New Camera? Sounds like a perfect excuse for another Disney trip! (Sept 2011)

[Cafeen]

New Camera? Sounds like a perfect excuse for another Disney trip!
​

Well, I finished up Sept 2010 TR a couple weeks ago, and I'm bored. So, I figured that I'd start a short PTR for the next 4 weeks until it's party time!

Since I have all my planning done now, this should be easy. Everything's done, so it's not like I have to figure out ADRs, travel arrangements, or anything of the such. Some of you who've been hanging on my TR (lurking or posting, either way) may know what's up, but some may not. Either way, you will if you keep reading.

Once the TR gets going, the Table of Contents will be placed here​

To get this started, let's go with who am I?

Me and the Man...erm Mouse!​

That's me, on the left. My name as you may know (or know if looking down at my signature) is Allan. I work as a Quality Assurance Specialist for a software company in Mobile, AL.

My Disney Qualifications include:

• Trips when I was a kid, 9 of them, between ages 0 and 12(ish). We stayed on-site (Ft. Wilderness, Poly, CBR, YC) and off-site.
• First adult trip in 2009 (see "Daddy for a week..." TR below) taking my friend and her then 2 1/2 year old girl to Disney.
• 2010 partial solo, partial taking mom trip
• I've seen Song of the South, Saludos Amigos!, The Three Caballeros, and all the popular movies.
• I used to be a ride wimp and was scared of BTMRR until I was 12.
• 2010 was my first trip on Space Mtn!
• I like to take pictures... a lot... anywhere. My camera is with me ~24/7. So, if I ever get burglarized, I'll have something to take pictures with at least. Just nothing to process and post them
• These are slowly fading away from Disney Qualifications aren't they?
• I distinctly remember taking the monorail tour around Epcot, before it opened. I can picture Spaceship Earth half covered in the aluminum "tiles" that cover it now. The black rubber membrane was visible! I was ~2 at the time, but it's not my first Disney memory. (Now, why, if I can remember all that, can't I remember what the heck I'm working on from day to day at work!)

So, who else is coming along for the ride?

Well, just like 2010, Mom will be coming down for the first few days..

Mom, Donald, and Me!​

So, I guess I may as well specify when I'm going...

I'll be arriving on Thursday, September 22 around noonish and leaving on Saturday, October 1 around 4:30pm. Yup, 10 days! Mom's driving in Thursday evening and leaving Monday evening as well.

I'll be staying over at a preferred (big spender me!) room at Coronado Springs Resort. It's my favorite. I'm a huge favorite of the southwest style.

​

During the trip, I'll also be eating lots of food on the Deluxe Disney Dining Plan (DxDDP) and attending several MNSSHPs. Maybe I can "see" a ghost there again!

I'm not talking about the decorations here!​

So, that's the start, this is already long as I tend to be verbose.

We'll get into the day by day at a later date .

Ignore the stuff below this line. It's temporary...
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---------------------------------Table Of Contents---------------------------------​

PTR
#1 - Introductions
#2 - The Plan
#3 - Thu 22 Sept
#4 - Fri 23 Sept
#5 - Sat 24 Sept
#6 - Sun 25 Sept
#7 - Mon 26 Sept
#8 - Tue 27 Sept
#9 - Wed 28 Sept
#10 - Thu 29 Sept
#11 - Fri 30 Sept
#12 - Sat 01 Oct
#13 - The Wrap Up

TR
#1 - And We're Off!

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[Cafeen]

So, you know where, when, why, and how I'm going. Let's get into the what I'm doing part.

As the title suggests, I recently got a new camera. By recently I mean back in... um March? I've been using it a bit since then, but with no car I can't go all over the place like I'd like to. Oh well.

For a gallery of my newest work, you can check out my gallery (Works much better in Firefox).

So, some details, let's get into camera stuff first!

