Tip Tuesday: PhotoPass+

 

Can you believe it?!?!?  I'm back with another Tip Tuesday post and it's been WAAAYYY too long!

Ok, straight on to this week's post.  As you may know from previous posts, I'm a big fan of Disney's PhotoPass service.  It provides families a great opportunity to get professional quality photos that you simply won't get with a point-and-shoot camera.

With some planning and effort, photopass can also become a great value, especially if you plan ahead.

More than a year ago, Disney launched PhotoPass Plus, which is an expanded version of the original PhotoPass concept.  With PhotoPass+, guests receive the opportunity to have Disney photographers take photos at the many, many locations across Walt Disney World, but also will automatically receive a CD with all those photos, including all those that guests enhance using the online photo editor at www.disneyphotopass.com.

But wait, there's more.

With PhotoPass+, guests can also get any attraction photo at no extra charge.  I've often enjoyed seeing those on-ride attraction photos, but I wouldn't spend the money to buy a print.  With PhotoPass+, I can get those photos after each and every ride.

But wait, there's even more!

PhotoPass+ also comes with a stock photo CD filled with incredible imagery from each of the parks.  Many of these images, like the one shown above, are from viewpoints that regular guests couldn't possibly reach and could never take a shots like these.  Each of these stock photos is in high resolution, suitable for high-quality printing.  Seriously, these shots are amazing!

Now PhotoPass+ does require guests to purchase the service before it can be used.  To purchase PhotoPass+, the cost currently is $199.95 and can be done at any PhotoPass center located in any of the parks.  However, Disney does offer a pre-purchase option at the PhotoPass website at http://www.disneyphotopass.com/specialoffers/wdwppp.htm.  If you purchase the voucher online (it still must be turned in at a PhotoPass kiosk at a park), the cost is $149 - a $50 savings.

Now to get an idea of how this can be a good deal -- consider the cost of purchasing the regular PhotoPass CD -- $170 regular price or $120 if pre-purchased.  So for only $30 more, you get all on-ride photos, all restaurant photos (like those taken at Akershus, Cinderella's Royal Table, Ohana and more), the stock photo disc, AND the photo CD. 

So as you can see, PhotoPass+ actually is a good deal when you consider just how much you're spending.  Also, because you're committed, you will be much more likely to seek out photo opportunities, especially if you're with younger guests who are eager for character meet and greets.

Before your next trip - consider PhotoPass+ -- it might just be the answer to getting great family photos without having to worry about the camera.

Tip Tuesday: PhotoBooks

Welcome to another Tip Tuesday!
(yes, it's a Wednesday. Oh well.)

This week, Disney announced a new promotion where guests booking certain trips can receive free dining and a free PhotoBook.

I've talked at length about PhotoPass and the PhotoCD. This week, I want to talk about another great PhotoPass option -- the PhotoBook.

Building a PhotoBook is very easy -- it's all done online via the PhotoPass Web site. Books can come with several cover option, both hard and soft covers (like the one seen above). Books start at $79.95 for 20 pages. Additional pages can be added for $3.50 for two pages (must add two pages at a time).

To start, simply create an account on the PhotoPass site (if you don't have one already) add some photos from PhotoPass (and/or upload your own), and select PhotoBook. You'll begin by selecting your cover and then you'll need to choose a base theme (you have several themes to choose from).

Once you have a theme, you can start adding pictures from your account. Remember that you can use photos taken by PhotoPass photographers and your own photos that you can upload. Each page can hold anywhere from one to four photos, depending on how you want the page to look like. Each theme has a ton of different backgrounds to choose from, which means you can create several different themed sections. In addition, you can add text to your pages to add a little extra touch.

What makes the PhotoBook so great is that you don't have to be a scrapbooking whiz to create a wonderful keepsake. Yes, you could use a third-party book-building site like Shutterfly or Snapfish, but only at the official PhotoPass site can you use all these awesome Disney backgrounds.

