Argentina : Stop buying and start planning

[maigo]

Argentina : Stop buying and start planning

After all those warnings, I think I would only bring my Fuji X10 and keep it in my pocket! Or maybe the Leicasonic D-lux 4, which is even smaller.

Have a great trip, and be safe!

I know, I know. Safety first.
I keep ignoring them tho and think I will bring three cameras. Madness.
Obviously I haven't started packing.

I just bought a Voigtlander 21mm f4 for the R4m.
Now I am thinking maybe just the R4m, Canon 50 1.4, CV 35/1.7 and CV 21/4.
Plus the Konica Auto S3 for discreet days in the city.
Ektar and Tri-X

The thing is I have plenty of 120 in the freezer. No need to buy anything. Just bring 20-30 rolls.
If I go 35mm then I need to buy 20 rolls.
I gain flexibility but at a cost.
But as I just bought the 21mm now I have forced myself into Corner GAS.

 

[maigo]

Now down to two cameras:

BESSA R4m with 21/4, 35/1.7. Tri-X and Pro400h. Maybe with Canon 50/1.4 LTM, but it is heavy and can be difficult to use on R4M due to small frame lines.

GA645 with Portra 800, Provia, Ektar and Acros 100 (original).

 

[Doug]

^^ This simplification sounds pretty sensible. 🙂 Maybe too many different films. I'd go nuts trying to decide which film for which camera for what occasion... Have to finish the film roll in the camera before loading something different. I'd be tempted to just go with color-only in the GA645 and with B&W-only in the R4M.

FWIW, I have a GA645Wi and a R4A... nice gear!

 

[maigo]

Argentina : Stop buying and start planning

Thanks Doug.
I've decided against the Nikon(s) because they are too heavy and bulky.
Two adults, two kids (10, 5yo). We are going for four weeks with carry-on only and the SLR and lens are too bulky.

I reeeeealy wanted to bring a 50mm but the darn Zeiss 50/1.4 ZF is TOO BIG. The 50 is better for subject isolation in crowds compared to the 35mm. For example, see the dancers in the Giganova BA thread. Excellent separation from the trees, pedestrians and benchwarmers.
I considered buying the ZM Planar 50/f2 just for the trip but 50 framing is such a crapshoot on the R4 series for me I think it will not in the city. If I have time I will try a practice run with the Canon 50/1.4 LTM and bring it if successful.

Actually, maybe a 50 is fine for landscape on the R4m.

The films.

I have 97 rolls of 120 in the freezer.
65 of which are Acros 100 (50x2019, 10x2012, 5x2016).
The remaining 120:
7 are slow speed BW and 5 are high speed BW.
E6 - 7 rolls Provia 100F.
C41: Portra 160/220 x4, Portra 400 x5, Fuji 160 x3, Ektar 100 x2.

I think I can find a mix of films in here without resorting to buying more. Considering it will be summer in Argentina, slow speed will be OK in most cases. I like Ektar for city but, honestly, I should use up what is in my freezer.
I was thinking of Portra 800 for under subtropical forest and at sunrise but compromises can be made such as using my tiny ultrapod, pushing Portra 400 for a roll or using digital (iPhone 8plus).

135 format film inventory tomorrow.

 

[DanskDynamit]

Ah, Montevideo, the beaches of the rich & famous! A lot of A-list celebrities from Hollywood live or spend some time there. 😀

Right across the river from Buenos Aires is Colonia, a historic colonial town that is amazing, especially for photography.

The beaches of the rich are in Punta del Este at 130km from Montevideo.

For the OP, if you are not going to Patagonia but you are going to Iguazu, maybe it would be interesting to see Catamarca, Jujuy and Salta provinces. I'm sure you don't have those landscapes in BC either.

About the gear, I'd say you got too much.

 

[Pál_K]

...
About the gear, I'd say you got too much.

Agree. I hereby give my unwanted opinion.

The value of such a trip is experiencing the beauty and majesty of the landscape, the cities, the people. This is a personal experience and is made even better when traveling with friends and family.

Some people carry multiple cameras, lenses, bundles of film, possibly enlisting family members in these tasks, looking at things only as a photo opportunity, choosing which camera which lens, which film - all of that detracts from the experience itself and sharing it with companions.

You may not be the type that does any of what I've described, but I have seen that done. When those people get home, they have nice photos, but it might as well be someone else's photos because they have no real experience of where they've been.

All I'm saying is just be aware of the tradeoffs.

When I travel, I leave the large or expensive stuff at home. Traveling in Europe, I've taken just an old Pentax SLR (fully reliable, no batteries needed), just one lens, and a pocketable Olympus XA2 as backup.

