Anybody been to Amsterdam & Utrecht?

[sbs99]

Any recommendations of what to shoot over there? I have never been to Europe before.
Any thing i need to look out for? Any streetwise advice welcome too. :thumbsup:

 

[Canonised]

JIVEN is one of my fav "travel" photographer .... :thumbsup: She is really good and extremely gifted.

http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=336205

 

[sbs99]

Wow thanks! Anymore? Funny i did a search, her thread didnt turn up. :sweatsm:

 

[Canonised]

Wow thanks! Anymore? Funny i did a search, her thread didnt turn up. :sweatsm:

coz she is a "hidden talent" ....:bsmilie::sweatsm:

i should be there end of May .... we can go shooting if got chance....

 

[sbs99]

im bit later, im around mid june. :bsmilie:

how's the weather there like? cold? hot? i was thinking of travelling light, bringing minimum, just go there shoot a lot. :sweatsm:

 

[Canonised]

im bit later, im around mid june. :bsmilie:

how's the weather there like? cold? hot? i was thinking of travelling light, bringing minimum, just go there shoot a lot. :sweatsm:

should be early summer ... :sweat:

 

[humanTORCH]

once the plane is nearing schipol airport ,get ur camera and lens ready. if weather permits, u will get a good bird eyes view of amsterdam. I make a short round trip to amsterdam before making my connecting trip to germany. not much i can elp though.
have a good trip and the weather is great during may and june

 

[sbs99]

Aye thanks for the weather tips, anything bout the streets in amsterdam?

Safe to walk around alone? I was thinking maybe wander off into some back alley or corners to take photos, would that be foolhardy?

How much memory cards would one recommend?

 

[kelccm]

Aye thanks for the weather tips, anything bout the streets in amsterdam?

Safe to walk around alone? I was thinking maybe wander off into some back alley or corners to take photos, would that be foolhardy?

How much memory cards would one recommend?

I wouldn't recommend wandering around in any back alley in any of the European cities, especially if you are alone and unfamiliar with the place. Stick to the main areas, and keep a close watch on all your belongings, and you should be quite safe.

Amsterdam is a nice place to visit. The pretty terrace houses and the canals and boathouses offer lots of photo opportunities. Be prepare to walk a bit as it is easy to navigate the streets through walking. You can also take one of the canal boat to explore the canals of Amsterdam. There are a few museum you can visit like the Madame Tussauds wax museum or the Van Gogh museum. And of course the red light district and the various "specialty" coffee joint. The focal point is the huge Central Station, and the city fan out 180° from it. Dam Square and the red light district are all near to the Central Station.

Near to Amsterdam, there are a couple of picturesque windmill village that you can take a short day trip to visit, eg. Zaanse Schans (Which I visited).

The weather should be quite ok in early summer, but winds could get a bit chilly sometimes. Just bring along a windproof jacket, just in case.

 

[Evilmerlin]

Not sure if its the correct season but Keukenhof is a must go place. Rent a bike and cycle through the flower fields, fantastic!

 

[kelccm]

Not sure if its the correct season but Keukenhof is a must go place. Rent a bike and cycle through the flower fields, fantastic!

Kuekenhof is a nice place to visit too, but the best time to visit is actually right now. The flower season is usually from Apr to May. I think any other time there will be nothing to see.

 

[sbs99]

i was thinking of going off the beaten track, but i worry getting mugged. My friend over there ensures otherwise he says its pretty safe, unless i seem like a walking euro sign. :bsmilie:

 

[kelccm]

i was thinking of going off the beaten track, but i worry getting mugged. My friend over there ensures otherwise he says its pretty safe, unless i seem like a walking euro sign. :bsmilie:

Common sense apply. Nowhere is absolutely safe. Just keep your wits around you and be more aware of your surroundings. Being mugged is pretty rare, but be more careful of pickpockets.

 

[sbs99]

money belts and all those stuff? Wallets too dangerous?

What about slinging of dslr by your side, would that be attracting attention? Any experience? :think:

 

[sbs99]

Hihi digging this up again.

Looking to get a monopod for the trip, would like some recommendations.

I did a search on "monopods", there's quite a lot of threads, looked through the mass orders section as well...

http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=84
http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=28
http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24104
http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=222640

and am still filtering info...maybe go around town to shops to take a look as well.
(brand + shop recommendations would be useful too)


I be using...

Equipment : D80 + kit lens
Budget for monopod : around $100 and below
(probably use it without a ball head)
Requisites : durable, rugged, won't get bent, or dented if it hits a solid surface
(eg. rock, concrete, dangerous entities), light, less segments (the better? for speed? not sure)

After the travel trip, uses for it are probably events or outdoor photography (mainly for height extention or hard to reach places).

Would love to hear the recommendations of seasoned travellers and monopod gurus.
Many thanks! :lovegrin:

 

[Canonised]

Hihi digging this up again.

Looking to get a monopod for the trip, would like some recommendations.

Generally you DO NOT need any monopod or tripod for travel/street photography ....
Wide angle is most useful .... generally 16-35mm is best..... light and wide.
Another zoom (70-200mm) is useful but not practical ... too heavy. Usually I bring another prime, either the 85mm OR 135mm ... should be good enough.
But if you have the 24-105mm f4 L, that will be perfect :thumbsup:.
Tripod is necessary only if you want to take lots of night scenes or fireworks, etc...

 

[sbs99]

I be bringing just the kit set, don't have any other lenses. :bsmilie:

i bought a Slik Lighty Pod III, hope its gonna be useful if i had to shoot in low light conditions. Heard the sun rises at 5am there, and sets around 5.30pm? (unlike Singapore)

 

[spindoctor]

Hi. I just came back from a trip to the Amsterdam and Eindhoven last month. Brought my D80and cheapo 18-55mm lens, no tripod, monopod or flash. It was a business trip so I had to travel light. My pics are at http://www.flickr.com/photos/ibmn/.

You must take a trip to Amsterdam's famous canals and just do a walkabout around Amsterdam Central. Its spring now so weather and lighting condition should be good. The locals are friendly and its not too expensive. The Dutch always complain that they come from a small country so be prepared for a laugh. English is widely spoken and the standard is very high. Everyone will warn you about pickpockets at the train stations so be careful. Other than that you should be fine.

Let me know if you need anymore advice.

 

[night86mare]

Safe to walk around alone? I was thinking maybe wander off into some back alley or corners to take photos, would that be foolhardy?

this really depends on how streetwise you are, and your sense of alertness.

if you are alone, it is best not to do so. even if you have 2 people also not advisable to go into back alleys. after all, if you got 2, they just get 3, if you got 3, they just get 4. whee.

walking around alone is fine.

some of my friends went in winter, they said it was alright, not too dodgy.. if you need any specific advice, i can ask them for you.

 

[night86mare]

i bought a Slik Lighty Pod III, hope its gonna be useful if i had to shoot in low light conditions. Heard the sun rises at 5am there, and sets around 5.30pm? (unlike Singapore)

google is your best friend. this period, will be long days. you have mixed up summer sunrise and winter sunset, 5.30 pm is the winter sunset timing, where the days are short, and in winter the sun rises around 8 as well.

now is very long day, will get progressively longer, this link says 0530 sunrise to nearly 10 pm sunset.