Coolest Places to Photo before you die!

leinsterman

I'm planning to take a three week vacation in November ... and I definitely want to get out of Europe bringing only a DSLR and a few lenses (and a spare pair of jocks) with me for company ... only problem I can't decide where to go ... I want to get away from the standard places and have done quite a bit of travelling in the past to many a remote part of the world from Antarctic to Northern Sweden ... the current list is making me even more confused ...

Any Recommendations from personal experience ? ... has to be November (I'm on world cup duty in Sep/Oct and August it too soon) ... needs to be dry(ish), not too fussy about warm but it would be a nice bonus ... less than 14 hours flying ...

Places I'm considering -

• Mauritania & the sahara desert
• Morocco & Mali
• Nepal & Tibet (but I'm not as fit as I'd like to be for this one)
• China or Mongolia
• Arizona, Utah, Nevada
• Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos
• Cuba
• Back to Patagonia ... this time with a proper camera (again fitness is a big issue for this one but I have 3 months)

As you can see from the list I'm utterly confused ...
... someone in the office is suggesting New Zealand ... but I'm not sure about only 3 weeks and I kind of want to go somewhere not further than around a 12 hour flight ... was planning to do 4 weeks in NZ at the end of 2008 ...

shepthedog

Did you look into doing the Trans Siberian railway? Was looking into doing this myself this summer but looks like circumstances wont allow but its definitely a trip worth considering!

City-Exile

The ancient city of Petra in Jordan, is somewhere I'd give anything to visit!

Morlar

City-Exile wrote:

The ancient city of Petra in Jordan, is somewhere I'd give anything to visit!

I was going to say that too - haven't been but going to get there at some stage. Also Syria would be on my list - as its dirt cheap (5 star hotels for 3 star prices), and its hot and has culture too ! Lebanon too provided israel aren't bombing the **** out of it at the time.

Other than that a few places in Asia or even south america.

Iceland would be good too. As for places to recommend from personal experience - australia - its more than a 14 hrs flight but you can break it up with a stopover or 2 along the way in the middle east or asia.

leinsterman

shepthedog wrote:

Did you look into doing the Trans Siberian railway? Was looking into doing this myself this summer but looks like circumstances wont allow but its definitely a trip worth considering!

I would love to do this ... but is November the right time to do it ?

City-Exile wrote:

The ancient city of Petra in Jordan, is somewhere I'd give anything to visit!

oddly enough I have about 130 RAW files to process from a trip I did in this region ... started doing it last night using the Guy Gowan's action palatte to speed things up and lost interest in the middle coz I was tired ... I went from Amman in Jordan via Dead Sea, Petra, Wadi Rum, Aquaba, Sinai, Dahab, Cairo, Western Deserts (Black, White and Dahkla), Luxor, Aswan and back to Cairo ... amazing!! ... sadly my photos are not so great ... but recommended ...

Petra is perhaps one of the (literally) hidden gems of the region ... people do not realise how big the place is ... everyone has seen Inidana Jones Temple of Doom ... but what you don't see in that movie is the other 39 sq KM of incredible buildings and the Roman collesseum just beside the Treasury ... my advice ... go there!!!

City-Exile

I felt a real sense of anti-climax, when I visited the Pyramids of Giza, but have been told that Petra wont disappoint me.

leinsterman

City-Exile wrote:

I felt a real sense of anti-climax, when I visited the Pyramids of Giza, but have been told that Petra wont disappoint me.

.... no doubt this was not helped by all the garbage flying around ... the lack of a decent size desert in the area like in the movies (or rather the presence of Giza town) ... and all the guards hassling you for money ... It did not help the experience one bit ... in fact I was tempted to write to the Egyptian consolate to remind them that they have a responsibilty to keep these places in good shape for the rest of the human race I was so cheesed off ...

Nonetheless I have to say I was awestruck by the visit to Giza ...

rgiller

What about Vancouver and Whistler in Canada? 11 hour flight and it's probably the most picturesque place (whistler) that I've ever seen. Amazing scenery: everything from mountains to sea to forests to lakes, plus plenty of wildlife.

leinsterman

rgiller wrote:

What about Vancouver and Whistler in Canada? 11 hour flight and it's probably the most picturesque place (whistler) that I've ever seen. Amazing scenery: everything from mountains to sea to forests to lakes, plus plenty of wildlife.

