Shopping

Shopping!

15^th July 2011

Waking up late I knocked on a few cabins to see if anyone was around and if they were, what they’d be doing today. We’re in Ashdod again and for the final time. If you’re not on tour, there’s not a great deal to do like there is in the other ports.

David wanted to get off the ship before he went nuts. That made two of us! 

Grabbing a bite to eat before heading out, we jumped on the shuttle bus and headed to the shopping centre. David was determined to get some new shoes of some sorts. I think his mind was set on a new pair of Converses. 

Arriving at the shopping centre, we had a look around and it wasn’t long until we’d mentally spend a huge sum of money. Looking around for what seemed forever, we finally found someone to exchange our dollars and euros to shekels. 

Heading back to the shopping centre, I bought a new bikini top – I’m hoping for a couple of hours at the beach at some point! Going into another shop, David bought a pair of black trainers which didn’t even make it into the box! He walked out wearing them, telling me his new trainers were so comfortable it felt like he was walking on air!

It wasn’t long until we bumped into Hernan and Eve who were walking about doing a bit of shopping. Eve wanted a hat but couldn’t find anything she liked. She didn’t know which type she wanted and just said, “I’ll know when I see it”! I saw a lovely shirt but $80 was a bit over my budget!! 

Popping into a few more shops, David and I separated from Eve and Hernan. They were going to the beach for a few hours. Eve had the entire day off while Hernan didn’t have to work until the late evening. 

The best place to buy electrical equipment is definitely Israel. I was so tempted to give my credit card a good hammering!! It was just under €60 for a 1TB external hard drive. In the end, I managed to contain myself and walked out with an 8GB SD memory card for €13. Looking back on it, I really wish I’d bought the external hard drive. Mine is only 500GB and it’s rapidly filling up with obscene amounts of photographs!! Oh well, you live and learn.

We spotted Hernan and Eve again. David and I were off to the ship for an hours nap before we started work. Hernan and Eve were still trying to find a way of getting to the beach and didn’t fancy waiting 15 minutes for the free shuttle bus and were contemplating getting a taxi which would cost about $10-15. In the end they went for the cheap and cheerful option and joined us on the bus.

The rest of the evening was spent in the gallery and studios. The night itself was so slow. For sure we aren’t going to make much money this cruise. No one is buying and we’ve got our fingers crossed that somehow, things might just pick up on the last day or towards the end of the cruise.

HOT day in Ashdod, Israel - David, Eve and Hernan

David, Me and Hernan

Half-Way Point!

Half-Way Point!

13^th April 2011

Here we are, still at sea and cruising to Haifa. This is our second sea day. 

The previous night was formal night which didn’t go to plan. Things were slow, we didn’t get as many photos as we needed so we’ll have to make up for the counts elsewhere. 

After the second Ressi Jomar told us there’d be no pizza as the crew members making it are still kicking up a fuss. Of course we kicked up a fuss as it meant most of us hadn’t eaten for round 15 hours. Jomar’s suggestion was that we were all to close our studios at 11.20, download our images and head straight up to Johnny Rockets where he’d be taking care of the bill. 

Later we found out it was Jomar's birthday as a treat he wanted to take the team to Johnny Rockets! Happy Belated Birthday to the Big Boss Man!!

Getting back to today, I’d been in the gallery for most of it, and managed to sell quite a few photo packages. I think it’s around five or six but I’m hoping to upgrade them all to a bigger package (more expensive) at a later date. The GTP where all photos are put onto a CD is causing everyone so much aggravation so I’ve given up pushing it. I’ll upgrade at a later date if there’s a cause for it. Until then, I’m pushing the smaller package which is straight forward and brings next to no hassle.

While in the gallery, Jomar and Luci told me I was switching the evening with Camila. There’d been a major change in the schedule. There was to be a crew table sale. We’d be selling alongside the shoppies. 

We originally had 20 cameras to sell but Luci sold one just before going down to the table sale.  I only had one model to sell and I had no idea which camera it was! Was I worried? Hell yes! Taking five minutes before the sale, I looked over the camera and had a play. I knew enough to push the camera and it was a freaking great compact too! 

With 19 units to sell at a discounted price, I was determined to flog the lot!! Playing around with the camera I was tempted to buy one for myself. The Olympus camera had a 12.5x zoom, numerous “magic” setting such as fish eye, pin hole, punk etc. It was an excellent camera and for $199.95, it was a bit of a steal. If there are any left after the sale…

Soon there was a huge buzz around my table and people were snapping the cameras up with memory cards and cases. They were flying off the table and Luci couldn’t bring down the receipts quick enough. It was mainly the Filipinos that were buying the cameras.

One guy made me laugh! He asked me what was good about the camera, so I told him. The guy then had the audacity to tell me “you’re only saying that because you’re selling the camera. Olympus is shit. Nikon is a good camera”. I told him that yes, although Nikon is a good BRAND of camera, Olympus is excellent and still one of the top selling brand. I also pointed out that the price was good and today would be the only day that crew would be able to buy cameras at a discounted price. He turned around to me, sneered and said “yeah yeah, whatever man. What would you know about cameras?” Erm… hello! Last time I checked I was the one with “PHOTOGRAPHER” on my name badge while yours says “CABIN ATTENDANT”. I had to laugh in the guy’s face… what a retarded comment to make!!

At the end of the night, things started to slow down and we had three cameras left to sell. I spotted a friend from Spa and called her over. She wanted the camera but only had cash. All transactions had to be made on Crew ID Cards. Sod it! Taking the money, I charged for the camera on my sea pass card. 

