Possible trip to new York

[UK_Terry]

The wife has just been re-united (by phone) with long lost relatives who live in NYC (long Island).
she now wants to visit, i thought maybe a good idea i could buy a lense while we were there and it would be a lot cheaper than here in the UK.

Q1 Is it safe to walk around NY with a 10D round your neck?

Q2 we would be there a week...taking into account visiting family..what is a "must see" to photograph?

Q3 i would be interested in buying a Sigma 80 - 400, so i would only take 1 lense over with me, so should it be the Sigma 17 - 35 or Canon 28 - 135IS?

Q4 anyone know of any (reputable) companies dealing with cheap airfares to NY.

any advice would be welcomed.

[Canuck]

The wife has just been re-united (by phone) with long lost relatives who live in NYC (long Island).
she now wants to visit, i thought maybe a good idea i could buy a lense while we were there and it would be a lot cheaper than here in the UK.

Q1 Is it safe to walk around NY with a 10D round your neck?

Q2 we would be there a week...taking into account visiting family..what is a "must see" to photograph?

Q3 i would be interested in buying a Sigma 80 - 400, so i would only take 1 lense over with me, so should it be the Sigma 17 - 35 or Canon 28 - 135IS?

Q4 anyone know of any (reputable) companies dealing with cheap airfares to NY.

any advice would be welcomed.

Hi!
A trip to NYC, cool! Been there done that many times. Answers...
A1(M?) Yes and No...where you planning on going? I would definitly go with a few people and at the very least stay away from places like Harlem, Ozone Park, Bedford-Stuyvesant (also called Bed-Stuy), and other places that have escaped me. I have yet to go to NYC since Nov, 2000 but I have family that lives there. I recon if you stash all your kit into a have-a-sack that is not photog looking it will more than likely be ok. I have done this in Ireland (Dublin and other places) and Wales. I still have my 10D! (Touch (or knock on) wood!)

A2 A week to see it all...if you are like me, I am going to check out G-BOAD that can be found at the Intrepid Museum when I get back to the US. (www.intrepidmuseum.com) Also, you might want to check out Ground Zero, see a play on Broadway, just walk around, Central Park is another place, as well as the Bronx Zoo, and well some interests might point me in the right direction. On Long Island, there is Montauk Point, the furthest East you can go on LI. If you are interested in physics and science, Brookhaven Lab is a place to go. There is Jones Beach on the south coast on Fire Island, but a ways out, past the Hamptons I think.

A3 I'm thinking the 28-135 IS might prove more useful, unless you plan on doing wide anges shots exclusively. Just something to consider.

A4 What about BA thru travel agent? I really don't know on that one. I have only had 2 family members come over and one was in winter and one was in summer. The summer one was like nearly $800 return! You might want to check thru like Yahoo travel, Expedia, or suchlike.

Hope this is incredibly valuable info for you :) !

[dicky109]

We just did a walk-about in NY, so here are some suggestions in these threads & links.

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=36187

http://www.rokkorfiles.com/America.htm

There is so much to see.

As far as the safety issue goes, don't worry. Despite its reputation, New York City is one of the safest big cities in the world. Plenty of police around in Manhattan. Just avoid the bad places, & don't look like a victim.

Have a great trip.

[msvadi]

Last weekend, I ( we ;) ) spent a day in NYC walking around with a 300D round my neck - no problem. I took a walk around the village in the dark, my camera was visible all the time, again, no problem.

I had to teach a class on the next morning, when I returned to CT. It turned out that one of my students was in NY over the weekend too. Around 11PM, on Time Square, she was attacked by some guy, who tried to take her backpack. She said, there was plenty of people around, and nobody helped her. She told the guy that there were only books and the lecture notes in her backpack. The guy let her go, and she was okay.


We just did a walk-about in NY, so here are some suggestions in these threads & links.

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=36187

http://www.rokkorfiles.com/America.htm

There is so much to see.

As far as the safety issue goes, don't worry. Despite its reputation, New York City is one of the safest big cities in the world. Plenty of police around in Manhattan. Just avoid the bad places, & don't look like a victim.

Have a great trip.