Very high on my list after a visit to the San Juan islands and Hoh Rain forest just south of there about 3 years ago ... but again is November the right time to go ?

thebaz

Mali and Cuba sound good , been to Morocco , and the mountains , Maracech and Fez are good for photographing -- the only place in the east i know is Thailand , which is also very photogenic , and pleasant weatherwise in November -- India is also meant to have lots to offer the photographer

leinsterman

jaysus ... I totally forgot about India ... ... perhaps just as well ...


Baz you got any specific recommendations for Mail & Morocco ?

Fajitas!

Chernobyl
Cuba

City-Exile

leinsterman wrote:

.... no doubt this was not helped by all the garbage flying around ... the lack of a decent size desert in the area like in the movies (or rather the presence of Giza town) ... and all the guards hassling you for money ... It did not help the experience one bit ... in fact I was tempted to write to the Egyptian consolate to remind them that they have a responsibilty to keep these places in good shape for the rest of the human race I was so cheesed off ...

Nonetheless I have to say I was awestruck by the visit to Giza ...

I could cry just thinking about it!

bigeoino

leinsterman wrote:

...
Back to Patagonia ... this time with a proper camera (again fitness is a big issue for this one but I have 3 months) ... ...

Don't be confused!
My vote is back to Patagonia....
Truly amazing scenery and wildlife, an awesome variety form jungles to sea, mountains to deserts, glaciers to waterfalls combined with amazing food (best steak in the world!) and good transport links....

And if that's not enough, a few visual memory joggers :-

feileacan

im going to everest base camp in nepal next april and hopefully going to NZ in 2009 to work.

patagonia is meant to be outstanding

what about antarctica ?

http://www.vjv.co.uk/destinations/south-america/antarctica/white-continent/index.html

leinsterman

bigeoino wrote:

Don't be confused!
My vote is back to Patagonia....
Truly amazing scenery and wildlife, an awesome variety form jungles to sea, mountains to deserts, glaciers to waterfalls combined with amazing food (best steak in the world!) and good transport links....

And if that's not enough, a few visual memory jogger

Patagonia is one of the most amazing places I've ever had the pleasure to experiencing ... it was life changing for me ... not to mention inspirational ...

I don't know whether to laugh or cry when I look at your pictures ... they represent so many precious perfect moments ... Patagonia gave me such a sense of oneness with the world ... all the woes of life just put away in exchange for tiny moments in time when you just could not be any more content ...

I can trace my interest in photography back to Torres Del Paine and the moment when a guy called Andrew Lange (our long distance truck driver) showed me this photo on his little point and shoot preview screen -

Morlar

That is a fantastic shot, cant fault it.

thebaz

leinsterman wrote:

Baz you got any specific recommendations for Mail & Morocco ?

Never been to Mali, the coast of Morocco , isn't very unique , the Sahara sounds better than it is , shoot the camels, desert and dunes and there ain't much else for a once in a lifetime trip .
But inland morocco , is good , food ain't great !
But Maracesh market is a photofest of colours, the Atlas mountains are nice , and there are many tribesmen still trucking around , its way of the tourist scene , but i found it safe and yet different , lots of Arabic culture too boot . Parts of inland Turkey are a bit like this , but its not as exotic as say Mali or Cambodia would be !!

feileacan

very very very impressive.

can we have a boards meet to patagonia ?

thebaz

feileacan wrote:

can we have a boards meet to patagonia ?

Will Rymus foot the bill ?

Eirebear

I'd add Rio de Janiero to that.
Went there on Honeymoon in october, didnt really get much chance to take photos due to the fact i was, well, on honeymoon .
But i swear im going back there before too long specifically to photograph the place and its people.

leinsterman

feileacan wrote:

very very very impressive.

can we have a boards meet to patagonia ?

