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DPChallenge Forums >> Individual Photograph Discussion >> Ships: SS United States
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AuthorThread
 02/07/2006 11:21:48 PM · #1
I was out today taking photos of this beautiful old cruise ship that is billed as the fastest cruisee ship ever built. She's moored down the street from my house and she's showing her age. Many people want to see her restored, but restoration has it's challenges.

//www.dpchallenge.com/portfolio_mgr.php?collection_id=12970

Some of the images need cropping, and none are edited. Straight from the camera (w/ circular polarizer), resized and uploaded.

Ley me know what you think.
 02/07/2006 11:31:50 PM · #2
Nice photos. However, I find the vignetting (caused by the CP?) that's present on a few of the photos quite distracting. I assume you'll take care of that when you edit them?
 02/07/2006 11:44:19 PM · #3
Originally posted by justin_hewlett:
Nice photos. However, I find the vignetting (caused by the CP?) that's present on a few of the photos quite distracting. I assume you'll take care of that when you edit them?

I was shooting through a fence and that's what you're seeing in those shots. I do plan to crop that out.
 02/08/2006 12:24:11 AM · #4
Nice work! This is especially neat since I just finished a Clive Cussler novel where the United States was a central part of the plot - so it's pretty darn neat to see good photos of her! I hope they are able to restore her, she's such a beautiful ship!
 02/08/2006 01:04:58 AM · #5
Hah! I actually crossed the Atlantic on the ship in 1957! What a blast from the past!

Robt.
 02/08/2006 02:37:42 AM · #6
Originally posted by Bear_Music:
Hah! I actually crossed the Atlantic on the ship in 1957! What a blast from the past!

Robt.

Not as significant as your trip over on the Mayflower though, huh? ;-P
 02/08/2006 04:40:25 AM · #7
The United States was not intended to be a cruise ship at the time she was built. She was designed as an oceanliner, perhaps the best ever of that genre. Even a casual glance tells you that the lines of her hull are quite a bit different than modern cruise ships. Her lines are graceful, shouting speed and class; whereas today's floating hotels mumble bulk.
 02/08/2006 04:43:54 AM · #8
Originally posted by Art Roflmao:
Originally posted by Bear_Music:
Hah! I actually crossed the Atlantic on the ship in 1957! What a blast from the past!

Robt.

Not as significant as your trip over on the Mayflower though, huh? ;-P


oh Man!, where's one of those rolling on the floor laughing smilies when ya need one :-P
 02/08/2006 04:46:02 AM · #9
Originally posted by coolhar:
The United States was not intended to be a cruise ship at the time she was built. She was designed as an oceanliner, perhaps the best ever of that genre. Even a casual glance tells you that the lines of her hull are quite a bit different than modern cruise ships. Her lines are graceful, shouting speed and class; whereas today's floating hotels mumble bulk.


I agree! Very well said.
 02/08/2006 05:07:17 AM · #10
Kinda sad to see a grand old lady of the sea in such decrepid condition. Reminds me of the first time I saw my grandmother with no cloths on.
 02/08/2006 06:51:45 AM · #11
Originally posted by coolhar:
The United States was not intended to be a cruise ship at the time she was built. She was designed as an oceanliner, perhaps the best ever of that genre. Even a casual glance tells you that the lines of her hull are quite a bit different than modern cruise ships. Her lines are graceful, shouting speed and class; whereas today's floating hotels mumble bulk.


I saw a few minutes of a documentary about the cruise ships of the 30s to 50s, in which the SS United States featured. Interestingly, she was designed in response to the Cunard liners Queen Elzabeth and Queen Mary, partly in order to secure the trans-Atlantic passenger market, but also because at the time the US had no facility to move large numbers of troops around in the event of a conflict. The QE and QM had been converted in WW2 into troop carriers, and were critical in the fast deployment of troops around Europe, Africa and the Far East, and also as floating hospital ships.

The US built the SS United States after WW2, and it was custom designed to be convertible into a troop carrier in a matter of days should the need arise.

It is a gorgeous ship - it was faster than the older QE and QM, but sadly arrived at a time that immediately preceded the development of flight. Within a decade of launch, she (along with the Cunard liners) were travelling with more crew than paying passengers, and being the fastest liner by half a day meant little when a plane could make the journey in half a day total!

Interesting photos - thanks!
 02/08/2006 06:59:56 AM · #12
.

