Shot lists?

[lhermiston]

How many of you either come up with shot lists before your WDW trip? I just read Will's ebook, Capture the Magic, and he suggests coming up with a shotlist...but, I'm wondering how many of you actually do that.

I have a few ideas in mind, nothing concrete outside of fireworks and some night shots in Tomorrowland.

Anyway, if you have shot lists or have in the past, post 'em along with your experiences.

[wbeem]

Originally Posted by lhermiston

How many of you either come up with shot lists before your WDW trip? I just read Will's ebook, Capture the Magic, and he suggests coming up with a shotlist...but, I'm wondering how many of you actually do that.

I have a few ideas in mind, nothing concrete outside of fireworks and some night shots in Tomorrowland.

Anyway, if you have shot lists or have in the past, post 'em along with your experiences.

It doesn't mean you have to sit down and write out a list. However, it never hurts to have some ideas of preconceptions of what you want to capture.

For instance, you may know you want fireworks in Epcot from the balcony of the Japanese restaurant. Maybe you want a portrait of a character with the Castle in the background.

I've often found that thinking about a few ideas like these will lead me to other shots, even unplanned ones that I notice when I'm setting up for something on my list.

[wbeem]

p.s. I thought this was going to be a drinking thread.

[mamaCta]

Originally Posted by wbeem

p.s. I thought this was going to be a drinking thread.

My kind of photographer. :high five:

[Daisy14'sDH]

Crap, I had 2 shots as soon as I saw the title... now I have to use spell check dammit!

I look at photos that others have taken and try to think of what I could do differently with what is in my kit, cause I dont want to replicate anyone elses shots I want my own. But I always have some ideas...

[HPS3]

I usually have a mental list but that flies out the window when my DW yells at me to chase the 2 year old. LOL. I spent most of my past trip jumping chains and going under guardrails.

I'm still trying to find out how her legs move soooo fast.

[Gianna'sPapa]

I copied this from an excel spreadsheet, so forgive me if the formatting is not correct. I made the list not so much as gospel but as a reminder along with some hint reminders on how to get the shot. As William stated this sometimes led to other shots.

DisneyWorld Shot List

Magic Kingdom
Entrance Day/Night tripod
Wishes Fireworks f8-11, 2-3" tripod, ND Filter 60"?
Tinkerbell 100-300
Memories
Night Parade 30
Day Parade
Crystal Palace
Merry-Go-Round-movement .5 second
Zoom shot from train station to castle
Peter Pan 30
Haunted Mansion 30

Epcot
Entrance Day/Night tripod
Illuminations f8-11, 2-3" tripod & ND
Night buildings long exposure tripod
Test Track


Disney Hollywood Studios
Entrance Day/Night tripod
Sorcerer Hat night long exposure tripod
Lights, Motor, Action 70-200 and 100-300
Osborne Lights Tripod
Indiana Jones 70-200 and 100-300
Fantasmic

Animal Kingdom
Entrance Day/Night tripod
Safari 70-200
Lion King

[2Tiggies]

Originally Posted by Daisy14'sDH

I look at photos that others have taken and try to think of what I could do differently with what is in my kit, cause I dont want to replicate anyone elses shots I want my own. But I always have some ideas...

That's pretty much what I did last year. I don't write a list but have a more broad agenda of shots that I want. Last year I had goals, rather than lists, having finally felt I understood my camera enough to be able to be both spontaneous and creative.

My goals were very simple:

• Take different shots or different perspectives on old repeats. I was looking throughh pictures I had from past trips and it kind of bothered me that there were a lot of the same or similar shots that I seemed to take year after year. Not only that, but many were the 'typical' ones that everyone seems to take when the visit WDW.
• Photograph Illuminations and Wishes at least once [each] and manage at least 3 keepers from my attempt
• Have some dedicated lens days or part days. This was quite interesting and a lot of fun. Possibly not something I would do if I were only there for a few days, but our long trip allowed for it. For example, one day we headed to Epcot for RD and knew we were stopping at the resort to change a few things from the park/camera bags before hopping to our next park late afternoon. I fixed my 50mm 1.8 and that's ALL I took with me. The limitations of the fixed focal length of the lens made me play around with different angles and perspective. I got some of my favorite character shots of DD at meet and greets that day, perhaps not because they were the greatest images, but the were different to the same old photos I seemed to get year after year. I also did a wide angle night at MK one evening and got some really different pics from the parade.

