Is photography (flash or otherwise) allowed in the churches? We'll shortly be in Rome and Tuscany, and I can't imagine coming away without pictures. (I'm assuming that it's simply not allowed at all in museums - correct?) Also related - I've read many times that the dress rules are pretty strictly enforced in most churches. I expect that for Mass, but does this mean that in order to quietly drop into a church during the day we'd need to be other than "sight-seeing casual"?

Bring some fast-speed film (at least 400, 800 would be even better) for one of your cameras (hopefully you each have one) and you can take some lovely shots. But be aware that some places are quite dark. If you have coins, you can often find a place to have areas illuminated...which helps photographers.

I haven't been to Italy but the churches in Germany that I have been to inside photography is ok, just not during a service! ;o)

Are you able to take pictures in the Vatican Museusms, Borghese Gallery, etc. if you don't use any flash or do they require you to leave all cameras at the front desk? Do men have to wear long sleeve shirts as well as the women to get into the Vatican? Thanks

You don't have to wear long sleeves - you just have to have your shoulders covered. Men and women can wear short sleeves.

No pictures inside the Villa Borghese. They specifically ask you to check your bags in and will make you. No charge for the bag check, though.

There will be a sign if you are not allowed to take photos or not allowed to use a flash. Guards will enforce this. Usually no flash allowed where there are frescoes or paintings as this damages them. We usually take photos outside then buy a couple of postcards (usually readily available) of the inside of a church. At the Vatican we bought a postcard of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel that was much better than anything I could have taken with my camera.<BR>Rules for clothing for churches are for all the time, not just during a service. If there is a service going on, you really shouldn't be in there sightseeing. Dress code is usually no bare shoulders, no short shorts and I think no bare midriff. St Peters in Rome has the most strictly enforced dress code I have seen in Italy.<BR>Kay

Many churches in Italy are very dimly lit. Some are so dark it is impossible to see the interiors well. Even with very fast film, your photos of these interiors will probably not turn out well. <BR><BR>You can always take photos of the exteriors.<BR>

It varies, but in most churches you can take photographs. You will run into some that request no photos. It was not at all a problem for me in the big churches of Rome such as St. Peters.<BR><BR>Museums are a bigger issue. A large number say no photos. Some say they do it to protect the art and others to enable them to sell postcards and posters. I think it is generally ok in the Vatican Museums, but not in the Sistine Chapel (although I know a lot of people do snap a few). It was also prohibited (October 2001) in the Uffizi, the Accademia (where once again, a lot of people snap a few anyway), and the Bargello. At the Uffizi, however, you can get great photos of the Ponte Vecchio through the hallway windows . At the Bargello, there is an interior courtyard where you can also take photos without major concerns. <BR><BR>Joyce makes another good point. Consider the lighting. In many churches it is simply too dark to take good photos without a tripod, and that is certain to be disallowed by most without special permission. If you really want to anyway, you can get pretty fast film (even 3200 speed in black and white - of course you then have greater concerns with airport scanners). I take a ton of photos, but I pass up a lot too because the conditions just are not right to get anything decent - dark, too backlit, etc. That is a great occasion for picking up a postcard, or in the case of outdoor shots, coming back later.

Good advice from above posters. We do as Kay does--photograph the outside of the church and buy postcards. We did snap a few pictures in some churches we visited recently, specifically Santa Maria in Trastevere and the church in Piazza Minerva (can't remember the name right now)and they came out well. <BR><BR>No photography was vigorously enforced at the Accademia during our visit earlier this month, when flashbulbs were popping all over the place despite the no photo signs everywhere! Guards went through the crowd admonishing would be photographers. An announcement was finally made that film would be confiscated. Too bad people can't follow the rules. <BR><BR>

The postcards are better than anything you will take yourself. Often offered in the church/cathedral gift shop.