Photo Tips Monday

Dave Berry, Director of the Photography Department at Computer School for Seniors will be sharing his insightful Photo Tips with you every Monday for Capture the Moment Mondays.

Dave & Patti's Carribean Cruise--Part 1

Patti and I went on a Cruise to the Southern Caribbean just a few weeks ago. I am going to do a blog post each week covering each of our stops on the cruise, so here is week #1…Puerto Rico. In the coming weeks I will cover Barbados, St. Lucia, Antiqua, Tortola and St. Thomas.

We flew into San Juan, Puerto Rico a day ahead of the ship’s departure. We always do this to have a day to relax and unwind before boarding the ship. Travel days can really stress and tire you out, plus the weather in Dallas is so unpredictable, we have found it just makes trips start off better by leaving here a day ahead of time.

Puerto Rico is a beautiful island with much to enjoy and photograph….

There are historical sites like El Morro Fort with 18 foot thick walls rising 140 feet from the sea(completed in 1589) which was used to defend San Juan’s harbor against pirates. It is a maze of tunnels, dungeons, barracks and ramps.




Old San Juan’s cobblestone streets with beautiful window boxes filled with colorful flowers, magnificent cathedrals and fountains and narrow streets, are a photographers paradise. You never run out of things to capture with your lens. There are casinos and historic hotels alongside new modern resorts, there is a rainforest too and if you enjoy tours, the Bacardi Rum Factory is here (they produce 100,000 gallons daily).


If you listen carefully in the early evening hours, you may hear the sound of the tiny coqui frog. It is a very popular creature throughout the island and enlivens the evenings with its timid ko-kee sound from which it get its name. The coquies begin to sing when the sun goes down at dusk, singing all night long until dawn.

The island sells many items depicting this popular little frog and if you look closely you may get to see one. We were fortunate as there were some in the bushes around the hotel swimming pool making their music.

We stayed at a hotel right on the beach, our room faced the ocean and we had a balcony on the 16th floor looking straight out to the beautiful blue water. We took a walk along the beach, it was a gorgeous day and the light was perfect for me and my cameras. Sometimes you get so focused on catching that perfect shot, that you forget you are standing at the oceans edge and a little wave catches you by surprise! Luckily I had shorts on! We happened upon a couple that had just gotten married and they were taking their wedding pictures on the beach, quite a picturesque spot too, except the brides dress and the grooms shoes and pants were getting pretty wet! I caught some gorgeous shots of them standing on the rocks surrounded by the swirling waves.

We had dinner that evening in a great Italian restaurant and retired early, getting lulled to sleep by the sound of the waves…I could get used to this!

Sunday morning came and we boarded our ship, the beautiful Caribbean Princess. We will soon arrive at our first port, Barbados. So stay tuned for our next stop--See you in Barbados !!!

Thanks to Dave and Patti Berry for sharing their trip and photos with us. If you have a travel experience to share be sure and let us know so we can blog about it!