Photos

[Pickels]

on the Reflection now, if you are thinking about getting one of the photography packages,DON’T, no more pictures getting off the ship, no more pictures at dinner, (which some people objected to ), no more pictures at the pool!  They only have one setup with a green background which they will digitally complete.  And this setup is only for a certain time slot.  And BTW…no more prints!

[Cruise a holic]

20 minutes ago, Pickels said:

on the Reflection now, if you are thinking about getting one of the photography packages,DON’T, no more pictures getting off the ship, no more pictures at dinner, (which some people objected to ), no more pictures at the pool!  They only have one setup with a green background which they will digitally complete.  And this setup is only for a certain time slot.  And BTW…no more prints!

We used to enjoy the picture packages.  Celebrity got cheap.  Will not do anymore

[Brews'n'Cruise]

Thanks for posting this as I was wondering what the current situation was. We have booked the photo package on every cruise we've been on in the past, but it looks like we will give it a miss on our Reflection cruise next month.

 

Andy.

[paulh84]

I'm shocked that they still offer them at all, even the scaled back offering. This is a total relic from the past.I can't imagine many people want the prom pose photos anymore. 

[dcbiker97]

This is one cutback that I’m glad to hear of.   We always hated being interrupted at dinner to what would have been an awful photo with half eaten food in it.  Also I’m glad there are no more prints. That was such a waste of resources.  

[mandream]

We found exactly the same thing on Solstice in December.

 

I had pre-purchased the unlimited package as we always do and at the end of the cruise had only 2 photos.  I mentioned my disappointment with the changes to the photo manager and he refunded my package.

 

Too bad.  We always travel with our kids and have a collection of really good pictures from the past.  

 

Mike

[tfred]

14 hours ago, Cruise a holic said:

We used to enjoy the picture packages.  Celebrity got cheap.  Will not do anymore

sorry - not X that runs it.  They use an outside vendor to run it and give X a major cut of the gross

[Cruise a holic]

Yes I know.  Have done all inclusive photos for years- but the rates climbing so high- no longer worth it- to me- the photographers used to be creative and available- now- seem to be just doing their job.  Stick to my good phone camera.

Edited February 23, 2023 by Cruise a holic

[Ray_Ray]

It makes me sad to hear no more prints. One of my favorite past times on cruises was looking at other people's pictures. 

[davekathy]

The so called photographers also need to stay out of the dining venues. 

Edited February 23, 2023 by davekathy

[zitsky]

9 minutes ago, davekathy said:

The so called photographers also need to stay out of the dining venues. 

Hey!  I paid $10 for the picture of me eating a hamburger!

 

I guess this means no more photos in the bathroom?  🙂

[davekathy]

5 minutes ago, zitsky said:

Hey!  I paid $10 for the picture of me eating a hamburger!

 

I guess this means no more photos in the bathroom?  🙂

Glad I don't cruise when you do. 🤣

[C-Dragons]

10 minutes ago, davekathy said:

Glad I don't cruise when you do. 🤣

I wondered what cruise line they were sailing. 😳

[davekathy]

7 minutes ago, C-Dragons said:

I wondered what cruise line they were sailing. 😳

Inquiring minds what to know. 🤔

[zitsky]

25 minutes ago, davekathy said:

Inquiring minds what to know. 🤔

 

What?  You people don't take pictures in the bathroom?  What a bunch of weirdos.

[C-Dragons]

29 minutes ago, davekathy said:

Inquiring minds what to know. 🤔

On second thought, maybe not! 😉

[jwlane]

19 hours ago, mandream said:

at the end of the cruise had only 2 photos. 

By our experience, unless you put yourself in front of the camera, you will have few (if any) photos.

[RTR 21-0]

Enjoy the photos on occasion and can appreciate cruise lines going digital.  My favs from our past cruises were at the various ports.  Does Celebrity do that?  

