twangster

I've been getting a number of questions about how I shot the Milky Way photos.
I shot this using a full frame Sony A7III with a Sony 12-24mm lens.   A crop sensor body that most people shoot wouldn't be able to get this wide.  The A7III also has really good low light performance, night and day from my last full frame body, a Nikon D750.
Also keep in mind I have a pretty good investment in gear.  Body and lens for this shot are ~ $3,700.  Not trying to brag but let's keep expectations real.  A <$1k kit can shoot the Milky Way and produce some nice results but maybe not achieve the same results.
Camera settings shown at the top, Lightroom adjustments below that.

Using Adobe Lightroom I added a lot of clarity and adjusted other light levels and white balance.  This is why I shoot in RAW.  There is a lot of data captured in a RAW file that can be manipulated using software such as Lightroom.  Shooting in JPEG would lose all this extra data and you would never be able to achieve these results.  This is how JPEG produces a lower file size, it throws away all the extra sensor data it doesn't need for a JPEG picture.  A RAW file is much bigger because it contains all the raw sensor data that was captured.
Original picture as it was captured on the left, final picture on the right after adjustments in Lightroom.

The one on the left is closer to what you see with the human eye.  Between the two brightest stars you can sort of see a cloud like area with the human eye that is the center or heart of the Milky Way.
Keep in mind I've been shooting the Milky Way for several years now so I've got some previous experience on land with a firm tripod.  On land you have more control and can take longer exposures, up to around 25 seconds for this focal length.  That allows you to lower ISO or make other adjustments for better results.  I wanted to keep the exposure shorter because of the ship's movement.
I use an app called PlanIt Pro.  It has an AR feature where you can hold up your phone, adjust the time or date and it will show you where the Milky Way will be at that moment in the future.
After we left Belize heading North to Cozumel I used this app to see when and where the Milky Way would be on Night 11.

This tells me the MWC (Milky Way Center) will be visible between 8:43pm and 3:07am.  At 12:16am the MWC will be as shown for the location we are at this moment in time.  On land that works well, on a moving ship you don't always know where your position will be in six hours or the heading of the ship hours later so there is some guess work and extrapolation involved, but at least you know what direction to find it. 
With a full moon the results would have suffered a lot.  I don't try to shoot the night sky on land most of the moon phase, it works best without moon light.  New moon was perfectly timed for me, that's just luck.   For Costa Maya it was July 31st. 
The MWC in the Northern Hemisphere is visible at night in summer months only, you can't shoot the Milky Way in the winter up here but you can down under.
There is also a lot of luck involved.  Based on the cloud cover after leaving Belize pictured above the Milky Way would not be visible.  I got pretty lucky two nights in a row with the ship heading South towards the Milky Way, on the right phase of the moon, without major cloud cover.  Costa Maya and Belize are close so the ship was only moving at ~8 knots.  
I don't always bring my A7 with me, that's why I have the RX100VI - for travel.  I threw the A7 in my backpack at the last minute.
I was in the right place at the right time with cloud cover that was in my favor on a slow moving ship with the right gear.  It's pretty rare to get all that working in your favor on a cruise, on a ship with a public area that is dark.  I may never get another opportunity like this. 

I've been getting a number of questions about how I shot the Milky Way photos.
I shot this using a full frame Sony A7III with a Sony 12-24mm lens.   A crop sensor body that most people shoot wouldn't be able to get this wide.  The A7III also has really good low light performance, night and day from my last full frame body, a Nikon D750.
Also keep in mind I have a pretty good investment in gear.  Body and lens for this shot are ~ $3,700.  Not trying to brag but let's keep expectations real.  A <$1k kit can shoot the Milky Way and produce some nice results but maybe not achieve the same results.
Camera settings shown at the top, Lightroom adjustments below that.

