NCL Dawn ~ 6/12-6/19 Review = AWESOME!!!!!

[greenie]

Aw, 2Cruise--those are such great pictures! Y'all looked like you had SO MUCH fun. Your children are absolutely adorable! I hope I get to meet you guys on the WottaHoot Toot! Thanks for the mini review. :)

[NY'er]

We were up in 11118. It was an amazing week, we can not possibly imagine a better vacation/honeymoon. I would just be repeating what everyone else said if I kept typing, but it really was a fantastic trip. I have posted photos on our site, and please feel free to check them out if you like...they are all from our cruise on the Dawn.

 

 
http://www.mikelynaugh.com/wedding/Honeymoon/index1.html

 

Mike

[Cosmopolitan]

We were up in 11118. It was an amazing week' date=' we can not possibly imagine a better vacation/honeymoon. I would just be repeating what everyone else said if I kept typing, but it really was a fantastic trip. I have posted photos on our site, and please feel free to check them out if you like...they are all from our cruise on the Dawn.

 

 
http://www.mikelynaugh.com/wedding/Honeymoon/index1.html

 

Mike

 

So happy to hear you enjoyed the Dawn.

Beautiful pictures!

Beautiful couple!

Thanks for sharing:)

[greenie]

We were up in 11118. It was an amazing week' date=' we can not possibly imagine a better vacation/honeymoon. I would just be repeating what everyone else said if I kept typing, but it really was a fantastic trip. I have posted photos on our site, and please feel free to check them out if you like...they are all from our cruise on the Dawn.

 

 
http://www.mikelynaugh.com/wedding/Honeymoon/index1.html

 

Mike

 

Mike, you and Kristie look PERFECT together!

:) Congrats and much happiness to you both. I loved those pictures--truly awesome. I'm so glad the Dawn helped to make your honeymoon so wonderful!

[debjo]

For NY'er...

You two make a sweet couple...congratulations! Here's hoping you have many many more cruises together...don't wait until your 25th anniversary like we did!

 

Loved your pictures...it was nice to see some of KSC with blue skies...it rained when we were there in 2004. Your inside pictures of the DAWn are fantastic...do you have a wide-angle lens? I haven't ever taken any pictures of the atrium from the internet cafe...guess you found the place to get the best over-all atrium views! I'm happy to see that there is someone who takes as many pictures as I do...perhaps more. I have to say I'm a bit jealous of all the blue skies and sunshine that you had...but then again I'm happy your honeymoon was blessed with such beautiful weather.

 

After seeing your GSC shots, I'm convinced that you are a professional photographer...if you aren't...you should be! I sat for 45 minutes trying to get a picture of the seagulls in flight...you lucky duck...you got a great one!

 

Every now and then I kept thinking that I was looking at some of my pictures, as we both took some of our "artsy" shots in Atlantis from the same places...hard to take a bad picture there!

 

Thanks so much for sharing your special honeymoon cruise in pictures with us.

 

Debjo

[NY'er]

Thank you guys very much for all the nice posts. Debjo, I am a professional photographer actually, I just did 4 years in DC covering the President (my main site, www.mikelynaugh.com), but moved to Buffalo for the wedding and to let my wife finish her job (she works doing cancer research). We will be going back to DC in February so I can pick up where I left off and she will be (hopefully) transferring to NIH to continue her research there.

 

As for the wide angle, believe it or not, I did not take any of my big gear on the trip. All those photos were taken with my $160 Nikon Coolpix 3200 digital camera. It really takes amazing shots. I wanted to bring my nice gear, but after some of the photos I have been getting with that Nikon I decided to just brigh that along and give my shoulder a rest from my 30 lb camera bag :P

 

I did take a lot of photos, those are just the highlights, I actually took 673 photos and 77 videos with that Nikon. You can see some nice videos of the Dawn on our honeymoon site too if you go to the main page, www.mikelynaugh.com/wedding/honeymoon.htm Some of them are really large files though and will take a while to load, but some of them are really cool.

 

Thank you again to all you guys for wishing us luck with our marriage and don't worry, we won't wait 25 years....we want to get back out there again on the Dawn before Colin switches ships and we can't find him :)

 

Mike

[debjo]

For Mike...

