Camera Bag

[poohaddict]

We used the Photopass service for the second time and I was not really impressed. I am an avid photographer and I fell that if you take pictures you should have some knowledge of what you are doing.. Not all PP photographers were bad but some where awfull.

I found them out regularly. We loved the magic shots they are fun. I am posting some pics that I thought were not that great.

 

[poohaddict]

In my opinion not the best shots ever taken.. sort of dissapointing because of the cost of the CD. But I did get mostly good shots. These are a few bad ones. I need to realize that kids will make faces and close there eyes when they are 5 and 2. I just want perfection. (one of my flaws)

Lighting is awful a day shot should not be that bright

Cut off his head???

Too bright..

 

[jann1033]

daughter got some from her trip last winter...truthfully the quality wasn't all that great...if you just want them as an expensive snapshot type memory they are ok but if you are picky about quality photos you probably will be unimpressed.( at least i was with hers and while i do not remember the exact price it was higher than i would have thought) imo the quality vs cost value was pretty bad. the one they got from hoop de do was cute but the rest not to great.

would it be to difficult to just take your camera a few days or really, if you are at all adept at using your p&s unless it really stinks i think you could do as good or better. for example there were lots of odd "head growing posts or branch" type shots in theirs, i thought some of the staging ie in front of the ball or the castle wasn't very good ,like a bad angle or to close.

 

[WillCAD]

I would like to hear from anyone who has done the Photopass CD. What is the quality like? What size are the images? I have a digital SLR with high end lenses and I am planning on leaving them at home and using a point and shoot for an upcoming trip and using Photopass for the CD/DVD. Can someone post a photo from one of their CDs?

Why did you buy an SLR with a high end lens if you're not going to use it on your WDW vacation, one of the most important photo ops of your year? I say, take the SLR with you. I've been taking SLRs to the parks for 10 years, and with a little care and pre-planning, it's safe for the camera, comfortable for the user, and gives you FAR better pics than any P&S camera could ever dream of.

However, even with your own SLR, it's also a good idea to use the PhotoPass system to get pics of your whole party together.

Grouch is correct - the pics on a PhotoPass CD are direct, unaltered downloads from the cameras. PhotoPass cameras are set to 6-megapixel resolution (even though the cameras may be capable of greater, they are all set to the 6mp standard), creating pics of 3008x2000 pixels. Exposure is usually okay, but can be iffy in odd circumstances, because the average PhotoPass photographer is not a pro and get minimal training; they all tend to leave their cameras on one setting through their entire shift and not alter the exposure settings (they probably leave it in Auto or Program AE mode). Framing is also passable but not up to the pro level.

I've been satisfied with most of my PhotoPass pics over the years. I judge them not against pics that a pro would take; I judge them against pics that I take, or pics that an average vacationer would take, and by that standard, they are mostly acceptable, with a few bad frames and a few great frames.

 

[MOmousefan]

We used the Photopass this past December and overall we are pleased with the results. Here is our experience.

However, I do wonder about some shots as the photographer used fill-flash on some pics and not in others:

Still, we will do this again on our next trip.

 

[oregondaddyof2]

I was very grateful that I choose to get a Photopass CD last year... I was able to get family shots that I wouldn't have been able to otherwise... The quality was great, as the cameras they use produce amazing photos... They were using D80's last year when I went... A few of them I would have to say shouldn't have a camera in hand as the shots were something less then a child would take, but over all, I will be doing it again this year... Here are a few examples... I will post the Photopass photo and mine I took under it... i am no where near a pro, and most of the time, my camera was also on auto, but you can tell a little difference...

Photopass

Mine

Photopass

Mine

Photopass

Mine

I did not get a comparison shot as this was a family shot, but as you can tell, the photopass
person's tripod was not set up level... The castle is crooked! ​

​

I would personally never go to WDW without my DSLR, but if you do, make sure you get as many Photopass pictures as you can... There is no additional cost whether they take 1 photo or 1000 photos... I don't care how good you are, it is always better to have more photos to choose a good one from... Good luck on your trip and have fun!

 

[jfinke]

We got the photopass cd this year. I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the photos since they were all one megabyte jpg files. I had a photobook printed from costco where some of them were 8x10. There were no artifacts, etc. I was even able to crop some.

Now, the quality of the photographers.... That is a whole other story!

 

[Poohbear5]

We just did photopass last month. We had a few creative photographers who varied the poses but most were "put your arms around each other and smile at the camera". They did take 4-6 shots of the same pose over and over again. We had over 200 photos for a 10 day trip.

Some photographers were more willing to go out of their way if we asked for something more creative and offered up our own ideas. Others just looked down right hot, tired and irritated that we even stopped for a photo!

Since it was just the two of us celebrating our 25th anniversary, we were happy to have photos together. We did bring a DSLR with one lens as well as a point and shoot and varied which one we took to the parks depending on our activities planned for that day.

 

[TIGGER1981]

I have a Nikon D40 with one extra lens, I'd like to get a backpack type bag for the parks...any recommendations?

 

[ssanders79]

I picked this one up on the clearance rack at Sam's Club
http://www.samsclub.com/shopping/navigate.do?dest=5&item=387211&dblclick=true

It is a copy of the Lowerpro Slingshot 200.

It tooks some work to get the dividers the way I wanted to all my gear, but it has been treating me well.

 

[racreel]

I have a Lowepro SlingShot 100 that I use with my D40. It hangs across one shoulder and across your back. Easily slides around front to access the camera without taking it off. They also make a 200 and a 300, each capable of carrying more gear. I find the 100 great for carrying a small amount of gear around a park all day.

