> Never been to Bolivia (aren't there safety concerns there?),
Safety concerns??, ahhh, yes, there are some.
1. Food and water are always a problem, especially when prepared for you by
the locals in the remote mountain villages. Upset bowels are a given.
Thankfully, I've so far avoided cholera, typhoid, chagas (sp?), and a few
others. As much as possible, drink pop (soda), and eat when you come home
:-). Do not sleep in thatched roof houses at altitudes below about 8000
feet.
2. Travel in the mountains, especially when riding on the back of a truck
with some freight, some animals, some Quechua folks, and the truck looks
like it should have been junked about 20 years ago. Seat belts are not
common, and most think they are a hindrance to escaping if your vehicle goes
over the side. I'll always remember giving a policeman a ride into town from
the cement quarry near Sucre (mostly police do not use cars). He stood on
the running board of the Toyota 4x4, with his head stuck in through the
driver's window, as we wound through the narrow streets of Sucre in the
always crazy traffic. And no, he didn't ask if we had our seat belts
fastened. Some locals prefer to travel the mountain roads at night, so you
can't see how far down it is. Ahh, but the road races we watched on the
streets of Sucre were fun - Mike Veglia could fill the frame with a 50mm
lens, no problem! Policemen would blow their whistle when they heard a car
coming, to get the crowd off the "raceway" (narrow street).
3. Political unrest, usually the worst is seen in roadblocks and civic
strikes. Last time we had to "trust" some locals to get us around a protest
strike road block, a rather interesting mountain detour of several miles. If
they catch you avoiding their roadblock, there is no 911 to dial. You pretty
well make your own laws in the remote areas.
4. Airport security, what's that? Oh yes, that's the rule that says taking a
picture of the airfield or a policeman could land you in the lock-up, a
really really not nice place :-(.
5. Do not take a picture of a police station. A real no-no.
6. Flash floods. Do not attempt a river crossing in heavy rain.
7. The closest I've come to getting hurt was at the market in Cochabamba,
when a bus driver deliberately tried to run down the "gringo". (about 1965
Dodge bus)That's certainly not the norm though. Most people are very
friendly.
8. Overnight in the Miami airport.
but I have shot
> a lot of photos in Colorado over the last 30 years. Altitudes range from
> about 7,000 feet at the lowest to a bit over 12,000 feet at one or two
> locations. I would suppose that Bolivia would be a bit different, as the
> ugly spectre of air polution is a nearly constant colorado resident, but I
> do remember a few times when the air was clear.
Pollution in the bigger cities, like Cochabamba, is quite bad. The worst
problem is dust from the dirt streets - reportedly of a high percentage
fecal content (dogs, sheep, donkeys, cows, and yes, people).
>
> I ALWAYS use both hood and filter. I NEVER depend on a UV filter, as it
just
> isn't enough. UV filters don't remove all UV, they just attenuate it to a
> greater or lesser degree depending on brand. I always use an 81A (the Oly
> filter, of which I have several, is an 81C, not a great deal different).
> This will keep the blue under control, but it remains under some
> circumstances. With B&W, I never use less than a yellow filter, and mainly
a
> R25. Again, there may be less general haze in Bolivia, but if anything,
that
> will just make the blue more obvious.
>
> Films do make a difference. In the late, unlamented days of E4 Ektachrome
X,
> you never got rid of all the blue (that film was blue at sea level), and I
> used Agfachrome CT18, with their own proprietary process. That film was
> perfect for Colorado, and I very much miss it. Today, I generally use one
of
> three Fuji films, Velvia, Provia, or Astia, trading off contrast and
> saturation. Last year, I did try some EBX, and was pleasantly surprised.
In
> negative films, I would stick to the Fuji four layer films, my standard
> travel film for its utility under a variety of conditions. If I was only
> shooting daylight under sunny conditions, however, I would use Kodak
160NC,
> and gain some shadow detail.
>
> The whole subject of photos at altitude deserves attention, especially to
> the low altitude photographer.
And I've not been able to find a lot help on altitude photograhy (also near
the equator if that is a factor too) on the web, or in any books I have. But
I do know it is a lot different than anything where I live.
>
> Oh, and remember, breath deeply!
At 15,000 feet and above, I can talk, or walk slowly, or chew food, but no
two of them at the same time. I also get headaches the first couple days.
Like eating, you can always breathe when you get home.
>
> Bill Pearce
Wayne
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