Talk to me about this photopass thing

[micheluvscorgis]

I really love to take pictures, and we have a fantastic (read: expensive) camera. I hate to pay even more money to do this photopass thing, but it might be worth it. I'd hate to have my $$ camera taken out of my stroller. So, outside of the price thing, here are some reservations I have about the photopass. What are your thougts on the matter?

1.) How does it work?
2.) What are the quality of the photographs? (I do quite a bit of digital scrapbooking, video montage, etc., so quality photos are important to me.)
3.) Are the pictures all posed shots? Do they take any "candid" shots? I really love the photojournalistic style.

Thanks!


-Michele

 

[Aliceacc]

My husband works part time in a photo studio when he's not teaching. (In fact, he's shooting a high school graduation right now.) So we have tons of amazing pictures of the kids. But we have very few amazing pictures of HIM. And he doesn't feel the need to lug tons of camera equipment around-- last year he bought just one camera and no spare lenses. (That left him free to help me carry the ponchos and water bottles and all the rest )

Probably the best rundown I can give you is here: www.stitchkingdom.com
It's under the "definitive guides" link at the top.

You can pre-order for $99. Stitchkingdom will include a link for the pre-order.

 

[LWatson]

I like the photopass because I'm always the one w/ the Camera (as its my hobby), so I'm rarely in pictures if I'm taking them. But, with the Photopass we ended up w/ pretty good family photos (the first one of all of us looking at the Camera). Not to mention there were things like at the character meets that I was busy getting the kids up to the character and didnt get to take pictures and they took a lot of them for me. We also got some of just Hubby and I taken. It does cost a lot for the 1st disk, but that is because you get the printing rights to them too. Some of them are posed shots, but some are also just clicking in the moment (like at the Character meets).

 

[MartinaC]

Hello
We have only purchased the photo pass once. But we feel it was worth it. We did have some posed pics but not all. The posed pics where actually really nice too. We got several of just my husband and I. Which most of the time we would not do. We mostly think of the kids first. When disney adds tinkerbell in the shot or goofy looking in from your side to the photo is a bonus you don't know you get till you recieve your cd. I think it was worth it.

 

[Connerzmom]

I take a ton of pictures and do a lot of scrapbooking. Last year (even though I took over 500 pictures at WDW) we got the photopass because there were shots that we couldn't get and, they could get shots of all of us (so I was actually in the picture). They will do a lot of posed shots but have done candids. It's a great deal (we had 150 photos on our CD and then could add numerous borders---so I ended up with 300 on the CD). Most of the pictures are good (but you will occasionally get a bad shot). Overall, a great purchase because you don't always have to worry about catching the photo moments.

 

[singnring]

We used the PP service on our Sep 07 visit.
Thought it was a neat idea and had pic's taken whenever we could.

Got home and pulled everything up, and realized the photographers didn't always take a very good pic.

We managed to piece together enough good shots to have a book made for $100.
Received it and was very disappointed in it for as much as it cost.
Pic's were miscropped from how I laid them out, binding was poorly secured, etc.

I also didn't like relying on the PP service because that only gave us posed pic's.
We had nothing from being on rides, standing in lines, eating, time @ hotel, etc.

I guess I expected more from what I'd read about it than what it actually gives you.
My fault there, I'm sure, for not thinking logically.

I have not used it again since that trip.
I prefer to hand over my camera to the photographers (the exact model they use!) and have them snap my posed pic's.

That way I still have it for the rest of the pic's I want to take throughout the park where they can't do it for me.

I also retain the rights to my own pic's w/out having to pay Disney for theirs!

Just my personal opinion and experience.

 

[emcreative]

I can't seem to find anything that says how early you can pre-order. It says how long after pictures are "claimed" that they are available, but not how early you can pre-order.

 

[TheDizMom]

Unless they have changed things since I was last there, which is entirely possible, you don't have to buy anything until you see your shots. Usually they just give you the photopass card and you then use it to have them take pictures when you want them to and if you forget yours you can get another and later have everything moved onto one card. When you get home you have a certain period of time to look at the pictures and order what if anything you want. I have never ordered them because of the expense and while some of the pictures have been good they weren't so great that I could justify the cost. I look at it this way, as long as you can still get your pictures taken on a pass for free, do it and there is no harm if you don't order anything. If they changed that procedure and you have to pay for the pass before you get any pictures, I would bring your own camera. It would really suck to rely on their pictures and then not like them and have to pay a fortune for pictures you don't really like.