camera on the cruise

During my last cruise it was interesting to observe people recording their holiday snapshots. A lady in my tour bus said when seeing my Nikon DSLR on my neck. "It reminds me I forgot my camera"

Another asked me to take picture of her with disposable plastic film camera. Do thay still make them? On a scenic train trip older couple did not take picture because they did not charge the battery. Some took mobile phone pictures and lot did with compact cameras. I have nothing against compact cameras except the little screen in the back is so invisible in daylight that you could miss a mountain. A man was trying to take picture of a bird in the grass and did not get it. I took several shots of it with my Nikon D7000 and showed him the result. He said "but you have to carry it" I just love my Nikon.

I'll admit that those of us using DSLRs pay a heavy premium in weight and bulk for performance, but would you really want it any other way?

Nah, with the new mirrorless you can go lighter and still have IQ. Thinking hard about another trade down; d7000 went to D5100 and now thinking Nikon 1. The reality is that todays smartphones are better than most disposable cameras and in another two generations better than almost all point and shoots! Two more generation of "Moore" and another class of devices will be no more.

Of course for the serious stuff D3s :D

I'll admit that those of us using DSLRs pay a heavy premium in weight and bulk for performance, but would you really want it any other way?

I'll admit that those of us using DSLRs pay a heavy premium in weight and bulk for performance, but would you really want it any other way?

No, I would not. As in anything else, the question is: How important is it to you? For me, my answer is 'extremely important.'

I do love my DSLR, and it does go with me whenever I travel. It does the bulk of my shooting, and it is the only choice for wildlife and birding. However, it must be said that things are slowly closing the gap - some mirrorless cameras can't yet catch up on action or focus tracking, but they definitely have closed the gap for overall image quality and low light ability. My NEX can shoot up to ISO6400 virtually noise free, can handhold with stabilized lens at 1/2 second, and with an APS-C sensor delivers the same excellent detail and resolution as a DSLR. For action photographers, or birders and wildlifers such as myself, a DSLR is still a must-have...but for the average snapshooters, cruisers, vacationers, etc - they can get DSLR image quality, and low light capabilities, in a much smaller and lighter package than a DSLR. And the new ones even have viewfinders, for those who have trouble seeing screens in bright light!

I now bring both systems with me when I travel - the DSLR is the king and does the bulk of the work, but the NEX can take its place when I need or want to be less conspicuous, travel lighter, or even as a second body so I don't have to lens-swap.

During my last cruise it was interesting to observe people recording their holiday snapshots. A lady in my tour bus said when seeing my Nikon DSLR on my neck. "It reminds me I forgot my camera"

Another asked me to take picture of her with disposable plastic film camera. Do thay still make them? On a scenic train trip older couple did not take picture because they did not charge the battery. Some took mobile phone pictures and lot did with compact cameras. I have nothing against compact cameras except the little screen in the back is so invisible in daylight that you could miss a mountain. A man was trying to take picture of a bird in the grass and did not get it. I took several shots of it with my Nikon D7000 and showed him the result. He said "but you have to carry it" I just love my Nikon.

You forgot the people with P&S cameras trying to take a picture with the camera held at arms length on a moving ship or bus, especially if they have a bit of palsy. They must get some really great pictures.

DON

What I was trying to point out is that lot of people do not put any priority to taking pictures of their vacation. Soon things are forgoten. When cruise is port intensive they no longer remember what was seen in any of the ports and the experience of the cruise is reduced.

I take lot of photos and do not print any but run them direct from the computer on to a big screen with selected music. This refreshes my experiences of the cruise. Seeing photos make me want to travel again. Digital photos are free to take and people are not taking advantage of it.

What I was trying to point out is that lot of people do not put any priority to taking pictures of their vacation. Soon things are forgoten. When cruise is port intensive they no longer remember what was seen in any of the ports and the experience of the cruise is reduced.

I take lot of photos and do not print any but run them direct from the computer on to a big screen with selected music. This refreshes my experiences of the cruise. Seeing photos make me want to travel again. Digital photos are free to take and people are not taking advantage of it.

