Should my new camcorder...

rob1116 · Oct 29th, 2004, 12:23

...come with me on my trip to India?

I will be bringing my digicam of course, but my friend (and guide) immediately suggested I bring my new video camera, (Canon ZR90... I love this thing!).

It would be incredible to have digital video of at least some of my trip. Obviously, theft is a risk I'll have to assess, but I wonder if there will be any other problems relating to it... ?

I don't know exactly what I'm worried about, but seeing as how this is my first trip anywhere I'd like it to be a positive experience.

Thoughts? Warnings? Advice?

Will it be too much of a burden to lug around, being careful not to break it? Is it a little too extravegent to be pulling out in potentially small villages?

Sorry if these questions sound ridiculous

Just trying cover all the angles!

crvlvr · Oct 29th, 2004, 13:34

using your camera in villages will be quite safe.. however be careful when using it at tourist area in cities.. also, the indian cusotms may hassle you and ask you to pay a duty. you could always enter it on to the custom's form and bring it back with you. however, if you do not have the camera with you, they will assess the full duty.

shelly · Oct 30th, 2004, 16:23

Hi, just got back from India and we took our new video camera. It is great to watch the video we were glued to the screen just the day after we got back and it was great to share our experience with friends! The thing I was most worried about was charging the batteries as you have to charge the whole thing and I was worried about the fluctuationg voltage. Nothing happened though so it was ok although we thought it best not to charge it in agra and varanasi where there were power cuts all the time when we were there! At many monuments you will be asked to pay a small fee for video camera. Also at the Taj Mahal we had to leave it in a locker. I did not find that it attracted any particular attention. You attract the attention yourself simply by being a tourist! Our camera is very small and we had no trouble carrying it around. Any really if you have such a good camera it is a shame not to take it abroad with you. That is the main reason we bought it - to record our trips in these fascinating places! If this is your first trip anywhere you will want to capture some fantastic memories on video and believe me in india there is a lot to capture. It is a spectacular colourful place totally different from any other place I have seen and I have travelled quite alot! So take your camera and have a great time!

rob1116 · Oct 31st, 2004, 06:28

Thanks to both of you for the info... sounds like I'm bring it then!

Couple of questions though:

crvlvr : Here's a Seinfeld question for ya : What exactly is duty?

lol... really, I don't understand your advice about entering it on the form, not bringing it back, and so on. Could you give a brief description for a serious newb? Much appreciated...

Shelly: What kind (media) of camera do you have? (Hi8, miniDV, DVD, etc.)

I'm just wondering what the xray bag check would do to a miniDV tape... ?

shelly · Oct 31st, 2004, 14:44

Hi I have a Sony miniDV and there is no problem with the tapes in the xray check. The camera has passed through countless xray checks since we bought it last year and nothing happened to the tapes so no worries there. The only hassle I had was when we crossed over to Nepal and then wanted to fly back into India they wouldnt let us take batteries onto the flight - but they couldnt figure out which part of the camera the battery was so they left it there - hee hee was pleased about that as we are not exactly talking about a duracell battery here! If I were you and you are going take any internal flights or going fly Air India take your battery out and put it in your luggage. Dont carry it in your hand baggage as they may ask you to give it to them. They do of course promise to hand it to you after the flight but I wouldnt want to take such chances.
Regarding the duty mentioned by crvlvr we never had a problem with that but you may want to take his advice. I am not sure but he could be referring to a form you have to fill in when you arrive in india (the one they give you on the plane) where you have to fill in your details and whether you are bringing anything of value into the country etc. I did not mention the camera there. You could ask when they hand you the form.

rob1116 · Oct 31st, 2004, 17:16

Thank you once again shelly, very useful!

Oct 29th, 2004, 12:23	#1
rob1116 Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Canada Posts: 10	Should my new camcorder... ...come with me on my trip to India? I will be bringing my digicam of course, but my friend (and guide) immediately suggested I bring my new video camera, (Canon ZR90... I love this thing!). It would be incredible to have digital video of at least some of my trip. Obviously, theft is a risk I'll have to assess, but I wonder if there will be any other problems relating to it... ? I don't know exactly what I'm worried about, but seeing as how this is my first trip anywhere I'd like it to be a positive experience. Thoughts? Warnings? Advice? Will it be too much of a burden to lug around, being careful not to break it? Is it a little too extravegent to be pulling out in potentially small villages? Sorry if these questions sound ridiculous Just trying cover all the angles! __________________ I have never been out of North America :-( Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet. -Albert Einstein

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Oct 29th, 2004, 13:34	#2
crvlvr Guru Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: On the move in India.. Posts: 4,535	using your camera in villages will be quite safe.. however be careful when using it at tourist area in cities.. also, the indian cusotms may hassle you and ask you to pay a duty. you could always enter it on to the custom's form and bring it back with you. however, if you do not have the camera with you, they will assess the full duty.

Oct 30th, 2004, 16:23	#3
shelly Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: MALTA Posts: 46	Hi, just got back from India and we took our new video camera. It is great to watch the video we were glued to the screen just the day after we got back and it was great to share our experience with friends! The thing I was most worried about was charging the batteries as you have to charge the whole thing and I was worried about the fluctuationg voltage. Nothing happened though so it was ok although we thought it best not to charge it in agra and varanasi where there were power cuts all the time when we were there! At many monuments you will be asked to pay a small fee for video camera. Also at the Taj Mahal we had to leave it in a locker. I did not find that it attracted any particular attention. You attract the attention yourself simply by being a tourist! Our camera is very small and we had no trouble carrying it around. Any really if you have such a good camera it is a shame not to take it abroad with you. That is the main reason we bought it - to record our trips in these fascinating places! If this is your first trip anywhere you will want to capture some fantastic memories on video and believe me in india there is a lot to capture. It is a spectacular colourful place totally different from any other place I have seen and I have travelled quite alot! So take your camera and have a great time!

Oct 31st, 2004, 06:28	#4
rob1116 Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Canada Posts: 10	Thanks to both of you for the info... sounds like I'm bring it then! Couple of questions though: crvlvr : Here's a Seinfeld question for ya : What exactly is duty? lol... really, I don't understand your advice about entering it on the form, not bringing it back, and so on. Could you give a brief description for a serious newb? Much appreciated... Shelly: What kind (media) of camera do you have? (Hi8, miniDV, DVD, etc.) I'm just wondering what the xray bag check would do to a miniDV tape... ?

Oct 31st, 2004, 14:44	#5
shelly Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: MALTA Posts: 46	Hi I have a Sony miniDV and there is no problem with the tapes in the xray check. The camera has passed through countless xray checks since we bought it last year and nothing happened to the tapes so no worries there. The only hassle I had was when we crossed over to Nepal and then wanted to fly back into India they wouldnt let us take batteries onto the flight - but they couldnt figure out which part of the camera the battery was so they left it there - hee hee was pleased about that as we are not exactly talking about a duracell battery here! If I were you and you are going take any internal flights or going fly Air India take your battery out and put it in your luggage. Dont carry it in your hand baggage as they may ask you to give it to them. They do of course promise to hand it to you after the flight but I wouldnt want to take such chances. Regarding the duty mentioned by crvlvr we never had a problem with that but you may want to take his advice. I am not sure but he could be referring to a form you have to fill in when you arrive in india (the one they give you on the plane) where you have to fill in your details and whether you are bringing anything of value into the country etc. I did not mention the camera there. You could ask when they hand you the form.

Oct 31st, 2004, 17:16	#6
rob1116 Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Canada Posts: 10	Thank you once again shelly, very useful!

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