Photographing Vietnam - Mu Cang Chai Rice Terraces

[@bmkq2007]

liked the 360 transition in the intro. thanks for sharing

[@tonyb2760]

Very beautiful place and your images display it well. Thanks for sharing

[@paulus0109]

Biking in Vietnam! Cool! Thnx for sharring Michael. Keep on smiling!

[@mibreit-photo]

The bike rides where only to explore. We had a car with our tour for the long distances ;-)

[@paulus0109]

Awesome landscape.

[@jeromec3725]

Looking forward to seeing your Hong Kong video, it seems to be a fascinating city

[@NickRock]

Well done Michael, really nice video!

[@andis9030]

As always Great vid, thx for sharing!

[@MarkKellyPhotographyUK]

Nice video and images 👍

[@dslmaxe]

Hi Michael, great episode! It has a good documentary style. Love your hyperlapses and intro-style. Asia is a great region for travelling. Personally, I would not say "see you" and "hello" etc. between the different shots, in order to make it more smooth for the spectators. Maybe you should switch from the producers view to the spectators view, while producing. Again: I enjoyed this episode really much, it remembers my to the documentaries like Auslandsreport, Weltspiegel etc. and I watched it again a second time, when it was over. Cheers, Max

[@mibreit-photo]

Yea you're right. When I was recording on different days, it was kind of a subconscious "hello". Although I had marked out the rough structure of my vlogs prior to the trip, while recording I always got into the habit - new day, new vlog ;-)

[@dslmaxe]

Maybe you need to develop another catch-phrase. Brendon for example says "5 am in the morning ... (I am out for a sunrise shoot) ..." etc.

[@hansrichardandersen342]

I maybe travel to Mu Cang Chai Rice Terraces in September and wonder how you travel from Hanoi to this places? Hans Richard

[@mibreit-photo]

I went with a private Tour, and was staying in a homestay.

[@bradventures3214]

Great video! I am planning to make a trip to Vietnam next year. I have been looking for the locations of the beautiful rice terraces like those you visited. Do you know where in Mu Cang Chai area the terraces you show at 7:30 are? I am trying to plot the locations for my trip on a Google map and I would like to visit this exact place.

[@mibreit-photo]

Hello Brad, This place is easy to find. It's the most photographed spot in Mu Cang Chai and right next to the road that leads through the valley. They even build a huge hotel right next to it, which is quite sad :-( I don't have the exact geo locations, but be ensured, you will not miss the spot if you just stop next to the new, big hotel in midst of the rice terraces. PS: Make sure to plan in at least two days and do some hiking through the terraces. There are so many great views there and if you are lucky with the weather (which I wasn't) you might be able to take some very unique photos there during sunrise or sunset. Also consider getting a local guide who knows the area, if you want to get a little more remote.

[@bradventures3214]

Great, thank you. I think I've found the hotel you're talking about. I think I'd also like to do 2-3 days in the area and definitely do some hiking and exploring like you said. Do you recommend using the same guide company you used out of Hanoi, or arranging my own transportation to Mu Cang Chai and finding a local guide there?

[@mibreit-photo]

Hello Brad, yes the company I used was great. I can definitly recommend them. They are very professional, all was very well organized and we had a great time. But the tour we did is not 100% for photographers - we did the standard Mu Cang Chai private tour from their homepage. This was perfect to get to know the area. There's a lot of activity going on throughout the day. So you see a lot of the landscape, learn a lot about the people and you do hiking. But it's not all focussed on sunrise and sunset like you would have in a 100% Photography Tour. They will drive you to your sunset spot though ;-) But if you want to focus solely on Mu Cang chai, you can also arrange transportation and lodging yourself I think. I'm sure you'd find a guide. But I'd just recommend talking to them too, maybe they can even do some more custom package for you. cheers, Michael