Theme Park Shots: Puddles, Portals and a VelociCoaster Moon

The second edition of Theme Park Shots is already a week late. So maybe this will be a twice-monthly feature. We’ll see how it sorts itself out.

This week’s theme is puddle pics, an art form perfected by Derek Bell. But I came across some other stunning reflections as well, even if the water in those photos is a little deeper than a puddle.

Anthony Aoude

Up first is this gem from Anthony Aoude. Hourglass Lake is the perfect canvas for reflection photos, especially under skies like these. The clouds, Skyliner gondolas, and lily pads all came together for something special.

Trader Nate

Trader Nate also got in on the Disney transportation-water combo, capturing this perfect shot of a Monorail passing through EPCOT.

Derek Bell

Derek Bell’s puddle pic didn’t disappoint this week, even without a gondola or Monorail. Instead, he chose the 40-foot Pongo at Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort. That gives us 80 feet of Dalmatian in one photo. You might need to look twice.

Derek’s talents aren’t limited to puddles. He also captured this beauty featuring an EPCOT flag, Spaceship Earth, and the moon.

Test Shot Tyler

Speaking of lunar photography, Test Shot Tyler captured an all-timer as a VelociCoaster train passed in front of a full moon. The riders cresting that top hat have no idea they’re featured in a work of art.

Kudos to Tyler for finding the perfect spot at Islands of Adventure to take this photo.

Ben (Pastamutt)

I live vicariously through Ben’s evening walks around Disney World. Last week, he went on a “Boardwalkabout,” capturing this view of Disney’s BoardWalk from across Crescent Lake.

I’d live there.

Tyler Church

I can’t tell you how long I’ve stared at this next one. Tyler Church visited Epic Universe last November and came away with some of the most stunning photos I’ve seen of the park. I’m blown away by this shot of the SUPER NINTENDO WORLD portal.

Tyler created the motion effect with a very specialized filter. I’ll let him explain:

“The Halo effect becomes stronger depending on the light source and camera settings. It takes some experimenting, but the results can be really unique and fit the portal theme of Epic Universe.”

I might need to add one to my bag.

Eric Chu

Eric took this photo of the Disneyland Hotel Marina in 1988, the same year Disney purchased the hotel from the Wrather Corporation. One year later, the marina was gone.

Short on cash while building Disneyland, Walt Disney licensed the park’s name to Jack Wrather, whose company built and owned the hotel from 1955 until 1988. Walt tried for years to buy the property, but Wrather always refused.

Wrather died in 1984, followed by his widow in 1988. That year, Michael Eisner purchased the entire Wrather Corporation. Disney only wanted the hotel, so Eisner sold off the company’s other assets, including its lease to display the Spruce Goose.

The Disneyland Hotel was clearly the prize.

After completing the purchase, Disney quickly removed the marina. Its former footprint is now home to the hotel’s courtyard, pools, and Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar.

Bioreconstruct

As always, Bioreconstruct treated us to aerial photos of construction projects across Disney World and Universal Orlando. But as much as I enjoy studying new coasters and lands, my favorite shot from the past week featured the Tower of Terror wrapped in scaffolding.

The Hollywood Tower Hotel is visible from so many places across Disney World that it feels completely familiar. But Bio’s aerial view gave me an entirely new perspective on the icon.

Oh, and he also caught part of the giant psychedelic guitar outside G-Force Records.

Me

I’m sharing one new photo and another that’s a little older but received a new edit.

First up is this action shot from Gabby’s Dance Party at Universal Kids Resort. One second earlier, my camera’s autofocus had locked onto the dancer. Then the bubbles took over, confused the camera, and gave me this happy accident.

The older photo comes from Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party in 2023. I was a very green photographer at the time, but I got lucky during Disney’s Not-So-Spooky Spectacular. In particular, I loved this shot of Cinderella Castle wrapped in green smoke.

I re-edit this photo every year or two. You can see my two previous attempts in this article about the fireworks. My tastes have changed since my last update, so I reopened Lightroom this week to see what would happen.

This version has much spookier Halloween vibes. And it looks far more like what my eyes saw that night. My previous edits were too homogenized, evening out the lights and darks.

I love this edit. At least until I stumble across the RAW file again next year and decide to redo it.

So that’s it for this week. Or this half-month. I’ll try to do better.

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