Disney Photopass Location at Downtown Disney

It is great when you can combine a trip to Walt Disney World with a professional photo shoot for your family.  I’m not talking about the expensive shoots that can be arranged at various resorts that cost a lot extra, I’m talking about a few minutes with a Disney Photopass photographer. . . at Downtown Disney.

The Photopass location at Downtown Disney is near Guest Services in the Marketplace.  If you find yourself at World of Disney, you’ve gone too far.  We made a point to make it to this Photopass location to get some family photos taken and add them to our Photopass account.

The last time we had this done was two years ago and they turned out great.  I would say, we were fortunate once again.

This Photopass location is typically not busy, unless recent visitors to Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique are getting photographed.  We walked right up and were photographed within minutes.  We asked for specific combinations. . . all of us together, the husband and me, the boy and the husband, the boy and me, the boy by himself.   The Photopass photographer was happy to oblige. 

What was even more interesting is what happened when we were finished.  The husband and the boy headed off to the Lego store and I hung back to have our Photopass card scanned to find out how many photos were on the account.  (Sometimes I have a little contest with myself to see if we will end up with more photos than last time.)

Anyway, while one Cast Member was helping me, another was helping another family—mom, dad, and two girls who had just finished with their Disney princess make-over at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique at nearby World of Disney.  The mom wanted to see the photos taken by a Photopass photographer during the make-over on the digital screen.  She said it was their first day at Disney and the girls were going to make it “hard for her to choose” which photos to buy as they were all great.  The Cast Member then asked if she wanted the girls photographed right then, in the studio.  The mom said, “No.”  I almost cried.  The Photopass Cast Member explained that the photos would go on their Photopass account, as they already had a card.  Nope.  Oh, my!  What a missed opportunity.  And, I know what the mom was thinking.  Something like. . . the photos already on here are so good it is going to be hard to pick which ones to buy and if they add more it will be even more expensive. . . (I wish I had a screeching stop sound to insert, so just imagine the sound.)  NO!  If that mom had decided to purchase the Photopass CD, there would be no worrying about the additional cost of photos.  She would have them all.  Now, I would also say, that the Photopass Cast Member missed a sales opportunity and I could have jumped in, but didn’t.  Sigh.

The lesson:  Do some homework before your trip and make some decisions.  The mom had obviously done enough homework that both girls got a Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique appointment on their arrival day.  It’s just too bad she didn’t know more about Disney’s Photopass service.  I’m hopeful that she gave it more thought during the rest of her trip and purchased when she arrived home from her wonderful Disney vacation!

Shutters on the Disney Dream

With four Disney cruises under our belts, we have had our fair share of experiences with ship’s photographers.  On our most recent Disney cruise aboard the Disney Dream, we were impressed, even amazed, with the service and amenities provided to us by the ship’s photographers that radiate from Shutters.

Shutters is the official name and location for photographic activity aboard each of the Disney ships.  Shutters aboard the Dream is located on Deck 4 midship, overlooking the Lobby Atrium. 

Guests are welcome in Shutters at almost any time and can find their portfolio—where prints of all photos taken are stored-- which is designated by a Disney character, a color, and a number.  We were green Mickey, Number 75.  We found the kiosk designated by Mickey at the top, the green row of portfolios, and then portfolio number 75.  Sure enough, our photos were there. . . all of them.  The photo portfolios are stateroom specific and about an inch or so thick—with the pocket on the right side when you open, so be careful.  More than once we saw guests get their portfolio and then dump all the photos when opening it. (Note—our portfolio was filled twice with prints of various photos and when I emptied it, the Shutters’ staff held the prints behind the counter in a stack for me until the end of the cruise.)

Guests can also find their photos taken by ship photographers at any of the digital photo kiosks located throughout the ship.  Just tap your Key to the World card—also your room key—to get started using the touch screen.

Most of the time, the photographer will ask for your Key to the World card to slide through their computer machine to designate the pictures to your stateroom.  Other times, the face recognition technology that is now a part of the enhanced Shutters experience aboard the Dream will allow photos to end up in your stateroom’s portfolio.

Ship’s photographers can be found almost anywhere, but usual location include character meet and greets, portrait sessions held in the evenings in the Lobby Atrium, near the pools, in the restaurants in the evening, at Castaway Cay, and even in the water at Castaway Cay!

