*ICE + FIRE* ms Statendam in ALASKA with pre in Las Vegas - Summer 2013 Trip review

[chclde]

Loving our review and also your photos. Can you share the equipment and some of the settings you used. The colors and detail just popped! Your compositions were just wonderful!

[fireflies]

Thanks to you my family and friends will be going nuts with my excitement for the next month. :D

 

Lisa (Walt will get the full impact of my giddiness soon):eek:

 

We really like the pre-trip anticipation and research a lot too. Giddy is always good :)

 

 

fyree39 + Typhoon1 + JamesEM

 

Thanks again for following along. Nice to know that you are still interested in seeing our fun cruise.

[fireflies]

Super review and photos.

Great photo of the seal on the iceberg.

Thank you.

 

Thanks. We were lucky to be in a good spot as it came drifting by. For a bit more detail, here are a couple of closeup of the seal.

 

Can kind of see the face

 

 

Look like a ice raft/bed

 

[fireflies]

This is such a fabulous trip report! Believe me, in Las Vegas, I'm delighting in the pictures of "ice" because I'm in permanent fire! But we will be doing the end-of-season Statendam RT, and I'm assuming some of the things will be the same.

 

Was Day 2 Juneau, because if we have the same menu, I think we'll be happy to follow our plans of whale watching with Cap'n Lar (Orca) and dinner at Twisted Fish.

 

Keep it coming, and thanks for all the pix--they're great!

 

Thanxs, love Vegas so am super happy the photos were chill ;) for you.

 

We didn't do the return, only the southern trip down from Seward to Vancouver on the Statendam. Glacier Bay was day 2 and Juneau was Day 4 for us. Whale Watching + Local Eats sounds like a perfect day in Juneau! :)

[fireflies]

mudscraper + sunviking90

 

Thanks for the kind posts. We have many not so great photos but some of them turn out decent.

 

 

Loving our review and also your photos. Can you share the equipment and some of the settings you used. The colors and detail just popped! Your compositions were just wonderful!

 

Thanks. Sure, can answer any photo/camera/setting question. Is there a group of photos (eg. glacier or food or just general) that you were wondering about?

[chclde]

I am most intrigued by the glacier bay photos, the ship interiors and the shots on the ships deck. We are going to AK in a couple of wees and have a nice camera and a wide angle lens but your photos seem so perfectly in focus and so colorful, I was just curious as to some of the settings you used, as well as the equipment such as body and lenses. Thanks for sharing anything you can.

[fireflies]

DAY 3: HAINES

 

Today's Forecast: Partly Cloudy / 52 F / 11 C

Tonight's Movie: The Sapphires

 

After cruising for the past 2 days it was time to experience the towns of Alaska. First was Haines. Unlike Juneau and Ketchikan, not many ships visit Haines. Among mass market lines only one HAL ship a week and the Grand Princess monthly stop in 2013. There wasn't much information about Haines other than it was an unspoiled Alaskan town which is very true.

 

About excursions, well Las Vegas was our excursion and so on the cruise we didn't do any of the uniquely Alaskan excursions though they were very tempting. We didn't have any expectations and since it was our first time in Alaska we went for the walk around town and shuttle to places approach. The ports were all accessible which is why I described our Alaska cruise as being easy to friends. You can do as much or as little as you like and getting around was always very simple.

 

Lunch

We weren't in a hurry to get off since we weren't doing a tour or going to Skagway so we decided to try the Pinnacle Grill for lunch. It was quiet with only about 5 tables during our lunch.

 

 

PG Menu. We skipped breakfast again and were starving so we ordered an extra starter.

 

Grilled Prawn Bruschetta with a Primavera salsa. Bread was too hard/stale

 

Mediterranean Antipasto plate. Wouldn't exactly call this Mediterranean.

 

Scallops Creme Brulee. Great way to start lunch, really liked this dish especially the Parmesan wafer on top.

[fireflies]

Pacific Rim Beef salad. Well balanced, best lunch entree we had.

 

The Pinnacle Burger. Had to try the wagyu mix, simple but good. Portion was the right size with toasty bun.

 

Fresh Strawberries with Raspberry sorbet. Well liked.

