U.S trip
January 6th, 2009
As you guys are mostly from US, I need your advise about your country.
I 've been to USA only one time , for job only 3 weeks in Memphis, and during a quite difficult time as a french march 2003, ... I don'ty keep good memory of this stay
Anyway I want to come back , for a longer time
I plan to spend quite long time on vacation in US this year ( up to 1,5 months).
Purpose of my trip could be:
1/ Photography of big U.S cities (NY, NY, NY, ... I m so excited just thinking the day I can go there) and street photography
2/Photography of people more inside the country in farm maybe
3/ Some nice landscape, but not too much
I definetly want to stay in NY maybe 10days.
After this I don't have very clear idea.
In my concept I would like to rent a car and travel from east to west coast, passing into most interesting place but also spending some time on very local and lost area.
I have the stupid cliché in my brain of the truck driver bar lost on route 66, and I want to go to such place, maybe a kind of utopy
So my questions are:
1/ Do you think it is possible to cross US in 1 month driving car ? I don't want to be in the guiness book as the 1st man who spent 99% of its vacation driving a car, I don't want to be in hurry , and have the possibility to stop driving for few days anywhere .
2/ What is better rent a car or try to buy one on east coast and sell it on west coast?
3/ Which place you could recommend me to go? Main city I want to see, NY, Las Vegas, LA or San francisco I don't know which one...
Thanks
Mat
2/ Rent a car, do not get tied up in owning one.
3/ Cities worth visiting (In my opinion) NY, Boston, Buffalo (Niagra Falls), LA, Laguna Beach- make sure you spend time in Southern California-, San Diego, Park City Utah, Miami.
As far as cities i middle America, I have no idea. There are a few places in Texas worth seeing, Dallas, Houston, South Padre.
I know I skipped around a bit, but there you have it. (=
Having lived in both, I can say there are dangerous neighborhoods in small cities as well. And you're more likely to get hit by traffic in a "nice" neighborhood than to have problems with the people in a "bad" neighborhood. Taxis scare me more than guns. :)
Do not miss Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Arizona. There are several excellent books out regarding travel through this region with all the must see sights.
I beg to differ! While Florida is very flat and doesn't have much subject matter for landscape photography other than beaches and swamps (Everglades), Miami does have a great skyline for night photography.
Check my Miami skyline page:
http://GilTphoto.com
Also many spots in FL for bird photography during the winter.
The person asking, seems to like big cities. I grew up in NYC, so photography there would bore me to tears. I like nature much better and would recommend the national parks in AZ and UT, or WY and MT. Visit my website for examples from these places.
Enjoy your trip to the US. I wouldn't recommend a cross country drive as there are too many boring places to pass through and too many miles to cover.
LaFoto: Thanks I will check your picture from US to have an idea. Coming with me??? :D Why not... :lol: . Seriously, it s true that I told to friends who wnted to come with me than I just want to be alone to do this trip. Don't want to negociate with anybody because what will be interesting to me will not be for most of my friend.
Two olives: Fully agree with you , I want to have few interesting point & cities in my mind but don't want to fix the plan too tigh to have the possibility to see different things that most tourist can see.
Scutinyi: Have fun and enjoy night life is my second hobby after photography, so definitly I want to have some fun during the trip, so why not going to Miami; Thanks
JIP:thank for advise, I iwll check all thes place on the web to have idea
Jeffcanes: thanks , I keep in mind that rent should eb the best solution.
The best advice for a foreign traveler spending a month crossing the US... Don't map out your trip using all major freeways, or you won't see nearly enough. Find highways parallel to the major freeways, so you don't find yourself way out in the middle of nowhere, and go through lots of small towns as well as big cities.
Iron Flatline: You comment about the business card make me really smile. Because I had exactly the same idea, but just for this trip to US.
In any other place ( Asia, EUrope, India) I have never used this , but I had the idea to have this ready-to-use for US as the ultimate justification :mrgreen:
Just to give some clarification , I think I will not pass through mountain and national park, because even if I know it s amazing place, I am not attracted by wild nature.. I guess it s difficult to understand.
Again thank you all.;)
Mat
Also don't try to see too much or you'll miss it all... pick a few areas and focus on them.
