shooting in the cold
 

I just purchased an XL2 and my first assignment is to shoot for "Flight for Life" a helicopter service that brings accident victims out of the mountains of Colorado.
We are going to re create an avalanche my concern is shooting in what might be sub 0 weather. Any suggestions? Or should I worry at all shooting video in that kind of weather? Thanks

bring lots of batteries and keep 'em warm!

Honestly though, if you can find an adapter so you can keep the batteries in your pocket (and therefore warm) you will be set.

Shooting in the cold is kind of tricky. If the camera is sitting in a nice warm vehicle and you bring it out into the frigid cold air you can get moisture and condensation everywhere, the lens, the tape, the internal workings. Let it acclimate slowly by setting the camera bag outside for a while before you shoot. (it also works the same the other way, from cold to warm but it is usually worse so be careful when you are done)
Keep the batteries (and lots of them) nice and warm in your jacket pockets. They sell jackets for different cameras just for this sort of thing, but you could probably make a little one by wrapping it in something soft and warm. Unless it's really cold out (below 15 degrees or so) I wouldn't worry too much. I lived and worked in the Colorado mountains for 7 years and it's not usually that bad, in fact it's usually TOO sunny, and too bright from the snow, so bring circular polarizers and lots of big ND filters.

Yeah, the same thing that happens in a warm car when its cold outside. I would get a kata glove for your camera if you plan on being in the cold alot, they seem to insulate well and make the camera more comfortable.

PortaBrace makes a Polar Bear cover for the XL2.
www.portabrace.com

Model number for XL2: POL-25

WE shot a snowbaording video for Japan in the snow (duh).
We had one camera get whipped out by a snoweboarder going about 80kmh...camera was fine after drying it in front of a heater.
If that can happen to us, then I'm sure you'll be fine.
The threshhold of digital cameras is astonishing.

I know the sony cams are built like tanks, I dropped my PD150 (well I didn't, my rucksack fell open and it fell to the concrete) and the only problem was I needed to do a reset as the gain/mic controls went nuts (I presumed it was a hardware failure, but all is good now).

If I'm ever caught in a firefight, I'll use my 150 to deflect bullets away from me!