Archive for April, 2009

Blogging is, first and foremost, a means of personalizing a small segment of a vast and very impersonal arena.  While we want to convey useful information and share things that are of interest, we hope to speak with a more authentic, intimate voice than the one used for sales copy and press releases. 

This week, I was so pleased to be a guest blogger for Liz Hover; web design, online branding, and social media maven who writes about tweets, and tumblelogs, and many things technological.  She also offers a wonderful, idiosyncratic short list of interesting links. 

Smart and funny, she has an engaging style that’s knowledgeable, but not over the head of the non-tech reader.  She represents a growing population of the internet socially-adept who understand the difference between being connected and making true connections.  Visit her site, Diary of a Web Gal, at www.lizhover.com

 

In an effort to improve our blog, I’ve been spending quite a bit of time getting to know other bloggers, visit their sites, and learn about their challenges and successes. One of the best examples I’ve come across is that of Andrea Swiedler.  If her elegant blog with its inviting photos of the area, articles about local events, and useful information makes you want to pack up and move to New Milford, visit http://www.andreaswiedler.com/   Imagine my delight when I got an email from her today with a photo of her very unusual Holstein calf.  Meet Patrick!

 

I was simply amazed at his Hidden Goofy; the perky nose, the teeth, the lovable ears, even the hat!  Almost as cute as Patrick himself.  Gawrsh!!

 

 

 

What can we say about Joe Penniston that hasn’t already been said by his many admirers?  Aficionado of the classic Disney subject and master of the processing arts, he takes the photos we all wish were ours.  His Castle, his Carousel, his Main Street have a purity of execution few of us can achieve.  This fantasy portrait of our favorite mice is a case in point.  Visit our Destinations page for what may be the single most stunning capture of “Partners” you will find.  If you visit the photographers’ own photo collections through our Photographers page, you’ll recognize many of the images that grace our website and see that his work is featured on a number of our pages.  Joe, we thank you!

 

Study the Disney photo collections of George Thomas for a tutorial on nature photography. This small piece of Floridian perfection was found at Disney’s Old Key West Resort.

 

When he turns his attention to color-selected black and white, we see a different side of this multi-talented photographer. On our Photographers page, we’ve featured two beautiful examples. The photo of Reedy Creek Fire Department highlights its playful elements. The amazing shot of monorail yellow demonstrates a skillful use of select color to amplify the dynamics of the sleek and shiny train. Thank you, George!

 

Our friend Vanessa Guzan has caught some great HM’s, but this just might be the best one ever!  Find it in the Rainforest Café at Downtown Disney.

S.E. Smith takes us by the hand for a stroll through Walt Disney world, showing it to us in a different way; revealing beauty in unexpected places. Her image of the often-photographed Spaceship Earth is like no other – see it on our Destinations page.

 

This lovely photo of the koi pond in EPCOT’s Japan perfectly captures its qualities: colorful, animated, yet tranquil.  Her beautiful portfolio is filled with delicate feathers and ferns, shadow and shading, exquisite details that most will never see until someone makes them stop…and look.  We say thank you to S. E. Smith!

 

 

Perhaps only those truly knowledgeable about Walt Disney World will recognize the spectacular image of Mission: Space featured on our Destinations page, but everyone can appreciate it.

 

Stark and soaring; it is architecture embracing astronomy, both literally and figuratively. The work of photographer Jamie Berman, it is representative of a signature style where the everyday becomes elegant abstraction. Jamie, thanks!

 

Sue Holland’s well-timed photo of Cinderella Castle in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, sporting its  sparkling holiday finery complete with perfectly-placed pyrotechnics, has been a feature of our site since the beginning.  The fact that this photo was taken with exactly the same point-and-

shoot that I have used to produce dozens of unfocused, useless examples of the same subject is less a comment about my ineptitude than a tribute to her talents.  While we see many pictures of the Christmas Castle in icy blue, the gorgeous violets and golds make this one a keeper.  Thanks Sue!

 

  

You can look at many thousands of photos of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, or shots taken while onboard one of the ships of the Disney Cruise Line, and you will see that “Disney colors” are a recurring theme.  Now, I’m not speaking of the famous black, red, yellow, and white; I’m talking about the bright, primary colors of balloons; the soft pastels of Princess gowns; entire paint boxes of brilliant color splashed against the background of a cloudless blue Floridian sky, turquoise beach or lush greenery.  

The genius of these photographers is their ability not just to take the everyday picture of the castle or the character to a different level, but to search for a quirky perspective, an overlooked detail, a compelling shadow, an unusual palette.

Alan Rappaport visited Journey Into Imagination at Walt Disney World’s EPCOT to capture a charming portrait of Figment which can be found on our Destinations page.  Glowing ambers, blues, and purples; not your everyday shot and one that offers a perfect punctuation mark to this grouping of wonderful images.  Thank you Alan!

 

 

Christmas night and my friends are unable to meet me as planned for our annual holiday dinner.  It’s a festive day, and I’m festively dressed, so I’m going anyway!  Our reservation is for Bistro de Paris, the small and elegant restaurant located in France at Epcot’s World Showcase. 

 

This venue is on the second floor above Chefs de France; a bit of an effort to find the entrance which is somewhat hidden away at the back.  The young woman at the podium had a somewhat reserved manner and I did begin to have concerns that the service might not be as pleasant as I was hoping for.  As most of you who have dined alone know, if anyone is going to be kicked to the curb during a busy night at a restaurant, it’s bound to be the single diner!  My worries proved to be unfounded; I have seldom encountered more polished and attentive service.  Read the rest of this entry »