The Million Word Disney Trip Report

[meanpc]

** Changed thread title**

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then this thread will consist of about a million words by the time I'm done!

Join my wife, 9 y/o daughter, 3 y/o daughter and 16 y/o son on our Disney vacation! This trip report is my first one

The Main Street Electrical Parade has long been one of my favorites - I find the glow of the lights and the trance- inducing music to be irresistible. We watched one MSEP earlier in the week, but also caught an unscheduled parade on the way out on our last day at Disney World.

Anastasia (Cinderella's step-sister) did an incredibly over-dramatic jop and stared into the camera several times!

To see the rest of the Electrical Parade photos, you can go here to view the entire set.

 

[goofyintoronto]

Wow, AMAZING PICTURES!!!! I gotta ask, what camera do you use? Incredible!

 

[JeRmS]

Wow, AMAZING PICTURES!!!! I gotta ask, what camera do you use? Incredible!

NO DOUBT!!! AMAZING PICS!!!!

I would like to know what type camera as well, but I know we will be disappointed because they will come back and say it was a Cannon EOS Rebel DSLR or something similar, which the newer versions run about $800 easily!!

 

[meanpc]

Thanks Christine and Jerms!

I shot these with a Canon T3i, but more importantly, I used a Canon 85mm f/1.8 lens. "Fast glass" is very helpful for low light shots. The T3i is a fantastic little dSLR though, and relatively inexpensive - think I paid around $650 for it.

 

[TDC Nala]

As this post is not relevant to Restaurants, it is being moved to the trip reports page.

 

[meanpc]

Hat Showcase! We found the Mexico Mickey Ears in the first country we visited, and while we were taking the picture, we decided to get a hat shot in ever country.

Couldn't find a hat in all of Japan, so we had to improvise. Also, forgot to shoot a hat in the USA exhibit, but I had a very American hat shot from a few days before on the drive to Disney.

Fun, free souvenir. The only country we got a little nervous in was Morocco - the clerks were eyeing us hard when Candice was putting all the metal stuff on.

 

[BobbleClank]

So has the MSEP replaced Spectromagic permanently?

 

[JeRmS]

Thanks Christine and Jerms!

I shot these with a Canon T3i, but more importantly, I used a Canon 85mm f/1.8 lens. "Fast glass" is very helpful for low light shots. The T3i is a fantastic little dSLR though, and relatively inexpensive - think I paid around $650 for it.

Yep I figured, a Cannon T3i dSLR ... fantastic camera but I just cannot bring myself to spend $700 on a camera.

 

[meanpc]

Yep I figured, a Cannon T3i dSLR ... fantastic camera but I just cannot bring myself to spend $700 on a camera.

It is a Canon - I don't think Anastasia would have appreciated me shooting her float with a cannon. Although I would've swore I had a cannon strapped to my back all day after walking 8 miles with a camera and three lenses on my back.

I don't mind spending a little money on photography, I can have fun with my hobby and capture images of my family at the same time. Pretty healthy as far as hobbies go.

 

[MinaFemme]

Wow, those photos are fantastic! So vivid and clear! Well worth the money you spent on the camera! Keep them coming

 

[meanpc]

Wow, those photos are fantastic! So vivid and clear! Well worth the money you spent on the camera! Keep them coming

Thanks! Will do!

 

[meanpc]

I was going to just post photos and segments in whatever random order I felt like at the time, but now I think I'll just put them up in order.

We leave Denham Springs (near Baton Rouge, LA) at about 3:45am and start our 12+ hour trek to Disney. I put together a few video clips from the drive if anyone is bored enough to watch. I would've embedded the video if I knew how...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpFlqZMrEPc

Breakfast at Krispy Kreme, somewhere around Biloxi, MS. My wife, Candice, grabbed a hat on the way out.

Sunrise in Alabama...

Welcome to Florida! This is deceptive - our destination is in Florida, but the reality is that we are not even a third of the way there yet.

Molly is studying up on her Disney classics on the way.

We made it! There's a sign here that says "No Stopping" or something like that, but I stopped anyway.

 

[meanpc]

We stayed in a family suite at All Star Music. The chair, ottoman and sofa all fold down into beds. Molly (3) had the chair bed, Sarah (9) had the ottoman bed, which were the same size. Collin (16) had the double bed.

We had our own bedroom, with a 42" flatscreen and a nice desk area. Most importantly, we also had our own bathroom. It would've been tough with just one bathroom for five people.

It was a nice room, but not fancy at all. The mattresses on the kid's beds were not comfortable, but they never complained.

TV, Desk and Mirror in the master bedroom.

Bed in master bedroom

This shows the chair, ottoman and sofa that fold out into beds.

Table and chairs in the kid's room.

Big flatscreen TV and cabinets in the kid's room.

Kitchenette area - fridge, microwave, sink and tons of storage.

 

[tralin]

I love your photos. Keep them coming. I am headed to Disney in September with an almost 4 year old, a 16 year old and an 18 year old so I am very interested to see how your trip plays out with similar age differences.

 

[tralin]

subscribing

 

[meanpc]

I love your photos. Keep them coming. I am headed to Disney in September with an almost 4 year old, a 16 year old and an 18 year old so I am very interested to see how your trip plays out with similar age differences.

One really cool thing with a small child is using the Fast Pass/Parent Swap. You get the Fast passes, then when you come back to board, get a Parent Swap ticket. This will let up to 3 people into the fast pass entrance again. So when we would use this, our 9 and 16 year old would always get to ride twice back to back.

 

[tralin]

One really cool thing with a small child is using the Fast Pass/Parent Swap. You get the Fast passes, then when you come back to board, get a Parent Swap ticket. This will let up to 3 people into the fast pass entrance again. So when we would use this, our 9 and 16 year old would always get to ride twice back to back.

I knew about the swap but not that 3 people could go in. That is a great tip. My older kids will LOVE that. How was Molly with getting left out in those situations. DD4 can now go on everything except 4 or 5 rides.

 

[meanpc]

I knew about the swap but not that 3 people could go in. That is a great tip. My older kids will LOVE that. How was Molly with getting left out in those situations. DD4 can now go on everything except 4 or 5 rides.

Molly rode Spaceship Earth a lot. There is also a cool little waiting playground by Splash Mountain and Thunder Mountain Railroad. There is the mist spraying thing near space mountain.

We would mix it up too. Little ride, little ride, big ride. Never without a fastpass and take advantage of her naps. Sometimes one of us would take Molly on a ride while the big kids went on another, but the fast pass system works so well, this usually wasnt necessary.

 

[Shazzasmd]

Nice report and great photos. Looking forward to more. Molly is so cute, intensely studying the videos prepping for Disney.

 

[meanpc]

Nice report and great photos. Looking forward to more. Molly is so cute, intensely studying the videos prepping for Disney.

Thanks so much! Glad you like it.