My current kit consists of:

• Canon EOS Rebel T1i Camera (15.1MP)
• Lenses
  • Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS lens (Kit)
  • Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0 - 5.6 IS lens (With Hood)
  • Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 lens
• Support
  • Slik Mini-Pro V tabletop tripod
  • Dolica 62-in Proline Tripod and Ball Head
• Filters
  • 58mm Tiffen UV filter
  • 58mm Tiffen Circular Polarizer
  • 58mm Tiffen Warming filter
  • 52mm Tiffen UV filter
• Misc
  • Nikon Lens Pen (Yes, I know, it's Nikon and I'm a Canon fan, Canon doesn't make them though!)
  • Giottos Cleaning Kit w/ Small Rocket Blaster
  • Canon Remote Switch (corded)
  • Opteka Hot Shoe 2 axis bubble level (I'm bad about horizons!)
  • Lowepro Fastpack 200
  • Hoodman HoodEYE
  • Transcend 32GB SDHC Class 10 Membory Card

I'm looking to pick up a few more things for the trip, including 1 or 2 more memory cards, a backup battery, and will be looking into renting either the Canon 10-22mm or Sigma 10-20mm Ultra Wide Angle lens for the trip (or maybe buy them... since I've been putting 20+hrs of overtime in per week lately...)

All of the above with the exception of the full size tripod will be coming with me, as it all fits nicely inside the backpack, which I've been carrying daily since I bought it.

So, onto the Disney stuff...
The plan so far is (by the way, I like lists. Sorry)

• Thu 22 Sept - Arrive, Head to Epcot, Dinner @ Jiko with Mom
• Fri 23 Sept - Breakfast @ Kona, MK, Dinner @ Plaza, MNSSHP
• Sat 24 Sept - DHS, Lunch @ Mama Melrose, Dinner @ Kona
• Sun 25 Sept - Epcot, Lunch @ Restaurant Marrakesh, Dinner @ Hacienda
• Mon 26 Sept - AK (AM EMH), Breakfast @ Tusker House, Dinner @ Boma, Mom leaves, PM EMH @ DHS
• Tue 27 Sept - Epcot, Lunch @ San Angel Inn, Dinner @ California Grill, MNSSHP
• Wed 28 Sept - AK, Lunch @ Sanaa, Dinner @ Flying Fish, PM EMH @ Epcot
• Thu 29 Sept - MK AM, Lunch @ Grand Floridian Cafe, Epcot PM, Dinner @ Le Cellier
• Fri 30 Sept - AK, Lunch @ Tusker House, Dinner @ Citrico's, MNSSHP
• Sat 01 Oct - MK, Breakfast @ Crystal Palace, Lunch @ LTT, Head home

 

[Cafeen]

So, to keep this moving, let's detail out a day. For better flow, it's probably best to detail out the first day, as doing one in the middle is rather silly. Although, that may keep my readers interested by having them question "What's he going to do ... um... before?" instead of "What's he going to do next?"

Maybe I'll just write the whole thing backwards! That way, it can end on a happy note! Man, I have enough trouble keeping things straight when they're in a line from start to finish though, so I don't think I could handle some weird funky non-chronological order to it all.

Well, until I decent, let's go with the "normal".

So, Thursday will come bright and early. Well, early at least, not so bright as I'll have to be up and out the door by 4:30am. Since this is before dawn, the level of bright will be pretty low. The night before I will be doing all my laundry to take with me and packing in into my bag... which I have to buy.

I did laundry last week in my apartment complex, and since I'm a night owl, I started it at 11pm. I do (well, did) laundry using my rolling duffel as my laundry bag. Well, after I washed and put my clothes in the dryer, I went back home as usual. I come back to pick my clothes up and lo and behold, someone stole my bag. I mean, it was a piece of junk now anyway, but I had my new bounce dryer sheets and 1/3 left of a bottle of detergent in there! So yeah, I gotta buy a new bag. That one lasted about 4 years anyway and was only $20 at Wal-Mart.

So, out the door at 4:30ish I go. This is the plan. My flight out is at 6am and the airport is about 15 minutes (if that) from my house. With the early weekday morning traffic, I should get there by 4:45am .

I stop in Atlanta at some point. While here, I plan to grab food so as to not repeat the arrival day migraine I had last year (I forgot to eat, it happens).

