Day 1458: Photo Spot Favorites

Disney World is a absolutely one of the best places in the world to explore photography, and so many of us do. My family has been taking pictures of Walt Disney World since...well, pretty much forever...and I've picked up on the habit. Usually you'll find me with a video camera in my hand, but I'm constantly taking pictures on my phone, and on occasion, you'll find me borrowing one of my parents' cameras as well. Plus, I love the Disney Instagram community, which has really only increased my love of photography over the past few years. 

That being said, I couldn't help but think back recently to a challenge I did in 2013. Inspired by several lists I'd seen on the internet of "Must Take Disney World Photos," I compiled a list of over 100 pictures to take on my trip in July of 2013, and so the Official July 2013 Disney Challenge began. After pinning more than a few Disney World pictures on Pinterest over the past week, I also realized that something like this would be sort of fun to do again...with a twist. 

The lists I compiled for 2013 were based on internet lists of a similar fashion, but they're all really stereotypical. We all take pictures of the castle and Spaceship Earth and the list goes on, but there are some pictures out there just waiting to be found. Take the Purple Wall for instance, which has literally been at Magic Kingdom for years but just recently (and suddenly) became an must-see for most Disney Instagrammers. Plus, I'm a big fan of really exploring the nooks and crannies of Walt Disney World - and finding the little spots that we never knew existed, so a new photo challenge seems like a great idea. 

Which is where all of my followers come in. Similar to what I did in May with my choose my adventure idea (and that video is slowly coming!), I figure the best way to find the best spots is to ask the best people I know! So in the comments below or through a tweet or something, let me know a few of the photo spots I should check out on my upcoming trip! Give me a challenging idea for how or where to take a picture (although remember that it must, in some way, be possible. I'm not about to climb to the top of Spaceship Earth, no matter how fun that sounds). Give me a suggestion for that one picture you always have to take, or one that you always forget to take! And just to make things easier, here's a Google Form you can fill out with your suggestion: https://goo.gl/forms/ZHWR97OJRJHvFSRL2

I'm pretty excited to see what you all come up with, and while I'm in Florida be sure to follow along on my Instagram to see some of the pictures! 

Have a magical day!

Day 1382: Camera Flash

At the conclusion of each trip, I'm frequently found going through the pictures from the various cameras that went with us, and eventually I share some of my favorite shots here on Everyday Disney. It's always interesting to see the differences in style, topic, and view between my parents, brother, and I, but ultimately we just all love photography! So here are some of my favorites from our October trip to Walt Disney World:

Personally, I'm a huge fan of candid photos, some of which you can see above. There's certainly a difference between a candid and a posed photo, as the former really gives you a better idea of what's really going on. It's real life, and a look at what really happens behind the scenes on Disney trips, because believe it or not, there's stuff I cut out of even my vlogs. 

Plus, pictures are just plain fun to look at down the road! 

Have a magical day!

Day 1175: Pictures from Home

Spring Break is prime time for visiting Walt Disney World. Even I've visited this time of the year, and while this spring break meant staying home, it apparently hasn't meant the same for pretty much everyone else. It seems like everyone and their brother has spent at least part of their spring break chilling at Walt Disney World, and as we round out our break, pictures from people I haven't talked to in ages pop up on my Facebook feed, Spaceship Earth in the background.

As Megan pointed out, this is how the world probably feels when I'm at Disney, but thankfully I've got some great friends who send me pictures from home because they know I'm missing it. This year, it seems that most headed to Hollywood Studios, which, oddly enough, is where I've spent a ridiculous amount of time over my past few trips, but there have been pictures from all four parks constantly showing up on social media. To celebrate my pals heading to the most magical place on earth, I also shared some pictures from my last trip in January that I hadn't shared yet, which wasn't quite like being there myself, but reminded me of the great times I had there not long ago.

Ironically enough, I also happened to plan fastpasses for my next trip yesterday to, just as my friends were heading on Rockin' Roller Coaster. You can't beat timing like that! Plus, I suppose if we can't be at Disney World, there's nothing like our friends experiencing the magic...and sending a bit of it back to us to celebrate too.

Have a magical day!

