Alaska - Photo Safari (Princess Excursion in Juneau)

[lawahoo2001]

I posted this question on the Alaska board on CC, but I thought I would ask this group as well. Has anyone ever taken the Photo Safari excursion in Juneau through Princess? Below is a link to the excursion description. If you've been on this excursion, how good is the photo advice? Also, if you've taken the tour, it'd be great to see your photos - please post! :p

 

For context, I just got my first SLR last summer but am a huge enthusiast, eager to improve my skills.

 

http://princess.stepintoalaska.com/t...id=photosafari

[pierces]

Never done it...wouldn't hesitate.

 

Sounds like a lot of fun with some good photo opportunities. Don't worry about the rain. It doesn't dim Alaska's beauty a bit!

 

 

The tour gets my vote!

 

 

Dave

[lawahoo2001]

Thanks - I think I'm gonna book...

[diverearl]

Thanks - I think I'm gonna book...

 

Our 1st choice by Far - You might look into taking the Adventure Bound cruise in Juneau if your port time allows. We are going north bound on the Diamond Princess / early July and we will be in port from 8am - 9pm which will be plenty of time to make the 9am tour. Check out the post on the Alaska thread for reviews on this outing, hard to beat this day of possible wildlife and scenery photo ops. For $150.00 I'm in.

 

Definitely our second choice for the day - you might look into a whale watch / wildlife viewing tour with Rum Runner Charters ($125.00) that is guaranteed to fill a good size SD card with pictures of Whales, lighthouses, seals, glaciers, sea lions and a great "close encounter" Bald eagle show for the last hour of the tour that you will not forget. Then you could take the bus ($14.00 round trip from the cruise ship area) to Mendenhall glacier and hike out to the waterfall a short easy walk.

 

Not the worst way to spend your time in Juneau Alaska - Take the Princess photo tour.

[dolfansam]

Our 1st choice by Far - You might look into taking the Adventure Bound cruise in Juneau if your port time allows. We are going north bound on the Diamond Princess / early July and we will be in port from 8am - 9pm which will be plenty of time to make the 9am tour. Check out the post on the Alaska thread for reviews on this outing, hard to beat this day of possible wildlife and scenery photo ops. For $150.00 I'm in.

 

Definitely our second choice for the day - you might look into a whale watch / wildlife viewing tour with Rum Runner Charters ($125.00) that is guaranteed to fill a good size SD card with pictures of Whales, lighthouses, seals, glaciers, sea lions and a great "close encounter" Bald eagle show for the last hour of the tour that you will not forget. Then you could take the bus ($14.00 round trip from the cruise ship area) to Mendenhall glacier and hike out to the waterfall a short easy walk.

 

Not the worst way to spend your time in Juneau Alaska - Take the Princess photo tour.

 

I definitely second a trip to Mendenhall Glacier. It was breathtaking to see.

[Debathome]

We returned from our Alaskan cruise last night and I do believe this is the same tour that we took through RCI on the Serenade. It was called the Photo Safari tour and included a hike to Mendenhall glacier.

We boarded a Zodiac type boat which was a lot of fun, fast and great for getting sea level shots. There were about 15 of us including the captain and guide. I must admit that I was a little intimidated when we first boarded and he began a little chat on settings etc. and everyone pulled out their very large and very professional cameras and then I produced my wee little Nikon and hubby his Sony point and shoot. I laughed and told the instructor that it was a little embarassing but he assured me that he would give tips for all cameras and came right over to show me settings to use and the reasons. He was very infomative and even gave a little slide show of his own photos and different effects.

We didn't have much luck, nor did the whale watching tours that friends of ours were on in the same area, with the whales who were nursing and stayed pretty much below surface but we did get some shots of eagles and other wildlife. On our return we buzzed over to an area where a pod of Orcas were playing. It was the highlight of the trip and I must confess that I was so thrilled that I didn't even bother to take photos. I just sat in awe. Luckily hubby got it all on film on his little trustworthy Sony. ;)

I will continue this in two parts because I lost it all when I wrote before. To be continued...... :D

[Debathome]

Here is a photo of the boat. It was speedy, quick and a lot of fun.

The second part of the tour included a hike to the glacier. It was a leisurely hike and not a difficult one, through a wooded, very pretty area. The photo guide pointed out lots of close up shots and different settings to try for different effects. When we reached the glacier lookout point, we talked him into a walk along the water where we took our shoes off and stepped into the glacial waters and then found a large chunk of ice to hold and photograph. It was a great tour and I would recommend it.

I was pleasantly pleased with the photos that my little Nikon Coolpix P80 took.

