Camera Observations on Cruise

[Paul S]

On 12/9/2022 at 11:43 PM, eileeshb said:

ah but was there driving rain? That is what gets through weather seals every time, it the joint between the body and lens that’s the infiltration point. 

The only driving rain we had was during a landing on Cape Horn. We  did a landing at Deception Island in a hail/snow storm but Antarctica is classified as a desert through lack of rainfall. At home I’ve never had any problem with water infiltration in driving rain, nor from spray in heavy seas on small boats. Our higher end Fuji cameras (X-T3, X-T4, X-H1 and X-H2) seem to have good weather seals.

[Paul S]

On 7/4/2022 at 10:24 PM, Host Bonjour said:

 

I was taught in analog times but I think what you're saying still applies now (and I've written about before) understanding light/composition, AND, one of the photographers we work with (and VERY renowned) who juried an annual public radio show submission program stated the exact same thing recently when commenting about images in general (it's a smartphone "competition") in that sometimes just waiting a bit can bring such phenomenal results.

 

Waiting is obviously not always an option (not on a moving ship) or getting back to the ship or have to be anywhere, but we're not talking about waiting hours... it can simply be a matter of seconds or minutes. Breathe, look, pause... what's it for, do you want to possibly use it later for something, is it a special location you really want to memorialize, don't just look at the screen or through a lens, look around.

Whatever you shoot with, phone, point and shoot, DSLR or mirrorless, the difference between a picture taker and photographer is in the eye. Most people walk around looking straight ahead or down. Photographers also look up, around and behind, and see things others miss. Anticipation and composition build on this.

[KYBOB]

On 5/11/2022 at 7:29 PM, den32837 said:

When we travel, my photos are my souvenirs. The best shots end up as canvas prints on the walls at home. We have Antelope Canyon, Amsterdam, Rome, Washington DC, New York City, Neuschwanstein, Stonehenge, Monument Valley, Zaanse Schans windmills, Bar Harbor Maine, and Alaska whales and eagles on the walls. With 32 up, not much space remains.

I have the cell phone and a compact $100 Canon along, mostly for snapshots on board and shots of friends, while I use a Canon 70D for photographs off ship. Favorite lenses include a Tamron 18-400, which fetched wonderful shots of eagles on blue icebergs in Alaska and the Statue of Liberty on approach to NY harbor,  and a Tokina 11-16 which nailed my all-time-favorite shot at Stonehenge, and comes in handy in museums and other close-quarters venues.

The fact is, though, if you have a decent eye, get a good composition and have the requisite sharpness of image, many different cameras will suffice. Example: during this pandemic, while we were unable to travel, I dug out some old film shots, exposed in 1971 in DC and while stationed in Germany in the early 80s, digitized them , used modern computer photo-editing software and came up with wonderful prints for the wall,  of Washington DC monuments and Mad King Ludwig's castle.  They were originally shot with a Fujica ST-701 SLR. on Kodachrome. 

For the folks satisfied with only a cell phone camera, I will say the most pitiful sight I ever witnessed was my fellow passengers trying to shoot the Statue Of Liberty (at distance) from a cruise ship with a cell phone

 

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Here is my shot from a deck of a cruise ship. Someone the other day asked why I needed such a long lens and high pixel count camera. These are from my old Nikon's which have now been replaced with new Sony's. 

Edited February 1, 2023 by KYBOB
Was not finished

[pierces]

After our last cruise, I meant to add to this thread but hey, life is busy.

 

My "phone only" test cruise back in December, '21 was mostly a success. The pictures were more than sufficient to post online, and many were printable had I wanted to. What I found was that while it was convenient, I really missed using my camera. As amazing as my Pixel 6 Pro is for a phone, it's still a phone and just can't compete with a descent DSLR or Mirrorless camera in range or image quality. To be sure, someone with a good eye and a decent phone will come back with far better images than a doofus with a shiny new $10k rig and thinks that exposure is something you shouldn't do in public. With all else being equal, the camera will just do better. 

 

Is that important? I guess it depends on the person behind the camera and what you intend to shoot. If you want to travel as light as possible on a throwaway cruise to somewhere you've been a dozen times like my phone-only experiment, a good phone is a viable option (and apparently embraced by most of the passengers on that cruise). If you are on a 7-day to Alaska or some other photographically rich environment and only take a phone, you may be the subject of silent (or not) mockery by those equipped for the destination's potential. (I would be polite and silent, but there would be mockery.)

