Photo revelation - taking scrapping pics with a new view

[Caleb's Mom]

Within the last year a new staff member joined our office - she also happens to be a Creative Memories consultant as well! I have to say I've really learned a lot from her about photos! All my pics used to be my family standing in front of the castle, my family standing in front of the Sorcerer Hat at MGM, my son hugging Mickey. I've learned to diversify from her and get some new shots. This year I took a pic looking up into a bunch of purple and orange Halloween party balloons at the Magic Kingdom which turned out awesome. We went on a theme hunt taking pics of my DH with his head stuck in items like the tigers mouth on the Rainforest Cafe sign or the Aligators mouth by the POFQ pool. I also took a pic looking up to the sky through a canopy of palm tree fronds. These will really help my Disney scrapbooks from looking the same every year!

 

[NewEnglandDisney]

That's why I'm excited about my trip in a few weeks. I haven't been since I've started scrapping, and I'll be taking many, many, many more pictures. I had sort of stopped for awhile (except for character greets) because I wasn't using thing for anything...now that I have a purpose, I went out and got a new card for my camera, 'cause 3GB just isn't enough LOL.

I'm also going to vary the way I take the pics - landscape, portrait, etc. I'm finding my layouts are a tiny bit boring because all the pics were taken the same way.

NED

 

[bskts4bj]

I'm leaving Wednesday for WDW -- give me ideas for different pictures to take. I'm just like everyone else, pictures at the castle, pictures with the characters . . . . .

TIA!!
Brenda

 

[NewEnglandDisney]

Well, I'm looking forward to :

* pics of attraction signs - I do lots of layouts of inside rides and such and I've had to go on the Internet and "lift" a picture of the sign more than once lately, so I'm going to take a pic of every attraction sign I go to, just so I have 'em. Will only take a few seconds each time, and I'm sure I can go back and use many of them for years to come.

* lots of little details that many people may not notice. If you are leaving Wednesday, do you have a decent sized bookstore near you? You should try to pick up the Imagineers Field Guide to the MK, and/or the Imagineers Field Guide to Epcot. They are AMAZING, and best of all, CHEAP! Ten bucks each, and they are actually written by imagineers. They are EXCELLENT at pointing out the little details in the parks you may not notice or pick up on. For instance, Future World in Epcot. If you look closely, all the fountains, walkways, etc. on FW East (The Land, Imagination, Living Seas) are very curved and organic, while the same items at FW West are starker, harder lines, and points, etc. because that's the more "scientific/technical" side (M:S, Ellen, etc.). That's just one little detail - but I bet you could make a neat scrap layout of some close up shots. I highly recommend these books! Best Disney investment ever.

*hidden mickeys - you can print a list off from several places on the web, and try to photograph when you find them. Some neat ones are hidden pretty well, and it's so much fun to find them. You feel like you are "in" on a secret! I sense a layout, LOL. It's also fun to talk to CM's about them - they really like sharing that kind of info to interested folks.

*Come up with a theme or two and ahead of time and bring a list of pics to "look for" on your trip. For example, I'm doing an "A-Z of Disney" layout on my next trip - I'm going to find one or two examples of things that fit/have in them each letter of the alphabet. I don't have specific stuff in mind yet, really, so who knows where it will lead. I'm just going to bring a sheet of scrap paper in my pocket with a list of the letters in the alphabet and strike them off as I get an appropriate pic. Another idea I've always wanted to do is find a pic representative of, say, each month of the year (A picture of a heart-shaped pillow from Minnie's House for February, etc.).

*Vary the angle/orientation of your photos. This is one I always forget. I'm so concerned about keeping still (I'm terribly shaky, unfortunately, which I why I abandoned professional photography) that I forget to take portrait shots by turning the camera sideways, etc. Don't be afraid to take them from silly angles, upside down, etc., LOL. This is where the benefit of digital really shines - so what if you mess it up. You aren't wasting anything but a few seconds of time, and it's almost always worth it.

*Be on the lookout for fun photo opportunities - the backside of the Castle if you always do the front, a pic of your family in front of one of the talking trash cans, or take a pic of every waterfountain you see, LOL.

There is so much to look at at WDW, you can always find something new! Best advice, though, is to get those Imagineering Field guides - they will really help you appriciate all that you may pass by when you are running to Everest or Splash Mountain.

Hope this helps!

NED

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

I saw a really cool layout, can't remember where though. It was of al the mountains, Everest, Space, Splash, and Big Thunder. That was cool.

I'm looking for some more of our pics.

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Here's some we took at christmas

On the bridge leading to the Boneyard at AK

At the Honey I Shrunk the Kids playground at MGM

At the Bonsai Tree in China at Epcot

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Here's a few more:
glow cups from Sci Fi

Back of the castle

Side of castle

 

[jenr812]

* pics of attraction signs - I do lots of layouts of inside rides and such and I've had to go on the Internet and "lift" a picture of the sign more than once lately, so I'm going to take a pic of every attraction sign I go to, just so I have 'em. Will only take a few seconds each time, and I'm sure I can go back and use many of them for years to come.

