Photography in Europe
Which cameras, film, and gadgets work best for your travel photography. Any tips on getting the best shots? Carry a big 35mm camera or a point 'n shoot? Is a camcorder worth the trouble? What about digital cameras and flash cards?
- Please don't post questions here. Use our Travelers Helpline.
Photography in Paris museums
I was delighted and amazed that almost every museum and church that we visited in Paris allowed non-flash indoor photography... including of exhibited paintings and other works of art. The only exceptions (naturally) were Notre Dame Cathedral during Sunday mass, and Sacre Coeur Basilica (which never allows indoor photos of any kind at any time). But I was otherwise amazed at the lack of restrictions on photography... including in the Louvre.
Also, if you can find one in stores or online, an excellent compact digital point-and-shoot for travel is the Fuji FinePix f31fd. Because it's only a 6.3-megapixel camera, it has very large light sensors, and is legendary in photography circles for its ability to take shots with minimal noise in extremely low light conditions. (I once used it to take a hand-held, non-flash, ISO 3200 photo of a waterfall in the caves below Ireland's Burren, and you could see individual droplets in the falling water!)
Dave <email>
Winchester, MA USA 11/16/2009
group trips for pleasure and photography
Do we want to form a group of people who like to travel together and take photos? Such trips would be part pleasure, part craft. After the holidays, a trip with other travel bug/photographers would be exciting and fun.
Andrea Huber <email>
Washington , DC USA 11/02/2009
Lightweight DSLR
I bought the new Canon T1I for our trip to Italy in September. Bought it because I wanted a lightweight DSLR. Many of the cameras that I considered were just too heavy for my hands. I used this camera body with the Canon 18-200 lens. It did a great job; I took over 4000 pictures and I am very pleased with the results. I would have liked a few more bells and whistles but it did a great job without killing my neck or back.
A few words of advice. Always shoot on the highest quality setting so that if you want to crop and zoom in on something, you will retain the quality . Also, take lots of memory cards and shoot tons of pictures! Take the same picture from different angles. The shots that you don't expect to be very good are often times the ones that turn out the best. Take pictures of everything; your meals, the doors, the ladies hanging laundry out their windows in Italy, kids, the reflection of the outdoor piazza in your water glass, etc. These types of pictures will really preserve your vacation memories.
Sheron
Alta Loma, CA USA 10/27/2009
Indoor Digital Photography
I'm an avid photographer but last trip (2007) I left my SLR at home and took a Panasonic point-and-shoot with me - it did a great job for daytime - but was a bit weak for night/indoor shots - I'm taking the SLR this time, and a Panasonic LX3 for the low light/indoor shots. It's got a fast F2.0 lens and does well in low-light - The LX3 is a bit hard to find now, but a new Canon PowerShot S90 has been announced that should also be a good p&s for low light shots...
Rick J
San Jose, CA USA 09/22/2009
European Photos
I lived in Europe for 10 years over the past 30 years and most of that time was before the invention of the digital camera. However, upon arriving in Obendorf, Austia over the Thanksgiving holiday of 2006 I bought my first digital camera. After uploading all of my European photos I'm just now learning to appreciate the hundreds of photos that I've published to my google site. I have recently updating the titles and added content and felt the need to share them with everyone in this forum. Please check them out when you find time and send me some feedback. Hopefully someone somewhere will appreciate them as much as I had intented and experienced while visiting these facanating locations.
Some featured cities are Basel, Krakow, Kitzbuhel, Normandy and St. Martin the diamond in the German wine country. Enjoy!
www.google.com/profiles/atkins.philip
Philip <email>
Tacoma, WA USA 09/13/2009
Camera tips
Just got back from Europe.
Took my Nikon D300 with an 18-200mm lens.
Was flawless.
Downloaded pics to a netbook and Snapfish.com every day or two in case my camera was swiped.
Worked well.
One thing to remember: if your subjects are backlit, don't forget to consider using your flash- even during the day- so their faces don't turn out black.
