My winter Kit Bag

Winter , without doubt is my favourite season to get out and about with my camera. Now I’m maturing in years i will take every opportunity to escape from the worst the wonderful British climate can throw at me , so most of my winter wildlife photography now takes place at the Wildflower Meadow Hide here in the rolling North Wiltshire. Having a waterproof comfy base certainly makes life a little easier but make no mistake whilst the hide offers a certain amount of protection from the elements , if it’s cold outside , it’s at best only one or two degrees warmer inside and if it’s windy then it’s just as cold.

The hide does have a few creature comforts, firstly it provides protection from rain , keeping dry really does help prolong the amount of time I can spend waiting for that elusive perfect shot. Secondly we have a couple of really comfortable chairs which coupled with a couple of woolly blankets make it possible to spend an average six hours each visit inside the hide, but it also pays to be prepared. 

Because of the hides remote location I carry all the equipment and food I need to facilitate a days wildlife watching and photography in with me every visit. I think the most important element for me is clothing, if you’re not warm , dry and comfortable any activity will become less enjoyable so I use layer system of clothing. A base layer of thermals and thick socks is followed by trousers , warm fleece lined waterproof boots ( I don’t like cold feet ) and a fleece jumper. Next come gloves, an insulated heated gilet which is a new discovery for me and a woolly hat. It’s all finished off with what I call my hide coat. A super thick insulated and wind proof jacket and a real bargain ( it only cost me £20 ) It’s useless if you’re on the move , but just perfect when you are sat almost motionless for hours on end.

So , now I’m dressed for the weather. As the saying goes an army marches on its stomach and I think that’s also true for wildlife photographers , or at least it is for this photographer ! . Nothing warms you up on a cold day like a hot drink. So I normally have both a soup ( I’m rather partial for a cream chicken soup ) and drink flask with me plus a bottle of water and a few high energy snacks.

And at last but certainly not least it’s my camera bag. I use Canon R5 mirrorless bodies and a combination of RF lenses. Normally a 800 f11 , 600 f11 and a 100-500 f7.1 I still have all my L series lenses but tend to use the new RF kit mainly because of the weight. I alway have a couple of fully charged spare batteries with me , there’s nothing like exposing your camera at minus temperatures that will exhaust your batteries quicker. And at least on remote controller (I prefer wired remote control , a personal preference) The camera bag also contains a BioLite power pack , I-pad and various connection cables.

Here is a full list……

Clothing 

   Insulated hide coat

   Insulated heated Gilet ( usb )

   Woolly hat 

   Insulated gloves

   Thermal base layer

   Waterproof insulated boots

Camera bag

   Lowe Alpine camera bag

   Canon R5 Mirrorless bodies x 2

   Canon RF 800mm f11 IS STM lens

   Canon RF 600mm f11 IS STM lens

   Canon RF 100-400 IS USM lens

   Canon TC-80N3 remote controller

   Canon LP-E6NH spare battery x 2

   BioLite Charge 80PD power pack

   i-pad Pro tablet

Small Coolbox

   Soup flask

   Hot drink flask

   Water bottle

   Food

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