Most Photogenic Countries in Europe?

I realize this is a broad question, but which European countries do

you feel hold the best photo opportunities? Which provide for just a

great vacation in general? I am considering Spain, France, Italy,

Switzerland, and Greece, but limited budget and time (a few weeks)

don't allow me to visit them all. I would have to go to either Spain,

France, Italy, and maybe a corner of Switzerland (although that would

be pushing it for a few weeks in Europe), or Italy and Greece (mostly

Athens and the islands). I want to be able to delve into traditional

culture and find beautiful, interesting locales that are almost exotic

to someone like me from boring old Ohio, USA. So, where have you had

the most luck in finding great pictures and vacations in Europe?

How about China? ;-)

 

OK, I am lousy in Geography but not to that extent. Offered that suggestions because:

 

1. With the declining air-fare, it probably wouldn't cost much more to fly to China.

2. Did you say the words traditional culture, exotic?

3. It is really affordable to travel in China, a room with TV and ensuite bathroom for 2 in

an inn will cost about USD 10 per night. Meal cost about USD 1 per meal.

4. I would suggest the Yunnan province, south west of China. Read "Lost Horizon" by

James Hilton, Shangri-la? That is the place.

5. A good city to start will be Lijiang, an UNESCO heritage city. lots of information of

Lijiang on the web. I just got back from there, my 2nd time and going back there again in

Feb.

6. I think China is making quite a few good large format camera and accessories, a time to

stock up?

 

Wherever you go, enjoy!!!

Wen

Britt hello,

I live in France, I have lived in Spain and I travel around Europe in business or with the family quite a lot. I don't know Greece, so I will keep my answer to your first option (Spain, France and Italy, with a little Switzerland).

The main choices that will probably make a difference in your trip are the time of the year and the mode of transportation. As for the first, as everybody will tell you, avoid August - it is too hot to walk around confortably, no "locals" will be at home (only tourists with digital cameras, he, he) and in the second half of the month the most interesting family-run businesses, such as restaurants and small shops, will simply be closed.

As for transportation, if you decide to fly between your destinations and not rent a car, you will normally be limited to the large cities; nothing wrong with Madrid, Barcelona, Paris or Rome, but the notion of "traditional culture" will be hidden among masses of people carrying laptops and talking on cell phones, going to and from work, traffic jams, subways, advertising for the same global brands, etc. On the other hand, those are the places to go if you love big museums, cathedrals, loads of history and shopping.

But if you'd rather go for the unexpected, you will need a car, and some careful planning around your travel dates. Some of the most interesting places and things to see Europe happen around traditional festivals, and not necessarily in the capitals. "Semana Santa" (Easter week) in southern Spain, the "Palio" in Sienna, bull running in Pamplona, the lavender flowering season in Provence, driving through the vineyards in Alsace or in Toscana, etc. The list is almost endless, and although usually crowded, and certainly attracting tourists, those events are also well attended by the local population. And definitely will provide wonderful photo opportunities.

So start planning (you will need to anticipate hotel reservations reltively early in some cases) and good trip!

Cheers, Marcelo

A broad question indeed! Even a single European country contains towns and regions which are culturally/ethnically/historically distinct. To photographically explore the richness of a single country would take many weeks on its own! So, depending on how "much" of Europe you want to see on this trip, you could be very satisfied with just one country, or you may want to experience selected highlights of a few. Obviously, this partly depends on whether you intend to return to Europe in the future. Personally, I am fascinated by Italy - unmissable in my book. Great variety of scenery, people and culture (and food) within a single country. You could take in Rome, Florence, Sienna, Venice, Amalfi coast, Cinque Terre, Lake district - then venture into Switzerland for a completely different experience! Hope this is helpful for you!

You need to say when you plan to make this trip- many of the photographic opportunities in Europe are very seasonal- and how you'll be travelling. The recommendations I'd make for someone travelling by car are very different from those I'd consider viable by public transport. You'll have much more flexibility in a car if you want to see countryside, but if you want to focus on cities they're a pain.

