Photograph In Europe, Travel Light

Travel Light in Europe and Make Marketable Photos

Lille France

Plugging In
For the digital photographer from the USA, Canada, or Mexico, traveling in Europe will present the issue of several different types of power supply plugs. Electricity comes in many shapes and sizes in the world; the flat blade type of plugs used in Mexico, the US, and Canada will not work in England or France. To further complicate matters, the plug used in England also differs from the plug used in France and Italy.

• Adapters

Fortunately there is a universal adapter plug available that will cover much of the world's plug systems. The universal adapter is small and it is inexpensive when bought online through Amazon, B&H Photo and other suppliers.

Sacre Coeur, Montmartre Paris

Once you can adapt your flat blade plugs of the USA to the round type of France and Italy, and the square type of England you are ready to plug in your battery chargers for computers, cameras, telephones, and other devices. The only issue then could be the conversion of the power supply from the 220 volts found in Europe to the 110 volt system found in the USA, Canada, and Mexico.

The universal power adapter plug is available  in electronic

 stores  and online at Amazon and other photo sellers for

$9.00 USD.  The unit pictured will adapt USA, Canada, and
Mexico plug-in systems to England and Europe.

• Adapter Price, Weight

The adapter is priced at around USD $9.00 and is available at photo stores and online sellers such as Amazon and B&H Photo.  The unit is smaller than a deck of cards and will not take up much space in the pack.  They are the best bet for European travelers to the US and for foreign travelers in all of Europe.

Paris Metro

• Converters

The adapter only acts as a transitional device to convert plug shape; however, it does not convert the power supply. The different power systems in use in Europe, 220 volts for example, will not usually be a problem, as most computer battery chargers are made to work on both 120 and 220 volt systems. To verify this, look at the input voltage of your battery chargers and you should see 100-240 volts input power.  (50-60hz) If the device is not so listed, you might need a converter.  A converter might also be needed for motorized equipment.  (not the fans in your computer, however, which run on battery internal power)

TGV trains Paris

• Power Strip/Surge Suppression

The power strip with several receptacles built in will be important when traveling because older hotels rarely offer more than one electrical receptacle, that for the TV. You could need space for camera battery charger, laptop computer charger, and phone. A power strip with built in surge suppression is small and light and makes a good accessory.  

See World Plug Configurations

Power Surge/Power Drop/Brownout

Paris Eiffel Tower dusk

Surges in power and drops in power are common in many countries including the US. Surges can occur during lightning storms while brownouts can be common during heavy air conditioner use. It is best to unplug equipment when not in use and to shut down equipment during a thunder storm or during an extended drop in power. When power returns after a thunderstorm, it could be poorly regulated and you might experience surging and dropping. Equipment is best left unplugged until the power stabilizes.

A drop in power (brownout) might not be a problem for battery chargers but they could overheat in an extended brownout.   Motorized devices can overheat during a brownout so use of devices during a drop in power should be limited.

For extended stays in countries where brownout and power surge are common, there are power regulator devices available but these are expensive and heavy (internal battery) and not practical for the photographer traveling lightly.

Once you have the equipment for your power needs, you next must decide on systems for image storage; the digital camera will create many gigs worth of files and you will need to store them safely and make backups. To make marketable images you will need to make large files. You will therefore need lots of image storage capacity.

Next: Portable hard drives/image storage