Hi,
I hope all is well.
I want to bring my 70d camera. I'll be going to Pamplona for the running of the bulls, Madrid, Barcelona, and maybe some other place up north.
I want to bring my camera, but I'm afraid it may get stolen or something. It's expensive and my only one. I don't know if I should be worried about pickpockets or what. I'm staying at air bnb's and a hostel for two nights.
Does anybody have any recommendations on what I should do?
Thanks.
The golden rule is never travel with something you can't replace.
We have been in Spain (Barcelona Madrid) for a week and have yet to feel endangered in anyway, though that is not counting getting run down on the bikeways.
So it is your decision but I would certainly bring a camera, mine is a small point & shoot Canon that fits in my pocket.
We have traveled by train but are staying in Hotels in the smarter parts of town.
There are pickpockets but a pickpocket will steal a wallet in your pocket without you noticing. They thrive on doing their stealing without you noticing until they are long gone. Taking something as big as a camera would likely be a different kind of theft. Someone grabbing your bag or camera out of your hands. Could this happen? Yes, but less common than pick pocketing.
Vigilance like keeping your hand on your camera bag, carrying it in front of you, never setting your camera where someone could grab it will help prevent problems.
The way I see it is that you have a camera for a reason. If you don't bring it on trips that you want to remember and photograph, why have it? You certainly want a camera and this is the one you have. If you don't care that much about travel photography, then that's another story. If you do want to use the camera but are just worried about theft - take reasonable precautions and come back with excellent photographs!
Thievery is not as rampant as many believe - you hear the bad experiences but for each of those there are thousands of tourists that have no problems.
Take it - just be smart and keep an eye on it.
Only you can answer the following questions, which will determine whether you should take the camera.
How much of your trip will be spent worrying about the camera? If that's going to be a preoccupation, leave it at home.
How much of your trip will be spent regretting that you didn't take the camera? If you are looking for high quality photos, will you be upset (during the trip or later) that you only had a lower quality camera (whether a point-and-shoot, or the one on your phone?)
Of course, it's perfectly possible for both of these to be big issues. In that case, I'd prioritize the trip itself over the pictures. In other words, if worry about the camera's whereabouts is going to ruin your trip, leave it at home, even if you look at your pictures later and regret the lower quality.
The posts above are also correct. A "pickpocket" tries to work as unobtrusively as possible, and wants cash. So you don't have to worry about that, but other kinds of theft. (Most hostels have lockers - be sure to use them). And never bring something on a trip that would be devastating for you to lose.
Take it and just keep the strap around your neck.
Fyi: I carry a D4 and never had an issue.
Thanks for the feedback everyone.
It helps :)
Why have a good camera if you are not going to have it when you have great stuff to take pictures of? If you don't plan any serious photography then just use a phone or get a small cheap point and shoot if you are that worried.
I would be nervous in a hostel where you may not be able to secure your bag. I know people over the years who have had things stolen from lockers in hostels.
ON the other hand cameras are not a target of pickpockets or thieves. They may take them if it is easy but they want credit cards, money and phones not clunky cameras. I have been carrying SLRs and now DSLRs in Europe since 1960 and never have had a problem. The only person I know who had a camera like this stole had hung it on the back of the door in a toilet and forget it; when he went back a few minutes later it was gone.
But assess your lodging situation for security that is where you are at greatest risk of losing something. And of course if you carry it, be sure you haul it securely under your control, not in a backpack easily accessed behind your back or carelessly sat here or there.
