Walt Disney World has just announced this month that they will now allow guests to take off masks for outdoor photos (in socially-distanced locations), so I thought it would be a good time to revisit the Photopass service and the Memory Maker package.

Photopass is the name of Disney’s photography service. Photopass photographers are stationed all around the parks, in front of all the iconic photo locations and at many of the character meet ‘n’ greets. You’ll see them as soon as you enter the park.Usually they’re really easy to spot because they may have a short line of guests standing behind them waiting their turn.

When they take your picture, they’ll ask to scan your Magic Band. This photo will then be linked to your My Disney Experience account. Many rides also have automatic photos that you can see after you exit the ride. You can scan your Magic Band on the sensor below the photo display to add it to your account. Sometimes, there is no scanner – sensors will read the RFID chips in your Magic Bands and add it to your account automatically.

Sometimes photographers will suggest poses that seem a little odd. When you look at your account, you’ll see they have digitally inserted a character into the photo. These are called “magic shots.” You can ask the photographers if they do any magic shots if they don’t suggest any.

Besides the regular magic shots, they are doing some really cool things with digital technology: Super Zoom and Tiny World shots. In Magic Kingdom near the hub, in the Galaxy’s Edge land in Hollywood Studios, and at Animal Kingdom near Expedition Everest you can get a “SuperZoom” shot. You’ll pose in a specific spot (look for a photographer with an ipad instead of a camera). A camera mounted on the roof of a building opposite you takes a close up photo, a zoomed out photo, and you also get a little video of the zooming in. 

The Tiny World shots are available in Galaxy’s Edge at Hollywood Studios and at Animal Kingdom near the It’s Tough to Be a Bug exit.  Again, look for a Photopass castmember with an iPad). Somehow, your image is manipulated to look like you’re standing on top of your own tiny planet. It’s a really unique souvenir!

When you view the photos on your account, they’ll have a large watermark over them. You can purchase photos or products with your photos on them.

Individual photos can be pricey. If you think you might want to purchase multiple photos, you should consider purchasing the Memory Maker package.

Memory Maker

Memory Maker is Disney’s photo package. Your purchase gets you unlimited downloads of all the Photopass photos you pose for during your vacation. The package also includes your on-ride photos and you can customize the photos with fancy borders and captions. This package is $169 if you add it onto your package at least 3 days in advance of arrival and $199 if you purchase thereafter.

Once you’ve purchased Memory Maker, you’ll need to activate it. This is done once you’ve taken your first pic. Go to Photos in the Disney app. You’ll find it by tapping the three horizontal bars at the bottom right. Tap on the first picture and you’ll be prompted to activate your Memory Maker. Then the watermarks are removed and you can download or share your photos

In the past, I had always strongly recommended Memory Maker. There is no limit to the amount of photos you can take, and it’s so nice to be able to have everyone in the family in the picture. However, because of Covid we are currently not able to take photos with the characters, and you had to keep your masks on for all photos. For those reasons, I didn’t feel as strongly that it was a good value. Now that we are able to pose for outdoor shots with masks off, I’ll go back to recommending Memory Maker again – even without character photos. 

What do you think? Have you taken advantage of the Memory Maker package before? Would you do it again? Drop your comments below, and if you have any questions or would like help planning your trip, please CONTACT us today!