Photopass

[Dopey's MIL]

I am still a little bit confused about the difference between buying the CD at the park and prepaying for it online. When I was there in Sept. I paid $59.95 for mine.

I didn't have that many pictures, about 60, but I thought it was well worth it. Some of them turned out superior! I could have never captured the moment in such a manner.

What I need to know is what do you get for the price difference besides the CD? It's $129.95 for unlimited pictures, which is a good thing. (Sorry Martha)

Will someone please post a picture or two of what it can do?

Thanks so much!

 

[bumbershoot]

The ONLY difference between the different ways of getting it is that if you buy it IN the park, to take home in your hands, you can't edit* it. No cropping, no borders, no character signatures.

If you pre-purchase or buy it online after you get home, then you can edit them.

I'll post this then do a follow-up with the differences in pictures.



* of course you can edit it from the CD, on your computer, of course...just not through the photopass system.

 

[bumbershoot]

Dangit. Did something floopy with my typing and erased my post.


*******
examples from the Princess Fantasy Faire.

Here's the unedited picture that would be the only thing available on the buy-in-park CD.

But because I bought online (I happened to pre-purchase but it would be the same if I waited until I got home and just bought it normally) I had access to things like....

signatures:

a PFF crest:

since it was December, a variety of xmas themed borders, including this one that went nicely with Belle's gown:

they had the year available for all of the pictures, but that's kinda boring so I won't show it.

a silly little border thing that I added here b/c it made DS's look less rude, LOL.

There has been recent discussion about the add-ons you can get, and the consensus seems to be that ANY purchase of the CD can include special pictures, like Tinkerbell in your hands in front of the castle, some new ones like hitchhiking ghosts with you in front of the Haunted Mansion, and things like the following, Stitch popping out of the ground in DCA.

But if you buy it online, you can add a border to make it even more fun (or ugly, depending on your point of view).

OK, shutterfly is going to harm me for posting so many pix today... LOL.


I wanted to add...if you are really into scrapbooking AND are very good at editing your pictures, if you know photoshop well and can do your own fun things, then I can't really imagine the editable CD is a good value for you. But if you're like me and just WANT the extra borders, to make things more fun, then it's good!


But no matter the way you get the CD, the main value of it (as you probably know) is that you're paying for the photo release, making it possible to print and reprint as much as you want (for personal purposes of course, not for sale). That comes with any of the CDs.

 

[Dopey's MIL]

Thank you so much for sharing those! They are very cute. One more question....how long do you have access to edit and customize your pictures?

Is it really worth the additional cost in the long run? Will you keep purchasing online?

-J

 

[bumbershoot]

Worth the cost...so far I think it has been.

I think we might do the editable CD maybe once more, this May, for DS's birthday. But after that I might think it's enough.

Though they just recently have changed the price online, it SEEMS to be only 80 buying it from home, non-prepurchase, so right now it seems to make more sense to buy it once you're home, if you want the editable.

And I *think* I read that they now aren't selling JUST the CD to take home, that now it's the CD plus 2 5x7s prints, for something like $75. But this is just what I've heard, and I haven't seen that in action yet.


You have 30 days from the end of your trip (I imagine they start counting from the last day you have pictures taken?) to enter them onto the photopass site in your account. Then you have 30 days from then to edit them to your heart's content (in December I added every border to every picture that I could, just doing everything even if I thought they were ugly, because I felt it was better to do it rather than NOT do it) and order them, whether you pre-pay or not.


Oh wait, when we visit WDW (either this year or next, whenever it happens) we'll likely do the editable CD again.


For me, the lowest cost is incredible, for getting the photo release. We can't even GET the release for our wedding pictures yet, and it's been 4.5 years since our wedding. It's going to be hundreds once they let us buy them. So the release for these being only 60 bucks is great.

Then, so far, the borders are worth the extra 30+ for us. Right now. Adds a little bit of specialness to them. But I'm sure eventually they'll just be cloying to me and I'll just want the plain pictures. And maybe someday I'll put photoshop onto my computer, learn to use it, and I'll be cloying in my own way!

 

[Disney Dider]

Bumbershoot, does that mean that in the end only have pictures that you have altered, not the original pics?

 

[Bugdozer]

Do any of you have the link to pre buy the cd before you go?

Thanks,
Bug

 

[bumbershoot]

Bumbershoot, does that mean that in the end only have pictures that you have altered, not the original pics?

The original is *always* saved. With each edit, you get a copy. So one picture (the first Belle/Eamon picture above) turns into 2, 3, 8...however many edits like that you do on it, each one is saved.

So 60 pictures can turn into...well just a whole lot, if you play around with the borders and signatures like I did in December.

Do any of you have the link to pre buy the cd before you go?