 

A further clue is to stop thinking "country" and start thinking "area" or region. None of the countries you mention are universally photogenic. For example much of northern Italy is not particularly photogenic; yet it contains Venice; the Cinque Terre; Lakes Como and Maggiore and Garda; and the Dolomites, all of which are.

This reminds me of a film called "If it's Tuesday it must be Belgium". Europe may just be bigger than you think and just about every European country I have been to has outstanding "photo opportunities" of every possible variety. I think you are trying to spread things far too thinly and should narrow your horizons to one or two countries - a definite case of less is more.

 

However just to add to the confusion I would suggest you also consider the UK ( all of it ), Czech Republic ( especially Prague ) and Portugal ( Lisbon, Atlantic seaboard, Algarve ).

 

As I said - narrow your horizons and then come back with some specifics and you will receive some very good advice from this forum

The UK is a great place for photography, lots of dramatic skies (read rain), do some homework before visiting. The Scotish Highlands I'm told are just amazing - and are on my 'to do' list. You can't really go wrong with anywhere which has hills, but combine that with crappy weather and you're on a winner :)

Ben - add the Islands (they've got sea as well if you like it damp ) to the Highlands - on my to do again list (especially Mull ).

<a href="http://www.keithlaban.co.uk">Keith Laban Photography</a><p><i>The most photogenic country in Europe?</i><p>Your own.<p><i>The most photogenic part of the most photogenic country in europe?</i><p>Your own backyard.

Hi Britt,

I'm from boring old Illinois, but now make my home in The Netherlands. I also lived in Italy for three years. I think I know what you mean about seeking places which seem exotic to a midwesterner. But let's take a step back for a second and think: consider someone asking you about the most photogenic places in North America. Impossible to answer, right? Same with Europe, which is also a large continent.

Try to narrow it down to the specific countries you want to visit. You won't be able to cover all the beautiful places in a few weeks, but you can always return to Europe, right? What I do when I travel to new places is visit book stores for research. Choose a couple of travel guides or look for those coffee-table books which are usually in the clearance bin. Once you've decided on, for instance, a three week trip divided among Italy, France and Switzerland, you can make an itinerary. But keep it loose because something unexpected always seems to pop up (at least for me) when traveling. Invariably I wind up veering off in different directions based upon something I've learned from the locals. Your goal of delving into the culture is what whill make the trip wonderful. If you do that you'll discover things no "10 countries in 10 days" tourist would never see.

One last thing. If you make your itinerary too broad, you'll spend much of your time traveling and leave too little time to enjoy both the cultures and the photo opportunities. Slow down. Like I mentioned earlier, you can always come back.

 

Hope this helps!

 

Phil

Hallo Britt

 

Most peopel in Europa today dress in blue jeans and T-shirt, they all drive the

same 10 cars models and most of ther homs looks like IKEA sales shops.

Europa looks more and more the same and more like Ohio I am afraid of, but

still you can find som of the old magic around in small gethoes, but com

quickly befour it all will have the same happy middel class suburban look .

 

Spain is still her but you have to com soon befoer it all will fade away.

 

www.micbach.dk.........."Photography workshops in Spain"

Well, let's assume Britt knows a bit about where s/he wants to go. OK: Britt. This is what

I'd do.

 

Suppose you have 4-5 weeks. I'd suggest this. Fly Ohio to Madrid. Get the feel of the city

for a couple of days, then south to Granada and Moorish Spain by train - a unique look

that you won't find elsewhere in Europe. Train to Tarragona on the east coast - ancient

Roman city with gorgeous remains. North to Barcelona (1hr by train). Next, take a train or

bus along the Mediterranean to Nimes and Arles - both ancient Roman cities which are

small, compact and gorgeous with fabulous architecture. Down across the Camargue (the

remote Rhone delta, famous for flamingoes and black bulls) to Marseille - capital of the

Mediterranean, very cosmopolitan (Spanish, Italian, French and North African cultures mix

happily). Keep moving - train across the southern end of the Alps, seeing the Riviera and

pretty people on beaches and on across the Po Valley towards Venice but stopping off

where you fancy. As people have said - northern Italy is beautiful and heavily

industrialised and that's true of much of western Europe. From Venice, head back across

Switzerland - pick your own route and then back into Eastern France, with Paris as a final

destination. Allow 3 days for Paris - just to see it and to come to terms with the fact that

you're leaving.