Yes, but the original poster said that he wanted to see the US, you'd have him skip 90% of it. In my opinion, the Huge Cities (NY, London, Paris, Tokyo, etc.) are never representative of the country they are in. They're almost like a parallel universe unto themselves. LA is just... LA. There's nothing like that in any universe, I'd bet. They're absolutely places to see, but they're not (to me) the US. But that's what's great about it... there's always something different to see.
Out West, don't miss San Francisco and the Golden Gate bridge. Go in the morning and right at sundown. Again, I've never been there either, but I hear great things.
I also agree with the notion of skipping Florida. I am in Florida, Tampa Bay, but it would take a week off your trip to really made it down here, and there is just so mcuh more interesting history and scenery elsewhere.
If I could photograph, say 10 places in the USA it would be:
NY CITY
Chicago
Boston (Old churches)
Maine/New Hampshire - lighthouses...
Carolinas
Colorado/Grand Canyon
Vegas
Arizona
San Francisco
Los Angeles
Also don't try to see too much or you'll miss it all... pick a few areas and focus on them.
True but watch out for the baseball sized flies, and the other blood sucking creatures there lol. that place seems like hell on earth in the hot summer
Hey! I resent that!!!! but laughed hysterically at the same time... :greenpbl:
Anyway, good luck on your trip! Do you know how to change a tire?....just in case.... but hope you don't go through any problems! also... do you plan on staying in hotels/hostels/motels? throughout your trip... have you heard of couchsurfing? it might help you ease your costs - and you get to meet a bunch of really cool people that would probably show you around their town. Im going to france in the summer - so using that website to meet people to show me around...but ive used it before and its definitely trustworthy.
I have to say that I am more interested by people that by landscape, so I mean , of course I will sew a few of the most famous place, but it s not really the purpose ...
Jeremy Z for you say sabout New York people who may be rude, I have to say that I can really cope with this people I am used to people from Paris :mrgreen: , who are more probably not the most sympathic & polite that I know ...:-P so NY still remains very attractive to me, same that country side in U.S.
I see this trip as a opportunity to see real life, definitly I will not travel all the time with highways..
thanks to everyone
Mat
Just to tell you that I do not have the vacation I expected, I only get 10 days that I will spend in New York from 22 march to 2 of April.
I hope I can post very soon some pictures of NY.
Mat
You will have some time to get out of NYC.
Take Amtrak along the coast to Boston andor out along Long Island.
My advice would actually be to start in Canada, maybe Toronto or Quebec and work your way down the east coast. That would get you near Boston, NYC, Philadelphia (Lancaster PA is GREAT for farms and farmland though the local Amish are offended by being photographed) and down into Florida (and the points in between of course). You could then work your way west and hit New Orleans, Dallas, Houston, Arizona (the Grand Canyon) and to Southern California, then up the west coast.
Plus since you're driving I would think the trip would be more exciting going north and south (up and down the coasts) rather than east to west (NY to Cali) as you'll see the climates change quickly.
Also... maybe post your itinerary on the forum once you have it planned out and you might get invites to meet up and schedule shoots with some of the forum folk.
Sounds fun... I'm excited to hear your stories and a review of the US.
Good luck and have fun.
Pete
I have to say that safety is one of my concern, because when you don't know which place you should not go you can do mistake.
Specially when your are with a camera you attract attention of people so I will be carrefull, sure
Mat
1 - The people of the US are friendly because they want to be here.
2 - There are beautiful sites to visit and magnificent national parks to see.
3 - If you drive only on the interstate highways you will not see America.
4 - Consider using the trains or even the bus, then rent a car and drive in the locations of interest. Just about every US city has a Greyhound bus stop. Driving is tiring and can become boring.
5 - Have no fear, but be cautious. I have traveled half the world six months at a time without hotel reservations or knowing where I'll be the next day. South America, most of Western Europe and parts North Africa.
6 - Enjoy the experience and have fun!!!
Thought.....Fly into Boston, zigzag the northern route to the West coast, then South to California and then zigzag the Southern route to Florida flying back home through Atlanta.
How I envy you....!!!!:drool: :lol:
Paul
I already envy you the chance to go to NYC.
As you may have found out by now (or not?), I was there (for the first and so far only time in my life) in April of last year and I was TOTALLY FASCINATED by it!
