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Allure of the Seas 3/30/14 Review with photos and some video!

dpmfloyd
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dpmfloyd

dpmfloyd

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Thanks for the feedback, I thought these shots would get some love

 

I shoot with a Canon Rebel T1i for a few years. I mix it up between to lenses. I normally leave the EF15mm f/2.8 Fisheye attached. I like the wide-angle feel, with the slight warping of a fisheye. The only other glass I use is the stock EF-S18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS that came with the kit.

 

I edited using Photoshop CC. This was my first stab at shooting using the RAW setting, I won't be going back after this!

 

I have more shots I haven't edited, I might have to rethink that!

...not too much left of the review, I might have it wrapped up by tomorrow.

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BecciBoo Great Review Rare

BecciBoo

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Your moon shot and the starry night pic are the first of their kind I have ever seen here with that quality....absolutely professional!

 

BTW where did you catch that starry pic...helipad? Or maybe above the bridge..gotta be no lights.

 

Hope we can do something similar with our new Nikon 3100...my hubby is learning. Less than 30 days to get it together. :D

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dpmfloyd

dpmfloyd

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Your moon shot and the starry night pic are the first of their kind I have ever seen here with that quality....absolutely professional!

 

 

 

BTW where did you catch that starry pic...helipad? Or maybe above the bridge..gotta be no lights.

 

 

 

Hope we can do something similar with our new Nikon 3100...my hubby is learning. Less than 30 days to get it together. :D

 

 

Wow! Thank you for the amazing compliment! I truly appreciate it! I actually took those two shots from the balcony on my stateroom. The moon shot has the cantilevered hot tub poking out :). Tell your husband to get a collapsable tripod and practice long exposure shooting at night. Drop it to the lowest setting ISO and be sure to set a two second timer. This way you won't get any wiggle. He will do great!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

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CapeGal

CapeGal

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We are originally from Attleboro Ma. (now living in Utah) And TF Green has to be the least crowded airport we have EVER been through...We are sailing on the Allure in 208 days :D and cant wait...LOVE reading as many reviews and viewing as many pics and vids as possible. Cant wait to read the rest of yours....

Thanx Scott & Chris

 

Hope you like Utah. Just wanted to say hi from back East. We will be on Allure on May 11th. ;)

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CapeGal

CapeGal

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I'll second that. From Swansea, MA. Only fly out of Green. Had to fly out of Logan three times in my life and it was soly because the international destinations were so much cheaper. That and one of them was to England and it was a direct flight.

 

Another vote for TF Green. From North Attleboro to Green is a breeze compared to that trip to Logan!

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Cruzin-K

Cruzin-K

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Thanks for the feedback, I thought these shots would get some love

 

I shoot with a Canon Rebel T1i for a few years. I mix it up between to lenses. I normally leave the EF15mm f/2.8 Fisheye attached. I like the wide-angle feel, with the slight warping of a fisheye. The only other glass I use is the stock EF-S18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS that came with the kit.

 

I edited using Photoshop CC. This was my first stab at shooting using the RAW setting, I won't be going back after this!

 

I have more shots I haven't edited, I might have to rethink that!

...not too much left of the review, I might have it wrapped up by tomorrow.

 

Wowza! The photos are amazing. Sigh! More pics to take on my next cruise. I might as well never leave the ship - all I'm going to do for 16 hours a day is take photos :D

 

I still have my T1i, but just upgraded to the 70D. Apparently, I didn't need to :o

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dpmfloyd

dpmfloyd

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(just a note, I finally posted 1 video, see above if you haven't yet)

Day 5 - Sea Day

 

After spending the morning taking pictures, as I walked by the beach pool I stumpbled upon a mass of towels spread across nearly every chair. It was 7am. I could not believe what I was seeing. I jumped in and followed suit. I grabbed two towels, put them down on two chairs next to an umbrella, and returned to the stateroom. My wife, who had changed and packed to set up shop poolside all day, was already ready to claim a spot. I told her I had put down some towels and gave her the specific location (back row, far left side next to the last umbrella). She made her way to the pool deck. I changed and hoped to meet her in the exact spot I had reserved.

