Shoot, eat, drink, sleep, repeat…

Feeding the birds in Barcelona

The life of a ships’ photographer is fairly routine. Most days entail the same 4 items on the agenda: shooting, eating, drinking and sleeping. I shoot some type of photographs every day (events, tours, portraits, etc). Meals are rushed, but tasty. Most nights end with a drink or two before I tuck into bed. I also try to take a nap in the afternoons, since I work most nights.

Of course, the very purpose of me being on the ship is to photograph the guests. Every day, we are shooting something or other. Formal nights are the busiest nights, by far. But even during the day, we are shooting many types of events. I typically get up early in the morning, either to shoot a tour, or gangway photos. If I plan it well, I can get some breakfast before I start. But that depends on how late I went to bed the night before. This season is ‘port intensive’, meaning that we are seldom at sea during the day. In a 12-day cruise, we would visit 10 ports of call. So every morning, I wake up in another port, and often in another country. So far since I joined this ship, I’ve visited 14 cities in 9 different countries. And it hasn’t even been 3 weeks yet.

I usually get a few hours off each afternoon. If we are in port that day, I usually use that time to go ashore and have lunch or run errands. If it was a late night the night before, then the free time is usually consumed with a nap. It’s been years since I’ve taken naps in the afternoon, but I am learning to enjoy them again. So far, I haven’t really had enough time to really enjoy the ports for themselves. If I do get some time to explore, it is always done with a camera, in hunt of some special photographic souvenirs.

The food served to the Officers (I am a two-striper) is actually quite good. There is a lot of variety, along with plenty of fresh fruits and juices. The coffee on board is quite good as well. I am not suffering for food, that’s for sure. Sometimes, it’s a challenge to make it to the Mess during the normal hours, but I can always manage to find some food somewhere. I am trying to make sure I eat healthy, and not too much. When I eat ashore, it’s a different story though. J

I drink. That’s no surprise to those that know me well. I don’t drink TOO much, though. But here on the ship, drinking is part of the culture. Most nights end up with a few drinks in one of the public bars, or one of the 2 crew bars. It’s a nice way to end a sometimes-stressful day. Since my day usually ends about midnight, I can’t stay up too late, because I need to be back at work early the next morning.

My room is good enough. Not great, but not bad. I should not complain too much though, since I have a room to myself. Most crew share rooms, but since I am a department head, I have a private room with a window. The rooms are similar to college dorms – simple and functional. I don’t spend much time in my room, except for my sleeps and naps. So, it suits the purpose.

This is a 6-star ship. The guests are much better than what I remember from my first stint on ships 20 years ago. It’s making the work all that more enjoyable.

The Red House, Palamos, Spain

Welcome back….

Morning in Porto Venere, Italy

This is my first week back at Sea, in 20 years. When I was younger, I was working as a Ships’ Photographer for 4 years. It formed a lot of who I was, how I shot photos, and it cemented my love for travel. The opportunity to do it all again was one that I could not turn down.

I will be spending the summer months, traveling throughout the Mediterranean region, visiting most of the countries in the area. It’s been a very long time since I’ve been in Italy, Greece, Turkey and France (and others), and I am looking forward to returning. When I was working on Ships in the 80’s and 90’s, we were shooting with film cameras, and I have very few photographs to show for it. Now that we work with digital equipment, it will be easier for me to retain my work.

My first week back on a ship was challenging, of course. Getting to know how the ship works, who is who, adjusting to the work schedule, and retraining myself on how to shoot photos of the guests…it was a fast and steep learning curve.

I’ve been instantly welcomed into the ship family. All the people that I’ve been meeting are genuinely nice, and happy to include me on the ship. Oddly enough, since I’ve worked on this cruise line 22 years ago, they’ve retained my original employee number, and reissued it to me. Most crew onboard today have a 5-digit crew number, while mine is only 3 digits. When I sign for a purchase or recite my number to anyone, they are invariably confused. They know I am ‘new’, but my crew number suggests otherwise.

After my first week aboard, I’ve realized that I will need to keep my thoughts and opinions to myself, a lot. Cruise ships are similar to the Navy, in that the more stripes you have, the more rank and authority you have. It’s a lot of ‘Yes, Sir’ and very little ‘No, Sir’. I suppose all of that has a good reason, but since I don’t often hold my opinions in, it’s a difficult adjustment. I think I am a fairly intelligent person, so how and what I think is usually sensible. Of course, I am not suggesting that those ranked above me are unintelligent. But discussion and debate are not part of the culture. I just need to adjust myself to not expressing my thoughts so openly.

