Off To Germany (mid May 06)!

[SolaresLarrave]

I'm posting this in the Leica M forum because I'm taking all my Leica gear with.

Yes, I'm leaving for Germany on May 13th, and will take all my M gear (2 bodies, five lenses, filters and a grip). My wife has planned the trip. We'll stay with her grandmother in a small town near Nuremberg, and will travel to Heidelberg and Dresden (not in that order). However, I have some questions:

1) I'm taking with a bunch of K-64 and Ektachrome 100 VS. Probably will pick up a couple of rolls of Ektachrome P1600 and two or three of Scala. Should I add some ISO 400 to the mix?

2) Does anyone here know how close is Solms to Frankfurt? I'd simply like to find out about going there. My wife finds it quirky or weird, but I think she's willing to come along. Besides, why not have my Leicas checked out there once I'm in the premises? 😉

3) I'm looking for a nice, large bag, something in the neighborhood of 20 inches long. I've looked at the Domke J2, the Delsey Pro 2 and the Lowepro Stealth Reporter. It's a bag I won't carry about in Deutschland, but will use it to take my gear in the plane. I'll be packing my Domke small bags in my suitcase (I hve two FX5B), so this large bag would contain my cameras, film, books, medicines and other items not necessarily photographic. I had a gym bag for this purpose, but the shoulder strap just broke. Suggestions about the three bags above? Any experience? Other bags within the same price range?

This summer will be really busy in terms of traveling, only that for the rest of my trips I'm taking my SLR. In my experience, nothing beats a Leica to take pics abroad, but for the US, my choice is my Nikon F100 (finally fitted with an 80-200 AF lens). But that's fodder for another thread.

Thanks in advance! 🙂

 

[Socke]

Hopefully the weather will improve until May 13th, at the moment it's definitely ISO400 🙂

Solms is pretty close to Frankfurt, about an hour to drive.

 

[FrankS]

Hello Francisco! Lucky guy.

1.) 400 film - yes, for photos inside without flash
2.) sorry, don't know
3.) Make sure the bag fits under your airplane seat. LowePro's are better padded than Domke's (from my very limited experience, just one bag of each)

Have a great trip, and let us know how it goes with your gear and bags. (What was used most/least, etc.)

 

[raid]

I wish I could be there too. Germany can have great weather in the summer, but usually you will encouter less sunshine than in the USA. I love German developing and prints on high quality paper for color film. Film does not cost more than in the USA. Socke can correct me if I am wrong. I used to haul along a large Tenba bag that has the maximum height to fit under an airline seat, but then I started favoring my health and back over having "everything I need" with me in a bag. Travel light and enjoy the trip. I am planning a short trip [7-9 days] to China this coming June, and I will take along a very small canvas bag with two cameras and 3-4 lenses.

 

[Ken Ford]

Francisco, as much as I like Domke canvas bags I think Frank is right - get a big honking nylon bag with decent padding for the plane trip, then work out of a smaller bag once you get there. You may even want to consider a photo backpack or a Pelican case.

OT - which 80-200 do you have? I'm looking at getting a current version two ring when the tax return gets here.

 

[SolaresLarrave]

Ken, I got an old workhorse from a FL former PJ. It's the push-pull version, and even though it seems cumbersome, it's not as hard to handle as it looks. Of course, I bought it almost bare (only with filter and rear cap). I had to find a front lens cap, and a hood (this lens needs it badly).

About bags... my previous bag was about 20 inches long, and it fitted well in airplane places. Who knows... if I don't find one on time, I'll simply grab my Lowepro AW 3 (which isn't that big) and stuff it with my things. I was thinking about a larger bag that I can use for this purpose, and also for my Nikon gear.

Volker, thanks for the information on Solms! I'll lobby to make it a destination. 🙂

 

[ch1]

Although you're not necessarily looking for a bag to carry while in Germany you might want to consider the LowePro "Slingshot". This "backpack" like bag uses a single strap with a "brace" and can easily be slipped from your back to your side to access the gear w/o removing the pack.

It will nicely hold both of your M bodies and lenses with enough additional space for film etc.