On my most recent trips I've taken just a Zeiss Nettar (6x6 format - a 515/16 model) and a Minox B. All of this fits in one pocket with extra film in another pocket if necessary. No batteries. That's it.

As to film, over the decades I've come to realize that in a one month trip I make about only 200 exposures total. That's obviously subjective and dependent on my previous familiarity of the location.

 

[maigo]

Argentina : Stop buying and start planning

Final itinerary.
7 nights at Fox do Iguacu, Puerto Iguazu, San Ignacio and Posadas (for Esteros Ibera) in Misiones and Corrientes provinces. (2 nights are almost write off due to jet lag)
6 nights at Salta and small towns nearby in Salta and Jujuy provinces. In Salta at Christmas.
8 nights at Buenos Aires. In BA at New Year.
3 nights at Trelew/Puerto Madryn (for Valdes Peninsula) in Chubut (Northernmost Patagonia)
Fly from IGR-SLA-AEP, then AEP-REL-AEP.
Renting a car after Puerto Iguazu, after Salta city and at Trelew. No car driving in or near BA.

Gear final answer: TBD.

Really appreciate the feedback from everyone so far.
We will pack the clothes, toiletries and kids needs in the next few days. After that the available space will dictate camera junk.

At this time it is down to GA645 plus R4M (21/4, 35/1.7) or only one body.
I have got a Domke wrap coming so that I can stuff one of them into my backpack. Time to step up from my usual tea-towel wrap.

Have not yet decided where to stay in BA.
San Telmo, Recoleta or Palermo.
Any suggestions which of them has the best parks for kids (10 year, 5 year) to stretch legs?

 

[Freakscene]

No car driving in or near BA.

Good call. Aged 44, I had never been in a car accident, but was in one (I was not driving) within an hour of arriving in BA in October last year. I was unharmed - I even saw it coming (thank you Dashcam Owners Australia YouTube channel) and got my glass lensed sunglasses out of the way before we crashed and the airbag went off. Cannot say the taxi was unharmed.

Have not yet decided where to stay in BA. San Telmo, Recoleta or Palermo. Any suggestions which of them has the best parks for kids (10 year, 5 year) to stretch legs?

I have an insanely energetic six-year-old son. He was not with me in Argentina, but I did keep a good lookout for playgrounds and parks for a future family trip.

Most barrios have at least one, good, big playground. I stayed in Palermo not far from El Parque Las Heras in one of my stays in BA, but there are many parks, including in Recoleta and Colegiales. One warning - the slides in all the parks seem to have a wooden sliding surface - when talking to my son on VOIP from El Parque Las Heras, the danger of splinters only seemed to pique his interest, and when I slid down that slide while VOIPing my son, I was ok. I have no idea how splintery they are or what slides are like where you live.

Parque de los Ninos is also amazing (not to be confused with El Museo de los Ninos - also worth a visit with kids).

Freddo makes good ice cream.

There are a lot of nice open spaces, and Argentinians seem to do everything with their kids - you'll see children in nice restaurants late in the evening and no-one seems bothered when they make noise or do kid stuff. It is one thing I particularly liked there.

Marty

 

[maigo]

Well, final choice:
Fujifilm GA645i with a mix:
Portra 800,400, 160(220), Acros 100 and Pan-F 50.
Konica Auto S3 with a mix: Tmax-400, Tmax-100, FP4+ and Ektar 100.

Bessa R4M with three lenses was just too big and heavy to pair with the GA645i and stuff into my 14L daypack along with film and everything else that can't be checked in.
MF for bigness because bigger is better; primarily for landscapes.
Auto S3 for small, because small is safer and more portable; primarily for city and low light.

 

[maigo]

Here we are in Argentina after a few days in Foz do Iguacu, Brazil.
The camera gear doesn't take up much space and I can fit nearly all the films into a 15cmx20cmx6cm snap top plastic container.

Finding satisfying photos opportunities and enough time for film camera is another matter.
The Iguazu falls were fine with the GA645. I took only 12 shots. Parque das Aves, only 4 shots, finishing off a roll of Portra 400. Only a few birds are close enough and not behind bars to make the shot with fixed focal length lens. Anyways, as they say, the postcards are always better than your personal photos.
No shots with the Auto S3 yet.
The iPhone comes out for a snapshot or video of the kids+wife several times each hour.
The two cities of Foz and Puerto are not particularly photogenic. Foz is a workaday town with an international tourist site nearby. Puerto is straight-up tourist town with far more sketchy or frankly menacing characters about. Best to keep street photos to zero.

 

[waileong]

If you.bring family, there's little chance of doing good photography at the same time.