Colombia

[rcarca]

I am off to Colombia for a few weeks shortly. Mainly working in Bogota, but hopefully getting around a bit as well. Any advice? Photographically particularly, but other thoughts also welcome!

Thank you

Richard

 

[Jim Saunders]

Don't take anything there you're not willing to lose.

Jim

 

[ajfotofilmagem]

I would not walk down the street alone with a lot of photographic gear. :-\ In fact, when I travel to potentially unsafe cities, take my cheaper camera with a zoom lens. :-X

 

[sagittariansrock]

I would not walk down the street alone with a lot of photographic gear. :-\ In fact, when I travel to potentially unsafe cities, take my cheaper camera with a zoom lens. :-X

+1. I carried a 5Dc and 40mm in the streets of NYC. All logos were taped up.

 

[surapon]

I would not walk down the street alone with a lot of photographic gear. :-\ In fact, when I travel to potentially unsafe cities, take my cheaper camera with a zoom lens. :-X

+ 1 for me too,
Go to buy Canon EOS-M with 18-55 mm Zoom Lens = $ 317 US Dollars, And Use in Colombia or New york city.

http://www.amazon.com/Canon-Compact-Systems-3-0-Inch-EF-M18-55mm/dp/B00A2BVCO0

Good Luck.
Surapon

 

[Jamesy]

Mikey from lightenupandshoot.com used to live in Columbia - check out his site, he is a very friendly guy and will give you tips on travelling there. Contact him through his site, I am sure he will respond. He taught me years ago in Toronto on one of his travelling road shows - solid guy.

 

[nineyards]

How frustrating, not being able to use your best gear when you want it most.

 

[GmwDarkroom]

I went there in 1995 under the auspices of the U.S. government and our briefing -- along with the then-relevant "Medellin and Cali are off limits" clause -- included a warning about the use of Scopolamine by criminals to drug and rob people. The danger is that the doses used were potentially lethal with something like 25% of ER patients involving the drug. Taxis we're allegedly a popular ambush point, especially if one stopped with more than one person in the car.

In my case, we didn't have to worry about getting around in taxis due to our mission, but a quick search tells me it may still be a problem. All that said, you're far more likely to be just plain robbed or have your pockets picked.

 

[AdamF]

I spent a lot of time working in Bogota in 1998. It wasn't unsafe back then, but I had experiences of people wanting to sell me fake emeralds and sell me drugs on the street and beggars that wouldn't leave me alone. And there were some pretty sleazy areas.

I don't know it has changed for the better since 1998.

Just be very careful and inconspicuous with your gear.

Take the cable car up to the top of the mountain that Bogota sits up against (Mount Monserrate). You can get some great photos from there.

https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1280&bih=730&q=mount+monserrate&oq=mount+monserrate&gs_l=img.12..0l3j0i24l2.1322.3507.0.5740.7.7.0.0.0.0.144.847.0j7.7.0....0...1ac.1.48.img..0.7.842.10U_PFrQacI



In Bogota, go to the Gold museum, it is amazing.

https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1280&bih=730&q=museo+del+oro+bogota&oq=museo+del+&gs_l=img.1.1.0l10.1502.5419.0.8456.10.9.0.1.1.0.198.1169.2j7.9.0....0...1ac.1.48.img..0.10.1165.X3dPSln6PdM



Outside of Bogota, visit Villa de Layva, it is very nice:

https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1280&bih=730&q=villa+de+leyva+colombia&oq=villa+de+leyva&gs_l=img.1.1.0l10.1802.1802.0.5348.1.1.0.0.0.0.110.110.0j1.1.0....0...1ac.1.48.img..0.1.109.mGWBOnpDZo4


Also visit Zipaquira salt cathedral, that place is amazing.

https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1280&bih=730&q=zipaquira+salt+cathedral&oq=zipaquira+salt+cathedral&gs_l=img.3..0j0i24l3.2722.2722.0.4614.1.1.0.0.0.0.148.148.0j1.1.0....0...1ac.1.48.img..0.1.147._TLJp2DXCvA

Just be very careful with anything expensive including you camera gear and be careful of where you take photos (no military buildings or soldiers).

I don't agree with people saying don't take your best gear. Take it and watch it closely. Get an insurance policy rider from your renters or home owners insurance company. A rider just for your photo gear. I have that and I don't worry if my gear was to be stolen or lost.

It's a very interesting place. Have fun !!

