Groups Photos or Individual Photos with Characters

[nearlyfallinstar]

I have three girls. Character interactions can take up a bit of time so, on our last cruise, I had all three of my girls meet the characters at the same time and take their picture as a group. I didn't want to hold up the line forever. So we have some great group pictures with the characters. On our upcoming cruise, I am really wanting to have some individual pictures with each girl's favorite character. So my questions are this:

1. Do you always take group pictures with all of your kids or do you split them up for individual interactions?

2. Would you be aggravated waiting in line behind a family that was taking individual shots of each kid?

I appreciate anyone's input on this subject! Being considerate in this situation is important to me since obviously there are many other children that want to meet the characters besides mine.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I have three girls. Character interactions can take up a bit of time so, on our last cruise, I had all three of my girls meet the characters at the same time and take their picture as a group. I didn't want to hold up the line forever. So we have some great group pictures with the characters. On our upcoming cruise, I am really wanting to have some individual pictures with each girl's favorite character. So my questions are this:

1. Do you always take group pictures with all of your kids or do you split them up for individual interactions?

2. Would you be aggravated waiting in line behind a family that was taking individual shots of each kid?

I appreciate anyone's input on this subject! Being considerate in this situation is important to me since obviously there are many other children that want to meet the characters besides mine.

I would think as long as it's a quick one shot per child, that would be OK. But, please, don't do each child separately standing, and then sitting, and then child A with B and then with C and all sorts of combinations.

We were behind a family (not a character photo op, but still....) of 5 (apparently 2 couples and mom). They took a group shot, portrait style, then another landscape style. Then couple one & mom; couple 2 and mom; couple one alone; couple 2 alone; mom alone; mom and daughters; both couples (no mom) in various configurations. It was reallllllly annoying.

 

[Dug720]

I would think as long as it's a quick one shot per child, that would be OK. But, please, don't do each child separately standing, and then sitting, and then child A with B and then with C and all sorts of combinations.

We were behind a family (not a character photo op, but still....) of 5 (apparently 2 couples and mom). They took a group shot, portrait style, then another landscape style. Then couple one & mom; couple 2 and mom; couple one alone; couple 2 alone; mom alone; mom and daughters; both couples (no mom) in various configurations. It was reallllllly annoying.

Pretty much this. And also, the polite thing, would be to have them all in line and not just "Oh, we're next! Come on come on!!" and a horde of people descend upon the front of the line. There is little more annoying than thinking you're almost there and suddenly everyone and their cousin (literally) from a family pops up out of nowhere and they want a zillion different poses and combinations.

 

[PlanoNana]

What we do will depend a lot on how long the line is. Not with characters but we've done the multiple photos before but we tried to go to the photo places when there wasn't much of a line so we weren't holding other folks up much. And I think we only did two group shots and then one of each couple. Figured that was fair since we were all standing in line.

Having one person ahead of me be a placeholder for a herd would aggravate me too.

 

[nearlyfallinstar]

Thanks for your input!

I'm the mean mom that makes my kids wait with me! lol. They either behave or they don't get to meet the character.

My girls all love different characters. So I was basically only wanting individual pictures of my girls' with their particular favorite character and then a group shot. So two pictures max. Also, if the line did seem crazy long, my conscious would probably force me to skip the individual picture with that character and stick with the group shot.

 

[Dug720]

Thanks for your input!

I'm the mean mom that makes my kids wait with me! lol. They either behave or they don't get to meet the character.

My girls all love different characters. So I was basically only wanting individual pictures of my girls' with their particular favorite character and then a group shot. So two pictures max. Also, if the line did seem crazy long, my conscious would probably force me to skip the individual picture with that character and stick with the group shot.

If you're just talking two shots, I wouldn't stress it! Plus with the girls in line with you, no one should be surprised.

The ones I'm pretty sure most have a problem with are those situations mentioned already with gaggles of family members - some of whom materialize out of nowhere when the designated waiter is almost to the front - who want a zillion and a half pictures and combinations.

 

[Geomom]

I agree, 2 shots is fine! Send the individual girl up first, and then the rest join in for 2nd pic. For a couple of characters (Alaskan Mickey/Minnie, and Formal Mickey), we had a pic of our 2 girls with the character, and then a pic of all 4 of us.

 

[FigmentSpark]

Thanks for your input!

I'm the mean mom that makes my kids wait with me! lol. They either behave or they don't get to meet the character.

My girls all love different characters. So I was basically only wanting individual pictures of my girls' with their particular favorite character and then a group shot. So two pictures max. Also, if the line did seem crazy long, my conscious would probably force me to skip the individual picture with that character and stick with the group shot.

