TheOldBear

New article posted at USNI Proceedings - When a Big Ocean gets Small

I'm a little biased - but I would recommend micro 4/3 cameras just for the reduction in body & lens size. The image quality is comparable to APS-C form factor SLR's - but both the image stabilization and electronic viewfinder offer advantages over a typical SLR setup.

The blogger / photographer Robin Wong has an overview of the OMD 10 mark2 - his site also features street photography in and around Kula Lampour

Check with sites like lensrentals and borrowlenses - they may have a package with body & lenses [OMD EM5 mark 2; Olympus Pro 12-100 f4 would make a nice walk around combo]

One place to start is right here.

There is a New Cruisers set of forums, including a fairly active First Time Cruisers forum.

There is also a collection of articles, suggestions and reviews in a First Time Cruisers section

Another link to a story and discussion [some knowledge posters] is at the US Naval Institute 'news' site

https://news.usni.org/2017/06/16/destroyer-uss-fitzgerald-collides-japanese-merchant-ship

I love linear polarisers over circulars but they don't work too well with most newer AF systems.

I think it's a question of phase detect vs contrast detect auto focus.

SLR cameras [and Sony 'SLT' cameras] use phase detect focus - these may give inconsistent results with linear polarizers, so circular polarizers are preferred.

Most fixed lens and mirrorless cameras use contrast detect - and that will work with either style of polarizer

There are, as always, exceptions. Some high end mirrorless cameras [sony A9, Olympus EM1 mark II] have on sensor phase detect elements.

First time cruising in August with a friend. We are doing Western Caribbean with Royal Caribbean.

 

One of the stops is Grand Cayman where we would love a half day catamaran trip but the company we have looked into (sail with friends) only offers private charters.

Is it difficult to find other people before the cruise that would want to join in?

Or would it be advisable just to find something else where we don't have to find other people to join us?

(We are not keen on the ship offered tours just from bad reviews of overcrowding).

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

See if you cruise has an active 'roll call'.

One of the uses of the roll call forums is to arrange shared excursions and tours.

Also, take a look in the 'ports of call' for the stops your cruise is scheduled to make - there may be some comments relating to DIY excursions and third party [not ship sponsored] excursions.

I did a search on the forums & the web and this thread contains the most recent updates

There were some threads noting that the 'environmentally sensitive' wet cleaning process left much to be desired for some garments.

I wonder why this thread was moved to the 'Mediterranean Ports' board, from its original correct placing on the Western Europe board? Does the moderator believe Cherbourg to be in the Med?

It just Cruse Critic geography ;-)

If you look at the forum 'bread crumb' trail. you will see that 'France Ports' is below 'Mediterranean - Eastern and Western'

The photography site DPreview has a 'roundup' comparison article of Enthusiast Long Zoom Cameras

You may find that a useful starting place.

I would want a camera with a viewfinder - so that would exclude the Canon, unless the accessory viewfinder was included.

Since this is a big ticket item, you could consider renting the camera for the cruise - sites like 'lensrentals.com' and 'borrowlenses.com' have the Panasonic and Sony cameras in their inventory - about $80/week. I think the rental fee may be [partially] be used for purchase [check each site's terms and conditions].

I think I'm going to try 500px.com this weekend - the prompting for this a photo contest with some Olympus cameras as the prizes. ;p

Yes I am one of those affected received an e-mail today from Princess. Unfortunately cannot check bank account online because since the Windows 10 update this week HSBC online banking doesn't work and they closed my local branch recently because everybody is using online banking except those using Microsoft Edge as a browser. Means I have to go over 8 miles to now my nearest HSBC to check my account. Time for a new bank account with another company I think.

Wouldn't it be simpler to just install Firefox or Chrome?

Overlord tours also has a bus tour option [tour 9B] from either Cherbourg or Le Harve - apparently this tour is new this year.

There would be more discussion of this in the France ports of call forum

On Cunard, the late seating is 8:30 - and that's what we have selected.

on anthem that means 815 but my guess is most other ships are around that time.

 

do you normally eat that late at home

Not when I need to get up at 6AM the next day - that would be a typical work day.