[mahdnc]

15 minutes ago, RTR 21-0 said:

Enjoy the photos on occasion and can appreciate cruise lines going digital.  My favs from our past cruises were at the various ports.  Does Celebrity do that?  

 

Yes, during our Oct/Nov TA cruise, there was a photographer standing  by the ship at each of our ports (except disembarkation of course).

[Host Anne]

Celebrity not printing out photos any longer is a major improvement.  So much wasted paper over the years for all the guests who did not purchase them.  But just because they aren't printing them out doesn't mean you can't obtain a print.  You can.....there are digital kiosks where you can order your prints unless they removed these since we sailed in November This process makes so much more sense.  You can review all the photos shipboard photographers take and then only print what you like.

 

I take a LOT of photos so I always respected that they had a job to do....as long as they didn't interrupt us while we were eating dinner.  With all the cell photos today and better quality photos we can take ourselves, it's hard to justify the costs they charge.  I think they'd sell a lot more if prices were reasonable.  

[tfred]

6 minutes ago, Host Anne said:

Celebrity not printing out photos any longer is a major improvement.  So much wasted paper over the years for all the guests who did not purchase them.  But just because they aren't printing them out doesn't mean you can't obtain a print.  You can.....there are digital kiosks where you can order your prints unless they removed these since we sailed in November This process makes so much more sense.  You can review all the photos shipboard photographers take and then only print what you like.

 

I take a LOT of photos so I always respected that they had a job to do....as long as they didn't interrupt us while we were eating dinner.  With all the cell photos today and better quality photos we can take ourselves, it's hard to justify the costs they charge.  I think they'd sell a lot more if prices were reasonable.  

the prices are what they are because of the cut taken by the cruise line from the onboard concessionaire.  At on time the cruise line cut was 75% of the sale,  So with a $20 picture, $15 went to the cruise line and only $5 went to the photo company 

 

Photo used to be a big moneymaker, now, not so much.  The trend is digital files, not hard copy prints.  That is true in any photography these days   Hard copy is basically gone.  

[NMTraveller]

The green screens are a no go for us with the photo packages.  Much fewer poses and chances for a great picture.

[Fly and Sail]

On 2/23/2023 at 5:35 AM, dcbiker97 said:

This is one cutback that I’m glad to hear of.   We always hated being interrupted at dinner to what would have been an awful photo with half eaten food in it.  Also I’m glad there are no more prints. That was such a waste of resources.  

 

Agree 100%. I always hated dinner table pictures and aside from a waste of resources, I also thought it was a huge privacy issue to exhibit all the prints (and I often overheard many unflattering comments about other passengers' pics). Much better now that you can only access them with your key card. But can you still order those pictures you like printed?

 

Glad I get the free photo package through my Amethyst Casino tier. I have to admit the pictures the photographers take turn out much better than amateur shots with a cellphone camera. And the guys are good fun if you keep interacting with them (many people don't like their pictures taken anymore for aforementioned reasons). Especially those sailings with lots of great landscapes.

[HskrCrsr]

We were on Christmas and New Year's B2B cruises on Reflection a few months ago and had great fun with these photos. I managed to get the $50 unlimited digital & prints package and made good use of it. In addition to the standard shots, we got several pictures with props borrowed from around the ship - decorations for the NYE party, chairs from the lounge, centerpieces, hand sanitizer dispensers, "watch your step" signs, bartenders, some of the entertainment staff (Ozzy, DJ Jammin),  the photographer herself, and maracas from one of the ports, along with various poses with the life-changing prizes from trivia and other games. We also got shots off the ship at some of the ports and a few around the ship when we found a roving photographer. For us, this added greatly to our enjoyment of the cruise, and I still grin when I look at the print I have in my office. And we really wanted the photographer present to get a picture with the sommelier that vastly improved our dining experience. To each his/her own, I suppose.

 

As for the prints being a waste of paper or resources, I'm not sure a cruise ship is the proper context to be critical of extra prints going to waste. It seems to me there are far worse things being wasted or needlessly consumed on a cruise.