Photos of the Week: March 13

It’s Sunday, and that means it’s time for our Cruise Photos of the Week!

During a typical weeklong cruise, I usually take between five and eight hundred photographs.  Many of these are of the ship itself, as I try to document the things that make up the total sum of what a cruise vacation really is.

Of course, not every shot ends up being used, so I thought I’d go back through my collection and pull out a few of my favorite shots that help to create that “cruise” feel, but aren’t used as often as they should be.

Breakfast at La Terrazza aboard Silver Spirit. Photo © Aaron Saunders

This image, taken in December 2010 aboard Silversea’s magnificent Silver Spirit, makes my mouth water.  It was one of many enjoyable breakfasts we had outdoors on the patio of La Terrazza, the ship’s fantastic breakfast and lunch venue.  The coffee is as good as it looks, too – there’s no syrup-based coffee here!

The promenade deck of Celebrity Summit at night. Photo © Aaron Saunders

Night is a special time aboard any cruise ship, and Celebrity‘s Summit was no exception.  I’ve always loved how the brightly-lit deck contrasts with the total blackness of the sea around the ship.

Of course, cruise ships are still machines at heart, and require constant maintenance to keep them looking pristine.  Here, two workers tend to the starboard anchor aboard Royal Caribbean‘s Grandeur of the Seas while docked in Tampa, Florida in January 2009.

Two ships in one! Rotterdam meets Golden Princess. Photo © Aaron Saunders

Taken from the Explorations Cafe aboard Holland America Line‘s Rotterdam, Princess Cruises‘ Star Princess can be seen across the pier at Canada Place in Vancouver, BC.

Aboard Crown Princess, bound for Iceland. Photo © Aaron Saunders

I like this photo because it’s everything you wouldn’t find in a cruise brochure: it’s overcast, the ship is obviously going through heavy swells, and there’s no one out on their balconies.  But this shot remains one of my favorites for its incredible mood.  Shot from above the port side bridge wing as we sailed from Norway to Iceland in August 2009 aboard Princess Cruises‘ Crown Princess, the overcast sky and limited visibility create the same ominous feeling that surely terrified the Vikings of days gone by.

Stay tuned later this coming week for more original photos – here, on From the Deck Chair!