Galapagos Trips

[drfun48]

drfun48-

I'm looking at buying the Pentax Optio W20 for our November Galapagos trip. Have you tried yours out yet?

Just got it about a month ago . I practiced with it in the pool ,where my daughter played the role of a sea lion.It was great. Easier to use than my Canon in the water.The only problem is the lag on digitals between pressing the button and the time the picture is actually taken .My solution is to take multiple shots(3x)with each click.Those sealions are so quick in the water.

I actually had pretty good results with a throw away film underwater camera,I brouht one from home and bought two more on the Xpedition.But you won't know how they turn out until you get home.

At Christmas ,my daughter will use the Pentax and I the Canon and we'll report which was better.I suspect the Optio.

As an aside -remember that the naturalist ask that you use NO FLASH in the Galapagos. They are concerned about the animals being startled and their eyes injured from repeated photos.

[CSloan]

Just got it about a month ago . I practiced with it in the pool ,where my daughter played the role of a sea lion.It was great. Easier to use than my Canon in the water.The only problem is the lag on digitals between pressing the button and the time the picture is actually taken .My solution is to take multiple shots(3x)with each click.Those sealions are so quick in the water.

I actually had pretty good results with a throw away film underwater camera,I brouht one from home and bought two more on the Xpedition.But you won't know how they turn out until you get home.

At Christmas ,my daughter will use the Pentax and I the Canon and we'll report which was better.I suspect the Optio.

As an aside -remember that the naturalist ask that you use NO FLASH in the Galapagos. They are concerned about the animals being startled and their eyes injured from repeated photos.

 

Thanks for the info. If I get the Optio (which I probably will), I'll let you know how it works in the Galapagos... looks like I'll be there a few weeks before you. Good idea re: the 3x shots. I understand the camera also takes pretty good underwater video. Looks like I'll need a few mega-sized memory cards!

[suzieque]

Thank you drfun. If I don't need the 12x optical zoom, the OptioW20 should suffice for video as well as still shots. Apparently the new one, the W20 is compatible with the new SDHC memory cards, so that should provide 4 GB of space for video, too. Carrying all the chargers and batteries will be enough weight w/out adding a bulky video camera! Does this camera have an easy transition between video and still shots? Might be nice while snorkeling to do both! So, I guess I'll get one of these, and also bring my little Nikon coolpix 7900 for back-up.

I am getting so excited about this trip. Can't wait to see the seals, birds, turtles, tortoises, and plant life. Must say, though, that I'm a little squeamish about reptiles and really big fish... Anyone else out there that is a little spooked by lizards and such?

Suzie

[drfun48]

Thank you drfun. If I don't need the 12x optical zoom, the OptioW20 should suffice for video as well as still shots. Apparently the new one, the W20 is compatible with the new SDHC memory cards, so that should provide 4 GB of space for video, too. Carrying all the chargers and batteries will be enough weight w/out adding a bulky video camera! Does this camera have an easy transition between video and still shots? Might be nice while snorkeling to do both! So, I guess I'll get one of these, and also bring my little Nikon coolpix 7900 for back-up.

I am getting so excited about this trip. Can't wait to see the seals, birds, turtles, tortoises, and plant life. Must say, though, that I'm a little squeamish about reptiles and really big fish... Anyone else out there that is a little spooked by lizards and such?

Suzie

Transition is easy between video and stills on land but expext to be excited and distracted in the water.

BTW Costco has mega memory cards at a good price,Some of the advanced snorkeling is tricky and water can be cool....consider a hood.

[suzieque]

So is there any possibility that i could "tether" myself to the panga so the stronger currents don't float me away??! Then I could concentrate on my underwater photography! :-)

Suzie

[Alaska Boo]

I am very healthy, but in Quito, I experienced a tremendous headache one night, which I chalk up to the high altitude. It really hit me out of the blue and put me in bed that night quite early. Be forewarned. It is a high altitude and you might experience some symptoms of altitude sickness, as i did.