I will do my best to post some stories about my travels throughout this beautiful part of the world, and give you some insight into what it’s like to work on a ship as a photographer. For those of you that enjoy photography, I will also be posting photos of the places I visit, and describe the process of the photo, if it is unusual or special in some way. I look forward to your feedback, so please post your comments here, and I will be happy to reply to you. 

I'm baaaack!

So, it's been about 20 years - or more. But, I am heading back out to sea.

For those of you that know me well, you'll know that I used to work on Cruise Ships for about 4 years, when I was oh-so-young. A whippersnapper of 24 to 28 years old. I traveled the world and came of age, on the high seas. It was an adventure, hard work, and luxury, all at the same time. It moulded me into who I am today - as a person and as a photographer.

So, next week, I will be back 'on ships' as they say. I will be joining the <intentionally anonymous> ship. This is widely considered the most luxurious (mid-size) cruise ship on the seas today. After a period of training, I will take over as the Manager of the photography business for this 6 Star cruise ship.

My contract will be for 9 months - August to March. I will be visiting a large range of countries. First, I will be in Europe for 5 months, then Central and South America for 4 months. I will be visiting a long list of countries. Some that I've been to before, and some new ones. In Europe, I will go to:

Beijing for beginners: a primer

Since I’ve been living in Beijing for a little while now, my keen and observant eye has been noticing the local customs and habits of the ‘Jingers’. What follows is not an opinion of what is right/wrong – it’s simply an observation. You can judge, but I don’t.

1) Very few people speak English here.
Unlike many other cities in Asia, it’s not easy to find English speaking people in stores or restaurants, or driving taxis. I know the onus is on me to learn Chinese, but I just figured there’d be more English speakers here. I use pantomime a lot. There is much waving of hands and pointing.

2) Everyone spits.
Seriously, everyone. Is there that much excess saliva in the locals here, that they have the need to expel it everywhere/anytime? Men, women, children, taxi drivers, policemen, etc…they ALL spit. I’ve had to dodge a few expectorate projectiles while walking the streets. Not used to that.

3) No one follows traffic rules.
Drivers, and their cars/bikes/trucks, reign supreme here. They don’t pay attention to traffic lights or signs. They just drive. If you’re in their way, they will just honk and warn you they’re coming. If they hit you, it’s your fault, because they warned you. Red lights mean nothing. It doesn’t even slow them down. Crosswalks are simply places on roads where pedestrians are more easily located and hit. If the crosswalk is active (green walk signal), that does not mean you have the right to cross. You still have to yield to all cars, because they will NOT slow down for pedestrians. They will only honk and keep coming. You've been warned.

Expo 2010

During my short time here in China, I’ve had the opportunity to visit the 2010 Shanghai World Expo. And what a spectacle it is. This event is a showcase for the city of Shanghai, and for China and it’s people. It’s been a 8 year project for the city, and the work they’ve done to prepare for the show is evident all over the sprawling metro area.

Expo 2010 is a massive undertaking, covering over 5 square kilometers along both sides of the Pudong River that bisects the city. It has cost 2x what the Beijing Olympics cost (about $4 billion), and will generate billions in revenue for the city. Almost 200 countries have participated in some way, as have countless corporate sponsors and international organizations (UN, FedEx, Coke, etc).

I visited the site over a period of 5 days, going in the day times, and at night. It’s really impossible to see the whole site in one day, partly because of the oppressive heat, and also because of the sheer size of the place. I was primarily interested in the architecture of the buildings, more than I was with what was inside the pavilions. I enjoyed shooting the buildings at nighttime, when they were lit up nicely, but some buildings looked better in the daylight.

Some of the country pavilions were so popular, that people would line up for over 5 hours for the opportunity to view the interiors. I was not one of those people. I avoided any queue that lasted more than 30 minutes. Most of the smaller pavilions were not that exciting to view inside. I visited Canada’s pavilion, but was fairly disappointed. Many of the countries showed generic video footage of people looking happy to live there, and going about their happy daily existence. Most of the videos were interchangeable, and could be shown in any other pavilion.
Some advice, if you choose to go (it closes Oct 31, 2010):

- Spend most of your time there at night. Arrive in the mid afternoon (3pm or so), and stay until about 11 pm. The crowds will be smaller, and it will be cooler. If you arrive at 9 am, you will need to queue for up to an hour just to get into the park. Arriving later means a smooth sail into the park.

