picture prices?

[Kentman23]

We sail on the pride in a few weeks and I know we're going to probably be buying pictures. My wife already bought one of the photo coupons and I was just wondering how much the pictures actually are on the ship. Do they have packages or do you just buy them one by one? I'm hoping we don't break the bank with the photos!

[GloriaF]

Not sure of the actual prices, but they are expensive!!

 

Tell me about the photo coupons, please. Haven't heard of them, but if they offer a good savings, then I need some!

[bassmaster150]

So I don't think that $20 for an 8x10 is expensive. If you go to a professional photographer and have 10 different seatings in a session, not only do you pay for that, but then you have to pay for your photos on top of that. My wife and I get our professional photos taken every year on formal night on a Carnival ship somewhere.....I think it is the best bargain you will ever find in getting photos done. If you don't like them, you don't buy them. If you had your photos done by a photog, you would still be out the sitting fee.

[finoky]

We bought our embarkation photo last week on the Valor and it was $19.95.

[sparks1093]

So I don't think that $20 for an 8x10 is expensive. If you go to a professional photographer and have 10 different seatings in a session, not only do you pay for that, but then you have to pay for your photos on top of that. My wife and I get our professional photos taken every year on formal night on a Carnival ship somewhere.....I think it is the best bargain you will ever find in getting photos done. If you don't like them, you don't buy them. If you had your photos done by a photog, you would still be out the sitting fee.

 

Agreed, we had a family portrait done on our last cruise and it was a lot less expensive than it would have been with a land based professional (especially one which charges a per person sitting fee:eek:).

[Kentman23]

Not sure of the actual prices, but they are expensive!!

 

Tell me about the photo coupons, please. Haven't heard of them, but if they offer a good savings, then I need some!

 

Sorry for the confusion. It's not like a coupon where you save money, it's more like a gift card or credit. They sell them in the bon voyage section of the carnival website. You buy them for $15. We got ours so that there's less money on our S&S card. Figure pre paying for what we can is good.

[JaniceB]

The pictures I bought on the Pride were 9.99 and 11.99. I did not purchase any 8x10's.

[DStarr06]

We just got back from the Splendor and they were: $9.99 for Port of Call pics; $11.99 for 5x7 pics; $21.99 for 8x10 pics

I didn't buy any 8x10, but a LOT of the 5x7's and some Port of Call. I don't think they are that expensive and love the pics for my scrapbook :cool:

[Aplmac]

The pictures I bought on the Pride were 9.99 and 11.99. I did not purchase any 8x10's.

The $10 and $12 pics are the smaller ones 5x7 and 6x9 (I just measured them).

 

Like you, I no longer pose-for or buy the 8x10s because they are now $22 each! :eek:

 

A young photographer lady asked that we pose for her: I said no thanks

but I also took the time to tell her that my answer will always be a No

because those posed photos taken along the Promenade Decks at night

are always printed at 8x10 and simply cost too much.

 

She apologised.

I asked why don't they print the same pics at smaller size?

she said Company policy, and I said...in that case, my answer will remain No.

We both shrugged our shoulders and parted ways.

 

Carnival Corp. made No Sale. :)

[serene56]

Photo Coupons are dollar for dollar.

 

I havent seen a 8 x 10 cheaper then 20 bucks for quite some time now.

Usually its about 22.00

 

package deals-- buy 5 get one free. so spent 100 and save another 20.

 

smaller photos are a tad cheaper. (i like the one when we get onboard since it has the date and ships name imprinted on it.)

 

what a waste is the dinner photo with the pirate

[Kentman23]

Thank you all for the replies!

[elcuchio24]

So I don't think that $20 for an 8x10 is expensive. If you go to a professional photographer and have 10 different seatings in a session, not only do you pay for that, but then you have to pay for your photos on top of that. My wife and I get our professional photos taken every year on formal night on a Carnival ship somewhere.....I think it is the best bargain you will ever find in getting photos done. If you don't like them, you don't buy them. If you had your photos done by a photog, you would still be out the sitting fee.

 

I agree to some degree that the nice, formal pictures can be a decent value if that's something you would normally do at home. BUT, how about that snapshot of you in the MDR, during Embarkation where everyone inevitably looks dazed and confused, a nice semi-blurry one of you next to a fake Pirate or a guy in a dolphin suit on a gangway somewhere? I would not call those 'professional' shots.

