" I'm Going To Europe, So..."

" So - I want to get a good camera in Singapore. Which one should I get? "

" As they say on Radio Yerevan...basically, no..."

If you hope to capture glorious scenes of the high life of Paris and fabulous trips down the Rhein and the majesty that is England...with something that you are going to haggle for in Popup Market Stall No. 34...we wish you the best of luck and will be looking out for your name in lights at the photography exhibitions.

You are in no different position than those who have preceded you - the generations of English migrants who bought cameras and projectors in Aden on the way here - and their Australian neighbours who went up to Singers and did the same all through the 60's and 70's. The building that houses Market Stall No. 34 is new but the philosophy of 34 is old.

You won't be sorry. Much. Even if the contents of whatever box N0.34 presses on you works, it is unlikely that you will be able to learn enough of the operations to let you make good pictures. You may wish to study the paper instruction booklet in the camera box, but if they only include the manual on CD...all you can really do in the airplane cabin is play frisbee. But you won't be sorry. Much.

When you get to Europe you may well discover that the plugs on the chargers do not fit the local wall socket. If you are going to the UK you will find that nothing ever fits any electric socket there. If you go to Greece the electricity authority will suck voltage out of your battery to help feed the local grid. It is possible that the camera that No.34 sold you has a battery that was last made in 2001 - which explains the high fives that store staff were giving each other as you left. But you won't be sorry. Long.

Take heart - at least you are not going to be in the same position as the English tourists who bought 12V DC slide projectors in Aden and then plugged them into Western Australian 240V AC sockets. I've seen one of those and it must have been as good as Vesuvius for a very short period of time. I wonder if they were sorry...

Let's face it. If you are going to Europe to have a good time and need complex electrical, mechanical, or optical equipment to function well - and if you need to train yourself on that gear - you are far better off shopping locally and giving yourself adequate time to get up to speed. You need to deal with someone who has genuine warranties. If you buy within a couple of months of your trip you'll still get 10% back at the TRS desk, so you needn't feed Stall 34.

You won't be sorry.