How to capture that first magic moment?

[PebblesMK]

I am taking my daughter to Disney in September, just the two of us. She will be turning 9. When we went down for her 5th birthday, she was ahead with my parents, and I didn't get to see the look on her face when she first saw the castle. Now that we're going by ourselves (unlike with the party of 16 we were with before), I want to capture all of these moments...on "film". Does anybody know how I can go about getting the look of surprise on her face when she first arrives? I thought about blindfolding her but didn't know if that was a good idea....that way I could position her and then move back with my camera on her for the moment she takes off the blindfold. There will be soooo many moments to capture while we're there, but this one is probably the most important for me. I appreciate all ideas.

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

Pebbles, I think the only way to be sure to get it is go the blindfolded route. You would have to blindfold her for quite awhile though since you can see the Castle from a distance away. You might want to prepare yourself for some funny looks from other guests and the possibility that your DD might not respond as excitedly as you had hoped for. Good luck!

 

[PrincessNP]

I dont mean to belittle the improtance of getting great "kodak moments" when you have little ones (We have DD2 and DD3mos and there is no shortance of footage). But sometimes there are things that you just need to put the camera down for and enjoy in the present. Even if you were to capture that perfect first look, I would not like to remember that I experienced it through a camera lens and it likely will never be the same on video.

Just a thought.

Hope you have a great trip!

 

[DisCopper]

I dont mean to belittle the importance of getting great "kodak moments" when you have little ones (We have DD2 and DD3mos and there is no shortage of footage). But sometimes there are things that you just need to put the camera down for and enjoy in the present. Even if you were to capture that perfect first look, I would not like to remember that I experienced it through a camera lens and it likely will never be the same on video.

Just a thought.

Hope you have a great trip!

I completely agree with this! There are so many people who ruin an experience by trying to capture it on film (not saying you're one of them, but I have un-named relatives who've been doing it for years).

I wouldn't try the blindfold thing. You may freak someone else out (maybe even her) and they could cause a scene, thus ruining the moment.

Here's my thought: get yourself a camera that has a continuous drive shutter... I'm pretty sure you can get a digital one. Try Craigslist or Ebay. Basically, you just hold down the button and it keeps taking pictures every second or so. Then, as you enter, tell your daughter to slow down a little bit and get yourself a few steps in front of her. Snap away... you'll have a whole string of pictures of her reaction. Many will probably be bad, but I bet you get the shot you want.

 

[mnosky]

I think if you put an emphasis on capturing or creating "the moment" then you'll be likely to miss real moments, KWIM? I do have several pictures of my daughter getting her first glimpse of the castle each trip- most often on the monorail with her face pressed against the window to get a good look. Even though it' s the back of her head, I think these are cute because they make me remember how she was excitedly trying to spot the castle. (If she has mickey ears on, it's even better