Harvest time at Big Thunder Ranch presents a great opportunity to enjoy vintage Halloween decor and ephemera. It amazes me how things change stylistically over time. The variance from 60 years ago to today is really just the tip of the iceberg for the boundlessness of creativity. I wonder how today’s designs will stack up in 50 or 60 years from now.
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Crystal Arcade Pumpkins
The Crystal Arcade pumpkins are one of my favorite clusters on Main Street. I think it has a lot to do with the way the orange hue of the pumpkins pops against the bluish green of the Crystal Arcade. In the morning, the sun really gives them a nice glow. You could probably spend half a day or more discovering all of the pumpkins on Main Street. I love how expressive they are.
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Halloween Time Begins at Disneyland
I love when Halloween Time begins at Disneyland. Pumpkins line Main Street window displays and rooftops. Artists create pumpkin masterpieces at Big Thunder Ranch. Haunted Mansion Holiday and Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy return. The vibrant yellows and oranges found in the flora and decor help Disneyland take on a different atmosphere that is cozy and inviting. Halloween Time at Disneyland also signifies that Christmas is right around the corner and that may just be my favorite time of year at Disneyland.
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Passing By the Halloween Tree
The Halloween Tree in Frontierland is probably my favorite Halloween time element at Disneyland. I really enjoy the expressions of all the different pumpkins adorning the tree. What’s even more fun is watching people pass by and notice them for the first time. It’s certainly easier to notice as the sun goes down and the lights come on!
The Lonesome Ghost
This lonesome ghost came out to enjoy Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party when we attended last year. Actually he wasn’t really all that lonesome. There were throngs of people moseying their way through the Big Thunder Ranch area of Frontierland, bags of candy in hand. If the crowd isn’t solid and you have a little patience, you can still capture shots that look empty by using a long exposure time. As long as people keep moving, you can end up with a shot like this that’s nearly empty. That’s where the patience comes in.
Sometimes you’ll set up for a 30 second exposure and 20 seconds into it, someone may stop. If they do, they’ll probably show up in your image. Then you get to start again and hope for the best. At Disneyland, there’s a particularly pesky problem – things that glow. I’m not talking about the way Main Street pumpkins glow. I’m talking about the hodgepodge of flashing neon merchandise that can be purchased all over the Park. It’s easy to miss something like that in person. A child in a stroller may have a spinning Sorcerer Mickey that lights up. In person, something like that is hardly noticeable. In a 30 second exposure, it’s an unpleasant light streak that leaves you scratching your head for a moment when you review pictures after dropping them to your computer.
You know what they say — If at first you don’t succeed, snatch all the glowy things and crush them like the Incredible Hulk* — or something like that.
*This message is not endorsed by Tours Departing Daily, its subsidiaries or 4 out of 5 dentists.
The Fiery Frontier Furnace
Mickey’s Halloween Party at Disneyland holds a lot of fun surprises. Some of the best are the unique ways different parts of the Park are lit. A familiar atmosphere instantly transports you somewhere else. A harmless cavern becomes a frightening fiery furnace. As the howling of a hungry wolf pierces through the echoes of a brooding storm, do you dare look to see what’s inside? Imagination races wild on the frontier at Halloween time.
