Reflections of “Reflections of China”

Walking through EPCOT at night is one of my favorite things to do. It is surprisingly darker than one might expect of a theme park, yet you can still see things you never would have seen in the day time. The China pavilion, though lit better than many pavilions of the World Showcase, reveals a lot of shadow play at night. The intricate angles and geometric shapes created by the architecture cast unfamiliar shadows on the ground and make this pavilion even more beautiful.

On the November 2021 trip (the first trip back to WDW in a VERY long time), the darkness of EPCOT was minimized, with a clear sky and a nearly full moon. Yet, that meant that there were more vibrant colors and depth to the entire park, perfect for pictures. While walking past the building that shows Reflections of China, the short Circle-Vision 360 film, I noticed the reflection of the building and knew I had to capture it.

I tried to line up the shot to capture the reflection, but not distract from the building itself. The moon really did the rest, brightening up the sky a bit, but helping to emphasize the contrast between shadows and highlights. I love how the blue in the sky really draws out the blue accents in the paint of the building and the flags. While I didn’t wait for the people in the shot to clear, I had hoped (with some success) that the long exposure might blur them out a bit and ultimately not distract from the shot. It even adds a little movement to the frame.

This is one of my favorite photos from the hundreds I took that night. Little did I know I’d be eating crickets later…but that is a whole other story.