The photobook is another great way to take advantage of all those PhotoPass pictures I keep reminding you to get... so start getting those photos together and keep making memories!

Tip Tuesday: Enhancing Photopass pictures -- a how to guide

Welcome to another Tip Tuesday!

I've finally managed to get all my Photopass pictures enhanced from my last trip to Walt Disney World. As I was enhancing photos, I was posting my progress on my Facebook page. Several people commented that they weren't aware you could enhance photos or how to do so.

Well now you're going to find out because this week's tip is a DIY for enhancing your Photopass pictures -- and best of all, no photo editing software is required -- and it doesn't cost anything extra!

So let's get started!

First, of course, you need to have some Photopass pictures to work with. In my very first Tip Tuesday post, I talked about how Photopass works, so be sure to go back and read that post for more if you're not familiar with how to get Photopass pictures in the parks. Can you believe that was two-and-a-half years ago?? Anyway, I digress...

Once you have some pictures loaded onto your Photopass card, you'll need to go to the Photopass Web site at http://www.disneyphotopass.com/. If you don't have an account set up yet, take a moment to do so.

Once you're logged in, enter the code from the back of your Photopass card. Your photos will be loaded into your online account and will show up grouped by location. You also might have some bonus content as well! I'll save that bit for a future tip.

Now it's time to start enhancing! Just select a photo you want to enhance. For the purposes of our demonstration, I am using one of the bonus photos from my most recent trip. As you can see in the image above, you have several options in the window to the right of your image. There are two main enhancing sections -- adjustments to the photo itself and borders you can add. For the most part, you will probably be adding borders. If you want to get a bit fancier, you can manipulate the image itself and have some interesting results. The best news is that no matter what you do, you're not changing the original image.

So to add a border, simply select a border in the window and click on it. The main image will now be shown with your border applied. If you want to change the border, just click on a different one and the main image will be adjusted again. Once you have the border you want, just click "Save as Copy." In a second or so, your image will be saved. You can easily tell that your image has been added when you see something like this:

Notice how the "Save as Copy" button now says "Save" and you're got a new thumbnail in the list of images at the bottom of the screen?

Now what if you want to add another border? No problem. Just select the original image again. It's the first image in that series of shots -- loot at all the Mickey and Minnie images in the screenshot above. The first one in the series is the original. You'll know when you're editing the original when the "Save" button again says "Save as Copy." Just select a different border, and again click "Save as Copy." A new thumbnail will appear. Before you know it, you will have many different enhancements to the same image. Just look at the image at the top of this post. They're all different enhancements of the same photo.

Want to add another enhancement? Just go through the same steps again and again and again. You can add as many enhancements as you want. One caveat, though. You can't add multiple enhancements to the same image. For instance, you can add each of the fab five characters to some shots. Unfortunately, you can't add ALL five at the same time -- only one at a time.

Want to get really creative? Click on the "Edit Photo" tab and you can manipulate your original photos in a number of ways. With "rotate image," you are rotating the actual image 90-degrees counter-clockwise. I've never used this particular option, but it's there.

"Position" allows you to move the position of the crop box. This used in conjunction with the "zoom" tool will help you tighten a shot that you think is too wide. Just be careful you don't zoom in too far that you don't leave enough room for border enhancements.

"Rotate crop box" is very useful for taking a portrait photo and adjusting the crop box so it's in landscape orientation. I've used this frequently when a photographer forgets to take a landscape photo. Sometimes parts of the background may get cut off, but since this is a copy of the original image, there's no harm in making that change. Best of all, you can still add enhancements by clicking on the "Add Borders" tab, but now you're enhancing a landscape photo, not portrait.

My most favorite effect is to convert the image to black and white and then apply a color border. It creates a pretty interesting photo. See for yourself -- look at the montage at the top and check out the bottom left photo.

