India gear advice

[benedict297]

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Hi, I am going to be visiting india and was wondering if anyone could share their experiences or tips. I have a M10 and 28/ 35 / 50mm lens but, i am thinking I need something wider for architecture. So my dilemma is, would a 21mm lens be a better option than say getting a SL3 with 14-24mm? this combo will cost more than just getting a 21mm but would it be a better option? I know I would then have to bring 2 bodies but I am ok for this. 

Appreciate any tips 

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[LeicaR10]

Benedict297,   It would depend on your genre(s) of photography and what you expect to see and photograph.  If you do mostly street photography, I would take the M10 and 28/50 combo. If shooting landscape, the 21 SEM and 28 would be enough with the M10.  If you are doing a lot of walking, then travel light with the M10...or get a Q2.  My experience in India was remote landscape photography and I had my assistants lugging my S system gear and backpacks.  The Q camera(s) are great for walk around photography there.  You can shoot panos of buildings and stitch in PP.  Would I take a SL3 and lenses?  No, reason being its bad enough being a tourist, but loaded with a camera bags, very busy city streets, people and all that goes with it, i.e. safety, I recommend you carry less.  Last, you should consider downloading your photographs to a portable hard drive every night, just in case your camera malfunctions or your gear mysteriously disappears....  Be safe, have fun...  r/ Mark

PS  You should consider putting your portable hard drive and passport in the hotel safe every day/night if staying in such.

Edited August 3, 2024 by LeicaR10

[otto.f]

I owned an 18 and a 21mm, but found in the end a 24 the best compromise between wide and still acceptable oblique perspective lines. The CV 25mm is also a very nice lens, but I am still addicted to my Elmarit 24, because it's not too clinical and the 2.8 gives me still the possibility to play with depth of field (vs. the 3.4). Here's an example from Buchara, Uzbekistan. Personally I find it with a 24 still possible to work without a separate finder, which I find quite annoying; when you use the most outer metal frame of the finder you practically have a 24 frame. This is impossible with 21 or 18mm.

 

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[benedict297]

5 hours ago, LeicaR10 said:

Benedict297,   It would depend on your genre(s) of photography and what you expect to see and photograph.  If you do mostly street photography, I would take the M10 and 28/50 combo. If shooting landscape, the 21 SEM and 28 would be enough with the M10.  If you are doing a lot of walking, then travel light with the M10...or get a Q2.  My experience in India was remote landscape photography and I had my assistants lugging my S system gear and backpacks.  The Q camera(s) are great for walk around photography there.  You can shoot panos of buildings and stitch in PP.  Would I take a SL3 and lenses?  No, reason being its bad enough being a tourist, but loaded with a camera bags, very busy city streets, people and all that goes with it, i.e. safety, I recommend you carry less.  Last, you should consider downloading your photographs to a portable hard drive every night, just in case your camera malfunctions or your gear mysteriously disappears....  Be safe, have fun...  r/ Mark

PS  You should consider putting your portable hard drive and passport in the hotel safe every day/night if staying in such.

Thanks for the reply. I would mainly be doing street shots but want to have a wide enough set-up to take architecture / famous sites like taj, jaipur and delhi etc.

Edited August 3, 2024 by benedict297

[LeicaR10]

Benedict297,   In that case, the M10 with a 21 SEM and 28/35 would be all you need.  If you want want to stay light and less noticed, the Q2 would be very good for the streets and many of the places you mentioned.  A great country to spend time and do photography.  But as always, stay alert to your surroundings and have good travel insurance.  r/ Mark

[benedict297]

Thank you for the tips 

[st4u]

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Hello,

 

Cosina Hexanon Dual 21/35mm (and if necessary Sumilux 50 pre asph or apo) max 6.400 iso and DxoPure 3 (or 4) with M10 or SL2-S or SL3 also great.

Alternative: Elmarit 24mm and nothing else, no viewfinder needed

Have a nice trip! 

Edited August 7, 2024 by st4u

[TheEyesHaveIt]

I took a Sony A7RII to India a few years ago to take photos as a tourist and the customs officers wanted me to pay an import duty of hundreds of dollars to bring it into the country or they were going to impound it. Corrupt bunch of crooks. Managed to get through without the bribe after an hour of complaining. Wouldn’t dare take my Leica stuff there personally.

[Farkle-Mpls]

@otto.f

I've attached an image I shot at The Taj in 2018.  It's *similar* in style to your shot and EXIF data shows it was 39mm on a FF (Canon) sensor.  I think you can do great with 28mm as the widest in your kit.  I took 21mm to Iceland and just lost way too much detail in my images ... I'll think more carefully before going that wide again.

 

Regarding a comment which @TheEyesHaveIt made regarding bringing his/her gear into India: I've brought different Leica M bodies as well as Canon DSLRs and even an old Canon FTb with me to India.  With my six vacation trips there in the past few years, I never had a problem with Customs HOWEVER I absolutely believe the story!  I may have been lucky because I rarely travel alone (usually with a couple male friends or a gaggle of local Indian women) and I think that may help as it's more difficult to extort a tourist when you are in a group.  (But I will worry more about it on my future trips -- maybe leave Leica at home and just bring my Canon gear?)

 

India has fantastic color, including the clothing!  Women's sarees are especially beautiful.  If you want to do something which I thought was very fun and very rewarding (in terms of photographic outcomes) AND you have some film gear, grab a film camera and shoot some street shots on Velvia 50!  (Yes, Velvia 50!) ... the colors absolutely popped and I will try it again, sometime.  I'd post some of mine but I don't think I ever scanned them.

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[rmueller]

Hi benedict297, 

I come to India from time to time and never needed anything else than 28 and 50mm. I mainly walk the streets and snap whatever comes. Extreme wide angle is problematic IMO as even with the 28mm it is hard to isolate your subject from the vibrant surroundings. Below images are taken with M-A and SilberSalz35 500T film.

If this is your first trip to India you will be overwhelmed by the colours, vibrancy in the cities, scents of food coming from all corners around you. It takes few days to start taking images, so don't get stressed out if you're not taking any reasonable photos at the beginning of your trip.

I'd say India is safe in general, walked Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata at all times of the day and never felt threatened or insecure. Of course you need to keep your eyes open and monitor the surrounding but this I do in Germany and all other places in the world too. Touristic places like the Taj are typically used to rip tourists, stay away from any purchase and close contact.

You will for sure enjoy this trip, equipment wise I'd stay light and only take the M10 with two, max three lenses. 

Best Regards,

Ralf

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Edited August 15, 2024 by rmueller

[Rick in CO]

All of the above advice has its merits.  I have been to India twice, M9 with 25 Biogon, 50 Planar, 85 Sonnar and again recently with M10-R and 21 Biogon and 28/35/50 Tri-Elmar.  Traveling light and unobtrusively is recommended, not because of danger from theft, but blending in so as not to be a big camera bag toting tourist.  A wide angle is necessary, I replaced the 25 with a 21 so as to allow perspective corrections where 25/28 was too narrow.  The first trip I used the 85mm only a couple of times, but did get some great shots.  With the Mp of the M10-R, the 50mm allows sufficient cropping down so that I don't find a need for anything longer.  I use the 50mm for 50% of the photos I take, so a Q camera is not worth it for me.  If you are mostly 28/35, then that would be a solution, except for the wider shots, for which I found the 21mm necessary.  

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