Other than NYC and Washington DC, I personally have only ever been to the south (Texas, from there taking a trip to New Orleans, Natchez/Mississippi, Biloxi, across Alabama (or rather doing some island hopping off the Alabama coast) into Florida, to there see Saint Augustine, Orlando (and its treats ;)), Cape Caneveral, Fort Lauderdale, Miami (briefly), the Keys and Key Largo (for the overnight stop) and then back.
So I can't tell you much about what to go and see when you want to do the east-west trip. (Plus that stay over was almost 12 years ago, so things might have changed, anyway).
But it sounds like you are planning to give yourself wonderful experience !
I would recommend it to anyone.
Okay I did carry a camera, but I wasn't looking for places to make pictures. As they said in the movie, I went looking for America. Unlike Mr. Fonda, Mr Hopper, and Mr. Nickelson, I found it everywhere.
P.S. watch out where you go in memphis, and stay off the LA freeway ;)
Sorry every one for my one view points of view hehe.
That is true, but for a month in half its hard to see the whole US. I think if u see the main city you will get a good mix of diffrent cultures and places. I have never driven accross the whole US but ive been around the pacific coast and south west. And lets say you drive from La to Seatle it will take you what 16 hours, in those 16 hours you would hit maybe 3 or 4 interesting places not counting the main cities.
Sorry i might be ruining the plan for him, its just how i feel. I've been known to be wrong alot of the time, even if i dont want to admit it lol.
Now the 99% of the mainland that lies between those two is where the US actually exists. Driving through is a great way to see it. If you're really looking to spend a month and a half, my suggestion would be to go both ways. Drive from NY to California (or Washington or Oregon) and then down the coast and back to NY across the south. The interstates are great for getting from point A to point B quickly, but the smaller highways are great for seeing what's around. There's a lot of land over here, so you might benefit by picking a general route/time line and posting it here. I'm sure that there would be plenty of people here that could point out great things all along that route to help you fine tune your goals.
I, of course, recommend setting aside several days for Chicago. It's a great city, that offers the benefits of a major metropolitan area (The best museums and sports teams in the world), but at the same time is made of small neighborhoods. There may be several million people here, but most people here seem to think it's still a small-town. :)
Another option for picking where to go, is tell us what you like and we can direct you to where to find it. If you like the mountains, we've got the Rockies, the Ozarks (which are really old, and mostly just hills), the Adorandaks, etc. If you like wine, there's Nappa, but I've had better wine from Michigan and Missouri. You like cities? New York and LA are probably more like what you already know, but how about Cleaveland, Minneapolis, Dallas...
Now I want to make a road trip too.
Just to tell you that I do not have the vacation I expected, I only get 10 days that I will spend in New York from 22 march to 2 of April.
I hope I can post very soon some pictures of NY.
That sucks you only have 10 days, but at least you have 10 days haha. I do strongly recomended you coming out to the west some other time.
-oleg
Photographers have spent a lifetime shooting New York and haven't scratched the surface. San Francisco is also photogenic. Unlike most American cities, San Francisco has a personality of sorts. So does New Orleans. And so does Santa Fe, NM. Washington DC is very photogenic.
I live close to Chicago which is a monster city of 8 million or so and interesting in many respects. Great restaurants too. I go there at least once per year for a shoot.
Here's what I'd do, in response to your original questions.
Don't plan on any timeline, even New York. Go with your head and be free.
Rent a car. There are plans that will give you lower than the day rate, and check for a national company in case you need to swap a car because something breaks. You may be able to get a month rate with unlimited miles?
Get two US maps = NOW, get some guide books and start drawing all over one of them. Circle places you want to see. Soon you'll find which ones you can get to by traveling a zig zag route and which are just way off the main roads or your final route.
You could spend the whole time from Maine to Florida and not see everything in a month.
You could go East to West through the Northern states, catch Chicago, St Louis, the Mississippi, parts of old Rt 66 and national parks, and still not see it all. (ps I hear Mt Rushmore is quite impressive, even though I've never been there.)
You can head South, see some of the coast, some of the mountains. Go West and see many interesting cities. Then head back North for your farms and fields and some really interesting land formations. Go West, see the National Monuments, go South again into Texas. Go West and up that coast so you can see California to Oregon, which is beautiful. Make a side trip from LA to Las Vegas. Find something between there and Reno (and it's a long way with not too much) go through the mountains from Reno to Lake Tahoe, via Silver City and Carson City, which is exceptional, then head to San Francisco, which is another fantastic city. Go North...
