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You've probably seen the Disney PhotoPass photographers around the parks, especially in the last few years as Disney has been pushing them more and more in both Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Chances are you've probably passed them by and took your own photo with your camera, but the PhotoPass system at Disneyland has its advantages that you may not be aware of. Read through and think twice next time you see a photographer!
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Pros
- I think the biggest advantage is that PhotoPass photographers will take your picture with your phone if you ask them. They're not limited to using only their equipment. They may take a couple of shots with their camera and give you a PhotoPass card, but you don't have to redeem the photo if you don't want to.
- PhotoPass photographers are located in the best picture spots so you don't have to try and make what you can find work for you. Instead you already get the best with just a short wait!
- If there's a PhotoPass photographer at the character meet-and-greet, try to use them! With your PhotoPass card they will snap pictures of the whole encounter between you or your kids and the characters from the greeting to some of the "banter" between them and finally the posed shot. You get on average about 7 pictures to remember the whole experience which are fun to look back on!
- With purchase of PhotoPass via Genie+ you can link attraction photos of your group to your Disney account and download them directly to your phone or online. Don't take pictures of the screen again!
- Genie+ includes unlimited PhotoPass downloads for the day so you can keep costs low, hang on to your vacation memories, and enjoy access to select Lightning Lanes.
- Unlimited PhotoPass downloads are also typically included for any special ticketed event, such as Oogie Boogie Bash or Disneyland After Dark!
Cons
- Depending on the time of day, there can be a wait to have PhotoPass photographers take your picture.
- Not all character meet-and-greets have PhotoPass photographers present. When they don't then you really only have the posed shot and that's it, nothing fancy or extra special.
- Linking attraction photos to your Disney or PhotoPass account can be very confusing at first. There's a 7-digit code you need to remember (which isn't always completely visible) and a sub- sub-menu in the Disneyland app to try and find to input the code.
- Select character dining experiences are not included in PhotoPass packages.
- If you want each person in your party to access Lightning Lanes as well as PhotoPass, you must purchase a separate Genie+ for each person in your party. If you don't, you can still get the pictures but won't really be able to fully utilize the Genie+ service.
- In order to enjoy PhotoPass for your entire trip, you must purchase it for each day you're in the parks. Depending on the length of your stay, that could easily add up.
