Anyone done the Disney Fine Art Photography MK Mini Session?

I'm thinking of doing this with my son. I've lost a ton of weight, and would love a nice portrait of the two of us without all of the people in the background. He can be a bit of a challenge to get to smile nicely if I'm not the one taking the photo though.

Photopass photographers are very hit and miss (mostly miss) so I thought i might spring for something a little nicer, dress up a little and have a great keepsake. Would love to hear some actual experience.

Around here, $195 is about the going rate for a mini session like that so it doesn't seem out of line to me.

That is why we would like to continue this tradition. Everyone is dressed neatly, looking at the camera and IN the picture. The background is gorgeous and everyone is relaxed and happy.

For the few technical flaws that a photographer may notice, all I see are the smiling faces of loved ones in a place that brings them joy. :grouphug:
 
Blah didn't work. Take photos I can, use the internet to insert photos on a forum at a not crazy size, I can not, lol.
 
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We did this session last October with two families, so the cost was only about $100 per family. The photographer and assistant were great with the 4 toddlers that were participating and I think the actual session lasted for more than 15 minutes. They accommodated multiple configurations - each family, just the kids, just the adults, each couple, etc. We received the download link for the images the next day and they were good enough to use on our Christmas card! We were so impressed that we've booked another session for this December!
 


And see, that's why Disney sells, because (no offense) but the majority of people don't see the flaws in the photos - when you go under their portraits section, several of their photos are blurry/out of focus, have poor lighting, poor composition, very little effort to have everyone looking/smiling (and yes, I'm well aware of just how hard that is, lol), poor edits etc... Even the ones someone posted above, I could list several issues with them, that a true professional photographer would not have made, yet people think those are great. Meanwhile I just sit and shake my head because they clearly have no idea what great photography could actually look like, lol. But again, at the end of the day, most people are just looking at the overall shot (composition and background) and are being distracted by the "Disney!!!", plus have no more experience with photography than your typical snapshots and so to them, it's good. And that's fine. If they're happy with it, I guess that's really all that matters.


As far as the price, I suppose yes, seeing other comments, that depends where you're from. Here, $195 gets you a full blown session with a really good photographer. The wannabe-photographers (similar quality photos as these ones) run about $60-75. So my initial reaction was that this seems overpriced considering what you get for quality. But I suppose for other areas, it's actually reasonable. And there's the "Disney" factor.

Around here, in an expensive resort tourist area, $195 would get you a mini session like that. Some local photographers advertise them for holidays like mother's day etc, out of tourist season so it's more targeted as locals. $75 would not even get you lunch with a really good photographer! But considering what you can pay for memory maker and tons of truly bad photos, I'd pay that to get a few good shots of me and my son. Unless you want to come to Disney and give me a full blown session for the same price. But I'd have to see your portfolio first!

I do get it, as i am a pretty big snob about what I do and I think I have a better eye than most and know what you mean about the photos on the website, they are kind of mixed. Some are quite lovely, some not so much. But as a single mom traveling alone with her son, my options are limited for getting good shots of us at our favorite place. we have the overexposed shots taken of us with my phone by the person who couldn't figure out how to expose the people and not the sky... taken AFTER the person who actually deleted the 5 previous shots off of my phone rather than taking photos (good thing they were only food shots)... and we have the shot of us with the figment topiary where figment looks like a demon rising from the depths of hell while I look like I peed my pants due to the exposure of the shot.... you get my drift. So pickins are kind of slim for people who want decent portraits at WDW. If you are expecting decent it seems like you should be able to get them. If at the very least they can get my son to look like he didn't just swallow a live frog it would be worth the $200!
 
Around here, in an expensive resort tourist area, $195 would get you a mini session like that. Some local photographers advertise them for holidays like mother's day etc, out of tourist season so it's more targeted as locals. $75 would not even get you lunch with a really good photographer! But considering what you can pay for memory maker and tons of truly bad photos, I'd pay that to get a few good shots of me and my son. Unless you want to come to Disney and give me a full blown session for the same price. But I'd have to see your portfolio first!

I do get it, as i am a pretty big snob about what I do and I think I have a better eye than most and know what you mean about the photos on the website, they are kind of mixed. Some are quite lovely, some not so much. But as a single mom traveling alone with her son, my options are limited for getting good shots of us at our favorite place. we have the overexposed shots taken of us with my phone by the person who couldn't figure out how to expose the people and not the sky... taken AFTER the person who actually deleted the 5 previous shots off of my phone rather than taking photos (good thing they were only food shots)... and we have the shot of us with the figment topiary where figment looks like a demon rising from the depths of hell while I look like I peed my pants due to the exposure of the shot.... you get my drift. So pickins are kind of slim for people who want decent portraits at WDW. If you are expecting decent it seems like you should be able to get them. If at the very least they can get my son to look like he didn't just swallow a live frog it would be worth the $200!


I laughed so hard at this, lol, especially Figment :)

Yes, there definitely were some shots that were nice, and then there's the family that looks jaundiced, lol. I'll make you a deal, I'll do your photos for free if you fly me down from Canada... LOL. But yes, I get it, I do. And you're right, comparing it to Memory Maker, it's pretty on par.
 
