I was asked to stop taking photos at Pleasure Island

"Excuse me sir, we have plenty of PhotoPassâ„¢ photographers using the ultimate in Nikonâ„¢ lenses with Kodakâ„¢ digital cards for the highest quality pictures that will take better pictures than you can"

oh yeah, the photopass cm's are all highly trained, educated and experienced photo professionals, ever walk up to one and ask a couple tech questions about their nikons, my sample size was small, only 2, but i wasn't impressed in the least, nice people, but somewhat akin to me being assigned to do neurosurgery tommorrow morning, yeah i've got some clues, but no expertise
and i was just interested in how they were synching the flash, and a couple iso/aperture tips, maybe poach the spot a little

actually i have to modify this, i have stayed in a few holiday inns, although was before the smart rays being beamed into you during your sleep,
come to think of it i do feel smarter, anybody need or want a little surgery, free to forum members

 

Phew! At least perfume bottles are still OK!!

 

The more and more I look into this the more I agree with everyone else here. It was an overzealous security guard.

 

I have heard it before but it is only enforced when the camera operator is causing an obstruction of some sort... they were just bored that night because the place dead as usual... you know it is bad when they have to advertise free parking. I already posted my feelings about it on my site but basically it is just another nail in Pleasure Island coffin. I guess I will be taking my unipod from now as well (kind of hard to argue about a stick!).

 

This is very interesting. I've only heard of one other instance where a security guard hassled a photographer at Disney World, and it was also at Pleasure Island.

This was a different instance, but the fact that the only two times I've heard of this happening have both been at PI makes me wonder. In this instance it was daytime (I think), and the guard explained that the photographer in question had been taking a lot of pictures of the buildings at PI and that, for some vague reason, that was cause for suspicion. Yeah, like it's a shock that someone might want to take pictures of the buildings at Disney World, right?

To be fair, I think the story was told that the guard had that "just doing my job" thing going, he wasn't being overzealous or nasty, he had apparently been told to intercept this guy and talk to him, so he did. I don't think the photographer was ever told he shouldn't be doing what he was doing, I think it ended okay, he just had to explain that he liked the buildings in the area and wanted to take pictures of them. That he had to do that at all (explain it) is idiotic beyond belief, but I'm just trying to reinforce that, again, the security guard seemed nice enough about it.

Two stories isn't enough to draw strong conclusions from, but I wonder if it's Pleasure Island. Perhaps they treat it differently because it's more like a mall than a theme park. It's just that you'd think people would be more likely to take a tripod into the parks than to PI, when I think night photography at Disney World I do not think Pleasure Island. So I'd expect more stories of trouble in the parks if this was an official policy that was being enforced.

In any case I sure hope not. I have big night photography plans. This is supposed to be the year I'm freed from having to set up my mini tripod on trash cans. My tripod is a bit bigger than the Velbon that's so favored around here, I'm probably running a greater risk of being denied at the bag checkpoint, but I REALLY hope they'll be cool about it. There are so many shots I want to get.

 

It sounds like either a Pleasure Island specific rule, or an overzelous security guy. At least I'm hoping that's what it is - I just blew a LOT on a brand new 5D and a Velbon Luxi F tripod because Tim told me to and if I can't bring it to Epcot next year to shoot night shots for my photo series on "drinking throughout the world", I'm going to be very peeved.

 

With the Secret Service there, it could have been a one day ban on tripods as part of their security effort. If you've ever tried to take a picture of the White House at night, you know how picky they about tripods...

 

maybe the secret service was protecting us from the diaper wearing psychotic astronauts????

 

Woah.. WEIRD policy.. but I guess I can't complain. Actually I'm thrilled to hear that they give amateurs greater leeway. I've never heard of such a thing before, I'm all too used to anyone with a camera that's not a point and shoot being lumped into the "could be a pro" category and blocked.

 

Go get'em, Justin! ;D

At least, now, we all know to answer "NO" to that question. Tim might want to keep his Magic In Pixels credentials back in his room...including his t-shirt in the future. Interesting that they don't bother Tim when he has a herd of photographers with him.

 

if a herd of t-mip beat an overzealous rent a cop to death with tripods, does it make any sound?

does anyone care?