On vacations dinner tends to be later - as does wakeup / breakfast times

what time do you go to bed after your 8pm dinner

On a cruise? Sometime between midnight and 2 AM [after dancing or a post dinner show - and hopefully some interesting conversations]

what time is your lunch

That varies - on a cruise that is most typically a mid morning brunch.

i know if i waited from around noon to 8 my ribs would be showing and my stomach not very happy. also at home im usually in bed 9 or 10 so eating at 8 would just be crazy. admittedly on a cruise my time is not normally 9 but probably 11 would be normal. cant imagine pigging out on buffet etc then going to bed. and yes on a cruise you must eat a lot, its the rules!

We may go to the 'afternoon Tea' or the buffet to fill in the gaps - but we try to avoid 'pigging out' ;p

So far we have not experienced the frequently reported behavior of salt air shrinking clothing during a cruise.

so do all you late people have later lunches or stay up late etc. i see this frequently on tv shows and i always think when they said lets meet for dinner at 7 or 8 that that is crazy.

Hey all,

 

We will be going on our first cruise in September on Carnival Triumph. However, we are not sure whether we should purchase travel insurance, and if we should, through who. Carnival offers their own when purchasing tickets, but I wasn't sure there weren't better options.

 

Do you guys have any advice for us?

 

Thanks!

The short answer is yes - buy travel insurance.

For the longer answer, see the Cruise / Travel Insurance forum http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=635

Welcome aboard - now take some time to breathe ;-)

You may want to check the Frequently Asked Questions [FAQ] section of MSC's web site, and also visit the MSC section of the Cruise Critic boards.

:ship:(yn):confused::cool::') My husband and I are taking our dream vacation , it is our honey moon/ 24th wedding Anniversary. We are really excited and nervous at the same time neither one of us have ever been to Florida , taken a cruise, went through a toll booth so so many first things for us . We are going on MSC in Sept. so I have a couple of questions , 1. does anyone have suggestions of a certain type of power strip to take

What & how many devices will you need to have plugged in at once?

Check the MSC FAQ about your cabin - there may be both 110 volt american style sockets and some sort of european style. Many chargers for devices can handle both voltages with a plug adapter.

If you need a power strip - most 'surge protectors' actually create a safety hazard on shipboard electrical systems.

, 2. Does MSC allow for a small fan ,

Fans are typically allowed - most heat generating appliances [irons, steamers] are forbidden, again check the MSC FAQ list.

3. do they allow you take your own pillows and blanket . I apologize for the silly questions but thank you in advance for any help . Also hope to possiably meet some new people .

Over on DP Review they have a few 'buyers guide' comparison reviews, in different categories - these are links to

• Compact Enthusiast Zoom cameras
  
• Enthusiast long zoom cameras
  

My 'sight unseen' recommendation would be for the Panasonic FZ1000 - this is a fixed lens [very nice lens] bridge camera with a large sensor .

Page 10 of the owners manual indicates the viewfinder button is marked as #27 on the diagram - its the button closest to the viewfinder.

What are the P, S, A and M used for?

These are modes when you want to take direct control or override the camera's automatic operation - it's telling the automatic features to 'pull over and let me drive' when you think you can do better.

• P - less intelligent automatic
  
• S - pick shutter speed, camera picks aperture
  
• A - pick aperture, camera picks shutter speed
  
• M - pick both, fully manual operation
  

There is no reason to use these modes until you have the experience to say 'the camera will probably not take the picture the way I want it'.

 

Also found the button that flips up the flash but what mode do you have to be in for the flash to actually have the flash, flash?

In the IA [intelligent auto] and some of the scene modes [e,g, portrait, night portrait] the flash will fire when the camera thinks is is just too dark, or the backlighting is too strong.

The flash is fairly short range - less than 20 feet.

 

and it has like a eye piece you can look through, I assumed that is used when it's real bright out and can't see the screen good....but how do you switch over to that so something in the eye finder is showing something, right now ir always seems to be black.

The viewfinder is your friend.

