Good Photo Spots In Europe?

flight3

Hi all,

I will be going to Europe for the first time this fall (sept-nov) and I wanted ask if any of you knew some good locations to shoot? I will be going to southern Norway first (kristiansand), Paris, Geneva and a few other places. I'll be bringing all my camera equipment too.

Killerbob

That's like asking "any good burger joints in the US?"... It all depends on what you are looking for.

flight3

That's like asking "any good burger joints in the US?"... It all depends on what you are looking for.

Oh well I might have phrased my question incorrectly. Has anyone been to or near Southern France, Kristiansand Norway or Geneva? If so, were there any places that you enjoyed photographing? Churches, Nature Trails, Museums...almost anywhere in those areas really. Hopefully that helps.

JJ_SO

Paris is not Southern France. If you think you're not able to see the beauty where you find it, travel light and leave your gear at home. Do you really think you gonna be told what you should photograph? There are petabytes of pictures on Google to get your own idea and surprises waiting for you, just go and see.

spraynpray

@flight3: Forgive JJ_SO's abrupt manner, but what he said is true. I could tell you go to Mont Martre (Paris) for some great views and lots of other places too, but you will get a bigger kick out of researching the places you are going to using your PC and even wandering around finding your own great shots.

Have a great trip!

flight3

@spraynpray
I definitely agree that researching the area as well as exploring on my own is a great way to go about this trip. And I have been researching and I plan on exploring on my own, but I also just wanted to get your guy's opinion as well because I know some of you have traveled and seen very interesting things/sites I might not find. Didn't mean for it to sound broad or like I wasn't going to do anything on my own. I will just continue searching then :P

KnockKnock

Okay, I'll bite. Saint-Chapelle in Paris. It's not obscure, but it's not Le Tour Eiffel either.

If there was one thing I wish I could go back and take a picture of, it would be the first time I emerged from the Metro and just saw the architecture stacked up 6 floors on every street. My jaw just dropped. Which goes along with everyone here is saying. You can't miss. There are photo opportunities everywhere.

Hallvardk

Try to get to Lindesnes Fyr in Kristiansand. It's the most southern part of norway, and beautiful to shoot in the golden hour. I have to say that I agree with the others here: try your own thing, and try to capture the essence of the places you are visiting. Architecture, people, and special places is what makes a good photo story for me.

rmp

Hi, when I travel time always seems to be a problem -- that is, I seem to have too little time to shoot everything I want to shoot. For me, the answer is a photographer-guide-spotter (I'm not sure what to call this person). I email ahead to find a "guide" that lives in the travel area, is a photographer, speaks the local language and English, and is willing to help me find great shots of the type I want. Try finding an Owl's nest in Montana on your own. Try finding a good landscape of lavender in southern France at sunset. A half-day with a good photographer-guide is easily worth the cost. Enjoy your trip -- and post some photos.

dissent

Shoot everything. Take lots of memory. Be ready to be surprised on the street. One of my favorite shots I took in France years ago was of a street performer who had just set himself (herself?) up as a statue figure in the square in front of the cathedral. The interaction with the onlookers led to some fun shooting opportunities. (heh. was film too; wish I'd had a digital back then (2000)).

Pierre

I found Monaco and Andorra fantastic, especially Pas del las Casa (which is a tax free shopping even but I love the constructions against the mountains). I liked north tip of Portugal. Geneva is interesting for night shooting around the lake, the constructions are similar than Paris but not as well maintained, Paris is much better. I liked Berne and the Brienz whole lake areas a lot. South part of Switzerland taking the small roads toward the Italian side is a fantastic drive. All of the Locarno areas is pure beauty. My favorite country in Europe is definitely Italy, especially the Orvietto area, the Cique Terre, Rome. There is so much to see.

I would easily spend 3 weeks zizzag driving through Switzerland, Austria, I love the mountains and great green-blue lakes.

The very south of France is very nice along the coast and the south-western very tip is a must see but beside that, there is not that much to see going north, lots of farms, wineries. Of course Mont-Saint-Michel is a must.

I must had drove 10,000km in Europe and never tires of it.

On July 22, we are landing in Paris, take a car and drive to Stockholm, then Vienna, then back to Paris (suggestions for that triangle are welcome as well).

Doing one city tells you nothing much about Europe, you definitely need to do lots of driving kilometers. Take a good GPS with you, avoid the highways, take the back roads and don't hesitate to get lost in the cities and tows, the GPS will tell you how to get out. Finding hotels on the road is easy (especially with the GPS) but many places close their front desk at 20:00. If by then you have no place, you may have to sleep in your car.

