Why can't I get a decent photo on that blasted Peter Pan ride?

[kdzbear]

Your Wishes shots are breathe taking! The clarity is amazing! The Haunted Mansion is my favorite ride and you again caught some fabulous shots on it! Great update!

 

[Davey Jones II]

I'm coming into this TR late. Excellent pics and writeup, clearskies! Just a few suggestions for your next trip:

* I really think you should try the Country Bears. Very charming and fun AA show.

* Speaking of AA shows, The American Adventure is the best part of the World Showcase. Don't miss it next time!

* How could you go to DHS without a visit to the Tower of Terror? It's only one of the best rides in all of Orlando...

 

[clearskies]

Yay, one more!!! Pictures or not, I look forward to it.

And no thanks required-- your TR was a real pleasure to read, so thank you!

Thank you again Missus Toad

Sorry, to all I have been MIA. I truly meant to finish this up before the holidays but there we too many things going on. I will finish this up in the next post for anyone still leaft to read this.

I think your Wishes shots turned out fabulous! And I love the HM ballroom picture!

So sorry your trip is ending. Do you have another one planned?

Thank you again Denise. I somewhat have another trip planned but it is different. I have some details in my next post. I see you have a trip report started. I am going to have to make it over to read this week.

Your Wishes shots are breathe taking! The clarity is amazing! The Haunted Mansion is my favorite ride and you again caught some fabulous shots on it! Great update!

Thank you so much It took me until the very last day to get some Wishes pictures that I really liked but at least I got some. I think I got lucky on HM but I was very happy with the overall results.

I'm coming into this TR late. Excellent pics and writeup, clearskies!

Thank you Davey Jones II. Good to hear from you late or not.

Just a few suggestions for your next trip:

* I really think you should try the Country Bears. Very charming and fun AA show.

It will be tough to convince my wife to go but I do want to scratch that off my list of attractions to see so I am going to take your advice and try to push on it for my next trip. I almost went by myself on this last trip.

* Speaking of AA shows, The American Adventure is the best part of the World Showcase. Don't miss it next time!

Thaks for rubbing it in I really wanted to see it this trip but could not work it in. I have it as a must do for our next trip.

* How could you go to DHS without a visit to the Tower of Terror? It's only one of the best rides in all of Orlando...

My kids won't brave it. We did go on TOT on a prior trip when we were with another family that could watch the kids. My wife loved it so she will agree with you. I can take it or leave it myself. I think I prefer more visual attractions and being thrown up and down didn't do it for me. I acknowledge that I am in the minority on this one though since so may people love it.

 

[clearskies]

I have finally gotten to the end of our saga. Packing up and loading our rental car is not an enthralling experience and I am going to mercifully spare you from the details of our attempts to defy the laws of physics and squeeze twice as much volume into our baggage then they would appear to hold. Once we were done with this utterly depressing task and our room was cleared out it was about 10:30 AM. We did not need to hit the road to the airport until 2:30 PM so we had a stay of execution for a few hours. Before we decided on how we would occupy this time though we had to get down to business on a critical need. We still had 9 CS meals left in the meal plan. It seems to be an egregious offense paramount to a cardinal sin to leave any meal credits behind with my family so we had some eating to get to. We headed to Everything Pop to use some of these up for our last meal at the resort. While eating we had to reach a decision on where we would spend our final hours. We did have a day left on our park tickets so we could get a few last hours of fun in before taking off if we wanted to. I also had some souvenir commitments for my kids and I wanted to get some gifts in for my family that I never got around to purchasing. In the end, we decided we had satisfied our park needs for this trip and instead we would spend our last hours at DTD for our shopping needs.