By the end of the night we only had one camera left, the display camera. The place was dead by 23.30 and Luci was tired and called it a night. So in the space of three and a half hours I’d managed to sell 18 cameras along with numerous memory cards and cases. It’s a shame I couldn’t get rid of the last one but it was still a job well done! 

Upstairs eight cameras had been sold which bought a total of just over $8,000 in. We’d succeeded our camera sales target and it was only day 3 of the cruise.

In the end I decided against buying the camera. As much as I wanted it, my parents bought me a Canon compact camera a year and a half ago for my 23^rd birthday. Plus when I go out, I use my Canon EOS 400D as well as my compact. Although my Canon compact might not be the latest model or have all the mod cons like the ones we are selling, it’s still a good camera and does its job. 

Looking back on it, I’m still 50/50 about buying the camera so it’s a good job I didn’t buy it. Plus, why buy a compact camera when you are saving up for a Canon 5D Mark II?

Towards the end of the night Ritesh informed us all that it was his birthday. He used my sea pass card to buy some after shave. Later on, we divided the amount up between the rest of the team and split the bill. We did the same for Jomar’s late birthday present.

Handing me some money, Ritesh insisted on buying drinks for everyone on back deck. His card was blocked so the money was going on my sea pass card. After paying for a camera, two bottles of aftershave and cigarettes I was $-408!!! Getting the money I was owed, I shoved it all onto my card to get out of the red. Fede brought his Canon 5D to back deck and we all had a laugh, taking photos, having a drink and celebrating Ritesh’s birthday.

Ritesh’s birthday wasn’t the only thing we were celebrating. On the 13^th April, Hernan and I joined the Mariner of the Seas in Rhodes. Today is our three month “anniversary”. We’d been working on the ship for three months. We’d finally reached our half way point and that in itself deserved a drink… any excuse hey!? The night rolled on into the small hours of the morning. 

Calling it a night at 3am, some of us had to be up early for tour and others would be on the gangway. It’d be our last visit to Israel so I intended to go trigger-happy on the guests while taking as many photos for myself and family as I possible could.

Whitney (Spa) and Sandra

Sandra, Fede and Whitney

Drinks at Back Deck - David and Sandra

Sandra, Camila, Whitney and Fabio

Luci & Sandra

The Girls - Sanela, Camila, Luci, Sandra and Lou

Back Deck: Sandra, Fede, Whitney and Fabio

Fede, Luci, Jomar, Fabio. Sandra, Camila and Myself

Bright Light

Bright Light

11^th July 2011

That’s a wrap! The Istanbul cruise has come to a close and we are preparing for the final Holy Tour route to Israel. It’s out with the old (guests) and in with the new. It’s very much like that on the cruise ship, in a way, it can be seen almost as a bus route. A very luxurious, expensive bus route but a bus route all the same.

We are back in Civitavecchia, Italy. Things on this embarkation are a bit different from the last. In fact the entire cruise was different from the previous. We are no longer allowed to set up studios in the terminal as we were “holding people up and causing queues” because people were waiting in line to have their photo taken. This time we had two backdrops set up outside and once again there was no shade. We had to wear our black Get The Picture shirts… lovely! The smell of cat’s pee was rife and making a few stomachs turn. 

As soon as we were finished setting up, the guests started coming through. We were all on time for once and things were running as smooth as possible until my pentab took a leave of absence and then a guest knocked it over!! R.I.P. pentab is all I can say. 

Another bonus was that we weren’t under staffed. Okay, so it was Camila’s first embarkation but she did a good job. She just needed to stop chatting to the huge amount of Brazilian guests she saw. She did give it a good go though, and that’s what matters the most. 

Sanela still needs to speed up and stop standing around, maybe that’ll come with time. Somehow I doubt it. It’s almost as if she doesn’t want to be here so refuses to put the effort in. You don’t have the be the greatest as a new hire, no one expects it. All you have to do is show an interest and try. That’s all anyone asks for.

So, it’s been two weeks since Stu made his abrupt exit from the team. Although I sometimes miss having Stu around to talk to and have a joke with, things are easier going. I’m still appreciative of his training and everything he's done for me, but now I’m far more relaxed about things and not constantly worried about being scrutinized. In fact, I’m settling in nicely, feeling more and more confident about what I do as the days tick on. In a way, I’m glad.

The atmosphere is a lot more chilled and I’m not the only one to notice it. Certain other things have been said about Stu’s departure and what went on, so it’s not just me. This isn’t a case of “out of sight, out of mind” but if you’re on the team or know one of us personally to know the full story, you’d know what we’re on about. 

It’s safe to say there is light at the tunnel and it just so happen to be a very bright light. I’m enjoying my time on the ship more than ever. In the end, the day Stu and Jeni left, everyone grew that little bit closer. Everyone was there for one another and it was like we became a stronger “family” unit. We became a stronger and better team. Naples proved that we are a fantastic team. I think the Mariner of the Seas photog team is brilliant and now we're like an on board family. We are all very different but in a way, so very similar and just click.

The itinerary hasn’t changed but the order has. Setting sail at 17.00, we were in for two days at sea. That seemed like hell, after all, we’d only just stepped onto dry land after two sea days.  Afterwards we are set to arrive in Haifa followed by Ashdod, Israel. 

Formal night is tomorrow and there is a massive group of Brazilians on board. Jomar is telling us to shoot the Brazilians as much as possible as they will buy absolutely everything. He’s certain this cruise will be a good earner, simply because of the Brazilians on board. Whoever would have thought that one nationality would have made such an impact?

