Disneyland - World of Color

Disneyland - World of Color
Originally uploaded by Ame Otoko

Love it or hate it, Disneyland is full of interesting things to shoot, but the greatest things to shoot have to be after the lights go out. Disney California Adventure is a feast of carnival colors after dark, but what trumps everything is the new World of Color light and water show.

A combination of water fountains, misters, lasers and flamethrowers (yes I said flamethrowers), World of Color is so over the top it makes the Bellagio fountains look like your lawn sprinkler.

The majority of the show is based on various Disney movies and music. The movies are projected onto huge sheets of mist in such a way that they almost appear three dimensional. The fountains, bathed in colored lights, are choreographed with the familiar music of Disney blockbusters like The Little Mermaid. And the flamethrowers? Pirates of the Carribean, of course!

You can shoot wide and get an amazing view, but most of the thousands of people in attendance will get similar shots. To get something unique, you have to pick a moment and shoot it tight. I picked a climactic moment toward the end of the show where the music was rising toward a crescendo and the fountains were going off like little volcanoes. Zooming in to get a few silhouettes, I created a background of pure color that could only be Disney magic.

A word of warning - if you get in early and get your Fastpass to get the best views of the show, you will most definitely get wet, and most likely, soaked. We were back pretty far and got a bit of a spray from the mist during parts of the show. You’d be smart to stay back and keep your camera (and yourself) dry than to brave the front row and get yourself soaked. Unless you have a change of clothes, you’ll be in for a chilly rest of the evening.