And of course, last but not least, as I have mentioned before, the "think coffee table book" from Guide to the Magic just stuck in my head for some reason which made me see things a little differently than I had before

I learned a LOT last trip and I think a list is a great idea to give some sort of direction, but you need to assess for yourself how specific you want to be. I would probably make a more detailed list of specific shots I wanted to get if I were on my own in the parks while the fairly loose set of goals I had were very achievable and allowed plenty flexibility for a family vacation.

Originally Posted by HPS3

I usually have a mental list but that flies out the window when my DW yells at me to chase the 2 year old. LOL. I spent most of my past trip jumping chains and going under guardrails.

Now THAT could have had the potential for some really unique photo ops!

[krb2g]

I've never gone with an actual list, but usually I have ideas on how to improve from last trip.

For example, a few trips ago, I realized that I could take pictures of the fastpasses we collect (as you surrender them to use them) for our scrapbook. The next trip, I realized the backgrounds I had chosen (pavement) were boring, so I started shooting the cards in front of the respective attractions.

For our upcoming Christmas trip, I want to recreate a picture I saw on the Disney Parks Blog. They were advertising those mini-mouse ears (not sure what the point of mouse ears that don't fit on your head is...but I'm sure some don't see the point of mouse ears that do fit on your head!) and they had a picture where the photographer used forced perspective to make it look like Spaceship Earth was wearing the ears. I'd like to try to recreate the shot with normal sized mouse ears (or potentially my Santa Mickey hat--which may be a challenge as it is not as rigid as normal ears).

I'm also excited to be able to shoot New Fantasyland for the first time, so some shots there and in Storybook Circus will be on my shot list.

I also love pictures of my family enjoying rides when possible (for example, a picture of someone taking a cell picture on Kilimanjaro Safaris, a picture of our family on a coaster [Splash, BTMRR, and Expedition Everest work well for this] going down a hill [a real challenge because I usually don't want to miss the coaster!], or pictures with the family and the ride on the slower boat rides (I've gotten decent pictures on Small World, Living with the Land, and Jungle Cruise).

I always have a couple of standard goals--full group pictures in front of all four park icons during the day and (if possible) at night; "kids" picture on a certain bench at the Boardwalk (we've taken one there every year); use the latest piece of equipment to get newly-possible shots (for the upcoming trip it will be the 50mm/f1.8, which I hope to use as a walk-around lens on a "light" day); take at least one picture to remind me of every ride, show, and meal we experienced (this never works; I always forget to take a picture of at least *some* attraction signs before no-photography rides, or I dig into a meal before I get a chance to take a picture--although I don't think I've missed a character picture yet...).

I did make a cheater card (index card "laminated" with clear packing tape) with some notes on settings for things like dark rides, night parades, and fireworks, and I usually also make another index card with lists of local sunrise and sunset times for my trip.

[wbeem]

One of the places where this helps me is when I take a single lens with me. Last trip to Epcot was just with the 85mm prime. I wanted subjects that worked with that lens, particularly with a shallow depth of field.

That meant portraits (Alice, Mary Poppins, Aladdin & Jasmine) and detail shots (for the coffee table book). It wasn't a lens for landscapes or fireworks.

Now flip that the other way around. Suppose you know the subjects you want. Now you can think about which lens will work for you. It turns out the 85mm wasn't a good lens for the detail shots of very small objects because the minimum focusing distance was too long. I couldn't fill the frame with the object, or people could walk into the gap between my lens and my subject. A different lens would let me get closer for the shot I wanted and still have a shallow depth of field.

Thinking ahead with your shot list helps you plan so you don't miss out on something when you visit because of a lack of preparation.

The shot list is just a tool, not a Bible. It's like the Pirate Code. They're more like guidelines.

[lhermiston]

Thanks everyone!

Truth be told, I don't even know when my next WDW trip will be, but when we do go, I want to make sure I'm ready (from a photo standpoint).