Mit
Melbourne, FL USA 07/20/2009
Some suggestions
The best combination I have ever used is the Nikon D300 and the 17-55mm lens. I have been to Europe many times now, the first time I went with more camera gear than clothes... seriously. I pack one camera and one zoom lens. I am a semi-pro, so my gear needs might be different than yours. However, I suggest buying an SLR if you have a point and shoot now, the quality, even in the "cheaper" SLRs is fantastic. The Nikon D40, or the Canon Rebel are both terrific. You won't go wrong with either. I also find a mini-tripod invaluable for capturing low light scenes, such as the Louvre at night, the London Eye, etc. You can view some of my travel photos at www.tayloryoungphotography.com
Taylor Young <email>
Chadds Ford, PA USA 06/15/2009
shoot RAW
If your digital camera is up to it, shoot all RAW images. Memory cards are cheap. I am seeing too many of my jpg images that are in need of tonal and color balance editing, and I am compromising their quality in doing these edits. Shoot RAW and learn to process them. RAW can be processed in Elements, if you have version 3 or newer.
Doug Nelson
San Jose, CA USA 05/28/2009
Digital Photography
I had to laugh at the arrogant statement made by someone hat "digital pictures are best for those who see them only as fun and aren't really serious about the results." I have friends who are professional photographers who love their digital cameras and use them exclusively.
I went to Europe for two and a half months and I finally bought a digital camera (I had a Nikon FE 35mm that took absolutely sensational pictures and that's why I waited to switch for so long).
Digital just made sense. Most photos don't come out the way you want so you waste a lot of money with processing plus you don't see the results for a while.
I bought a Nikon D90 and the pictures are just sensational. What I loved about taking digital shots is that I can see the results right away and redo a picture to get a different angle. Also, I can take many photos of the same subject from different angles with different exposures and at night decide which one(s) I want to keep. Also, I can switch ISO and take pictures inside or outside without having to change film. Also, my camera has a B&W mode with a simulated filter so I can easily switch to black and white and back. In Rothenburg and in Paris, every day was very dull and overcast and I took black and white photos which turned out very well. In Paris, I encountered thunder storms with black clouds which made perfect backgrounds for the Eiffel Tower and other subjects and black and white gave me exceptional contrasts.
You do have to use the highest setting but I would get about 225 pictures per 4gb memory card (using nef and large jpeg) but it cost only about $12 to transfer that to DVD. I would have spent as much on film and development as I did on my camera so besides the ability to instantly see results, there is a great money saving.
Don't get me wrong. Film probably does give better results and the lowest ISO you can get with digital is 100 but I am going through the 2000 or so pictures I took and saved and I am very happy with the results.
Robert Marcus <email>
New York, NY USA 05/22/2009
Nightime - Florence Art Crawl
Last week in Florence my family and I tried out an Art Crawl. I don't know how to describe it but it was a combination of dinner, entertainment with our actor host Alessandro and a late evening exploring Florence doing nighttime photography. IT was quite a change of pace after untold museums and churhces! GOt to see th eother side of Florence by night and photos and memories are great. Great evening out - Florence Art Crawl - www.florenceartcrawl.com
Ron <email>
Houston, TX USA 05/21/2009
Photo storage
For extra safety of digital photos I up load my images to free online storage sites such as adrive.com. As an added bonus, friends who are stuck at home can log in and follow my progress.
Terry Kennedy <email>
Omaha, Ne USA 05/20/2009
Photography in Europe - what type of camera
Last year, while on a trip to England that included hiking portions of Hadrian's Wall, I wanted something light and yet that produced photos that could be enlarged. Anything under 8 mpx usually loose a lot if you are looking at enlarging the photos. Therefore, I settled on a Leica D-Lux and got breath taking photos. It was small enough to fit in my pocket, light enough so that it didn't weigh me down when climbing up and down the rolling hills of Northumberland, and had large enough mexapixels so that I was able to enlarge some of the photos for Christmas presents.
marjorie <email>
Vancouver, BC Canada 04/15/2009
When it comes to megapixels, less is more (no, really)
Yes, it's true -- more megapixels doesn't mean a better picture, especially in point-and-shoot cameras.
