video vs photos for alaska cruise

[5arbusto]

Hi all-

 

I'll be cruising to Alaska this summer and really want to document the trip.  I plan to bring a gopro for video and a mirrorless sony for photography. 

 

my problem is that in my previous trips, I feel like i'm all over the place.  confused on when to video versus when to take pics.  when i get home, i would kick myself for missing good photo opportunities and for filming long drawn out frivolous segements.      

 

any suggestions out there what others have done?   any pattern, rhyme or reason on when you video versus when you take a pic?   I'm not trying to do a vlog or a fancy travel video.  the goal is to create a family vacation video with combo photography and video.  

 

I will be traveling to alaska... any suggestion on what's great to video vs photograph and vice versa?

 

thanks

 

 

[bronzey214]

Why not both? Depending on the ship that you are on, you can either take the suction cup mount + gooseneck for the GoPro and attach it to the glass partition, or you can take a "jaws" or magnetic mount for the GoPro.

Depending on the version GoPro you have, you can even schedule a video for a specific time. We did that when we were going to miss sunset due to dinner reservations.

[bronzey214]

One other note - and I have a really bad habit of recording too much too - most of the time, I find myself snipping out the long tedious sections of the video and just doing 15-20 seconds of pieces.

[pierces]

Don't forget that your mirrorless Sony is a pretty darn good video camera. I rarely do video, but when I do, it comes out far better than any video camera I have ever owned.

 

GoPro is good for wide, but sometimes a narrower angle is needed.

 

Tips: Set your camera to only enable the movie button when the dial is in movie mode and if you plan on doing more than short clips, pack extra memory. 

 

Dave

[Flyer55]

Pierces is right about using the Sony for narrower angles and the GoPro for wider angles.  If you have a Hero 9 or 10 look into a Volta grip and get the very reasonably priced GoPro Quik subscription to assist in editing.  Most wildlife is going to be too far away for the GoPro.  It would be good for clips going through the Inside Passage and any marine mammals surfing in the ship's wake.  The GoPro can be set to take short video clips.  Get familiar with the voice controls.  You can use head and body mounts for hiking or walking in the towns.  Make sure you have a long enough telephoto lens for wildlife.  I usually have a super-telephoto bridge camera for AK.

 

I found the GoPro didn't have a long enough focal length for whale watching, and on our last trip, a 70-300 FF lens was barely adequate.  Another time, 135mm was more than enough.  You never know.

 

Because you never know in AK, I've always taken a super-zoom bridge camera.  If you are going to Glacier Bay you will want one just to get some great pictures of the sea lion colonies.  The GoPro would be good for the time you spend in front of Marjorie Glacier or Hubbard if you are going there.  It is so hard to time the calving.  Don't forget to use burst mode around the Glaciers and moving wildlife.

 

If you have an a6XXX series Sony, the Tamron 18-300 is a good lens for AK.  I have a a6600 but also have a bunch of Canon lenses, so I bought the Sigma adapter, and all my EF lenses work perfectly regardless of  manufacturer. 

 

We are going to Norway this summer and I am hoping that the GoPro's time lapse feature, combined with the Volta grip, will capture more of what we will be missing while we sleep as we will be above the Arctic Circle.

 

 

 

 

]

[5arbusto]

thanks every body for all your input.  it's a great help. 

 

i just upgraded my gopro from a 7 to a 10 for the better stabilization.  i usually mount it on my backpack strap when i'm walking around so the go pro 10's improved stabilization and the horizontal leveling will be huge.   it's on a snap mount so i can easily take it off.  my personal goal for this trip to work harder to get purposeful better b-roll instead of just filming us walk.    i have to look into the volta grip to learn more about it.   

 

I'm opting to bring my crop sensor [a6400] sony instead of the full frame [sony a73] to get more reach.  My longest lens I'm bringing will be my sony apsc is 18-135  [27-202mm ff equivalent].  I was looking at some of the longer tele options [200+mm ff equiv] but they are just too big and heavy for me to lug around.... i have a bad neck.  

 

what do you use to protect your camera from the alaskan rain?  im thinking about getting the peak design shell primarily b/c they have openings for my camera strap.  i was thinking to have it cover my camera in light-medium rain while i have it on my strap.  I can then peal the back quickly in order to look and take a picture.  of course if it rains hard, i will just put my camera in the backpack.  

