Seasonal Weather in Washington: What to Expect Throughout the Year

so let me tell you about washington. not therahamstown kind of washington but the dc one. i’m a freelance photographer here and the weather’s been a constant muse and annoyance. last week it was 78°f and humid enough to make my lenses fog up like a bad sequel. and before that, a snowstorm hit and i got stuck editing in a coffee shop because my camera got icy.

ok so the data. yep, real talk. rent here is insane. i checked zipcodes earlier and a one-bedroom in dupont circle is like $2,200. i don’t have that kind of cash unless i shoot weddings. but the job market? it’s okay. there are freelance gigs for event photos and corporate stuff. but you gotta hustle. safety? dc’s on the upswing. i heard a rumor from a barista that crime’s down but don’t take it to your local dupont circle bar. they’ll tell you anything for free coffee.

now the weather. it’s like someone flipped a coin and let chaos win. spring here is miserable. raining every other day. i called it ‘mood droplet weather.’ summer? humidity that clings to your skin like a bad habit. i complained to a local photog at a gallery opening last month and he said it’s ‘the humidity of regret.’ autumn? beautiful but unpredictable. i tried shooting leaves in national park but got rained on by a cloud that looked like a confused pigeon. winter? blitz. snow? maybe. but sometimes it’s just this weird gray slush that makes everything look like a canceled event.

here’s the thing though. there’s places nearby that respect the weather more. philadelphia? they’ve got this urban greenery vibe. baltimore? i heard their winters are slightly less suicidal. honestly, sometimes i drive to’heure for a shoot. it’s a 2-hour trip but the light is better. shame, really.

neighbors? washington’s got a weird mix. one block over is this old bowling alley turned art studio. the folks there are just… existing. no big deal. but if you ask about weather, they’ll say something like, ’we built our house in 1923. if it survived the depression, it survives rain.’ yeah, right.

i overheard a couple at a coffee shop last week talking about how dc’s weather is ‘a conspiracy to make people indoor shooters.’ another person later said they bought a drone just to avoid the fog. i’m considering it. my current setup is a mess. i’ve got a lens that only works in dry weather and a rain jacket that’s seen more use than my actual camera bag.

reviews? i got some drunk advice from a tour guide last year. he warned me about monsoon season in june. i ignored him. got soaked photographing a parade. also, someone at a yelp wrote that dc’s fall foliage is overhyped. they said it’s ‘basic yellow and orange like a receipt.’ but i disagree. i got some good shots of kids jumping in puddles. nothing fancy but genuine.

links? check out tripadvisor for foggy dc spots. maybe the georgetown waterfront? yelp has a list of coffee shops near the national mall that supposedly have great pastries. and there’s a subreddit for dc photogs. it’s chaotic but helpful. reddit.com/r/DCPhotography is where i found tips on avoiding flash in humidity.

phew. that’s washington for you. weather’s a joke. rent’s a punch to the gut. but we endure. we shoot. we survive. the best part? sometimes the worst weather makes the best photo. like that time i captured a ray of sun breaking through a storm. it looked like hope. or maybe just a really weird halo. who knows?

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