 

Orange and Lime Panna Cotta. Didn't like the sweet syrup.

 

Overall a very nice lunch relaxing in peace. Tasty enough that we returned on the last sea day.

 

Haines

 

A view of the town with Port Chilkoot Dock with room for one large cruise ship.

 

The bus pickup/droppoff zone and Visitor Centre just off the dock. Very clean cottage look to Haines with all the white houses.

[fireflies]

 

We had no game plan for Haines but noticed that there was a hop on hop off shuttle bus. The bus does a loop of the local attractions and landmarks and the fare was just $1 per person. It was fun just to get an overlook of the town and hear the driver's local perspective about regular Alaska life.

 

We got off at the Southeast Alaska State Fair (funky market/fairground)

 

A few shops open.

 

It was hotter than the forecast so the Haines Brewing Company was a perfect stop.

 

We got a nice tip to try the Spruce Tip Ale (actual tree tips used). Each sampler cost $1.50 with quite a few to choose from, good deal

[fireflies]

Did some more exploring and then we were ready to get back on board.

 

Here's the central statue/fountain I talked about earlier.

 

 

 

Back on the top decks.

 

 

 

Haines was a different change of pace type of stop. It isn't touristy and feels like the type of place were people think simple pleasures are the best ones.

[RedHeadTexan]

You are so right about there not being a lot of information about Haines out there. I had no idea that there is a shuttle bus. We planned on walking to the fairgrounds, but I think the bus will be perfect. In the morning we are doing the bike excursion, then grabbing lunch in town, and then heading for the brewery. I have mapped out where the totem poles are located, so we will be checking those out as well.

 

Thank you once again for posting your review! The details and photos are wonderful. :D

 

Lisa and Walt

 

p.s. we will definitely be trying the spruce tip beer.

[SilvertoGold]

Fireflies

 

Thank you so much for all these stunning photos and your interesting commentary!

We have sailed many times on the Statendam and so many times to Alaska: your thread brings back hundreds of wonderful memories!

 

Could I ask how you manage to get the ship so empty for your photos? We never see a HAL ship so deserted, so we never bother taking photos!

[fireflies]

DAY 3 Canaletto Dinner

 

There are split opinions about Canaletto on the forums, people seem to terribly miss the Penne Alla Vodka and lament the recent $10 charge. It is a sign of the times and HAL is following the others.

 

One thing we noticed for the specialty meals was there was nothing to sign, no final bill like on other cruises lines.

 

Not its own separate restaurant but a blocked section of the Lido. It wasn't busy but a big crew group had booked a private party.

 

A server offers a selection of antipasti to start with. The usual things with one or two twists like calamari. There is a big bread basket too. Which reminds me, I did enjoy the MDR dinner bread. We are trying to cut down on bread (Wheat Belly terror!) but it was good with a nice chew.

 

Italian Herb Sausage and Cannellini Beans. Wanted something I don't usually eat so went with this Primo. The sausage was smoked so the texture was solid. I don't usually like beans but these were better than I imagined.

 

For Secondo, Veal Osso Bucco. The veal was tender and you can't go wrong with bone marrow but would say the gnocchi would be better just boiled and not pan fried.

[fireflies]

Dolci

 

Trio of Tiramisu. Manageable shot size portions. I finished all 3, remembered that Lemon was my least favourite with Espresso + Amaretto ahead.

 

Limoncello Crème. Was told this was excellent although the Tuscan lemon liqueur was strong at the bottom.

 

 

DAILY VERDICT: The atmosphere could be more private and inviting but the food was fine although we didn't try any pasta dishes. I'd go back again and can recommend it as an alternative to MDR.

 

 

Day 3 in the books. Will try to be back late tonight with some answer posts. ;)

[fireflies]

I am most intrigued by the glacier bay photos, the ship interiors and the shots on the ships deck. We are going to AK in a couple of wees and have a nice camera and a wide angle lens but your photos seem so perfectly in focus and so colorful, I was just curious as to some of the settings you used, as well as the equipment such as body and lenses. Thanks for sharing anything you can.

 

CAMERA BODIES

Olympus *****-D EM-5 and Panasonic GF5. The Olympus uses some newer tech so it's better in low light situations like outdoor evening/dusk shots.

