Vietnam Guide...

[Scott Rosenberg]

good day,

i'm going to be spending most of June in SE Asia, and am tentatively planning on shooting in and around Halong Bay in Vietnam for around a week... i was wondering if any of you have shot out there and knew of a good local guide with experience working with photographers.

any suggestions would be much appreciated,

[archivue]

"knew of a good local guide with experience working with photographers."

do you really wants to shoot the same pictures as your predecessor ? ;-)

[Maretzo]

What you need a driver who can speak decent English. No particular problem with photographers in Vietnam. The only problem is to be able to photography a landscape without the whole neighbourhood standing in front of the camera, to be sure to be part of the picture...

[Scott Rosenberg]

do you really wants to shoot the same pictures as your predecessor ? ;-)

not at all... but having someone who is familiar with the local area, customs, weather, language, etc, can make a big difference in how productive one can be in a trip to a place as foreign (to me) as vietnam.

[Tri Tran]

not at all... but having someone who is familiar with the local area, customs, weather, language, etc, can make a big difference in how productive one can be in a trip to a place as foreign (to me) as vietnam.

Scott,
The solution is to go to www.vnphoto.net and make your connection in Hanoi box and they will hook you up or you can joint me there at the end of the year .Hope this helps.TT

[QT Luong]

While many Vietnamese people can read and write English, Scott may need some help in navigating vnphoto.net so that he can post there :-)

[tgtaylor]

Hey Scott,

That sounds like a great trip. I was over there during the "Vietnam debacle" and always told myself that one day I'd be back. If its not too personal, what type of budget do you think would be sufficient??

Thomas

[Ron Marshall]

Hey Scott,

That sounds like a great trip. I was over there during the "Vietnam debacle" and always told myself that one day I'd be back. If its not too personal, what type of budget do you think would be sufficient??

Thomas

I was there a couple of years ago. Budget depends on how much comfort you require. Hotels that are clean and safe, but basic, were only $15/night, off-season. Restaurants were good and cheap. Transportation was cheap; even flights.

[jwaddison]

I worked around Ha Long bay for a week or so a few years ago, not photography related, but managed to get some time to take pictures. I'm sure if you ask around you won't have any trouble finding an english-speaking guide. I never had any problems with people hanging around and getting in the way of the pictures. Possibly one of the local photo stores could help you find someone, or the local college. The latter probably has a language school with a student or two who would be happy for the experience. The hotel would I'm sure be glad to help you find someone.
It's a lovely place. I wish I'd had the time to take a boat out into the islands.
Your guide/interpreter doesn't need perfect english. Just be patient in explaining what you want.

[tgtaylor]

I was there a couple of years ago. Budget depends on how much comfort you require. Hotels that are clean and safe, but basic, were only $15/night, off-season. Restaurants were good and cheap. Transportation was cheap; even flights.

Safe, scenic AND affordable. Sounds like an ideal venue for photography.

Besides phrases like "Bom-me-bow" (Bier 33), "dinky-dow" (crazy), and "number 1" and "number 10" my current Vietnamese is, ah, limited. Wonder if French is still spoken in the north?

[Ron Marshall]

Safe, scenic AND affordable. Sounds like an ideal venue for photography.

Besides phrases like "Bom-me-bow" (Bier 33), "dinky-dow" (crazy), and "number 1" and "number 10" my current Vietnamese is, ah, limited. Wonder if French is still spoken in the north?

Although most of the French left in 1956, there are a few French high schools; the people to whom I spoke in French were either over 60 or under 20.

In tourist areas there is ample English spoken.

I stayed in a small privately owned hotel in Hanoi. The owner was a university professor, who spoke perfect English, with a mild accent. He bent over backwards to take care of me. I didn't need a guide, but I'm sure if I had he would have found a reliable one for me.

[David Karp]

"knew of a good local guide with experience working with photographers."

do you really wants to shoot the same pictures as your predecessor ? ;-)

Does being in the same vicinity mean that you will make the same photos?

If yes, then perhaps we should all just give up.