Capturing the Magic: A Guide to Taking Good Photos in the Park

You don't need to be a professional to take amazing photos.

One of the best parts of a Disney vacation is taking good photos of the amazing rides, food, buildings, and characters, not to mention your friends and family having the time of their lives. One of the worst parts is getting home and realizing that your photos didn't exactly...capture the magic properly. Blurry photos, weird angles, and an endless refrain of "oh my god I look TERRIBLE" make it hard to really capture the memories the way that you want. Here are a few things to keep in mind to make sure you look your best when you look back on all the great times.

Know your photographer friends

It's blunt, but true. Some of your friends and family just aren't cut out to be photographers. That's not to say that they can't learn, but it saves a lot of time to know which friend should be manning the camera/phone/selfie stick - scratch that last one, Disney has banned selfie sticks in the parks. But here's an example:

My husband, bless him took the photo on the left. Actually, he took about 15 photos before he gave up. Our friend took a singular photo, which is the photo on the right. I think it goes without saying that the one on the right has better lighting, angles, colour saturation...everything.

Find your photographer friends, or a friend that know how to coach you through photos and help you pose. And I cannot stress this enough, do that for your friend as well. Learn how they like to pose, what kind of vibe they're looking for, and then help them look their best.

Wearing the right clothes

Sure, your outfit is cute. But is it 12 hours in a sauna cute? Because no offense to Florida, but it's a swamp, and in the peak of summer, it's humid, with temperatures hitting the high 30's, and you're more than likely walking way more than usual. And all of that doesn't take in to account what happens if you decide to go on any water rides.

The best thing to do is to make sure your outfit is light, breathable, and can sustain any kind of mishap. Comfort first, cute second. ...I mean, ideally cute and comfortable, but if you have to pick one, pick comfort, you'll thank me later. I personally recommend athleisure outfits like this active dress from Halara. It's comfy, cute, breathable, and IT HAS POCKETS.

Pack properly

It doesn't matter if your hair is down, in a ponytail, or glued down with half a can of hairspray. One trip on Space Mountain and that hairstyle is a goner. If you don't have a thigh gap (hi, it's me) and you're wearing shorts, it's more than likely you'll be dealing with some sort of chafing. If you didn't read the above tip, or chose to ignore it, and wore the cute sandals that ended up destroying your ankles, hobbling around Magic Kingdom for 12 hours sounds like torture.

If the prevention plan didn't work out, make sure you at least have the right tools in your park bag to keep you going from rope drop to fireworks. Make sure you have a small hairbrush (a foldable one is best), moleskin for any sore spots or places where blisters might form, and a small anti-chafe stick in your park bag.

Waterproof. Everything.

Between the water rides, the sweat, the humidity, and the rain (especially during hurricane season), your sunscreen and makeup are going to need a lot of help. No matter the claims, sunscreen should be reapplied every few hours, but if you wear makeup, it should be waterproof wherever possible.

If you usually wear medium coverage foundation, consider going with a tinted moisturizer or bb/cc cream. The coverage will be lower, which means that it'll show less signs of wear or separation after a few rounds with the water. Try for a liquid eyeliner if possible, as well as a creme blush. Normally they don't last as long, but powder blush and water rides result in a runny mess in my experience. As for lipstick...it really depends. In my opinion, if you don't use it, just opt for a lip balm (with SPF, ideally). If you do, either wear liquid lipstick, or prepare to reapply often and watch for any signs of smearing.

Last, and certainly not least, setting spray. Yes, you need this. In the above photo, I used medium coverage foundation (I believe an Urban Decay one that is long since discontinued), the Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Eyeliner (pricey, but well worth it in moments like these), and Glossier Cloud Paint blush, but to be honest, the real reason why everything stayed in place was setting spray. Namely the Urban Decay All Nighter Waterproof Setting Spray.

Is it expensive? Yes, absolutely. But hear me out. That above photo was taken at Universal Orlando, in 30+ degree (celsius) weather, after walking through a freak storm that only lasted 10 minutes, AND fresh off of Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls. Exactly.

Getting around people

Ah, people. The most common barrier in your photos. They can walk into your frame at the worst moment, generally because everyone is clamoring for the exact same shot, whether it's the iconic castle photo, the Instagram-friendly purple wall at EPCOT, or the Festival of Fantasy parade.