 

 

As I made my way to the pool deck, it was just about 8am. I came out and saw my wife sitting exactly where she should have been - perfect! We grabbed a quick breakfast (and by quick, i mean less than 15 minutes) and returned to our chairs. An older man was putting down towels in the 4 empty chairs next to us when we returned. As we got settled, he asked if we’d mind watching his things - he’ll be back shortly after he tells his wife, son and daughter-in-law where he has posted up. No problem, we’ll keep an eye on it.

 

 

So…...my wife and I are relaxing, the sun is shining and the music is playing. People are slowly returning to their chairs (envision the jaws theme starting now) by 9:30am the pool deck is at 75% capacity with all remaining chairs “claimed.” The pool police are walking around, making notes of the chairs that have gone unattended. They did their rounds, finally coming over to my wife and I asking about the chairs next to us. He asks if we know who’s sitting there, we do - we explain they’re elderly and they should be up any moment. He smiles and reminds us seats are first come first served, while adding he’ll return in a few minutes to check in on them.

 

 

Another hour goes by, and a guest approaches one of the pool police. They chat for a short bit as the man points to a pair of chairs with towels on them. The attendant heads over to the chairs and removes the towels. (if you’ve still got the jaws theme running in your head, good work - pump up the tempo a bit). The attendant steps back and scans the pool deck, making mental notes of any long term unclaimed towels. He retreats to the shade where he continues to look out over his territory.

 

 

By now, it’s 10:30am - the older man has not returned with his family. My wife decides to take a walk over to the windjammer and see if he can find him. She returns empty handed. Flocks of people are walking around, looking for places to plop down for the afternoon. However, the attenant has not removed any more towels.

 

 

It’s 10:45am, (jaws theme- full tempo - NOW), He’s had enough, he walks from chair to chair clearing out any towels that remain. The 4 empty chairs next to us? Gone. Happy guests gleefully nest in the few seats that remain. By 11am, everything is gone. Not a single seat remained. There’s calm in the wake, for now.

 

 

Over the course of the next few minutes to two hours (yes, TWO HOURS), people return to find “their” spot had been swiped. I didn’t witness any confrontation, only the occasional, “Did you move my stuff? No? The attendant did?” conversations. The attendant was confronted, and people were told the chairs were held for an unacceptable amount of time and their towels had been returned.

 

 

Now, that nice older man that asked my wife and I to watch his chairs he doesn’t show up until 1:30pm. Shocked his seats were gone. I thought he was joking. He wasn’t a jerk about it - but he wasn’t pleased. I explained we did the best we could, which he appreciated. Apparently his family made other plans, and he thought there was a chance he’d still be able to use the space.

 

 

We spent a good chunk of the afternoon poolside, enjoing some drinks, sun and refreshing dips in the pool and hot tub. We took a sun break to get out of the sun and enjoy the quiet of our stateroom while taking a quick snooze. It was formal night, and we had reservations for the Blue Planet show that night, we didn’t want to be zonked out!

 

 

Coming up - formal night part 2 and my thoughts on Blue Planet...

Edited by dpmfloyd
wrong day listed
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BecciBoo Great Review Rare

BecciBoo

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I would've told this man..."I can only help you for 30 minutes, that's the posted time limit to hold loungers. Sorry."

 

Then I would've taken the towels off and put them in the hamper exactly 30 minutes later.

 

I'm just picky that way.....:rolleyes:

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dpmfloyd

dpmfloyd

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Day 5 - continued…

 

After a nice nap, we got ready for the 2nd formal night. I held off squeezing into my dress shoes for as long as possible. We arrived to a small crowd. Once we checked in we were asked to be seated until we could be seated. We sat down and the moment our butts hit the couch we were called. We were walked into the MDR and a wave of non-formal attire hit my eyes.