[mondello]

I agree to some degree that the nice, formal pictures can be a decent value if that's something you would normally do at home. BUT, how about that snapshot of you in the MDR, during Embarkation where everyone inevitably looks dazed and confused, a nice semi-blurry one of you next to a fake Pirate or a guy in a dolphin suit on a gangway somewhere? I would not call those 'professional' shots.

Those are called Embarkation and "Candids." The candids are the silliest and cheapest at $9.99/each. I agree the embarkation shots are both good and bad; I like them because they are the only photo with the date on the photo; don't like stopping for a booking mugshot loaded down with carry-ons. Also, the embarkation photo is $11.99, I think they would sell a heck of a lot more, and profit more, priced at $9.99. The only deal I saw was a half-price offer on a cruise themed photo album with purchase of photo(s).

[sparks1093]

I agree to some degree that the nice, formal pictures can be a decent value if that's something you would normally do at home. BUT, how about that snapshot of you in the MDR, during Embarkation where everyone inevitably looks dazed and confused, a nice semi-blurry one of you next to a fake Pirate or a guy in a dolphin suit on a gangway somewhere? I would not call those 'professional' shots.

 

DW saw the person in the dolphin suit when we were on the NCL Dream and, because she loves dolphins she said excitedly "we have to get a picture with the dolphin!" I said, "you do know that it's not a real dolphin, right?".

 

Still haven't lived it down:o. (Yes, she got her picture:rolleyes:.)

[elcuchio24]

DW saw the person in the dolphin suit when we were on the NCL Dream and, because she loves dolphins she said excitedly "we have to get a picture with the dolphin!" I said, "you do know that it's not a real dolphin, right?".

 

Still haven't lived it down:o. (Yes, she got her picture:rolleyes:.)

 

Haha, ya were had a runin with the dolphin guy on NCL in Naussu I think it was. DW wanted a picture because she too loves Dolphins. The photog gets all set up and I walked behind him and took the same picture with my own camera. He started yelling something at me and I took off down the pier:D. I really should stop making it a habit to torture the poor photography staff......

[sparks1093]

Haha, ya were had a runin with the dolphin guy on NCL in Naussu I think it was. DW wanted a picture because she too loves Dolphins. The photog gets all set up and I walked behind him and took the same picture with my own camera. He started yelling something at me and I took off down the pier:D. I really should stop making it a habit to torture the poor photography staff......

 

Alas, I couldn't do that because I had to be in the picture with her:eek:.

[elcuchio24]

Alas, I couldn't do that because I had to be in the picture with her:eek:.

 

Ya, that might be a little too shady a manuver to enlist the help of a passerby for. Honestly though, alot of our fav pics are once where we were on deck or in a port and saw a couple with a camera and said "hey, want me to take your guys's picture?" And then they did the same for us.

[GloriaF]

I agree to some degree that the nice, formal pictures can be a decent value if that's something you would normally do at home. BUT, how about that snapshot of you in the MDR, during Embarkation where everyone inevitably looks dazed and confused, a nice semi-blurry one of you next to a fake Pirate or a guy in a dolphin suit on a gangway somewhere? I would not call those 'professional' shots.

 

OK - I'll agree that if you wanted a posed formal photo then the price is good.

 

But for the others, I'll be handing my camera to some passerby and asking them to snap a couple of pics for us; then we will offer to do the same for them. Call me cheap if you wish, I admit I am careful with my $$.

[elcuchio24]

OK - I'll agree that if you wanted a posed formal photo then the price is good.

 

But for the others, I'll be handing my camera to some passerby and asking them to snap a couple of pics for us; then we will offer to do the same for them. Call me cheap if you wish, I admit I am careful with my $$.

 

Hey-don't get me wrong, I was just semi-agreeing with the poster I was quoting. I'm with you. I guess I can see if someone was going to get one of those formal pictures anyway, that the ship would be a OK place to get them. But come one, DW and I are in our lake 20's, no kids. I don't really know folks our age that go and get 'formal' pictures done.

