It's Sunday, and that means it's time to use up some boring photos. Trust me, today's examples definitely fall into that category.
This one is arguably the best of the bunch, and it's not that good. There's the old mill, practically swallowed up by nature, while the dock for the rafts to and from the mainland is to our right. It's mostly a picture of trees.
MORE TREES! I really can't tell why the photographer took this picture. Perhaps there was a critter in the shadows? If so I couldn't discern it even after fiddling in Photoshop.
And finally, here's an off-kilter picture looking from the Mark Twain toward the Matterhorn, with the queue building at the bottom of the frame. Casa de Fritos can be seen, as well as that cute little bandstand where the Gonzalez Trio performed.
There does appear to be something in the center of that second pic, but what is it? Is it a bridge? Is it a house? Is it the Pope house? Is it Walt Disney's house? Maybe it's Walter Knott's house! (A couple weeks ago, a Knott's Berry Farm employee tried to tell me that the old "Doc Walker's Cabin" that used to be at Knott's, was the Knott Family's original home.)
ReplyDeleteMajor, I am in awe of your Photoshoppe skills. Not only do you use it for enhancing photos, but you are able to play a stringed instrument with it as well. You are a true virtuoso.
ReplyDeleteWhile it's not the best-composed photo, the last one does reveal one of my favorite, often-overlooked details - the second floor of the pueblo-like structure housing Casa de Fritos. I know the ladder is just a prop, but it hints at a much richer story. And the building's placement - with a Bavarian castle and a snow-covered Swiss mountain in the background - just adds to the hyper-realism of Disneyland's immersive world. I can almost taste the blue milk.
For those of you who visited yesterday, with MRaymond's help I found the foreground house in the vintage Mulholland photo. See yesterday's comments for details.
I love how the trash can at the raft dock is cleverly camouflaged among the wooden crates.
ReplyDeleteI really like that first image. It's lush compared to the barren Fantasmic! stage that's there today. The "aged" Old Mill and overgrown foliage make it look like the area's been that way for decades when in reality Tom Sawyer Island was only ten years old at the time the photo was taken. Thanks, Major.
ReplyDeleteTokyoMagic! I don't think that's Walter Disney's or Walter Knott's house that you are seeing in the second image. I believe it's Walter Kelly's house and Pogo the Possum and his friends live nearby. (I hope you set that Knott's Berry Farm employee straight on what was what at old "Doc Walker's Cabin". ;-)
I like the Old Mill photo, it is like discovering an old abandoned structure in the woods, very cool. The second picture is like one of those photos a Psychologist shows you. Not that I would know personally you understand. What do you see in this picture? A meese, a mountain lion, a scout sniper in a gilly suit? You decide. I had forgotten that Casa de Fritos had a top to it. I guess I was blinded by all those corn chips. Thanks Major.
ReplyDeleteTokyoMagic!, it isn’t the Pope house, it is THE POPE’S HOUSE! Sometimes he just needs to get away from the Vatican. I love it when employees give erroneous information, and I especially love it when a guest does the “Well, actually…” thing.
ReplyDeleteChuck, if today’s photos are a testament to my Photoshop skills, I might be in trouble! But I appreciate the kind words. You make a good point about the Casa de Fritos buiilding in the background - who even notices the second story from the ground level? If the “blue milk” from Galaxy’s Edge isn’t mostly vanilla-flavored, I will eat my shoes (regular flavored). Also, see my response to your detective work regarding the Mulholland Drive photo in yesterday’s comments!
Melissa, it was so cleverly camouflaged that it took me a minute to see it!
K. Martinez, I agree, the lush landscaping definitely gives the island a different feel. That “Fantasmic!” stage structure is SO ugly - I hate that we have to look at that for most of the day so that it can be used for maybe an hour (if they do 2 shows a night). Also, 50 points to Hufflepuff for mentioning Pogo and Walt Kelly!
Jonathan, now that you mention it, I think I see Walt Disney hiding there in a gully suit! What a rascal. He loved to watch guests at his park. Instead of a sniper rifle, he looked like a shrub smoking a cigarette. Hey, I’ve seen weirder stuff in my life.
She BLINDED me with CORN CHIPS!
ReplyDeleteThe original charm of TSI is shown in that first shot. I rounded that corner many a time steering a canoe. When you think of it, the mill was a subtle "weenie", setting the character of the area and charming in its own way. It's much too slick looking these days for me. KS
ReplyDelete@ Chuck-
ReplyDelete" I know the ladder is just a prop, but it hints at a much richer story". You ain't kidding. It's actually the proverbial 'stairway to heaven'... (Oh, yes it is-!)
Major-
Trees are The Best. Can't have enough of 'em.
Melissa, that is one of Thomas Dolby's worst songs! ;-)
ReplyDeleteKS, I don't even thing the current-day mill (or whatever it's supposed to be is "slick", it's just big and kind of sterile and as I said before, ugly! The old one was appealing, like it had been there 100 years.
Nanook, maybe it was the "stairway to paradise", like the Gershwins wrote about?
They really loved antlers on the RoA. I've seen them strewn on the roof of the mill, but never noticed them on the Mark Twain's dock before.
ReplyDeleteMajor, this post is proof that the GDB crowd can find interesting details in almost any photo of Disneyland. Thanks for posting the rejects. We will take anything!
ReplyDeleteJG