I was not "feeling it" regarding photography this day. My mind was elsewhere on being imminently thrown back into the ring to continue my daily fights with the real world. Unfortunately, the stress that melted away on the first day of our vacation was starting to build up again and it was charging forward at me now with full force. I could not longer seem to push it aside and tell myself that there is time to worry about it later. It is a sad commentary that I can't take a vacation without feeling that I took too many days away or I should have done more to keep up with work while gone but there you have it. This is unfortunately the affliction that has infected me. I am hoping to someday find a cure for this disease but I am not there yet. I do believe that this is not an uncommon condition and it is an unfortunate effect of the state of our business environments where we continue to strive to do more with less people. I can say though that these circumstances do make me appreciate our escapes to the World even more. As always we were ending our trip immensely satisfied and we had some great experiences to bring back with us. We don't go to Disney every year because we want to make it a point to experience other places as well. We always have a great time at the other places we go also. However, Disney is the one vacation spot that we find ourselves returning to every other year. There is so much to experience and we have yet to tire of what WDW has to offer. Sure there are some things that could have been better each trip but the overall experience has always been outstanding and it provides us so many great family memories that I will always look back on fondly on our trips.


Here are a few pics I did take.I can't say that I was excited about any of them though

I told my son that this is what they do to shoplifters.

Here is the last picture I will show you. I was standing in the lego store and I took this picture not because it was a great photo opportunity. It was also not for the purpose of having ammunition to tease my son with when he gets older. I took this picture as a reminder of how lucky I am to have such good children.

My wife brought this Ariel backpack on the trip to carry things around throughout the trip. My son took turns helping her carry this backpack the entire trip through the parks, DTD, resorts, etc. I can tell you he was not thrilled to be carrying an Ariel backpack around but not once did he complain about putting this on his back. I am past caring too much about what strangers think about me but as an 11 year old boy I can tell you with absolute certainty that I would not have taken this on as well as he did. On one of the bus rides during the trip another man made a joking comment to him about it and he just smiled back instead of taking it harshly. He did not let this bother him one bit. I did ask him about it and he just smiled and said that next vacation he will make sure we bring a different backpack instead. He was such a trooper. I would have gladly switched backpacks with him but I would not inflict the weight of my camera equipment on anyone.


After we finished our shopping we hit WP express one last time and it was fabulous as usual. We still had a couple of meal credits left so we grabbed some sandwiches from earl's on the way out to munch on later on the flight home. We then headed out to the car and as we drove off we said our last goodbyes to the World and we embarked on our journey home.


Before I close this TR, since may of you have kindly complimented me on photos I posted I want to say a couple things about this. First of all let me reiterate that there are far superior photographers to me. I do want to let you know that I would be happy to answer any specific questions from anyone that wants to PM me or post. I am not always the quickest to respond though. However, I think there are even more talented photographers that frequent the wonderful Photography board on this site. Not only is this community knowledgeable and skilled but I think you will find that they are for the most part very nice and helpful. There are resources of all skill levels that post there so I would not feel intimidated about posting there either.

Next, I want to clarify an important point on my photos. I believe that an aspect of photography that is not always discussed is Post Processing. This is basically editing photos with software after the fact. Sure, it is preferable to get your shots straight from the camera the way you want them but that does not always happen and I find myself making tweaks to many of the shots I take. I use Photoshop elements and though it is less advanced than the full blown Photoshop it does more than what I need. For the most part I have rudimentary knowledge of the tool and I could use some time to learn more. I don't spend too much time adjusting my photos but there are the common tweaks that I perform which I believe are very useful. So here they are


1. Rotating - Since my brain seems to be warped and I often have problems getting things straight like horizons. I will often make a one or two degree rotation adjustment.

2. Cropping - First of all this is necessary after rotating. Second, even though I try to get the composition the way I want it from the start there are some instances where I will crop to improve the composition. Finally, in some cases I crop to purposefully omit part of a photo. I am sure you have noticed that I have not posted pictures where my family's faces are evident. I am sorry about that, it is just a hang up I have about posting on the internet. So, in most cases the character pictures I posted were from larger photos where I cropped in on the character. Note that cropping is one place where having a lot of MegaPixels seems to help.

3. Brightness Adjustments - For the most part I just make basic Levels adjustments. In some cases though I take it a little farther and this is where I employ the only non-basic adjustment technique I think I use. I sometimes will make adjustments to change brightness in only specific areas of the photo. I only know how to do this from a book that I have which I think is outstanding for some techniques on Post Processing. The Book I have is by Scott Kelby and it is one of his Photoshop Elements Books for Digital Photographers. The one knock on it I will give is that it gives you great step by step instructions on how to make changes but does not always explain why. This can be an experience similar to using my GPS. It is great being told when to turn left and turn right but I am not learning how to get there on my own as well.