So, eventually, I'll arrive in MCO at 11:47ish and I'll be off to the resort! CSR is my home again this year and I can't wait. I love the resort (as I mentioned). My room will likely look like:

​

I'll drop my stuff off (assuming that the room is ready that is, if it's not, I'll drop it off with Bell Services) and head on over to Epcot for lunch. The plan is much the same as last year, Cantina de San Angel.

Yummy
​

After lunch, I'll party down a little. Hop on Spaceship Earth, Mission Space (Orange FTW) and Test Track. I'll save Soarin' for when Mom gets there (she loves it!)

By 5-5:30 I'll head back to the resort to meet up with Mom (who I haven't seen since last year's trip!) And we'll chat a bit and I'll grab all the stuff she's brought for me (she likes to shop, I don't complain).

Around 6:30 we'll head on over to AKL for dinner at Jiko. This was one of the signatures I did last year and it was yummy. She didn't do this one with me and I wanted to share it. I also planning this time with her in mind, so most of my pricier stuff comes after she leaves.

Very Yummy! They don't have the Mac n' Cheese as part of this dish anymore, but the Red Wine sauce there was the most amazing piece, so it should work with the "risotto".​

After dinner, it's time to head back home. We have an early start the next day and a late night! (And this time I'll make sure to wear some more sensible shoes!)

Edit
ZOMG! I can't believe I forgot to add my shot/photo plans here. That was the whole point of writing a PTR in the first place! EGADS! (I just wanted to say Egads).

Shot/Photo Plans
General snapshotish pictures today. Get a hang of handling the camera at Disney and in the bright midday sun. Leave tripod in room/bell services. Dinner pics with the 18-55, or the rented/new UWA (if I get it)

 

[KatMark]

I'm here and loving the plans thus far.

 

[Cafeen]

I'm here and loving the plans thus far.

Thanks , I edited in my shooting plans as that was the whole point of the PTR in the first place. Then I go and forget them!

This PTR will likely be pretty short (well, in posts ) as I do plan to only do 1 post per day (of trip). But it's just something to keep me occupied for the next 3 1/2 weeks!

 

[Cafeen]

The Plan
So, the detailed plan for Day #2 is as follows:

Breakfast
For the first time ever, I will be having breakfast at Kona Cafe. You Tonga Toast lovers have convinced me that I need to try it. I'm rarely (if ever) a breakfast eater, but you guys talked me into it. Really looking forward to it here.

The day
We'll be spending the day over at Magic Kingdom (hey, I have to start there right?). Now that we know Pirates will likely be down the first thing, we'll probably head by it (just to check) and then head on over to the mountains. FPing Splash or BTMRR and riding the other. We will then very purposefully meander around the area for a good while.

Now, I may do Splash, and I may not. A lot depends on how wet I'd likely to get. I don't like being wet and I carry too many gadgets to really work being wet into my schedule. Mom loves these types of rides, and I really want to check it out, I just wish there was a "No Cannons" and "Drier" set of logs we could request. May have to convince Mom to bring a few Ziplocs for my stuff (camera, phone, certain other things).

We'll likely FP Space Mtn as well at some point in the day. It's not a necessity for me, but maybe it'll be better not sitting in the way back (man that hurt last year).

In reality, I have plans to pretty much just go with the flow. Lunch will be CS if we bother.

Dinner
Dinner will be at The Plaza where I'll get a cheeseburger (yup, I'm adventurous! Actually, I'm just picky and only eat beef (or beef like meats) and sausage/bacon). After ice cream it should just about be time for the party.

The Party
I'm taking Mom to MNSSHP this year. Aren't I a great son? Of course, it's mostly because I loved the vibe of the place last year.

Photo Shooting Stuff
With Mom there, I'm not going to get into anything too fancy, especially at the party. I'll be leaving the tripod at the room and just handling my backpack o' gear. I do want to play on TTA again, and I may just have to do it with Mom sitting there as my model. Should make something like:

​

be a bit more interesting.

I'll also be scouting out and running some testing shots for the parties later on in the week.