As it’s the start of a new cruise, it’s also payday! My wages were pretty good. I sold quite a lot last cruise even though it didn’t seem like it. While in the gallery, I’ve been choosing an item or two to sell which gets offered to every single person. It makes a difference. 

The best news of all, was that there were no deductions made to my salary. When I asked why, I was told that I’d finally paid off my debt to Image. The deposit, camera and uniform ($1,300) were paid. Finally! Now anything that came my way was for me and my savings… or so I thought.

During the meeting Jomar told us that Ocean Pay would soon be coming our way. Ocean Pay is a debit card where our future salaries will get paid on to. It means we won’t have wads of cash stashed in our safes. That’s the main advantage to Ocean Pay.

If you have family at home whom you want to send money to, the transaction fee is a lot less than what the banks would charge. However, with every pro there’s a con. We are allowed one free withdrawal every 2 weeks, after that there is a charge and I have no idea how much it is. No one does.

The main kick in the teeth that comes with Ocean Pay is that three weeks of our wages will be held, almost as a deposit. What the deposit is for I don’t know. When we questioned it, our BM told us “I don’t know. It’s just the way it is.” 

From what Jomar was telling us, new hires will not get paid at all until they have paid off their debt to Image. Personally, this seems extremely unfair, considering new hires have to spend a considerable amount of money getting their medical, visas and uniform sorted. For me, if I was joining Image today, with the new system, I’d think twice and probably by pass working on cruise ships. The main reason for this is because I simply wouldn’t be able to afford to pay for it all and have enough for two months plus of ships. It’s madness.

Now that we are finally sailing towards Haifa, Israel, it’s time to get some sleep before working in the gallery. Two days at sea, and I’m planning to catch up on my sleep as much as possible.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY STU!!

Happy Birthday Stu!!!

The title of the blog entry says it all but either way: HAPPY BIRTHDAY STU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I woke up this morning talking to myself! I’d been having the most random dream possible. I was on the ship, running after my brother. People kept stopping me to ask questions while I was desperately trying to tell them I had to go. Getting woken up by talking to yourself is strange enough but I was completely lost and confused… It took a couple of minutes to click where I was. The men in white jackets will soon be coming to take me away, locking the door and throw away the key!

Getting dressed and heading up to the gallery I had to meet Luci and Reuben to get some presents. My crew card is the only one working. Everyone else has had theirs blocked due to lack of funds. Mine, however, no matter how much in the red I am, has never been blocked. I saw Stu in the gallery but he was helping a guest so I didn’t want to interrupt to wish him a happy birthday. 

Heading upstairs Reuben pointed out a Puma jacket he wanted. Talking to Luci she didn’t think getting Stu the shield was a good idea.  Giving Stu a call she told him to get his backside up to the Royal Promenade. In the end he chose a pair of sunglasses. It seemed a bit of a cold, thoughtless present.

Luci also wanted to call Jeni up to the shop to get her something. We’d already decided to get Jeni a scrapbook and fill it with photos. Luci thought the idea was “a shit”, too heavy and big to take home. She also asked if I’d spoken to Jeni about what to get her and if she wanted the scrapbook. What ever happened to surprises? Anyway, getting bit irritated and just left it up to Luci, she can do what she wants with the presents… I was just there to pay for it all.

Back in the gallery I started my first stint. It’s formal night so it was going to be a long one. Plus tonight we’re doing a team photo for Jeni and Reuben. Rather than take it on LSP it was suggested we use Fede’s centrum studio.

Set up was a complete nightmare. We took so long to set up the studios, I think there were about 9 in total. Someone was supposed to sort out the studio signs and only did half so at the last minute a couple of us had to run around finishing up the job. 

Running down to the lab we gathered our camera equipment and pentabs before heading upstairs. 

The ice staking show was on while we were taking the bags through Studio B. Stu and I stood watching for about 30 minutes before I had to head back to the cabin and get changed into my tuxedo. What we saw of the ice show was absolutely amazing!! I’d love to see the show in full rather than snippets here and there. It’s like watching the trailer of the shows.

Once changed into my tux I was back in the gallery for an hour. At 17.00 we had the usual meeting before the studios opened. Overall the night went relatively fast.

Normally Stu is the last to finish shooting but tonight he was so tired he closed his studio almost on time. Breaking down as quickly as possible, we wanted to get our team photo before going out to celebrate. Just as we were putting the studio bags into the store room David looked up to Deck 4 and saw that Fede’s centrum studio had been broken down. Fabio had broken down the studio… we didn’t have a studio for the group shot. 

Rather than setting up to break down we simply grabbed one of the cameras, put Fede’s flash on and rested the camera onto of a bench from LSP. Getting a group shot was funny, we took quite a lot to say the least!! 

After we had an all girl’s photo, then the guys had their turn. Next we put Reuben in the middle and all the girls surrounding him. As it was Stu’s birthday, we did the same. To make the photo unique from Reuben’s, all the girls hid their bodies behind Stu, only revealing their face of upper part of the body. There wasn’t that much space and being the smallest I kneeled in between Stu’s legs. The photo was excellent!!

Spa were hosting a themed party out on Back Deck – Black, White, Short and Tight. Typical Spa! Luci and I didn’t have anything black and white. None of my clothes were short or particularly tight so I had to settle for jeans and a navy top.

Newman had arranged to get a cake for Stu saying “HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHREK”. We were all rushing around the find Stu. In the end we found him at the bar. We managed to get a confused Stuart to sit down. I covered his eyes so he couldn’t see Newman getting the cake out the bag and box. 