4. sharpening - I use the Unsharp mask in PS Elements. You can go too far with this so when I do make adjustments I try to limit it. This is something that different people may have varying tastes for so something that looks good for one person may not look the best to another.

5. noise reduction - Mostly I used in higher ISO shots where I will use separate program called Neat Image to clean up noise in the image. I have almost no knowledge of the specifics of the software though so I just use the defaults and it does a pretty good job to me. There are other products out there that seem to do a good job as well.

6. Color Corrections - Probably the least frequent adjustment I may make and I seem to struggle with it but I make color cast changes to try to improve a picture. Some examples are trying to reduce the Red Color cast in Pirates of the Caribbean and trying to lessen the yellow color cast in some of the the nighttime picture with lighting such as the Libery Belle.

So there you have more insight into some of the enhancements that I make. Bottom line is that you may take a picture that is not quite how you expected it to be but don't give up on it. There may be adjustments that can be make to improve it (up to a certain point that is).


Since I am a Project Manager I feel complelled to provide some Lessons Learned so here are some final lessons learned before I head off to obscurity

1. Try not to set your expectations too high based on what you hear about or read about from others. On the flip side don't read negative comments and rule out attractions, eateries, resorts, etc. Try things out and form your own opinions. Some may be duds but try things at least once.

2. I would be careful about stringing too many buffets in a row. Unless it is a different buffet such as Boma you may tire of similar food.

3. Lets face it, most people are probably going to be rushing around at some points in their visit. Try not to do too much rushing around though and take some time and look around and appreciate all the amazing little touches that they incorporate into the parks.

4. If you are travelling with others groups/families you can have a great time but plan some time apart as well.

5. Unless you have a short trip do plan some down time.

6. MNSSHP is fabulous and Boo to You especially Rocks!!

7. Don't rule out the non headliner attractions (ex. Innoventions-Great Piggy Bank Adventure, One Man's dream, Tom Saywers Island). You may find that you and or your family or travelling partners may really enjoy them.

8. Depending on your GPS could be a problem. Print out some directions before you leave home just in case.

9. TSMM favors my wife over me.

10. Don't wait on line for The Magic of Disney Animation if all you want to do is see the Characters or attend the Drawing studio.

11. Not everyone is cut out for the rope drop club.

12. It is so easy to want to experience everything in one day but be careful of pushing too much at your kids in one day. It may not be worth it if you kids overload.

13. The people who set the lighting in the Peter Pan ride are evil

14. I still make a lot of stupid mistakes. At least I can laugh at myself.

15. You can set up well in advance to photograph Wishes but it is tough to guarantee that your perfect spot will remain that way. Try to make the best of it if people get in the way.

16. Check camera settings, battery and memory card while in lines for rides, shows etc. You have time to kill anyway usually. Also, it is helpful to know how to make camera adjustments in the dark

17. Keep an eye on your tripod head quick connect plates. They are sneaky and may take off or hide on you.

18. A Gorrillapod can be handy but be careful with them. It is horrifying hearing your expensive camera equipment thud to the ground because you do not have enough common sense to secure the darned contraption.

19, Ponchos are critical in Late Aug and Sept

20. What do you know, the parade at AK is entertaining after all.

21. A good spot for photographing Spectro is across the bridge to Liberty Square where you can get the castle in the background.

22. A wishes cruise is a great experience with a perfect viewing of the show even if you get rained on (but it is not optimal for photographing wishes).

23. The nigh atmosphere in the Parks make them even more magical to me.

24. Going to the parks on your own and getting on rides by yourself is perfectly fine.

25. Getting a photo opp with Snow White + 7 Dwarves at MNSSHP is special but it can sure eat up a lot of time

26. Hoop De Doo has incredible Fried Chicken.

27. The Grand Gathering Safari was not that different from the standard Safari

28. The Step Sisters at 1900 PF are a hoot.

29. Not everything will be perfect. Don't get upset when things are not. Roll with it and have a great time.

and finally...

