Hello everyone, Let me start by saying how excited I am about joining this forum, I just recently discovered it and can't wait to start posting! OK, so I'll dive right in. Saturday will mark my first experience at WDW with my DSLR. However, my girlfriend and I will not be going into any of the parks. We just recently moved to south FL (from MI) and do not have AP's yet and cannot justify spending the $$ for less than a full day at the parks. So, that being said we are going to DTD and dinner at the Poly with a little exploring in between and Wishes on the Poly beach after dinner. I am looking for some unique things to shoot while exploring. Of the many times I've been to WDW, the three resorts I have been to the least are the GF, Contemporary, and the Poly. We will probably stick to these 3, just from ease of access with the monorail. I have a few ideas, but I would just like some more. Also, any info on shooting Wishes from the Poly beach would be great. Are you far enough away to need a fairly large telephoto or are you close enough that something in the 'normal' range can get all of it? Maybe even close enough to need a wide angle? Hopefully after this quick trip I will have some new decent shots to start posting here, Im getting a little sick of looking at my same static shots with my p&s! Thanks everyone!
welcome and thanks, CJ. ; to answer your questions, you will have PLENTY to shoot in just the Poly alone. ; there is so much there you wouldn't have to go anywhere else but the grand and the contemp. are just as loaded with photo ops as well. ; use your feet and explore and you will find loads to have fun with. shooting wishes from the poly is a lot of fun as well. ; you don't need a big zoom lens as they would cut the tops of the coronas off... you want to leave a bit of water under the castle (you will see most of the castle, not all of it) to catch reflections. ; use a longer shutter than normal since you are a lot farther away than on main street. ; DO NOT CHANGE LENSES ON THE BEACH. ; the sand will destroy your camera otherwise. ; if you have a tripod, use it. ; if you don't have a cable release and can get one, get one immediately!
Welcome, both to the forum, and to Florida! ; You definitely don't need to go to the parks for some great photography at Disney. ; As you mentioned, tours to any of the hotels - especially via Disney's transportation (boats are my favorite) yield the amazing architectural and design variety, landscaping, interiors, and all kinds of detail shots. ; Wishes from Poly beach should be fine with normal focal range lenses...Tim's advice is sound on not changing lenses, or as little as possible, around sand. ; Poly's landscaping, and Wilderness Lodge's landscaping alone are worth the photo excursions. ; And Downtown Disney has some great night shooting opportunities, not only with all the interesting neon and signs, but a little walk over to Saratoga Springs for some across-the-lake shots of the whole complex.
The Poly is full of details to shoot. ; They always have nice flowers in the planter in the center of the lobby. ; I shot all of the tikis in the gift shop while my family was shopping on my last trip. ; As Tim mentioned you can't see the bottom of the castle from the Poly beach. ; Because of that, I like to shoot Wishes from the top of the ferry exit ramp at the TTC. ; From there, you can see the entire castle and Main Street Station. ; The trade off is that you can't hear the music at the TTC.
Thanks for the welcomes and all the tips! Im really excited to shoot Wishes for my first time on Saturday, but now that I know about shooting from the TTC I am having a hard time deciding between there and the Poly beach. Is this shot from the TTC? http://www.flickr.com/photos/pasant/4054744086/#in/faves-cjbalogh/ And, I dont know if Matt is a member here, but hopefully he doesn't get upset that I used his link.
Keep in mind that If you shoot at the TTC, just remember to set up at the top of the unload ramp outside the gate. ; Even though it would be much easier to shoot from down on the ramp, the boat crews will make you move if you set up there.
