Do you PLAN your Disney Pictures or not?

[Bstanley]

I was wondering how many folks PLAN for certain photographs prior to a trip to The World.

I do very little planning and I'm kinda wondering if that might impact the quality of the photos I take.

For example - If you want to take pictures of fireworks you need to remember your tripod, or if you want a picture in a Dark Ride you need a particular lense. But what about something more involved - oh like making notes as you review pictures from a previous trip.

How many folks carry a 3 ring binder around with them that has their shooting plans for the day ;)

[RBennett]

I don't carry a three-ring binder (yet) but I DEFINITELY do plan my shots ahead! At least some of them. Take for instance, I'm not even sure when I will be back to the MK again but I already know that I want to spend some time with my wide angle lens in tomorrowland at night. That's an area that I have unintentionally neglected too long. Plus other shots as well. I think by doing that, you can get an idea of what you are looking for and go ahead and start thinking about settings. Do you want a starburst effect on the lights? Then you need a smaller aperture. Do you want to get motion in the picture? Then use a longer shutter speed. Things like that. Plus, by planning ahead you can know if there is a highly sought after area that you might need to camp out for, (Wishes).

[Gianna'sPapa]

Yes. I create a shot list of what I want to do. Its a simple excel spread sheet (one page) that I keep in my bag. It will have notes as to what lenses to bring and settings. I think it only took about an hour to create and was a good reminder tool. That doesn't preclude any on the fly shooting. Sometimes you end in the right place, at the right time for a photo op, ie, parade, show, etc. Then you just wing it and hope you have what you need.

[pgowder]

Our next trip is in December and I already have a list of 15-20 shots I want to try.

I like going with a goal in mind for some shots to challenge myself. But I also have some general ideas that I want to try and capture like more abstract, bokeh shots, etc.

[shawn68]

We don't go back until Feb., and I have a short list right now. I like to look at the pages here titles photos an average tourist would not take, and try to grow some ideas from there.

[WDWFigment]

I think I am probably overly deliberate when it comes to shot planning. My list is fairly specific (e.g. "UWA from low-angle rear of tiki gods upward towards tiki-room") and organized by parks and lands. Right now it's up to about 4 pages, 10 point font with three columns per page.

The problem is that I rarely take it out on the trips, unless I get into a funk for a couple hours or so, which means that I seem to only add shots to the list, and rarely remove any. I seem to get ideas at the most random times--while working out, watching totally unrelated TV, and at work (well, that's not so random since it's where the bulk of my daydreaming occurs).

[zackiedawg]

I'm a lot less planned than the others above...I don't do any lists, charts, graphs, etc. I've always been much more of an inspiration photographer - I let the scenery and the setting give me the inspiration to shoot it the way that comes to me on the spot. I don't really think about what I'll photograph on my next Disney trip, as I'm just thinking about what I'm shooting here around home today, or tomorrow. I've gone to a Disney park and came out with 300 shots in a few hours, and I've walked around a park and come out with 5 shots...I just let the inspiration find me, if it wants to.

Now that said, I do still have a modicum of planning. For example, I may decide to bring a certain lens to a park with the intention of shooting that type of photography - but I don't plan the actual shots. I'll bring a tripod since I'm planning night shots, but haven't planned which night shots. Sometimes I've even challenged myself by bringing only one lens to the park and forcing myself to find inspiration for only that lens. And boards like this still inspire me sometimes - subconsciously I'll store some cool shots or angles I hadn't thought of before that others have posted, and then while walking the parks I might suddenly remember one of those, and try shooting something similar. I haven't written any shots down or printed any - I just store them in the back of my mind...but they do plant ideas that I will recall and that is a form of planning.

At the very most, I'll sometimes realize I don't have shots of something or someplace, and I'll commit myself to getting those shots at some point during a trip to Disney. The shots aren't planned, nor the time to get them, but I'll know for example that on this trip I absolutely plan at some point to get over to Grand Floridian to shoot the lobby, or to get a wide angle night shot of Spaceship Earth. Those moments only come occasionally for me, where I realize I've missed a shot all these times and resolve to get it...but since I go to Disney every 2-3 months or so, there aren't too many things I want to shoot that I haven't yet!

[ChiSoxKeith]

Before now, no. But after seeing the great pictures over at www.wdwphotography.com and the shots here with the weekly photo contests, I AM planning on the pictures I want to take this on my next trip to the world in December.

It has been very inspiring.

[JoeDif]

I hardly ever plan my shots. I'm more of a spur of the moment, what interests me at that time kind of shooter.

With that being said, when I head down this December, I'd like to try some things with the Osborne Lights

[MarkBarbieri]

I would say no. I sometimes have some shots in mind before I go on a trip, but I don't do any sort of detailed planning on them. My answer might be different if I took a trip primarily for photography purposes.