 

[racreel]

We get the photopass for the group photos as has been stated, but I wouldn't go without my camera for the shots I want to make. Most of the photopass shots are ok, especially the daytime shots. The night shots are a bit hit or miss, sometimes the background or the foreground subject is improperly exposed

 

[Villainess]

This is the 2nd year we got the Photopass. Last year we were able to get many shots with myself included in the photo since I'm alway behind the camera. I also got these awesome shots of my father and my DS that were taken in Epcot when I was off getting Fastpasses or something like that.

This year there was a noticeable difference in the number of photopass photographers (last year about 500 pics taken, this year only 270 pics taken before adding backgrounds, etc). around. Also, they might snap one or 2 photos - where last year, they were willing and excited to try different poses. We did meet one photographer in DHS who had a ball taking pics of my kids playing on Hollywood Blvd. Those came out the best of the all the photos we had during our 19 day trip. I had a considerable amount of the photos blown out or nearly black they were so dark in comparison to last year's CD.

It's a nice to have esp. if you don't get in many of the pictures yourself, and as a "2nd shooter" perspective for character greetings.

 

[WillCAD]

We got the photopass cd this year. I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the photos since they were all one megabyte jpg files. I had a photobook printed from costco where some of them were 8x10. There were no artifacts, etc. I was even able to crop some.

Now, the quality of the photographers.... That is a whole other story!

When looking for a JPG pic's resolution, you should disregard the file size. The file size of a JPG can vary wildly depending on its content. A pic of blue sky and ocean, with little detail, will compress more, making a smaller file than a pic with lots of detail like an interior shot at World of Disney.

Instead, you should open the pic in some sort of photo viewer program, or you can look at it in Windows Explorer (or My Computer).

Go to the folder with the pic in it. In the pull-down menus at the top of the screen, select the View menu. On the View menu is an option for Status Bar. If it has a check mark next to it, leave it alone. If it does not have a check mark next to it, click on it and one will appear.

Once you have the Status Bar checked in the View menu, a status bar will appear at the bottom of all Windows Explorer, folder, or My Computer windows. Click any JPG pic and look at the status bar; it will show you the size of the pic in pixels and the date the pic was taken.

PhotoPass pics are 3008x2000 pixels. 3008x2000=6,016,000 total pixels, or 6 megapixels. So PhotoPass pics are 6mp. This is enough for good-looking enlargements up to at least 12x18, and depending on the quality of the individual pic, it may also look good at larger sizes.

 

[adabob]

I use the the SlingShot 100 also for my Nikon D40 and I like it and it is so easy to get stuff out of the bag without taking it off of my bag

 

[dreaming-of-disney]

I would use photopass but, I would also definitely use my camera. We had a good experience with photopass and I would buy the CD again depending on the length of our trip and the amount of pictures we have. We did have some not so good pictures as well. And when I received my CD and looked at the pictures, I wished that I would have taken some with my camera especially of some flower and garden festival backgrounds. For example, the photopass photographer did not capture much of the background at the entrance of Epcot. You'll have some bad ones but, you'll also have some really good ones. And I figure, I'll have that with my camera as well. I also really like the special effects that can be done with photopass.

 

[cathdisfan]

What is disney photopass and what do people mean about prepaying. I really would like to get the information on this since i am going down with 14 other poeple in a few weeks. Is it worth it?

 

[WillCAD]

Disney's PhotoPass is a system of roving photographers in the Walt Disney World and Disneyland parks who take your photo for free in the hope that you will purchase the photos later.

PhotoPass is a 21st Century digital version of the old roving photographers who could be found at the park entrances, and at places like the boardwalk and beach in Atlantic City, Rehobath, Ocean City, Virginia Beach, etc. Those photographers would take your picture and give you a slip of paper so that you could claim the photo later, but Disney has added some terrific new wrinkles to that model with PhotoPass.

Here's how PhotoPass works:

1. Upon entering a Disney park, find a PhotoPass photographer and have your picture taken.
2. Get a PhotoPass card (a barcoded card the size and shape of a credit card) from the photographer.
3. The photographer will swipe the card with a device attached to the camera, associating the card with the pictures in the PhotoPass computer system.
4. Later, you can view your pics in two ways:
* At one of several PhotoPass viewing stations located in the parks
* Online at http://www.disneyphotopass.com/

5. Buy various products made from your pics, including
* 5x7 Prints ($12.95)
* 8x10 Prints ($16.95)
* 5x7+4 wallets package ($19.95)
* Photo CD with all of your pics on it at full resolution ($124.95, or only $99 if you pre-order)
* Customizable Photobook album (2 versions, $49.95 or $69.95)
* Custom 5x7 Photocards (set of 20 $39.95)

 

[jenseib]

I did all 3...photopass, my SLR and P&S. I was glad to have all of them there. I only took the SLR to the parks on days I knew I wanted special stuff, but I think I may bring it every day next trip. Some photopases were fantastic and some plain awful. But I love to have those pictures as well as my own. And in phtopass I can be in the pics and some of the photogrpahers will take a pic with your camera as well.

My signature is photopass pics.

 

[jenseib]

You can use that card then at each of the photopass photographers you see in t he park and they will all be associated with that number...so don' t lose the card. Or take a picture of it the numbers os you have them.

The full price is around $125 I think for the CD, so the more you get the more cost effective it is.

You could have all 14 chip in and that makes it most cost effective. You can also have several cards so each family has one to do sepreate pictures when they are off on there own and then load them all to the same account and they will all be part of one CD. Once you get the CD you can make a copy for each one of your family members.