Finally going back to Disneyland!

ddindy

ddindy

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I've been to Disneyland once in my life, as a teenager in 1972. At that time, the Main Street Electrical Parade was brand new, the land now occupied by DCA was the parking lot, the Disneyland Hotel was the only on-site lodging, and California drivers came to a complete stop if a pedestrian even looked like they were going to cross the street.

Now, almost 44 years later, I'm planning another trip. It looks like half of Disneyland will be closed for Star Wars Land construction, but at least I'll have all of DCA to discover.

I'm looking for any tips and recommendations that you can offer. If nothing changes, I'll be there in April, so I probably need to get my hotel booked pretty soon.

I'm debating whether to carry my usual full camera kit, or go light with just the 28-300 and fast 50.

I know a couple of you have been there recently, so I really appreciate any tips you can give me.
 
It's just 30 days before I fly west to Walt's park, so I'm bumping this thread to see if anyone has any tips.
 
well i'm going against most here, and recommend a fast 50, and do you have any other fairly light fast primes, that's a trip that i could easily see, 25 or 35, maybe 20mm if it's available, 5he 50 and either an 85, 100 or 135, i'm kind of basing that on what i would have taken in the cannon days, with the sony it's 28mm f2, 55mm f1.8, and if funds allowed and they ever came into stock, either the batis 85mm f 1.8, or maybe, just maybe the rumored sony/zeiss 135mm f2 would come to be, a lot of disneyland/dcs, is to me, now bear in mmd this is personal preference, a place that i think i would want to mostly do it as i sees it, thus the 50mm is most of the shots. a wide for a few shots. honestly, to me disneyland is like walking on hallowed ground, i've always been a little more reverent and respectful there, not sure what causes that, it's probably the easiest place on earth for me to just go with what i have with me, if i get the shot so be it, if not, oh well, can't carry all the gear, a long winded way of saying i would not even take the super zoom. walk around, stop and smell the roses, savor where you are, and be in the moment of being where it all started
 
I like that advice, @gary. I have 50 and 85 primes; the only thing wider I have is an ultra-wide and 24-70. I've rented the Sigma and Tamron 35s on my last two WDW trips, and wasn't really impressed with either.

I'll be there for 4 1/2 days (the half day is Sunday afternoon on arrival day), and I'm seriously considering just making Monday and Tuesday non-photo days, so I can enjoy the parks without distraction. We'll see if I have the willpower to do that.
 
then how about making it just a 2 lens light load trip, the 50 & the 85, get what you can, remember it all. and enjoy being there. 4 1/2 days is longer than any time i have ever had there.
 
Considering that about a third of the Disneyland park will be closed for Star Wars construction, it should be plenty of time to do everything. I may even fit in a couple of tours.
 
i think in today's world of photography, due to the zooms now being pretty high quality, in many cases porbably within 90% IQ of the same focal prime, we tend to get all zoom happy. you are younger than me, but not by a huge amount, and i'll wager that when you first took up the camera, it was a body that came with a 50mm f1.4. that was the standard kit back in the film days. and think of this as a way to get back to our roots, a retro look to the images, and if you went with only the 50, everything starts out looking the way it did to your eyes at that time and place. with the amount of detail todays full frame sensors give, we can crop down to a 35mm or even a 28mm field of view. i have on a couple of days done disney world with just a 1 lens 50 prime as a walk around all day, and a 50mm f1.4 was the first lens i ever even attempted dark rides with.
 
We have 5 days devoted to the parks in August, which I know is more than needed. We are traveling with a 15 year old that will insist we see the parade, fireworks and World of Color as many times as possible. I plan and going with just the 50 and maybe my wide angle, but this trip is for the experience, the photos will be a bonus. I am planning on doing some Carsland at night as we are staying at the Grand Californian for the first 4 nights, so a tripod will be in the bag!
 
so i would advise just going with the 2 primes, 50mm & 85 mm. a nice light camera bag , and pretty good coverage for the whole of disneyland/dca.
 
I'll probably pack the 28-300, too. I'd hate to miss a great telephoto shot. With luck, I'll be able to go back in a few years, so I can see all of the attractions that are closed right now.
 
@gary your advice was spot-on. I packed four lenses: 50, 85, 28-300 and, at the last minute, the 17-35. Disneyland feels so small that the 50 and 17-35 got most of the use. I didn't use the 85 much, if at all, and the long zoom never came out of the bag.

My only regret is that on my first day (the camera-free day), I unexpectedly was able to see the Soundsational afternoon parade. That was the only day that it ran during my stay.
 
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