Alaska Cruise...

Hello,

 

I'm going on an Alaskan Inside Passage cruise four weeks from now. Other than

taking my Rollei 2.8E, travel tripod, lots of film and my wife, does anyone have

any tips or suggestions on what filters, etc. to take along? I'll be shooting

Velvia 50.

 

Regards,

 

Stu

I did the same trip in 1999, used just an Olympus XA:

http://www.ibmwr.org/pastevnt/grosjeanalaska/alaska.html

 

If doing it today, I'd take a Rolleiflex and my Widelux and a modern P&S 35mm with flash for indoor snaps.

 

I figure any color casts can be adjusted after in PS if needed.

 

Be open to walking into town during stops. Check out the Mendenhall Glacier. Be open to walking, a second time.

No suggestions on filters, but as the wife of a photographer, I do reccomend that you move your wife to the top of the "take along" list. Have a great trip!

Stu,

I did that trip without the travel tripod. I carry a bean bag instead. ...and yes my wife was with me. :-)

The P&S works well inside the ship at dinner, etc.

Don't forget to take people pictures.

I'm not really qualified to answer this, since I live in Alaska, but you probably will not need any filters for Velvia. Personally I find that polarizing filetrs take much of the "life" out of pictures. The only filter I might use for E6 film would be a 2B.

 

Now, if you were using B&W ....

 

The beanbag suggestion is good. Also, you can get extra film (altho not Velvia 50) in both Los Anchorage and Fairbanks.

 

As mentioned above, your wife should be listed first :-)

Thank you for all of the responses so far. I read the Rollei Forum every week, but this is the first time I have ever posted a question. As for my wife, she is always NUMERO UNO on my list. We travel well together. She will be using the Nikon D70 for those all important P & S shots. I just wanted to see if you were paying attention! Last year we did walking tours of both London and Rome, so the walking bit won't be a problem. I like the suggestion of the bean bag instead of the tripod. I'll give it a go. As for filters, I rarely use them. If a shot doesn't turn out exactly right, 99% of the time it's my fault and then I just have to spend the time in PS correcting my error. I will post some photos when we get back to Oz.

 

Stu

<i> ... She will be using the Nikon D70 for those all important P & S shots... </i><p>

For a moment I was afraid you were taking her along just to carry your stuff. :-) Have a nice

trip, both of you!

Stuart,

 

My hope is that you take along something faster to supplement the Velvia 50 -- such as Provia 400. Having lived in Juneau for three years (but moved to Anchorage this past week) you will likely find that you will be using the 400 more often. That of course depends on whether or not you luck-out in getting any sunny or partly cloudy days during your cruise. By late August the Alaska Panhandle is well on its way in its rainy season -- generally lasts from late July through May ;-)

Wayne,

 

Wasn't Juneau cold enough for you in winter, mate? I really do appreciate the info on what I can expect in the way of weather. Living in a place where it only rains on average 20-30 days per year and a cold winter day is 50 degrees farenheit, I sometimes don't take into account that some places actually do have a rainy season and cloudy days. I will take your advice and take along some faster film.

 

Kind regards,

 

Stu