When did they start allowing flash photography on rides?

[kbelle8995]

Last time I went on Pirates I had three rows which had a person taking flash photography. It was flash flash flash all the time.

My fav was when I was on the HM. We were in the elongating room and a woman was taking a lot of flash pictures of her son. One after the other. There was a group of Disney suits in there as well and one of them came around, tapped her on the shoulder and said in a hushed voice. "Ma'am no flash photography." Boy she muttered she was sorry and put that camera away quick. It was so gratifying.

 

[SouthernExplorer]

Please send a formal complaint letter to:

Meg Crofton, President
The Walt Disney World Resort
PO Box 10040
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830

This is the best way to be heard by Disney.

If you want to go up higher then send a letter to Al Weiss, President of Disney Parks and Resorts. I've explained in a formal letter to Bob Iger, Meg Crofton, George Kaligridis, and Al Weiss that I will am not interested in going to any Disney theme parks world-wide unless they fix this problem. I'm not going spend to thousands of vacation dollars to be annoyed.

I actually did randomly yell out "NO FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY" on Pirates once at Disneyland. It got very awkwardly hushed and they stopped. I thought it was hysterical.

I had an entire family in the boat behind me do that when we had this problem on Pirates They also did this later on the Disneyland Railroad.

I remember going to Six Flags as a kid and someone jumped into a pool of water. Six Flags security saw it and immediately escorted him out of the park. Disney needs to start throwing out disruptive guests with no refunds given.

 

[YCFAN]

I hope someone who is planning on using a flash the second week of August is reading this, because I am not shy about calling someone out, and "I WILL MAKE YOU FAMOUS WITH EVERYONE ON THE RIDE!" So if you will be there then and have these plans for your camera, move your reservation or there will be conflict.

With that said, I think I am heading out today for a water pistol...

I'll be there the same week. May I have your park schedule so I can be sure to ride at the same time you do!!!!

I just hate it when I can't see because someone just turned and flashed the camera right in my eyes.

 

[mom2rtk]

http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=97

Come on over! It is probably the nicest and most fun board on the DIS.

Hey ucatfan..... I'll second that!

I've learned a lot over and the work posted there on a daily basis is amazing.
You should see their great dark ride photos.... all with NO flash!

 

[bobbiwoz]

My worse experience was at the Voyage of the Little Mermaid. Someone got a picture using a flash of the people and the puppets in the "Under the Sea" segment. CM's aren't allowed to pull the people, we asked.

Bobbi

 

[focusondisney]

This is one of those discussions that goes round and round and round again... I never usually post in one but here goes...

Not saying I do one or the other, just playing out the opposite side here...

When you are loading a vehicle, are you usually standing there perfectly silent, listening to every word the CM says, or are you talking with your family, tending to your child, etc? Probably the latter, most folks are involved in their own conversations and have no clue that the CM is saying anything to them. Especially if you are in a large group, you might be talking about where you are going to eat next, or what ride you want to get on, or you might be calling the rest of your family on the cell phone to find out where they are, and when to meet up. OK, lots of distractions, people can and do easily miss the announcements made by CM's.

Think back to your first trip, if you had not used the disboards - our first trip was in the 80's when there wasn't even internet - and you were unaware of the "rules" regarding flash photography, so you want to make a good photo album of everything you did. Now you have some person in your face yelling about no flash photography - in my mind I would think, hey, your not a CM, your just some guy on vacation, why are you trying to boss me around??

If people are unaware of the rules, how can you blame them for doing something?? I have heard so many people on rides get beligerent at others regarding the no flash photography thing, that the people taking the pics first become defensive, and then defiant.

So, IMHO, if the flash photo thing bothers you, please talk nicely to the person doing it. I really hope the water gun thing on here was a joke, because squirting someone in the face with a water gun is FAR MORE rude than a few flash picures, for real.

And please remember too, that you may have the luxury of going back to WDW year after year after year. Try to remember, the people taking the flash pictures, it may be the only time in their entire life that they may get to WDW.

Is a few flashes in my eyes going to ruin my trip? No way! I'm on vacation, nothing can bother me that much!