Thanks,
Bug

http://www.disneyphotopass.com/previsitcdplan.aspx

But! If you're only going to Disneyland, as you set up your photopass account (you'll have to do that if you're going to pre-order), make sure you check out the cost of the CD when buying after the fact. Recently it's been less expensive, for Disneyland it seems, than that pre-order page, and bradk has indicated (I think it's him at least) that they are doing some stuff with the pricing, making DLR lower maybe than WDW...I'd hate for people to pre-order for 99 than find out they could have done it after-the-fact for 80.

 

[Kirabird]

The pre-order price is $99.95 !!!! I would need a minimum of 100 pictures to make it worthwhile for me. Can you just take the same pictures yourself?

 

[Dopey's MIL]

Has anyone found a program for movies for your pictures like the photomovie you can purchase on the Photopass? It's for WDW only.

 

[bumbershoot]

The pre-order price is $99.95 !!!! I would need a minimum of 100 pictures to make it worthwhile for me. Can you just take the same pictures yourself?

You can have the photographers take pictures with your camera.

The reason for having THEM take it is so that your entire group is in the pictures, so you're not always missing one person.

They might also want to take the same pictures with their cameras, though, but having a picture taken is not an obligation at all!

And of course with your camera you're not getting to edit them. But if you don't like the editing option, then that doesn't make any difference. Also your own pictures can be added to a photopass account and you can order PRINTS, but you can't include them on the CD, just in case you were wondering about that.


I look at the cost as paying for the photo release, meaning you can have them printed wherever, whenever. If you just buy a print you have that print, and making a copy is technically illegal to do. The release is what makes it valuable to me.

Again, though, right now on the photopass site it's showing that buying it after the fact is 79.95. I don't have pictures on my account, but the photopass card numbers that are still on my account were only used for Disneyland, so this SEEMS to be a Disneyland special or change in price.

I, personally, would check out the after-the-fact price right before going on your trip, and if it's still cheaper than the "pre-purchase" price, I would probably just not pre-purchase it. (and that's actually what I'm going to do in May)

 

[SnowWhite12]

Once I get my photopass CD after my April trip (thanks to the fabulous photopass share ), and edit the pics on my computer, can I just take that CD then anywhere (like Sam's, Walmart...) there is a photo kiosk and print them out myself? Or do I then have to order the prints from Disney and pay them for them? Did I make sense?

 

[bumbershoot]

If you're going to get the CD, first you will edit them online. Then order the CD once you're done editing (if you pre-pay for it before you go, you will enter a code at that point instead of a credit card number, but if you don't pre-order it then you'll just pay for it as you're ordering the actual CD).

Once you receive the CD in the mail, you can do whatever you want with it!

You will have a file on the CD giving you permission to print them wherever you want, and if any print-ordering place gives you trouble you can send them the pdf, or print it out and show it to a place in person if they want that. So print at a kiosk and click that you have permission to print them, or order online, or take 'em to Costco, wherever you wish. Absolutely no need to order the prints from Disney, unless for some reason you want to.


(now ask me if I've printed anything! I'm so behind with printing...my son is almost 4 and the albums are only accurate up to when he was 10 months old. )

 

[ashbyyokosuka]

one more question.

is it possible to get your pics taken (by CM) etc. and see your pictures online w/out buying them first?


i take a TON of pictures (and feel i'm pretty good at it) so i am not sure i would want to pay for someone else's pictures (though, i do like the idea of being in the pictures... usually *I* am the one missing!)

thanks in advance to whoever answers this

 

[bumbershoot]

is it possible to get your pics taken (by CM) etc. and see your pictures online w/out buying them first?

Sure!

You can go into a photo center and hand your card(s) over to the photopass CMs. They will scan it and you'll be able to see your pictures on their monitors. It does not put the cards onto an account at all, so it doesn't mess things up. Photo center in DCA is at Greetings from California gift shop, and in DL it's in the camera shop on Main Street, I believe.

You can also just wait until you get home (or back to your hotel if you brought your laptop and have internet access) and enter the code number(s) onto your photopass online account (free and simple to create a log-in), and see the pictures on your own computer. There's no obligation at all to buy *anything*, and if you hate them all just let them expire and toss the card, no big deal at all.

 

[audrabolster]

The pre-order price is $99.95 !!!! I would need a minimum of 100 pictures to make it worthwhile for me. Can you just take the same pictures yourself?

You can have them take photos with your camera, but I have found that theirs always turns out amazing. Especially at night! Their camera is set to all the right settings, so it turns out so much better.

It doesn't seem too hard to get to 100, especially if you edit the ones you have. Everytime you hand your photopass card to the photographer, they take a minimum of 2 photos in case an eye is closed, etc. Then in some places they will take 3 (for the fun add ons like tinkerbell at the castle, etc)

Plus there are photographers set up in the character locations (Ariel, mickey, the princess faire)

Plus, once you spend the $90, you OWN the photos and can make copies to your hearts content. We went in on a group recently and we shared the account. I'm going to make some photo cards, etc with the photos.