 

 

We were seated next to a fairly large family. They were a party of 6 with two adults and 4 children/young adults appearing to be aged between 14 and 20. Flip flops, shorts, busted up jeans, t-shirts… Every rule in the MDR book for formal attire: broken. All you can do is shrug your shoulders. I’m 34. I don’t get dressed up often, when the time allows - my wife and I enjoy it. I know not every person/couple/family/group will have the same mindset, and I’m ok with that. However, if I didn’t feel like heeding the advice in the daily compass, I’d make alternate dining arrangements.

 

 

Anyone that’s sat in the MDR knows, depending on where you are seated - it can be close quarters. You can hear the conversations around you and sometimes join in and make new friends (or enemies). The family next to us was anything but quiet. One of the young adults in the group asked one of the adults, “Why is everyone dressed up?” The response floored me, “Everyone is an idiot.” Followed by, “...you see, everyone has the option to pick a seated/scheduled dining time or dine on a more flexible schedule called My Time Dining. We aren’t scheduled so we come when we want. The people that are scheduled between the two seating's are required to wear formal stuff, we’re not - so anyone you see up here wearing something doesn’t know any better.” The daughter followed up with, “Well, it looks fun.” The parent scoffed.

 

 

Like many, I simply wish they’d suggest people change or eat at another location on board. Hell, I’d be happy if they segregated parties that felt the need to wear anything other than formal or casual attire. It is easier to simply allow everyone in and avoiding any conflicts.

 

 

After dinner I changed, it was time for me and the 2 sizes too small shoes to part ways. We grabbed a quick drink before heading up to the theatre for Blue Planet. We sat in the balcony with a great view of the stage. We arrived early, which allowed for a few more drinks to be delivered to us :).

 

 

The show starts. The music hold my attention while the earth spins on the stage… from then until the end, very little kept me interested. There were a few really cool visual effects, which I feel could have been played up more. These effects were spoiled by mind numbingly boring routines. The music was mostly reimagined versions of popular songs paired up against routines that left me wondering what the hell was going on.

 

 

There was one very cool visual effect where they dropped a foggy-transparent screen at the front of the stage. On the back of the stage was the image of the desert. Between the two, were dancers playing it up that they were struggling walking through the dessert. They were wearing these long pieces of clothing while a fan blue wind into them. The screen allowed for this really cool effect, when about a minute in, the raise the front screen and all you have are people crawling to one side of the stage. Huge let down.

 

 

Another act they lowered the same screen, this time projecting water onto it. Slowly, behind it - a bridge lowers. I remember rolling my eyes and thinking, “Oh my God, they are literally going to do bridge over troubled water” - and wham… I was right. The act for this routine? Someone using both sides of the bridge as parallel bars. It was corny. I know it isn’t easy and the massive amount of strength needed to perform is far greater than anything I can do. I simply felt this mans abilities were wasted.

 

 

My wife did a lot of dance and enjoyed performing as a kid and young adult, she left this show shrugging her shoulders. We’ve been spoiled by other shows and performances. I made the mistake going into this show thinking this was THE show to see on board. It was my fault for raising the bar so high. I was told Blue Planet is better than Come Fly with Me on the Oasis. I did not see Come Fly with Me on the Oasis and I wanted to make sure we didn’t miss BP. Now, I really wish we did.

 

 

We wrapped up the night with a quick stop at the casino, followed by a night cap and pre-bed slice of pizza.

 

 

Coming up Day 6 - Sea Day/impromptu bar crawl/packing

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dpmfloyd

dpmfloyd

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I can't get it to play, it keeps saying undefined!

 

Can I look it up on YouTube? What's the title>?

 

I tried to fix it, and I couldn't but if you cut and paste this, "St Martin - Water and Rainbow" into youtube's search bar it should be the first thing posted. The username is the same as mine here.

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