Nope, I don't agree. These anouncements are made after loading & before the ride leaves, when security announcedments are made. You should be paying attention then, especially if it is your first time. Also please see the following post. It is important, I think.

On a serious note, my husband suffers from epilepsy and he never caught the Disney "bug" I did but he really couldn't handle all that flashing even if he wanted to go.
Some rides have strobes and those are the rides that we make sure he doesn't ride when we have gone to other parks.
I can tell you that with as many flashes were going off on Pirates the last 5 times I've ridden it, I would have been afraid to take him on that ride, because the many flashes would have seemed like a strobe. And I don't ever want to put him in a situation that would trigger a seizure.
He won't say it but I know it's one of the reasons he never wants to go with me and or the boys and I.
He has told me he never wants me to see him have a grand mal seizure. So far I have not seen it, he has been somewhere else each time. He is on meds but they are no guarantee.
So I started going solo this year, and I have a good time, but I wish he would go. I did get him to go 3 months before we got married, and I know he did it for me, because I wanted him to ask me to marry him in the MK and as we were watching Wishes that night, he asked me.(Even tho our wedding plans were already made, lol, it meant the world to me)
I would hate to convince him to get on a ride that has no strobes and have inconsiderate fools take pics with flashes.
Again, it's all about people only thinking of them..not others around them.
So before you get ready to take pics on a dark ride, remember the people around you may not only be irritated and have the experience ruined, but they may have special medical needs too.Thanks

I think this is an excellent & important point. Many people may be more than just annoyed by flashing lights in dark rides. I get severe migraines & if conditions are right, repeated flash photograpy in my face can trigger one. Not the way I want to spend a day of my vacation, no matter how many times I go.

Has anyone ever asked to stay on the ride & go again if there was a lot of flashing during your ride? I wonder if lots of people did that & it started to impact wait times if Disney would be more vigilant about enforcing the "no flash" more.

 

[pdchris]

Pirates has been horrible lately and Ive been in the back and these people turn around to take pics, blinding me....um hello???? lol...

It's not been just lately, "neighbor." I remember my last trip in 2007, the CM kept telling this group seated ahead of me that there was no flash photography. They pretty much ignored him.
I think what needs to happen is for Disney to publicize what happens. Perhaps a board on the gates with pictures of people who've been asked to leave?

 

[luvthemouse71]

I do the exact same thing. Of course, there was the time I was on Pirates and the people in the row in front of me repeatedly took flash photos. So...when they turned around, to take a shot of Johnny Depp as he came out of the barrel, I had my camera ready...flashed right in their faces. They were completely shocked. They started with a comment, but I quickly told them that flash photography is NOT allowed on rides because it ruins the effects for everyone else and blinds people!!! The camera got put away quickly. No, it wasn't nice of me..I admit that. But these people had to have taken so many photos that if they put them together, they could have made a flip-photo book out of all the shots and it would have been almost as good as a video!!!!

This is fricken' awesome! I will be trying this.

 

[shalom]

Think back to your first trip, if you had not used the disboards - our first trip was in the 80's when there wasn't even internet - and you were unaware of the "rules" regarding flash photography, so you want to make a good photo album of everything you did. Now you have some person in your face yelling about no flash photography - in my mind I would think, hey, your not a CM, your just some guy on vacation, why are you trying to boss me around??

I mostly disagree. Personally, I'm not bothered if someone takes one flash pic, realizes their flash is on, and either turns it off or quits taking pictures. So I agree that we should be tolerant of human error. But not taking flash pictures on a dark ride is just common sense. People in their regular lives know there are rules against taking pictures in darkened areas like theaters, so I don't think there's any justification for saying, "You're not a CM, why are you trying to boss me around?"

And, as has been pointed out, many people do quit taking flash photos when someone tells them taking using the flash on dark rides is against the rules. While some of them may have deliberately broken the rules, I'll bet most of them just got so swept up in the magic they forgot the common sense rules. But once someone has pointed out the rule, I think people have no justification for continuing to take the pictures. I find it hard to believe that they've never been in an event where flash photos were against the rules, because that's actually pretty common. Many events where the audience is in the dark forbid flash photos, as do many museums and other organizations doing exhibits.