I'm far from a "professional" photographer and so is my husband, but he has that 30 lb. camera bag that he lugs around, in addition to his camcorder. On our Pacific Princess cruise, he was asked several times if he worked for CNN! I, on the other hand, carry my little Hewlett-Packard 630 digital camera that doubles as my photo-log of our cruises. Last year between our DAWN & MAJESTY cruises (3 weeks apart), I managed to take 1368 pictures (that I still haven't finished "processing")!

 

Thanks for the tip on your Nikon camera...who would have thought that such an affordable camera would take such magnificent pictures...but then again, you are a professional and could probably make any camera perform at peek!

 

Best of luck to you both with your transition back to DC and your very important jobs!

 

Debjo

[Suesan Jean]

First, CONGRATULATION'S on your Wedding!!! I wish you much happiness, good health, Love AND Laughter for many, many, many years to come!!!:)

 

Second, THANK YOU SO MUCH for sharing those FABULOUS PICTURES with us!! You and your lovely Bride seemed to have had a GRAND Time!!! (By the way,You have a super camera!!)

 

Suesan:) :) :)

[jrose529]

Mike,

What fabulous pictures! :D Thank you so much for sharing your honeymoon with all of us. Your website is impressive. Congratulations to you and your beautiful wife.

[tony@stanton19.freeserve.]

Thank you guys very much for all the nice posts. Debjo' date=' I am a professional photographer actually, I just did 4 years in DC covering the President (my main site, www.mikelynaugh.com), but moved to Buffalo for the wedding and to let my wife finish her job (she works doing cancer research). We will be going back to DC in February so I can pick up where I left off and she will be (hopefully) transferring to NIH to continue her research there.

 

As for the wide angle, believe it or not, I did not take any of my big gear on the trip. All those photos were taken with my $160 Nikon Coolpix 3200 digital camera. It really takes amazing shots. I wanted to bring my nice gear, but after some of the photos I have been getting with that Nikon I decided to just brigh that along and give my shoulder a rest from my 30 lb camera bag :P

 

I did take a lot of photos, those are just the highlights, I actually took 673 photos and 77 videos with that Nikon. You can see some nice videos of the Dawn on our honeymoon site too if you go to the main page, www.mikelynaugh.com/wedding/honeymoon.htm Some of them are really large files though and will take a while to load, but some of them are really cool.

 

Thank you again to all you guys for wishing us luck with our marriage and don't worry, we won't wait 25 years....we want to get back out there again on the Dawn before Colin switches ships and we can't find him :)

 

Mike

 

Great pics, thanks for posting. I was particularly interested in them as we are in the BA cabin over the hallway on the same deck as you. Did the overhang on the balcony ceiling block the sun at all ?

 

Although I am no professional photographer, I am also amazed at the capacity of modern cameras to take such a high quality picture, (usually despite my efforts, rather than because of them). Our pictures in Glacier Bay were awesome, just shows what good scenery and plenty of natural light can do. They were taken on a 2.0MP Olympus C-2 which was the entry level digital a few years back. I have now followed the trend to go smaller and have bought a Pentax Optio S5i . It is amazingly small and feature packed and I only hope it will turn out pics as good as the trusty old Olympus. Like the tip of using the camera to take some video, that will come in useful when not carrying the Camcorder around (again gone small with a Sony)

Sometimes you have to remind yourself that you're on holiday, not a photo shoot and I guess that was your reason to leave the daytime job gear at home and slip a camera in the pocket.

 

Loved your web site. I always am impressed at people that can get good pics of fighter aircraft. They move so fast and all I ever seem to get is a dot against the sky, with no detail of the underneath........ but we digress.

 

Best of luck to you and your new wife, my wife and I both work at the Christie Hospital in Manchester, Kristie may have heard of it.

[Snorkelfan]

Congrats on your wedding - we just celebrated 30 years! We were probablyon the same KSC Up Close tour - I have dsome of the same pictures...just not as well done. The seagull picture WAS awesome!!!!

[2Cruise4Ever]

Welcome back!