Using Adobe Lightroom I added a lot of clarity and adjusted other light levels and white balance.  This is why I shoot in RAW.  There is a lot of data captured in a RAW file that can be manipulated using software such as Lightroom.  Shooting in JPEG would lose all this extra data and you would never be able to achieve these results.  This is how JPEG produces a lower file size, it throws away all the extra sensor data it doesn't need for a JPEG picture.  A RAW file is much bigger because it contains all the raw sensor data that was captured.
Original picture as it was captured on the left, final picture on the right after adjustments in Lightroom.

The one on the left is closer to what you see with the human eye.  Between the two brightest stars you can sort of see a cloud like area with the human eye that is the center or heart of the Milky Way.
Keep in mind I've been shooting the Milky Way for several years now so I've got some previous experience on land with a firm tripod.  On land you have more control and can take longer exposures, up to around 25 seconds for this focal length.  That allows you to lower ISO or make other adjustments for better results.  I wanted to keep the exposure shorter because of the ship's movement.
I use an app called PlanIt Pro.  It has an AR feature where you can hold up your phone, adjust the time or date and it will show you where the Milky Way will be at that moment in the future.
After we left Belize heading North to Cozumel I used this app to see when and where the Milky Way would be on Night 11.

This tells me the MWC (Milky Way Center) will be visible between 8:43pm and 3:07am.  At 12:16am the MWC will be as shown for the location we are at this moment in time.  On land that works well, on a moving ship you don't always know where your position will be in six hours or the heading of the ship hours later so there is some guess work and extrapolation involved, but at least you know what direction to find it. 
With a full moon the results would have suffered a lot.  I don't try to shoot the night sky on land most of the moon phase, it works best without moon light.  New moon was perfectly timed for me, that's just luck.   For Costa Maya it was July 31st. 
The MWC in the Northern Hemisphere is visible at night in summer months only, you can't shoot the Milky Way in the winter up here but you can down under.
There is also a lot of luck involved.  Based on the cloud cover after leaving Belize pictured above the Milky Way would not be visible.  I got pretty lucky two nights in a row with the ship heading South towards the Milky Way, on the right phase of the moon, without major cloud cover.  Costa Maya and Belize are close so the ship was only moving at ~8 knots.  
I don't always bring my A7 with me, that's why I have the RX100VI - for travel.  I threw the A7 in my backpack at the last minute.
I was in the right place at the right time with cloud cover that was in my favor on a slow moving ship with the right gear.  It's pretty rare to get all that working in your favor on a cruise, on a ship with a public area that is dark.  I may never get another opportunity like this. 

I've been getting a number of questions about how I shot the Milky Way photos.
I shot this using a full frame Sony A7III with a Sony 12-24mm lens.   A crop sensor body that most people shoot wouldn't be able to get this wide.  The A7III also has really good low light performance, night and day from my last full frame body, a Nikon D750.
Also keep in mind I have a pretty good investment in gear.  Body and lens for this shot are ~ $3,700.  Not trying to brag but let's keep expectations real.  A <$1k kit can shoot the Milky Way and produce some nice results but maybe not achieve the same results.
Camera settings shown at the top, Lightroom adjustments below that.

Using Adobe Lightroom I added a lot of clarity and adjusted other light levels and white balance.  This is why I shoot in RAW.  There is a lot of data captured in a RAW file that can be manipulated using software such as Lightroom.  Shooting in JPEG would lose all this extra data and you would never be able to achieve these results.  This is how JPEG produces a lower file size, it throws away all the extra sensor data it doesn't need for a JPEG picture.  A RAW file is much bigger because it contains all the raw sensor data that was captured.
Original picture as it was captured on the left, final picture on the right after adjustments in Lightroom.

The one on the left is closer to what you see with the human eye.  Between the two brightest stars you can sort of see a cloud like area with the human eye that is the center or heart of the Milky Way.
Keep in mind I've been shooting the Milky Way for several years now so I've got some previous experience on land with a firm tripod.  On land you have more control and can take longer exposures, up to around 25 seconds for this focal length.  That allows you to lower ISO or make other adjustments for better results.  I wanted to keep the exposure shorter because of the ship's movement.
I use an app called PlanIt Pro.  It has an AR feature where you can hold up your phone, adjust the time or date and it will show you where the Milky Way will be at that moment in the future.
After we left Belize heading North to Cozumel I used this app to see when and where the Milky Way would be on Night 11.