I guess it really is a matter of priorities. I travel for two reasons: My wile loves to cruise and I love target-rich environments for photography (the actual order changes depending on who asks and whether she is in the room at the time :)). Because of that, I carry my DSLR, a couple of lenses, a 24x7 "dinner camera" and I'll now be adding my NEX as s lower-profile walkabout camera. Like you, I don't just print and box the images for my children to find after I'm dead but create slide shows on DVD to enjoy between trips. We also have images from our travels around the house to remind us that there is more to life than work, eat and sleep.

I realize it is not true for everyone, but photography is an integral part of the travel experience for me and a visual record of our experiences is more valuable to me than a Hard Rock t-shirt or Coyote Ugly shot glass.

Dave

Unquestionably photography is a big part of my travel experience. It's funny how often you hear comments from non-photography folks such as 'try putting the camera down and experience the place'...people who don't understand photography also don't seem to understand the connection to a place a photographer gains, and how imprinted that place becomes in their memory. The photograph not only brings me back to that experience, place, and time...but it also becomes a natural form of GPS mapping.

And I'm not referring to cameras with GPS built in and using mapping programs...I'm referring entirely to in-my-head GPS. I discovered this interesting aspect of photography a few years back, when the photo hosting site I use added mapping capability to the galleries. The intent was to allow those with GPS cameras or devices to auto-map their photo locations, but it also allows manual entry. I've never used a GPS device or camera, so I don't have any mapping functionality in my EXIF or externally - yet when I started going through my photos from trips, cruises, etc., I found by looking at the map of the place, I could pinpoint every single photo's location purely by memory - down to the direction I was facing when I took the shot - just by viewing the map/satellite view of the place. Even if the cruise was 5 years ago, and I only visited the island once...I could track the exact path I walked, drove, hiked, or taxied. And each place I stopped to take a shot. It's uncanny how well I can recall the exact path I take in every place I've ever visited, and what buildings, trees, or scenes I came across at each point...and it's all because of my photography.

"Today's Pictures Are Tomorrow's Memories"

One, five, ten or maybe twenty years from now what will you remember of loved ones, places traveled, special moments experienced, or daily moments to treasure?

In fact, because of what I just posted above, right after this I decided to go to my Eurodam cruise gallery from October, and manually geotagged every shot. Pinpointed down to the yard...all from memory, no problem. It's actually very interesting, this ability...I've been able to do this with photos taken 18 years ago, in places I only visited once! Try it if you haven't already - go to a Google map and satellite view, and zoom in to street level detail, and see if you can plot out where you took shots on cruises even 4or 5 years ago. It's a bit uncanny.

I got my first camera when I was 7 - a little black and white Kodak Brownie - and was hooked - although it wasn't until I went digital that I was really able to take the kinds of pictures I'd always wanted to. Could never afford a really good camera and film just made it a bit much too. Now it's not unusual for me to take a couple hundred or more shots in a day. I find that photography focuses my attention so I "see" things better.

While I am not a DSLR photographer, and I envy those of you who are, I do take a lot of pictures ( last trip , 2 weeks Alaska, 4500 shots ). I love capturing as best that I can, the true essence of where I am. People tell me that I need to take a class and invest in a "real" camera since I love it so much. But the MAIN reason I take pictures is that I don't have much of a memory and it's my photo journal of my life. Pictures help me to remember things that I wouldn't otherwise remember. It is very sad not to be able to remember things, but pictures are my lifeline. I take my little camera EVERYWHERE with me and take pictures of things most people wouldn't even think to take! I can't imagine going on a cruise without a camera, I just can't even fathom that!

I think on cruises having a good camera is very important to me. I like to capture memories of my holidays and appreciate the quality of photos.

I have a Canon EOS 60D with the EF 17-40mm f/4L, the EF 28-105mm f/4L and the EF 100-400 f/4.5-5.6L lens. I also have a Canon prime 28mm f/1.8 lens and a Sigma 10-20mm lens.

I admit its heavy to carry around and decisions must be made as to what lenses to take with me.

One of my favourite ways of getting other people to take my photos is to simply get them to hold the camera and point it at me while I use the remote control to fire the shutter.

So far I have found I am really good at taking interior/exterior photos of the ship, I have managed to take some excellent still shots of the theatre shows. Not only that at home I have ventured into astrophotography and have managed to capture Jupiter with cloud belts showing and four of its moons visible as well as finding and photographing the famous Orion Nebula. I am currently waiting for good weather to capture Saturn at dawn in the coming month.