Another caveat -- not all enhancements are available for all shots. It just depends on where the shot was taken and what enhancements Disney wants to make available for that shot. For instance, a photo with Mickey Mouse will include the option to put Mickey's signature in the shot, but you can't put in Donald's.

On the plus side, Disney is adding new enhancement options all the time. This is especially true during special events. You just might see special enhancements for the Flower and Garden Festival for those shots taken in Epcot, or see special holiday enhancements for images taken during the holidays.

One downside of this capability is that you have to make enhancements one at a time. Most unfortunately, you can't select all the enhancements you want to apply to a photo and click once to apply them and get multiple additional images. That's why it can take a while to enhance Photopass images. The effort is well worth it, especially if you plan to get the Photo CD - which is by far the only way to go.

As I said before, there's no additional cost at all to enhance photos. Again, if you're getting the Photo CD, it doesn't matter if you started with 150 images and ended up with more than 750 (which is just about what I did for this last trip) the price is the same.

So if you know you're going to get the PhotoCD, be sure to get lots and lots of Photopass images that you can later enhance. They are perfect for making those scrapbooks that much more magical!!!

What's your favorite enhancement? Have some other neat effects to suggest? Post a comment!

Tip Tuesday: More enhancements available for Photopass

Welcome to another Tip Tuesday.

This week's tip is a followup to a couple of tips I've discussed in the past when it comes to making the most out of Disney's Photopass service. I've already covered how Photopass works and the benefits of the Photo CD.

Following my recent WDW trip in June, I was going through my Photopass pictures and noticed that Disney now has many more enhancements available to guests. Many of the new enhancements follow the "What Will You Celebrate?" theme, but there are a few new ones that are really nice. Perhaps my favorite of the new shots is the "I'm a Real Character" photo frame, featuring Mickey as a pirate and Minnie as the redhead from Pirates of the Caribbean (see photo above). At DHS, there are some "Up" themed borders, but, interestingly enough, they weren't offered for the photos with the "Up" characters, just for the around-the-park shots.

These new enhancements are all the more reason to get the photo CD and to enhance as many photos as possible. Remember, you can add as many enhancements to each photo as you wish. You do have to add enhancements one at a time - this is something I hope Disney can change so the process is streamlined. It took me about 2 weeks to enhance all our original photos.

Also remember that you only have a month to enhance photos, order CD's, create books, etc. before your photos expire. That one month clock starts from when you enter your code from the Photopass card(s) you received at the parks.

Sadly, one of the Photopass photographers told me that it appears the "duel with Captain Hook" magical Photopass image is no longer offered. I hope Disney will either bring this back or come up with some other magical photo options.

So be sure to get plenty of family photos with Photopass -- it's the best way for everyone to be captured in the magic!

PhotoPass CD price to increase this month

According to a blog post on the OrlandoSentinel Web site, the price for the PhotoPass CD will go up to $150 later this month (an increase of $20). As many of you know, I'm a big fan of the PhotoPass CD. At $150, it's still a great deal. Better yet, if you preorder the CD, you can save about 20%.

The change takes place June 16, so get in your preorders soon!

Disney Daddy returns to the WDW Radio Show

Once again I had the pleasure of recording a segment with Lou Mongello of the WDW Radio Show, which is running in this week's show (#106). Lou and I discuss another "Best of the Best" at Walt Disney World, and that is Disney's PhotoPass and how to make the most of this service. For more on my thoughts about making the most of PhotoPass, be sure to read my very first Tip Tuesday post.

My sincere thanks again to Lou for having me on the show - it's always a big thrill!

Tip Tuesday: Magical photos with Photopass

Folks who have read this blog may remember my very first Tip Tuesday post about taking full advantage of PhotoPass. After my December 2008 trip to WDW, I have a few more tips for you that will help you even more to make the most of PhotoPass (and that Photo CD).

Those of you who haven't been to WDW in a few years may not realize that Disney now is offering a few new unique photo opportunities. Photographers in certain locations in each park will have you pose in a certain way and take the shot. Later, when you are reviewing your photos, a little Disney magic has been added to these photos to make them even more magical.

