Photo Package On Oasis

[cruisingwithtwins]

Does anyone have some recent experience with the photo package on Oasis? We are a family of 4 and I was thinking about booking the unlimited package for our family. How have you found the service, quality of photos. Do they do anything with regards to colour correction or editing? Is it easy to get your photos on the CD and have them printed afterwards? I don't want to spend hours at the photo desk. Alternatively, are the digital images of high enough quality I can get them edited afterwards? I would rather have 2 great photos then unlimited crappy photos, but given its my kids first cruise, I might want the embarkation and port photos etc regardless, and then get actual photos done at home.

 

With photos you totally get what you pay for, which makes me hesitant. For a CD of 10-15 photos with quality editing on location where I live, I would pay several hundred dollars at least so 299.99 for unlimted isn't bad, but I'd rather have quality over quantity and not sure I can get that on the ship.

 

If the single supplement for our cruise goes down to 110% I could pretty much take a photographer with us to do some family photos on the beach that are more candid and less staged.

[2004corvette]

FYI....just started this thread regarding the unlimited photo package I purchased on GOS a few weeks ago....needless to say my family & I were far from satisfied....:(

here is the CC link....http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1904036

[kimann]

We got the unlimited package on our recent 8/3 Oasis cruise and were very pleased. There were 4 of us, husband and I with our 25yo son and his 21yo girlfriend. Because she was 21 we were able to link them to our package. We paid $299 and I pre purchased it. We ended up with 271 photos. But..you do have to make the effort to stop at all the photo opportunities. We did each of the ones at the ports, and several each night. We would do some with all four of us, some with each couple. Our favorite backgrounds were the all white and central park. I checked the photo kiosk every couple of days and all of our photos were there, even the ones where they didn't ask for our seapass so the photo recognition works pretty well.

 

My only tip is to go to the photo shop EARLY on the last sea day to review your photos and finalize your disc order. I waited until around 4pm and it was a nightmare and I ended up having to pick my disc up at 7am the final morning.

 

We haven't tried to edit with our software at home, but once you download the disk you can download the photos into your own editor so you can manipulate them however you want.

 

To me it was totally worth it when I saw people paying over $200 for a few 8x10's!!

Edited August 26, 2013 by kimann

[cruisingwithtwins]

FYI....just started this thread regarding the unlimited photo package I purchased on GOS a few weeks ago....needless to say my family & I were far from satisfied....:(

 

here is the CC link....http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1904036

 

 

Thanks for linking me to your thread. Some interesting answers there. I hope your situation works out.

[cruisingwithtwins]

We got the unlimited package on our recent 8/3 Oasis cruise and were very pleased. There were 4 of us, husband and I with our 25yo son and his 21yo girlfriend. Because she was 21 we were able to link them to our package. We paid $299 and I pre purchased it. We ended up with 271 photos. But..you do have to make the effort to stop at all the photo opportunities. We did each of the ones at the ports, and several each night. We would do some with all four of us, some with each couple. Our favorite backgrounds were the all white and central park. I checked the photo kiosk every couple of days and all of our photos were there, even the ones where they didn't ask for our seapass so the photo recognition works pretty well.

 

My only tip is to go to the photo shop EARLY on the last sea day to review your photos and finalize your disc order. I waited until around 4pm and it was a nightmare and I ended up having to pick my disc up at 7am the final morning.

 

We haven't tried to edit with our software at home, but once you download the disk you can download the photos into your own editor so you can manipulate them however you want.

 

To me it was totally worth it when I saw people paying over $200 for a few 8x10's!!

 

Kimann thanks for sharing your experience as well.

[m*u*g*]

This was our experience on the Oasis 10/2013

------------------------------------------

 

This is from our experience, so take it for what it's worth.

 

I would add the prints now instead of waiting (justified below). I don't work for RCI, but know about photography, and how their systems work from experience. Plus, I've heard bad stories with adding options after you board since the two systems are separate and that info doesn't cross over to theirs. You actually have to add the package to your account on board, but they will remove any charges (be sure to confirm this). I beleive you have to do this, so they know to generate the CD.

 

Prints were $20.95 for 8x10 and $14.95 for 5x7's on the Oasis last month. Most of them are the 8x10 size. Some of the port photos are the smaller size.

