China

[3Daniel]

Hello,

In a few weeks, we are going to China.
The trip we are planning to do is:
- HongKong
- Guilin
- Xian
- Lanzhou
- Xiahe
- Beijing

I'm just a bit worried about Xiahe. It's a Tibetan village in the west of China not far from the border. Does anybody has some actual information about the politics there?

Other tips about "must see places" are also more then welcome.

About fotogear:
I'm going with a 40D, the 50mm F1.8, the 10-22mm, the Tamron 28-75 F2.8, and the 70-200 F4 L, all crammed with a battery charger, cleaning stuff and a Gorillapod, in my Slingshot 200. :D

Maybe I have a littlebit budget left. What 's the most interesting from these 3 for this trip?:
- a polar and/or gradient ND
- Kenko enxtension tubes
- a Speedlite 430EX II

[origamione]

Wow...that's a lot of gear you're bringing, i do hope you have a strong shoulder to carry them.

I don't know much about Xiahe, but i can give some tips on Hong Kong and Beijing.

Hong Kong, these are you two places you must cover:
1. Downtown Causeway Bay - Night scene with street lights & those neon signboard will be nice.
2. The Peak - Go at night, to capture the skyscraper/skylines, really beautiful.

Beijing:
1. The Hutong, grey brick houses & the drum building, Gulou Dajie.
2. Temple of Heaven / Emperor's Palace
3. Houhai
4. Lamma Temple
5. Dashanzi 798 Art District
6. Great Wall

There's a lot to shoot in Beijing, that's if you have more time there.
Good luck.

[tkoutdoor]

No tips on China, but due to the uniqueness of your trip I'd seriously look at taking a second body as a backup. It would be painful to pay all that money for such a trip and have your camera fail and come home with little reward for the trip. Even a simple body borrowed from a friend would be better than nothing. To me your gear seems reasonably chosen for weight, IQ at manageable cost, focal coverage, and some redundancy in case of lens failure. Some might try it with something like a 24-105L IS on a 5D body and maybe another lens of choice, but if you're willing to pack what you've got there I think it can deliver some pics for you. With your kit a second body could have a second lens mounted so you wouldn't be as inclined to be lazy and forgo some pics due to not wanting to swap lenses. That being the case I think I'd have the 10-22 and 70-200 mounted most of the time.

Of your last optional extras I'd choose them in this order:
1. Flash
2. ND/filter kit (fuller than what you've listed)
3. Extension tubes
4. 1.4x TC

#2 might be better before #1 if you like landscapes. If you're shooting near subjects against a landscape BG you may be able to control the exposure with your flash and not need a ND kit so much. If you opt for the flash the 50mm 1.8 may be less necessary since flash is a good way to deal with low light as well and your 28-75 2.8 can still give you some decent BG blur. The 50mm 1.8 is so small and light it's hard to resist throwing it in though and it would be the least likely to draw unwanted attention due to it's small size when mounted.

[3Daniel]

Thanx for the answers.

origamione: Do you also know the best place in Hong Kong to see the old wooden boats?

tkoutdoor: a second body is not an option. I think I go for the Grad ND.

[origamione]

Thanx for the answers.

origamione: Do you also know the best place in Hong Kong to see the old wooden boats?



Try the bay area at Tsim Sha Tsui, these boats usually passes by the river.

[joeman]

I visited Danba in the tibetan region of Sichuan last December. The trip was incredible. Politics never entered anything with the visit. People were warm and welcoming. Being a westerner, I was viewed with interest by many of the locals. A big smile and genuine interest in the culture will open almost every door for you.

For photo "tips", In Hong Kong, I'd recommend The Peak at sunset, provided that the weather is nice. You may have some difficulties without a tripod, but the view at sunset is great. Another suggestion is Lantau island. The traditional fishing villages are great and the large Buddha is impressive. We took the train to the island, the tram up to the Buddha and the local bus service around the island. We took the ferry back to Hong Kong at the end of the day. Many great photo sites along the way.



At Beijing, try to get out to the Great Wall, if you have time. If I recall properly, its about a 2 hour bus ride. As in all travel photography, be the first one there in the morning.

Consider getting a backpacker water filter system with some Nalgene bottles. It would be a better investment than getting another piece of photo gear. Some people on our trip got sick, most likely from fresh fruit. Last summer I got pretty sick after eating watermelon after an incredible meal in Beijing. Nothing can ruin a photo trip faster than being stuck in the hotel.

Enjoy