Abosultely ... how about November this year!! ...

funny all this coming up now ... was at lunch with two work collegues who have done parts of the "W" walk in Torres Del Paine too ... we were laughing at the fact that we really only did a "V" ... so I have to go back to do the other "V" ...

Roen

Mozambique! Yer only man.

City-Exile

Morlar wrote:

That is a fantastic shot, cant fault it.

I'd probably have cloned out the rock penis, in the bottom right. Other than that, it's a great shot!


Back to the topic, has anyone ever been to Zanzibar?

bigeoino

I don't think Antarctica wouldn't really be doable in 3 weeks.
But if you do have the time, head down to Ushuaia and wait for a berth in one of the boats going down there. The prices are substantially cheaper than buying here and are in $ so even cheaper!! And while you're there, don't worry, there's loads to see and do!

And remember Peurto Madryn/ Valdes and the penguins/ whales/ seals and a few Welsh...

Ohhhh yup, a great trip!

leinsterman

bigeoino wrote:

I don't think Antarctica wouldn't really be doable in 3 weeks.
But if you do have the time, head down to Ushuaia and wait for a berth in one of the boats going down there. The prices are substantially cheaper than buying here and are in $ so even cheaper!! And while you're there, don't worry, there's loads to see and do!

And remember Peurto Madryn/ Valdes and the penguins/ whales/ seals and a few Welsh...

Ohhhh yup, a great trip!

I was looking through some of your flickr images form Patagonia ... very nice!! ... how did you get around ? ... did you go independant, local transport or with an overlander ?... I went with Kumuka on my trip ... they are not so bad really ... but I always think we were lucky to have a good bunch of passengers ... some of these overlander trips can be a bit hit and miss ...

nervous_twitch

I too recommend doing the Trans-Siberian; ya can make it as far as Mongolia or Beijing if you wish.. November would be fine, I'd imagine - I'm sure you may encounter some hideous temperatures, but for someone whos been to Antartica that should be a problem

Lake Baikal is absolutely picturesque - bearing in mind I went in Summer. Some great scenery in Siberia, Irkutsk etc, plus you'd also get to Mongolia as was suggested. However, I'm largely speaking from a travellers point of view, I had such an amazing time but didnt end up taking too many photos..

Also, if you do the Moscow>Beijing route, a day trip to the Great Wall could prove interesting!

evilhomer

I'm off to western Norway next week, I will report back on that ;-)

I have always wanted to do the inca trail and machu-picchu.

For some weird reason I also want to go to Mongolia, don't know why, just do!

Western China's rainforests are supposed to be amazing too.

Eirebear

evilhomer wrote:

I'm off to western Norway next week, I will report back on that ;-)

I have always wanted to do the inca trail and machu-picchu.

For some weird reason I also want to go to Mongolia, don't know why, just do!

Western China's rainforests are supposed to be amazing too.

Currently in the midst of organising a trip with the missusto go there, probably in a couple of years time.
The plan is to take a month, see machu piccu and then hire a couple of motorbikes to get us to santiago de chile.
The go back a couple of years later and do santiago down to the bottom of chile.

I love South America, for me the most exciting continent on the planet

Oriel

In keeping with annoying boardsie tradition:

"Yore ma!"

JMcL

leinsterman wrote:

.... no doubt this was not helped by all the garbage flying around ... the lack of a decent size desert in the area like in the movies (or rather the presence of Giza town) ... and all the guards hassling you for money ... It did not help the experience one bit ... in fact I was tempted to write to the Egyptian consolate to remind them that they have a responsibilty to keep these places in good shape for the rest of the human race I was so cheesed off ...

Nonetheless I have to say I was awestruck by the visit to Giza ...

When I was there, I overheard a conversation between a couple of Americans debating whether they'd "done" the pyramids as it was Friday, and the great pyramid itself was closed!

Valentia

I have nothing to contribute, I'm afraid. Great thread though and Patagonia sounds like it would be worth leaving the country for a change. How fit would you need to be Simon?

leinsterman

Valentia wrote:

I have nothing to contribute, I'm afraid. Great thread though and Patagonia sounds like it would be worth leaving the country for a change. How fit would you need to be Simon?