Other News
Well, with the stupid amount that I've worked lately, I'm looking into picking up the Sigma 10-20mm lens. Not sure if I'm going to go all the way for the f/3.5 (~$650), or save ~$200 for the f/4-5.6. I'm thinking the latter. They're both very good, so I should be fine saving a bit.

And speaking of work, time to get more OT .

 

[Cafeen]

Well, it's quiet around these parts, but that's never stopped me from writing anyway! Though, at the rate I'm moving on this thing... it may not be finished by the time my trip comes around. Oh well, it'll get converted into the TR afterward, so the light amount of posts before the bulk starts may be a good thing!

So yeah, on to...
The Plan
Day 3 lands us at DHS. Our DHS day last year got cut a bit short by my aching feet. So much that we left after lunch and I took a nap while Mom roamed the World Showcase. It was also her last day there, so I did feel a bit guilty about that.

This year, it's a little earlier in the trip, so that should help things!

The Day
Our plan for this day is to hit RD and ride TSM first, again. Remind me to charge my camera battery before this, as I don't want to repeat last year! Since this is the only time I'll be visiting during the day, there are a few shots that I'd like to take.

After TSM, RnRC and ToT will be our targets of priority. We missed out (well, she did, I rode it later in the week) on RnRC last year due to it breaking down as we waited in the FP line. This year, it'll hopefully be different! My newer glasses are also tighter than the old ones I wore last year, so that should help prevent them from feeling like they're going to come off .

We'll also likely hit up GMR and hopefully the Indy and/or car show there. One Man's Dream should also be open, so that's a big priority for me.

Lunch
For lunch, we're hitting up Mama Melrose's, maybe. It's still tentative based on how much Mom feels like eating a sit down. Since there aren't any really good locations in DHS for TS anyway, it's not a huge loss if we skip it. Not that there's really any better CS though...

Dinner
Around 6:30 or so, we'll head to the buses and hitch a ride over to the Poly. We have a dinner planned at 7:30pm at Kona Cafe, so this should be enough time. Alternatively, if we leave DHS early, we'll just drive on over (which will allow me to bring the tripod!) Now, we were just at Kona Cafe for breakfast the day before... so this is a bit odd. But, it was the only things that fit right into the plans.

After Dinner
Wishes is at 9pm, so we should be out in enough time to catch them from the Poly beach. If we are, that's the plan (hence the tripod ). If we're not, oh well.

After all this is done, we'll head back to CSR for the night.

Photo Plan
My photo plan on this day is a bit generalized. Basically it's DHS during the day. I do hope to reproduce a few shots in better quality:

​

Also, if I do bring the tripod, photographing Wishes will be a goal.

Other News
Well, my bit OT paycheck hasn't hit yet. I did the weeks wrong and it's coming on the 15th. But, that, coupled with the fact it includes 2 weeks of ~37 hours of OT each (yep, you heard right), it'll be sizable. With some help from the guys down on the photography board, I have now set my sights on the Sigma 8-16mm f/4.5-5.6. This should make some of the photographs a bit more fun to take. REALLY excited about this Ultra Wide lens!

 

[Disneychix]

Hi! I'll be in WDW for some of the same days as you. Can't wait!!

I also am in the same line of work-but I deal with banking applications-and we don't do OT.
You deserve such a nice long vacation-hope it's great!

 

[Cafeen]

Hi! I'll be in WDW for some of the same days as you. Can't wait!!

I also am in the same line of work-but I deal with banking applications-and we don't do OT.
You deserve such a nice long vacation-hope it's great!

It's getting so close! Just gotta make it through 2 more weeks (since, well, today is basically over )

We work with school district software, and it's certainly interesting, but often very frustrating at the same time. Funny thing is, I've been doing this at this company for almost 7 years now, and I just realized a couple weeks ago that my Mom (she's a special ed teacher in FL) actually uses software just like we create (they're not our customer though). It make it a bit easier to talk about what I do with her, when before it was a bit of a mystery.

Yeah, I'm a bit slow...

We have unlimited OT, which sounds nice... but that also means that we get made to put in a lot of OT hours. It gets real tiring, so I'm REALLY looking forward to the time off. I did scare my boss one week last year when I pulled 61 hours of OT in a week. That was amusing. At least, I was so exhausted that it amused me greatly.

