Traveling to Europe with your digital camera?Written by Doug Rogers
The Vacation Season is fast approaching and naturally you will be taking your digital camera along for journey. After all your vacations are far and few between and it is nice to look back on those memories as you slave away at your job. However, when you travel with a digital camera, it is a completely different experience from that of traveling with a film camera. This is a lesson that far too many travelers seem to be learning hard way, especially if you’re traveling to Europe. After a couples years of relying mostly on digital for taking photos when I travel, there are things you should consider before you head off on your next trip.Charging Batteries is one of biggest stumbling blocks you'll face when you travel. Outlets can be scarce in hotels. On a recent trip to Europe, only one of five modern hotels I stayed in had more than one outlet available for use when charging up electronics. Charging your battery can be more of a hassle if you're traveling by train: If you take an overnight train in Europe, they don't have power adapters at seats (certain trains do, but it's not something you can count on). I suggest bringing at least two rechargeable batteries, three if you plan to travel with overnight trains, or don't think you'll be able to charge every night. If your camera uses regular AA batteries, consider yourself lucky-you'll find those everywhere. Scope out situation in your room when you check in: You should get at least one usable outlet, but don't count on more than that. Bring your plugs. Some digital cameras typically come with a power brick that can handle international voltages, so you won't need a voltage adapter. However, you will need a power plug adapter to convert a US outlet plug to local plug. Most of Europe is on same outlet now-but not all countries accept general "Europe" plug. Be sure to research what you'll need to jack in, and try to buy it before you leave (try CompUSA, Radio Shack, Rand McNally, or your local luggage store). If you don't have a chance to get what you need Stateside, don't fret: You should have no trouble finding an outlet converter overseas. How do I offload my images? For fellow travelers using digicams, this was number one problem I have heard repeatedly. Many comments from folks traveling for a week or more are: "I'm taking more pictures than I expected to." "I'm not shooting at best resolution, because I need room on my memory card." "I'm only halfway through my trip, and I have only 50 shots left." When you travel, odds are you'll take more pictures than you expect to also. A 1 GB card is very useful, and should suffice for low-usage shooters. But for those of us, who can go through a gigabyte or more in a day, not a week? Whether it's because your a high-volume shooter, shooting in RAW format, or a combination of two. What I discovered is many who had digital SLRs, that had 5 megapixel or more reported they were traveling with a laptop to off load their images. None of these folks were traveling on business, so they didn't need to bring a laptop along. The sad fact is, for now, a laptop remains most efficient and usable means of off loading images. Epson and Nikon have dedicated
| | The Florida KeysWritten by Clint Leung
When people ask about top sights to see in south Florida area including Fort Lauderdale and Miami, I always advise them to try and make some time to go down to Florida Keys. The Florida Keys are string of islands just south of Florida mainland and runs 120 miles from end to end. Fort Lauderdale and Miami are fun but for a relaxing change of pace, Florida Keys is place to be. For snorkellers and scuba divers going to south Florida, I would consider Florida Keys a must. The waters around Key Largo are a protected marine park with a very healthy fish life and offer best diving in US. Key Largo is first town as you enter Keys after crossing bridge from mainland. It can be reached from Miami in an hour and from Fort Lauderdale in an hour and 45 minutes. Once bridge from mainland is crossed, change in pace is noticed immediately. There is much less traffic and people just seem more relaxed in Florida Keys compared to mainland.Key Largo is main scuba diving town with many dive shops. There is even an underwater hotel with two guestrooms for adventurous types. This was a former marine research unit that was converted to hotel. Islamorada and Marathon located more west are also top scuba dive locations. For those who are not into diving, there are numerous shops with colorful local arts and crafts. One collection of shops has a giant statue of a spiny lobster out in front. For more fun, there are two dolphin centers, one in Key Largo and another near Marathon where visitors can interact with captive dolphins. Dolphin programs should actually be booked well in advance since they are extremely popular. There are sign markers along main US number 1 highway that mark each mile along 120 mile route. Most addresses in Florida Keys along main highway will actually refer to which mile marker they are located near. It's a very efficient way to navigate. It takes about 3 hours to drive from Key Largo to far end at Key West but more than likely, visitors would want to stop off at numerous locations along way for shopping, photo opportunities or just admiring scenery. The scenery gets better as one heads out more west, especially near bridges that connect islands. A common sight to see are locals fishing off bridges and numerous pelicans standing on posts like permanent fixtures. One of most spectacular sights is seven mile bridge which is world's longest segmented bridge.
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