As fit as you are is probably enough Danny ... put it this way - if you can make the top of Carrantouhil or Lugnaquilla without the need for ****** then you are more than fine ...

It is more about stamina really ... for example I only did the V from the W hike in Torres ... not because of fitness but rather due to blisters and time

The picture of the Torres was taken after a 4KM hike over undulating terrain culminating with a steepish ascent ... total hiking that day was about 9KM. Whereas that panaorama shot I was asking you about a few weeks ago was taken from the road after stepping off a truck ... total hiking 0KM:rolleyes:

See -
http://www.besthike.com/southamerica/chile/paine.html

My point about fitness is more a personal thing ... you don't do these trips very often, so if I'm going all that way I don't want my limits of physical endurance becoming a barrier to enjoyment ... the fitter you are the more you can enjoy it ... and the less fear you will have attempting some of the more strenuous activities ...

I spent the preceeding 8 months to my trip in the Gym getting in pretty good shape so that I could do some of the tougher hikes at Altitude in the Andes ... but remember there is no connection between fitness and Altitude sickness ... in fact I read somewhere that Asthmatics and Smokers have less chance of suffering at Altitude than the super fit ... due to the fact that their bodies are more used to having less good quality ****** ... and Torres is not really a high altitude hike in any case ...

leinsterman

WTF ?

Why has boards filtered out the word Oxeg*n from my post ?

Morlar

leinsterman wrote:

WTF ?

Why has boards filtered out the word Oxeg*n from my post ?

Oxygen - not the music festival word !

Paulw

I certainly think that Vegas/Nevada/Arizona would be well worth the trip. Easy enough to get to, always warm weather, some stunning sunsets and great landscapes.

It's a trip I hope/plan to do next year.

Morlar

Paulw wrote:

I certainly think that Vegas/Nevada/Arizona would be well worth the trip. Easy enough to get to, always warm weather, some stunning sunsets and great landscapes.

It's a trip I hope/plan to do next year.

We should do that as a boards outing - all it will take will be someone to project manage the orgagnising of it (not me)

Another area is the white sands, in new mexico that could be very worthwhile too.

Paulw

Morlar wrote:

We should do that as a boards outing - all it will take will be someone to project manage the orgagnising of it (not me)

Trekamerica.com have some good packages. If we all booked the same trip (dates/times/trek) then it should be easy to manage.

http://www.footloose.com/tours/fdl.html

One I'd personally like to do.

Morlar

Paulw wrote:

Trekamerica.com have some good packages. If we all booked the same trip (dates/times/trek) then it should be easy to manage.

http://www.footloose.com/tours/fdl.html

One I'd personally like to do.

That looks surprisingly do-able. If this happened early 08 would suit me best.

leinsterman

Morlar wrote:

Oxygen - not the music festival word !

So it was dyslexia then


... or really good brainwash marketing on the part of the unmentionable promoters ...

CraggyIslander

Wholeheartedly recommend New Zealand, especially the south island. I'm actually looking at moving there permanently.

Patagonia looks amazing, I'll be adding that to my South America wishlist.... peru and machu picchu are top of my list

rahtkennades

leinsterman wrote:

I'm planning to take a three week vacation in November ... and I definitely want to get out of Europe bringing only a DSLR and a few lenses .....QUOTE]


Back on track, just wondering if you've considered Iceland? I've never been but it fascinates me as a country. The scenery looks fantastic.
BTW I know it's KIND of in Europe!

Paulw

I've been to Iceland. A very interesting place to visit, and a week would be enough.

You really need the weather. Nov will be very dark there.

Plenty to do/see, and there are some great little tours you can do. Small group treks are best to see the landscape. Some of the minor roads close in winter due to their poor conditions.

leinsterman

rahtkennades wrote:

Back on track, just wondering if you've considered Iceland? I've never been but it fascinates me as a country. The scenery looks fantastic.
BTW I know it's KIND of in Europe!