 

The reason I'm posting my thoughts on this now is to update my observations on the couple of cruises since my last post on this subject. Unlike the earlier 4-day, on both our New Year's and late January 7-day cruises, I noticed an uptick in the number of people carrying actual cameras similar to what I saw on our Caribbean cruise last June. Sunrise and sunset and sail-in/sail-away brought out the hardware as one would expect with phones prevalent at dinner and when just walking about the ship. Though less common than ten years ago, dedicated cameras don't seem to be on the endangered list. I have also noticed a shift in the mix. It used to be that high-end units were pretty rare (outside of Alaska, etc.) with a lot of P&S and big-box entry-level DSLR kits. Recently, I have noticed the camera mix leaning a bit toward the higher end mirrorless bodies with fewer DSLR kit cameras and P&S almost non-existent. If you count phones and (sigh...) tablets, the total number of shooters has actually increased over ten years ago. What else has increased is the number of people with phones, GoPros and even compact mirrorless cameras on hand-held gimbals shooting video. I don't mean that there are herds of videographers crowding the decks, but there are enough to be noticeable. A mystery behavior to me, but good on them anyway.

 

Away from cruising, I have noticed the mix changing in much the same way. At our granddaughter's skating events, dedicated cameras are very common and the number of hockey parents with "real" cameras at the grandson's games is on the rise.

 

A recent article on DPReview presented the views of the big names in the camera industry that sort of confirms what I am seeing. They describe a settling of the market with the number of people who are using dedicated camera equipment no longer dropping and a general increase in interest in video features. I really don't shoot video but I'm not one who pines for a stills camera without all that newfangled video stuff and that's evidently a good thing since the popularity of video virtually guarantees that every new camera will be a hybrid shooter. The new video-centric vlogging cameras like the Sony ZV series are attracting "creators" wanting to step up from a phone and while specced towards video, take respectable stills. Another segment on the rise is lenses. Computer design and modern manufacturing has enabled even budget lens makers to create excellent optics. The brand-name lenses are showing up as mark II models that are better, smaller and lighter than their predecessors. Lens makers are turning out interesting models that color a little outside the lines of industry "standards". Sony's FE 20-70mm f/4 G adds a wider view to the standard middle zoom range and Sigma's 14mm F1.8 Art lens has become an astrophotographer's best friend. AI is a growing feature with computational focus tracking and image correction becoming common and better. Old computational tricks like auto-exposure and auto-white balance are more accurate and fast enough to keep up with the fastest burst shooting. 

 

Fantastic photographic equipment is more available, better and cheaper than ever!

(Ok...two out of three isn't bad.)

 

I say again, it's a great time to be a photographer!

 

Dave

Edited April 6, 2023 by pierces

[ChatKat in Ca.]

I too am a professional photographer.  I traveled with my cameras before I was encouraged to shoot professionally and Ive owned a studio for 18 years. I do mostly families, pets and commercial/editorial work. I took film photography in High School and always had a camera around, although not professionally.  I started with my mom's Kodak Brownie. Anyway, My husband and I used travel as our photography fix. 

 

I came from a film background but my first digital camera went with me on a cruise 20 years ago to Canada and New England.  In Nova Scotia, I was so excited to go to Peggy's Cove.  Got out there and forgot the battery.  Bought a Kodak disposable Film Camera so I had only 24 frames. Those images are still some of my favorite travel  images.  It's not the camera so much as your eye and your technical ability.  after that, I learned to always have 3 batteries - one in camera, one in reserve and one on the charger.

 

I have used several compact cameras for travel and  I've carried multiple bodies and lenses and for quite a few years but I got "camera weary" and bought a Tamron 28-300 3.5. for my Canon bodies.  I love that lens for my personal stuff. I had a long lens fail in Alaska while Whale watching and then I went again a few years back with a full case of glass.

My last cruise (in October) I didn't take one photo but the cruise before was intense to the British Isles and Iceland and I brought a full kit.

 

I think each person and each trip are unique. The bottom line is to enjoy your trip.  If I am traveling with a camera to my face most of the time, I will certainly miss some travel moments that will be priceless.

 

 

[Midmar Mile]

I'm going on a cruise to the Arctic circle in June. I am very keen to get a time lapse of the sun setting and rising but staying above the horizon. Any ideas of how to counter the rise and fall of the ship?

[quack2]

I'm heading to Alaska on a 7-day cruise in June.  I'm planning to take my iphone, my Canon R5, an RF 24-240 (for walking around), an RF 16mm and an RF 100-400 for whale watching.  I'm probably going to leave my beloved, but big and heavy, Tamron 150-600 at home.

 

Any thoughts?