Unfortunately we didn’t have any candles which, obviously, was a bit of a shame. Either way, the chocolate cake looked fantastic! Stu’s face was a classic when he opened his eyes and everyone started singing happy birthday.

The rest of the night we just spent sitting around, having a few drinks and laughs, chatting etc. Stu by the end of the night was completely smashed and by the time he reached the cabin at 5am, had to be up and out on the gangway at 8am for another private tour. That should be a sight to see…

Top left to right: Sanela, Reuben, CJ
Bottom left to right: David, Regina, Lou (moi) and Stu

Happy Birthday Shrek!

Zoran & Raissa

Stu and his Dirty Martinis

Hernan & Eve

Typical Stu!

Celebrating Stu's 22nd Birthday

Zoran

Newman

Top left to right: Reuben (India), Newman (Brazil), Luciana (Brazil), Zoran (Croatia), Hernan (Argentina)
Middle left to right: Sanela (Serbia), Jeni (Chile), Sandra (Colombia), CJ (South Africa), Eve (New Zealand)
Bottom left to right: David (South Africa), Regina (Brazil), Stu (South Africa)

Mad Rush

Mad Rush

22^nd June 2011

Usually we have a sea day, the second formal night, in between Haifa and Ashdod. However, on this cruise, we are heading straight to Ashdod, arriving tomorrow morning. The distance between Haifa and Ashdod is unbelievably short, more than I'd realized: 45 minute flight or an hour and a half by car. Rather than cruising slowly to make a sea day we steamed on towards our next port of call.

All the photographers were up between 06.00 and 06.30. Those who weren’t on tour were working on gangway. Again, Stu had a private tour lined up with the same family. Zoran therefore took Stu’s place as the Crusader. Jeni was shooting the ring at one gangway and I was on the rail at the opposite end of the ship.

Yesterday's events on the gangway went well, today things were the opposite, especially for me. As usual Ashdod was a royal mad house! People were running here, there and everywhere trying to find their bus or trying to get to their tour bus first to grab a window seat. It's like going back to your school days! It’s crazy, they turn into little kids! Some people had got their tour bus stickers and headed straight out to find the bus rather than waiting for the tour guide to take the group. Some of them even got lost looking for their bus!

Smudging was near impossible. Ritesh came out on the gangway to see what was happening. Picking up the rail he told me to help him carry it to another spot. He plonked the rail in the centre of the gangway rather than on an entrance/exit. It was insane! I had to constantly keep heaving the rail out the way for the tour buses to get passed. So not only did a get a crap image count I’d buggered my back and shoulder again!

Once the tour gangway was closed Jeni came up to join me at the gangway exit. Fabio was shooting Zoran and Jeni and I were shooting pretty much the same thing. Obviously people didn’t want a photo with the ring when they’d had one on the rail and vice versa. It made sense to only use one or the other but we were told to stay outside and keep smudging.

Towards the end of our stint Jorge from Explorations! came out from the ship dragging his suitcases behind him. He was disembarking to be transferred to a smaller ship in the Baltics. It was actually quite sad seeing him go. I’ve always got along well with him, he’s absolutely lovely. 

Everyone seems to be leaving or preparing to leave. Saying goodbye seemed strange, almost unreal but he’s happy to be going so good luck to him. Jeni and I got our photo taken with him behind the ring. One last Mariner of the Seas photo which we said we’d email to him. It still didn’t seem real when his taxi drove off. Even now I still expect him to pass by or call out “Hola Chiquita”.

The rest of the day I spent catching up on sleep, searching for cans of Coca-Cola and blogging before going to work in the gallery. I really need to catch up on my blog entries but been too knackered and favouring sleep each time!

There's even a shortage of fizzy drinks on board. Well, for crew anyway. The guests have run out of pretty much everything. As we can't possibly have the guests going without, our crew area got raided. All our vending machines have been emptied and so have the majority of the crew bars! Once we run out, we're dry and caffeine-free until Embarkation Day!

Tomorrow is Stuart's 22nd birthday and we are all at a loose end. We honestly don't know what we can buy him. Well, we did have a few ideas. Originally, we were all going to chip in and buy the Knight's shield he wanted in Rhodes, but that isn't for another three days. Unfortunately, we are going to be at sea for his birthday and as it's a sea day, it's formal night! We also have to get a leaving present for Reuben tomorrow as he disembarks early in Kuasdasi.

Zoran as the Crusader

Jorge Disembarking - Jeni, Jorge and Me

Costume & Shooter
Zoran the Crusader & Fabio

 

Smudge! Smudge! Smudge!

Smudge, Smudge, Smudge

21^st June 2011

Today we all had an early start. Mariner of the Seas is docked in Haifa, Israel and we needed to get a good image count. 

Haifa gangway is like a zoo, a madhouse! After Israel, things go to pot, our image counts, gallery purchases and profits go down the pan. The guests either tighten the grip on their wallets or run out of money from buying too much holy water, or both. 

This was the final push so we doubled up. Jeni was shooting the ring, I was on the rail and Stu was smudging for us both. David is the “new age” camel. Stu can no longer dress up as the camel because, according to Mike, he’s naturally too tall and wearing the camel’s head takes him up to something loopy like 7 foot. There’s too much of a gap between the guests and camel’s head. Shooting the camel was Fede.

Stu started smudging for me until I had a reasonable count while Jeni was struggling. He switched to Jeni to give her a hand. Reuben soon came over and started helping me smudge. During a quiet moment on the gangway he checked my images for faithful exposures and cropping. A mad rush came with everyone running around like headless chickens looking for their tour buses. Reuben started shooting and between us we smudged as much as possible. 

