The Wildest Ride in the Wilderness at Walt Disney World
A runaway mine train races around a bend and out over the Rivers of America at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Frontierland at Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom.
I always love to get a few photos of Big Thunder Mountain and it’s runaway train when we are at Walt Disney World. Of course, getting photos of the mountain itself is much easier than getting photos of the moving train. Its top speed may only be 28 miles per hour, but that is still relatively fast when you are standing still and waiting for it to come by. And trying to time your shutter-button-pressing just right, too.
My main intention here may or may not have been to have the train more centered on the track in the frame. But I liked this version of it as it was going on around the bend up ahead, so I went with this take instead. At first, you mainly notice the train, but then you can also start to notice some of the details, such as the abandoned mining equipment nearby, as well as the sluice that is still flowing with water. You really can’t see those as you are zipping by. And the track out over the water goes by so quickly that most people on the train don’t even notice it at all. You can click on the photo to see it a little larger, so that you can see even more details.
Do you ever wonder about how many other people’s photos you might be in? I’m sure all of the people on the train didn’t stop to think about how they might be in my photo. And I don’t really think about being in other people’s photos when I am there, either. Although I am sure I have ended up in the vacation photos of countless strangers over the years.
What got me to thinking about being in others’ photos was the couple in the last car of the train in this photo. Here’s a closer look:
As you can see, she is taking a selfie photo or maybe video of the ride. And since she is pointing the camera somewhat in my direction, maybe I am in the background of that photo or video. I should have waved, I guess.
Hey, maybe I’m famous now and don’t even know it! But probably not.
God is my helper; the Lord is the sustainer of my life. - Psalm 54:4
About the photo:
We had just gotten off the ride, and I lingered at the exit to get this photo of one of the trains that was behind us. As I always do.
Thanks to the Raw file, I was able to pull some detail out of the clouds, because they were washed out in the original JPG version. Just another reminder to always shoot Raw. Because even though the clouds weren’t the main part of the shot, a washed-out sky would have been a bit distracting, I think.
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: Olympus M.Zukio 25mm f1.8
Date: June 11, 2015
Location: Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World, Florida