 

There are 25 states in the European Union and maybe another 10 outside it. You're seeing

only bits of three EU states (France, Spain and Italy), which is reasonable in my opinion,

although you'll be moving a lot. They all use the same currency (Euro) which will save you

changing constantly. Switzerland isn't in the EU and uses its own currency. Prices in the

top tourist cities (Barcelona, Partis and Venice) are expensive. Keeping to smaller towns

and cities where you can will let you see a bit more and spend a lot less. You're seeing

several types of architecture, mountains (Alps), beaches (Spain and the French Riviera),

three of the most beautiful but heavily-touristed large cities in Europe and a number of

the smaller ones. Roman remains. Remote areas. Sunken cities on canals. Not everyone

will speak English and you may have to struggle with menus and travelling and buying

tickets and plumbing and it will change unexpectedly every time you cross a border. Ohio,

it's not.

 

If you won't want to look like a tourist, do as follows. Don't wear baseball caps, t-shirts,

sneakers and shorts. Dress a little more formally. Use sun-lotion, so you don't go pink (the

Spanish slang for a tourist is "lobster"). Don't wave your camera about constantly. Don't

carry a guidebook in each hand. Watch how strangers act - Americans talk and smile too

much. Europeans are a bit more formal, initially.

 

Learn the following words in French, Spanish and Italian: hello, goodbye, sir, madam,

please, thanks, bed, breakfast, go, ticket, today, tomorrow, day, night.

 

Camera: you'll appreciate a wide lens, at least 28mm - all our cities pre-date automobile

traffic so streets are really narrow and you won't be able to step back far enough in lots of

places.

 

Be aware that electricity and plugs/sockets vary from country to country, so if you have a

dslr, plan for buying batteries. AAs are available very commonly.

 

Give youself time to stop and just... be... in places. SPend an hour in a cafe, watching

people go by. The advice that big European cities are full of office workers with mobile

phones and laptops is true. Paris is one of the biggest European cities and is France's

commercial centre. The French invented the word "entrepreneur" and it's a busy city. You

will know almost every brand-name you see advertised, apart from the car companies.

That said, though, Parisians are way friendlier than their reputation and commonly speak

English.

 

However - if you want to find interesting "authentic" culture, avoid all the places above,

apart from Marseille and instead start thinking about northern Scotland, western Ireland,

northern Spain, Brittany and huge swathes of Eastern Europe. All the Mediterranean areas

I've mentioned above have had tourist industries for centuries and you're often just more

meat in a money-making sausage. Go to places which don't (yet) get too many tourists,

like Slovakia, Latvia, Poland, Bulgaria. These countries all have quiet, pretty regions where

tourists are not just an economic opportunity. They will be as interested in you as you are

in them.

 

Have fun.

<P>Sorry if this sounds a bit critical, but I think that finding great pictures depends on what you take with you, not where you go. The raw material is everywhere, and it takes your vision and your skill to turn it into great pictures. Conversely, one could say there are "beautiful, interesting locales" all over, but just rolling up and clicking the shutter will not guarantee you great pictures. </P><P>As for the vacation part of the question, well, where would <I>you</I> like to go?</P>

Go to countries where you speak the language. Scenery is everywhere.

