Mainstreet Electrical Parade

The lighted parades at Disney have always been a favorite of mine.  On our last trip I was happy to see they had brought back the Mainstreet Electrical Parade.  This parade really brings me back to the trips we took as children and the wonder we felt at seeing out favorite characters.  On this night I had waited patiently for a few hours as I wanted to get a prime spot to shoot the Wishes Fireworks show.  The nice part was I could take care of two events from this location. 

Some people wonder why they request that you refrain from using your flash during events like the MEP and on some rides.  For the MEP it is mainly so the people that have to navigate the floats and other smaller vehicles aren't blinded by hundreds of flashes going off.  Another reason is to preserve the atmosphere.  Using your flash illuminates parts of the parade vehicles that they don't want you to see.  Yes we know that it isn't actually Pete's Dragon or a train traveling down Mainstreet, but that is the illusion they are trying to create.  The same goes for the dark rides.  Using your flash can/will ruin the effect that the imagineers worked so hard to create. 

Now capturing the dark rides as well as the parade can be difficult without using a flash to stop the motion.  For those of you that have point and shoot cameras it can be very difficult.  With a little practice and good technique you can come away with some really nice results.  While equipment does play a part in your final image, technique and vision are essential.

Here is how I go about capturing events like the Mainstreet Electrical Parade.  My camera was set in manual mode because I knew that the relative brightness of the lights on the vehicles and the darkness of the surroundings would make it difficult for the camera to determine the correct settings.  Since I'm shooting with a Nikon D700 noise is not as much of a factor.  With that in mind I set my ISO to 1600 so I could get a fast enough shutter to stop most of the vehicles without motion blur.  The combination of high ISO and a large aperture put me in the 1/40th of a second range for the shutter.  While this is a speed that is easy to hand hold I was mounted on my tripod for that little bit of extra stability.

If you don't have a tripod or don't want to crank your ISO up find a trash can or light pole to lean on to help steady yourself.  You can also use panning to get sharp images of moving objects even with slower shutter speeds.  Controlling your breathing helps too.  Below are a few of the examples from that night.  I liked how the lights from the vehicles put a soft glow on the crowds.  This is one instance where large crowds actually help make the scene

Emotions in Photographs

Sometimes an image captures our attention because of emotion.  The emotion may be from what was captured.  It may be caused by circumstances in which the picture was taken.  Depending on the situation the emotion may be local or global.  By that I mean that it may only have appeal and emotion for the individual or it may have the appeal and emotion for the masses. 

My favorite picture is not one that I took.  This particular picture wasn't taken by a famous photographer.  In fact I'm not sure who captured the moment.  On a trip in 2004, just two short years before my Grandfather's death, my Dad and Grandfather went on a trip to Normandy with the WWII History Round table.  During this trip my Dad and Grandfather  had the opportunity to visit the landing beach where Grandpa's unit came ashore.  The picture itself is of the two of them standing in the causeway that Grandpa used to move inland from the beach. 

This picture isn't my favorite because of the technical skill used to capture it (there is even a part of some one's hat in the left of the frame).  It isn't my favorite because has some new element that I've never seen.  It is my favorite because it evokes emotion.  As far as I know it was the first time that Grandpa had been back to the actual spot where he landed during the famed Normandy invasion.  Dad devoted a large portion of his life to collecting militaria, educating, and participating in WWII events.  Part of his drive was because of his Dad's time spent in the service.  For me the emotion comes from the image itself and the people associated with it.  You can see the emotion on both of their faces as they stood and faced the sea.  It was also the culmination of a dream for Dad.  Knowing how much this moment meant to them and what the two of them mean to me brings the external emotion to the image.

While I'm sure this image won't stir everyone who looks at it.  It will always hold a special place in my life.  Now as we approach three years since Dad lost his battle with cancer, it serves as a reminder of his love of family and his passion for history.  Even though Grandpa and Dad are no longer with us they continue to be examples of what I hope to become as a husband and father.

It's all in the details

One of the things that Disney does really well in all their parks is set the scene.  While most people spend their time gazing in wonderment at the buildings and landscaping of different areas; I think what really finishes the effects are the little things.  There are so many things that our eyes see and our brains process every day that we don't even think about.  These things all contribute to our environment even if we aren't aware of them.  Disney goes the extra step and adds those types of details into their environments so your brain really accepts that you are in those locations. 