I completely and totally relate! My irl job is a wedding photographer, and I'm in love with every aspect of it. You would THINK I'd want to leave the camera behind, but I so rarely get to shoot for fun anymore. I'm craving that experience and think I'd feel naked without a dSLR. Yet at the same time... this IS my honeymoon, and I'll be honest and say that I tend to ignore others when I am in my "mode".

Any suggestions on what I should bring?

My options...

G11 or s95 (both Canon p&s that are raw capable)

5D Mark 2 (lighter weight and fantastic low light performance)

1D Mark 3 (large and heavy, but perfect for fast action and is weather sealed which is much better for beach use, it also has two memory card slots)

40D (wouldn't care if it was stolen or damaged, but doesn't have near the quality of the others)

iPhone 4s (shockingly good, except for closeup photos where there is way too much distortion from the wide angle lens, and we will probably get a waterproof case for underwater shots)

Lenses...

50 1.4

24-70 2.8 (this lens is called "the brick" for a reason, but is a wedding workhorse... which is why I have two of them)

70-200ISii2.8 (this is the newer version that is sharp and gorgeous, but weighs 5 lbs)

70-200ISf4 (the lightest of my zooms, but only f4)

100 2.0 macro

I'm guessing I'll only bring one flash... but that's where my husband tends to go crazy. He loves his off camera lighting! He would want a tripod too... I may buy a gorilla pod for him, but he is a pretty major tripod snob. I have duplicates of everything but the 5D2, and it is all heavily insured, but it is also my means of income... I don't have grocery money if I don't book weddings.

DH is on a quest for a DSLR and has been researching for about a year. We have not had a SLR for about 20 years. I am very happy with a p and s --thanks to Dave's advice. What are you all recommending at the moment? He wants to be able to take better wildlife shots. After a trip to Best Buy I think he left more confused than anything. Sadly we no longer have a camera shop in town.

Also--what is NEX?

Jennifer

DH is on a quest for a DSLR and has been researching for about a year. We have not had a SLR for about 20 years. I am very happy with a p and s --thanks to Dave's advice. What are you all recommending at the moment? He wants to be able to take better wildlife shots. After a trip to Best Buy I think he left more confused than anything. Sadly we no longer have a camera shop in town.

Also--what is NEX?

Jennifer

Here is my review of my NEX-5:

http://www.pptphoto.com/ArticlePages/NEX5.htm

They are getting an awful lot of great press lately.

Dave

A NEX is a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera line with APS-C sized sensors, made by Sony. They have the same sensors as most DSLRs, but are more compact bodies, using LCD to frame and shoot, or some models with electronic viewfinders. They have no optical path for viewing through the lens, and no mirrors flipping around inside. Similar models are made by Samsung (the NX, which also has APS-C sized sensors), as well as Olympus and Panasonic (Micro 4:3 models, which use a sensor smaller than APS-C, but larger than P&S cameras).

As far as DSLRs - any will do fine - most people buy into a particular brand because they have legacy lenses already and want to make use of them, otherwise you're free to check out the models made by Canon, Nikon, Sony, or Pentax, all of whom make excellent models in a variety of levels and styles. For legacy purposes, Canon DSLRs are compatible with autofocus Canon lenses, but not manual...Nikon can mount manual lenses without autofocus and some models have focus motors in the body to autofocus with more lenses while others require lenses with built-in motors...Sony has backwards compatibility with Minolta autofocus lenses as they bought out Minolta and continued their Maxxum AF mount, but cannot mount the older manual Minolta lenses...Pentax cameras can mount any Pentax lens from the K-mount, which goes back 40+ years - both autofocus and manual lenses.

No, I would not. As in anything else, the question is: How important is it to you? For me, my answer is 'extremely important.'

This is why I continue to lug around my old, dependable Sony DSC-828. I know what I'm going to get, quality-wise, every time I have my camera with me.

This is why I continue .... I know what I'm going to get, quality-wise, every time I have my camera with me.

