Using cameras/phones in rides?

[bcla]

I've seen a lot of POV videos of people on Disney rides, whether they were taken with GoPros, camera mounted on glasses, etc. I've never really seen Disney Parks have any particular rule on this other than maybe ride specific rules against cameras. I'd hope nobody is whipping out a phone on a roller coaster where one slip and it could go flying and possibly hit a bystander or a rider.

Where I go regularly there's a specific policy where no loose items are allowed at all, including GoPros specifically noted even though they're typically secured to the user. I don't see anyone asked to take off glasses, but I suppose some small cameras could be mounted on glasses. However, I've seen people violating the rule where the ride was stopped and people warned or even ejected. I saw a roller coaster stop on the initial hill and an employee walk up the maintenance stairs to tell the offender that he could either hand over the phone or we could be stuck there. They won't even allow any kind of camera on a carousel.

I guess it depends on who it is operating a ride. I went on a swing ride at a county fair where I literally had an iPad in my hands and shot video with it.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Capturing good photos on rides, especially dark and moving ones, is one of the biggest challenges of Disney photography! If you go over to the the Photography Board you'll see that threads are filled with pictures from rides and attractions. I got into it myself and often rode with a full dSLR around my neck. No one ever said not to. I think many, though, including myself, prefer the much easier and carefree style now of phone technology, especially if we've BTDT already with capturing amazing ride photos. Camera technology has advanced so much that there isn't always a need to carry a separate camera unless you really want to or because it's a hobby or something. I enjoy just riding the ride now, but of course, every now and then we still like to get some photos and will take the phone out. It's the norm. A friend of mine lost his phone on a roller coaster at Universal but they were able to retrieve it for him. Probably a common thing.

I think the biggest annoyance for people (and what there are rules against) is using flash photography on rides, as it ruins the ride for people. And to some degree, even large LED screens do the same. I try to keep my phone down low if I use it whenever possible. I've seen complaints here about people using iPads at parades and shows as they can block others' views. Like everything else, common courtesy goes a long way, but not everyone is thinking that way when they're caught up in the moment and maybe unsure about camera etiquette on rides and such.

 

[sam_gordon]

I don't remember ever seeing or hearing a "no photography" rule on any rides. Yes, there are plenty of announcements about no FLASH photography. I've used my DSLR on BTMRR and Splash Mountain. I've also taken pictures going up the first hill of Space Mountain.

In general, the rides at Disney aren't extreme enough to require a "no loose objects" rule, with the exception of RnRC at the studios.

 

[bcla]

The main issue with even the latest camera phones is low light without a flash. And usually the flash is useless unless someone is 8 ft away.

I guess the rule on many Disney roller coaster is "no loose items".

I guess a lot of POV ride video is shot with a GoPro on a head strap. However, there would seem to be the chance of one falling off, especially on a ride with inversions. Some of the roller coasters I ride on intentionally don't plant the rider in the seat, where the restraints are needed to keep the rider from falling out. I would think there have been quite a few lost items as a result.

I'm not sure what would be done on a roller coaster other than stop it. I know many have emergency braking sections (absolutely required if there are multiple trains actively moving on the same track), but stopping a train would have to be a last resort. I've seen test runs on roller coasters where they were stopped, and it's got to be a huge pain to move a train if it's stopped and doesn't have the momentum to keep on moving.

 

[soccerdad72]

When Cedar Point opened their newest coaster (the redesigned Mean Streak, which was converted into Steel Vengeance), the first year it was open, the park had a rule that said no cell phones were permitted in line. They set up lockers outside the ride queue where people were able to lock their phone up until they got off the ride. That was an unprecedented rule on any of their rides. The backlash, however, was so great (mostly because people didn't know what to do during a 2 hour wait in line without their phones) so the next season (last year), they modified the policy so that there was a locked pouch on the ride cars that you put your phone into during the ride.

 

[Searc]

The only ride restriction about cameras at WDW is no selfie sticks.

 

[BrianL]

I don't remember ever seeing or hearing a "no photography" rule on any rides. Yes, there are plenty of announcements about no FLASH photography. I've used my DSLR on BTMRR and Splash Mountain. I've also taken pictures going up the first hill of Space Mountain.

In general, the rides at Disney aren't extreme enough to require a "no loose objects" rule, with the exception of RnRC at the studios.

There were some "no photography" warnings on some attractions due to the use of film IP and copyrights. Things like Star Wars and Avatar were licensed - though now they are both Disney properties (though Avatar may be owned by James Cameron properly - FOP requires cameras and phones to go in the bins anyway). Anyway, that's the only time I know that no photography was allowed. Usually it is just "flash photography" though some of these phones with super bright screens are just as bad in a very dark ride.

 

[wenrob]

The main issue with even the latest camera phones is low light without a flash. And usually the flash is useless unless someone is 8 ft away.