You can use it when taking pictures where you cannot even see the back screen [on my FZ-50 I tend to flip the screen closed against the back of the camera and use the viewfinder for 99% of shots]

The viewfinder also lets you support the camera closer to your body, and use your head to make fine adjustments - even with the image stabilization this is most helpful with the telephoto [narrow angle] side of the zoom range.

I tend to use the screen mostly just to review photos - that 1% of the time I use it to frame photos when using the viewfinder is awkward .

 

Jimbo:)

Ok I just picked up a Panasonic Lumix DMC FZ70 for $140

Now i need a crash course in how to get the best pictures from it.

I have about 25 days to learn the best setting and so forth.

Anyone want to lead me the way?

Jimbo:)

Here's a link to some tutorials on Panasonic's web site.

If you have an actual camera store nearby, they may have some classes [composition, an eye for available light, use of flash..]

Another resource is the Panasonic forum over on DP Review

There's always the 'take lots of pictures' option ;p

I'm assuming the camera has an 'intelligent auto' mode [indicated by a red square on my FZ-50] that tells the camera to 'use your best judgment'. This includes focusing on faces, recognizing backlighting, and even tracking some types of moving subjects with focus.

The movie modes will also have automatic features.

The auto modes will produce fine results for exposure & focus most of the time - the other modes [P, A, S, M] are for the times you want to override what the auto mode is likely to be doing.

Price aside....

You can get the same range with the Sony.

You said you get to 900mm with the Tamron, but you're applying the crop factor.

So it's a 600mm lens, effectively 900mm.

The Sony is a 400mm, effectively 600mm.

Now, outside of birding, there really is no use for a lens over 600mm.

 

But if you insist, the Sony lens is compatible with their teleconverters, getting you to 840-1200mm.

 

Or of course, just use the Canon version of the 150-600 with adapter.

Or on micro four thirds, use the Panasonic/Leica 100-400 zoom for 800 mm equivalent.

Lenses like that are to rent, not buy unless you make money using them daily [or just collected on Powerball ;-) ].

Which G-series? Most of the Panasonic interchangeable-lens cameras are significantly larger than the A6x00 series despite having the much smaller Micro 4/3 sensor.

 

Dave

Many of the MFT cameras are taller due to a viewfinder / pop up flash hump [for an example compare the Olympus OMD 10.2 vs the Sony A6300 at this link to camerasize.com, short link

]

I also did a comparison of the Panasonic Gx and GHx bodies - and they are much larger than my OM10. The Panasonic with a comparable form factor [viewfinder in the corner, no pop up flash] would be their G85 series - much smaller than the Sony.

There is a forthcoming book set on a cruise ship The Alexander Inheritance due to be released on July 4th. The publisher's web page for the book [with sample chapters] is at http://www.baen.com/the-alexander-inheritance.html

Cover Blurb:

Twice before, mysterious cosmic catastrophes have sent portions of the Earth across space and back in time—first, with the Grantville Disaster in West Virginia, and then again with a maximum security prison in southern Illinois.

Now, the planet is struck with yet another such cataclysm, whose direct impact falls upon the Queen of the Sea, a cruise ship in the Caribbean. When the convulsions subside, the crew and passengers of the ship discover that they have arrived in a new and frightening world.

They are in the Mediterranean now, not the Caribbean. Still worse, they discover that the disaster has sent them more than two thousand years back in time. Following the advice of an historian among the passengers, Marie Easley, they sail to Egypt—or, at least, where they hope Egypt will be.

Sure enough, Egypt is there—ruled over by Ptolemy, the founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty and one of Alexander the Great’s chief generals.

Alexander the Great, it turns out, died just two years ago. The western world has just entered what would become known as the Hellenistic Period of history, during which time Greek civilization would spread around the Mediterranean and beyond. But the first fifty years of the Hellenistic Period was the Age of Diadochi—the Time of the Successors—when Alexander’s empire would collapse into chaos. By the time the Successors finished their strife, every single member of Alexander’s dynasty would be murdered and only three of the generals who began that civil war would still be alive.