When I told the husband that I was going to be writing about Shutters, he said that there would be pros and cons.  I asked him to think of some cons.  He couldn’t.  And, I had a difficult time, too.  Rather than pros and cons, I’ll include what we did and what we learned:

• We purchased the Shutters photo CD.  I had budgeted around $300 for photos on our cruise, so when the price was $249, I was pleased.  I made the purchase the first night on board, but wasn’t able to get the CD until disembarkation morning.  This is because all purchases, including photo packages are fully refundable, should you change your mind.
• A black and white print out of thumb nails of the prints was included in the envelope containing the photo CD.  This helped to delay gratification of actually seeing the pictures on the CD until we got home!
• Since we had already purchased the photo CD, I let the photographers know that when it came time to take pictures.  They seemed to appreciate knowing that ahead of time and could snap away.  We also took fewer photos with our camera when ship’s photographers were available.
• Know that the pictures that come on the photo CD do not have the decorative boarders with specific dates, etc.  To get those, you have to purchase specific prints.
• After you purchase the photo CD, any prints that you purchase, including print packages are half price! 
• So, in addition to the photo CD, I also purchased the lowest priced print package—to get photos with boarders, etc.  I paid HALF!
• You can get an on-line copyright release for photos that you purchase at Shutters.  Click here for the link.
• Photo CD’s are stateroom specific.  That means if you have people in more than 1 stateroom, you have to purchase more than 1 photo CD.  (You see, sometimes guest change the sleeping arrangements when booking more than one stateroom and this is one example of when things go haywire when that happens.)
• Prints come in two sizes:  8 X 10 and 6 X 8.  If the photo taken was meant to be an 8 X 10 print, you will not be able to have it remade into a smaller print or vice versa when purchasing the prints at Shutters. 
• You will have a difficult time finding 6 X 8 frames.  Trust me on this.  So, I don’t know why the prints come in that size, but since our first cruise in 2007, it has been the same story.  Solution:  I purchase a large frame—say 18 X 20 and put multiple 6 X 8 prints inside.  An 18 X 16 frame will fit six of the 6 X 8 prints perfectly!
• You can purchase cameras and camera supplies at Shutters along with prints.  On one of our cruises, I asked them to download the pictures I had already taken on my camera to a disc.  The price was steep—around $16, but it was before we could get our hands on 8 GB SD cards!
• You can also have holiday cards made year round at Shutters with photos taken on the ship.
• We took advantage of various portrait options each night before dinner.  I say before dinner, as inevitably someone would spill something, so we were much more camera ready as a family before dinner than after.
• The photo CD comes with the original images, print ready images, and copyright releases.  And, can still be edited by changing the “Read Only” status.
• The photo taking opportunities begin at the Port Terminal when characters appear along with ship’s photographers and continue through the pre-boarding photo taken just before boarding the ship.

What I am continually amazed by is the struggle people have when deciding whether or not to purchase photos and then which photos when the first dilemma is solved.  I watched people agonize over photo purchases, but not flinch at the purchase of a $45 sweatshirt or other souvenir.

My personal philosophy and bias is showing here, and I think I have written this before, but I have yet to see family vacation photos sold at garage sales, but I have seen vacation merchandise and souvenirs sold at garage sales, on e-bay, etc.  The memories the photos hold will never be “outgrown” or “wear out” over the course of time.  For us, the photo purchase was a priority.  We budgeted for the purchase and planned to take advantage of photo opportunities.  And, anyone who has priced a professional photo session near your home—on land—would be pleasantly surprised with the prices that I paid and the quality/quantity of photos I brought home. 

Over the course of our cruises, my relationship with Shutters and the ship’s photographers has changed; similarly to my changing relationship with Disney Photopass photographers in the parks—click here to read more. 

On our first cruise, we had some photos taken, but didn’t purchase any.  On our second cruise, I purchased a punch card that could be used to purchase so many prints—8 X 10’s took 2 punches, 6 X 8’s cost one punch.  There were two more prints I wanted, so I purchased those separately when my punches were all gone.  On our third cruise, I purchased a photo package, upgraded to another package with more points, and then upgraded again before the end of the week-long cruise, just paying the price difference in the packages each time.  I wanted more pictures and needed more points!  The cost of the photo CD during that cruise was $399, and I just couldn’t justify the cost.  The price of the photo CD on our last cruise--$249—was right!

The service we received was incredible.  One of the Cast Members working at Shutters—Grace—recognized us from our last cruise on the Disney Magic.  My relationship with Shutters and ship’s photographers is solidified and I look forward to fantastic photos on our next, and 5^th, Disney cruise!

Family Portraits On Board Disney Cruise Line

While I have written about getting your family portraits taken at the Walt Disney World Resort using Disney's Photopass service, I haven't mentioned that almost the same service is available aboard the Disney ships. (Click here to read more about getting your family portrait taken at the Walt Disney World Resort.)

On our first cruise, we avoided the photographers. We weren't sure how the process worked and we didn't want the hassle or expense of photos. Needless to say, we came home with a handful of photos we had taken with all of us.