 

 

[pierces]

I have carried a couple of these in my camera bag for twenty years. Compact, effective and reusable to a point.

 

Amazon.com : OP/TECH USA 9001022 Rainsleeve - 2 Pack (Clear), small 8-inch : Electronics

 

Nothing fancy. They just work in the rain.

 

When rain is threatening, I pack a decent disposable poncho (not the dry-cleaning bag types). Easy to pop the camera out from under it for a shot when it is misting or if you are near a splash zone. 

 

Dave

Edited April 17, 2022 by pierces

[Flyer55]

17 hours ago, 5arbusto said:

thanks every body for all your input.  it's a great help. 

 

i just upgraded my gopro from a 7 to a 10 for the better stabilization.  i usually mount it on my backpack strap when i'm walking around so the go pro 10's improved stabilization and the horizontal leveling will be huge.   it's on a snap mount so i can easily take it off.  my personal goal for this trip to work harder to get purposeful better b-roll instead of just filming us walk.    i have to look into the volta grip to learn more about it.   

 

I'm opting to bring my crop sensor [a6400] sony instead of the full frame [sony a73] to get more reach.  My longest lens I'm bringing will be my sony apsc is 18-135  [27-202mm ff equivalent].  I was looking at some of the longer tele options [200+mm ff equiv] but they are just too big and heavy for me to lug around.... i have a bad neck.  

 

what do you use to protect your camera from the alaskan rain?  im thinking about getting the peak design shell primarily b/c they have openings for my camera strap.  i was thinking to have it cover my camera in light-medium rain while i have it on my strap.  I can then peal the back quickly in order to look and take a picture.  of course if it rains hard, i will just put my camera in the backpack.  

 

 

Have you considered one of the camera harnesses that take the pressure off your neck?  

 

I wish I knew what types of excursions and activities you have planned.  Most of our excursions have been on small boats from rafts to catamarans, and on the AK RR.  We haven't done any extensive hiking or excursions on the glaciers. Since you use a backpack I'm assuming that having an extra long lens would not be too heavy for those opportunities where you need one.  The lens you are taking for your a6400 is a tad over 11 oz.  The Tamron 18-400, which would give you a 600mm FF equivalent reach, is 21.5 oz. You can rent one for 15 days for $86 here:  https://www.lensrentals.com/rent/tamron-18-300mm-f3.5-6.3-di-iii-a-vc-vxd-for-sony-e.

 

I have a beautiful picture of a breaching whale on my family room wall because I had enough lens to get the enlargement it deserved. On our last trip, I also missed an opportunity to get a similarly spectacular shot of a pod of humpbacks bubble feeding because I didn't have enough lens and the crop didn't leave enough pixels for anything over 8x10.  It depends on what you want to do with that once in a lifetime shot if you are lucky enough to get it. If all you plan to do is view on you computer or TV screen, that Sony lens is all you need.  I understand your point about 3 pound lenses, and 5+ pounds if you adapt one of the Sigma 150-600mm monsters. 

 

As to your original post about when to take video and stills, I'd suggest filming the last minute or two of the approach to a place of interest, and then fill in the details with your a6400.  Don't forget that Hero 10 for ultra wide angle stills.  It is a 23 megapixel shooter.  Definitely have the GoPro (and an extra battery handy) getting video of any Glaciers your ship is visiting.  It took me several cruises before I was able to capture some of the calving.  It is worth the editing.

[tallgirl97]

I understand the conundrum. I started out in photography but now put more focus on my videos, but still struggle with trying to capture still images, too.

 

Generally speaking, I use video when there could be audio I also want to capture - reactions, conversations, etc. Or, something that requires the audio for context. You can pop a still image into a video if you capture a pretty landscape, but something that requires more integration is harder to integrate.

 

Of course, you can also pull still images from video - though they won’t be as high quality if you’re not filming at a pretty high resolution, and if you’re filming at a low fps rate to generate motion blur for video then those stills won’t likely be very crisp.

[tallgirl97]

*that requires more CONTEXT is harder to integrate.