There isn't really much to say about this other than the fact that it's expected in the park. There are at any given moment, at least a hundred other people trying to do the exact same thing as you. In general, people are very respectful and try not to take up too much space or time. If there is a very obvious queue for a photo opportunity, get in line. If not, try to wait for an opening and then quickly jump in and take the photo you want. It helps if you have an idea of the sort of photo or poses you want, so you can jump in, get a fair few shots, and then make room for others.

If you want to minimize the amount of people in your photo, try to take advantage of early morning magic hours or extended evening hours, when the crowds are at their lowest. You can generally get a crowd-free photo of the castle early in the morning, and you won't feel nearly as harassed if you want to have a mini photo shoot.

Get the right angles

Want to know something crazy about these photos? They were taken within 20 minutes of each other. The reason why the one on the right looks so different is because I walked to the right side of the castle for the photo, waited my turn, and then took the photo at an angle that had everyone else cropped out of it.

Often times, the secret to great Disney photos is to find angles that other people don't know about, or take the unconventional shot. As soon as you enter Magic Kingdom, you're faced with the castle that causes everyone to stop right in the middle of Main Street USA and whip out their phones for the perfect family photo. Few people think about taking the photos at other angles. The same holds true for the EPCOT "golf ball"- which when you think about it is hilarious, considering it's a sphere. But immediately upon entering, everyone stops to take out their phone. If you want a better photo, take it from the path to the World Nature pavilion. Most people will immediately head to World Discovery early in the morning to ride Mission: SPACE and Spaceship Earth, leaving the pathway (and the view) from World Nature pretty clear.

When in doubt, look for the Photopass photographers. They're positioned in the best spots to capture photos. Look at where they're shooting and from what angle, and try to capture the same shot. Just be sure not to get in their way!

Navigating character photos

If you're interested in doing character meet and greets, know that you don't necessarily have to purchase Memory Maker to do it. The photographer will still use your Magicband or ticket to load the photo, and you'll have the option to purchase it individually after the fact.

Character photos are always interesting. Most photographers do a blend of candid and posed shots, and they're more than happy to take a few photos with your phone as well. At sit down restaurants where characters come to your table, you can always take selfies with them. It may be more difficult for costume characters as it's a struggle to get them in frame, but most come with an attendant that can take the photo for you. If you're unsure about how to pose with them, remember that every single character has been trained on how best to pose based on their character so they'll look their best in every photo. Try to mirror their pose or angles to match, and it'll work out almost every time.

In defense of candid shots

Posed photos are always nice to look at, but some of my favourite photos are the candid shots, the ones that document exactly how you were feeling in that moment. I have a photo of my sister's face the first time she saw Eeyore in the Crystal Palace at Magic Kingdom, and I smile every time I look at it. There's also the above photo, captured by a Photopass photographer, where I clearly did not realize that they were still taking photos.

I generally try to be the sneaky photographer for my friends and family (also because I'm the planner of the group that's done the most research), and love taking photos of their reactions the first time they experience something. That's something they only have once, and looking back on it, those photos will always come with a great story.

Consider Memory Maker

I will say this up front, Memory Maker/PhotoPass is extremely expensive. At the time of writing this, the cost is $185 USD ($256 CAD) if purchased before your trip, $210 USD ($291.30 CAD) if purchased during or after, and $75 USD ($104 CAD) for a single day. You can also purchase individual photos for approximately $20 USD ($27.75 CAD) for two 4x6 photos. That is prohibitively expensive. However, if you don't enjoy taking photos, and you want someone else to be in charge of finding the right locations and taking full family photos that are guaranteed to be high quality, it may be worth it.

Memory Maker has the benefit of offering exclusive on-ride photos, as well as "Magic Shots" - photos with an exclusive video clip or special effect. I personally purchase this package every trip because it's hassle free, and there are very few occasions where my entire family is in a single photo together (sorry Dad).

On our last Disney trip, we got 122 PhotoPass photos. Are they all amazing? No. Would I have paid the individual price for all of them? Of course not. But the value is in the ease of use, and the options it provides. It averages out to just over $2 per photo if I were to purchase the pass in advance, which seems well worth it to me. The photos were all well-taken, and almost all are arguably better than any of the photos that I took myself. At the end of the day, if you have the budget, and this will help you relax and enjoy the moment, I would highly recommend this.