On our second Disney Cruise, we planned for a photo purchase and therefore, we had more photos taken. On the ships, you can have as many photos taken as you like by the ship photographers without charge. The cost comes in purchasing photos. Rather than purchase individual photos on our second cruise, I chose a package. So many 8 X 10's and so many 6 X 8's. I was given a punch card to be punched whenever I picked a photo that matched the size. (Different photos are made into different sizes--example character photos are typically produced as 6 X 8's.) If I picked out a photo early in the cruise and changed my mind later, I could return that photo and trade for another. I could even upgrade my package, which I did. The cast members at Shutters, the photo shop on board, were always very helpful. Know that you can purchase single photos either by themselves or in addition to a package.

I came home from our second cruise with a set of pictures which I scanned and with an on-line copyright release, made a few prints. Go to Platinum Castaway Club to find the on-line Shutters Photo release to take to your local photo producer.

Fast forward 18 months to our third Disney Cruise. Once again, I had planned on purchasing photos, but this time the system had changed. Now the packages were based on points. You purchased a certain amount of points and then 8 x 10's were so many points and 6 X 8's were so many points and your card was punched based on how many points you were using to get your photos. The point system allowed for more flexibility. You could have all of one size if you wanted, rather than a certain amount of photos of various sizes. Again, individual photos could be purchased either by themselves or in addition to a package. And, upgrades to your packages--meaning more points--were available.

Another noted change was that the photographers scanned your room key or Key to The World Card when taking your photo, as a new service was offered--a photo CD--and the photos were categorized by your stateroom number. Now, while this service sounds a bit like Disney's Photopass Service, there were remarkable differences. (Click here to read more about Disney's Photopass Service.

A major difference in the photo CD on board was the cost. The CD was $399--much more expensive than the largest photo package and significantly more expensive than the Photopass CD from the parks which lists at $149, but can be purchased for $99 if a pre-purchase discount is available.

Another difference is that you are not able to view your photos on-line when you get home, which you can do with Photopass. You could, however, view your photos at various photo kiosks around the ship after scanning your stateroom key.

Also, any creative or decorative borders added to the photos on board, were not included on the CD. The photos were included, but they came without the borders.

I guess the only plus would be that the copyright release would be included with the CD.

We came home with a set of photos that I scanned and had some prints made using the on-line copyright release.

Would I ever buy the CD on the ship? It depends. If I were traveling with a large group or large family and we were able to combine our photos on a CD and share the cost, then it may be worth it.

On our last trip to Walt Disney World, we were visiting with a "suited" cast member (meaning management) at Studios. His name was John and he was from Des Moines, which was another reason we started a conversation. Come to find out, John was in charge of Photopass. I'm not sure if he is in charge at Studios or beyond, but anyway, we told him we wanted to see Photopass on the ships. He said that Photopass is already a part of Adventures By Disney. I replied, "I know," pointing to my Adventures By Disney pin. He did indicate that they were trying to get Photopass on the ships. Hopefully, by our next cruise.

Anyway, the point of this is that if you would like to get your family portrait taken on board--go for it. All of the photos in this post were taken on board. Remember, being photographed is free! My advice, have as many photos taken as you can on a variety of backgrounds. No appointments are needed. The backgrounds and photographers are typically in the lobby atrium around dinner time and you just go to the background that you like, hand them your stateroom key, and smile! Most likely you are already "dressed" for dinner. Later pick out your best pictures later when they are displayed at Shutters--usually later that night or the next day.

What Do All Of These Pictures Have In Common?

Hmmm. . .

Keep thinking!

You are getting closer!

Got it figured out yet?

You're right, the pictures do have our family in common. The other thing all of the photos have in common is that they were taken at the Walt Disney World Resort by a Disney's PHOTOPASS Photographer and included in our PHOTOPASS account. Click here to read more about Disney's PHOTOPASS service.

That's right, in addition to the other wondrous and fabulous activities you can do with your family while vacationing at the Walt Disney World Resort, you can have family portraits taken!

You can have family portraits taken at the PHOTOPASS studio in Exposition Hall on Town Square just inside the Magic Kingdom. Enter from Town Square and just a about half-way back on the left, you will find a portrait studio. Ask to have family pictures taken and let them do the work. They can scan the photos onto your existing PHOTOPASS card or get you a new one if you don't have one already.

You can also have family portraits taken at the PHOTOPASS studio at Downtown Disney. The PHOTOPASS studio is located inside the Guest Services location in the the middle of the Marketplace. This location can be a bit hard to find, so ask directions or consult a map of Downtown Disney. Again, just ask to have family portraits taken and smile!

We love this service at the Walt Disney World Resort. If we know we won't make it to Downtown Disney, we go to Exposition Hall first thing, otherwise we make a morning trip to Downtown Disney for the photo op. Either way, it's fast and easy.

Say cheese!