- If you’re keen to see the popular pavilions, be prepared to wait. There are long lines right up until closing. The big ticket countries (Germany, Italy, UK, Spain, Saudi Arabia) won’t accept any new people in line past 9pm. Most pavilions take about 15 minutes to walk through, even if the queue is 5 hours.
- The China Pavilion is the crown jewel of Expo. Only 100,000 people per day are allowed in. If you wish to view the interior, you’ll need to line up about 6 am to obtain a ticket. The tickets will have a visit time (I believe).

Moving in...

Part of the process of setting roots in Beijing, is finding a place to live. And I’ve done that. It was not a fun process. I’ve chosen a place in Southeast Beijing, in a district called Pingguo, close to the subway.

The steps involved in finding this apartment were challenging. Every day, for a few weeks, I would scour the housing ads posted in the Beijing English websites. I contacted 5 different agents, but only one replied. The girl that contacted me spoke perfect English, although she believed she was bad. Perhaps the other agents didn’t reply to me, because my price range was too low, or they don’t like dealing with foreigners.

I looked at about 10 places, most of which where awful. I honestly don’t understand how people can live in such filth. All of the apartment owners promised to have the place cleaned if I chose to lease their property. After seeing several bad places, I told the agent that I only wanted to see clean places. It was clear though, that she and I have differing opinions on the definition of the word ‘clean’.

Once I finally selected an apartment, the leasing process was the next challenge. Beijing custom requires that tenants pay every 3 months, and pay a 1 month deposit. So, that’s 4 months up front. And I had to pay in cash for the first payment, so I arrived with a wad of cash that looked like I robbed a bank. Since the largest note in China is the 100 yuan note, and the rent was in the thousands, you can imagine how big the stack was for 4 months rent. Obtaining the money from the ATM seemed risky, with a long line up waiting for me to stuff the hundreds of notes into an envelope.

I am slowly learning the small details of renting an apartment. Today, my power went out. I found out that I had to pay for my electricity in advance using a smart card the Agent gave me, at a local convenience store. Once the smart card was reloaded, I inserted it into the electric meter, and flipped the breaker and my power was back on. How can I know this? Also, I have to pay for my Internet service for a full year, in advance. And even then, the Government protects me from ‘dangerous sites’ like youtube and facebook. Lucky me.

There is a nice park, just outside my building. This is still pretty rare in Beijing, where land is valuable for its’ 17 million people. Most apartments look out over other buildings and dirty streets, so it’s nice to have some greenery to look at out my window. There is a large mall, and a Carrefour a few minutes walk away, and dozens of restaurants and shops all over the neighborhood. I feel like an oddity here, though. I was told by the Agent that the buildings and neighborhood were popular with foreigners, but I’ve really only seen a few westerners around.

I'm back, finally.

I can write again!

It’s been too long. And I have so much to say.
I am now living in Beijing, China.

Yes, really, China.

And because it’s China, my ability to access websites that I typically use every day (like Facebook, Youtube, this blog, etc) are blocked by government censors. Even some sites that are completely innocent are blocked for some reason – like ‘digital-photography-school.com’ of all things. So, I have not been able to write about all my experiences in China, until now. I’ve found that there is a back-door access method that the majority of Chinese people use to view sites that are forbidden. That is why/how you’re reading my words now.

So, here I am in China. Again.
But this time it’s different. This time, I’ve taken steps that will anchor me here longer than all the previous times. I’ve taken a job, teaching photography at Beijing Center of Photography. And I’ve leased an apartment for a full year (the standard term here). And I’ve obtained a business Visa, so I can legally stay and work (never done that before).

When I think back almost 2 years ago, Beijing was not even something I had considered. But, in those 2 years, I’ve visited this city a few times, and quite like it. Though I know it will take some adjusting. I know I will miss Thailand, and the many friends I have there. And the same goes for Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. I am about as far from those places as I can be, and won’t have too many chances to visit them for a while.

I have a lot to do here in Beijing over the coming months. First, I need to ensure I make enough money to support myself (the teaching gig is part time). Second, I need to start learning some Mandarin, fast. And I want to get to know the city better. And now that I have access to my blog again, I need to get back to writing more often.