In PTR related news...
I talked to Mom last night, and she's about set to come as well. She'll be arriving on Thursday as planned (I didn't know she was thinking differently ) and leaving on Monday.

I also changed my Coral Reef ADR tonight over to an 11:30am at Marrakesh. The reviews for CR have been lukewarm, and Marrakesh is cheaper which Mom will appreciate. I also wanted to head there last year, but ended up at Hacienda that night instead, so a makeup is due.

I also just bought a new suitcase, much nicer than the crappy $20 5 year old WalMart rolling duffel I was using. That bag got stolen from our laundry room when I was doing laundry a couple weeks ago, I was more annoyed about the loss of the detergent and the new box of Bounce sheets than I was the bag though. That, and having to pack all my clothes into a pair of shorts (that I had just washed) in order to carry them all home. At least it's close .

Lastly, 1 minor camera purchase, I picked up an extra battery for it, so I should be assured that I have sufficient power to make it through the day.

I had intended to write up another day, but I think I'll put that off for... well, another day

 

[kokotg]

Subscribing! I was sucked in by your title, because I joke that I have to get a new camera every time I have a new baby. Which means it's been nearly six years for me now. I don't have an impressive list of equipment (Canon Rebel XT, mostly with a Tamron 28-75mm here), but I like to drool over other people's stuff . also, sounds like we'll be there just a week before you.

 

[KatMark]

Allan, plans continue to sound great. And all I can say is WOW on the overtime!

I can't believe our trip is just two weeks away.

 

[Cafeen]

Subscribing! I was sucked in by your title, because I joke that I have to get a new camera every time I have a new baby. Which means it's been nearly six years for me now. I don't have an impressive list of equipment (Canon Rebel XT, mostly with a Tamron 28-75mm here), but I like to drool over other people's stuff . also, sounds like we'll be there just a week before you.

My equipment list is only so long because I included all the little stuff . Heck, I'd go back and add the spare battery that I got today if I was really ambitious!

One more week until I get a new lens too, picking up that Sigma 8-16 which should be super fun. I now stretch from 8mm - 250mm (excluding 16-18 ) so that should have my bases covered. (Though, the Tonika 11-17mm f/2.8 is taunting me... I'm really liking that consistent and speedy aperture there.)

Hope you have a great trip! Keep the bad weather away for me will ya? Just install a bunch of fans pointing outward from Disney to blow the bad stuff away and we'll be good (Note: this was also my plan for this spring/early summer when the northeast were getting soaked and we were in drought... it didn't work then ).

Allan, plans continue to sound great. And all I can say is WOW on the overtime!

I can't believe our trip is just two weeks away.

I'm liking the plans this time around. Though, I know that things will change once I'm there. It seems like no matter how well I THINK something will work, I end up doing something different!

As far as the OT, yup. It's a lot. I'm still pulling some excessive amounts here, I even JUST NOW, at 11:30pm (ok, just 30 mins ago) finished up for the day. Of course, I'd have been done earlier, but I passed out when I got home at 5:30 and woke up at 9...

12 more days! (It just turned to 12:02, so I can call it that! ) I've been counting this down since Feb! I know the guys at work are sick of it. At any rate, last response I said that I'd do an update soon, and then didn't. This time I will, I promise. Of course, by the time anyone reads this, since it is 12:03am, I'll likely have already finished the post, making this whole part rather moot. I guess I just like the sound of my typing...

 

[Cafeen]

Why do I always do Epcot on Sunday? Well, by always I mean this trip, last trip, and the cancelled Feb 2010 trip. All had Epcot on Sunday. I blame Touring Plans!

Ahem

The Plan
AM
We should arrive to Epcot around Rope Drop or so. Probably pretty close to it if not before it. The plan (in my head, Mom doesn't know this, but would probably think the same way) is to do the Soarin' rush first, hop on and then grab FPs. It's her favorite ride there, so I think that's the most likely scenario. During the rest of the AM, we'll tour through FW hitting up everything there is to offer. Mission Space:Orange, and Test Track will be other focuses... foci?