I’m far more comfortable smudging in Spanish. For some reason, I find it so hard in English. When speaking in Spanish I have no shame, naturally wave my hands around and speak louder (or shout) than I do in English. At one point Stu got a bit pissed at me for not smudging enough. Someone's always got to complain.

Towards the end of our four hour stint on gangway, Mike came out from the ship and told me to follow him. Reuben picked up the ring Jeni was using and carried it down to the opposite end of the ship. 

The ring was set up so the guests were close up foreground and the entire length (or 95%) of the Mariner of the Seas in the background. Some port agents apparently don’t allow you to go that far away from the ship if you’re working so Mike had to clear it with Israeli security first.

For the next hour and 15 minutes I was roasting in the Israeli sun like a chicken!! None of us bother slapping on suncream in Haifa as the ship always provides us with shade for the entire gangway stint. Big mistake! There was a small area of shade, provided by the terminal's roof ledge, that I was running to for refuge during breaks from guests getting off the ship. 

Stu came down with a bottle of water and to see how I was getting on. There was about 45 minutes left so he stood around keeping me company and doing the odd bit of smudging. Most of the time he took the pee out of my accent and how I say “photo”. He’s South African though… he isn’t one to talk!! Nowadays if I tell him to repeat “yes” or “off” in his thick South African accent, he tells me to fuck off!! Charming. I guess it does contain the word "off"...

The images I was getting were bloody good though so I took a couple of stock shot like images to put on the blog and send to the parents. Slowly but surely I was back to racking up more images.

Once gangway was over we all headed back onto the ship. Stu and I went upstairs for munch while the others went back to bed for a few hours. 

I had until 17.30 off so it was a chance for me to get my washing done. Borrowing Stu’s detergent I managed to get it all done relatively quickly! Sara (Mexico) the singer from Boleros said there’s a cheap supermarket nearby the port. Chucking my lights into the dryer and darks into a bag, I ran off towards my cabin to drop everything off. 

While charging down the I-95 I bumped into Jorge from Explorations! He was being transferred tomorrow to work in the Baltics and needed to bue a suitcase. We arranged to meet on the gangway in five minutes to find a suitcase and get some shopping in. 

Finding the suitcase was much easier than finding a supermarket. There are plenty of clothes, leather and delicatessen shops. Finally we found a supermarket that looked more like a garage from the outside. Everything was so much cheaper than in Europe so I made the most out of it, keeping in mind that I had to carry it all back to the ship. I finally managed to find washing detergent, a 3litre bottle of Persil for $6. In Europe it’d cost you an arm and a leg! Next time we need shopping, we’ll save it until we’re in Haifa.

Back on the ship I had a couple of hours to spare but didn’t quite know what to do with myself. Stu was now on his private tour with the large, Honeymoon family. Jeni was catching up on her beauty sleep. Hernan, Fede, Sandra and Eve were at the beach. I’d had enough sun for the day and decided against going to the beach. The last thing I needed was a lobster red body followed by shedding my skin like a snake!!

Making the most out of the time I jumped into bed for what was supposed to be an two hours and turned into three and a half. Gathering my stuff up I headed to Back Deck for a while. I’ve been a bit behind with my blog updates due to our hectic schedules.

When we are in port we can’t sell a lot of our products due to tax reasons. So today I was surprised when Reuben put me on table sale to sell cameras. Once everything was on the trolley to take up to Deck 11 we said we couldn’t sell anything until we were out of the port and asked what we were supposed to do. Reuben hadn’t realized that sail away was 22.00 and it was now 17.30. Either way, I had to set up and just promote what we had to offer. I had to turn a couple of people away as I couldn’t sell them a camera. 

During the evening, a guest came back to purchase a camera and mentioned my name so the commission would go to me. Someone else came back to the gallery and bought one from Stu. It’s kind of frustrating when you’ve pretty much sold a camera but can’t close and charge because you’re in port. It’s worse when they buy from someone else and you loose your minimal commission of $4

Reuben has also confirmed that he has a definite date as to when he’ll be leaving the ship. Our previous manager Jomar will be returning to the Mariner of the Seas from vacation. Reuben is being transferred to the Oasis of the Seas. Although Rueben likes the small team - Oasis of the Seas has 27 photographers while Mariner of the Seas has a team of 10 photogs - he’s pleased to be going to Oasis. Fantastic money, or so I'm told. Not many people can say they’ve been the manager to a team of photographers on the second biggest cruise ship in the world. Reuben will be disembarking in Kusadasi in three days. 

Good luck to him.

Smudger: Stu on the Rail (with half the Ring)

And there's the other half of the ring

David The Camel, Haifa (Israel)

Character & Shooter - David & Fede

Our BM Reuben

Reuben & Mariner of the Seas, Haifa (Israel)

Mike & Reuben - Sample Shot

The Set Up

Down Time... Finally!

Down Time… Finally!

30^th May 2011

These past couple of days have merged into one. Since embarkation, eight days ago, we have been on the go, working pretty much nonstop. Getting down time is hard at the moment, again, not just for me, but for everyone. Tempers have been flaring at little but it’s to be expected. As this is the first proper chance to sit down and type, I’m just going to type a review of the past few days, rather than a new entry for every single day. I can’t even remember what I did on certain days – it’s crazy!

Naples was obviously great, as usual. I went out with Luci for something to eat – pizza, pasta and cheese of course! Every time we are heading to Naples we fast, practically starving ourselves. When we arrive, we binge on pizza, pasta and cheese. What else would you do in Naples? Luci showed me another place that she goes to and I have to admit, the food was better than the regular place we go to.