 

Vanessa

[Roland4]

Transition is easy between video and stills on land but expext to be excited and distracted in the water.

BTW Costco has mega memory cards at a good price,Some of the advanced snorkeling is tricky and water can be cool....consider a hood.

 

Fascinating reading. My wife bought the Optio for our trip in June and I do believe I was the one who first mentioned it on these threads. Maybe we should ask Pentax for a "finders fee" for all these other purchases since!!!!!!

 

Seriously, she found it extremely easy to transition from still to video and back. She did it frequently after the initial excitement of the first snorkelling trip wore off. It is actually pretty good on memory use too. We took somewhere in the neighbourhood of 200 pictures and about ten minutes of video on a 1G chip and had plenty of room left over.

 

FWIW we did bring the video camera (a Sony Digital) and took about 90 minutes of video. We're actually glad we did as each time we watch it we notice something we missed "live". As far as "lugging" stuff goes, we had our Minolta Digital SLR, the Optio and the video and its disks, plus all three chargers. It all fit into our "larger" camera bag which I carried onto the ship. We made sure all the batteries were fully charged when we boarded and fortunately no two of them needed charging at the same time the whole week. It was a lot of "stuff" in the cabin, but we're glad we did it that way.

[Fontaid]

Suzie, I bought a Canon PowerShot S2 IS for our trip last November. It is a very good camera. BUT, the water proof housing for the Canon S1 IS does NOT fit the S2 and Canon did not have one out for the S2 IS in time for our trip. So, I took a couple of disposable cameras for taking snorkeling pics. Oh well... The S2 IS takes great pics even in pretty low light and I think that a 10x or better (the S2 has a 12x) optical zoom (on whatever camera you get) is important. Although many of the animals are very close, there are some shots where you will wish you had a big optical zoom.

 

Also, no matter what camera you use, don't expect to use the zoom much while riding at high speed in a zodiac. Either the pic will be blurred or it won't be centered or your subject won't even be in the picture... :)

 

Also, if this is a new camera... PRACTICE with ALL the features BEFORE you go. You won't want to be digging in your fanny pack for the instructions while you're out on an excursion.

 

Dave :)

[suzieque]

Thanks, Dave. I will get the camera this month and start practicing. Think I'll go for the Pentax Optio W20.

Suzie

[frankpc]

Dave makes excellent points ... I brought my old Canon A95 on the trip last year and was glad to have along my 2x teleconverter. The extra "reach" really came handy in many locations.

 

If "speed" becomes a problem, use whatever bracing you can find. The zodiac shake is almost impossible to compensate for but on land place the camera on the ground and shoot "up" . Much more dramatic iguana photos when you do that as you get a sky background instead of black lava rock. A camera with a rotating viewfinder comes in handy for these shots.

 

Its a great trip, certainly was one of our favorites - enjoy

 

Frank

[suzieque]

Aaarrgh!!! So I'm back to square one again. Maybe I should go for the 12x optical zoom of the Canon or Olympus for future trips, too, and just get disposables for the snorkeling???

Thank goodness I have some time before Dec.29th to decide!!

Suzie

[Drew B]

I have a couple of questions about this trip if you guys don't mind.

 

1. In general, on their larger ships, Celebrity does an amazing job providing great food to vegetarians/vegans, but I know the food obtions on xPedition are much fewer. Would a vegetarian/vegan be able to eat okay?

 

2. I understand that nearly everything (Drinks except top label, excursions, tips, airport transfers) is included in the price. Can you tell me ANYTHING else you'd need to spend money on? Obviously, this trip is far more costly than your average cruise, but when you add all those other things on, it gets closer...

[drfun48]

I have a couple of questions about this trip if you guys don't mind.

 

2. I understand that nearly everything (Drinks except top label, excursions, tips, airport transfers) is included in the price. Can you tell me ANYTHING else you'd need to spend money on? Obviously, this trip is far more costly than your average cruise, but when you add all those other things on, it gets closer...