This tells me the MWC (Milky Way Center) will be visible between 8:43pm and 3:07am.  At 12:16am the MWC will be as shown for the location we are at this moment in time.  On land that works well, on a moving ship you don't always know where your position will be in six hours or the heading of the ship hours later so there is some guess work and extrapolation involved, but at least you know what direction to find it. 
With a full moon the results would have suffered a lot.  I don't try to shoot the night sky on land most of the moon phase, it works best without moon light.  New moon was perfectly timed for me, that's just luck.   For Costa Maya it was July 31st. 
The MWC in the Northern Hemisphere is visible at night in summer months only, you can't shoot the Milky Way in the winter up here but you can down under.
There is also a lot of luck involved.  Based on the cloud cover after leaving Belize pictured above the Milky Way would not be visible.  I got pretty lucky two nights in a row with the ship heading South towards the Milky Way, on the right phase of the moon, without major cloud cover.  Costa Maya and Belize are close so the ship was only moving at ~8 knots.  
I don't always bring my A7 with me, that's why I have the RX100VI - for travel.  I threw the A7 in my backpack at the last minute.
I was in the right place at the right time with cloud cover that was in my favor on a slow moving ship with the right gear.  It's pretty rare to get all that working in your favor on a cruise, on a ship with a public area that is dark.  I may never get another opportunity like this. 

With a booked B2B on Empress my ports don't repeat.
With a booked B2B on Navigator my ports repeat, a double dip to CocoCay and Nassau. 
With a booked Oasis class B3B I'll do Eastern Caribbean, Western Caribbean and then Eastern Caribbean again.  This includes three visits to their private destination. I've been to all the ports before so it doesn't matter.  Pricing was good, reduced solo supplement so 21 days on a ship.  Why not?
I also have a side-to-side or S2S booked.  Take a cruise, debark and move to another ship the same day.  
If I'm spending money on an airplane ticket I might as well do two cruises.
The best part of a B2B is seeing this...

...and knowing you don't have to pack.  

The #1 problem solved is the fact that most cruises are too short.  
For someone who has to fly to a cruise a B2B saves airfare compared to taking two distinct cruises.
B2B allows you to unpack and unwind.  You don't need to take in every show because you can catch one on the next cruise.  
Cruises are great but if you try to do everything offered in one cruise you may end up exhausted and need a vacation from your vacation.  
Take Oasis class.  It's hard to participate in everything offered during a 7 night cruise.  More often than not you have to pick something but miss out on something else.  When you go a B2B you can do some things on one cruise and different things on the next.  Really enjoyed one show?  See it again!
B2B also lets you try different things in repeated ports while exposing you to new ports that are not common to both itineraries.  One visit you can go to a beach and relax, the repeat visit you can go on an ATV or tubing in a cave or you can stay on the ship and enjoy the ship empty of most guests.  
B2B solves the FOMO issue while leaving even more time to relax.
B2B also means one more week of not doing the dishes, cooking or cleaning.  
I have a B3B booked.  Three cruises in a row on the same ship.  B2B is cool, B3B is the next level.  

The #1 problem solved is the fact that most cruises are too short.  
For someone who has to fly to a cruise a B2B saves airfare compared to taking two distinct cruises.
B2B allows you to unpack and unwind.  You don't need to take in every show because you can catch one on the next cruise.  
Cruises are great but if you try to do everything offered in one cruise you may end up exhausted and need a vacation from your vacation.  
Take Oasis class.  It's hard to participate in everything offered during a 7 night cruise.  More often than not you have to pick something but miss out on something else.  When you go a B2B you can do some things on one cruise and different things on the next.  Really enjoyed one show?  See it again!
B2B also lets you try different things in repeated ports while exposing you to new ports that are not common to both itineraries.  One visit you can go to a beach and relax, the repeat visit you can go on an ATV or tubing in a cave or you can stay on the ship and enjoy the ship empty of most guests.  
B2B solves the FOMO issue while leaving even more time to relax.
B2B also means one more week of not doing the dishes, cooking or cleaning.  
I have a B3B booked.  Three cruises in a row on the same ship.  B2B is cool, B3B is the next level.  