Think about it: those cameras are the same size they were 5 years ago, or smaller. So what used to be a 4MP or 6PM camera now might be packing 12-15MP -- and so the pixels on the sensor are half the size or smaller. That means they capture less light, and that leads to blurry, grainy pictures (AKA noise).
So, when choosing a camera, check the statistics on the "megapixels per square inch / centimeter". www.dpreview.com has this stat for just about every digital camera ever made. They use square centimeters because they're located in the UK, but the same rule applies: less is more.
Digital SLRs have some of the lowest megapixels per square cm figures -- often ten times lower than compact cameras -- and it's no coincidence that they produce much cleaner, clearer images.
www.lodgephoto.com
Mathew <email>
San Francisco, CA USA 04/06/2009
Photo Protection While Traveling
It takes big money to travel in Europe these days. I know this first hand because I'm Canadian and my dollar pretty much sucks on the world stage. The last thing I want to happen is to lose those precious photos I've spent too long planning for and frustrating my wife with, waiting for the perfect light and angle to shoot.
Along with my trusty Nikon D80 and 18-200 lens (the only one I use, very flexible) I don't leave home without my 40 gig Smartdisk portable hard drive. After a day of shooting, I take time that night to back my photos onto it. If the camera disk corrupts or heaven forbid gets stolen along with my camera, I lose only that day's images. I always make sure the backup devise stays separate from my camera, hidden in my backpack back at the hotel, in the dirty sock pouch. I hope this will help you with your trip and photo planning.
Brad Blasko
Edmonton, AB CDN 01/27/2009
Point and shoot Camera great worked great for my short video on Turkey
This video was made using a Olympus D630 Camera using the video function. A simple point and click is really all you need for a great travel video. This ones has about 30 clips from various places in Turkey.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvp8m8CqIDc
Robert
Lowell, Ar USA 01/13/2009
No Problem
I've been to and from Europe twice in the past year. I have not had any problems with film going through multiple x-ray machines. My pictures have always turned out beautifully.
Stephanie <email>
Philadelphia, PA USA 12/31/2003
And for the quality of digital files? Please. I have stunning 16x20's and 20x24's hanging on my walls from what I photographed in Venice and Sarlat. There is absolutely no spotting pixels or any tell-tale clues that it's a digital file. However! Because I'm a professional, I know how to use Adobe Photoshop and my equipment is pretty high-end. There are more and more higher-end comsumer type of digital cameras that are on the market these days but to get consistently great shots, shoot at the highest resolution, get a camera with at least 4.0 megapixels and make sure you know how to use it!
Use black electricians tape (or use a black sharpie on masking tape) and cover up EVERYTHING on your camera that states what kind of camera it is. My Canon 10D had about 7 or 8 pieces of tape covering it but I never had any problems with would-be thieves. I traveled with three lens in a backpack (don't use a camera bag, that's screaming "Steal me! There are cool things inside!"). I bought a pair of those really thick warm socks that you usually only wear when it's negative degrees outside and your feet are freezing. I slid my lenses into those and they were completely protected and who would have known that there was pretty expensive lenses in them?
Next, always keep a hand on your camera at all times! I rarely put my camera away (except in Nice, that experience was a bit scary) so that I wouldn't miss anything let alone, let a thief think that i was easy pickings.
Memory is getting very cheap nowadays. One gig worth of memory really isn't that much anymore and may be worth it so you don't have to track down an internet shop. I averaged about 100-200 shots a day. Most people wouldn't come close to this but I use it for stock photography and greeting cards. I burned everything to CD in the event that something was stolen. There are plenty of Internet shops around that would do that for you. Or, borrow a friend's memory discs for more memory or get a portable hard drive that you can download into. I also took along a battery recharger and plenty of extra batteries.
Go out either in the early morning
or in the hour before sunset. The light is absolutely stunning! Tuscany
is fantastic for that. Look down alleyways (Sarlat and Beynac were my
favorites), the light is usually filtered which gives it a nice glow and
there's usually a beautiful set dinner table, a gaily painted door or
pots of flowers. I'm heading off to Madrid the end of January and can't
wait! For inspiration you can go to my website: www.serendipitypics.com
and click on Destinations. Enjoy.
