View Full Version : Illuminations - Part 4 - Epcot by Night
One of the hidden delights of photographing Illuminations is what happens after the show. Epcot empties pretty quickly as everyone heads home, leaving the park all but empty. There is no rush to leave and it makes a great time for a slow stroll around the World Showcase. There is time to admire the incredible detail and polish that goes into making Epcot what it is. Details that one can easily miss amongst the hustle and bustle of the daytime crowds. I also think the park looks really pretty at night; and there is no other time I know of to grab a few photos without any people in them.
Next time you watch Illuminations, why not take the long way around the lake on the way out. Allow about 15 - 20 minutes for most people leave after the show and then take a leisurely walk and see Epcot from a different point of view ...
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For future reference the links to the earlier threads are:
Illuminations - Part 1 - The Foretelling: http://www.orlando-guide.info/forums/topic_35125.asp
Illuminations - Part 2 - The Show: http://www.orlando-guide.info/forums/topic_35164.asp
Illuminations - Part 3 - The Holiday Tag: http://www.orlando-guide.info/forums/topic_35199.asp
Hope you enjoyed the photos as much as I enjoyed taking them. Same again next year all being well. [msnsmile2][msnsmile2]
Loved the photos!!!! Nevere thought to look round after illuminations - usually just head off home!!!
I'm sure I am not the only one wishing you would continue with these posts. Your pictures are stunning and I love looking at them. Any chance of making this a regular thing????
L
eagleydo
16-12-2006, 03:25
Great pictures!!![clap][clap][clap]
mfairhurst
16-12-2006, 05:13
GREAT pictures and look forward to more .
MAUREEN
www.onlinefloridavillas.com/villas/1683.aspx
Sue and Jere
16-12-2006, 12:07
Fabulous pictures.
We usually stay until everyone has left. Never sure why they all rush to leave.[xmas1]
LiesaAnna
16-12-2006, 12:49
well done Steve, lovely photos
thanks for sharing with us, i have enjoyed looking at them especially in a different light! seems weird with no people in it
I am one of the thousands who normally head straight out of Epcot after Illuminations. However having seen these photos I will wait next time and take the time to enjoy the walk around the lake in a nearly deserted park!
Me too Tracy, we are normally being squashed like sardines too and worry that we will get separated! I cant believe that I have never thought of hanging about until all the crowds have gone[msnmad].
Steve, what can I say? Absolutely brilliant photos as always, it certainly does look totally different without people milling about getting in the way of taking a few good shots. I know what I will be doing next time we are over at the theme parks. Thanks for sharing your excellent photos.
Karen
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by Daglish
I am one of the thousands who normally head straight out of Epcot after Illuminations. However having seen these photos I will wait next time and take the time to enjoy the walk around the lake in a nearly deserted park!
[/quote]
brilliant photos Steve [clap][clap][clap]
i think i'll be another one to hang about after the illuminations have finished
Mizzy
Very good photos. Do you mind if I ask what type of camera you are using? We are looking at replacing our 1.3mp camera as my phone takes better pictures!
Great photo's as always Steve. Thanks for taking the time to post them.
We will all be able to tell who is an OV member...They will be all the ones left in Epcot at the end of the night [msnwink]
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by MarkJan
Very good photos. Do you mind if I ask what type of camera you are using? We are looking at replacing our 1.3mp camera as my phone takes better pictures!
[/quote]
great photos steve, also can I ask if its time lapse you use to get the effect, it cant be flash!
Love your photo's Steve.
Janice.
OMG! What have I done! I've let out the secret about Epcot after the fireworks and it's going to full of people and I won't have it all to myself.
Errrrrrr, ignore all the above posts, it's really busy and dull and full of people after the fireworks. There's nothing worth seeing. Nothing at all. You really should head out of there as quickly as possible. Don't even walk. Run!
Ahem! [msnwink] Honest! [msnwink]
Mark, I'm using my trusty Nikon D70 for all these. Most of the fireworks are taken with my new 12-24mm lens. If you are looking for some new gear the D80 (only released a few months ago) is a fantastic buy. It borrows a fair chunk of it's internals from the D200 which is an awesome beast!
Ian, yep, most of the photos are quite long exposures. The fireworks are mostly one or two seconds. The above Epcot by Night photos are also really long exposures to keep them looking natural by collecting plenty of light.
If you do have a walk around Epcot after the show, if you stop to look closely you notice how little light there actually is. The human eye is an amazing thing in the way it adjusts to light levels, which is why we can walk around Epcot after dark without bumping into things. But when you stop to look you start to notice how little light there is.
So if you use a really long exposure and no flash (flash is a real killer at night if you aren't careful) you capture the photo as your eye sees it.
The very first time we went to Florida we stayed in Epcot after the fireworks so that we could have a look around the world showcase when there were no crowds. We virtually had the place to ourselves. We got some great photos by the fountain right at the back of the Italian section that we would probably have missed during the day. We had mananged to keep the fact that it was so quiet pretty much to ourselves up until now Steve [msnwink]
thornton
17-12-2006, 21:59
Great photos, given us food for thought next time we see the fireworks at Epcot.
julieanne
18-12-2006, 13:25
Excellent photos [clap]
Epcot will never be empty again [msnwink]
Great photos. I wonder if the after-fireworks quiet time works for the other parks as well.
<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by Jadehouse
Great photo's as always Steve. Thanks for taking the time to post them.
We will all be able to tell who is an OV member...They will be all the ones left in Epcot at the end of the night [msnwink]
[/quote]
Karen, that was just what I was thinking too [msnwink]
Great Photos Steve. Trying to persuade my husband that carrying a tripod around is not so bad. What is the one you use?
How much longer are you out here for, Steve?
Sadly I'm back in the UK now Karen [msnsad]
If you don't want to carry a tripod around all day (and neither would I) just leave it in the car and nip out for it about an hour before the fireworks start. You could also move the car really close to the entrance if you do this so that when you eventually leave you don't have to wait for the little trains or have miles to walk afterwards.
My current tripod of choice is Gitzo. I forget which model, G2227 rings a bell. It's a carbon fibre Explorer series and is an awesome piece of kit when combined with the magnesium offset ball head (a 1276M I think).
It isn't cheap, I think it cost more than the camera, but the results speak for themselves. Once you've locked it all up it's as stable as a very stable thing. The carbon is great too when you are over in the mountains in Utah. When the temperature is down in the -10s it doesn't weld itself to your hand if you pick it up without remembering to put your gloves back on first. [msnsmile]
Hi Steve, shame you are back in the UK. One time we wil have to get together a OV camera club out here, go out somewhere for the day, take lots of pictures, then go back to someones house and view them. What do you think [msnwink]
Good tip about the car park. I will suggest that to hubby.
I have looked at the Gitzo website. Blimey, so much choice, I do not know where to begin! Hmm, I can not see me going anywhere that cold, except maybe to ICE! But you never know. I would love to be able to travel the world taking photos.
Thanks for posting. I love Epcot
ALR