 

We never ever ever buy pictures on the cruise. Not once. I remember last year we went to HMC for the whole day. Blue sky, perfect weather, awesome. That night I saw some lady in the atrium getting per picture taken with a face beach background......:rolleyes:....I guess I just don't get it!:):confused:

[sparks1093]

Hey-don't get me wrong, I was just semi-agreeing with the poster I was quoting. I'm with you. I guess I can see if someone was going to get one of those formal pictures anyway, that the ship would be a OK place to get them. But come one, DW and I are in our lake 20's, no kids. I don't really know folks our age that go and get 'formal' pictures done.

 

We never ever ever buy pictures on the cruise. Not once. I remember last year we went to HMC for the whole day. Blue sky, perfect weather, awesome. That night I saw some lady in the atrium getting per picture taken with a face beach background......:rolleyes:....I guess I just don't get it!:):confused:

 

It is my intent to cover at least one wall with embarkation photos. If I had started in my 20's I'd be working on the third wall:D.

 

I always set a budget for ship's pictures and once that's reached we're done.

[beshears]

We were on Princess which is part of Carnival in April. I bought some 8 x 10's, and I believe at that time, they were $19.95. If you bought "4", you got one free.

 

Yes, as it has been mentioned before, when I see someone (if I have the time) taking a picture of someone, I will ask them if they would like for me to take a picture of them, with the other person, and then vice versa, and it always seems to work out. I even do this at amusement parks, like Silver Dollar City, in Branson, Missouri, or Disneyland. Most people don't mind if they have the time.

[WinnipegCruiser]

I always get as many pictures taken of us as possible.

 

You just never know if you might get a really good one.

 

The risk to reward ratio is just too good to ignore.

[italianfemmy]

When I first started cruising 10 years ago, I would spend 250-350 bucks on photos in the photo gallery. I thought they were the best things ever...

 

In 2007, I opened my own photography business and went full time with it. As I got better, I started getting more and more critical. The last couple cruises we went on, we didn't buy any of the photos because now that my eye is technically trained, I nitpick everything apart. They're a far cry from what I have become accustomed to taking on my own.

 

With that said, it's been hard not getting photos of both my spouse and myself in the same shot. So, this time I am bringing the tripod and remote with me when we go on this cruise on Dec. 10th. I prefer shots around the ship (in the atrium, on the staircases, overlooking the water, etc.) to the fake backgrounds anyway.

 

The only shot I might buy is the western themed ones where you get to dress up in their props just because it's fun and we can't do that on our own.

 

As for the value... if you're only buying a couple of shots, then yes, I agree you save money on what you'd spend with a land based photographer. But many photographers that shoot on location (not in a studio) charge $150-$250 for a 2 hour session with 2-3 outfit changes and include the DVD of high resolution images (anywhere from 20-100 shots). If you want 20 photos on the cruise ship at 22 bucks a pop, that's $440 and then you have to get a sub par scan of them to share them online. Just food for thought :-)

[elcuchio24]

It is my intent to cover at least one wall with embarkation photos. If I had started in my 20's I'd be working on the third wall:D.

 

I always set a budget for ship's pictures and once that's reached we're done.

 

They should wonder around taking pictures of you ate 2am, 3 sheets to the wind, THOSE I might actually buy :):):)

[elcuchio24]

When I first started cruising 10 years ago, I would spend 250-350 bucks on photos in the photo gallery. I thought they were the best things ever...

 

In 2007, I opened my own photography business and went full time with it. As I got better, I started getting more and more critical. The last couple cruises we went on, we didn't buy any of the photos because now that my eye is technically trained, I nitpick everything apart. They're a far cry from what I have become accustomed to taking on my own.

 

With that said, it's been hard not getting photos of both my spouse and myself in the same shot. So, this time I am bringing the tripod and remote with me when we go on this cruise on Dec. 10th. I prefer shots around the ship (in the atrium, on the staircases, overlooking the water, etc.) to the fake backgrounds anyway.

 

The only shot I might buy is the western themed ones where you get to dress up in their props just because it's fun and we can't do that on our own.

 

As for the value... if you're only buying a couple of shots, then yes, I agree you save money on what you'd spend with a land based photographer. But many photographers that shoot on location (not in a studio) charge $150-$250 for a 2 hour session with 2-3 outfit changes and include the DVD of high resolution images (anywhere from 20-100 shots). If you want 20 photos on the cruise ship at 22 bucks a pop, that's $440 and then you have to get a sub par scan of them to share them online. Just food for thought :-)

 

Good advise from a Pro. I think some folks think the ship pictures are a little more 'professional' than they really are.....