 

Glad you had a great time:) - can't wait for your reviews.

 

Plan your next cruise, it helps get you through the depression;)

 

Cosmo ~ thought you'd be interested in this little tidbit: I have found a new favorite drink (used to be Gin and Tonic): it's now the Cosmopolitan!!!! I tasted my first one at the martini clinic on the Dawn and I LOVE IT!!!!!

[BarbCT605]

2Cruise:

 

Welcome to the "I love Cosmopolitans and the Dawn -- not necessarily in that order" club!

[NY'er]

I want to thank everyone again for your nice emails about our marriage and my photos.

 

Tony, as for the balcony blocking the sun, kinda I guess. We were on the right side of the ship (starboard I think? still learning that stuff :P), and in the mornings and until around 2pm or so we didn't have direct sunlight, so we could sit out on the balcony in shade. As for after that, it would shine right into our cabin and light us up. On the way back to NYC, we got it directly in the mornings with sunrises....so we closed the curtain and you would never know it with how thick they are.....the curtains did a great job in blocking the sun when we didn't want it.

 

It really is amazing how good "point and shoot" type cameras have gotten. There were a few times that I had to retake photos or change modes to make something work, but for the most part it just did it on it's own. It really is great not having to lug around big gear for a fun trip like that. As for the fighter aircraft, obviously that required a bit fancier camera gear :) I have been photographing the military since '91 and even got to go out on the Enterprise and photograph flight operations in '97. The biggest thing with photographing flight....airshows, etc. is to get a long enough lens (I started with a 75-300mm lens, and bought a $125 teleconverter with increased my lens to a 500mm). When they are coming by, pan with them and it helps you keep them sharp....it takes practice, but it's not hard when you get tight on them like that and can fill the frame. Thanks for the compliments on my shots.

 

I did ask Kristie if she had heard of Christie Hospital, and she has. You guys must do quite well there to take the kind of cruises you do :)

 

Snorklefan, thanks for the compliments on the seagul shot....and congratulations on the 30 years! We had to have seen you guys if you were there, I am curious now.

 

Thank you again to everyone for your really nice posts about us and our photos!

 

Mike

[shoreguy]

Mike

 

I hate you :eek: You just cost me $250. I have been hauling around the backpact with the D70. I had an old Fuji 2.0 that was great for natural light snaps but poor in low light and it only captures silent movies.

 

Picked up a new camera yesterday or should I say TWO. Warning to others the current low price Coolpic models you will see around are the 4600 and 5600. Since it was only for snaps and quick video clips I brought home the 4M 4600.

 

Tried it out. It only takes silent movies !!!!! Thank goodness I did not do my usual internet price shop to save $20. This was an impluse buy. Back to the local store and exchange the now used camera with no problem.

 

4 movie modes on the box does not mean movies with sound.

 

Mike thank you posting the link. Great pictures that you both will have of a special trip. I loved the website layout - simple and easy to enjoy

[Snorkelfan]

2Cruise - I saw you knockin' down those cosmos at the martini clinic - at least Gede converted you!!! Good for you...already booking 10/2005 and the Woota Hoot - you really wanted to meet those guys! I'm jealous but know you will enjoy!!!!

[tony@stanton19.freeserve.]

I want to thank everyone again for your nice emails about our marriage and my photos.

 

Tony' date=' as for the balcony blocking the sun, kinda I guess. We were on the right side of the ship (starboard I think? still learning that stuff :P), and in the mornings and until around 2pm or so we didn't have direct sunlight, so we could sit out on the balcony in shade. As for after that, it would shine right into our cabin and light us up. On the way back to NYC, we got it directly in the mornings with sunrises....so we closed the curtain and you would never know it with how thick they are.....the curtains did a great job in blocking the sun when we didn't want it.

 

It really is amazing how good "point and shoot" type cameras have gotten. There were a few times that I had to retake photos or change modes to make something work, but for the most part it just did it on it's own. It really is great not having to lug around big gear for a fun trip like that. As for the fighter aircraft, obviously that required a bit fancier camera gear :) I have been photographing the military since '91 and even got to go out on the Enterprise and photograph flight operations in '97. The biggest thing with photographing flight....airshows, etc. is to get a long enough lens (I started with a 75-300mm lens, and bought a $125 teleconverter with increased my lens to a 500mm). When they are coming by, pan with them and it helps you keep them sharp....it takes practice, but it's not hard when you get tight on them like that and can fill the frame. Thanks for the compliments on my shots.