A good way to explore what you would like to see is through Google Earth, I have planned all of my trips with it. There are tons of photos from different angles of an area and with the satellite view, you can fly over the areas of your choice very close to the ground, then hit the street views. When you reserve hotels, you can explore the neighbourhood before.

Despite what other have said, asking around is a good thing to do and can definitely avoids you bad surprises. There are lots of hot spots you do not want to find yourself in.

Pierre

I found Monaco and Andorra fantastic, especially Pas del las Casa (which is a tax free shopping even but I love the constructions against the mountains). I liked north tip of Portugal. Geneva is interesting for night shooting around the lake, the constructions are similar than Paris but not as well maintained, Paris is much better. I liked Berne and the Brienz whole lake areas a lot. South part of Switzerland taking the small roads toward the Italian side is a fantastic drive. All of the Locarno areas is pure beauty. My favorite country in Europe is definitely Italy, especially the Orvietto area, the Cique Terre, Rome. There is so much to see.

I would easily spend 3 weeks zizzag driving through Switzerland, Austria, I love the mountains and great green-blue lakes.

The very south of France is very nice along the coast and the south-western very tip is a must see but beside that, there is not that much to see going north, lots of farms, wineries. Of course Mont-Saint-Michel is a must.

I must had drove 10,000km in Europe and never tires of it.

On July 22, we are landing in Paris, take a car and drive to Stockholm, then Vienna, then back to Paris (suggestions for that triangle are welcome as well).

Doing one city tells you nothing much about Europe, you definitely need to do lots of driving kilometers. Take a good GPS with you, avoid the highways, take the back roads and don't hesitate to get lost in the cities and tows, the GPS will tell you how to get out. Finding hotels on the road is easy (especially with the GPS) but many places close their front desk at 20:00. If by then you have no place, you may have to sleep in your car.

A good way to explore what you would like to see is through Google Earth, I have planned all of my trips with it. There are tons of photos from different angles of an area and with the satellite view, you can fly over the areas of your choice very close to the ground, then hit the street views. When you reserve hotels, you can explore the neighbourhood before.

Despite what other have said, asking around is a good thing to do and can definitely avoids you bad surprises. There are lots of hot spots you do not want to find yourself in.

Sept-Nov may spell trouble (snow) high in the mountains and cold stormy at the beaches.

flight3

Much thanks to those who have given me ideas. I will be keeping these in mind, but I will definitely be having my own adventures on the trip.

Msmoto

When I travel anywhere I am interested in photographing the people....and in Europe I would be seeking out local scenes which are not the usual tourist areas....

RMP has suggested a guide and this could be beneficial in two respects....the guide will know where not to go as well as be able to find the non-touristy areas.

Ironheart

If you buy a D600 you could get some really good photo spots in Europe ;-) Sorry I couldn't resist.

Seriously though, I spent several weeks bicycling through South of France, Italy, Monaco in July (hot hot!) and there is so much beauty to see, you almost can't go wrong. Anywhere you point your lens will be good. I would imagine the Fall is even more beautiful than the Summer so my best advice is to take it slow, stop and smell (and shoot) the roses so to speak.

Benji2505

Take a shot of Lake Geneva in the sunset with the Alpes in the background. Also try lac d'Annesy for the color of the water. The downtown areas in major cities have a tendency to be more attractive for photography than the large cities in the US. If you shoot in Italy make sure you hold on to your stuff )

ibecamewe

I know some place like Iceland, The Palouse - Rolling hills, fields that are constantly changing colors through four distinct seasons, and great weather provide incredible picture opportunities. and North way is Northern Europe, bordering the North Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Sweden. I like this place 'Oscarsborg Fortress outside Drøbak in Eastern Norway'

sideways

If you get to Italy, Florence and Venice are both fascinating.
Paris has character by the bucket full
Norway is marvellous - I haven't been for 25 years but I recall that their trains were massive, just like the big carriages in American cowboy movies but comfortable and perfectly on time.
My daughter just spent a week in Krakow and absolutely loved it.

I'm intrigued by all the little differences that add up to create a unique feel to a country - architecture, street life, design, fashion, food, the works - and the ways in which people are all the same the world over.
Just keep your camera in hand and go walk the streets. The tourist attractions have all been shot to death by people with all the time, gear and access to get the best view with the best light and weather.
We can't do that when we're dropping by for 10 minutes so instead just have fun, go explore the streets where the locals live then hit the roads and drive. The images will appear like magic and even if they're not great they will still be uniquely precious to you :-)

proudgeek

Sometimes if I'm going to a place and I want a research shortcut, I'll do a search on Flickr for that place name. Obviously you'll want to shoot your own stuff, but it's interesting to see how others capture a place (particularly if they're local to that place). Seeing what others are shooting may also help you decide what lenses to bring. Remember, this is just a starting point.