Beforehand I had gangway. Reuben is letting me dress up in the costumes more and more – I love it! The shooter and I always get great counts which is a bonus. This time, I was a sailor. 

Rolling out of bed at 6 was hard, I was shattered and hadn’t been sleeping well. Things have been getting to me and everything is mounting up and getting on top of me. I need to do something about it, relax a little. Easier said than done.

Anyway, the outfit was pretty ridiculous. It was way too bit for me and Hernan’s hat was slipping off my head. Taking the hat off, Stu later came over and told me what I looked like – an idiot. Thanks!

During my 15 minute break I tied my hair up and put my sunglasses on before heading out for my last stint. Stu’s outfit was by far the best – Italian pizza chef. He even had a silver platter with a photograph of a pizza selotaped to his hand. He certainly looked the part which was more than what could be said for me! Anyway, Fabio and Stu were teamed up and David was shooting me. Altogether we got a good image count.

Pizza Chef - Naples, Italy

Cousin IT Sailor - Naples, Italy

Naples Sailor with my favourite Canadian guest, Daniel

 After lunch with Luci we did a bit of shopping and had a mooch around the shops. I needed to get a pair of sandals/flip flops for Athens gangway in case I'm the Greek Goddess again. I managed to find a lovely Greek style pair of sandals for 15 euros. I could wear them with anything – result. Luci also found a large, golden wrist clamp bracelet for 6 euros. Well, that's the Greek Goddess props sorted.

Just before heading off to use the internet I saw Fabio and David. Luci went off to use the internet near the port while I stayed with the lads for a beer. All in all, it was a great day – it’s days like this, that I love my job!

Fabio, Naples (Italy)

The Dave

Beeeeeeeeer!

On the third day of the cruise we had our first formal night which went pretty smoothly. My manager gave me two different studios to shoot in, the first two sessions were on a backdrop. The final stint was up on one of the centrums on Deck 5. I love the promenade centrum. The photos look absolutely fantastic – I wish I could post some on here for everyone to see. Shooting Ressi didn’t go as bad as usual, I got a much higher count than normal so it’s a sign I’m improving.

Here come the Greeks! Athens gangway was a royal laugh!! Stu was the Greek God and teamed up again with Fabio. I was the Greek Goddess and teamed up with Luci. Luci had to keep popping off for training so Paco, the AMS, would stand in for her.

We were just cracking jokes and having a laugh the entire time on gangway. I was first on gangway and getting most of the shots. Stu then changed with me so he was first but it didn’t have the same effect. Stu put me first in line saying “it’s the tits – people are stopping to have their photo taken because you’re a girl”. Basically as I was a girl, the guys were coming over for their photo and the girlfriends and wives were sometimes reluctantly joining them. After they’d stopped to have their photo with me, it was easy to smudge them onto Stu and Fabio. In all fairness, although we didn’t hit the almost impossible target, we got approximately 900 shots. We nailed it!!

Everything in general was improving and I was feeling better about myself. Everyone on the team noticed there was a chance and that I was generally happier. 

My BM certainly noticed the change as he pulled me into the office later on that night. As I was in a better “state of mind” he felt he could talk to me and ask what was up. To be fair, he didn’t get much of a reply. I didn’t want to talk about any of it.

Anyway, I’d had two bad comments – not one, but two! One came from the Naples gangway where I was dressed up as a Sailor. Apparently, the lady who complained (an American) didn’t want her photo taken with me as I looked too tired, shattered. She also said my outfit was way too big and swamped me leaving her confused as to what I was supposed to be dressed up as. Someone dressed in white, standing next to a ship, saluting – what could I have been dressed up as? 

The second bad comment said “Louise the English photographer was very rude and unhelpful”. Who the guest was, or the occasion, no one knows. I was left, not only baffled but almost let down. I hadn’t been rude to anyone. The main problem I have is that most Americans do not (strangely enough) understand my accent or my sense of humour. Although I try not to be sarcastic like I am to the English, I do try to have a joke with them when they are in the studio. It stops the guests from being ridged and feeling uncomfortable. So that could have been the case. 

Another could have been, sometimes people try and walk through my studio when I’m taking portraits. It’s incredibly annoying but I do ask people to walk around the studio, some people do not like this at all. 

The last thing I can think of which is when I’m in the gallery. Guests cut the line and pretty much tell me to serve them while I’m serving someone else (and there’s an obvious queue behind them). I point out the queue and say “I’ll be with you in a few minutes but there is a queue and I’m currently helping this guest”. To me, it’s not rude but the manager said that certain people would see it as rude because I’m not putting them first. What am I supposed to do? 

Anyway, Reuben told me to buck my ideas up and that I’m doing a good job. All I needed to do was carry on working hard, improving and “not fuck up”. That was the advice I was given. Reuben said he didn’t want to say anything during the last cruise as I’d been down in case it affected me or my work in any way.

Kusadasi was the next stop. During the morning I was on tour at Ephesus. It was a lot shorter than the previous but I was still dreading it. Having said that, although there were problems, it went much better than expected.

The tour guide told me to stay at the back of the group and keep everyone together. I explained that I’d do my best to keep everyone together but my main job was to take photographs of the guests as I’m the ship’s photographer. His reply: “just stay at the back”.

A little while later one of the Ephesus “photographers” came over. I say “photographers” because they are simply given a camera, not knowing how to use it and take over exposed or ever completely burnt photos which they try to flog at the end of the tour – somehow they managed to sell a few.