*Come up with a theme or two and ahead of time and bring a list of pics to "look for" on your trip. For example, I'm doing an "A-Z of Disney" layout on my next trip - I'm going to find one or two examples of things that fit/have in them each letter of the alphabet. I don't have specific stuff in mind yet, really, so who knows where it will lead. I'm just going to bring a sheet of scrap paper in my pocket with a list of the letters in the alphabet and strike them off as I get an appropriate pic. Another idea I've always wanted to do is find a pic representative of, say, each month of the year (A picture of a heart-shaped pillow from Minnie's House for February, etc.).

Lots of great ideas, and I especially love these two I actually took several attraction sign pics but also missed many, and I just love the theme idea

 

[jenr812]

I saw a really cool layout, can't remember where though. It was of al the mountains, Everest, Space, Splash, and Big Thunder. That was cool.

I'm looking for some more of our pics.

I saw that LO somewhere, too, and loved it. I forgot all about it til you mentioned it. I really need to start a notebook with these ideas...

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Don't forget doors, they have some really cool doors in Epcot. It reminds me of the posters you see of all the doors of pubs in Ireland.

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

I saw that LO somewhere, too, and loved it. I forgot all about it til you mentioned it. I really need to start a notebook with these ideas...

I wish I could remember where I saw it. It was a black background with snapshots like from a polaroid but they were digitally done and they were 2 on top and 2 on the bottom but the corners touched and the pics were at angles. It was so cool. Urgh now it's going to bug me til I can find it. OK off to hunt! LOL

 

[jenr812]

I wish I could remember where I saw it. It was a black background with snapshots like from a polaroid but they were digitally done and they were 2 on top and 2 on the bottom but the corners touched and the pics were at angles. It was so cool. Urgh now it's going to bug me til I can find it. OK off to hunt! LOL

Possibly on the CCM scrapbook thread and if so, it'll take hours to find LOL

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Possibly on the CCM scrapbook thread and if so, it'll take hours to find LOL

No it was somewhere else. i think it may have been a link in the photo forum.

 

[Twigs]

Love your photos Buffy! I also take pictures of (don't laugh now) garbage cans. Every land and sometimes even individual attractions have a different design on the garbage cans. I get a few new ones each trip and plan to make a LO when I get "them all". I take them digitally so that I can size them all on the small side. When I first started taking them we were with good friends whose kids call me Aunt. It became the joke of the trip "Oh look Aunt Joyce there's a garbage can you missed!"

 

[NewEnglandDisney]

Lots of great ideas, and I especially love these two I actually took several attraction sign pics but also missed many, and I just love the theme idea

I can't take credit for the A-Z idea (I've seen lots of LO's that have done it), but it is and idea that you could do a great deal of customization to and vary with lots of themes.

I just have my camera handy most of the time anyway, and I'm just going to get into the habit of taking sign pics. I'm always thinking, "I wish I had..." This will be my first trip since I have been scrapping, so I know my picture taking is going to be much more a priority than it used to be.

NED

 

[dee slack]

I would just add that if you have digital, take lots more photo's than you might think you could ever need - you can always delete them after, which is better than wishing you'd taken them in the first place.
I also like to take different ranges of pics - ie a long distance/setting the scene photo's then a mid-range shot that has people and a bit of background and finally some really good close up's of faces. That way you have quite a few options open to you.
I have to admit that I'm guilty of buying supplies as I see them, sometimes many, many months in advance of a trip - then having to take photo's to match my supplies!!!!!

I do think that taking pics is totally different when you are a scrapbooker, and after a while the family will start to give you ideas for photo's...."this will make a great page"!!

 

[crazy*about*mickey]

I always take pictures of signs when we are somewhere that I have taken pics and will be doing a layout. My friends always tease me about taking pictures of signs. This one time four of us went to Toronto and evertime I took a pic of a sign they were like, oh there she is again taking more pics of signs but I will have you know they all asked me for copies of some of those sign pictures. I was so tempted to say no since they are thought it was so silly but they are my friends and so I made them copies of whatever ones they asked for. They still tease me but I remind them that if I didn;t take them where would they get them from when they want them. It tends to shut them up, at least for the moment.

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

I do think that taking pics is totally different when you are a scrapbooker, and after a while the family will start to give you ideas for photo's...."this will make a great page"!!

Yes! I have been training DH how to take pics. He tends to crop with the camera but that doesn't give me much room to trim if I have a 4x6 photo that needs to trim down to 3x3 and he takes tons of landscape shots so we are trying to remember to take portrait too.

 

[Michele]

I agree with 'especially with digital, take more pictures than you think you will want' We took 2 digital cameras ( one mine and one for DH) in Sept and came home with 805 pictures. But you can't believe how many things I think back on and say 'Why didn't I get a picture of that?'

And I've read a million times, 'make sure to get lots of pictures of your whole group together', but I came home wth only 1 picture with all of us in it. The one below isn't it, we took my Mom on this trip too and only got 1 pic with the 5 of us.

 

[dee slack]

And I've read a million times, 'make sure to get lots of pictures of your whole group together', but I came home wth only 1 picture with all of us in it. The one below isn't it, we took my Mom on this trip too and only got 1 pic with the 5 of us.

my DH often offers to take group pictures of people when we are on vacation / day trips so others hopefully don't have this problem (he's so thoughtful) and 99% of the time, they offer the same thing back so we have pic's of us together too.