30. OMG trip reports are a lot of work. I have whole new respect for the people who write these.



Ok, that is all I wanted to finish up with. I thank you one last time for reading along with me. I am not so sure I will be writing another TR report in the future but won't rule it out either. We actually decided we are going to head down to Orlando next year but I am reluctant I should say it on this board but we will be heading to see Hogwarts instead so I doubt I would share that here. We have never been to that other park but now that Harry is coming we thought it was the right time to check it out. I am not sure we will be able to be so close in the area without spending a day visiting our friends in the most magical place on earth though. If you see a fool lugging around a heavy black camera backpack in the sweltering August heat it may be me

 

[Davey Jones II]

1. Try not to set your expectations too high based on what you hear about or read about from others. On the flip side don't read negative comments and rule out attractions, eateries, resorts, etc. Try things out and form your own opinions. Some may be duds but try things at least once.

(Bold mine).

You mean attractions like the Country Bears, for example, clearskies?

Thaks for rubbing it in. I really wanted to see it this trip but could not work it in. I have it as a must do for our next trip.

Sorry, didn't mean to rub it in. As you mentioned at one point in your TR, at least that gives you something else new to look forward to next time.

My kids won't brave it. We did go on TOT on a prior trip when we were with another family that could watch the kids. My wife loved it so she will agree with you. I can take it or leave it myself. I think I prefer more visual attractions and being thrown up and down didn't do it for me. I acknowledge that I am in the minority on this one though since so may people love it.

Well, with the great queue and the visuals and special effects that precede the ups and downs, I see TOT as a great hybrid: a beautifully themed thrill ride.
I agree with you that you shouldn't push or force your kids into doing anything that scares them. Maybe try to entice them instead: tell them that the ride is "really not that scary" and is "too fun to pass up", "an amazing experience", etc. You could also mention that you don't know when you'll be coming back, and as long as they are over the height limit, there's nothing to worry about. Or have you already used all those arguments?
In any case, they'll be a bit older next time, and presumably braver...

As for Universal, I think you'll really enjoy that park, too. They have several must-ride and must-do attractions, including Spider-Man (absolutely unmissable) Revenge of the Mummy and The Simpsons. You'll also enjoy the interactive Men in Black ride/game. Maybe you can get revenge for those TSMM beatings?

P.S.: If you stay at a Universal hotel, you'll get the Universal Express Pass free. That's like an unlimited Fast Pass. If you're visiting in summer again, I'd say that's essential.

 

[Gianna'sPapa]

I want to thank you for all the great pics, trip report and photo tips. This was a great TR. Good luck with the trip to the other park! As far as work, I came up with the solution for the problem you described that I shared with you, RETIRE!! My upcoming trip to WDW will be the first since my recent retirement. It will be interesting not having work issues and problems to think about. Again, thanks and good luck.

 

[Tribilín]

Great TR clearskies, I liked your lessons learned finale... hope to see at least a mini TR of your upcoming trip (or a post with lots of pictures )

 

[clearskies]

(Bold mine).

You mean attractions like the Country Bears, for example, clearskies?

For sure. I am ready to cross this off my list of attractions to see on my next trip. It is good to hear the positive comments on it.

Sorry, didn't mean to rub it in. As you mentioned at one point in your TR, at least that gives you something else new to look forward to next time.

I won't hold it against you Now if I can only do a better job at planning next trip I'll actually be able to see this.

Well, with the great queue and the visuals and special effects that precede the ups and downs, I see TOT as a great hybrid: a beautifully themed thrill ride.
I agree with you that you shouldn't push or force your kids into doing anything that scares them. Maybe try to entice them instead: tell them that the ride is "really not that scary" and is "too fun to pass up", "an amazing experience", etc. You could also mention that you don't know when you'll be coming back, and as long as they are over the height limit, there's nothing to worry about. Or have you already used all those arguments?
In any case, they'll be a bit older next time, and presumably braver...

You are absolutely correct on the PreRide entertainment part of the ride. That is actually the draw for me. I want to catch a picture of the ghosts one trip. I may be able to get my son on next time. Probably not my daughter but well see.