 

5-8x10's would already be over $100. But, you can have the digital ones printed yourself. But even if you had about 100 shots, you couldn't print all those for $100. Even at Costco (which I can't recommend, 100 printed 8x10's would be over $200) You can use the extras for giving to family, etc.

 

My recommendation to anyone getting the unlimted, take as many photos as you can stand. You never know which ones will be the best and it gives you more options. Plus not all photographers are the best. We've had the occasional photgrapher take horrible photos. You will soon learn which ones are better.

 

Also, check the kiosks against those that were printed or mabe damaged/bent. If any are missing (not printed), you can order these on the kiosk and not be charged. I did this since about 50 of ours were missing. It will show a cost (mine was over $1000), but they didn't charge me. For extra measure, tell someone at the counter that they were missing and they will note this on your account so you are not charged.

 

Final word of advice with pre-paid packages--take two copies of your receipt!! And check your account the night before you debark to make sure no extra photo charges are there for the unlimited packages. Either prepay for everything you want, or pay on board. Don't try to mix the two.

 

I've generally been happy with the product. It could be better, but this is a high production (some loss of quality) process. You can always edit these in photoshop or aperture or some other program if you get the CD to get rid of any glare or overexposure. Centering and blurry issues can't be fixed. They give you all photos that were taken, even the bad ones. A normal photographer would edit the photos and delete the bad ones. At least with the CD, you can do the editing yourself if you know how.

 

My post cruise post regarding photos on Allure 6/2012:

 

 

Just got back from the Allure. We pre-paid for the unlimited Digital and Prints package for $449 ($499 on ship). 8x10's are $19.95 each, 5x8's (outdoor port debarkation photos) are $9.95 each.

 

We had two rooms (separate families) and we both got the package. Otherwise, I probably would not order the package normally. Any one who was in a photo with us went on our CD plus the prints. Occasionally, we would get printed photos from the group in the 2nd room and we were not in them, but they were not on the CD. I probably got 40-50 of those. Probably miss tagged or room card wasn't used.

 

The photos on the CD DO include the artistic borders like those seen on the actual prints. I had hoped the borders wouldn't be there for reprints on my own. I can crop some of these on my own in Aperture (Mac software). The photos come locked on the CD with a watermark until unlocked using a software on the CD that loads on your computer (Adobe Air).

 

We ended up with a little over 300 photos on our room and the other room had even more. They love having their photo made. But, the photogs do take about 10-15 photos in any one setting depending on the group size , so it doesn't take long to get this many. You could easily double this with extra time committed. I was more concerned about quality than the number of photos. They do include bad photos (eyes closed, etc.) they print everything (except the ones I really wanted). You can order missing/damaged prints from the kiosk at no extra charge, plus they will be included in the unlimited package at no charge even though the kiosk gives you a price. I did this and it went OK. But do it early in the week or you will wait in line prior to leaving.

 

The plain white and black backgrounds were probably the best, plus they stand the test of time. Dress accordingly to what you want.

 

TAKE YOUR RECEIPT FROM WHEN YOU ORDERED THE PACKAGE IF ORDERED BEFORE THE CRUISE. (our order info wasn't in their system and glad I brought it)

 

Their accounting/ordering/checkout process was not good, unless all you wanted was a print or two. Do Not order the CD package if you have an early return flight. LONG LINES. With only two people working. Where were the other 20 photographers on checkout day? They said the CD would be ready the night before, but wasn't. Plus, initially, we had to order the package again once on-board, so it shows on our account. They take off the charge, but it's a hassle. Especially if the same person pays for both rooms. Original receipt is crucial (I had to show it numerous times). **Update-on 10/12/13 cruise-got all photos and CD the night before, even reprints that were missing by 7:00pm the last night.**

 

In all, the photos were pretty good. If you care, get to know the good photographers and stick with them. For camera techies: not all their camera equipment is the same. I saw a range from Nikon D90 to a D300S (sparing you the technical details), but it can make a difference in photo quality. But the biggest thing affecting quality is always the photographer.

 

If you only plan to buy less than 10 photos (which is the majority of people), it doesn't matter. You will find enough good ones.