Production Equipment and the Climate

We are in El Salvador in the rainy season. What that means is that it is around 78 degrees F in the mornings and evenings, and hotter in the afternoon. But the air is humid! And it begins to rain in the later afternoon, and often continues through the night. Several nights since we have been here, there has been a constant downpour all night. This is great for our skin, but not for the production equipment!

One part of the what students learn in the class is how to care for the production equipment in the conditions we are shooting. We brought with us ziplock plastic bags to put the cameras and other equipment into, particularly if there is any rain while we are shooting. We have a plastic tarp to take to shoots, so we can quickly cover the equipment if a rainstorm comes up fast as we are shooting. And we split the cost of dessicant (the tiny bags that come in shoe boxes) which we put in the camera and audio bags to get the humidity out of the equipment.

The class has a good record of bringing back the equipment. In seven trips, we have lost only one camera battery. Not bad, eh?