You can't go wrong in any of the countries you mention. I'm particularly fond of Greece, my wife drools over Italy. We both love Switzerland and the little we've seen of Spain. If I had to give you an itinerary, it would really be tough, because there's so much to photograph in each. It really depends on what you want to capture on film. Given your limited information...I'd suggest seeing if you could incorporate into one trip a swing through Florence, Venice, Portofino (or Sorrento)and then swing over to Athens and take an island cruise. Good luck and happy shooting.

Sorry, I failed to mention that I plan to travel during June/early July.

 

Thanks for the great input! :)

Norway, Iceland, Switzerland, Scotland (ok, not a country) provide some of the most spectacular scenery in Europe.

"not a country"?

 

Tartan missiles, incoming!

Future history texts will marvel at how World War III began on a simple website devoted to

the photographic arts... ;-)

Skip the traditional stomping grounds, and make a bee line over to the Baltics (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania). If I had to choose a favourite, I suppose it would be Estonia, but each has it's own special qualities, and the abundance of timber buildings from yesteryear make for some superb photography. Also consider Slovenia and/or Croatia.

France.

Go to the central Balkan countries. Bosnia, Herzegovina, Romania, Albania, Montenegro.

 

Why there? Because they will disappear very soon. Not as countries of course, but as culture. The agricultural Balkan countries are losing their current charm to western culture fast, after a few years they will also have IKEA and jeans all over them. Right now, the coastal Balkan (Croatia, Slovenia) are already "gone" (don't get me wrong, they are still very beautiful, but not so different from the rest of Europe any more). Spain and Sweden will be where they are, as they are, 5 or 15 or 50 years from now. The Balkan countries will not. And to find "traditional culture" in any Western European country needs an expert or a lot of luck, most of it is "traditionally disneyfied" and tourist-oriented and keeps smiling just as they do in Ohio, USA.

 

If you decide to come to Baltics, then drop me a line (email to kaur@obs.ee). I live in downtown Tallinn, the capital of Estonia...

Been a while since I was in Europe, but I got some great photos when I went for an extended tour of Europe. The places I visited included Italy, Spain, France, Switzerland, Germany and Austria.<br><br>

 

Keep your eyes open and you'll find that you'll come across outstanding photo opportunities.<br><br>

 

Neville Bulsara<br>

---------------<br>

<a href="http://www.nevillebulsara.com">http://www.nevillebulsara.com</a><br>

Travel and docuimentary photography<div></div>

Britt,

 

may i assume that you are not "native american"?

 

In that case, what national origin may your forefathers, - mothers have been?

 

And thus my recommendation: if you are mostly/largely nation1, go visit that country. You might be amazed at how many things, behaviors, habits, customs, ... ring a bell with you and your upbringing. You might have a "homecoming" of sorts. And would that not be fun to depict in photos? Rather than enter another, mostly unknown culture by going to nationx instead?

There are wonderful photo opportunities in all the countries you mention. I haven't been to Spain or Greece myself, but have seen plenty of beautiful pictures. I loved Italy, Switzerland and France. If you go to France, just concentrate on France because it is so large and it has many lovely areas, my favorite being the Riviera. Italy is so diverse with Rome, Florence, Sienna, Venice, Amalfi coast, Cinque Terre, and the Lake district. Each area is so unique, which would give you such a variety of photo opps. You could probably do Switzlerland along with Italy if you have enough time. Austria is also lovely, especially in the Alps and Salzburg. You could also hit Bavaria Germany along with Switzerland and Austria. I planned 10 trips to Europe myself by just looking through materials I received from the Office of Tourism in New York City for for each country, but I'm not sure if they are still there or not. I'm sure you can get brochures directly from the countries. Just look through brochures/books and see what strikes your interest. I started out by covering 2-3 countries, then narrowed my trips down to one country each trip. I would suggest June or September. I have travelled Europe in May, June, August, Sept., Oct., and November and my best trip was in Sept (less crowded, great weather, beautiful skies). I know where you are coming from with your question, and from my perspective Italy would give you best range of beautiful places, interesting cities, cultural interests, ancient wonders, etc.