Went out with a women from Iceland back in my days at Aer Lingus ... so this involved numerous trips to the place ... well worth a visit ... but I'd not recommend November ... tends to get a bit drab around then ...

househunter

I'd recommend Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, although I don't think 3 weeks is enough to see all 3. Cambodia would excellent for photography with the Angkor temples and Vietnam & Laos have lots of varied scenery and trekking as well as good opportunities to take great portraits etc. Also the weather will be good there in November

bigeoino

leinsterman wrote:

I was looking through some of your flickr images form Patagonia ... very nice!! ... how did you get around ? ... did you go independant, local transport or with an overlander ?...

We (my wife and I) did it independently. And felt quite smug when we saw some of the locust hordes of overlanders... and heard some of the bitching.

We predominantly stayed in hostels except for the occasional hotel (for luxury and swimming pools!) which never really got above €20 a night (averaging far less - around €10 a night for a room).

We did 90% of the "W" in torres - missed part of the middle bit... and camped for 4 nights. For those less adventurous there are refugios with bunks all the way round (need to be booked) that serve food so you can do it with far less in your back pack. The walks aren't really that strenuous - you could get by with 4 - 6 hours a day if you spent a 5 nights - and the only really rocky one is teh one up to the Torres Peaks. You can also get up to torres by Boat from Peurto Natales weaving through the icebergs - which was meant to be dramatic .
If you go to the Fitzroy part of the national park, most of the walks are accessible as day walks from town so you can always get back to showers and hot food.

Most of our travel was by bus except for a few legs by plane (Buenos Aires to Ushuaia, and Ushuaia to Punto Arenas (access to Torres from here)) and we had no problems with any of them. The local buses in the high Andes even stopped so the tourists could take photos. The locals seemed (justifiably) proud and even offered you coca leaves for the altitude!

The long distance buses were actually really good. They have Cama's and Semi Camas and a lot of competition.



They even play bingo on some of them - great way to learn the numbers in spanish!

The Camas are really really cheap and the seats are like Business class seats, they serve food, and occasionally wine... stop every few hours and show a lot of quite dodgey videos.

The only problem is that journeys can take a long time - we took two which were over 24hrs. If you are constrained by time try for the "Air Pass" where you can do a number of flights. You'll need to go to more than one country but between Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina and Chile you should get enough!

Plus it's worth mentioning that Argentina is way cheaper than Chile... Uruguay is cheaper than Argentina and that the south is more expensive than the north.

All in all (apologies to anyone not interested in it...) I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to everyone!
And did I say the steaks were huge?

leinsterman

bigeoino wrote:

We (my wife and I) did it independently. And felt quite smug when we saw some of the locust hordes of overlanders... and heard some of the bitching.

I did it with an overlander ... I'm quite offended that you thought of us as locusts ... but I fully get your point all the same

If you have time you can't beat independant travel for a sense of fulfillment... not to mention the opportunity to sneer, make elitest comments and generally look down on others being herded around like cattle ... As I'm going solo, places (as you say) are very far apart (and we do mean far ... living in Ireland we have little concept of what this really means) and 3 weeks is not what I would consider to be long enough for independant travel ... I'd still say your best bet is in a group ... but you better hope the group has a low portion of muppets ... lord knows I met a few on my trip ...

I'd have to reccomend Cambodia.Although I've never been there some of the photos I've seen are fantastic.Vast jungles,overgrown 50 foot statues of gods and sprawling temples all over the place.It'd be hard not to take great photos.

Covey

Morlar wrote:

Also Syria would be on my list - as its dirt cheap (5 star hotels for 3 star prices), and its hot and has culture too !

Of places I've been Syria was by far and away the best. Spent 3 weeks 2 yrs ago and have 4 weeks booked next year. I can't think of one minus point.

Of places I've not been and on my list;

Ethiopia & Kazakstan are high on my list after a lot of research.

If photography is the main focus though, you need to look at what you want, though don't forget there is more to a holiday than photography, especially the people.

My interest is Social and Documentary Photography, though all of the above lend themselves to landscape etc though maybe not as much as other countries.

BTW, Syria is dirt cheap but the hotels are not.

T.