Day 1173: Freedom

The spring and fall semesters of college are pretty drastically different. After all, in the fall you have breaks every couple of weeks thanks to holidays and such, but in the spring you pretty much have spring break and Easter break...unless you go to a Catholic private college that decides to combine those breaks so you end up with one slightly longer spring break. 

Long story short, by this point in the semester we're all pretty burnt out and ready for a few days off. Luckily, we've got that time now, and while I've contracted a cold and fully intend on spending my days warding that off rather than doing anything else, it is nice to have a few days where we don't have to worry about homework or tests...or at least not until later in the week. It gives us all more time to do fun things, although maybe not as fun for those of us stuck in Wisconsin rather than off in some much warmer state (ahem...Florida). 

That doesn't mean there aren't things to be excited about back home though. Fastpasses for my trip in May can be made this week, and my friends who are in Florida have been taking plenty of pictures that make the view outside my apartment window both more and less depressing. Warm beverages make the winter a little less cold, and above all, the fact that I don't need to leave my apartment for any reason all week helps too. Maybe I can just forget about the winter that still lingers? 

Have a magical day! 

Day 963: Photographic

It's that time again. No, not for the Everyday Disney Challenge, but time for me to share just a few of my favorite pictures from my trip to Disneyland! I ususally don't do full on trip reports here, as I already do the vlogs, and by the time those are all edited and everything it just gets a bit redundant, but I DO love sharing these pictures with you, and this time there's a lot of them! I just double checked and this trip we had 4,622 between three people, and there's still a few I don't have on my computer. This is, of course, in addition to what I estimate to be 21 hours of video, so let's just say I'm going to be spending quite a bit of time at my computer in the next month or two.

As one of the first official pictures of the trip, the one Dad took of the candy apples (left) is definitely one of my favorites. I can't quite put my finger on why I love it so much, but it definitely just stands out to me! And on the right is the ever classic FunWheel picture. 

As two of the most well known thrill rides at Disneyland, California Screamin' and The Matterhorn both somehow got their own interesting pictures in this collection!

There's actually an interesting story about the Monkey on the left, or so my father tells me. This Monkey can be found on a chandallier in the Pirates of the Caribbean store just outside the exit of the attraction and was actually the inspiration for Jack in the film adaptations. In fact, without this little Monkey at Disneyland, Monkey Jack wouldn't even exist! And on the right we've got a great picture of the outside entrance to it's a small world, something I definitely miss when I'm back at Disney World!

Much to the dismay of my mom and brother, we stood and took pictures of Big Thunder from this spot for quite a while. But to be fair, I have to take video AND pictures!

Soundsational does hold a special place in my heart, despite the fact that Festival of Fantasy beats it on my favorites list every day of the week. However, Soundsational does have a drumline and a Princess and the Frog section and a Mary Poppins float as well, all things we definitely don't have in Festival of Fantasy. Plus, look at how adorable Minnie is! 

Darkness sometimes helps bring out the real light throughout Disneyland, just like it does in Paint the Night! The entire parade, as I mentioned in an earlier blog post, is wonderful, and I would definitely watch it every day of my life ever. But one of my absolute favorite things about Disneyland is the fact that it was Walt's park, and nothing signifies that more than the light that burns on in his apartment window. 

Oddly enough, many of the questions I've gotten since returning from Disneyland are all about the FunWheel. There's just something about a giant ferris wheel with Mickey's head on it that interests people I guess. This picture that Dad took one morning is super helpful in explaining how everything works!

As if you're not already sick of me talking about Carsland, here's some more! Flo's was filled with little references, both to the films and to Cars and the real Route 66, which made it perfect for a wealth of pictures, even if I only shared the one. Meanwhile, both Flo's and the Cozy Cone have some of the best food I've had in a long while. Also, will anyone bring me a Chili Cone Queso? Please?

The best place in the world to take a picture of Tower of Terror? The second floor of the Hyperion! As we headed out of a showing of Aladdin, Dad snapped this picture after I caught the same one going in. The result is an awesome picture of The Hollywood Tower Hotel. 

The FunWheel has all the colors, meaning that my favorite part of World of Color is when all the colors are there and it matches the FunWheel and everything in life is perfect. 