 

LENS

2 Panasonic lenses. We keep these on the camera body most times.

 

-14mm f/2.5 - (28mm equivalent) small, still bright enough in the evening for some night shots.

- 20mm f/1.7. - (40mm equivalent) super sharp. most images are from this lens with Olympus camera.

 

2 Olympus lenses. Used in closeup glacier shots, very low light like the Dessert Extravaganza

 

- 45mm f/1.8. - (90mm equivalent).

- 60mm f/2.8 - (120mm equivalent)

 

Your wide angle lens should be able to get nice interior and landscape shots.

 

FOCUS

Because the image sensor is smaller in our cameras than other DSLRs (Canons + Nikons) generally more of the photo is in focus. This is a benefit in some interior and landscape photos. In portrait photos a blurry background is a nice touch since it create a focus on the person's face, this is where big DSLRs have an advantage.

 

I find touchscreen focus a great and quick way to select focus, so if you have that focusing is easier.

 

SETTINGS

We use between f/4 - f/11 on Aperture priority mode depending on the light and depth of field with most photos around f/4.5 to f/6. You can use AUTO too, the camera can usually pick good settings.

 

Exposure compensation (+/-) is a quick way to lighten and darken photos. It can be good to underexpose (- 0.3, - 0.7) to get a better range of colors (not everything white) or to capture details (like in shadows or tress)

 

Glacier Settings:

 

http://www.alaska.org/advice/alaska-photography-whats-different

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1818980

 

So basically the general rule is to overexposed by (+0.7) or (+1.0) stop since snow/white confuses the auto-focus system, that's why some like to manual focus. I used a few settings in Glacier Bay (+1.0, +0.7) with f/4.5 - f/11 but for me actually liked the underexposed photos with (-0.3, -0.7) settings which were adjusted afterwards.

 

TIPS:

-Photo Software like MS Photo Gallery or MS Office Picture Manager have good one button/single click "auto correct" which usually give very colorful + punchy results.

 

-Use flickr over google+ if you are using an online album or forum posts. flickr images are much truer to the original, google+ makes them grainy and not sharp.

 

-Shoot as low ISO as you can. You camera might have AUTO ISO but you can control it yourself or limit the AUTO ISO range.

 

-Take multiple photos/stitch panoramas since Alaska is so vast

 

-Take a lot of photos but also take in the scenery for yourself.

 

FILES:

We shoot in JPEG + RAW mode. This will create 2 files, a JPEG and a RAW file. 90% of our thread images came from RAW files.

 

JPEGs can be fine, especially if you are making smaller versions for web use. You can see JPEGs right away while RAW files need to be processed later.

 

If you take enough photos, read enough online guides, have enough time you might want to get into RAW. It's a second step some people take to squeeze out detail and other goodies from photos. With the RAW file I tweak settings like Highlights/Saturation/White Balance/Clarity to get a photo I like, something that pops a bit but doesn't look unnatural.

 

If you are interested in RAW I can write more about it and show a couple of processing examples.

 

Have Fun shooting in Alaska! :)

jc

[fireflies]

You are so right about there not being a lot of information about Haines out there. I had no idea that there is a shuttle bus. We planned on walking to the fairgrounds, but I think the bus will be perfect. In the morning we are doing the bike excursion, then grabbing lunch in town, and then heading for the brewery. I have mapped out where the totem poles are located, so we will be checking those out as well.

 

p.s. we will definitely be trying the spruce tip beer.

 

Wow, a mapped totem route you are super prepared! Yeah, the shuttle bus was a nice surprise. Some people walked to the attractions since it isn't very far but the bus gives a nice mini-tour.

 

When we were at the brewery there was a brew tour (people crowding inside the small storefront) happening but you could still order beer. I liked the Spruce Tip better but the other beer, Black Fang (a stronger Stout) grew on me a little towards the bottom end too.

 

Our driver mentioned that you can get the beer in some of the local pubs too

 

jc

[fireflies]

Fireflies

 

We have sailed many times on the Statendam and so many times to Alaska: your thread brings back hundreds of wonderful memories!

 

Could I ask how you manage to get the ship so empty for your photos? We never see a HAL ship so deserted, so we never bother taking photos!