[diverearl]

I definitely second a trip to Mendenhall Glacier. It was breathtaking to see.

 

I'm sure the photo safari is a great tour (I'm biting my lip here :rolleyes:), but (in my opinion) for the same or less money in this port you can put yourself in a whole lot more great places to get the picture of a lifetime than the safari is going to offer you, with very little research or effort.

 

Juneau is the hardest port I've been to to make a choice of where to spend my day.

 

This summer however while in Juneau our votes both go to Adventure Bound.

 

Great view and shot of the glacier by the way.

[Debathome]

Here are a few of the shots that I took ....

 

 

 

[websailor]

LOL, I think the seals and eagles wait for the photographers at this one buoy! Here is a picture I took on the same tour in 2006. A little bit later, and Alaska Ferry cruised by so I got some shots with the buoy and with the glacier in the background. I really liked the tour.

 

[Debathome]

That is too funny, I have the same shot! I wonder if it is the same eagle? :D

 

[lawahoo2001]

I wish we could do Adventure Bound, but we leave port too early, so we would miss our ship.

 

That photo of the photo safari boat kind of scares me...the boat looks kind of dinky. Now I'm debating whether I should go with Capt Greg of Weather Permitting Alaska. Harv and Marv are booked. I'm waiting to hear back from Rum Runner and Alaska Whale Watching. Orca's boat seems too big. And, I chatted with a guy from Dolphin Enterprises, and he was somewhat curt with me.

[diverearl]

That is too funny, I have the same shot! I wonder if it is the same eagle?

 

 

LOL, I think the seals and eagles wait for the photographers at this one buoy! Here is a picture I took on the same tour in 2006. A little bit later, and Alaska Ferry cruised by so I got some shots with the buoy and with the glacier in the background. I really liked the tour.

 

 

ME TO :eek:, of course most people get a chance at this picture opportunity as almost every whale watch tour goes by the lighthouse and this buoy. Personally I could do this tour every day.

 

[diverearl]

I wish we could do Adventure Bound, but we leave port too early, so we would miss our ship.

 

It is a long day, we picked this itinerary mainly for the hours the Diamond Princess is in port at Juneau so we could tag along on the Adventure Bound's (9am) Tracy Arm Fjords / Sawyer Glacier trip. There are so many great things to do in Juneau it is hard to pick just one, or two or even three or four activities for a given day. I wish life was always this tough, huh :rolleyes: If the water was a bit more diver friendly we would have to book a week in Juneau.

 

Like me my wife loves to dive, but will not get into the frigid waters of Alaska and doesn't want to discuss the matter :eek: period. She did say a week of top side activities in Juneau is a go anytime I like, so I guess we both win ;).

 

That photo of the photo safari boat kind of scares me...the boat looks kind of dinky. Now I'm debating whether I should go with Capt Greg of Weather Permitting Alaska. Harv and Marv are booked. I'm waiting to hear back from Rum Runner and Alaska Whale Watching. Orca's boat seems too big. And, I chatted with a guy from Dolphin Enterprises, and he was somewhat curt with me.

 

I'm sure the safari boat is as safe as any boat you will ever board (maybe a little, as we small craft, offshore fishermen say wet, I personally like Rum Runners (6 person limit, nice boat) but wouldn't hesitate to book any of the above tours. Then a side trip to Mendenhall Glacier if you have time is a great way to finish or start the day, imho.

 

You will find many of the better (weathered) guides / boat ops are a bit brash (not always but often), but that usually means they are very good at what they do and just forget we don't all do this everyday like them and they get a little smart with their customers.

[Debathome]

It is funny that you mention the boat. I am a nonswimmer and the whaling boat looked a little too small for me so we went with this one that was advertised as a river cruise on a river boat. I am thinking something along the lines of a nice, large old paddlewheeler :rolleyes::D then we come upon this little itsy bitsy thingy. I made hubby promise that he would save me first before the babes in the boat and after he swore to do so, I was game. It turned out to be a great decision. Friends that went on the whaling boats said that there were about 150 people and you had to cram to get a shot. Not the case in this boat. Only about 12 of us and those daring, could go up front and shoot from there. The big rubber padding were comfortable buffs to lean up against. I was not nervous at all. The boat was sturdy, fast and fun.

[bariga]

I have the same going to Alaska.

[knittinggirl]

I'd love this on our next cruise, but I'm afraid that the DH would freak. I almost booked the Photo Tour in St. John, but he trumped me. I'd already picked several land tours, and he wanted the riverboat. As it turned out, the riverboat was one of the best, because we left the crowds behind.