Going to Russia with a D700 and a prime - Any recommendations ?

Hello,

I'm going to Russia next Monday on a cruise from Moscow to St Petersburg. My main task will be to push the wheelchair of my grand-mother, but I definitely intend to get some pictures along the way !

I'll be traveling with a D700 and only one prime lens (Voigtlander 40mm f2), for practical reasons (try pushing a wheelchair with a bag full of big zooms or heavy Zeiss primes :/ ). I feel perfectly fine with this combo (anyway the 40 spends almost 80 % of my shooting time on my camera, so I'm used to it ).

My question was : do you have any travel recommendation for Russia other than basic language training ("excuse-me, I don't speak Russian", "hello", "thanks", etc.) ? Things to avoid doing in public (We're on an organized trip, but knowing my grand-ma she's gonna completely mess up with the schedule and do whatever she wants to do) ? Places where not to take pictures, such as Churches ? How to recognize if I'm annoying someone ? Thanks for your help !

The most important phrase to learn to speak in any country is "где ванная комната?" (Where is the bathroom?)

I don't recall anything of too much concern from the 4 months I spent in St. Petersburg in the late 90's.

I'd say just follow the general rules of travelling in be polite, and smile, be courteous about taking photos. With religious areas I always make a point of asking permission from a staff member before I start shooting, even if I see others who already are.

If you haven't seen them yet, there have been a couple of threads here in the past, which you might find interesting:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=31340593
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1021&message=31503540

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AR

A 50/1.4D or 35/2D, small, comparatively cheap, excellent IQ and gives you AF while your busy with the wheelchair, dont you think?

Anyways, have a nice trip.

I agree that AF could make things easier, but I love so much the 40mm focal length that it was a no-brainer for me. Anyway I'll probably zone focus as I usually do . And the voigt has a wonderful IQ.

Thanks all for your answers, I'm gonna read those two topics above.

nathantw said:

The most important phrase to learn to speak in any country is "где ванная комната?" (Where is the bathroom?)

Click to expand...

better phrase would be "Gde tualet?". "vannaya komnata" (bathroom) may not be understood correctly. It mostly means what it means, a room with a bath tub. Even better (more polite) phrase is "Gde ubornaya", but hearing this word from a foreigner would be weird. so stick with "Gde tualet?"

Hopefully your grandmother will buy you some more lenses after the trip. I suspect she bought the D700 for you!
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Jay

yes, keep your camera secure.

Let me give you one single bit of advise -- DONT take your D700 with you.

There are pick pockets and thieves EVERYWHERE you are going to go on an organized tour. Russia is currently one of the least safe places to visit, with or without an organized group.

Take either a cheap dSLR that can easily be replaced (d40)....or take a pocketable compact camera that can go in a zippered pocket. If you take the d40, don't take any expensive lenses with you, and don't put everything on one memory card in case it gets stolen.

Don't bring a laptop with you, and don't leave ANY electronics or camera equipment in your hotel room. It doesn't matter what level of tourist hotel you stay at, don't leave anything of value in it.

As someone pushing a wheelchair, you will be one of the prime objects of tourist-area thieves....they know they can pick your pockets or grab your backpack while you are busy.

As someone who travels to Eastern Europe quite a bit, just DONT DO IT....don't take anything of value on your trip.

I guess she would never spend money on anything better than a point and shoot . No, I bought the D700 myself.

Anyway the last post is quite alarming, I'll try to get more feedbacks from visitors.

I'd recommend putting some black tape over the Nikon logo and the D700 on your camera. Moscow has a lot of crime in certain areas, but if you don't advertise that you're carrying a Nikon with a HUGE lens attached, you should be ok. Use street smarts. When I was in Paris I got yelled at by a Frenchman for taking pictures inside Notre Dame Cathedral. He told me I was not allowed to take pictures in the church. I was a tourist just as he was and I made sure I followed the clearly marked signs when entering. No FLASH photography. I didn't use a flash and wasn't disturbing anyone, he just had it out for me since I was American I think. Follow the rules of the church and you'll be fine I think. I did manage to get some really awesome photos too using a small miniature 3 legged tripod, self timer and my F6. Some of the photos could be posters or postcards IMO. Use your best judgment and ask the staff before you start snapping away and most indoor attractions prefer you don't use or completely prohibit flash photography. Good luck and please report back on how it went.

Chris
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/thewenzels/

Well my D700's already covered with tape and has been looking like a dirty and ugly metallic cam from the 60s since I got it. I guess that's because I'm a Parisian - so quite well knowledgeable of city smartness. I'm sorry btw for this Frenchman who might have been ill-mannered to you because you were American. Anyway if someone confirms me that Moscow is like Paris or NYC pick-pocket wise, I really see no problem other than the fact that I won't speak the language well (therefore increasing the risks slightly).

I've travelled to and stayed in Russia many times albeit the last time about 5 years ago and it wasn't just Moscow or St P but also in cities in the South Urals and Siberia and the Russian people are super so don't let others put you off! Of course you have got to take care when visiting any city in the world but Russian cities are no worse than any others!

When I was invited to a Russian's family home for a meal, they treated me like royalty and they were so sincere and genuinely hospitable! Unfortunately you'll probably not experience this on your trip but you'll still get a taste of the Russian way of life. They're used to tourists in Moscow and St P and you'll probably have less problems than if you visit London.

I took my old and trusted Canon A1's in those days and used just one lens, the humble 35-70 which was a very underated lens but which if one found a good copy, was excellent.

If I was going now, I'd take an f2.8 35-70 AF-D which is not too obtrusive and ideal for 'touristy' shots, especially with a D700.

Russia is a wonderful country and I envy you and your trip - good luck and enjoy it!
Regards...
Tony

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The only thing that gets sharper with use is a woman's tongue!
http://www.le-femme.co.uk

I must post back because my post might give people the wrong idea about what I think. The entire week long trip to Paris was wonderful and I only met the one rude guy. All other French people were very nice to me and very helpful when I got lost.

Good luck on your trip to Russia and I think you'll be fine since you are not stupid. Have fun and please post some pictures when you get back!
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/thewenzels/

A friend of mine had his D200 taken right out of a zipped back pack in a split second in a big store in St Petersburg, the scum used a very plausible distraction technique, enjoy the trip but beware of 'nice' strangers offering help.

large numbers of tourists off the cruise ship were targetted and sadly quite a few people were 'picked'. I for one will not go there you have to be constantly on your guard.

I have made the exact trip you are taking.

There are many opportunities from the boat, and obviously once you get to St. Petersburg, reach is not going to be quite as improtant.

That said, it you can get a zoom, I would STRONGY recommend doing so.

You won't be sorry, and have a great trip!

Whenever you go out to buy anything or go to an event it is much cheaper for you to have a local with you to handle all the purchases. I once went to Moscow, and because we were staying with a local, we would buy things from boat rides, tickets, food, and at auctions for much less than unaccompanied english speakers. I boat ride that cost us 50 cents equivalent, we woudl see others charged 10 dollars for the same ride.

When we came into Moscow airport the porters got 20 dollars - which at the time was two weeks salary for many. It went on and on.

I always try to go wherever I can have the help of a local when I travel on my own, but this time it will be impossible since for convenience purposes it was better to take an organized trip.

Anyway thanks for your answers !