Photo ops on ship

[Txcruiser82]

So i have been on 2 cruises so far. The first was the wife and i honeymoon. We barely took any cruise photos. Pur second trip however, we went crazy. We spent almost the same as alcohol as pics. Imo, the pictures taken on the ship by workers are outrageous. Anyone feel the same? We are going on a 14 day cruise Jan. 2019, so we will definitely NOT be taking any pictures except of our own. Lol

[rmf11699]

Agree.

[springs741]

But you purchased the photos. By purchasing you acknowledge their value to you. As long as something sells at the asking price there is no incentive to lower the price. When something doesn't sell the price is lowered to make it more attractive. This is business 101. (Supply and demand).

 

I also don't see the prices being lowered significantly as the conversation to digital photos is made. By slightly lowering the prices it will give a false sense to the consumer of a "good deal" when in reality it will just increase the profit margin.

 

I agree with your plan to take multiple candid photos during your upcoming journey. But we all know, if you look at the professional photos you are going to find that special one.

[Txcruiser82]

We will purchase a couple but that's it.

[sparks1093]

We usually buy several and when you consider there is no sitting fee or minimum to buy the prices are actually not that bad.

[nhsails]

Agree with Sparks. Just got estimate for a family sitting. $300 fee and pricing for what we want about $3500 on top. Value vs cost. What are they worth to you and you'll have your answer. Safe Journeys

[asalligo]

They are expensive, but I love the ability of being able to sit and view pics for free and only buy the ones I love. I know of nowhere else that does that. Printing every pic though has always seemed like such a waste to me, and the technology to not do that is 20 years old now.

[beachbum6264]

19 cruises and we've bought a total of 1 photo from the cruise lines. One. And there was alcohol involved in that purchase :tropical-drink:

[Txcruiser82]

Lol

[Flatbush Flyer]

So i have been on 2 cruises so far. The first was the wife and i honeymoon. We barely took any cruise photos. Pur second trip however, we went crazy. We spent almost the same as alcohol as pics. Imo, the pictures taken on the ship by workers are outrageous. Anyone feel the same? We are going on a 14 day cruise Jan. 2019, so we will definitely NOT be taking any pictures except of our own. Lol

 

 

 

Are you aware that one of the many advantages of cruising on premium or luxury lines is that there are no meddlesome photographers (or art shows or incessant announcements) aboard?

Rest assured that there are many passengers on mass market lines who would prefer that the photogs would disappear. And still others who would prefer an actual ship as opposed to a floating amusement park with a pointy front.

 

 

 

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[easyboy]

We do take pictures on our own but we also buy photos from the ship when we like how it turned out, usually on formal nights. No regrets.

 

 

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[michiganirish]

We buy some pics as well outside of the embarkation photo Price out professional photographers and you'll find the price's on Carnival are not so bad. Our church just had an event where they invited the families to be photographed for the Parrish book. The hook is the picture that goes into the book 8 x 10 is free, we coose 3 5 x 7 in an average frame all for the good deal of 185.00. We politely declined the package.

[lcpagejr]

Proud to say the wife and I successfully navigated a path from all photographers on recent cruise....and that included zooming by Embarkation photo!!

[1025cruise]

On our last couple of cruises, we haven't even posed for any pictures.

[crooooze]

We always stop and get our family pic taken at EVERY photo op that’s set up. Embarcation photo. Each and every background on elegant nights. MDR photos. Those fun shots they take on the Lido. And all those goofy shots with pirates and parrots they take as you get off at ports.

 

It’s fun to look through them all on sea days. I wish Carnival would follow RCI’s example and let you scroll through all your photos on an ipad, instead of hunting all over the place. Anyway, on the last evening, we select ONE that we feel encompases that cruise and we purchase just the one.

 

So for $20-$25, we have a great souvenir hanging in the hallway to commemorate every cruise we’ve been on. It makes for fun conversation when friends and family visit.

[Nic6318]

So i have been on 2 cruises so far. The first was the wife and i honeymoon. We barely took any cruise photos. Pur second trip however, we went crazy. We spent almost the same as alcohol as pics. Imo, the pictures taken on the ship by workers are outrageous. Anyone feel the same? We are going on a 14 day cruise Jan. 2019, so we will definitely NOT be taking any pictures except of our own. Lol

 

 

Hi there

 

Very often it is the newer cruisers (like yourselves) who tend to buy the photos. It may be that they look good. For some families a group photo on the elegant day might be an ideal occasion to get everybody together. If you compare the price of a couple of pictures taken on board with your land based pro photographer, it might seem to be a good value. As you said on the second trip "you went crazy", guess you learnt a lesson, but you did get a bunch of pretty pictures.

 

As was pointed out, the more premium cruise lines don't have a lot of "sales" pitches that many try to avoid, but you are paying a premium price for everything that they do offer. Cruise lines such as Carnival can offer amazingly low base prices, specifically because they make the bulk of their money from gambling, alcohol sales, and other things like their shops, spas as well as the well priced photos. So, if you are mindful and don't contribute excessively to these "extras" you are essentially being subsidized by those who do.

 

hope this helps

may you have many wonderful future cruises

[sparks1093]

Are you aware that one of the many advantages of cruising on premium or luxury lines is that there are no meddlesome photographers (or art shows or incessant announcements) aboard?

