanks in Advance!
Click to expand...
Could you please report after six months?
An update would be nice, I mean, in case your equipment malfunctions (maybe rust?).
Wish you good luck and thank you for sharing your experience.
 
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I might be in the minority here...but I just use my equipment as needed to get the shot. :oops: To be fair, everything is insured in case of a failure, but I have bought high level gear in part for it's durability to mitigate the concerning effects of humidity and rain. So far I actually have been very impressed with my gear's resilience.

The worst torture test was a couple years ago in Costa Rica. We went on a night hike looking for frogs/snakes/etc, and it rained THE WHOLE TIME. It ranged from a torrential rain to a misting effect, but everything was dripping wet. After fumbling for several minutes trying (and failing) to stay dry, I said "just screw it, let's hope for the best." I was using a D500 and 105VR macro lens, as well as an off camera Godox flash. I blotted everything dry when we got back to the room, but other than that I did nothing special. And everything worked perfectly the whole time! Very impressive.

I know this is just one anecdotal experience, but I've heard a lot more stories like this than I have about rain induced failure. However dropping one's equipment is another story...🤣

Good luck with your situation. Curious what other stories people have?

-Frank
 
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I have a D500 that got poured on once and the same shutter button issues happened. I dried it out and its been 100% for years after that incident. Just because a Switch gets wet it doesnt mean water actually got INSIDE the camera. Generally speaking its much easier to seal the wiring than to seal the mechanism of a switch.
 
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Alistair said:
I was wondering what realistic expectations folk have of professional grade camera equipment used in wet conditions. I was photographing and videoing rugby games last week in persistent rain. I was out in the rain for 3-4 hours. I would not call it torrential, as one might expect in the tropics, but it was steady the whole time and there was no wind to speak of. I wore waterproofs but left camera and lenses unprotected and they were completely drenched and dripping. Overall they performed without issue other than when I had finished and went indoors, the camera remained on when I switched it off. I toweled it off and took the battery out. After a few minutes I put the battery back in and it had "fixed" itself and it reverted to normal operation. Left it overnight to dry out and it was fine again for the next day's duties.

Am I expecting too much using the equipment this way or should these outrageously priced professional level devices be designed and built for these conditions? Do others take precautions against inclemency of this nature? Thanks in Advance!
Click to expand...
I shot my F3, F5, D4, D5 and now Z9 in rain and generally in humid conditions near the ocean. No issues. Two things I do in addition to what was mentioned: I installed two desiccant boxes in my Pelican 1520 where the equipment sits after a shoot, and I put the gear in a sack of rice with battery compartment open after a shoot/overnight.
 
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My experience with Nikon weather sealing has been pretty good. For example, about a month ago I was out with my D850 and 500PF to shoot sea birds. It was a clear sunny day. I walked along the cliffs overlooking the ocean for about 20 minutes from my car. While I was there there was a sudden downpour. I neglected to bring anything to protect the camera/lens (or myself for that matter). I walked the 20 minutes back to the car in a fairly good downpour, getting soaked in the process. No issues at all with the camera or lens. I dried them off with a towel I had in the car and turned the camera on. Everything was fine.

Disclaimer: I do not recommend doing this.

On the other hand my ex-wife took her D850 along the shore when a rogue wave came up and drenched it. That took an expensive repair from Nikon. Big difference between rain and many gallons of water suddenly dumping on it.
 
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A few things strike me from statements made here. First, the only gear that's guaranteed weathersealed has an IP rating. This means it's actually been tested to an international standard and rated according to how repulsive to water and dust it was. I'm aware of two cameras rated this way (and there may be more). The OM System OM-1 has an IP53 rating, and Leica's SL3 has an IP54 rating. That means both cameras are dust-protected (first number 5), the OM-1 is protected against water spraying to either side of the camera (second number 3), and the SL3 is protected against water splashed on the camera (second number 4). This article explains IP ratings - https://www.iec.ch/ip-ratings.

Granted, equipment without an IP rating may offer "weathersealing". But it's up to the manufacturer to determine what that means for their gear, and that's a bit like expecting government to regulate itself.

I used a Leica SL2 (also IP54-rated) to photograph Breckenridge, Colorado's Holiday Dog parade in early December 2023. It was around 24 F out, and the SL2 and Lumix S lenses I used with it were rated to 14 F. All other cameras I own are only rated to 32 F, freezing temperature. Granted you can get away with using a camera only rated to 32 F in very cold weather, but I didn't have to worry about keeping the SL2 warm between shots.

There's a place for camera gear rated to extremes of temperature, and with an IP rating. In some cases it might be the only way you know you’ll get the shot.
 
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I used my d500 in a continuous gentle rain for 3 to 4 hours without a rain cover. I used a prime, not a zoom (500mm pf), and kept the lens pointing down while not in use. I had a high quality clear filter protecting the front element and could dry it with a soft micro fiber cloth.

The only real issue I had was that the viewfinder fogged up. At some point all I could use was live view. When I got home, I dried out everything thoroughly.

Since then I have a cheap plastic rain cover in my pack and plan on getting a PD hydrophobia. I was impressed by the durability of the camera and lens.
 
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Links to IR articles

www.imaging-resource.com

Nikon Z7 Review - Weather Testing

Nikon Z7 Review - Z7 Weather Testing
www.imaging-resource.com

Precision reliability: Nikon shows off its weather and toughness testing methods for the Nikon D850

Earlier this year, we did extensive water torture testing on a variety of industry-leading cameras, including the Nikon D850. The success of the D850 helped us crown it the best camera of 2017. In a recent video published by Nikon…
www.imaging-resource.com


More Links

fcotterill said:
The only reviews I've found, which actually tested water resistance of ILCs is, rather was, Imaging Resource. But the website vanished last week, sadly.
The relevant pages might be buried in the Way back Machine. They developed a standardized torture test to simulate rain etc

Olympus came top I recall, then the Nikon Prosumer ILCs they tested direct, including the D850 and Z7. There's also this article, as Roger Cicala concludes, "this is engineering department weather resistance... "

www.lensrentals.com

Teardown of the Nikon Z7 Mirrorless Camera

We published our teardown of the Canon EOS-R and then had to decide which of the Nikon Z cameras to do. We decided to go with the top-end Nikon Z7. The Nikon Z6 would be the more appropriate comparison from a price standpoint; the Nikon Z6 is retailing for $2145, the Canon EOS-R for $2299, [...]
www.lensrentals.com

An important top is to blot gear dry, not wipe to minimize pushing water into joins. A pro camera or lens can only cope with so much before ingress and worse. Salt water is a different opponent, however! Including wave spray
Click to expand...
 
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