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Published: October 9th 2010
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Galapagos Islands Observations for Future Travelers (October 7, 2010)
• Overall, this was a very special destination and a great trip with good photography opportunities. My fellow passengers were from a variety of countries and it was a real pleasure to meet and become friends with such a diverse group. Everyone was very kind, fun and most importantly… on time for gatherings. The food was well prepared and tasty, with a predictable menu of fruits, vegetables, chicken and fish.
• There are several size boats to cruise on with the most common size being 16 passengers which I cruised on. My trip was for 7 nights/8 days which averaged two tours/stops per day with most being wet landings. The dry landings are normally onto concrete steps which can be more challenging if the seas are rough. My itinerary was: http://www.millenniumyacht.com/downloads/8Days-7NightsBaltra.pdf Each day includes two snorkeling trips, this was fun at first, but I was there for photography above water.
• A simple item to overlook is shoes, but remember two pairs are needed just for touring. One pair to get wet and one to use on dry landings. A third pair is nice to have for on
board use… flip-flops or boat deck shoes with soft non-black soles. Some people just went barefooted while on board, but I don’t like being without shoes on. The reason dry landing shoes are not allowed on board is the animal poop. Sunscreen is mandatory and bug spray was not needed in September.
• Tripods are very cumbersome to carry and even harder to set up on the uneven rock surfaces in many areas. They are especially a problem to set and study a subject given the limited time in each place. I was blessed to have a monopod with me because I used it for a walking stick. The tour guide is interested in his talk and moves from one spot to the next in order to complete the tour in time with a specific criteria to stay on schedule. There is time to take pictures, but not to set up and study each environment. The “rules of the islands” state the guide is not supposed to let the group get separated. The terrain can be very rough and uneven, walking on boulders about one to two feet high. I consider myself to be in good shape and in
good health. Unfortunately, I am not sure footed and had a very tough time walking several days, but then again, I was the most senior in age. Would you want to carry a heavy 500 or 600mm lens on and of this wet landing and this is less challenging than dry landings? The terrain for walking can and does look like this (see below) on many days, but there are better trails and sandy beaches for the rest.
• I shot everything with my Nikon D3 and it performed well. I brought my D2x as a backup but never needed it.
• Lenses are important to be sure you have a good variety of shots. I brought my 600mm and never took it out of my cabin. It is too heavy to carry around the island and too dangerous to get on and off the dingy. I used my 70-200mm the most, next my 50mm, and used my 10mm cat eye for wide angles. I had other lens, but used them infrequently. I also brought a 1.4 and 2.0 teleconverters, but did not need them. Most subjects are very close and the 70-200mm was sufficient for
me. Remember if you don’t need it for the tour segment, it just becomes dead weight. Think ahead! I used my vest to carry extra lens and other equipment instead of a backpack or belt, I found this made me more balanced and mobile. I did not want to put my pack on the ground because of sand and animal droppings.
70-200mm @ F2.8, ISO 200 (handheld)
50mm @ F8, ISO 200 (handheld)
Cat-eye 10.5mm @ F8, ISO 200 (handheld)
• A great time for photos is early morning and sunset, but we were back on board. Consequently, no sunsets or sunrises. Maybe, there are tours exclusively for photographers, but a typical one is made up of a variety of interests. We had two guides (both were class III which is the highest level), one for the first 4 days and another for the last 4 days. The first was easy going not detailed, his last four days of two weeks on duty. The second was impersonal, very detailed and treated us as boot camp recruits complete with whistle, loud commands and reprimands. Now that I am back in the USA and have a
chance to review my pictures, I am somewhat disappointed in my final results of pictures. The rush-rush of the land tours has left my questioning my talents for the picture taking process. The point and shoot methodology would have been better served than my SLR with my multi-lens process because of the lack of time and not being suited for a tripod. This was the result of my lack of practice in fast response time… maybe I should help someone with a wedding to practice my techniques of “on the fly” shooting. One disappointing result was my camera was set to JPG for a full day instead of RAW format; shame on me for not checking my shooting mode before each location change. I was always trying to catch up to the group due to my inability to stay up.
• Another mistake I made was to bring my new Apple MacBook Pro. I was going to back-up all of my photos, but I had issues with Adobe Lightroom and my card reader. After I returned home I found some of my flash dish cards were erased which I would never knowingly do, to be sure I have a
second backup. I am trying to figure out what happened, whether I did something wrong on the computer or just did not know how everything functioned on the Mac. Good news… I did not lose any of my pictures, I think? Maybe, I need to go back to a Nikonians’ class on processes to keep everything straight.
• As with anytime you do something for the first time, it is a learning process. The bottom line is I have a lot of great pictures, had a fabulous time, met great new friends. I will ready after this weekend for the upload to my website, www.RonMcGinty.com. I know I am a perfectionist and need to just accept things as they happen, “be happy”. A big thanks to my wife Diane for this wonderful birthday present.
• I went the last week of September (low season) and the trees are deciduous, consequently everything was brown. Evenings were cool and days were pleasant. It is considered mating season in this month offering good shots of babies.
• You may want to consider a few items of pure pleasure to bring: shampoo, your favorite pillow (I like down which can be
used as a cushion), and food snacks. No need to bring a towel, the boat has plenty of on shore and off. I brought several self-wicking tee shirts, one Tommy Bahama shirt and a few pair of paints. Columbia brand clothing make a great lightweight products that dry very fast. I even brought self-wicking socks. The boat served afternoon snacks, but surprisingly not every day.
• The boat I was on was the Millennium. It was a catamaran and fairly large, but was never still because the seas were averaging 2 feet and at times were 3 to 4 while cruising to the next destination. The boat was put into service in 2001 and appears it has never had any cosmetic updates or major cleaning. It appeared to be twice the age due to constant use. Overall the crew was very good, but few spoke English. Of course all the other passengers spoke Spanish, shame on me. Where are my Rosetta Stone CD’s? The day we were to fly home, we were informed there was an Ecuadorian coup (Police against the current President) and the demonstrations caused the airports to be closed. The Millennium took very good care of
us with a free hotel room and food on the boat.
Category: First Class
Type: Naval steel Motor Catamaran
Length: 29 m (82 feet)
Beam: 10 m (33 feet)
Speed: 10 knots
Engines: 2 Deutz 480hp each
Generators: 2 John Deere 65 KW
Safety: 1 radar 36 miles / 1 radar 72 miles - 2 HF ICOM + 2 HV ICON radios
2 west navy with DSC - 1 SART Pathfinder - EPIRB SAILOR satellite
1 DMS (satellite monitoring ship position) - 1 satellite telephone
Zodiacs: 2 units, capacity for 10 passengers each.
Life rafts: 2 units, capacity 25 passengers each
Crew: 9 staff members (including certified Naturalist Guide)
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