 

 

Happy that the photos take you back :) Halfway through the cruise

 

This cruise didn't seem very busy, though there were generational families (ping pong on the Lido seemed to be always busy) and couples both younger and older. We ate dinner early (5:30 -6) so the ship and decks weren't crowded when we finished. It was a ghost ship when we embarked and on port days we left later so it was easier to take clear photos. When it's busy I tend to not bother trying to take photos.

 

jc

[chclde]

 

CAMERA BODIES

Olympus *****-D EM-5 and Panasonic GF5. The Olympus uses some newer tech so it's better in low light situations like outdoor evening/dusk shots.

 

LENS

2 Panasonic lenses. We keep these on the camera body most times.

 

-14mm f/2.5 - (28mm equivalent) small, still bright enough in the evening for some night shots.

- 20mm f/1.7. - (40mm equivalent) super sharp. most images are from this lens with Olympus camera.

 

2 Olympus lenses. Used in closeup glacier shots, very low light like the Dessert Extravaganza

 

- 45mm f/1.8. - (90mm equivalent).

- 60mm f/2.8 - (120mm equivalent)

 

Your wide angle lens should be able to get nice interior and landscape shots.

 

FOCUS

Because the image sensor is smaller in our cameras than other DSLRs (Canons + Nikons) generally more of the photo is in focus. This is a benefit in some interior and landscape photos. In portrait photos a blurry background is a nice touch since it create a focus on the person's face, this is where big DSLRs have an advantage.

 

I find touchscreen focus a great and quick way to select focus, so if you have that focusing is easier.

 

SETTINGS

We use between f/4 - f/11 on Aperture priority mode depending on the light and depth of field with most photos around f/4.5 to f/6. You can use AUTO too, the camera can usually pick good settings.

 

Exposure compensation (+/-) is a quick way to lighten and darken photos. It can be good to underexpose (- 0.3, - 0.7) to get a better range of colors (not everything white) or to capture details (like in shadows or tress)

 

Glacier Settings:

 

http://www.alaska.org/advice/alaska-photography-whats-different

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1818980

 

So basically the general rule is to overexposed by (+0.7) or (+1.0) stop since snow/white confuses the auto-focus system, that's why some like to manual focus. I used a few settings in Glacier Bay (+1.0, +0.7) with f/4.5 - f/11 but for me actually liked the underexposed photos with (-0.3, -0.7) settings which were adjusted afterwards.

 

TIPS:

-Photo Software like MS Photo Gallery or MS Office Picture Manager have good one button/single click "auto correct" which usually give very colorful + punchy results.

 

-Use flickr over google+ if you are using an online album or forum posts. flickr images are much truer to the original, google+ makes them grainy and not sharp.

 

-Shoot as low ISO as you can. You camera might have AUTO ISO but you can control it yourself or limit the AUTO ISO range.

 

-Take multiple photos/stitch panoramas since Alaska is so vast

 

-Take a lot of photos but also take in the scenery for yourself.

 

FILES:

We shoot in JPEG + RAW mode. This will create 2 files, a JPEG and a RAW file. 90% of our thread images came from RAW files.

 

JPEGs can be fine, especially if you are making smaller versions for web use. You can see JPEGs right away while RAW files need to be processed later.

 

If you take enough photos, read enough online guides, have enough time you might want to get into RAW. It's a second step some people take to squeeze out detail and other goodies from photos. With the RAW file I tweak settings like Highlights/Saturation/White Balance/Clarity to get a photo I like, something that pops a bit but doesn't look unnatural.

 

If you are interested in RAW I can write more about it and show a couple of processing examples.

 

Have Fun shooting in Alaska! :)

jc

 

Thank you so much fireflies. Excellent information. I have never shot in raw before and don't have as fast glass as you do but I got some great ideas for my trip in a couple of weeks. Looks like wide works well when used well. I am excited to try my luck!!

[erewhon]

Thanks for posting the seal photos.

It looks very relaxed as it floats along.

[Bxianesq]

This is so terrific! We are on the 8/4 sailing-keep those reviews, great photos and menus coming! I am a foodie, so getting to look at the menus has been great.

