8toes1961

I will be sailing next September 18th - 27th on The Jewel Of The Seas. I am not much of a drinker these days but I do like the atmosphere of a classic English Pub. I see many of RCCL's ships have one. Does the Jewel?

With 6mp, you can't even print a good 8x10. So if you want to print some 8x10s from vacation, you're far better off with a smart phone.

This is absolutely incorrect since we have a gorgeous 18X24 print of Alcatraz shot with a D40 hanging in our dining room.

LG G4...smartphone

Nikon D5100

Nikon D300

Thanks for brightening my day guys! Inner Vic looked at the A9 and told me to go buy a lottery ticket. She's still trying to convince me I need the 6500.

 

On the other hand, if your inner self does talk you into one of those and you want to sell said 6500 (or even 6300) let me know! :D

 

Vic

My SO is also a photographer and she knew I hated my Nikon D3000 so she was okay with my latest purchase:D

Dave, I feel your pain.... we all want the latest and greatest.. but the stuff that I have can exceed my skill level any day... find something new that excites you... ill get a lot of hate, but the new dji mavic has just done that for me... tony

I like Inner Dave. I have an Inner Brian with whom I frequently consult. We usually compromise on upgrades, my last one being replacing my detested Nikon D3000 with an older Nikon D300 for $195.00. I then sold my D3000 to a co-worker who just wanted to start into photography, for $75.00. So...Inner Brian was happy getting an older but still very capable backup camera body for what amounted to $120.00.

Says the poster of the cool truck picture...:)

 

Dave

I wasn't counting my own :D:D:D:D

It should be. I am assuming that you are using a DSLR that uses a crop sensor (also known as APS-C and DX Format). Simply put...wiith that said, a 200mm lens on a crop sensor body, given the 1.5X or 1.6X crop factor, depending on the camera, will give you an effective focal length of 300mm - 320mm (based on the standard 35mm film body) which should be long enough for any shooting you will need to do on a river cruise. I have only used longer lenses when shooting wildlife when i could not get close and did not want to disturb them.

I hope that helps.

Enjoy your cruise,

Brian J.

Well I may be a bit late to the party but, I shot Canon for 15 years back when i was shooting film but switched over to Nikon when i went to digital. I really had no technical reason for this, nor was I concerned with the quality of one over the other. I made the switch because the Nikons felt better in my hands (I had a work accident years ago and lost parts of a couple of fingers som this was a real issue.

I have shot many digital SLR bodies since I first started shooting digital back in 2004.

I am currently using a D5100 and a D300 with primarily a 35mm f1.8 prime lens and the under-appreciated 18-55mm kit lens. The D300 is a 2007 model that still performs as well as many of the DSLRs available today and I am still getting stunning images out of it. I have no intention of parting with it any time soon. It is built like a tank and it is weather sealed so i can use it in inclement weather without risk of damage. It is heavy but I love the way it feels in my hands when I am shooting with it.

The D5100 is the camera I love to carry around most of the time. It is lightweight and easy to use. the menus aren't too cumbersome and the articulated LCD screen is nice for when i can't get into a position I need to when i am out in the field. The low light, high ISO performance beats my D300 quite handily but the D300 has a faster frame advance rate at 6 fps. I love both cameras and will be taking them both on my cruise next September.

I have no immediate plans to switch to full frame and I don't really prefer the all in one zooms (like 18-200mm) because they are, generally, slow and the image quality seems to suffer a bit at the telephoto end, which is why Imost people would use them. Now, having said that, I have heard some good things about the Tamron 16-300mm and will give that a serous look before my trip.

There are some beautiful images in this thread.

The Old Distillery District, Toronto, Canada

Your D80 is a more than capable camera, even today. If ou fel the absolute need to upgrade, you should look at new glass. You ay find that the 55-200mm you are using is not wide enough for what you may need it for. I would certainly look for something wider, like an 18-300mm. You may sacrifice a very small bit of image quality at both focal length extremes but there is also the chance that you may not notice it. Tamron has a 16-300mm that has been getting pretty good reviews. I would give that a look.

Have you considered renting a lens for your trip? I am considering that for my cruise next year.

Also, as another poster stated earlier, a newer camera body may give you more advanced features and easier controls, like, faster autofocus, easier access menus, wifi, touchscreen, video, better low light performance (this may prove very important) and longer battery life. Remember though, cameras don't get worse so if your camera was delivering beautiful images when it was new, it will still do so. New cameras have gotten better but older cameras have not gotten worse. I have a 10 year old Nikon D300 that I have no intention of letting go of anytime soon because the image quality is as stunning as the day it was new.

In my 30 years engaging in this wonderful pastime, I never leave the house without a polarizing filter if i am going to be shooting outdoors....never. Bring it and, id you don't use it, no biggie but you will find that your shots will be much better if you use one and use it properly. I would sooner take my Circular Polarizer and leave my external flash at home.