Have a good trip. I've only been to Germany once - Munich in February 2005. I suspect that in May you'll have a better chance to get some Sunny 16 weather! 🙂

 

[Strangefinder]

hi,
from frankfurt to solms are about 77 km.
and typical is no beer, its appelwoi.
wine made of appels, very nice, but beware haedache ;-)

cheers
reinhard

 

[traveller]

400? Definitly yes, but you can buy it in Germany too, there are no problems in getting them here, at least in towns

Like Socke said

When Lowepro, why not considering a backback from the Trecker series? Good padding and you will like it when you travel with the 80-200

But the most important point, have fun. These three towns have a lot of nice places 😉

 

[ch1]

Francisco,

Make sure whatever bag you get has room for all the essentials you'll need in Germany! 😀

 

[Bertram2]

. We'll stay with her grandmother in a small town near Nuremberg, and will travel to Heidelberg and Dresden (not in that order).

Francisco,
Heidelberg ( i lived and studied there a long time ago) is about 15mls from my homeplace. If you have special questions concerning the Rhein-Neckar region, where to go and what to do, PM me.
One of the things you MUST do is a trip by ship along the Neckar to the east, to Neckarsteinach or Eberbach. This river valley is a unique idyll and the ship offers a great opportunity for some landscape shots.

bertram

 

[John Camp]

Germany is a great place; you should get comfortable very quickly. For bags, check the LowePro 104. The camera section would hold as many as 9 lenses plus a camera body and some odds and ends, or fewer lenses and more odds and ends. There is another full-height compartment that will hold your other gear. It's light enough that if you unload some stuff at wherever you stay, you could easily carry the rest of your gear around in it. It's like a book bag. I've also tried the Slingshot, but didn't like it -- it only hangs on your left shoulder (the strap is contour-cut to fit only on one side.) It has good access, though. Still, if you're carrying quite a bit of weight, it's nice to be able to move the pack around. Both the 104 and the Slingshot are padded enough to handle the plane, and are relatively compact. Domkes might be a problem -- stuff gets knocked around on planes sometimes -- other people shoving stuff into the overheads, etc., or kicking it if you put it under the seat. The Domke inserts are padded, but it might not be enough.

JC

 

[SolaresLarrave]

I'll take a look at the Lowepro you recommended, John, although, for the moment, I've settled for looking at smaller bags. It makes very little practical sense to invest in a big bag that will sit in a room all the time, so I'm thinking along the lines of a 14 or 15 inch bag. FrankS is right about the Domkes: they're good, but not well padded. I'm leaning towards a LowePro AW 5, a bit bigger to contain my Leicas, film and a couple of books.

About the itinerary... I know we'll land in Frankfurt. My wife wants us to go from there to Heidelberg, stay there a few days and then head to Nüremberg, bouncing off to Henfenfeldt (where her grandma lives). We'll make trips later to Nüremberg and Dresden, and whatever else my wife wants me to see.

It's going to be fun. My knowledge of German is very limited (although I know that "objektiv" means lens! 🙂 ), so she'll do a lot of the talking. If left on my own, I can order coffee, brats, bread and explain that my linguistic skills are pretty poor.

Any RFF members from the places I've mentioned? I know where Bremen is, and, sorry, Volker, but I don't think we'll go that far North. Bertram, perhaps?

 

[mr roberts]

I've had very good luck with my Lowepro Stealth 600 & 650. I have to travel with a laptop the majority of the time hence the bigger models, but I use these bags to transport gear and then break it all out into a couple of smaller bags the same way you're planning to. The Lowepro's are well padded and durable. The AW covers are great for heavy weather/wind and the like. You can also customize the interior to suit your needs.

I also use a Lowepro Stealth AW backpack for my laptop, dslr gear, and traveling miscellany. It's quite comfortable for hauling the gear about, but in warmer weather you'll have a "damp" back to show for it.

My everyday dslr bag is a Domke original and even with everthing in, it still has room for a couple of water bottles, books, ipod, etc. With the postal pad or the backpack straps it's versatile and comfortable to carry.

I've always wanted a Billingham or Fogg, but I've been afraid that some thief would dump my gear on the floor just to get the bag.

I travel to SW Germany fairly often on business and I have to say that it's one of my favorite destinations. Beautiful scenery, wonderful people and great food & beer. Fantastic for photography...bad for the waistline.