Here are some of the places you can take those magical photos:


Magic Kingdom:
On Main Street (including the hub), have a person hold their hands in a cupped position (as if they were holding a tiny bird at their waist) and look at it fondly or with amazement - Tinker Bell will be standing in your hands when you see the picture (see sample above).


Also on Main Street, you can sit on a bench and Stitch will be "eating" some ice cream (well, sort of). This is apparently pretty limited, so be sure to ask.


In Adventureland, near POTC, pretend to be swordfighting with Captain Hook - when you see your picture, he will be there! This is not always available, so check with a PhotoPass photographer about available times.



At the Haunted Mansion, you can have a shot taken in front of the horseless carriage. In the photo are some hitchhiking ghosts. This is mostly available during Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, though I've heard some guests have been able to get this shot at other times, so I'd ask a PhotoPass photographer about availability.



Epcot:
In between the Fountain of Nations and World Showcase Plaza you can get a shot of Mickey and friends soaring (or rather Soarin') over your head in a Soarin' glider. This can be a tricky shot, depending on the position of the sun. I tried to get this shot in December, but it apparently didn't turn out.


The Stitch ice cream photo opportunity discussed in the Magic Kingdom is apparently offered here at times, so ask.




Hollywood Studios:
There are quite a few at DHS. The most common is available along Hollywood and Sunset Boulevards. You can take a shot pointing at the pavement in total surprise -- Stitch will be breaking out of the pavement to say hi!


In some parts of the park, you can have a shot of you sitting on a bench and Lilo, Stitch (the ice cream shot again), Mickey or Minnie will be sitting next to you. I understand these are offered on a very limited basis, so be sure to ask. I've never been able to get one of these.

I've heard of a magic photo opportunity where you can cross lightsabers with Darth Vader in between showtimes of the Jedi Training Academy near Star Tours. Again, this might be limited, so be sure to ask.



Animal Kingdom:
In and around Discovery Island, you can get a shot of you holding baby Simba in your arms. This is especially cute with kids.

That's all the magic PhotoPass locations I've either personally done or have heard about. If you know of another one, be sure to post a comment! I'd love to hear about it.

Oh, and remember those enhancements I talked about on the previous Tip Tuesday post on PhotoPass? Well you can still add those enhancements here! Of course, not every one will be appropriate, but you at least have some options to work with.

Have fun out there and happy picture taking!

Disney Daddy presents "Tip Tuesday"

In a new feature I hope to provide every week, I'll give a tip for visiting Walt Disney World. Some of these are tips I've heard, others are tips I've learned from my own visits to WDW. So without further ado, here's this week's Tuesday Tip:

Take full advantage of PhotoPass

Now anyone who's been to Walt Disney World probably has seen the PhotoPass photographers all over the parks. What you may not realize is that after your trip, you can go online and order your photos - all on one CD. Now for the tip: while you're at the park, get as many PhotoPass pictures as you can (in both portrait and landscape) - then when you go online to view your photos, be sure to add as many enhancements as you can. When you save a photo with an enhancement (graphic, border, etc.), it saves a copy of your photo, so your original is not changed.

Once you have enhanced all the photos you want, you can order the CD of EVERYTHING. This is the real deal of PhotoPass. The CD runs about $150 or so. Now that may seem like a lot, but it isn't all that much when you think about how much you spend ordering individual prints. Oh, and it doesn't matter how many photos you have. Only have 50 images? Have more than 250? The price is the same. So if that's the case, go for it while you're in the parks -- make that PhotoPass CD that much more of a value.

I've personally done this twice and the CD was worth every penny. Oh, worried about copyright problems when you take a digital image to a printer or photo store? No worries, Disney even gives you a copyright release.

So take advantage of the PhotoPass CD - you'll be glad you did.

Be sure to check back for the next Tip Tuesday!