That is the new world in which the Queen of the Sea finds itself. Can Marie Easley and Captain Lars Flodden guide the crew and passengers through this cataclysm? Fortunately, they have some help: a young Norwegian ship’s officer who forms an attachment to Alexander’s widow; a French officer who is a champion pistol marksman; a canny Congressman from Utah—and, most of all, many people of the time who are drawn to a vision of the better world of the future.

Hello everyone ! First of all, i'm french so i apologize for my bad english. But still, i hope that some of you guys could help me.

 

I'm 27 years old, and just finished my studies in Québec, i just got my master degree and now planning to go back in france to get a job there. My parents were so happy that they bought me a ticket to cruise on QM2 this june 2017 as a gift (New york to Southampton).

 

I dont really know if i should be happy about this though (still it's too late to refuse, because the ticket has already been sold). I explain myself : It's the first time ever that i'm going to take a boat, furthermore its seems to be a really long trip (about 7 days).

 

I'm really worry about the weather in june on the atlantic ocean. Many friends told me that the sea is rough most of the time, and sometimes it's so rough that you think that the ship may sink, and it could happen !

The weather and sea conditions are not predictable more than a couple of days in advance.

Can the QM2 handle any kind of storm ? Is june a good month to cross the atlantic ocean ? Can you even sleep when the boat is pitching and rolling ? (don't know if theses words are accurate). Anyway i'm really wondering if a transatlantic crossing is a good idear for a new cruiser like me. I'm always thinking about the boat mooving in all ways, that you can't even walk on it. It's terrifying ! I know, i shouldn't be so anxious, because i've heard that atlantic crossing is a beautiful experience. But still, i'm really scared about this.

If you have your stateroom number, you can check the deck plans to check its location.

In general, rooms lower and closer to the center of the ship experience less motion - that would include the new single staterooms on decks 2 & 3. The rooms with the most would be the new deck 13 cabins, with everything else in between.

We selected a deck 5 'sheltered balcony' room for our TA roundtrip.

Again, i'm really sorry for my terrible english (lot of mistakes, and maybe wrong using of words). I hope you guys can understand what i'm saying though.

 

I wish to you all a beautiful day guys ! take care ! :)

That combination will be difficult to find - seemingly viewfinders are out of fashion these days.

As a baseline, take a look at the Panasonic ZS100 travel zoom camera [link is to DP Review's overview page for the camera]. This is a large sensor / large lens version of the travel zoom style camera.

The small sensor version is the Panasonic ZS60 - smaller, slower lens but a longer zoom range. Extreme zoom ranges are common with small sensor cameras - the lenses are easier to design and can be made fairly small.

While you are visiting the links for the Panasonic cameras, take a look at the feature search page - you will find multiple options from Panasonic, Sony, Nikon, Canon and other manufactures. The search results for that page have both 'bridge' cameras and more compact styles - the 'bridge' style cameras have more capable lenses, but will be bulkier.

If you have several Nikon lenses, than looking for an updated Nikon body is one option to consider. New bodies would have generally higher performance, and lots of features on their checklists. Are any of your existing lenses stabilized? [Nikon calls this 'VR' for 'vibration reduction']. Stabilization can reduce blur from your motion during long exposures.

If you are starting from scratch, you may want to look at some of the 'micro four thirds' cameras from Panasonic or Olympus. These are much smaller than comparable SLR camera bodies and lenses. All the Olympus, and recent Panasonic, cameras have in-body image stabilization. I recently purchased an Olympus OMD M10 Mk2 with the 'kit' lens [14-42R, and a kit level Olympus Zoom lens [40-150R]. The combo gives me a focal length range equivalent to 35mm 28-85 and 80-300 lenses in a lightweight package. There is an alternate 'pancake' kit lens that provides a pocketable camera option [for fairly big pockets ;-) ]

Another option is the 'bridge' camera - the P900 is fairly popular, and may be found in many 'big box' stores. I would recommend looking at the Panasonic FZ series cameras, in particular the FZ-300. [There are also some much larger FZ cameras, like my FZ-50 or the current FZ-1000 and FZ-2500 - these have larger sensors, and much larger lenses making them comparable in size to SLR cameras]