is magic memory maker worth the cost?

[SwanVT2]

For DD first trip interested in purchasing the memory maker but is it worth the cost? It will only be my husband and me with DD. Are the photographers talented?

 

[Jarmo]

We used it last year and got some great photos that we wouldn't have been able to get ourselves.

However, we had a large group of around 20 and I think maybe even a promotional price for $99 so it was a no-brainer. I would not pay full price for 2 people, but that depends on how important the photos are to you.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

We didn't get it our first trip, and I regretted that decision, and when we got home I paid full price for our photopass. I now know to always purchase the memory maker.

Ad a former professional photographer, I really didn't think I would want the memory maker. But they took the shots I missed because I was too busy actually experiencing the vacation.

 

[kcpinwdw]

I think it is totally worth it. I had a hard time justifying the cost when we are going for only two days, so I split it with another family going at the same time. For a week I wouldn't hesitate at all. It is so nice to have all of us in the photograph so often! (See my avatar for a lovely photopass picture).

 

[luvmy2babies]

It has always been worth it for my crew. I do travel alone with my two children though so if we didn’t have it, our photos would look like I sent the children off to Disney World by themselves. Asking others to take pictures of us all the time would get old for me.

If you have anything like Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique or Pirate’s League scheduled you get those photos included and I have loved having all of those on my computer with the option of printing them. Some of the print packages for Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique cost just as much as MM.

They do sometimes get photos I don’t. It is easy (and good) to get caught up in the moment when your child is interacting with a character.

In 2012 we got these. I was holding my son and couldn’t really take any pictures; but I so enjoyed just watching this I didn't even think about my camera. They also got a picture of my son (then 2) smiling watching this interaction. I love having this shot of him enjoying his sister’s moment.





I’ve pretty much concluded at this point that if we are going for five days or more, I’ll get it.

 

[TinaLala]

I've never gotten this for our family trips, but this time I'm going with a group so we did. Our decision was really based on all the extra pictures and videos you'd get with it. Plus you own all of the pictures others take. We'll still bring cameras, but it's nice to know we can stop and get some amazing shots using disney photographers to get everyone in the picture. I'm planning on getting it for our next family trip!

 

[aaarcher86]

We always get it. Love the photos.

There's always some really great ones that make the whole price worth it.

 

[Mousemommy1]

We think it's totally worth it.

 

[MommaBerd]

TOTALLY worth it! The years we have gone I have used photos for our Christmas Cards. I just wish they had a one-day pass so I could justify getting it for the 24-hour party!

 

[Disfan1968]

Another strong yes vote here.

 

[Ismo]

For us personally, it is definitely worth. We love buying ride photos in general, not just in WDW. My DH has a love/hate relationship with rollercoasters so the ride photos are always amazing. Ride photos are usually $20 a piece so it doesn't take many of those to eat up the cost of MM. Also, the water parks have MM Photographers which was a nice surprise since we don't have a waterproof camera. It was nice to have a water park day with lots of great photos. And on top of those 2 reasons, we LOVE the photos we walk away with at the end of the trip and we always end up getting a bunch printed to hang on our wall.

Arg, inserting images never works for me....

https://flic.kr/p/s6h3Up
https://flic.kr/p/s6gZjD
https://flic.kr/p/spB8bn

 

[Terra Nova guy]

Definitely worth it for my family. We don't mind stopping several times a day at different photographers and usually end up with at least 200 pictures. The new ride videos (ToT and 7DMT) are a great bonus as well.

 

[jen7233]

I haven't used it before but am purchasing it this trip in June. I'm just hoping for less need for trying to get pictures with my cell phone so I'm giving it a try.

 

[MandiC]

We got it and will always get it! Sure, you could ask someone to take pictures, you can even hand your camera to the photographer to take the 'exact' picture on your camera. Personally, my camera isn't that great, yes I had it with to take pictures where there aren't any photopass photographers. Photopass doesn't mean don't bring a camera, but it does mean you can get some excellent pictures, taken with an excellent camera in some of the classic spots in the parks, plus ride, meet and greet and meal photos. It was well worth not having to dig into my bag to get my camera out when a photopass photograhper stopped us no main street to grab a quick family picture in front of the castle as fireworks went off...and getting all of the pictures of our experience at Enchanted Tales with Belle, and all of our ride pictures! Just so, so worth it to me. We have pictures of my husband and I, which I feel like never happens.

 

[ktlm]

If you think she will want to visit characters, it is absolutely worth it. Most (not all) of the characters have photopass. The photographers take several shots from the moment your child starts toward the character. Also, if you take advantage of it by stopping when you see photographers, you can get a ton of pictures. There are usually some photographers scattered around WS and we have gotten some great shots there. Also, with the park icons (Castle, Ball, Tree), be sure to take more than one set of photos. All photographers are not created equal. Sometimes you will get fantastic photos, and sometimes they are awful. Also, the time of day and where the sun is can really make a difference, as can the angle or closeness to the icon, especially with the castle. If you are doing Enchanted Tales with Belle, that will be a photopass photo (several if your DD takes a part in the play), and you likely will not be able to get a photo of your DD with Belle on your own camera in that setting. If you are sitting at the right spot, at the right angle you might be able to snap a photo, but we have been in there more than once when the7 instructed parents trying to move to get a picture on their own camera to stay seated.

If you are doing 7DMT, Memory Maker will get you a ride video. Also, if your DD is tall enough to ride some of the thrill rides, it will give you the ride photos. Some of our photos of DD on her first ride of things are absolute classics (yes, I am the mean mom that laughs at my child's clear terror exhibited in the photo). I think those ride photos are around $18 each without Memory Maker. I'm not sure whether 7DMT is even available without Memory Maker as that goes straight to your band if you purchase Memory Maker (someone else can tell you for sure).

The photopass photos are around $15 each if you purchase them individually. We usually wind up with close to 200 photos before edits, and we have wound up with over 1000 when I have done borders, crops, and saved some in different sizes to possibly print out and frame. There is no way I could have selected few enough to make it cheaper than Memory Maker. We get it every trip and we have never been sorry that we have done so.

I will say not to just rely completely on Memory Maker, but be sure to take photos with your own camera of your DD with the characters, and hand your camera to a CM to get some family shots. There are glitches and sometimes WDW does lose photopass photos. We usually lose at least one set of photopass photos each trip. In our experience, sometimes the photopass photographers photos are far better than the ones we take, but sometimes ours turn out better.

 

[cluno]

We got it and I'm so happy that we did! I love having the ride photos and pictures of the whole group. I doubt we'd get it if we went frequently, but it was our first trip in 6+ years, so it was worth it for us.