K.D. <email>
Duvall, WA USA 12/18/2003
Photos of Europe
My photos of Europe, and other subjects, are at www.bobsheldon.com
Bob Sheldon <email>
Reading, PA USA 11/06/2003
digital photography
We used our digital camera on our recent trip to Italy. I had extra memory
cards (2-128mb) and also took rechargeable batteries (with a dual voltage
1 hour charger). The charger was relatively small and really did not take
up too much space (about the same space as 5-6 rolls of film) and really
came in handy. The batteries lasted approx. 2 days with fairly constant
shooting - I kept the view screen off most of the time. We had no problem
finding internet cafes or photo shops to burn CD's for us (3-6 Euro each).
We took 1,045 photos and burned 4 CDs there (with between 140 to 190 photos
per disc) and two more when we got home. Xray machines did not damage the
memory cards or CD's. I haven't done the math so I can't speak as to the
economics but I have good pictures and knew whether they were good or not
immediately. That's worth something all by itself. I didn't have to worry
about lugging about several rolls of exposed film that may or may not have
had good pictures or worry about xray damage. Overall, I have no complaints
with digital travel photgraphy. It may be a little more expensive overall,
but I found it to be less worrisome and we have good quality photos of a
great trip.
Tim Mangrum <email>
Spokane, WA USA 10/28/2003
Mona Lisa?
I was in Paris a couple of weeks ago and visited the Louvre. I was shocked at the zoo that has become the Mona Lisa exhibit. Despite signs forbidding flash photography, the minute I walked into the room, all kinds of flashes were going off, people were video taping and literally within 5 feet of the painting. Security guards were just standing around doing nothing. The room is brightly lit too. I was pretty surprised at this whole thing. I was expecting something totally different.
Kwong <email>
San Leandro, CA USA 10/22/2003
X-Rays - Camera Bag for SLR - Tripod
Just got back from a trip to Central Europe with 40 rolls of film. Speeds varied from 100-400.
I was able to request a hand inspection in the States when I was leaving, even though I left within days of the new warnings on Cameras, I didn't have any problems. The inspectors were very good, but it took a couple of requests for the hand inspection.
Europe on the other hand, was more difficult. All my film was in a clear zip lock bag for ease of inspection. I was not able to get a hand inspection at Heathrow, but again, the inspectors were very nice.
I left Europe from Warsaw, and actually had a local write a message in polish to hold up to the security folks at the gate. They still made me pass it through the xray machines. Oh well, it was worth an effort.
Total number of passes through the machines 3. So far I have not noticed any fogging of the film at all.
One thing of note. I brought over a nice SLR camera and was worried about how to carry the body and lenses around, without being too conspicuous. I settled on a courier or messenger bag and bought some small wraps to protect the body and lenses when inside the bag. It worked pretty well, but was a bit akward, because I had to put the camera together before I could take a shot.
I did bring a tripod but only used it a couple of times. Next time I will probably just bring a monopod and a mini tripod.
Matt
boston, ma USA 10/16/2003
Tiny zip lock bags for batteries, etc
Our new digital camera takes two AA batteries. Having purchased several
extra rechargeables, I was looking for a simple, lightweight container to
use to keep my spare batteries in at home and while travelling. I had originally
been searching for small plastic boxes made specifically for batteries (which
are available on the internet, but it costs more in shipping than you pay
for the boxes). What I found was 2 x 3 inch zip lock bags. They are called
'pill pouches' and come in packages of 50 at the pharmacy for under $2 (look
in the section with the pill storage boxes). These zip lock bags fit two
AA batteries perfectly, keeping them from shifting around enough to have
the contacts touch. I cut out several red and green squares of construction
paper, the appropriate color to be placed in each bag with the batteries....red
for dead batteries, green for charged. Or you can label the outside, as
each bag has a 'write on' area, intended to indicate date and time for pill
dosage. The bags are surprisingly sturdy and would be useful for all sorts
of small things (even pills!).
kba
10/13/2003
Flashless in Europe
I am just back from Europe. It has been said before, learn to shoot without
a flash. Also, if the thing you are shooting is military, it is also a possible
target for "bad guys" so don't shoot there.