Make sure you use good quality filters. Cheap eBay filters will negatively affect the sharpness of your photos.

And I should chime in with what I take. I have the luxury of living in the Seattle area, so a cruise is just a 40-minute drive, no need to fly. My wife is also into photography, which is both good and bad. We've had several Alaska cruises to learn and refine our "kit", so here's what we plan to take in September:

 

Canon 5D3 with a 24-70/2.8 - a great "base" to build on, hanging from my left shoulder.

Canon 1Dx with a 100-400 - excellent "action rig" for whale watches and all of the "hey, quick, what's that?" stuff, hanging from my right shoulder.

Canon 5DsR with a 600mm with either a 1.4x or 2x TC - awesome birding rig on a monopod.

A 14mm f/2.8 ultra-wide lens in a pouch on my belt, so I can switch to a wide vista whenever the mood strikes.

 

My wife will likely get:

Canon 5D4 with 16-35 f/4 IS on her left shoulder.

Canon 1Dx with 70-300L on her right shoulder, perhaps with a 1.4x TC

Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro lens and perhaps a 50mm f/1.2 in a Shootsac at the ready.

 

Back in the cabin, we'll likely have a Profoto B2 studio light and a 1'x3' softbox with a lightweight stand. We'll take that to formal night dinners and get a few shots with our waiters, allowing us to expose for the view out the window and light the room to match, so there's a real view to be had.

 

In the end, it's two backpacks and one rolling duffel to bring this gear on board. To me, it's very manageable and we love having it ready if we see anything from our balcony.

My kind of travelers :D

I am a camera nerd and i always have a DSLR with me. When we leave on our cruise next September i will be carrying 2 DSLR bodies, a Nikon D300 and a Nikon D5100. The D5100 is the one I will probably carry around with me most of the time, as it is very lightweight and easy to use, plus, it is better in low light at high ISO than my D300. My D300 is what i will be using should we run into some inclement weather, as it is weather-sealed and water and dust resistant. It is heavier but it is built like a tank. I will have an external flash and a 35mm F1.8 prime lens mounted on one of them and an all in one tele-zoom, like an 18-200mm for my walk around lens on the other..

I also have my phone, which I HATE taking pictures with and I truly get it when people say that they want to enjoy their holiday rather than lugging a camera kit around or hunting for the perfect shot. As for me, photography is my form of stress relief and I cannot imagine traveling without my cameras. My only dilemna, at this point is how many memory cards i will need to bring with me. I wil probably have 5 or 6 since each camera takes a different format.

I do not travel anywhere without at least o e of my Nikon DSLR bodies. Photography is part of the reason l travel. I always have my phone with me (LG G4) and its camera is okay but l hate shooting with smartphones.

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I'm really torn right now.

 

I have the choice of a ship/class I'd love to go on (Oasis - I've never been on an Oasis class before) with an itinerary that I could take or leave (Eastern Caribbean)

or a boat I've been on before (Explorer) with an itinerary I've always wanted to do (Pacific Northwest).

 

What's the deciding factor for you? What's more important? The ship or the stops?

I make the itinerary my first option. I have a lot of places on my to see list and, in the case of the cruise I just booked, the ship was not at all a part of the decision making process.

Download the "Official" Door sign here!

 

Doorsign

 

You will need Adobe reader to download the doorsign.

 

If you do not have Adobe reader, you can download here:

 

http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readermain.html

 

Laura

This is awesome. Thank you.

I lived in Ewing NJ for 29 years until 2009. Maybe we know some of the same people :D

Edited from previous post:

478 days until my girlfriend and I board The Jewel Of The Seas in Rome for our 9 night Greek Islands cruise. She will be celebrating her birthday while on board and i want it to be something special.

477and we are so excited. This is my girlfriend's dream vacation.

The last times I left the country the new rules hadn't been fully implemented so I'm a tad confused on what I need. We'll be taking a round trip to Alaska with a stop in Victoria (probably Norwegian). It's pretty clear that a passport isn't needed on the us side but verifying that we won't need it to enter Victoria is harder. I called ncl this morning who said the only thing they could say was to literally read the website to me. That seems fairly clear to me on its own but a couple people have told they needed one because their trip entered Victoria. I'm the check everything a billion time type so I want to make extra sure what the requirements actually are.

 

 

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As an American living in Canada, I can assure you that a passport card or passport book is required to enter Canada.

......we are.....B2B on the Harmony for April 2018 :D

 

Anyone else booked that far in advance?

 

Safe travels to all! :)

My girlfriend and l are booked for The Jewel Of The Seas 9 night Greek Islands out of Rome Sept 18-27 and can't wait.