Below are two examples of these details.  While they are both geared towards attractions that Disney created, they are made to look like advertisements that were put up by some local businessman.  Next time you are at Disney or similar theme park, look for these little pieces to the puzzle.  For larger views to see more detail check them out full size here.

Creating something artistic

We have all had times when the scene before us looks better in person than it does through the camera.  Rather than deleting those images try applying an artistic filter to add some interest.  Photoshop has many built in and some free available for download.  Depending on your needs and budget there is a myriad of plugins available for purchase.  I've purchased the photographer bundle from Topaz Labs.  Among enhancement filters there are artistic filters.  The best part is the effects are customizable.  The following image was a panoramic HDR of the forest that surrounds the Gull Lake timeshare our family enjoys every fall.  Initially the panoramic didn't really have the interest that I was looking for.  After using a couple different filters the final image was much more to my liking. 

For the final image I used a plugin that gave it the look of an oil painting.  If you go to my SmugMug site and look at the image full size (original size) you will see it even adds brush strokes.  I had it printed as a 10x30 and am quite pleased with how it turned out.  It would look even better on canvas.

Next time you have an image that didn't capture quite as you would like, try getting creative with the processing and you may find that a dud image turns into something great.

Welcome, foolish mortals to the Haunted Mansion

Ever since I was young the Haunted Mansion at Walt Disney Word's Magic Kingdom has been a favorite.  From Thurl Ravenscroft leading the "Grim Grinning Ghosts" to Madam Leota, the attraction never disappoints.  On our last trip I had a goal of photographing the exterior area at night.  The toughest part was going to be getting the nine exposures for the HDR without throngs of people in each frame.  Thankfully there are regular breaks in the people coming out so I could get a few frames in then wait for the crowds to clear.  In an unexpected twist a cast member came and stood by the hearse and didn't move for almost the entire time it took to get the shot.  What made it all the better is she left shortly before I was done.  The result?  A perfectly ghosted figure in period dress on the lower right of the image.  She really completed the image for me and I would have thanked her but it wasn't until we had returned home that I processed the image and found out her addition.

I did take several series of the same shot because there were a few frames where people walked though with those blinky, shot ruining souvenirs they sell.  With a little patience I was able to get one that worked well.  Little did I know that on our next trip the queue area would be completely different.  Disney is in the process of making more of their queues interactive.  I'm sure that I will like the new additions and will spend an annoying amount of time photographing the area. 

Here's your Thurl Ravenscroft trivia today.  Even though he was in many Disney movies and his voice can be heard on many Disney rides; most people would recognise his voice as "Tony the Tiger" from Frosted Flakes.

Taking better pictures of children

One thing that my mentor, Howard Berg, told me when we were shooting weddings was "Get out of the six foot bubble."  What he meant by that was, change your perspective.  Kids are a prime example of where that works great (although it should really be incorporated in all subjects).  Since the majority of adults are taller than kids, most pictures tend to be shot at a downward angle.  While this is easier for the person taking the picture it isn't necessarily the best angle to capture your subject.  Kids see the world from a lower viewpoint and getting down on their level can bring new interest to your photos.  Another added benefit for the child that is a bit shy is you aren't towering over them.  This lesson was learned in my three years as a children's studio photographer.  Aside from the fact that I'm just a generally terrifying individual, the fact that I'm 6'3'' tends to make me a bit intimidating to smaller kids.  Removing the height element tends to make them get used to you faster.

Making the most out of a blah sky

There are days when you go out shooting and the weather doesn't quite cooperate.  On our short family trip to Tofte I had one of these days.  Originally rain was supposed to move in all day, but as it turned out we ended up missing the entire system.  However, being right on the edge of the system made for pretty boring overcast skies.  The only benefit was less ambient light.  This allowed slower shutter speeds.  For most shots of moving water I feel it is important to capture the motion to make the viewer feel like they were there.  Without a neutral density filter the only way to slow down the shutter is dropping the ISO as low as possible and going with the smallest aperture.  If this picture was taken at the same time of day with blue skies the water would be frozen.

How do you get the silky water without a neutral density filter?  Get up early or stay out late.  Use a tripod with a cable release.  Hope for cloudy days.

One last note.  Since the skies had no definition at all I tried to minimize how much were in the shot.  Normally I wouldn't crop out quite so much of the sky even with blah clouds but the foreground was really interesting so I thought it would be acceptable in this case.