The tour guide introduced him to the goup. “This is our photographer so if you guys want a photo, this is who you come to”. I wasn’t best pleased. I got a couple to stand together for a photo and the bugger stood beside me and took the picture. The couple then walked off. I’d missed my shot – I was shocked he did it but then why should have I expected anything else? They were like pappazzi! He did it again, but this time he got in the way of my shot, partially blocking me. That was it! I was pissed! 

Leaving my group and went and stood by the library. There were three groups coming from our ship so I stood and waited. When they arrived I started smudging quietly and getting the shots. The “photographer” didn’t look too impressed. Good!

Ephesus Library

Later on he was taking a photo of someone, I don’t even think they were from our ship but I walked straight in front of him, and pressed the shutter release button. Whether the photo came out with the correct exposure, I didn’t know or care. He looked at me with a face of thunder – now he knew how it felt and how annoying it was. I did my “cute smile” as Luci calls it: a little closed smile where I tilt my head to the side slightly, before walking off. Needless to say I didn’t have any further problems there. 

I carried on walking to the areas which caused the most interested and simply waited to pounce. A lot of people said no, but I did get lot of good shots.

Once back at the ship I explained what happened. Ritesh also went on the same tour and only came back with 6 shots. I came back with 45 – although it’s not great, we normally have a tough time on tours, especially Ephesus who have their own photographers. It was great poking fun at the AMP for getting less shots than a P1. His excuses were so lame, you couldn't help but see the funny side  – including the AMP.

Knight in Shining Armour

Knight in Shining Armour

28^th May 2011

Today was one of the best days so far and we did relatively little. Rhodes is growing on me more and more. It’s moving up the list and becoming one of my favourite places to go along with Naples. 

Stu, Fede and I headed out for our free time. Fede went off to use the internet while Stu and I were on a mission to improve the knight gangway costume. Stu had an idea in mind, it was just a case of finding the necessary goods to pull it off.

The sun was shining and the place was a busy as ever. We walked down the main strip heading to one of the few shops which sell armour, knives and unique ornaments. Stu spotted a gauntlet which he loved and had to have. 

Stu's usual knight gangway pose is balling his fist up and either pointing it towards the camera or holding it up to his chest (as if protecting himself from a punch). He normally wears a black glove but it doesn’t really look very effective. Putting the gauntlet on, he did his two usual poses and even though he was dressed in his usual clothes, you could imagine how it would look on gangway. The guests would love it!! Instead of getting one gauntlet he decided to get both! The Australian-Greek lady working in the shop gave him a good discount too. 

While looking around the tiny shop we spotted a shield. Stu could have used the shield with one hand while wearing the gauntlet on the other, pointing towards the camera. It must have been quite funny for people walking passed, seeing us imitating gangway poses! We were deciding on what the hell to buy when Stu remembered a chained head piece (he told me the name and I’ve completely forgotten). The piece goes over and covers the head, leaving a small area of the face exposed. The knight’s helmet then goes over the top. One thing is for sure, Stu certainly knows his stuff when it comes down to armour! Again, Stu loved it and decided he wanted it straight away. 

The funniest bit that made my day was when Stu got the head piece stuck on his head. It slipped on easy enough – getting it off was another story. There was a technique to it – slip your chin out first before sliding it off your head! It took us a good 15 minutes of trying, fits and giggles to work out that technique. 

Now it was case of deciding what else to buy. For some reason my opinion was highly valid… and so was my debit card! We could have quite easily bought the shop. Stu had only bought a certain amount of money with him as he only intended on buying one or two gauntlets so I was lending the difference (which wasn’t a huge amount). Finally, after much deliberation, we waltzed out the shop with two gauntlets and the chain head piece. The lady working in the shop took a large chunk off the price when we said we worked on the cruise ships. Crew member discounts - another bonus to ship life.

She was interested in the idea we had for the costume but worried we wouldn’t get the money back. We knew we wouldn’t but Stu wasn’t fazed – he saw it more as an investment and he had a valid point. If everyone dressed in a costume, looked the part and different from the others featured on cruise ships the more people would have their photo taken and buy more. In the long run, the more photos the guests bought, the more money we’d earn and to be honest, Stu would get his money back, plus extra on top, very quickly. Both Stu and I were like kids at Christmas – we couldn’t wait to come back to Rhodes to try out the entire costume and see the results. Without a doubt it’s going to go down a storm!

One question that was playing on our minds was whether we’d be able to get the armour through security. If push came to shove, it’d be taken off Stu and he’d have to collect everything each morning we docked in Rhodes. After gangway he'd have to hand it back into security. Either way he wasn’t too fussed. In the end he managed to get the armour through without a problem.

In the armour shop were gothic paintings wrapped onto black scrolls. It may sound odd but they were stunning! One in particular, featuring a girl-cum-dark angel. She reminded me a lot of Amy Lee from Evanescence. It was 26 euros which I didn’t think was a bad price, especially as I loved it. I was thinking of where I could hang it on the ship. I was too tempted to buy it and Stu was constantly telling me to get it. Instead, I decided I’d buy it for myself when I finally made it to P2. It's my incentive.

Leaving the shop we headed to our new local internet place, Four Seasons. Reuben took Luci and I there after the team lunch. The people are friendly, decent prices and fast internet. For some reason I can’t get on Skype to talk to my parents but Stu could. Luci and Fede were already there surfing the net. 