 

I did ask Kristie if she had heard of Christie Hospital, and she has. You guys must do quite well there to take the kind of cruises you do :)

 

Snorklefan, thanks for the compliments on the seagul shot....and congratulations on the 30 years! We had to have seen you guys if you were there, I am curious now.

 

Thank you again to everyone for your really nice posts about us and our photos!

 

Mike[/quote']

 

Mike,

Thanks for the info re the balcony. We are on the other side so we will get AM sun, which will suit our UK jet lag.;) On the return to NYC, we will get PM sun which will suit our late night cruise bar habits:cool:.

Thanks for the info re the fighters, will not be taking your advice though, I bought an OM10 SLR years ago but I am strictly a pocket size convert now.

Have done med cover for the RIAT airshows at Fairford a couple of time and have seen all the aviation fans with their long lenses by the runway. I will stick to admiring their technical expertise.

 

Wendy and I have each got over thirty years service at the Christie and are fortunate to be in reasonable positions.

The cruises that we have done, however whilst really good value for money, are normally budget package holiday ones, which cost little more than a decent beach hotel holiday in the Mediterranean.

These two NCL ones are pushing the boat out though.

Since Sept 11, I have wanted to come and visit New York and the thought of sailing out out of NY harbour is the best reason to make that wish happen

 

Tony

[smeyer418]

Mike

 

I hate you :eek: You just cost me $250. I have been hauling around the backpact with the D70. I had an old Fuji 2.0 that was great for natural light snaps but poor in low light and it only captures silent movies.

 

Picked up a new camera yesterday or should I say TWO. Warning to others the current low price Coolpic models you will see around are the 4600 and 5600. Since it was only for snaps and quick video clips I brought home the 4M 4600.

 

Tried it out. It only takes silent movies !!!!! Thank goodness I did not do my usual internet price shop to save $20. This was an impluse buy. Back to the local store and exchange the now used camera with no problem.

 

4 movie modes on the box does not mean movies with sound.

 

Mike thank you posting the link. Great pictures that you both will have of a special trip. I loved the website layout - simple and easy to enjoy

 

 

LOL I bought a canon a75 with sound...makes nice sound clips....I had a bad experience with a nikon coolpix...

[Cosmopolitan]

Cosmo ~ thought you'd be interested in this little tidbit: I have found a new favorite drink (used to be Gin and Tonic): it's now the Cosmopolitan!!!! I tasted my first one at the martini clinic on the Dawn and I LOVE IT!!!!!

 

That's where my "Cosmopolitan" came from! It was after my first Dawn cruise last year! Too funny!

 

I was a "Classic Martini" BEFORE the kids. Then I was an old Gin and Tonic gal AFTER the kids...less potent!

 

Now, kids in college and beyond....back to the Martinis after Gede and the Dawn.

 

Though, I must admit, I can't decide if the Paradise or the Appletini come in second. That was my "first" Cosmo also. So many martinis....so little time!

 

Your children are beautiful....enjoy EVERY moment with them (I can see that you are) the time goes so fast!

 

Book your next cruise....it help's you get through everything!:)

[Cosmopolitan]

2Cruise:

 

Welcome to the "I love Cosmopolitans and the Dawn -- not necessarily in that order" club!

 

Hey...watch it...YES....in that order;)

[NY'er]

Does anyone here remember the website address for the company that makes that model? I meant to take a photo of the address and forgot. Thank in advance!

 

Mike

[moeesha]

I just wanted to chime in that we enjoyed meeting everyone from the roll call and that we DID see Logcabin one more time....out on his balcony!!! LOL!!!

 

We had such a great time from comedy napkin folding to the sushi demo, it was wonderful and we loved the ship!!

 

I'll post more when I have time but again. Nice to meet all of you.

 

An snorklefan....we watched Stu on TV. what a guy!!!!