david_singh

Hi everyone.

Thanks to every one of you who replied to this Question. I must have read through this entire thread twenty times before we left. After reading a lot of other guides and websites we came up with a rough plan on how to arrange the weekend. The primary purpose of the break wasn't photography, rather a nice romantic weekend away with the missus. Nevertheless, I managed to get through 12 rolls of film. I'm a complete novice to photography and only took a cheap digicam and my film Olympus XA, so what I've seen of the results aren't spectacular thus far, but I still have about 10 rolls to have developed when I can get the cash together.

Here's an outline of the weekend in the hope that it will be useful for others. I'll post some of my pictures shortly, but as I said, the vast majority haven't yet been developed. If I get an particularly good ones I'll post them in this thread. One more thing - I should have mentioned in my original post that I'm from the UK, not the USA. Apolgies for the oversight.

Friday:

Flight arrived around 5pm at CDG airport. Took the RER-B train from the airport into the city (Les Halles station). Cost was about 8 Euro. Our hotel was in the Latin Quarter (on the Rue Monge), so we got the Metro to one of the nearby stops and checked in without issue. Then we hit the streets and made our way up to the river and Notre Dame. Both were beautiful, but the temperature was within a couple of degrees of freezing, which somewhat dampened our spirits. The temperature remained like this all weekend, so we reluctantly adapted.

Nearby to Notre Dame, in the Latin Quarter is a small street called something like Rue De La Huchette. This narrow street is part of an area called "Little Athens" and makes for a nice lively street scene into the early hours. Greek restaurants on opposite sides of the street compete for customers by smashing plates onto the street, startling tourists. This is a well-lit area, but very tourist orientated.

On walking back to the hotel we noticed that numerous cafes were still open, several having a small Crepe stand out front where for about 3 Euros you could order a large sweet or savoury crepe to take away. These were very fattening, but tasty and importantly, cheap. Nutella and banana was a favourite.

Saturday:

This was our big walking day and we were knackered by the end of it. We walked through the Latin Quarter, past Notre Dame and through Ile de Cite, and across the river. We then made for the Marias, which again provided some interesting street scenes. Look out here for Jews in traditional dress ambling down the streets past boutiques and chocolate shops. Street photography was somewhat limited here due to the tall buildings blocking a lot of light, and the narrow pavement (sidewalks) and traffic. We made our way to Place des Vosges which was frankly disapointing. I suspect that this was due to the season rather than anything else.

We then made our way to the Rue de Rivoli which was a very major road and featured a lot of the shops that I recognise from British High Street. However, there were some small street markets which might have made for good photo oppurtunities.

I feel that I should stop here to make it clearer that I'm providing a very much slimmed-down account of our weekend here. We spent the vast majority of our time utterly lost, despite having a map, and this provided an excellent oppurtunity to really get a taste of city (or so we told ourselves).

Continuing down the same road we passed through a couple more Quarters and found our way to Les Halles and the half-underground shopping mall. The surrounding area was wonderful for street photography. I haven't had the pictures back yet, but there were street markets, skateboards, street performers, Saturday shoppers, and rollerblading policemen everywhere I looked. When I next go to Paris for photography and shopping, I intend to visit this area as a priority.

Photographers should stop at the FNAC branch in the mall here. An excellent selection of tripods, film, and all of the other junk that we love. It was quite easy to stock up on Ilford HP5 bw film and Fuji Superia 800 here, although dozens of other varieties of film were on sale here too. Prices will inevitably be higher here than whatever you pay in the USA, but they were comparable if not cheaper than here in the UK. I paid under 15 Euros for three rolls of Fuji Superia 800 in a pack. If visiting again at this time of year I would bring bringing 400 speed black and white for the day and 800 (at least) for after dark (sun set around 4-5pm).

After Les Halles we more or less stuck to the main roads whilst aiming for the Champs de l'Eysees. This area was beautiful primarily due to the Christmas lighting on the trees leading down the avenue. After a significant walk we reached the end of the avenue and climbed the Arc de Triomphe. This was very tiring but entirely worth it, although I suspect that the view might not have been as impressive during the daylight hours as it was after dark. Bring a mini-tripod wit flexibe legs to allow you a fairly stable attachment to the fence at the top of the Arc. There was no flat surface to use a rigid mini-tripod on, and a full-size tripod would have obstructed walkways and was prohibited.