[fireflies]

DAY 4: JUNEAU

 

Today's Forecast: Partly Cloudy / 64 F / 18 C

Tonight's Movie: Identity Thief

 

After quaint Haines was bustling Juneau. The capital was crowded as the Norwegian Sun, Celebrity Century and Island Princess were all calling that day. We had the usual late breakfast at the Lido, (never made it to the MDR breakfast other than disembarkation morning). We docked next to the city library and welcomed with the worst weather day on the cruise. You didn't need a rain jacket but it drizzled in the morning before stopping in the afternoon. We needed a couple of supplies in town and asked a helpful local guide for shop directions.

 

A misty morning in downtown.

 

The centre was packed with all the tourists filling the souvenir and jewelry shops. There were a couple of interesting ones like the House of Russia. The big bold T-Shirt souvenirs shops were massive, bigger than I expected and the quality wasn't too bad for their price as we picked up hats and shirts for family back home and a bag of popcorn for us to snack on.

 

The Mystery Machine would have been a wicked way to get to Mendenhall glacier but we settled for the Glacier Express Blue Bus.

 

 

Overlook spot of Mendenhall glacier

 

We thought about doing some of the trails in the park like the one leading to Nuggets Falls but with the damp weather were too lazy so we just walked the nearby one.

[fireflies]

More looks at Mendenhall. Impressive but you don't get that Wow like Margerie, more like a Cool.

 

 

 

Getting that close would have been nice but oh well.

 

After snapping all those photos we caught the bus back to Juneau and did some more street wandering. There were some interesting food trucks and the popular crab shack next to the ship but we weren't too hungry yet so decided to use the free Wi-Fi at the library. No connection problems even with the full house of tourists + crew.

 

We boarded back and went up for a look from the decks. Found a new deck, where the Kids rule.

 

 

Peek at the Mount Roberts Tramway

 

 

[fireflies]

Juneau was a good stop, we got the things we needed. Saw eagles flying around too.

 

Our friendly neighbours

 

Blasting off!

 

 

 

After this HAL cruise, just need a Princess cruise to finish the mass market checklist

[fireflies]

Think we took a nap and got cleaned up for dinner, An Evening at Le Cirque. We ate at Le Cirque in Las Vegas last year and were underwhelmed with the food especially with the sky high prices. Chalk it up to liking themes, we hoped HAL could step up and offer a redeeming culinary hit.

 

 

Appetizers:

Lobster Salad "Le Cirque". The lobster was over poached, a tragic way to start dinner.

 

Butternut Squash with Huckleberries. This was the Chef's recommendation from the cooking demonstration and it didn't disappoint.

 

Le Trio - caviar, smoked salmon and Pate foie gras. Had this instead of a soup course. Really only wanted to try the caviar and blini since we had never tried it before, glad we did best bite of dinner.

 

Main Courses:

Chicken Under a Brick. Deboned and very heavily spiced, not in a good way unfortunately. This one was a big miss.

 

Blackened Alaskan Cod. The fish was cooked nicely but the red wine beurre rouge wasn't my thing. So another miss but not as bad as the Chicken.

 

Maybe we should have ordered the Chateaubriand... so we aren't French food connoisseurs but there was still dessert.

 

[fireflies]

There was the petits fours tower to whet the sweet buds.

 

 

Dessert:

The only dish that I really liked at the Vegas Le Cirque was the Chocolate soufflé. I had tried soufflés before that but they were always average, nothing to rave about so I didn't get all the fuss about soufflés. That soufflé was killer perfect.

 

Tonight my dessert looked like road kill. No glorious lift, our server brought it out saying the soufflé had collapsed. It was a sad state of affairs like the 2004 NY Yankees.

 

Our other dessert was Napoleon with Fresh Berries.

 

 

DAILY VERDICT: So overall the service and setting (they made some effort by switching up the plates and pictures on the wall) were fine would I recommend the $39 Le Cirque dinner over a $25 Pinnacle Grill dinner? Probably not although we never made it to PG for dinner (we tried but were too late for final night farewell dinner).

 

We wondered if we would be receiving a boxed token and smiled to see we had indeed been visited by the Le Cirque sugar fairy.