There's no good reason to assume someone saying, "No flash photography" is just trying to boss you around, and considerable reason to assume they're reminding you of a legit rule.

 

[tiggergirlinMI]

You know, Ive thought of that and maybe if those of us who were annoyed by the boat trip asked to ride again due to the constant flash photography and CMs not announcing it during the ride when it happens (like they used to do), then they would get the point and make the announcement every time someone takes a flash pic, trust me Ive seen them announce it 3 times on one Pirates boat ride years ago and after that, the whole boat reminded the guy after that. He got the point and stopped.
Also, Im going Aug 17 for a few days, so I will miss the second week of AUG DISers..
Hey maybe we need to start NON FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY DIS meets just to ride our favorite dark rides? lol....

 

[Mickey_for_President]

This is what I do...

Before Greg and I board the POTC boat, we ask the CM standing there to repeat "no flash photography allowed" on the loudspeaker before the boat takes off. That way, at least, our boat and the boat behind us knows better.

Just tell the CM that the last five rides on POTC have been ruined by flashes. Because it typically is. The CM has always been great about doing it.

This works every time.

**OR**

You could yell at the person taking the picture, which is something I've done many times. I could care less if people don't like me. I could ruin their ride by snapping at them or I could let them ruin my ride/eyes by letting them continue to take pictures. Easy choice. I don't mind being confrontational... lol.

**OR**

You could go to EMH evening and ride POTC at 1:45 am when no one is around and have a boat to yourself!!! If anyone that does not take flash photos wants to join us... we will be there next Sunday! Woo HOO!!

 

[Mickey_for_President]

I do the exact same thing. Of course, there was the time I was on Pirates and the people in the row in front of me repeatedly took flash photos. So...when they turned around, to take a shot of Johnny Depp as he came out of the barrel, I had my camera ready...flashed right in their faces. They were completely shocked. They started with a comment, but I quickly told them that flash photography is NOT allowed on rides because it ruins the effects for everyone else and blinds people!!! The camera got put away quickly. No, it wasn't nice of me..I admit that. But these people had to have taken so many photos that if they put them together, they could have made a flip-photo book out of all the shots and it would have been almost as good as a video!!!!

LOL... "flip-photo book". You should post that pic in the "Is This You" thread in the Theme Parks Community forum.

They'd be BUSTED.

(Although... I'm guessing you are too nice to do THAT! )

 

[tiggergirlinMI]

A bit off topic but when I was in the single rider line for Test Track a couple weeks ago, this girl pushes by me...... and gets up to the front of the line with her party, I know people enter as groups but it's a SINGLE RIDER LINE!!!! I was ticked, so I whipped out my little pocket camera and zoomed into her face and click! She wasn't looking but the flash got her attention, so I clicked again! and smiled at her.....
My first thought was to start a thread of line cutter offenders, but at the end of my vacation when looking through all my pics, I deleted it. I had obviously gotten over it

 

[larryz]

A bit off topic but when I was in the single rider line for Test Track a couple weeks ago, this girl pushes by me...... and gets up to the front of the line with her party, I know people enter as groups but it's a SINGLE RIDER LINE!!!! I was ticked, so I whipped out my little pocket camera and zoomed into her face and click! She wasn't looking but the flash got her attention, so I clicked again! and smiled at her.....
My first thought was to start a thread of line cutter offenders, but at the end of my vacation when looking through all my pics, I deleted it. I had obviously gotten over it

I'd chip in to help host THAT site -- pictures of line jumpers, flash photographers and resort mug reusers POSTED for the world to see...!!!

 

[tiggergirlinMI]

larry-can we substitute mug reusers with pool hoppers, because Im guilty of reusing my mug 2 weeks ago, I had been 12 weeks before that. So I don't want my pic on that site!!! lol
I actually saw someone with an "old school" mug and he was getting coffee then walking through the shop like it was no big deal,lol
Sorry, back to topic....Seriously when I go in AUG and I'm going to see how many line cutters and flash photography violators I can capture on my camera then we can talk about a site! lol....