After descending the Arc we caught the Metro back to the area around the hotel and passed the evening strolling and eating around the river and Ile de Cite area. Just as an aside, bring a good guidebook with a map, but keep it hidden when not in use. Not for fear of crime, but just to ensure that you don't warrant any more attention from bums and beggars than you have to. The few beggars that we did encounter were seemingly very polite, although more persistant than I'm used to. Citing an inability to speak French will not get you far, as many seemed able to beg in English quite competently. Shop around for a good price on an evening meal, and if you look around for a while you'll easily find several restaurants offering menus written in both French and English in the Latin Quarter. Do brush up on your basic French greetings and polite words before arriving though. Trying to speak a little French will please waiters much more than expecting them to speak English. Don't worry too much though, language was rarely a barrier in restaurants and shops.

Sunday:

Caught the Metro to a stop near the Eiffel Tower, and walked towards it. The gardens near the tower make for some scenic, but overdone photo oppurtunities and snap shots. Queuing for a ticket for the tower took 20 mins (expect much longer queues in hotter weather), and ascending the tower by elevator took a similar amount of time. The view from the top was terrible due to the fog, but from the second floor we had a good view of the nearby city. Expect to pay a lot if eating at the cafe in the tower. It has somewhat of a monopoly. There's little that I can tell you about the tower that you can't read elsewhere. Beware however that the nearest Metro stop is a brief but not insignificant walk away from the tower. Research this further if you have mobility issues, but don't worry about actually ascending the tower. I saw at least two wheelchair users at the top of the tower, both seemingly unaccompanied.

Back on the Metro to Ile de Cite, this time to climb Notre Dame. This is a difficult climb for the unfit up a very steep and narrow spiral staircase. Try to keep to the back of large groups if you expect to be amoungst the less physically fit visitors. Notre Dame was impressive inside and at the top. Again, I can't say much here that hasn't been said alrady. The view was excellent, being a little under the main fog.

Sunday evening was spent first in Montmatre (get the Metro to Abesses and ask for directions and use a map to approach the Sacre Couer from the rear and avoid having to climb the stairs. This allows you to descend the steps leading down into the streets and away from the church. This is not only less tiring, but also affords you a good view of the surrounding area before descending into it. Montmatre was at the same time touristy and incredibly seedy. Sexodromes are aplenty, if you go in for such entertainment. To leave this area, head towards the Pigalle Metro station and go from there.

Sunday evening and Monday morning were again spent in the Latin Quartier. A final note for comic book fans - there are at least 7 decent comic book shops in the main area of the Latin Quarter. Look out for Rue Dante for a couple.

I'll post again as and when I have some good pictures. Please ask if i've been unclear or if you have any questons.

Thanks.

I got my first XA about a week ago and I'm really pleased with it.

Here's a pic.<div></div>

There's a road near Covent Garden called something like Neel Street I think. It's quite a narrow street with some expensive but young clothes shops going up both sides of the street. I'd imagine that this spot would be a great place for snapping some well dressed street scenes.

Also, you might get a kick out of watching the people at Waterloo station waiting for their train to show up on the Departures board. From there you could walk across the bridge over to the houses of parliment, or you could get a quick ferry ride down to the Tate Modern and from there walk across the Millenium Bridge to St Paul's.

Hi all,

This is a question for the UK members of the forum that get their

films developed at a commercial lab, be it a pro lab, high-street,

mail order etc. So, where do you get yours done?

I'm very new to Photography (with a capital P) but like most people I

have a P&S. In the past I've always used the service at my local

Boots. I noticed today that they have a Fronteir 350 machine, which

I'm told is a good thing, but I'm not sure if that one is only for the

one-hour service or not. Do you use a high-street lab? If so, which?

If not, why?

Thanks everyone.

You know, if I had anything approaching the slightest amount of skill in that sort of field, I probably could.

But I just don't.

You should see me with LEGO.

Aha!

That's more or less what's wrong with mine. It seems that the little metal thingy that sits next to the twisty lock thing on the bottom of the camera is completely missing on my camera. That means that even when the lock is turned to the red dot, there's nothing inside the camera to move the rod near the sprockets. That explains the problem.

This means that I'm in the market for a replacement 4AM or 4M back for my camera. I don't suppose you have any idea where I might be able to get one?