[5arbusto]

@Flyer55- thanks for the suggestion regarding lens rental.   great idea since i won't need a long telephoto outside of this trip.    to answer your question regarding excursions... our plans so far include riding the skagway white pass train, a river tour, hiking around mendenhall glacier,  as well as hiking the trails up on mt roberts. 

 

I'm looking up youtube reviews on the tamron lens you suggested.   was that the lens you used on your trip to alaska?

 

of course the biggest disadvantage of the lens is the narrow aperature [f6.3] at the tele end.  did you find that really limiting with the cloudy alaska weather?  did you have to bump up iso a lot during those cloudy days?

 

  

 

Edited April 22, 2022 by 5arbusto

[Flyer55]

On 4/22/2022 at 1:19 AM, 5arbusto said:

@Flyer55- thanks for the suggestion regarding lens rental.   great idea since i won't need a long telephoto outside of this trip.    to answer your question regarding excursions... our plans so far include riding the skagway white pass train, a river tour, hiking around mendenhall glacier,  as well as hiking the trails up on mt roberts. 

 

I'm looking up youtube reviews on the tamron lens you suggested.   was that the lens you used on your trip to alaska?

 

of course the biggest disadvantage of the lens is the narrow aperature [f6.3] at the tele end.  did you find that really limiting with the cloudy alaska weather?  did you have to bump up iso a lot during those cloudy days?

 

  

 

I used the Tamron 16-300 on my last 3 AK cruises.  Had no problems with the lens not being fast enough. I used a d7300 last trip.  I've found that if I use the sports setting I don't have to constantly fiddle with any of the manual and semi-automatic settings.  The train is moving.  The rafts are moving.  You can take time  to compose your picture on the trails at Mendenhall and Mt. Roberts.  If you are going to Juneau don't miss out on the whale watching with Gasteneau.  

 

I will be taking a Tamron 18-400 to Norway in June.  So far, it has performed as well as the 16-300 but willl give me enough extra reach that I shouldn't have to take a long zoom bridge camera.

 

A hint for the train.  Use the observation platform on the back so you don't have to shoot through the glass windows.  Get a cap with a GoPro Mount and use that so you can take video or timewarp while you snap away.

 

If you run into a prolonged period of rainy, misty, foggy weather, it won't matter how fast the lens is.  Alaska is a dreary place under those conditions, and even a fast nifty fifty can't hide that, just capture it. Also most of you needs will be met in the 18-50mm range.   The train and the glaciers are where you need the long reach.  There should be seals and sea lions at some point and I have found I needed the 300mm focal length to get good pictures of them.   Otters always seem to be just out of camera range if you don't have a long zoom.

[Kitty Ellas Mom]

I don't have any special equipment (maybe it's time to upgrade....I too am going to Alaska!) but I constantly photo and video, mostly with my phone.  I tend to take short videos, 30 sec or less, and then photo at the same time.  I find that I look at both photo and video equally later on.  This is just for my enjoyment, not to post.  It's true that sometimes we video things that aren't interesting later, but you can always go back and delete, but can't video something that you didn't at the time.

[gottagoacruzn]

Hey guys, the first time in 84, when I went on a cruise, had a pocket camera, then the camera turned into a 35 mm, then to Alaska that was in 1990, an everybody on the ship had a camcorder, thought I wanted one, so a yr later had the cam corder, an you can guess that's all I took. Wanted to take videos then come home to watch them. Well several cruises went by, with the cam corder, an in 2006, was given a digital camera. Wondered then, what will I do with a digital, well saw some pictures on line, that somebody took, an thought I want to take pictures of Mexico. an took the digital with me, an from that cruise on, never bothered with the camcorder again. Forgot what fun it was to take pictures, course can take video now, last Nov took video on the Navigator ots, but still had more fun take pictures.

[pengu1n]

I don't take much video, but the times I decide to is usually because I want to capture something that a still photo wouldn't do justice to. For example, the bartenders doing tricks/flair, the cruise ships having a horn blowing battle (not much to see in a video either, but imagine the photo!), a clip of dancers, the ice carver, a pan of the glacier, etc. Most clips are short, under a minute, because I'll never watch hours of home videos and neither will anyone else.