All too complicated? :sexywink:
Go back and circle places you want to see. Go point to point. But by all means, take the Interstate, transit from A to B and then before you get there, head for state roads or even scenic county highways, near everything you choose, don't just go A to B. Exit from sites on back roads and catch the highway for transit sections again.
Back roads and small towns are really interesting while the Interstate and the tourist traps are all pretty much a ribbon of highway and car parks. Like someone else said, you can find turn of the century cities in the North that have loads of character.
Good Maps! Start driving. Have some limited goals and destinations, and just figure out how to get to them on the fly.
If you try to plan a trip, you'll be locked into a schedule and can't be flexible. Not only that, if you run late once, everything from there on is under stress.
I remember a trip to Scotland where we'd make 28-50 miles in a good day, and that meant loads of stopping, gawking and walking, then I'd go about 150 miles after dark. Next day, slow ride, take time to wander and walk, 150 miles after dark to the next zone of interest.
With that, you can go any direction from where you land and not run out of things to see and photograph. All of the above includes anything people add after this.
This country has a little bit of everything. The only problem is picking what to include, because there's so much that's good. :lmao:
Just to tell you that I do not have the vacation I expected, I only get 10 days that I will spend in New York from 22 march to 2 of April.
I hope I can post very soon some pictures of NY.
Mat
I think you ought to really think about what you want to shoot, and make sure you "make your own luck" by putting yourself in an environment that creates the chance of finding the shot. That way you will also enjoy the non-photo related part of your trip more, AND have time for more random exploration.
NY is NY, you'll get what you're hoping for, but people there don't like cameras.
Route 66, and the middle of the country is not full of quaint gas stations and road side diners. It's full of mega-chains, Wal-Marts, and poorly built churches. If you can really document that life-style, you have a book that Taschen might publish.
The national parks are the most breath-takingly beautiful thing you will ever see. There are landscape photographers who spend their life time on one park, and still feel they haven't properly caught its beauty.
LA has got to be the best place to shoot, but you have to be a tough MF to get the really interesting shots. Want to document something new? Show how immigrants are living there - and how much fun they have in their very strongly-bonded communities. Oh, and EVERYONE hates cameras, so shoot fast.
Miami is pretty, esp. the Art Deco district. Going west into the swamps is not fun. If you want good swamps, go to Louisiana.
These snippets of advice could go on for ever. Really have a specific idea of what you want to shoot, and then "go on location." We'll be glad to tell you where to get the shot. Not sure where you live, but just get into your car, and drive. See if you can get some interesting shots. I do it a lot, but I know there are days when I don't find anything that really interests me, and it is frustrating. These days I head out with a goal in mind, but am always happy if I find something else along the way.
One piece of advice: Print a business card with your name and your website, with the words "Travel Photographer" or something like it on the card. Often a smile and some interested conversation is all you need. But sometimes it helps if you tell people that you are a photographer (beyond hobby) in case someone gets annoyed by your camera.
I would advise you to not plan your trip too tightly - there are great little towns all over the country that you can only get to by small side roads. Those are the places you'll find the old-time bars and restaurants. Ask everyone you meet about where they live, and you'll find out more than you could hope for.
If you want any specific advice on southern California, hit me up. I would advise you to make a stop by Venice Beach at least.. probably one of the most unique things going on here.
If it is people photography you are after, you might want to consider New Orleans as well.
Having grown up in the midwest, I can tell you that the "boring places" can provide some of the most interesting sights. Cheap land with no zoning laws can lead to fantastic collections of "stuff". There's a farm near my wife's grandmother's with some interesting, but very strange sculptures in thier front yard. It's about 2 miles from the nearest paved road in the middle of Iowa.
It's an amazing country we've got over here... something for everyone. :)
When my sister told me that the typical person on the street there is really mean & impatient, (compared to Chicago) I lost all interest.
However, there is no need to choose. Fly over to NYC, and stop in Chicago on your way to the west coast.
Be sure to see Niagra Falls (when you're in New York) and the Grand Canyon while traveling through Colorado/Arizona. Though you may not be so impressed with the Grand Canyon, coming from France. Aside from Chicago and your farm country photos, you can pretty much skip the midwestern US. There's nothing here but flat land & corn. California (along the coast) and Alaska are definitely worth seeing.
PS Stay away from Miami, nothing to see
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