Hi all,

I'm in need of some help with the Kiev 4 AM rangefinder.

The Kiev 4-AM is distinct from the other Kiev 4 models because it does

not feature a light meter, features a non-removable take-up spool, and

has a slightly different rewind mechanism.

In theory, to rewind the film, one of the twisty things on the bottom

of the camera should be turned a few degrees until it aligns with a

red dot. When that's done, the rewind lever on top of the camera

should be able to rewind the film. However, I recieved a Kiev 4AM this

morning and despite twisting the thing on the bottom, the camera is

giving me far too much resistance to rewind the film.

If anyone could help me I'd be very grateful.

Thanks.

Just following on from the original query... I'd really appreciate it if some of the more experienced photographers could recommend some affordable light meters to us newbies. I'm really more interested in available-light than flash or studio work, although I haven't yet started of focussing on one genre more than another. So, I guess I need something versatile, and most importantly - cheap. I'd love to be able to buy the one meter that will last for the rest of my life, but financially I don't think that's an option at the moment, so what is available for cheapos like me?

Thanks.

Hi again,

Thanks everyone for the information. Apart from Frank - I really didn't understand what you posted. I'll definately keep what's been said in mind when planning the weekend. And if I find anything good while I'm over there, I'll be sure to post back. We'll be staying very near Notre Dame, so that's good news.

That's a lovely shot, Jeff. Purely out of curiosity, do you know what lens you used for that?

Barry - thanks for the tips - how on earth did you get such a wide field of view for that shot?

Regarding using a higher speed film for the afterdark shots. This isn't something that I've looked into before (I'm very, very new to photography). I've been reading around a little and it seems like the following films might be useful:

Fuji Superia 800 or 1600.

Fuji Neopan 1600.

I have a few questions though. First, am I right in thinking that Neopan is a b/w film whereas Superia is colour? Furthermore, assuming that I buy the film before the holiday, shoot it in France, and bring it back home for processing, what sort of risk do the airport scanning machines pose for 800 and 1600 films, respectively? Oh - and with regards to using 400 film hand-held after dark, does a 50mm lens make the situation any more favourable? Please excuse my newbieness.

Final question for the time being - are the Neopan and Superia films possible to have processed at standard high-street places, generally speaking?

Thanks again everyone. Your feedback is hugely appreciated.

Thanks a lot to everyone for the great advice! I've put an order in with 7DayShop and pretty much all of the other stores have made it onto my bookmarks list.

Thanks again everyone - much appreciated.

I've bought a guide book, and I've read numerous sites such as Lonely Planet, Rough Guide etc etc, but what's the harm in asking on a forum, fer chrissakes?!

Come on, make with the advice.

Hi all,

The girlfriend and I will be spending a weekend in Paris in December

and I was wondering if anyone could give me some pointers on what

areas and sights not to miss, and also any photography-related places

that I should see. Money will be tight so I won't be shopping a lot,

but I don't want to miss out on a rare oppurtunity - I hear that there

are very many photography stores in Paris.

I'm planning on taking film no faster than ISO400. How do you think

that film will fare after dark and without a tripod? I'm hesitant to

take any faster film than that because of concerns about X-Ray

machines and suchlike.

Also, is anyone aware of any great street markets or suchlike that

take place over weekends in December?

Thanks a lot.

Thanks a lot for those recommendations! That's exactly what I was looking for, and they both sell the Ilford film that I've been trying to find.

Bob - regarding Jessops, do you think it's worth buying used stuff from them if the price is comparable to eBay? The reason I ask is that I'm thinking of buying a used Canon EOS 300v and the used Jessops prices seem very similar to the ones on eBay, and unlike eBay, Jessops offer a free 12 month guarantee. If you have any thoughts on the matter I'd be interested to read them.

Hi all.

I'm just starting to get into photography in a serious way and was

wondering if some of the UK based members here could recommend

somewhere to buy film. Typically I'd just pay a visit to Boots or

Jessops to get some standard Kodak stuff but neither seems to stock a

good range of specialist film.

Specifically, I'm looking for Ilford XP2 Super and Kodak T400CN. If I

understand what I've read, both of those films are b/w that can be

processed in a high-street lab.

Perhaps someone could recommend a good online store for buying film?

Thanks in advance.