Storming the Gates of Epcot at Walt Disney World
Gates outside of Epcot at Walt Disney World feature some old EPCOT Center designs, as storm clouds brew over Spaceship Earth in the distance.
As we were approaching Epcot on a recent visit, one of the first things I noticed were the old EPCOT Center logos on these gates outside of the park. We had parked close enough to walk up to the entrance without riding the parking lot tram, and our walk took us past what used to be a side entrance to the ticket booths. Of course, now everyone has to enter either through the bag check lines or near the bag check area if they don’t have a bag, so these side entrances are closed off.
So since we couldn’t go in there, at least they had some cool old logos on the gates. If you aren’t familiar with them, the two side ones were the main EPCOT Center Logo, while the center logo was for Spaceship Earth back when each Future World pavilion had its own circular logo. The EPCOT Center logo is still used in some places, such as in the pavement near where Future World leads to World Showcase, so it is always good to see that it isn’t entirely gone.
And as you can see, there were some clouds in the sky as we were arriving. Earlier in the week, Tropical Storm Colin had brought a good bit of rain to the area, and in fact it rained at some point just about every day that we were there. I know they say that is normal for Florida, but for our trips, it was even more rain than usual. However, there was quite a bit of sun while we were in the area, too. And on this particular day, we had clouds at times, blue sky and sun at times, and even rain at times. A little bit of everything! Fortunately, the rain never was too intense, which was good for us since we didn’t bring rain jackets and didn’t want to buy ponchos.
While I thought I was being clever with my title for this post, based on the gates and the storm clouds, I wouldn’t actually recommend that you attempt to storm the gates of Epcot. That wouldn’t be wise. And if you did, this guy would probably stop you:
I’m talking about the guy in blue right in the center of this detail from the main photo, not the person in yellow in the background, by the way. Although that person might be able to stop you, too, for all I know. But anyway, just be careful and follow the rules, and everyone will have a fine old time at Epcot. Even if it rains.
Everyone must submit to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those that exist are instituted by God. So then, the one who resists the authority is opposing God’s command, and those who oppose it will bring judgment on themselves. - Romans 13:1-2
About the Photo
This photo may have a bit of a different look to it than some of what I have posted here lately. However, I used to produce lots of photos that have this look, so it isn’t exactly anything new. In the old days, it was done with multiple exposure HDR images and tone mapping. But for this one, I just used one exposure, and then used the Nik Filters in Photoshop to get this look. In particular, I used the Detail Extractor in the Color Efex Pro filter. That’s what gives it that special pop here. And it really brought out the clouds well.
Photo: A single Raw exposure, processed in Photoshop. Read more about photography tips, photo software, camera gear, and more at Steve’s Photography Tips.
Camera: Olympus OM-D E-M10
Lens: Rokinon 7.5mm f/3.5 Fisheye Lens
Date: June 9, 2016
Location: Epcot, Walt Disney World, Florida