Before anything I logged onto ImageU to start my competencies. I had two left to go. Again I failed one buy one question so I had another crack. I was determined to own that painting!! On my second attempt of the day I passed it with 8 out of 9. The final competencies was much harder so I needed a little help from Fede who explained a few things to me. Having another go, I passed it! My competencies were sent off to Image. I did my little jig while Luci, Fede and Stu cheered that I was soon to be P2. All that's left to do is wait for Image to send a checklist to for Reuben and the other managers to sign. Once Photog 2, more money will start rolling in and I can make a start on up the ladder to Photog 3.

To be fair, I wouldn’t have been able to do my competencies as quickly as I did without the help of Stu and Fede explaining things and helping out in general. Stu is more like my trainer and was almost literally kicking my arse to get my competencies done. Thanking Stu for helping me out he said if I was P2 by the next time we come to Rhodes he’d buy me the painting as it was a fair deal for helping him out with money for the armour. Result!

I was absolutely over the moon – you cannot imagine it! The day couldn’t have got any better!! I’d finished my competencies which was a huge weight off my shoulders, Stu and I had a great laugh shopping, the sun was out and everyone was in a fantastic mood. We were enjoying the day and spending time together as friends rather than colleagues. What more could we ask for?

Talking to Stu I commented that I was nervous about shooting LSP (Lifestyle Portraits). You can do what you want on the white background. It sounds easy but you can’t take forever thinking of how to position guests and some are wooden at posing. LSP is Stu’s studio, it’s where he’s normally working, especially on formal nights. He gets the best results and his advice: “think outside the box that the box is in”. To give me a hand or train me up a bit, he suggested I popped around to his cabin later and he’d help me with a few simple but effective poses.

Later on at Stu’s he was showing me a few poses using the white stool. He made it look so simple. It was funny watching him posing as a lady doing dainty hand positions. 6'7 and dainty don't go together too well! 

There was a question I’d been meaning to ask Stu for a while but hadn’t wanted to. As everyone was in such a grand mood and we were having a laugh posing I didn't want to spoil anything. Having said that, the "why are you so hard on me?" question was niggling away in my head.

To be honest, Stu doesn’t have to train me the way he does anymore. Zoran, our Croatian new hire has finally arrived. Shouldn’t Stu be concentrating on him? Still, after nearly two months, if I do something wrong, Stu tells me about it, sometimes coming down quite hard on me. Other times, before I even do something he’ll make sure I know how to do it or tell me a way to improve. Although I’m grateful (and I’ve said it a hundred times) he seems to come down harder on me and get on my case more than he does Hernan. Sometimes you can't help but feel that you’ve done a really shit job. 

In the end, the question popped out my mouth. Stu simply looked at me and smiled before shaking his head. Stu said the reason why he was on my case so much was for a number of reasons, one being because I could take his criticism and that he means it constructively. He also said that he can see the images I produce and how I go about it.  Apparently, Stu thinks, along with the others and BM (business manager) that I have real potential to be a great photographer. All I needed was more time, experience and training. Because of that he is taking it upon himself to train me. The others help out too, don’t get me wrong but Stu will spend as much time as he thinks necessary to go through things until it’s engraved in my brain. In all honestly, I was amazed people thought I had potential to do well at what I love doing. It was a massive confidence booster to say the least!

Later on LSP, I was so nervous and it showed in my cropping. The poses weren’t too bad but the cropping needed to improve. I needed to calm down. I asked Luci to come over and have a look at my work. She said the images were great and not to worry so much. Taking the camera she got me to go onto the scene and started posing me. Stu had shown me how to pose using the stool. Luci showed me a few floor poses for singles and couples. 

A lady and her son came over so she stood with me while I posed them and even added a few poses to give me a hand. I'm so lucky to have people like Luci and Stu around to help me. The gallery was dead so Stu came over to see how I was getting on. Trying to pose on LSP with both Luci and Stu watching was making me more and more nervous. At one point Stu saw I was bricking it. Luckily he jumped in and positioned the last shot for me. I was about to lose the ability of speech!

Afterwards I had a 30 minute stint in the gallery with Stu and Luci. Both were telling me to calm down. Stu's advice was to relax and have fun. 

A couple came over who wanted their photo taken on LSP. They thought Stu would be in his studio so he turned around and introduced me to them. They were all joking that the pressure was on and not to cock up the shots as they had high expectations. My face must have been a picture as Stu took one look at me, burst out laughing and gave me a hug!

Back in the studio the couple came over, the guy said he wanted something original. His wife laughed and told him to lay off a bit. When he asked why I looked so worried I explained it was the second time I’d been on LSP and the first I could work freely, without doing the usual formal poses. I was nervous I was going to bugger it up and everyone is so used to Stu being there I’d automatically be compared. 

Stu’s work would win hands down without a doubt. Like the few couples that I love, they were patient, let me experiment, gave me their ideas and on a shot or two posed themselves to give more ideas. Some of the shots were absolutely fantastic. I loved it! They were pleased with the photos too - bonus!

Luci came over later and wanted Stu to pose with me so I could get some extra poses for couples and see the photos. Unfortunately although the gallery was quiet the guests were trickling in so he couldn’t leave and there wasn’t anyone else to pose on the backdrop.

All in all it’d been an absolutely fantastic day! My BM was pleased I’d finally finished my competencies and said he’d let me know once Image sent through my check list. Hernan saw on my Facebook profile that I’d finished my competencies and came over to give me a huge bear hug and congratulate me… he’s becoming more and more like a big brother brother. An Argentinian step brother. 

Today really couldn’t have been any better and it’s all thanks to the team I have around me!

The Knight in Shining Armour of Rhodes, Greece