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Bathed in a rare moment of sunlight
One day, five hours and 15 minutes of good light – spread over three locations – is all we’ve had to work with on this entire 11 day cruise of Fiji’s remote Lau island group.
Otherwise, we’ve had to contend with grey skies, rolling seas, rain and wind (refer earlier post).
Suffice to say, it’s been a frustrating assignment, shooting into patches of clear sky, anticipating slivers of complimentary light and shifting resources around (ship, crew, talent, props etc) to take advantage of the occasional opportunities that surfaced as quickly as they disappeared.
Cruise photography is a demanding gig at the best of times if you want to produce outstanding photographs. It’s fine if you just want to point and shoot at the postcard settings that parade past your cabin (in good weather, that is) or record the performances staged for the passengers but, if you want to rise above that, it’s a challenge.
And, if the weather’s bad, its particularly demanding and creatively exhausting.
Cruise photography is restrictive. Shore trips which average about two hours to allow time to get back for meals are brief in terms of finding the best vantages, the most photogenic people and capturing the tour highlights. And there’s no waiting around for ideal light; what you see is what you get. Then there’s the passengers to contend with if you want anything but a full or crowded shot so you need to try to get there early or stay longer which requires the assistance of the tender driver who defers to the purser who defers to the captain for a decision – all of whom have enough to deal with just working within the rhythm of the cruise. Then there’s the talent (if you’re lucky enough to have them as operators are reluctant to forgo a paying cabin, let alone the fees involved to get them on board) so there’s wardrobe to arrange, gathering any props and ensuring everyone’s there when you need them, which is another layer of organisation potentially fraught with danger (no reference to you, Brooke and Chris. You were great).
Which brings me back to the weather and the fact that, regardless of how much of this other stuff comes together, there’s little you can do if the gods decide to rain on your parade…..or cruise for that matter.
I’ll upload a preview of some of the images captured in the next entry.
Postscript: Adding salt to the wound, we have returned to perfect conditions $$%#@@!!!
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“Griff” – Hervey Bay newshound – celebrating another of life’s firsts.