Have a wonderful trip.

 

[Angel]

Here is the info on visiting Solms from the leica site.

http://www.leica-camera.com/unternehmen/besuch/fuehrung/index_e.html

Herr Weclker was the tour guide when i did the factory tour. The tour is done in German so your wife will have to translate for you. My Wife also found it strange that i wanted to go on the tour, after the tour she told me she enjoyed it very much.
If you get a chance visit the city of Wetzlar,it's a beautful old city.

400 speed is the way to go. Like Volker said. When the sun shines it's f16 on one side of the street and F5.6 on the other side.


I would suggest you bring copies of your reciepts for you gear . You might run into a overzealous customs person. Coming in thru Schipol they wanted to tax my gear , but i was able to talk my way out of that situation.

If you get anywhere near Hannover look me up.
Enjoy you trip
Angel

 

[BJ Bignell]

hi,
from frankfurt to solms are about 77 km.
and typical is no beer, its appelwoi.
wine made of appels, very nice, but beware haedache ;-)

cheers
reinhard

Yes, if you are in Frankfurt, you must go and have some of this. Make sure you get it full-strength - not with water - as it's tastier (and the same price).

To accompany your appelwoi, get a "Frankfurter Schlachtplatte", and if you still have room after, Mainzer Handkäse mit Musik. An excellent meal, but not for the faint-of-heart or the small-of-stomach.

Most of all, have fun in Germany wherever you go!
BJ

 

[dr.kollig]

I would also favour a visit to Wetzlar, which is 10 km from Solms, with its old town center, remember the old Barnack pictures, like Eisenmarkt, Eselsgasse? In Solms there is hardly anything to see, two supermarkets close to Leica Service Centre....
If you go along the river Lahn in west directions, next bigger town is Weilburg, their centre is like a castle on a hill (20-25 km) and another 30 km is Limburg.

Regards,

Wolfram

 

[Socke]

getting film is not a problem, or not much 🙂

The photostores, I try to avoid "shop" here, have mostly everything. A lot of supermarkets have ISO200 C41 either Agfa XRG (Lidl 1.44 Euro for two rolls) or Kodak Gold. Saturn and Mediamarkt, two homeelectronics stores belonging to the same retailchain, have Fuji Sensia 100 in 5 packs for 15 Euro incl. development. I brough my slides in on Tuesday and had them back on Friday but I'm very close to the lab.
One Day C41 development via a chemists chain, "Ihr Platz", is around 3 Euro per Film and 0.10 per print plus some 5 Euro for a CD with 1800x1200 JPEGs. I ususaly choose three day turnaround with 0.01 Euro per 4x6 print 🙂

Ihr Platz has some rebranded C41 film products, it's probably Solaris, ISO100 is 1.09 Euro, ISO200 is 1.59 and ISO400 is 1.99 per 36 exposures.

So film and development, if you need it, shouldn't be a problem here.

 

[Socke]

To accompany your appelwoi, get a "Frankfurter Schlachtplatte", and if you still have room after, Mainzer Handkäse mit Musik. An excellent meal, but not for the faint-of-heart or the small-of-stomach.

If you have all this, make sure you'll sleep in a well aired room so you can enjoy the "Musik" 🙂

 

[ERV]

This sounds like a lovely trip you're off to.

After dealing with the all-in-one backpack for camera gear, books, ipod, water bottle, kids stuff, snacks, etc. on too many flights, I decided to try an alternative to a soft camera bag.
So I bought a Pelikan 1400 hardcase and carved out spaces for two bodies and three spaces for lenses, hoods, meter etc. The case itself is a little heavy, however now I can put it in the overhead bins, thee kids can sit on it if they need to, and I don't worry stuff falling out when I open my backpack to get a newspaper or snack.
I got an orange case because I thought the color was cool and wanted to be able to 'see' it among all the other black bags that people have. (My wife suggested carrying it in an open canvas bag so it doesn't attract too much attention.) I always take along a small day bag so it stays in the hotel, and I can also use a laptop lock if I really needed to secure it.
It's another approach to the bag issue, however now I have the peace of mind that my babies (metal and real) are all happy.. 🙂