Jurassic Park

[FrankMi]

I'm going to try something different. We went to Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure this summer and I've been trying to find a way to make some of the shots I took at the Theme Park more interesting to view.

I find that taking images in a theme park to be difficult at best owing to the crowds and the constant jumble of backgrounds. Most of the best pictures are snapshots of family and are personal. But what about the park itself? How do you get good images of an amusement park?

I'll start by showing part of the Jurassic Park River Adventure that isn't overly crowded, The river ride's exit.



For the moment, let's visualize being at the entrance and taking in the story line. It goes something like this...

"It's lunchtime... and you're on the menu! Take an unforgettable river raft ride through the jungles of Jurassic Park and see dinosaurs in their natural habitats.

Gently glide past an enormous Ultrasaurus. See a baby Stegosaurus and its mother. Watch out for the Dilophosauruses, commonly known as "spitters."

Suddenly you're bumped off course and into a restricted section of the park… the Raptor Containment Area. The power to the fences is down. The raptors have broken loose! You ascend into the Environmental Systems Building as chaos unfolds around you. The lights are out. Raptors stalk your every move. And your only escape from the terrifying jaws of a towering T-rex is an 85-foot plunge in total darkness!"

.
..
...

If you make it out alive, this is where you end up after the 85 foot drop.



Just for fun, open the first image in Lytebox and by clicking on the Forward and Back arrows at the bottom of the Lytebox, you should be able to seamlessly switch back and forth between the two images.

I hope you enjoyed the ride.

Your thoughts, comments, critiques, suggestions...?

[IzzieK]

That is a very nice experience, Frank Miller. Switching back and forth is more fun too...

[Shadowman]

Very nice.

[AB26]

A very nice ride, Frank.

The 85 foot drop? I keep looking where that might have come from. Shooting portrait mode would have included the top of the building where the 85 foot drop starts. The fence in the foreground makes me feel “isolated” from what is happening in the image. Getting a little more of a head on shot would probably not have been possible. Not much, just a little.

In theme parks, zoo’s and anywhere people get together I find it very difficult to get a shot that really tells the story I wish to convey in an image.

Nice shots, they look great in the Lytebox.

[Donald]

Just for fun, open the first image in Lytebox and by clicking on the Forward and Back arrows at the bottom of the Lytebox,

That's brilliant, Frank. Yet another idea you've generated to be filed for future use.

[gregj1763]

Very nice images Frank but I have to ask, DID YOU GO ON IT

[FrankMi]

Thank you for your feedback Isabel, John, Andre, Donald, and Greg! It was a fun project to try to get the two scenes matched up! Glad you enjoyed the ride!

Andre, when built, the ride's 85 foot plunge was the largest theme park water descent ever constructed. I like the idea of not including the fence but I would have had to consider that at shooting time and my thoughts were to have something in the foreground to add depth to the scene. To crop now leaves the sled too low in the scene.

Although I couldn't get any more to the right for this composition, there was another water ride (Ripsaw Falls) where I could get directly in front. I didn't use that one because the effect was to see almost nothing but water spray and the context was lost.

Hi Greg, I would have loved to do this adventure but my bride doesn't do well on this kind of a ride and I prefer to stay with her rather than leave her behind and go alone.

For those that are interested, here is a slightly longer description of what happens...

The ride starts with an area called Ultrasaur Lagoon, where two Ultrasaurus are seen eating plants in the water. Two Psittacosaurus are also seen. The boat then moves behind a waterfall and emerges in an area called Stegosaur Springs, where riders then see an adult Stegosaurus and its young. We then see two Compys fighting over an empty popcorn box. The boat then enters an area called Hadrosaur Cove, where a parasaurolophus pops up in front of the raft, followed by a second. The Jurassic Park Animal Control calls, revealing that the second parasaurolophus threw the raft off course, causing it to enter the raptor containment area, which is shown to be heavily damaged.

Riders next encounter what appears to be an abandoned tour raft, where a Dilophosaurus is seen eating the remains of a poncho. A nearby motorboat is also abandoned. Apparently, the boat had been sent by Jurassic Park Animal Control to guide the raft towards a safe area, but the Dilophosaurus appears to have killed the tourists and boat crew. As of 2011, a Mickey Mouse hat can be seen floating in the water next to the ruined raft as an apparent reference to nearby themepark rival Disneyland.

The raft then heads towards the park's water pumping station. A crushed Jurassic Park tour vehicle falls from the top of a wall overhead and nearly crushes the riders below as Dilophosauruses jump out and spit their toxic venom (water) at guests. When night falls, sparks and flood lights are added to the effect.

The raft then enters the massive Environmental Systems Building and slowly begins to ascend a long lift hill. A voice on a loudspeaker in the building alerts guests that an emergency evacuation is going to be attempted. As the raft makes its way up the lift hill, numerous alarms are heard as escaped Velociraptors lunge out at guests. Once the raft reaches the top of the lift hill, it drops down a small waterfall and is attacked by a Tyrannosaurus. A claw falls from the ceiling followed by its head and a set of collapsing pipes above riders' heads. Roaring is heard.

A technician begins counting down when the building's life support systems will terminate (due to "toxic gases" released during the Tyrannosaurus encounter). The raft climbs a small lift hill that brings it closer to the emergency evacuation drop. A second technician screams "If you can hear my voice, get out of there! It's in the building! IT'S IN THE BUILDING!"

The Tyrannosaurus then emerges from a waterfall coming from broken pipes in front of the raft, and lunges down to grab the raft, and the raft escapes by plunging down an 85 feet (26 m) high near-vertical evacuation drop and into a tropical lagoon outside the Environmental Systems Building. A Dilophosaur tries to squirt "venom" at the passengers one last time. A can of Barbasol can be seen in the planter just before the ride ends, referencing the can Dennis Nedry uses in the first film. The raft finally makes its way to the unload dock where guests disembark the ride.