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Shooting in the rain is always tricky. Weather you have a point and shoot digital camera, or a high end DSLR, water drops on your lens will ruin your shots. The first step is to decide if it’s worth shooting. If it’s raining so hard you not only risk getting water on your lens but also getting water inside your camera, it’s not worth it. Water ruins electronics. With digital cameras, there are too many little circuit boards and sensors that are easily damaged and can cost upwards or a few hundred dollars to fix or replace.

If you decide to shoot, first things first. Always keep your lens cap on the camera. The lens cap is you primary defense against the rain. Take your lens cap off, grab a shot, then replace it. Before you take your lens cap off, think about framing, shot composition (what you want in the shot) lighting and so on. Don’t spend 30 seconds looking through your viewfinder, know exactly what you want, remove the cap, grab the shot, replace the cap. For you SLR users, pay attention to what settings your shooting at and have them set or close to where you want to save time.

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This seems obvious enough right? This is step one. Next get a lens hood. It’s one of the best and cheapest investments you’ll make for your camera. Lens hoods are great for cutting glare out of your shots and for protecting against the elements. A lens hood will prevent rain from blowing in from the sides or falling down onto your camera lens. This leaves only one way for rain to get onto your lens, and thats if the rain is blowing right in your face.

Staging yourself is possibly the most critical part of keeping water off your lens. It may seem obvious, but if the wind is coming towards you, don’t shoot! Readjust your body and your image frame so that rain hits your back and not your cameras lens. If you want to help keep rain off, when you shoot aim down slightly. Move yourself, go higher and tilt your camera down 5 degrees. This will prevent most rain from falling onto your lens and from getting around your lens hood and reaching your lens.

Another great way to prevent rain from getting on your lens is to buy a U.V. filter. These are a great idea rain or shine, but in case of rain they come in handy! If you have a U.V. filter and happen to get rain on your lens, simply remove the filter! Removing the filter in the middle of a storm can be tricky, so place the camera under your rain jacket, poncho or cover and face the camera down while removing the filter.

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If the weather is getting extreme and you have to shoot (like my time at Machu Picchu during a thunder storm) ceran wrap or plastic food wrap goes a long way. Plastic food wrap will stick to your camera like glue, then peel right off when you need it too! Make sure and wrap your camera BEFORE you go out in the rain because you don’t want to trap moisture between the plastic and your camera. Pull the plastic tight around the lens so it’s not wrinkled and shoot away!

Don’t forget to always keep your camera in a bag while it’s raining. If you don’t have your bag with you, keep it inside your poncho or jacket and place it around your neck facing down. By doing this, it will protect your camera from rain when you’re not shooting. Good luck shooting in the elements, at the end of the day it makes photography more fun, it adds a story behind each picture. Don’t forget to always keep yourself and your equipment safe!