Lunch
Originally, I had planned on Coral Reef here. However, for the 3rd time in 3 trips, I talked myself out of it based on reviews (and this time, price had a factor). I changed it to Restaurant Marrakesh over in Morocco. The menu is cheaper, the food's more adventurous, and I'm pretty sure that Mom's always wanted to eat there, but never did.

Surprisingly, it has quite a few items that I'm intrigued by on the menu too! (Which doesn't happen much, since I don't eat Fish, Chicken, Turkey, Pork, Seafood, Ham... my meats are basically red meats plus sausage and bacon (yes, I know sausage and bacon are pork and ham respectively...))

PM
We'll use our Soarin' FPs if we haven't already, and then probably grab more if we feel like it. The rest of the afternoon will be spent tooling around WS. I missed doing this with Mom last year, as we went back to the resort that day, only to come back for dinner. Hopefully my feet will hold out (which they should, since I'll be smart this time and not wear those other shoes, and make sure to wear socks!)

Dinner
Dinner is at 7pm over at Hacienda de San Angel. Originally I had this planned for ~8pm to watch Illuminations, then I read some more recent reviews about the view, and realized that where we'd likely sit (as a party of 2) wouldn't be right up against the window. So I moved this earlier to be out in time to grab a spot to watch outside.

Really looking forward to this again. I tried this out last year, and liked it, but wasn't feeling great that day and it was a bit too early. Now, they've gotten a year to get better, and it's nice and early in my trip!

Illuminations
After dinner, it should be just about time for Illuminations. So we'll watch that and then head out.

Photo Plans
Again, much like the previous couple of days, I'm not going to get into the more "serious" side of my shooting yet. If I have a good spot to set up my little tabletop tripod, I'll try and shoot Illuminations a bit (via cable release + stopped down lens + pre-set focus), but I'm not too worried about it. Mostly scouting and the like for today.

 

[Cafeen]

So, I need to get this moving. I'm leaving in 11.. erm, it's 12:01 so that's 10! days now.

The Plan
This will be Mom's last day at WDW, she'll be returning to work on Tuesday. So, as such, I have a special day planned for her.

Well, it's actually not anymore special than the other days, other than the fact that we're returning to her only 2 "must dos" for the trip.

So, we'll start off the morning at some point in time. She's request a later start today, which is fine by me (note: Mom's "later start" means that we'll get rolling by about 8:30 am ). AK has AM EMH this morning, and if she is so inclined as to end up being ready for it, we'll do them. We'll likely drive over as she'll be leaving after dinner.

Breakfast
We have 10am ADRs for Tusker House. I figured this worked great whether we're doing EMH or not. Not much else to say, other than I hope to get some better shots than I did last time (not like those were bad though , I pretty much am hoping to always get better shots than previous).

Daytime
During the day, we'll be doing all those AK things. At some point in time, hopefully I'll be meeting up with Kathy here (aka Katmark) to say hello, share a snack, ride, path, whatever. We should probably get going on those details by now huh? It's only 2 weeks from today (today being Monday due to the aforementioned it being 12:01 AM when I started this).

Some of the plans for the day include:

​

Dinner
At around 4:30ish, we'll head on over to AKL for our Boma dinner. I really enjoyed this last year, and can't wait to return again. Zebra Domes, that Tangerine stuff, all the desserts (well, except the coffee thing). The entree type food is good too of course.

​

After Dinner
After Dinner, I'll be saying my goodbyes to Mom and heading over to DHS from AKL for the PM EMH. I'll be a bit early for the EMH part, so I'll spend some time shooting there (and riding ToT/RnRC/ST!)

ZOMG Star Tours! I can't believe I forgot that for our DHS day! It was closed last year when we went, so it's about time we see it again. I'm also hoping to catch the Indy Show and possible LMA to test out my 55-250 lens. We'll see how much of that I can accomplish between the two days.

After sunset and things start to get dark (note: EMH is from 10pm - 1am this day... I think), I'll really get going on the photography. It's a goal of mine to capture each of the evening parks at night, so that's what this night is mostly for.