CA USA 10/11/2003
Photography in St.Petersburg, Russia
Be very careful if you are taking any pictures in the Metro. I took 3 but
had an official rush out of his office, very unhappy to see me taking a
picture. The metro used to be a bomb shelter and they still don't want you
taking pictures there.
Lorrie <email>
Cincinnati, OH USA 09/14/2003
Bery good MColor film from Migros
The best value for film in Switzerland, in my opinion, has to be "MCOLOR" from the Migros group. A 3-pack of 24 exposure film is 8,50 SF, and the
3-Pack of 36 exposure film is 11 SF. That is far better than paying 20 SF
for a 3-pack of Kodak film and the quality is almost indistinguishable.
I really liked the results of my photos with the MCOLOR film.
Josh Hanz <email>
Foster City, CA USA 09/05/2003
Compact Flash Card Transfer
Just made contact with the people of Miller Optik (Innsbruck and Vienna)
who will download your images from a Compact Flash Card to a CD for 5 Euros.
If anyone knows of a shop in Munich or Zurich who offers such a service,
please drop me a note.
Mike S. <email>
San Francisco Bay Area, CA USA 09/01/2003
Love those 8mm Movies
In my previous post, I mentioned my 8mm movie camera. I love it! I can hold
it in the palm of my hand, it can zoom in much farther than my zoom lens,
and lots of Europeans have them. This means if you are in a tourist location,
you don't seem out of place. They even let you use them at museums and at
Disneyland Paris. They say you can't use them inside the rides but eveyone
else was so I did too (I just don't use the light). It is also easy to use
my Cannon ES because it does not have a red light. You can set it on a table
or stand and record without anyone knowing unless you can't keep from looking
at it. It does not have the LCD display which I do find annoying. I find
it easier to look through a lens like a regular camera. The battery is only
good for two hours but you wouldn't film every minute of every day anyway.
I plug in the charger at night or if I come back to the hotel in the middle
of the day, and in a half hour I 'm ready to shoot again. I also like it
becuse it's small enough to hang around my neck like a regular camera.
Janice L. Killingbeck <email>
Saginaw, Michigan USA 07/10/2003
Photography and Film in Europe
I am an avid photographer I have made three trips to Europe, two in the
last two years. I am particular about my results and therefore don't like
digital because on enlargement the pixels are very evident unless you use
the best setting, which gives you very few pictures per disc.
I used to request hand examination of my film because i was worried about the xrays and didn't believe anyone who told me it wouldn't hurt the pictures. Since both my last trips have been since 9/11, I have not insisted so my 80 rolls of fim went through xray machines in Saginaw, Detroit and Paris plus at various sights that routinely xray purses and bags (such as the Louvre, Ste. Chapelle, Versailles). So some of my rolls went through even more xrays. The prints all came out superbly. No fogging that i could see.
As I carry a 35 mm SLR camera, a point and shoot waterproof 35 mm camera, and an 8 mm movie camera, my bag puts up an "electronic equipment red flag" sometimes when going through Security. To save hassles I keep all my film in plastic ziplock bags. I buy Fuji film both because it is cheaper and because I like the blues better than Kodak. It comes in translucent plactic containers instead of the opaque containers of Kodak. That helps make it obvious that it really is film. I learned this back in 1986 when I was coming back from England and the inspector had to open every single one of my 100 rolls of film to see if it was really film!
Also I usually don't have time to label film as I take pictures but I always mark the day and where I was on the film canisters in permanent marker. So when I get home and can't afford to develop all the fim at once, I can turn in a representative sample each time.
I don't take all three cameras when I'm out: I pick one still camera and the movie camera; or just one still camera. I use ASA 400 film because I can take pictures without flash anywhere on my SLR: inside Notre Dame or outside in the bright sunlight.