https://cruisemarketwatch.com/ship-revenue/

After dark I thought I'd walk off some of my dinner.  There were a number of low clouds passing above us and it didn't look like a great night for the Milky Way again.  Our direction towards Belize puts the Milky Way at the front of the ship but after Belize we'll start heading back North so this would be the last chance to take advantage of the dark bow to capture it.
A passing storm in the distance caught my eye from deck 6 aft behind Boleros.

It didn't look good for star gazing but I thought I'd try anyways so back to deck 6 forward.  I settled in to let my eyes adjust and it seemed like it was opening up at times.  In between passing clouds I managed to get some more Milky Way shots.  Using lessons learned from the previous night I think they came out pretty good. 

Day 10, Cruise 2 Day 4 - Costa Maya
I stayed on the ship and took advantage of the much better Voom today compared to yesterday.

The Celebrity Equinox would join us again today.  She was with us in Key West and I caught her sailing into the sunset later that day.

There is definitely a lot of sargassum (seaweed) floating in the ocean this time.  Like many things in nature it varies day to day and it appeared there was more of it this time.

I stayed on the ship and got some work done.  Soon enough it was sail away time for both ships.   We arrived first and we departed first with the Equinox's helipad a popular spot for sail away.  The company ships did a "horn-off" each blowing their whistle following each others pattern.  Empress needs to step up it's whistle, Equinox put her to shame.


Dinner back in Chops for the second half of my BOGO.

I often forget to take pictures of the bread, I usually jump right in when it arrives.

The 16 oz bone-in ribeye tonight


Mushrooms and tater tots as sides.

Apple pie for dessert (with raisons).

Tonight's Headliner Show with Finis Henderson, former Motown artist, comedian, dancer, impressionist.

He did impressions of a number of different musicians and actors.

Fixed it for you.  

Fixed it for you.  

Day 4: St. Maarten
“The world is an orchestra, the universe is a Symphony.”

Good morning from St. Maarten!  Having a quick breakfast now in CK and then the plan is to take the water taxi over to “That Yoda Guy”.  I am ready to go with 3 novels downloaded onto my phone already. ?

Tonight we saw 1977.  Great show and it did not disappoint. The drones were a really nice touch.





Calling it an early night tonight as we are planning to head out to That Yoda Guy tomorrow. And our usual nightly stroll through Central Park has been spoiled by the rain that is still going on. Back in our cabin with a Vodka and Tonic and one more round of Lucifer ?

Dinner tonight at Jamie’s.
A few months ago, we received a complimentary specialty dining voucher from our TA.  The debate was between 150 CP, Hooked, and Jamie’s. Hubby and I took a close look at the Hooked menu along with pics from the Royal Caribbean dining FB page and decided against it. That left my vote for 150 and Hubby’s for Jamie’s. Well, you know who won that one. 

Service was great tonight compared to on HM a few months ago. It was fast and attentive. Food was the same good quality as any other Jamie’s. 
Ultimate Garlic Bread

Arancini

Grilled Vegetables from the plank

Penne Carbonara

Truffle Tagliatelle 

Dessert to go ?
 

Fast Track Boarding...Fail #2!
One of the reasons I wanted to get off today was to check out Fast Track Boarding again. Today Royal got it correct in that the first gangway (coming back to the ship) was dedicated to Fast Track Boarding.  Here is the signage for it. 


This was about all Royal got correct. ?
For research purposes, I asked the crew member at the podium how it works. If guests who qualify for Fast Track Boarding would by pass the lines coming back, or if guests who don’t qualify would have to use the other gangway? The crew member at the podium had no clue. I pointed to the sign and he said, “Oh that, that is nothing. It doesn’t mean anything.”  Ok, classic Royal. Let’s roll out something and not give everyone the memo. 
Upon our return to the ship, the lines were quite long at the Fast Track Boarding gangway, obviously because this was now the first gangway.  We got in line and did not notice them re-directing anyone or giving anyone priority. After we got to the podium, we asked another crew member about the process. He too said, “Oh no, you just get into line with everyone else.”  So Fast Track was slow track today.