Photo Plans
I'll be bringing both my tripod ( and the 55-250mm lens today (granted, I'll likely be bringing the 55-250 every day, it doesn't weigh much and it already has a home in my bag). The tripod is likely to stay in the car until after dinner though. The goals for the day are:

• AK - Safari Shots (with the big lens).
• AK - Animal Path shots (again, big lens).
• AK - If we get a 2nd safari, I want to play with the UWA and see what I can do with it.
• DHS - Night Shots
• DHS - Whatever shows we missed on Saturday

 

[KatMark]

Great "last day for your mom" plans. We plan on being at AK at 8 a.m. for EMH's. We have to meet someone who works there around 8:30 or so, and then we will be there until around noon. Shall I PM you my Cell number and you can text me when you get there and we can see if we can meet at a ride (Dinosaur perhaps...I don't think Mark will be riding it...or something else?)?

 

[Cafeen]

So, here we are at my solo time. This is when I'm going to get into the photo mood a bit more.

The Plan
After a late(ish) night at DHS, I'll likely be heading out the door by about 8-9am. I get up early at Disney, what can I say?

I'll likely be bringing the tripod along today, as I have MNSSHP at night! So, tripod and camera in hand, I'll head out to Epcot.

AM
The AM plan is to hit up a few rides and do some daytime photography around mainly Future World. I'll also try my hand at ride photography on both Nemo and SSE (don't worry, no flash will occur!).

Lunch
Lunch today is at San Angel Inn. I went here last year and had a great meal, so I had to redo it. Plus, everyone here knows about my penchant for Mexican food, so this will work out well. I've looked at the menu again recently and it looks quite good now. Better than last year (though, there is 0 things on the dinner menu that interest me!).

Afternoon
For the afternoon, I'll aim to shoot Mexico, Norway, and China at the very least. The lighting won't be great, but I'll make do with what's given.

Of course, this is all assuming that it's not doing this:

​

like it did last year!

Dinner
Around 4:30ish, I'll hop on the Monorail and head on over to CR for dinner at California Grill! I've never eaten here, and to be honest, the menu doesn't thrill me. But it's worth a shot. I'll ask to be "rushed" a little bit, as I have a party to get to. However, before the party, I do hope to catch the sunset over MK from the deck. We'll see how that goes.

MNSSHP!
For those keeping score, this will be MNSSHP #2 for the week. Since I will have been to one already with Mom, this will be a bit more free. I hope to do some more shooting and get better shots of stuff like:

AND
​

After the party, it's time for bed.

 

[Cafeen]

Great "last day for your mom" plans. We plan on being at AK at 8 a.m. for EMH's. We have to meet someone who works there around 8:30 or so, and then we will be there until around noon. Shall I PM you my Cell number and you can text me when you get there and we can see if we can meet at a ride (Dinosaur perhaps...I don't think Mark will be riding it...or something else?)?

I sent you a PM with mine, so that should be all set. As I said there, we should be out of breakfast by 11ish, so should be able to meet up after that as Mom is planning to arrive a bit later (who'd have thought that my get up and go would be stronger than hers!)

Dinosaur would work, though I'll pretty much ride anything there except Kali (that's due to the wet factor and the amount of electronics I carry more than the ride itself).

So long as this isn't the Epic Phone Tag that Derek and I played at AK 2 years ago .

 

[Cafeen]

I need to speed up my posting. Adding a new day every few days isn't going to cut it. I leave in 9 days now. 9! I've been counting this down since I originally booked back in FEB!

So, let's all take a moment of time to do a little single digit dance. Just a little one, let's not get carried away.

Ahem, at any rate, on to day 7!

The Plan
AM
Well, it's the day after MNSSHP #2. Should I sleep in?

Heck no, I'm at Disney! I can sleep in.. um, later.

The plan for this morning is to get to AK for Rope Drop and hit up the Safari a couple times. Once with my big lens (the first ride) and once playing with the UWA* that I'm getting. I'll then rehook up the big lens and hit up the Pagani forest trail and over to conservation station. Hoping that if I get there early enough, I'll catch some of the vets at work.

