Upcoming Europe trip.

[damibru]

In about a good month I'll be on vacation in the Netherlands and Belgium. This time around I wanted to limit myself to just one camera because I want to travel as light as I can due to some back issues. I wanted to go compact. After reading a lot of reviews I narrowed it down to the Nikon Coolpix P5000. One reason being it's IQ and the ability to do flash photography with speedlights thus enabling me to bring a mini studio on my trip.
I'll also be attending an outdoor music festival while there so I needed something compact.
Do you think the P5000 will be up to the task as the lone camera I'm bringing on my trip? I wish I could get the P7000 bit I'm sort of on a budget and rather have a bit more spending money while on vacation.

[venchka]

Travelling light? Mini studio? A contradiction?

Enjoy your trip. If you would like information on parts of Belgium give me a shout.

One camera will be fine. I spent a year in Europe with a 35mm body and 50mm lens. It worked for me.

[dmora]

Fuji X100

[tml]

That will be perfect. Instead of a mini studio, how about a light tripod? I was so glad having brought my tripod on my trip to Europe in March.

Tri

[playbak]

Have you considered the Canon S95? I just got back from a couple of weeks in Italy and found it to be a perfect companion. It has PASM control and shoots in RAW. It has an oversized sensor for it's size and a very fast lens. It also has front mounted control wheel around the lens that can be set to use one of a multiple group of available functions. I had mine set for aperture. I was able to directly upload the pictures to my iPad to review. The IQ is great. Good body construction.

On the down side, it's expensive, has only a 3x zoom and the battery life isn't great. I bought an extra battery at Batteries + for about $20, so it never became an issue. I bought a small plastic tripod that fit into my pocket. It served two purposes. When attached to the bottom in the closed position it provided an extra hand hold for stability. It came with a long velcro strap attached to secure it around pole, tree branch or other object.

I could carry the whole setup in my pocket and you couldn't tell I had them with me. Very light, very nice. Take a look. Like you I just couldn't justify carrying around a big DSLR and lenses, too much of a target for theft.

Good luck and enjoy your trip.

[venchka]

During my year in Europe I was tripod deficient. My cathedral interiors and night street shots in Paris suffered accordingly. A tripod makes about a 900% improvement in your photos. The best lenses in the world aren't motion free.

[dmora]

btw, I was just in Netherlands and Belgium. My wide angles saw the most use.

The flash will be 90% useless, considering how most places do not allow flash photography.

[PEC]

I was in Holland last year and went with only my G11 and my little Gitzo 1550t traveler tripod.

You can see results at: A Chance Encounter | Holland 2010