I guess the rule on many Disney roller coaster is "no loose items".

I guess a lot of POV ride video is shot with a GoPro on a head strap. However, there would seem to be the chance of one falling off, especially on a ride with inversions. Some of the roller coasters I ride on intentionally don't plant the rider in the seat, where the restraints are needed to keep the rider from falling out. I would think there have been quite a few lost items as a result.

I'm not sure what would be done on a roller coaster other than stop it. I know many have emergency braking sections (absolutely required if there are multiple trains actively moving on the same track), but stopping a train would have to be a last resort. I've seen test runs on roller coasters where they were stopped, and it's got to be a huge pain to move a train if it's stopped and doesn't have the momentum to keep on moving.

Low light should always be done without a flash. If you want to do it right anyway. Most higher end phones are more than capable of grabbing low light photos. It’s just a matter of patience and a small bit of knowledge.

I’ve always been too paranoid to use my DSLR or phone on rides. I’m afraid I’ll lose hold of them and a) damage them, b) clock myself in the face or head or c) hurt someone else. Awhile back I was next to a guy who filmed the whole Incredicoaster ride on his phone. I was so worried he was going to lose his grip on his phone and it was going to go flying and smack my DH or DD riding behind us.

 

[sam_gordon]

I’ve always been too paranoid to use my DSLR or phone on rides.

That's what the strap is for.

 

[quesoboy88]

There are only a handful of Disney attractions that don't allow cameras (Soarin' specifically comes to my mind as this past summer they made me put mine away). Most of the rides at Disney just ask for no flash photography. The parks all around my general area are super strict and allow no form of camera or phone on anything.

 

[NotUrsula]

Not what you asked about, but I discovered by accident that using a camera on a ride can reduce motion sickness.

I have terrible vertigo, and for that reason I normally don't ride any coasters (except SpcMtn, because it is in the dark and thus doesn't trigger the vertigo), but even small spinning rides sometimes make me ill for that reason. Dumbo actually was an issue for me, but when my oldest was a baby he loved the ride so much that I decided that I just had to brave it for a good photo. So, DH held him on the ride while I rode in the car in front of them and shot backward, and to my amazement, I had no sense of vertigo at all as long as I was peering through the viewfinder. So I tried it on several other rides, and for me at least, it works every time. Magically, my life-long ride issues were solved. (Note that a smartphone camera won't do this; you have to be looking through a viewfinder that creates an artificial horizon for your entire field of vision. Your brain damps the sense of disorientation because the horizon stays relative to the position of your eyes.)

Since Disney allows camera use on most rides, I use a sturdy neck strap and also clip on a wrist strap as a fail safe. I don't want to hit anyone if I lose my grip &/or one of the straps break.

ETA, with regard to cameras on big coasters, and the pouch rules, this is one of the reasons that we have special clothing to wear to theme parks. We always wear clothing with at least 2 zippered pockets that can hold wallet and phone. Glasses get a Croakie with a tension toggle to hold them tight to the head.

 

[bcla]

ETA, with regard to cameras on big coasters, and the pouch rules, this is one of the reasons that we have special clothing to wear to theme parks. We always wear clothing with at least 2 zippered pockets that can hold wallet and phone. Glasses get a Croakie with a tension toggle to hold them tight to the head.

I've made do with a fanny pack before, but my local Six Flags park says no fanny packs on the major thrill rides. I'll typically wear a jacket with pockets, and I've never had anything fall out, including my glasses. However, I've seen many wear their glasses without them falling off, but I guess there's always a chance of that happening.

Once I visited DCA with my cousin and her husband. He carried a Nokia phone on a belt clip. It was the older kind with a case with a knob that twist-locked into the belt clip. He managed to lose that on what was then Mulholland Madness (now Goofy's Sky School. When it loosened it probably just fell off because the cars have an open design where the sides are exposed.

 

[wenrob]

That's what the strap is for.

Still leaves room for cracking myself in the face or head, lol.

 

[Colleen27]

I don't think any Disney rides, with the possible exception of Rock N Roller Coaster and Incredicoaster, are extreme enough to need a "no loose objects" rule. Some of my very favorite ride photos were taken on my dSLR from the point at the top of Expedition Everest ride before you start to go backwards. The view from up there is amazing! I have a heavy-duty neck strap that I can wear cross-body in its longest position and a wrist strap as a fail-safe, so I don't worry that it is going anywhere while I'm shooting, and no one has ever told me not to.

The only rides I can think of that have strict no-photography rules, rather than simply no flash, are the simulators. I know Star Tours and Soarin' both do, I can't remember about Flight of Passage. But I've always kind of wondered what the point of ride photography on a 3D attraction would be, since the camera couldn't really capture the experience anyway.