 

[LetTheRightLensIn]

I would not walk down the street alone with a lot of photographic gear. :-\ In fact, when I travel to potentially unsafe cities, take my cheaper camera with a zoom lens. :-X

+1. I carried a 5Dc and 40mm in the streets of NYC. All logos were taped up.

Much of NYC is filled with tourists and locals with fancy cameras all over the place. Big lenses, white lenses, you name it.

And taping up logos solves nothing anyway. Like in Jurassic Park when he asks "Is it heavy? Yes? Well then it's expensive, put it down." so someone sees a camera and lens and they are like OK if it's big, it must be expensive, logo means little.

 

[wopbv4]

Hi,

My last visit was in 1996, so that is a long time ago. In those days, Medellin was very dangerous, Bogota was alright at least in the better part of town. If you have the time, fly to Carthagena, which is fantastic and super safe

 

[Valvebounce]

Hi folks.
My thinking on this is take gear you want to use, if someone wants your gear, offer minimal resistance, the more you resist the more likely you are to get hurt, and nothing any of us carry is worth risking that. Take lots of CF or SD cards, change them out frequently, don't keep them with camera gear, that way they won't get all your memories, just the day they nick the camera!

The following was told to me by a relative who worked in some very unsavoury areas years ago. Any thoughts on the relevance of this in today's environment.
Be safe, be aware of your surroundings, be the grey man, invisible, confident, not timid and nervous, that marks you as a target.
The more you behave like you should be somewhere, it is normal to be there the less of a target you represent.

Cheers Graham.

 

[tolusina]

If visiting a Third World Country causes concern, consider not taking and flaunting your First World extravagances.
Take only one, un-gripped body, mount a 40mm pancake and call it good.
Hang the camera from a Kevlar UPstrap or a stainless cable reinforced Carrysafe, no big gear bag, only a small belt looped accessory bag.
I consider essential accessories to include a battery charger, spare battery, spare memory cards, a CPL, an infrared remote.
If you want some minimal support, a weighted string with a clasp, a 1/4" - 20 eye bolt screwed into the tripod socket for the string's clasp.
I'd leave laptop and tablet home, use a smartphone for tethering, appropriate cables.

You may just find traveling and shooting gear light and minimal to be liberating and exhilarating, you may just find fresh creativity without the aids of multiple focal lengths.

 

[Niki]

If visiting a Third World Country causes concern, consider not taking and flaunting your First World extravagances.
Take only one, un-gripped body, mount a 40mm pancake and call it good.
Hang the camera from a Kevlar UPstrap or a stainless cable reinforced Carrysafe, no big gear bag, only a small belt looped accessory bag.
I consider essential accessories to include a battery charger, spare battery, spare memory cards, a CPL, an infrared remote.
If you want some minimal support, a weighted string with a clasp, a 1/4" - 20 eye bolt screwed into the tripod socket for the string's clasp.
I'd leave laptop and tablet home, use a smartphone for tethering, appropriate cables.

You may just find traveling and shooting gear light and minimal to be liberating and exhilarating, you may just find fresh creativity without the aids of multiple focal lengths.

+1

another thing.. what I do…take a film camera…and a few rolls of film…

 

[sagittariansrock]

I would not walk down the street alone with a lot of photographic gear. :-\ In fact, when I travel to potentially unsafe cities, take my cheaper camera with a zoom lens. :-X

+1. I carried a 5Dc and 40mm in the streets of NYC. All logos were taped up.

Much of NYC is filled with tourists and locals with fancy cameras all over the place. Big lenses, white lenses, you name it.

And taping up logos solves nothing anyway. Like in Jurassic Park when he asks "Is it heavy? Yes? Well then it's expensive, put it down." so someone sees a camera and lens and they are like OK if it's big, it must be expensive, logo means little.

Well, first off- I am not very familiar with NYC, and it is quite easy to find yourself in a pretty lonely alley, creepy even in the middle of the day. And I like strolling along the less busy streets to experience the city.
The tourists and locals with fancy cameras don't walk those routes.

Secondly, the 5Dc+40mm pancake isn't big and heavy, especially since everyone nowadays carries an SLR. Taping logos with black gaffer's tape makes the whole thing look small, inconspicuous and shabby. In contrast a guy toting a Rebel with a Canon strap is much more conspicuous. I hope to replace the 5Dc with a 6D which will be even less conspicuous.

 

[rcarca]

Thank you very much for all of you who have responded. Thanks to AdamF and others for the photographic suggestions, thank you everyone who has commented on security.

Your help and advice is much appreciated. If there is anything worth posting photographically from my time out there, I will do so!

Best

Richard