Sorry, but why would you give up your individual shots? Did you pay your cruise fare? Did you stand in line with your kids? Why shouldn't each child get their shots? If there were three unrelated people in a line, they would all get an individual shot, so why shouldn't your children? I don't think your requests are crazy. You're talking about a group shot, then a single.

I totally get the family with multiple requests being an issue, but that's not what you're talking about. Even so, if you all waited your turn, the person behind you needs to wait their turn, too. 'Considerate' isn't just hurrying out of someone else's way. 'Considerate' is also not making someone feel like they're in your way.

 

[CampbellzSoup]

I would think as long as it's a quick one shot per child, that would be OK. But, please, don't do each child separately standing, and then sitting, and then child A with B and then with C and all sorts of combinations.

We were behind a family (not a character photo op, but still....) of 5 (apparently 2 couples and mom). They took a group shot, portrait style, then another landscape style. Then couple one & mom; couple 2 and mom; couple one alone; couple 2 alone; mom alone; mom and daughters; both couples (no mom) in various configurations. It was reallllllly annoying.

I bet they didn't buy the photos either

 

[nearlyfallinstar]

Sorry, but why would you give up your individual shots? Did you pay your cruise fare? Did you stand in line with your kids? Why shouldn't each child get their shots? If there were three unrelated people in a line, they would all get an individual shot, so why shouldn't your children? I don't think your requests are crazy. You're talking about a group shot, then a single.

I totally get the family with multiple requests being an issue, but that's not what you're talking about. Even so, if you all waited your turn, the person behind you needs to wait their turn, too. 'Considerate' isn't just hurrying out of someone else's way. 'Considerate' is also not making someone feel like they're in your way.

Probably because the individual picture with one girl is mostly my idea! lol. My girls were completely cool with taking the group pictures together on our last cruise. I was just looking through all the photos and thinking, "I wish I had more pictures of the girls individually!" I actually only had one taken. Her sisters were sound asleep, but Alex managed to perk up enough at midnight to meet her favorite character!

 

[FigmentSpark]

What a little sweetheart! I think you should get the individual shots that you want.

 

[mcd2745]

I have three girls. Character interactions can take up a bit of time so, on our last cruise, I had all three of my girls meet the characters at the same time and take their picture as a group. I didn't want to hold up the line forever. So we have some great group pictures with the characters. On our upcoming cruise, I am really wanting to have some individual pictures with each girl's favorite character. So my questions are this:

1. Do you always take group pictures with all of your kids or do you split them up for individual interactions?

2. Would you be aggravated waiting in line behind a family that was taking individual shots of each kid?

I appreciate anyone's input on this subject! Being considerate in this situation is important to me since obviously there are many other children that want to meet the characters besides mine.

1. Do you always take group pictures with all of your kids or do you split them up for individual interactions? Group.

2. Would you be aggravated waiting in line behind a family that was taking individual shots of each kid? Absolutely!


I know it's a foreign concept to many people nowadays...but it's simple courtesy. I feel that for any family/group, when it's your turn, you should take no more than than two combinations. Any more than that is being rude and selfish. There's a couple of thousand more people on the cruise beside you (not speaking directly to the OP - to be clear). Everyone should always be mindful and considerate of that.


Now if you will excuse me...I have to go yell at some kids to get off my lawn.

 

[cheapster316]

It's your vacation , if the girls wait in line then they should be able to take 1-2 pictures with a character. I always had them decide before we got up there separate , together or skip.
I do not think it is unreasonable at all to do separate photos.
Now if you are doing wardrobe changes between poses..,

 

[Anchors Away 2016]

My thoughts.

Two poses is a lot less than average. Even people who group altogether often take more than one pose to get a good shot, or one normal and then one silly. I don't find this annoying. What would be much worse is to wait in line and not get a decent pose. So naturally, a couple of shots (or even three or four) is to be expected.

In our case, we were two families (mine and my sister's), plus my mother, who paid for most of the trip, and half of the picture package. So naturally, sometimes, we wanted more than just one quick shot of the 9 of us. We tried to be courteous (all stand in line, transition quickly, etc.) but really, sometimes we wanted a picture with each family and our mother, or one of just the 4 kids, or the 4 kids and their grandmother. We didn't do EVERY combination each time, but we did more than one combination most times, and yes, we had pre-purchased the all digital package for both cabins, so none of the shots went to waste. I have them all.