I'm not a pro. And for the past dozen or so years have been pursuing video, so please receive these remarks with that framework in mind. A basic factor to identify and accept is this, how important is a visual record going to be, say a year hence? You may decide the answer is "very," but with that answer needs to be the commitment to make it happen. Which means time and focus 》》》developing the habit of SEEING things that will rekindle your emotions and help you convey them, in addition to the we-were-here-and-here... parts. Really unlikely that's going to happen by accident, without a bunch of days/weeks spent in practice. Whatever gadget is hanging around your neck needs to become a comfortable and responsive appendage well before you trundle your luggage into your cruise cabin.

If it's happening next week and it's a one-off, well, maybe an iPhone is the route to go. Longer range than that, I suggest a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera with enough resolution that you can crop images but still retain enough sharpness. I am looking hard at the nx500 with the kit lens. Lightweight, exceptional pixels, a better than okay lens, FAST ready-time. Not for everybody (an imperfect world).

My most worthwhile results are the shots that not only remind me of places/features we've seen, but that also transport us there emotionally. Hope this helps narrow the field. Lots of good options.

I'm not a pro. And for the past dozen or so years have been pursuing video, so please receive these remarks with that framework in mind. A basic factor to identify and accept is this, how important is a visual record going to be, say a year hence? You may decide the answer is "very," but with that answer needs to be the commitment to make it happen. Which means time and focus 》》》developing the habit of SEEING things that will rekindle your emotions and help you convey them, in addition to the we-were-here-and-here... parts. Really unlikely that's going to happen by accident, without a bunch of days/weeks spent in practice. Whatever gadget is hanging around your neck needs to become a comfortable and responsive appendage well before you trundle your luggage into your cruise cabin.

 

If it's happening next week and it's a one-off, well, maybe an iPhone is the route to go. Longer range than that, I suggest a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera with enough resolution that you can crop images but still retain enough sharpness. I am looking hard at the nx500 with the kit lens. Lightweight, exceptional pixels, a better than okay lens, FAST ready-time. Not for everybody (an imperfect world).

 

My most worthwhile results are the shots that not only remind me of places/features we've seen, but that also transport us there emotionally. Hope this helps narrow the field. Lots of good options.

You are responding to a thread where the last post was in 2011. Hardly need to restart it.

DON

Whatever gadget is hanging around your neck needs to become a comfortable and responsive appendage well before you trundle your luggage into your cruise cabin.

 

If it's happening next week and it's a one-off, well, maybe an iPhone is the route to go. Longer range than that, I suggest a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera with enough resolution that you can crop images but still retain as sharpness.

 

My most worthwhile results are the shots that not only remind me of places/features we've seen, but that also transport us there emotionally. Hope this helps narrow the field. Lots of good options.

 

Common thoughts..

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2215195

Dave

Common thoughts..

 

Dave

Sorry to have ignored the date of the last acceptable post. Embarrassing. At the same time I'm not sure whether your comment means these kinds of observations are too mundane, too ordinary, too lowlife to deserve repeating; or whether my particular phrasing is beneath the professional -- which I intend it to be; or maybe that these are commonplaces that anybody should know. (Terseness can be more slovenly than one would imagine. Hemingway could get away with that sort of thing, right up until the... end.) Yeah, I am huffy.

The point of trying to sneak past the Guardians here was to attempt a response to the query while making context-assumptions about what seemed this non-professional's core deliberation. Has the question gone away, well and truly? Nobody else wonders about such stuff anymore. Hmm. Guardians indeed.

I always take my DSlr, and a P&S, but I have never bought a P&S without a viewfinder.

Nowadays I take a mirror less too.

Sorry to have ignored the date of the last acceptable post. Embarrassing. At the same time I'm not sure whether your comment means these kinds of observations are too mundane, too ordinary, too lowlife to deserve repeating; or whether my particular phrasing is beneath the professional -- which I intend it to be; or maybe that these are commonplaces that anybody should know. (Terseness can be more slovenly than one would imagine. Hemingway could get away with that sort of thing, right up until the... end.) Yeah, I am huffy.

 

The point of trying to sneak past the Guardians here was to attempt a response to the query while making context-assumptions about what seemed this non-professional's core deliberation. Has the question gone away, well and truly? Nobody else wonders about such stuff anymore. Hmm. Guardians indeed.

Not sure why some have such an issue with reviving old threads.