To be able to understand more in detail what actually happens during chipping, the strain field in a chip during chipping was studied by means of the Digital Speckle Photography (DSP) technique. In addition to recording the strain field, the load on and displacement of the chipping tool was also recorded. The equipment used in this study was a DSP system, an MTS servo hydraulic testing machine and a specially developed chipping device. Displacement controlled testing was performed with a crosshead speed of 1.0 mm/s. The results are promising but needs some improvement regarding resolution of the digital images in a vicinity of the knife-edge. The cutting speed in this investigation is low in comparison to normal industrial cutting speeds and since wood in general exhibits a viscoelastic material behaviour this might give a slightly different strain field as compared to an industrial chipping process. However, it is believed that using DSP as a tool for studying the deformations during chipping, even under quite restricted conditions, will increase the understanding of the chipping process. The present study is a part of a larger project aimed at a better understanding of the chip formation and wear mechanisms of wood chipping knifes.