 

[dpuck1998]

This is one of those discussions that goes round and round and round again... I never usually post in one but here goes...

Not saying I do one or the other, just playing out the opposite side here...

When you are loading a vehicle, are you usually standing there perfectly silent, listening to every word the CM says, or are you talking with your family, tending to your child, etc? Probably the latter, most folks are involved in their own conversations and have no clue that the CM is saying anything to them. Especially if you are in a large group, you might be talking about where you are going to eat next, or what ride you want to get on, or you might be calling the rest of your family on the cell phone to find out where they are, and when to meet up. OK, lots of distractions, people can and do easily miss the announcements made by CM's.

Think back to your first trip, if you had not used the disboards - our first trip was in the 80's when there wasn't even internet - and you were unaware of the "rules" regarding flash photography, so you want to make a good photo album of everything you did. Now you have some person in your face yelling about no flash photography - in my mind I would think, hey, your not a CM, your just some guy on vacation, why are you trying to boss me around??

If people are unaware of the rules, how can you blame them for doing something?? I have heard so many people on rides get beligerent at others regarding the no flash photography thing, that the people taking the pics first become defensive, and then defiant.

So, IMHO, if the flash photo thing bothers you, please talk nicely to the person doing it. I really hope the water gun thing on here was a joke, because squirting someone in the face with a water gun is FAR MORE rude than a few flash picures, for real.

And please remember too, that you may have the luxury of going back to WDW year after year after year. Try to remember, the people taking the flash pictures, it may be the only time in their entire life that they may get to WDW.

Is a few flashes in my eyes going to ruin my trip? No way! I'm on vacation, nothing can bother me that much!

I'm going to try that next time I get pulled over for speeding......but officer, I thought it was a 55mph zone!

 

[drew64]

Sorry, I don't buy the excuses. Went the first time back in the 70s as a kid and knoew not to take flash pictures in the attractions.

Didn't need a CM or sign to tell me, just a little common sense that sudden flashes woudl be rude and distracting to others.

The other horrid thing now a days it idiot stalking on their cell phones in the attractions sitting next to you.

No cell phones should be used in the attractions. Sorry - no one and nothing is that important. We all survived for many years without having 24/7 access.

I wish Disney could dampen signals inside buildings so no one could get or receive any calls

Now you get the combo idiots who can talk on their cell phones and take flash pictures with them for thr ultimate in selfishness and rudeness.

Favorite non-Disney moment on last year's trip. Watching man in seat in front of me who took flash pictures all thorugh SM, drop his camera overboard.

 

[plutotek]

I'm surprised on rides like HM they don't stop more to warn violators. A few years ago, I had purchased some glow-in-the-dark skulls and had them on my lap. They stopped the ride and asked me to put my camera away, to which my response was to pull my camera out of its bag. The glow was enough that it looked like the glow from the LCD screen.

 

[seashoreCM]

Was thinking of a miner's helmet or handyman's head band with a light on it that was actually a camera slave flash. Problem is it might go off in nearby innocent people's faces because of a flash some distance away.

Naughty naughty me taking flash pictures inside Space Mountain from Tomorrowland Transit Authority (no people in close range). There were some transparent (Plexiglas?) panels that washed out the pictures taken through them from some of the vantage points.

Someone mentioned that in Peter Pan, in the first room, there are some little blocks with letters arranged to spell out "P PAN". I couldn't make that out until once I took a flash picture and in the picture the blocks (wrong night table?) did not spell out "P PAN". (Nobody else nearby)

Disney hints: http://www.cockam.com/disscav.htm

A bit off topic but when I was in the single rider line ... pushes by me... up to the front of the line with her party, ... I was ticked, so I whipped out my little pocket camera and zoomed into her face and click! ... first thought was to start a thread of line cutter offenders,

Pictures should tell a story. Just one picture of her standing next to her comrades does not show that she cut the line just as one picture of your car in an intersection with a red light hanging overhead does not show you entered against the red light.

 

[SDSorority]

Last trip there were TONS of kids (doggone pop warner week!!! ) snapping pictures on every single ride. AND SCREAMING in the HM... I have it on video. I also have on video my discontent