After seeing it at the D23 Expo in 2011 (or at least the Mock up), we finally got to see the new Walt and Mickey statue in it's Buena Vista home. While we're on the topic, Buena Vista street is 100% beautiful and completely different from the park we visited the last time we were there. It brings the entire park together and I'm totally happy with the changes they made!

While I didn't even find this shot until the very end of my trip, the back road into Radiator Springs gives you the absolute best view of Radiator Springs Racers, and you have to leave room on your camera roll for the classic parters and castle picture!

While showing these edited pictures to my Dad the other night he mentioned that the left picture of the Tower of Terror Lobby was just a passing moment. He half took the picture while walking, and we were both pretty happy with how it turned out! The picture on the right can be found at Mater's Junkyard Jamboree, and that one I had him stop and take a picture of simply because I thought my brother, who loves NASA, would find it funny. He didn't really.

There's nothing like taking some detail pictures of the Tractors at Mater's Junkyard Jamboree, especially when your family owns a farm equipment dealership, and the signs that lead into the town from A Bug's Land are just the cutest. 

When we finally got on Tower of Terror about halfway through our trip, the wait was 13 minutes, and now that I've been on both the Walt Disney World and Disneyland versions, I have to say that Disney World does it better. Not that I liked either or anything...nope. The right picture, on the other hand, would be perfect for a where in Disneyland contest, although I'll tell you flat out that you can find it on the red truck near the Hyperion theater in Hollywood Land. 

So maybe Dad took this picture as she told us to get her good side. I think every side is your good side Roz! Meanwhile, the Red Car Trolley offers a unique view of the Tower of Terror, which I almost didn't get a picture of, but somehow snapped it before we got too close! 

More Cars Land detail pictures are always a good idea. The left picture is definitely my new life motto. 

Funny story about the Jaguar from Tarzan's Treehouse. If you get too close or move the correct way or are just there are the right time, a giant puff of air blows at you as it roars. Scared the crap out of me, I'll admit, and then I slowly backed away until I could turn around and make my way back down the stairs. Also in Adventureland is the Tiki Room, which I love a lot more at Disneyland that at Walt Disney World, even if one of the only real changes is the fountain. I'm telling you, that fountain does the trick!

Another thing better at Disneyland? Definitely Fantasmic. Alright, so at WDW we have a real theater to sit in and we have the Pocahontas section and everything, but they have a real pirate ship and a Peter Pan section and everything is just so much closer! We were right along the water's edge, which made for a very awkward filming position for me, but for some great shots! As for Astro Orbitor, I'm not sure which is really better, mostly because I never go on either of them. I should probably get on that sometime though. 

You know how you never get to stop in the first room of the Star Tours Queue long enough to get a decent picture of C3P0 and R2-D2? Well I still haven't gotten a picture, but Dad did! In fact he got a couple of them, but this one happened to be my favorite. As for me, I seem to have an addiction to taking pictures of the name plate for Haunted Mansion, regardless of whether it's Disneyland or Walt Disney World. 

The 60th decor throughout the parks was definitely one of my favorite parts. I kind of wanted to just take it all home, and now I want to go back and just have another of those super delicious Cake Pops. I may have had two of them while I was there, one that was the 60th Anniversary Minnie one and the other the Diamond Celebration Mickey design. Both were fantastic. Cake pops. Go eat them. 

I feel like the stereotypical picture you have to take at Disney World is probably the castle or Spaceship Earth or something, but at Disneyland, the submarines with the Matterhorn in the background are definitely one of those pictures. There's just something about the bright blues and yellows that brings you straight back to 1959. More recently though, Mickey and the Magical Map continues to stun audiences, and the fact that Pocahontas was in it singing my favorite song from her movie definitely doesn't hurt! 

I'll tell you right now that narrowing down the pictures to use for this blog post was extremely difficult, but somehow I made it work, even if it was mostly just because I didn't have the time to edit more than like the 50 I've included here! Definitely expect more pictures in future posts though! As I mentioned previously, there's tons yet to be shared about the Happiest Place on Earth!

Have a magical day!

(Note: This blog post was writen on September 13 due to a tight schedule).