Hubby and I decided to get off the ship around 10:30 am just to walk around for a bit. It was hot so we really didn’t stay too long.
We walked along Calle Fortaleza and many of the shops there are still boarded up.  The umbrellas are taken down still and graffiti was evident everywhere, even on the walls of buildings. 




After a while, the wind picked up and there were some dark clouds in the distance.  I told Hubby that we needed to get back fast because I did not want a repeat of yesterday. 

Thank goodness, we literally opened the door to our cabin to find this...

Looks like we got back just in time ?

It's a situation that's occurring more and more in society.  Part of the challenge for any company is that they have limited ability to challenge a guest's assertion they have a disability that requires a service animal.  No company on land or at sea can require anyone to prove a disability.  I could sit in a wheel chair and make all sorts of claims about a disability and no store, or theater, or amusement park or cruise line can legally challenge me.
As many people note when flying that an airplane can solve many disabilities.  Some people claim the need for assistance to board and/or priority boarding for their ailment then miraculously by the end of the flight they can jump up and walk off the plane like a fully abled body person can.  The miracle of flight.  This is what our society has come to.  
Airlines and cruise lines have noted the abuse of the service animal policy and are trying to deal with it as best they can but people will go to great lengths to fake a need.  It is really unfortunate because there are truly valid needs that are being impacted by the fakers.
Princess has them too.   

Thank you!  Very Interesting.

https://cruisemarketwatch.com/ship-revenue/

With our fabulous dinner over around 10pm I was too full to retire so I changed into shorts and went for a walk outside on deck 6.  Venturing forward we were sailing into some sea mist from the warm waters yet cooling air and there were some clouds in the sky but I also glimpsed what I thought was something I've photographed before in the night sky.  So I went back to grab my camera and mini tripod.
I've often sailed into the sunset but tonight we were sailing into the milky way.

Capturing the milky way requires long exposures but on a moving ship in the ocean it took some playing around to find some settings that worked.  With the 10 to 15 second exposures I was using I managed to catch some lighting in a distant storm on the horizon.
The bow is dark at night so the bridge crew can keep watch.  The long exposures captured enough light to make the bow look like it's illuminated but it isn't, that's just low levels of ambient light 

The sea mist, clouds and moving ship didn't make for the best astrophotography conditions but I'm pleased with the results.  More lightning:

On land the stars would be more precise and clear, that's the problem with shooting from a moving platform, but I'll take the results.

Earlier I mentioned an invitation to the Hotel Director's Table for dinner.  With only two Pinnacles on board I managed to make the cut.

We met the Hotel Director Julie and Guest Services Manager Jorge where we enjoyed a beverage in the lounge by the Schooner Bar.  Shortly after we were led to the Captain's Table in the main dining room.

Our menu for tonight:

The meal was excellent and the conversation with fellow guests, Julie and Jorge was wonderful and engaging.  So much so that I forgot to take any more pictures.
Julie and Jorge have a lot of experience and time with Royal Caribbean and it was very interesting to hear their stories from over the years.
Jorge is the voice over the PA for many announcements such as "The ship has been cleared by local authorities and you are welcome to go ashore on deck....".  I also caught an announcement back on the day 1 of the 2nd leg that at the time made me go "hmmm".  Jorge will address the crew over the PA before general boarding starts but since I was a consecutive cruiser I caught the announcement.  Since Julie is from the UK Jorge specifically called out the number of UK guests coming on board and made another humorous related comment.  Tonight Jorge explained he does these little off the wall comments to make sure the crew is paying attention and engaged.  It's a long running thing he does every week and the crew will pay attention each week to what little quirky thing he'll throw in this time.  It's all in good fun and a great way to keep the crew happy and engaged. 
Julie is the third female Hotel Director in the fleet and she has done an amazing job here on Empress.  Sitting next to her at dinner I asked about her rise to Hotel Director and being in this role as a female.  She is very proud of her accomplishment and clearly has earned it.   It's great to see Royal Caribbean advancing more women into senior positions.
After an incredible dessert we were presented with a memento of the occasion. 