The lines move at a certain average pace. Some groups take one shot, some take several. Sometimes the younger kids get autographs, or talk to the characters for a while. I'm certainly not going to get upset at that or try to deprive them of that. I just factor all of that into the "speed" I know the line will move, and I only get in the line if we have that amount of time and it is worth the wait to us. I assume everyone else makes a similar choice when they get in line.

So I'd say, go ahead, ENJOY your time, take the pictures you want. Now if you are a group of 27 people taking 50 different poses, well I suppose there is a limit to reason somewhere.

Side note, when we took pictures with Captain Hook, he encouraged us to take a second "pirate" or "silly" pose with each grouping of people. He did this for everybody. So you know that line is gonna go slower, but you also know the kids had a blast. And really, the line still didn't take that long. Maybe it felt faster because I had a blast watching all the people in front of us strike silly poses.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

1. Do you always take group pictures with all of your kids or do you split them up for individual interactions? Group.

2. Would you be aggravated waiting in line behind a family that was taking individual shots of each kid? Absolutely!


I know it's a foreign concept to many people nowadays...but it's simple courtesy. I feel that for any family/group, when it's your turn, you should take no more than than two combinations. Any more than that is being rude and selfish. There's a couple of thousand more people on the cruise beside you (not speaking directly to the OP - to be clear). Everyone should always be mindful and considerate of that.


Now if you will excuse me...I have to go yell at some kids to get off my lawn.

If there are 4 people in line, I would expect 4 shots would be the minimum expectation for people standing behind you in line.
Why should each person not have their own picture taken?

My brother was born first and then I came along 3 years later. There are lots of pictures of just him (him and Santa, him and grandparents, him and whomever) but for me - almost all of my pictures are of me and him or me, him and whomever.

Because I have a sibling (or in the case of the OP - 2 siblings) I become "rude and selfish" for having my own picture taken with a character?

 

[nearlyfallinstar]

It's your vacation , if the girls wait in line then they should be able to take 1-2 pictures with a character. I always had them decide before we got up there separate , together or skip.
I do not think it is unreasonable at all to do separate photos.
Now if you are doing wardrobe changes between poses..,

I'd like to believe that people would change outfits in the middle of a character m&g! lol. I'm sure it has happened.

 

[nearlyfallinstar]

If there are 4 people in line, I would expect 4 shots would be the minimum expectation for people standing behind you in line.
Why should each person not have their own picture taken?

My brother was born first and then I came along 3 years later. There are lots of pictures of just him (him and Santa, him and grandparents, him and whomever) but for me - almost all of my pictures are of me and him or me, him and whomever.

Because I have a sibling (or in the case of the OP - 2 siblings) I become "rude and selfish" for having my own picture taken with a character?

I am guilty of this. Lots of group shots throughout the year. Not just our Disney cruises. That was why I was thinking it would be nice to let the girls have a couple of shots by themselves with their particular favorites. Anna would love to have a photo of just her and Anna (not too hard to figure out why she is her favorite princess). Ady would like a picture of her and Minnie together and Alex would love to meet Ariel one on one.

 

[Shelley Chiarats]

It is just my husband and I. We love to wait in the character lines and get shots with them. We get the package every time. For us it is like an excursion that lasts most of the trip. We have it down to a pattern. When it is our term I step in and meet the character and get my individual shot, then he steps in and we take a quick couple shot, and then I quickly step out and he gets his individual shot. We don't dilly dally between shots so our turn usually lasts less than others.

 

[birdieboiler]

I purchase the photo package when I cruise. This will be my second cruise coming up and we are once again purchasing the picture package and it will be me, my daughter, my daughter's friend and her friends mom. I figured, we would get a picture of my daughter alone, one with me and my daughter, one with my daughter and her friend, one with my daughter's friend and her mom and then one of all four of us. My daughter and I have several pictures taken with the both of us together as well. There are also times when the photographer asks us to do individuals and then together pictures. This will make the most of the picture package and the money I spent on the package and both families will have pictures for memories of our trip together. Our first trip we got autographs at each picture session, the autographed photo mats were for very young cousins, and got to know the cast mates at many of the photo shoots. Also, as stated previously we try to move quickly as not to hold up the line.

 

[nearlyfallinstar]

Our last cruise it was DH and I, our three girls, and my parents. The only pictures that I was in the photo was the big group shots. This time I think I will get in on more of the character meet pictures as well! Especially if it isn't one of the girls' favorites. For Belle, Cinderella, and Rapunzel I think I will send the girls for a group picture and then one with me and them together. Keeping it to no more than two pictures with each character.