Souveniers in Quito ,the Equator monument,the airport,small items in the Xpedition gift shop,snacks and drinks at the Marriott bar,toilet paper(don't forget this one) in Quito,extra tips to a "special " crew member or naturalist,phone cards(the best way to contact home) and last but not least a check for up to $500 per couple as a contribution to the Darwin Foundation which will be matched by Celebrity as a future cruise credit.You'll be helping a great cause and essentially getting your money back plus a tax write off.

There are also many shops in Puerto Ayora,some of which have expensive artwork.

[CSloan]

Speaking of shopping... any good ideas for things to buy for Christmas gifts while on this trip? Will the Marriott ship items home for us?

[drfun48]

Speaking of shopping... any good ideas for things to buy for Christmas gifts while on this trip? Will the Marriott ship items home for us?

 

2 ideas---Lightweight colorful scarves-inxpensive,easy to pack,beautiful,they are everywhere.2007 calandars of the Galapagos---your friends will be green with envy when thay see how amazing your trip was.

[frankpc]

Aaarrgh!!! So I'm back to square one again. Maybe I should go for the 12x optical zoom of the Canon or Olympus for future trips, too, and just get disposables for the snorkeling???

Thank goodness I have some time before Dec.29th to decide!!

Suzie

 

 

We used the disposables for snorkeling. Even with "fast" film they're really only useful on sunny days. The ocean current uplifting that plays such a key role in the Galapagos environment can also make the waters murky. While the snorkeling is great, taking photos while snorkeling is more challenging than in the Carib.

Kodak also offers special undersea processing for print film. We used it, don't know how much it helped. Here's a link:

http://*****.com/jozfr

 

Back on land, some folks on our trip also brought along the small, foldable min-tripods.

 

 

 

Frank

[Quinte]

I am planning on taking my new Canon S3 (love it!) and my old Canon A20 to use with an Aquapac for snorkelling. I had the Canon S1 and recently upgraded to the S3 for the better resolution, zoom and image processor. I’ll have at least a 1 GB card and a 2 GB card so I have capacity for video as well as stills and will be backing up on my laptop and CDs. I’m not taking any chances with these photos! I also like to use the continuous shooting mode to capture moving subjects which can use up a lot of card space. It sounds like this will be a good combination. Any comments?

[SheilaNC]

One more thing about pictures. This is one of those times when sharing and exchanging pictures with other folks is a GOOD thing. I found it amazing how often we all took the same picture. When posted online, we were able to 'choose' the best version :) Agree that underwaterpix are difficult to take unless you have a very good underwater camera. So...I 'borrowed' those taken by others (even those who didn't sail with us)...after all, a fish is a fish and a turtle is a turtle. I know that it's the most fun when it's 'your' turtle...but I'd rather enjoy the experience than wonder if my picture would capture it. Just MHO...

 

Re: shopping - the gift shop in the Marriott has an amazing selection of Ecuadorian pottery that is MUCH less expensive than trying to buy it from the US. I know, I bought just a few small pieces because I didn't want to have too much to carry (didn't think to ask if they shipped). Then I spent lots of time and enlisted future traveler's to help me in my venture to find more. The catalogue that I finally received to order from home had prices more than double what they were at the Marriott. So if there is a pattern that you love - buy it (and they are lovely for gifts). Agree with purchasing the scarves. Bought one for everyone female on my list. Tee shirts are inexpensive and good quality in the market in Quito and reasonable in the Galapagos as are sun hats. Also picked up a small local painting to add to my travel collection.

 

Most of all enjoy!

[frankpc]

I am planning on taking my new Canon S3 (love it!) and my old Canon A20 to use with an Aquapac for snorkelling. I had the Canon S1 and recently upgraded to the S3 for the better resolution, zoom and image processor. I’ll have at least a 1 GB card and a 2 GB card so I have capacity for video as well as stills and will be backing up on my laptop and CDs. I’m not taking any chances with these photos! I also like to use the continuous shooting mode to capture moving subjects which can use up a lot of card space. It sounds like this will be a good combination. Any comments?

