Mike D. Loc: Crowley County, CO.

I may be beating a dead horse here, but after seeing this place and how much money Louis the XIV spent, I ceased to wonder why the French peasantry did what they did. Marie Antionette's (sp?) flippant, "Let them eat cake" comment would have been enough to send any sane person over the edge.

In a time when glass was extremely expensive, and mirrors even more so, I would have been more than a little peeved at the over-the-top extravagance.

Huge windows on the right, equally huge mirrors on the left.

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Most rooms had at least 3 types of marble. The staircase was amazing.

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This one is a bust. Marble everywhere.

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Treepusher Loc: Kingston, Massachusetts

It may have cost them their heads, but in addition to blowing the treasury on palace splendor, they also sent their navy to aid a fledgling America, which cost them a bundle. Without that aid, we might all be speaking English!

Oh, wait...

But at least they left us another legacy in this beautiful palace! Thanks for sharing the photos!

Doddy Loc: Barnard Castle-England

A place I would like to visit Mike..nice shots.

pianist38 Loc: Nebraska

Wonderful photos! And you're right... extravagant.

Mike D. Loc: Crowley County, CO.

Thank you Randy, it is always a pleasure getting positive feedback from folks who are better photographers than I.

The palace was actually abandoned for a while so it must have cost another small fortune to restore it to some semblance of the former opulence.

Mike D. Loc: Crowley County, CO.

If you have the chance, plan on spending at least one day and get there early. We arrived at a good time but about mid-morning it got busier. We also did not see the gardens or Marie's palace.

More as time permits, thanks for stopping in.

Mike D. Loc: Crowley County, CO.

One thing off of the bucket list Sarah but to get the real thing you must go there. My humble offerings do not begin to show the amazing detail in the hidden corners.

Honestly, there were a lot of bombs because they did not allow flash so I did the best I could. Thank you for uour comments.

hawaiidave Loc: Honolulu, HI

I'm going in about 3 weeks. What kind of lens and settings were you using?

Mike D. Loc: Crowley County, CO.

My wife is not the patient type when it comes to composition and fussing with the camera so here is my dirty little secret. The ISO was set for 2500 max and they were shot in (insert a collective gasp here) auto mode.

The lens was a Sigma 18-250 mm which is going back to my brother in law soon. It's probably just as well, this lens moves when pointed up or down which make it difficult to compose. I believe Tamron has a similiar offering.

Take lots of of pics, and be creative.

hawaiidave Loc: Honolulu, HI

Thank you. I really enjoyed the photos. Looking forward to the trip.

djet Loc: Burbank, CA

Went to Versailles last year. Some suggestions for your consideration: Purchase your tickets online before you go. Purchase a separate tour of the apartments. The apartments are not included in the normal admission ticket. Book your apartment tour for earliest time in the morning. Upon your arrival, you go directly to the guided apartment tours bypassing the normal admission lines. After your small group guided apartment tour, you're free to tour the rest of the palace at your own pace. When you tour the gardens, rent a golf cart. The gardens are huge and renting the golf cart is well worth the cost. Allow a full day for the visit. We took the train to and from Paris which took about 40 minutes. Very easy to do. Have a wonderful trip and hope the weather is good.

Szalajj Loc: Salem, NH

If you have time in your schedule, also try to get out to Fontanbleu (sp?). I blew that chance back in 1976, and I still regret it to this day. In the 40 years since, the funds and opportunity were never there for another trip to Europe.

I loved my time at Versailles, but I was there in April, and the fountains were not running. I wish that I had spent a little more time in the gardens after touring the palace.

If you have not done any research on these palaces, do your self a favor, and do some reading about them before you arrive. Your advanced education, will make your visits to any historic site so much more enjoyable. I spent more time straining to hear my guide, than I did enjoying my surroundings.

As far as lenses, inside you won't need as much reach, as opposed to needing the low f-stop or higher ISO, for low light conditions. Be carefull not to go too high on your ISO, to avoid noise or graining that you might not be able to edit out.

Unless you specifically want to shoot the fine details of the architecture or the decorations, you shouldn't need too long of a lens. A wide angle lens may be helpful, although the rooms are for the most part large, although there are a few that are proportionately smaller.

The hall of mirrors is proportionally long and narrow, but narrow if memory serves me correctly is about 30-50 feet from mirror to windows. The ceilings throughout the palace are extremely high by today's standards.

When I was there, I was shooting with a Minolta 101 film camera, and I only had the prime kit lens that came with the camera. Yes, I wished that I had just a little more reach, but not much.

Mike D. Loc: Crowley County, CO.

Good points Dave. At the risk of looking loke a total tourist, I could spend several day gawking at the extravagance.