The only real probem I have is taking pictures of mountains. The automatic cameras and the light meters often expose to the whole scene, making the trees and houses in perfect exposure but allowing the high snow clad peaks to fade into non existance. There was a beautiful sunset of the Aguille du Midi near Chamonix but when the picture came back from my point and shoot camera with no telephoto lens, it showed only the trees and no snow topped mountain glowing golden in the setting sun.
I think digital pictures are best for those who see them only as fun
and aren't really serious about the results. Most people who show me pictures
they took that they love, I would find unacceptable for me: out of focus,
the subject so small you can hardly tell what it is, under or overexposed,
and terrible composition. If you just want a picture to point to and say
I was there, any camera will do. But if you are into enlarging or into
the artistic aspects of photography, then I feel film is best and a 35
mm SLR camera with a telephoto lens is a must. Just remember it is you
that will be dragging that extra weight all around Europe so make sure
you really are an avid photographer!
Janice L. Killingbeck <email>
Saginaw, Michigan USA 07/10/2003
Digital is THE way to go
I have made several trips to Europe and China with both film and digital.
There is no comparison, digital wins hands down. All of the problems given
by the previous writer, except time lag and batteries, also apply to using
a film point and shoot camera.
The time lag can be cured as noted in the response below, or by reading the camera reviews. There are several digital cameras with mimimal lag.
The weight of batteries, come on, what do they weigh, 1 or 2 ounces? My Canon 10D goes at least 400 photos between charges. I can get away with only one battery, but being a belt and suspenders guy, I would carry a back-up to Europe.
The writer complains about using auxiliary lenses and then recommends prime lenses. Is putting on an auxiliary lens any more of a problem than changing lenses? If anything, the auxiliary lens is easier.
For film speed, you cannot beat changing ISO with the push of a button instead of having to either carry two cameras or changing film mid roll (both of which I have done) because you just went from outside to inside a cathedral. The 400 ISO photos from my Canon 10D are very clean and are better than 400 ISO slide film.
With digital, I know immediately if I got the shot, not a month later at home. If it is not what I wanted, I can trash that shot and take a new one. (Saves on air fare to go back to get that "one" shot you really wanted.)
One last item, I no longer have to carry and try to get hand inspection
of 40+ rolls of film at every airport.
Bob Sheldon <email>
Reading, PA USA 07/08/2003
Digital delay - How to solve it.
Solving the problem of "digital delay", the delay between when you push
the shutter release and the time the actual picture is taken, is no mystery.
The delay can be a few seconds with some cameras in certain situations.
It is based upon the camera you use and how you use it.
1. If you use a digital SLR then the delay is similar to that of a film SLR. Examples of DSLR's include Nikon's D100, D1x, and D1h and Canon's 10D and 1Ds. I use a Nikon D100 and there is not delay problem at all IMHO. Most news and sports photographers use digital SLR's and this crowd wouldn't if delay was a problem. Digital SLR's are generally priced from $1,500 (in the US) and up for the camera body and use the same lenses as the same manufacturer's 35mm SLR bodies.
2. A point and shoot digital camera (generally under $1000 in the US) will have delays of up to a few precious seconds. I have owned a digital point and shoot camera since 1997 (first an Olympus 320 and now an Olympus 3040). The delay can be maddening but it can be minimized. Digital point and shoots generally have ways (read your manual) that will allow you to take one or more pictures with minimal delay at a time. Generally the strategy is not to use flash, to pre-focus and possbily to engage a special mode in the camera's menu.
3. Digital ZLR's - (Zoom Lens Reflexs) are a hybrid. They show you in the viewfinder what the lens is seeing (like a SLR) but have a fixed zoom lens. An example of this is an Olympus E-20. Some ZLR's have delays close to that of digital SLR's (read the spec's and try it out in a store). I have played with the Olympus E-20 and it has a very minimal delay.
An excellent source of information about digital cameras can be found
at http://www.dpreview.com
Michael Brochstein <email>
New York, NY USA 07/07/2003