Not Just Any Tree
The Tree of Life, or the larger-than-life 145 foot sculpture resembling a baobob tree located near the center of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, is a sight during any time of day. In fact, it is one of my favorite things in the entire Disney-verse. The animals that are “carved” into the tree’s trunk and the root system below it are magnificent, and a eye-spy game of “find the animal” could occupy an entire day. However, at night, many of those details fade into the darkness. But that doesn’t mean there is nothing to see. During the darker hours, the Tree of Life, like many of the icons of the Disney parks at night, is doused in projected light and animation, offering another bit of magic. In honor of WDW 50th anniversary, these projections are especially bright, reflecting the “EAR-idescent” theme of the anniversary.
The angle from which this picture is taken, more “behind” the tree and near the rear of the park on that connective section between Asia and Africa, is not the opportune spot for viewing the projections. Sure, you can still see the lighted scenes, but they really weren’t designed for this vantage point. As a result, no one is there, giving someone like me all the room he wants to bounce around and find the perfect angle for a photo.
The fog was settling in on this night, in spite of the clear, star-filled sky and bright moon, which set the stage perfectly. The lights from the projections were intensified by the fog, yet only right around the tree. The “EAR-idescent” blues and whites really sparkled and contrasted perfectly against the yellows and oranges of the park lighting in the foreground. (There is even a little hidden Mickey in there!) The fog then reflected the light to backdrop the tree in smoky light.
This was one of those shots that I knew was going to be special before I even opened it in the photo editor. The only editing I really did was to lighten the exposure just a touch and boost up the saturation. Looking at it again, I could actually see cropping out about a 1/3 of the foreground, but that would mean losing the hidden Mickey — and that just seems wrong.