 

Sounds like a good combo, but remember that underwater photography in the Galapagos is often light limited. IIRC the A20 has an effective ASA of around 50-100 before its gets very noisy. Print film is easily two to three stops faster ... so if it happens to be overcast during your snorkel, the print film requires less light. Something to consider, maybe get a few dispoable undersea cameras just in case ...

 

And as Sheila says, remember to enjoy ....

[gdayhoff]

Suzieque----I used a Canon S1 IS on our trip in Aug 2005.Was very pleased with the camera and the 10x.I sure the newer models are even better.Really like the 10x.

I bought a disposable underwater camera at Wolfe/Ritz for $20[27 pictures refills cost $10.]Had 400 speed which enable me to take it thru airport screening.Pictures were not the greatest but considering the $20 investment not bad.If you will send me your e-mail address I will try to find some pictures taken with it and send them to you so you can be the judge as to whether it's worth it.

Enjoy

George and Sara

[Babo02]

I was also amazed at how reasonable prices were at the hotel. Although I did purchase most of the gifts elsewhere, we were stuck in the hotel the last day because my husband got sick on the plane coming home. I ended up buying T-shirts from my grandchildren at the Marriott and they were great. The quality was very good and the prices weren't much higher than elsewhere in Quito. There was a beautiful shawl in the gift shop that might have been made of alpaca and was only $39.00. I'm kicking myself for not snapping it up because it was a lovely colour and was as soft as the proverbial baby's tush.

 

Bonnie :)

[Kamper]

I've found these camera discussions very interesting. I was considering buying a compact digital U/W camera like the Pentax Optio W10 or the Olympus Stylus 720SW. However, after reading the reviews about the (poor) picture quality (compared to other 6 Mp cameras) now I'm not so sure. I'm kind of 'old-school' when it comes to electronic gadgets. I have a Canon EOS Elan (film) that I love and will be taking with me. Perhaps I'll just get a Canon Powershot SD600 (or maybe a Casio EX-Z600) for my DH to use and one of the U/W cameras from Wolfe. Either that or I'll just spend the money on a macro lens for the Cannon. Didn't anyone take a film camera?

Gdayhoff and Roland4 I would like to see some of your U/W photos.

[thrpy]

The "throw-away" u/w cameras can work very well, I've used them many times in the Florida Keys. BUT, hand carry them and present them going thru the airlines X-ray - it will fog the film. My wife had two of them - got nothing really worth looking at after the X-ray.

I had taken a SeaLife 3.1, got some great pic/vids. PIB camera, but did well for that trip.

Agree, it all depends on the weather, we were there inFBeb 05, and had fantastic weather.

I took an older Olympus C700UZ, shoots at 2.1,took over 1100 pics. I am wht is called an "odds photographer", odds are, if you take enough pictures, some of them will come out right. Culled down to a little over 600 pics, saved everything til we got home on the laptop. Wish I had had my newer S1, oh well. Did have one guy with one ofthe big expensive Nikons, his camera "froze" after about 35 shots on the first island - never got it going again for the whole trip - now THAT was one unhappy camper.

If you want to see anything in particular - i755@hotmail.com

[frankpc]

Yep. I'm an "odds" photo guy too. Digital encourages the addiction. Always strikes me as odd that my wife will shoot a few rolls of film with her point and shoot 35mm and be showing her friends her vacation prints before I manage to get my 1200 shots off the flash cards ....

 

The scarves make great gifts as drfun mentioned. Almost embarrassing how people really think they're special considering the minimal cost and effort. Maybe it really is the "thought" that counts.

 

Frank

[deec]

Are the scarves from the Quito market that we visit on the last day of the trip?

 

I am definitely not the camera person in the family but I know my husband just purchased a Nikon SLR digital camera that we had to have for this trip!! But he also got a storer/viewer that will keep a gizillion pics from the cards and he wont have to haul the laptop and make CD's along the way...or least that is how he justified that purchase!!!