Alright, you super liners have convinced me on getting MM. I’ve researched everything for months except this. We leave in one week.
How do I make the most of Memory Maker? DD11, DD15, me and DH. What do I need to know?
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It boggles my mind that people pay for Memory Maker. It’s insanely expensive. Like I don’t know how Disney has the nerve to charge that much. But people pay it.
I’m not having a go at you, because my next point is: my most favourite photos ever taken of me ever were MM photos. And I hate photos of me.
The key for me has been character meals and character meets. Those are where I’ve had the best pictures taken.
I guess I also like the Rapunzel hot-air-balloon thing, which they do at night.
There are MM photographers all over the place. The pictures are hit and miss — they take them very quickly without framing them beautifully — but you often get a really good one because they take maybe half a dozen and one will be a winner.
You also get ride photos, some of which are automated if you have a Magic Band. I’m a bit meh about these, though some people know where the cameras are and do special poses.
There are the standard “in front of the castle”-type shots, but I’m a bit meh about those, too. I prefer doing selfies in places like that.
So, yeah, character meet and greets and character meals are my preference and I’ve been very happy with the results.
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Make sure you ask for magic shots too, if you like having tinkerbelk show up in your picture or other things like that.
Don’t be afraid to mix up who’s in the picture or do different poses, just don’t take too long if there’s a line.
Make sure you stop at different places to get different views. Don’t just get a picture on main st with the castle behind you.
Know which rides have photos. Ride multiple times and try to make silly poses. Hint: nobody ever seems to get a good Space ranger spin photo (at least in my family). Figure out where the picture is taken and try to get a good one.
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On MDE there is a setting that lets you find the photographers. Remember to ask for magic shots when you get your photos taken.
Since character meets are a bit part of it, look at Kenny the Pirate’s site for his list of character interaction tips. It’s a long list that is character specific. You can do more than just say hi, and end up with interesting shots.
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Meet lots of characters. Stop every time you see a photo pass photographer. Do some silly pictures. Make sure you tap in after rides where there are on ride photos.
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Ah. That’s what they are called. The things I DESPISE. Okay. I get why people might like them, but honestly, when I’m looking back at my vacation years later, I don’t care about what things were imaginary. I care about the things we actually saw/did. The shots of the family enjoying themselves together. The “magic shots”, as they are apparently called, are just fake in every way possible.
But that’s just me. Next time, ask me how I really feel! 
Yesterday, Disney Parks Blog had this article, with a link to download a guide to all the photopass locations, including on-ride photos and magic shots. Note that the guide is marked as “summer.”
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On the magic shots, do you get the original, unadulterated photo too?
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My experience with this is that they take plenty of pictures, then if you ask for a magic shot, or if they suggest it (which they did for us), they only give you the doctored version (of that specific shot). For example, my family would have looked pretty silly looking up at the sky while my daughter was pretending to hold a big batch of balloons that were not in the image. 
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I’m with you. I’m a designer by trade and magic shots hurt my soul.
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Make sure to get lots of shots if you’re in the parks early so you get photos without tons of people in the background. At each stop ask for multiple groupings (just kids, one kid, adults, everyone, etc.) so you end up with more shots per stop. Obviously, being mindful if there is a line waiting behind you. In MK there are photographers at the sides of the castle along the bridges. This makes a beautiful shot and not many people stop there.
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After spending over $1000 on tickets and over $2000 on a resort and over $1000 on plane tickets and hundreds on food, $150 for photos is pocket change! The benefits as I see it is that you don’t have to worry about carrying around a good camera or taking the time to hand over your camera to the photographer, and you get the on-ride photos automatically - that you could not possibly get without MM. I think if you have kids, it makes it more worth it than if it is just you or you and an SO.
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Damn. I agree with you. Very much.
It’s like when Tinkerbell appears at the end of Soarin’. Completely ruins it for me. I’m happy suspending my disbelief that I’m really flying over various parts of the world, but then a cartoon character appears and I ripped out of the fiction and into a whole different reality.
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Make sure to download them as soon as you get home! There is only a limited amount of time where they will be available. (I forget what the timeframe is, I’m sure you can google it), but to be safe, download them ASAP!
As added protection, backup your photos to a cloud service like Carbonite, Google Photos, Apple Photos, OneDrive, etc. That way you not only have them on your home computer, but in the cloud for safe keeping and easy access from anywhere.
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Agree that it is great to get there early in the morning before the crowds, get some better shots without crowds.
Also, don’t feel rushed and don’t decide to skip a photographer because there is a long line waiting. Often there is a large group of people getting their picture taken together. One group makes up 75% of the line.
My DD14 always got a couple of shots taken by herself after the family group pictures. Some of those shots came out great.!
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Because a giant mouse, duck, chipmunks, etc are so real! Grow up!
I haven’t seen a lot that i like, but it doesn’t hurt to get them done too.
To be fair, I also don’t do meet and greets.
Tell us about people taking pictures while on rides…
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I would…but I don’t think the Touring Plans servers can handle that much…
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