I laughed so hard at this, lol, especially Figment :)

Yes, there definitely were some shots that were nice, and then there's the family that looks jaundiced, lol. I'll make you a deal, I'll do your photos for free if you fly me down from Canada... LOL. But yes, I get it, I do. And you're right, comparing it to Memory Maker, it's pretty on par.
We'd love to see you posting on the daily photo threads on the photography forum! All sorts of shots are welcome, not just Disney. And if you need help with the posting, just ask. Everyone is very nice and helpful.

I view the Disney photographers sort of like I view Disney restaurants. Theme parks are their business, so I don't expect perfection in other areas. I think the shots that were linked were decent.
 


We'd love to see you posting on the daily photo threads on the photography forum! All sorts of shots are welcome, not just Disney. And if you need help with the posting, just ask. Everyone is very nice and helpful.

I view the Disney photographers sort of like I view Disney restaurants. Theme parks are their business, so I don't expect perfection in other areas. I think the shots that were linked were decent.

I didn't know that! I thought it was just Disney! Cool, thanks! I used to have a portrait photography business, but then with my daughter's health, and my column/freelance work, it was just too hectic so I let it go. I still do the odd shoot every now and then, but in recent years I've turned more towards stills, landscapes etc... Could you possibly PM me on how to share photos in a way so that they don't end up huge?

They were, they just could have been tweaked more in post-processing to make them pop better (I played with one for fun, just to see what I could do with it). But as others have said, really, for that amount of money/time, if they're taking that many photos, you're not going to get much editing etc... more just straight shots.
 
I didn't know that! I thought it was just Disney! Cool, thanks! I used to have a portrait photography business, but then with my daughter's health, and my column/freelance work, it was just too hectic so I let it go. I still do the odd shoot every now and then, but in recent years I've turned more towards stills, landscapes etc... Could you possibly PM me on how to share photos in a way so that they don't end up huge?

They were, they just could have been tweaked more in post-processing to make them pop better (I played with one for fun, just to see what I could do with it). But as others have said, really, for that amount of money/time, if they're taking that many photos, you're not going to get much editing etc... more just straight shots.
Glad you found it!
 
I am thinking about doing this but I have a stupid question...do you tip the photographers?

I live in constant fear that I am unknowingly stiffing someone out of a tip lol
 
I am thinking about doing this but I have a stupid question...do you tip the photographers?

I live in constant fear that I am unknowingly stiffing someone out of a tip lol
We did, both the photographer and her assistant.
 
Just wondered if this $195 Magic Kingdom session with Cinderella's castle in the background was worth it. 15 minutes doesn't seem like very much time. I would love to hear your opinion on this session if you have purchased it.
I got married @ WDW 17 years ago and did the MK portrait session. Had pictures taken in front of castle, inside castle, & on carousel. We are happy that we did it & pleasesd with the pictures. I don’t remember how long we were there but I’m sure it was over an hour. At least an hour & a half. I think it cost about $750. The photo session takes place when park us closed. We were @ MK by 5 am. Got up before 4 am to get wedding dress on & re do make up & hair.
 
As far as the price, I suppose yes, seeing other comments, that depends where you're from. Here, $195 gets you a full blown session with a really good photographer. The wannabe-photographers (similar quality photos as these ones) run about $60-75. So my initial reaction was that this seems overpriced considering what you get for quality. But I suppose for other areas, it's actually reasonable. And there's the "Disney" factor.

Wow, where are you? Here in Los Angeles, $195 just gets you the 15 minutes, any pictures or edits is more $$$. And while those are not the most professional pictures, they are still going to look good when a family looks back on their trip.
 
To whomever posted the pictures above - you have a beautiful family and I apparently do not have a photographer's eye because I see no flaws, just very happy people!!
 
We did that session and yes I thought it was worth it. Were all of the shots perfect - No, but that goes for any photographer IMO. I have actually used Disney Photography 3 times and thought each one was worth it. I paid way more for a local photographer to do my daughter's senior pictures and to this day I feel ripped off in comparison to what I received from Disney. We used Daniel Lightfoot (Disney photographer) twice, he is a professional photographer. I'm afraid to post pictures as I don't want someone to point out flaws. My daughter is on the website though. If anyone has any particular questions feel free to pm me.
 
We got a ton of beautiful posed family shots from the Photopass studio in Disney Springs, with a variety of backgrounds. We loved them and they were completely free with our regular Memory Maker purchase. You are posed against a virtual Castle rather than the real thing, as in the session that costs extra, but the result is just as nice, to my admittedly untrained eye.
 
Wow, where are you? Here in Los Angeles, $195 just gets you the 15 minutes, any pictures or edits is more $$$. And while those are not the most professional pictures, they are still going to look good when a family looks back on their trip.

Atlantic Canada
 
We did that session and yes I thought it was worth it. Were all of the shots perfect - No, but that goes for any photographer IMO. I have actually used Disney Photography 3 times and thought each one was worth it. I paid way more for a local photographer to do my daughter's senior pictures and to this day I feel ripped off in comparison to what I received from Disney. We used Daniel Lightfoot (Disney photographer) twice, he is a professional photographer. I'm afraid to post pictures as I don't want someone to point out flaws. My daughter is on the website though. If anyone has any particular questions feel free to pm me.

I would love to see some photos of the MK mini session! Feel free to PM me if you don't want to post them here. I promise I won't point out any flaws! I am considering this for my DD's first trip, but I haven't been able to find any examples of this session.
 

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