Rest assured that there are many passengers on mass market lines who would prefer that the photogs would disappear. And still others who would prefer an actual ship as opposed to a floating amusement park with a pointy front.

 

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And there's probably more passengers on mass market lines who do prefer the photogs and sailing on an amusement park with pointy front. That's the great thing about the cruise market, there's something for everyone.

[Flatbush Flyer]

And there's probably more passengers on mass market lines who do prefer the photogs and sailing on an amusement park with pointy front. That's the great thing about the cruise market, there's something for everyone.

 

 

Very true and somewhat a blessing in disguise when it comes to choosing between/among various lines. There really are vast differences across the cruise industry segments (even including great variation in yacht charters) and a little homework can quickly identify them.

 

Nonetheless, It's always interesting to read on CC the "surprised" comments (from folks new to a particular line) about their perceived negative experiences. You'd think a careful perusal of CC threads in each line's forum would have alerted them to an upcoming potential/probable disappointment.

 

I also think that part of that problem relates to some people's unwillingness to do the required research to minimize the chance for an experience that may fall far short of their reasonable preferences and expectations.

 

Of course, there's probably educational, cultural and other personal idiosyncrasies also being factors in how much planning/homework someone may be willing/able to do.

 

C'est la vie.

 

 

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[absolutonrox]

We recently took a family vacation (parents, brother, nephew, son) to Disney and Universal. I find the photographers on ships to be similar to photographers in parks like that. If we don't want pictures, we politely decline and keep walking. They are used to it. In my experience, albeit VERY limited compared to many on these boards, the majority of cruisers walk by the photographers without a second thought. Maybe not as much with the set "scenes" on formal night, but definitely embarking/debarking in ports. Formal nights we generally pose for a few photos because DW wants to, and as they say: "happy wife, happy life". We check them out, but haven't bought any yet. Not because they were too expensive, because we just didn't find any that really struck us as "must have". As someone else stated, the pictures are worth what you're willing to pay for them.

 

OP on the cruise you bought a lot of pics, did you just get them or did you buy a package? IIRC, there is generally a package offered to choose a set number of photos for 1 price. Perhaps that's an option for you?

[sparks1093]

Very true and somewhat a blessing in disguise when it comes to choosing between/among various lines. There really are vast differences across the cruise industry segments (even including great variation in yacht charters) and a little homework can quickly identify them.

 

Nonetheless, It's always interesting to read on CC the "surprised" comments (from folks new to a particular line) about their perceived negative experiences. You'd think a careful perusal of CC threads in each line's forum would have alerted them to an upcoming potential/probable disappointment.

 

I also think that part of that problem relates to some people's unwillingness to do the required research to minimize the chance for an experience that may fall far short of their reasonable preferences and expectations.

 

Of course, there's probably educational, cultural and other personal idiosyncrasies also being factors in how much planning/homework someone may be willing/able to do.

 

C'est la vie.

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

There is a lot to that. I recently wrote a review for one of the excursions we did on our recently completed cruise and the in first review on the page the reviewer complained, quite bitterly, about the amount of time that was involved for the excursion, how hot it was, etc. Ironically the narrative in the excursion description told her how long the excursion was, that the boat portion of the tour was uncovered so a hat was recommended and virtually every other thing she complained about. It was quite obvious that she hadn't even taken the time to read that. It's all akin to folks who travel to a foreign country and expect things to be exactly like they are back home and they are shocked when they find out that they aren't. C'est la vie is a good summation.

[LindaKE]

Contrary to what everyone else seems to feel, we like the photos. They are the souvenirs we spend money on. We can look back at the photos and remember the good time of the cruise. Their photographers do a better job than we can do on our own. So the ship's photos are something we enjoy about cruises.

[sarmat1]

Before our first cruise, I thought that the pictures would be a waste of money and that we would never buy any. After all, I have a camera. However, we did buy an elegant night picture on the first cruise, and several more on subsequent cruises. My kids were 5 and 8 when we started cruising. Now they're 9 and 12. So those elegant night shots have become our annual family picture. We're all there, we're dressed up and it takes minutes to do. Very simple. In that context, 22 bucks for an 8x10 is well worth it.

[sparks1093]

Before our first cruise, I thought that the pictures would be a waste of money and that we would never buy any. After all, I have a camera. However, we did buy an elegant night picture on the first cruise, and several more on subsequent cruises. My kids were 5 and 8 when we started cruising. Now they're 9 and 12. So those elegant night shots have become our annual family picture. We're all there, we're dressed up and it takes minutes to do. Very simple. In that context, 22 bucks for an 8x10 is well worth it.

 

We saw one family of four on Glory getting pictures taken- Dad and son were in tuxes, Mom and daughter were in gowns. I'm sure they will cherish those pictures for the rest of their lives.

[loxley]

I don't think the prices are too high for professional photos. I get one every cruise.

 

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[h_blond2]

We rarely even stop to take the pictures that are offered on the ship. Last cruise I took one picture and I did buy it because it was with a Dr. Seuss character and I am a school librarian, so I just couldn't pass it up. I think on 9 cruises, I have purchased 3 pictures. However, I take 100s or 1000s of my own.