Message edited by author 2006-02-08 13:00:00.
 02/08/2006 09:16:13 AM · #13
Originally posted by Art Roflmao:
Originally posted by Bear_Music:
Hah! I actually crossed the Atlantic on the ship in 1957! What a blast from the past!

Robt.

Not as significant as your trip over on the Mayflower though, huh? ;-P


Ruthless, Ken, ruthless!
Funny tho... :-))

On a more serious note, I had heard somewhere a couple of years ago that Norwegian Cruise Lines had bought the SS United States with the intention of a cruise ship conversion...I'll do some research on that. It would be very sad indeed to see an icon of that era slip away to an undignified end.

Edit to add this link. I thought I wasn't crazy...

Message edited by author 2006-02-08 09:29:08.
 02/08/2006 12:59:26 PM · #14
Wow. I never knew so many would find her so interesting, although the reasons that I find her interesting are the same reasons that others mentioned. She's beautiful, if in bad condition.
 02/08/2006 01:00:01 PM · #15
Originally posted by coolhar:
Kinda sad to see a grand old lady of the sea in such decrepid condition. Reminds me of the first time I saw my grandmother with no cloths on.

I'm covering my eyes now...
 02/08/2006 01:11:28 PM · #16
Thanks for showing these. I've wanted to take some pictures of the ship for a long time but could not figure out a good location without having the chain link fence in the way.

I seem to remember the Inquirer had a great photo of the ship from the IKEA dining room perhaps I'll try a sneaky photo from there sometime.
 02/08/2006 01:23:43 PM · #17
Originally posted by maryba:
Thanks for showing these. I've wanted to take some pictures of the ship for a long time but could not figure out a good location without having the chain link fence in the way.

I seem to remember the Inquirer had a great photo of the ship from the IKEA dining room perhaps I'll try a sneaky photo from there sometime.

I hope you have a long lens for that shot! ;)
 02/08/2006 02:32:39 PM · #18
Originally posted by Bear_Music:
Hah! I actually crossed the Atlantic on the ship in 1957! What a blast from the past!

Robt.


Actually, now that I think back I'm pretty sure we went OVER on the "America" in '57 and returned in '61 on the "United States". Sigh... Those were the days... Greyhounds of the sea...

R.
 02/08/2006 03:10:19 PM · #19
Originally posted by Bear_Music:
Originally posted by Bear_Music:
Hah! I actually crossed the Atlantic on the ship in 1957! What a blast from the past!

Robt.


Actually, now that I think back I'm pretty sure we went OVER on the "America" in '57 and returned in '61 on the "United States". Sigh... Those were the days... Greyhounds of the sea...

R.


Actually, Navy Destroyers enjoy the reputation of "Greyhounds of the Sea". But the SS America and SS United States were indeed, very elegant ships.
 02/08/2006 03:16:44 PM · #20
Originally posted by ElGordo:
Actually, Navy Destroyers enjoy the reputation of "Greyhounds of the Sea". But the SS America and SS United States were indeed, very elegant ships.


If it comes to that, the original "greyhounds of the sea" were the American clipper ships. But the sobriquet was applied to the great, fast ocean liners as well, and of course (as you say) to navy destroyers also.

R.

Also found this :-) "Fin whales are among the fastest of the rorquals, capable of bursts of speed up to 25 knots they are often referred to as the greyhounds of the sea."

Message edited by author 2006-02-08 15:18:24.
 02/08/2006 03:25:15 PM · #21
Royal Caribbean Orders $1.24 Billion Cruise Ship

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: February 7, 2006

MIAMI, Feb. 6 (AP) ΓΆ€” Royal Caribbean International said on Monday that it had ordered the world's largest and most expensive cruise ship, a $1.24 billion vessel that will hold up to 6,400 passengers.

The ship, which is being built under the name Project Genesis, will be 220,000 gross register tons when it is delivered to Royal Caribbean, the world's second-largest cruise operator, in fall 2009 by the shipbuilder Aker Yards of Oslo. A gross register ton, a standard measure of a ship's size, is a unit of volume equal to about 100 cubic feet.

Aker said its contract price of 900 million euros ($1 billion) would make the ship "the most valuable ship ever ordered in the history of commercial shipbuilding." The $1.24 billion figure includes all expenses for the ship. Aker said it would be built at a Finnish yard.

The cruise line, a unit of Royal Caribbean Cruises, has an option for a second ship.

The biggest ship currently sailing is the Queen Mary 2, at 151,400 gross register tons. The ship belongs to the Cunard Line, a unit of the Carnival Corporation, the world's largest cruise line.
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