UWA = Ultra Wide-Angle. This is a lens that is generally less than 14?mm in focal length. What it does is offer a very wide angle of view. The one I'm looking to get is an 8-16mm Sigma, which will basically be a Fisheye (think looking out a peephole), but without the severe distortion a true Fisheye grants (so the lines will be mostly straight). For examples done with the lens I'm planning on, check out WDWFigment's example shots on my thread asking for UWA suggestions. While mine won't come out quite as stunning as his due to post-processing, the basic look and such of the shots should work out nicely.

Depending on the time, I'll walk back to the front and tool around the Oasis for a little bit.

Lunch
Lunch this day is special. At about 11 or so, I'll head on over to AKL - Kidani and check in for my Untamed Lunch at Sanaa! Here I'll be dining with an animal specialist from either AK or AKL (not sure which). Lots of pictures plan to be taken, both of the yummy food and of whatever presents itself.

As a special note, Simba's Mom will also be dining with me here. This was totally unplanned and we just both happened to be interested. So that should be fun. My 2nd DIS person that I'll officially meet there!

Afternoon
My afternoon plans are a bit open. I'm planning to head to DHS from AKL, but this is only tentative. I planned flexibility in! (Like I needed to when I'm just hanging around by myself ).

At DHS, I'll concentrate on Photography for a few hours. Yes, it's that important to me that I need to capitalize it! I don't really have any examples to show here, but if I have time it'll be focusing on the ToT queue and possibly GMR, plus, if I missed the Indy show on Saturday, I'll try and get it again. However, I won't have all that much time here as...

Dinner
At 5:30 I have reservations at Flying Fish over on the boardwalk. I'm not a fish eater, but I'm REALLY looking forward to this meal. Depending on timing, I'll photograph Boardwalk along the way or after. I think I may also hang around until it starts getting dark to do some of the standard UWA work from the YC dock. With a full tripod this year and that very nice UWA lens, it should come out quite nice.

PM
This is my time to attempt to repeat a few different shots I tried at Epcot last year.

AND
​

Most notably.

Again, heavy UWA work is planned for here. I also hope to do some night shooting of WS, and really want to get that WS from FW shot, with it all lit up at night.

Depending on when I arrive, I may also get setup for Illuminations.

Photo Plans
Well, I covered this part pretty well in the general plans. Since I'm going to be alone, most of my plans moving forward will be based around photography. And eating.

But, to recap (and bring out another nice little list!):

• AK - Safari with 55-250mm and UWA
• AK - Pagani Trail
• AK - Conservation Station if they're doing vet work
• DHS - Missed opportunities from Saturday.
• DHS - TOT Queue
• DHS - GMR On Ride (No flash, don't worry!)
• Boardwalk - UWA from YC dock at night
• Epcot - JII Fountain at night
• Epcot - FpN at night (longer exposure)
• Epcot - WS from FW at night
• Epcot - Illuminations if timing works out

Hmm, come to think of it. I had also planned on shooting at CSR this evening. I may have to rethink some of my plans here. Maybe go back to CSR after dinner? That worked last year and how I got my shots like:

​

As well as the fountain ones that I gave to Kathy for the CSR thread.

We'll have to see .

 

[KatMark]

I got your PM and will text you that day around 11 a.m. and we can hopefully hook up.

Your plans sound great; and I can't wait to see LOTS more pics of my "home" away from home.

 

[I_heart_Tinkerbell]

woohoo single digits... I am just a couple of days further out than you. Leaving on 9/24. looks like lots of fun. It is nice that you get to spend some days with your mom and then a couple of days where you can just work on your photography. Sounds like a nice balance.

Lots of DISsers going to MNSSHP 9/27 I am going 9/27 and maybe 9/30 just depends on how much I feel I "missed" the first time.

Not sure if if you know but 10//1 is Magic Kingdom's 40th b-day. There is a thread trying to get a meet together. http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2784675

Even better than Tonga Toast is the Pineapple/Mac nut pancakes YUM-O That is on my must do TS every trip

looking forward to reading your TR and seeing your pics