As for Universal, I think you'll really enjoy that park, too. They have several must-ride and must-do attractions, including Spider-Man (absolutely unmissable) Revenge of the Mummy and The Simpsons. You'll also enjoy the interactive Men in Black ride/game. Maybe you can get revenge for those TSMM beatings?

P.S.: If you stay at a Universal hotel, you'll get the Universal Express Pass
free. That's like an unlimited Fast Pass. If you're visiting in summer again, I'd say that's essential.

I am really looking forward to Spider-Man. I have got to watch those high expectations but I have heard it is indeed awesome. I think we will have a great time with the other attractions you mentioned as well. Thanks for the tips on the Express Pass. We head down at the end of Aug after a lot of states have started school so I am hoping the lines won't be too bad even though a lot of people from my neck of the woods invade the area. Disney is a little more crowded due to free dining but I am hoping Universal won't be too bad.

I want to thank you for all the great pics, trip report and photo tips. This was a great TR. Good luck with the trip to the other park! As far as work, I came up with the solution for the problem you described that I shared with you, RETIRE!! My upcoming trip to WDW will be the first since my recent retirement. It will be interesting not having work issues and problems to think about. Again, thanks and good luck.

Thank you very much I love your solution to my work woes but I have a feeling Gianna is bit older than my kids. I have a long way to go to support my kids still so retirement is nowhere near on my horizon unless a MegaMillions ticket comes through one of these days. I am jealous of you though. I hope you have an outstanding trip and that you get some great pictures with your Pentax K10d and the sweet lenses you recently purchased.

Great TR clearskies, I liked your lessons learned finale... hope to see at least a mini TR of your upcoming trip (or a post with lots of pictures )

Thank you Tribilin!! Perhaps if I think I have something interesting to share and the bug to continue to relive our experiences I'll post something next fall. Thank you for the encouragement.

 

[kindra657]

saw your TR in your siggie on another thread and the title drew me in. I would've never thought that this was your first TR!! Very entertaining indeed!! I've attempted 2 TRs but I simply suck and no one reads them
I am sort of glad that I found it when you were done and didn't have to wait for your amazing installments.
I'd like to thank you for the parade and fireworks shots you got! They are amazing! I've never had a camera nicer than a simple olympus, so I never get good shots and miss out on the show trying to get them. People like you make it to where people like me can actually enjoy the parades and the fireworks! I must admit that I saved a couple of your photos to look back on (as I do my own)

Regarding the comment you made when leaving the MK for the last time....I completely understand that feeling you had because I have that feeling as well. I also feel like I'm saying goodbye to MK and MK is also saying goodbye to me . I have to walk out without looking back as well.

About the wishes fireworks cruise: we did this with my sister in 07 for her bday and I felt like it was a gift to me instead!! we had perfect weather and I laid back on my dh and relaxed during the entire Wishes show. I felt like the show was put on just for me. So amazing! You should do it again with better weather next time.

Hope you get back to the world soon!!!

 

[MeMom]

Thanks for your report and awesome pictures. I appreciate the time and effort you put into it for our enjoyment.

It's nice that you acknowledged your sweet son for carrying the girly backpack. I know he is a great kid!

I agree with so many things on your 'final thoughts' list. MNSSHP is awesome. Down time is imperative. Apart time when you are with a big group is necessary for everyone's sanity and happiness. Peter Pan does not want us to have good pictures of his ride. Be flexible as things change along the way.

Thanks, again. Your report was a nice treat.

 

[praisehisname]

My wife brought this Ariel backpack on the trip to carry things around throughout the trip. My son took turns helping her carry this backpack the entire trip through the parks, DTD, resorts, etc.

What a great kid! I can tell you without a doubt that my son (as wonderful as he is) would NOT have been as cool about it as your son!

Since I am a Project Manager I feel complelled to provide some Lessons Learned so here are some final lessons learned before I head off to obscurity

I loved your whole list, but these jumped out at me:

13. The people who set the lighting in the Peter Pan ride are evil

23. The nigh atmosphere in the Parks make them even more magical to me.

30. OMG trip reports are a lot of work. I have whole new respect for the people who write these.

I especially agree with #23!

Thanks so much for writing the report!