What has been and what will be.

Some people, some photographers, go into a Disney vacation with a laundry list of shots they've seen and want to replicate, of shots that they want to take... a list that is sometimes pages upon pages long. I do not have a list. I don't think I will have a list. When I went down to DC earlier this year, I didn't have a list and I feel my shots came out quite well.


What I will bring with me will be my camera, three lenses, all my filters, my tripod and my shutter remote. I had all of these except the ND filters when I took the above picture in DC, and I'm happy with how a lot of them came out. I've been playing around with the ND filters a bit since I've gotten them, and I'm really looking foward to using them to shoot fireworks. Cory, a gentleman I follow on Flickr, has generously provided me with a tutorial about how to take a post-process those wonderful fireworks shots he and Tom, another gent on Flickr, take. It will certainly be different watching the fireworks when you have to stake out a spot, set up your tripod and defend the tripod so no kids bump it during your long exposure shots. My prior attempts at fireworks photography at Disney (back in 2008) were poor, with a definative lack of color and far too much smoke.

Since 2008, I've really grown as a photographer. I've started seeing my own style developing in my shots, and getting a real feel for my camera and what I can do with it. Looking back on my last trip to Disney, the pictures are all the same: center in focus, subject centered. Of course, the camera I used was certainly holding me back with a terrible color sensor and only being a DSLR-style point and shoot (Minolta DiMAGE Z6) as opposed to a true DSLR. With the control I have over my Nikon, I'm expecting better shots. Additionally, I've learned a lot in terms of composition, and light, and how to position oneself in order to have the light work with you, rather than against you. I will certainly say, though, there will be no more dangling my camera off the top of the Contemporary Hotel to get a long-exposure shot of the Magic Kingdom. And the zoom I'll be using will make shooting Lights, Motors, Action a lot more fun.