Julie and Jorge are both nearing the end of the current contracts with just two more sailings to go, but they'll be coming back.
The future of Empress was discussed and there will be an announcement very soon with some new and different itineraries for Empress.  She isn't going anywhere just yet and they are taking advantage of her small size to return to some more interesting destinations that larger ships can't visit.  Out of respect I won't say more but I'll be keeping an eye out for them very soon and I know I'll be booking more cruises on Empress.
Wow!  What an amazing evening! Loyalty does have it's rewards.

After dark I thought I'd walk off some of my dinner.  There were a number of low clouds passing above us and it didn't look like a great night for the Milky Way again.  Our direction towards Belize puts the Milky Way at the front of the ship but after Belize we'll start heading back North so this would be the last chance to take advantage of the dark bow to capture it.
A passing storm in the distance caught my eye from deck 6 aft behind Boleros.

It didn't look good for star gazing but I thought I'd try anyways so back to deck 6 forward.  I settled in to let my eyes adjust and it seemed like it was opening up at times.  In between passing clouds I managed to get some more Milky Way shots.  Using lessons learned from the previous night I think they came out pretty good. 

Day 10, Cruise 2 Day 4 - Costa Maya
I stayed on the ship and took advantage of the much better Voom today compared to yesterday.

The Celebrity Equinox would join us again today.  She was with us in Key West and I caught her sailing into the sunset later that day.

There is definitely a lot of sargassum (seaweed) floating in the ocean this time.  Like many things in nature it varies day to day and it appeared there was more of it this time.

I stayed on the ship and got some work done.  Soon enough it was sail away time for both ships.   We arrived first and we departed first with the Equinox's helipad a popular spot for sail away.  The company ships did a "horn-off" each blowing their whistle following each others pattern.  Empress needs to step up it's whistle, Equinox put her to shame.


Dinner back in Chops for the second half of my BOGO.

I often forget to take pictures of the bread, I usually jump right in when it arrives.

The 16 oz bone-in ribeye tonight


Mushrooms and tater tots as sides.

Apple pie for dessert (with raisons).

Tonight's Headliner Show with Finis Henderson, former Motown artist, comedian, dancer, impressionist.

He did impressions of a number of different musicians and actors.

It's a situation that's occurring more and more in society.  Part of the challenge for any company is that they have limited ability to challenge a guest's assertion they have a disability that requires a service animal.  No company on land or at sea can require anyone to prove a disability.  I could sit in a wheel chair and make all sorts of claims about a disability and no store, or theater, or amusement park or cruise line can legally challenge me.
As many people note when flying that an airplane can solve many disabilities.  Some people claim the need for assistance to board and/or priority boarding for their ailment then miraculously by the end of the flight they can jump up and walk off the plane like a fully abled body person can.  The miracle of flight.  This is what our society has come to.  
Airlines and cruise lines have noted the abuse of the service animal policy and are trying to deal with it as best they can but people will go to great lengths to fake a need.  It is really unfortunate because there are truly valid needs that are being impacted by the fakers.
Princess has them too.   

I usually establish a relationship with key bartenders early in the cruise by offering a single with my SeaPass card when ordering drinks with DX.  Pool bars for example.  
They get to know you and remember your drink orders.   At busy times this can work in your advantage.  
I was on Navigator in December.  Shortly after the ship went into dry dock and months later I was back on in March.   Bartenders not only remembered my name but also my drink preferences.   The very moment I walked up on boarding they they welcomed me by name with a smile on their face months later.  
A extra tip, a smile and patience when they are slammed goes a long way.
You don't have to tip above the 18% you have already paid.
PS - I still remember his name too - Edgardo, a great bartender.    Then there was Zoltan in the Bamboo Room, then...