The Cookies are NOT a Lie

If you're a big Star Wars fan, you've probably heard the catch phrase "Join the Dark Side...we have cookies". Most people think this is just a silly joke or something totally humorous but, yesterday I found out the truth. These cookies are not a lie!!

When we were outside talking to Dave Young after the Legends of the Force parade, some random member of the 501st came over with a box of cookies and asked if we would like any. They had all sorts of Star Wars designs on them too...I noticed one had a sugar outline of Darth Vader. Chase took a cookie and said it was quite delicious. Ha ha!

Very random update there but I just wanted to tell everyone that the cookie deal is a reality!!! JOIN THE DARK SIDE!!

Day 9 of SWW 2012

The third weekend of Disney's Star Wars Weekends is officially over and boy was it great! Today was a pretty easy going because we didn't have too many things that we needed to get done. We arrived at the park around 10:00am again and headed over to Silas Carson's autograph session at Echo Lake to see if we could get any walk-up autographs. After waiting for a little while, we succeeded and got some 5x7 black and white prints signed by Silas. He remembered us from the previous two days too!

Soon it became time for the Legends of the Force parade so we waited in our special area again until it was 12:40pm, show time! Today Dave Young was in the parade as Commander Wolffe with the rest of the Wolfpack. After seeing him a few times, I'm still in shock over how cool his Wolffe armor looks! In fact, I think I'm a fan of all Phase II clone armor from The Clone Wars series. Their helmet designs are just amazing! All of the Rebel Legion and 501st members were great today. I got so many good pictures of everyone smiling and waving at the crowds. When Ashley Eckstein went by, she yelled "I love your shirt!" from the car. That was really awesome! I was totally flaunting my epic Wolffe shirt today and was very pleased that she liked it too. Towards the end of the parade, my family slipped outside the park to walk over by the 501st area and see Dave again. He was pretty excited to see that I was wearing the shirt he designed and we got a few pictures together. This is, by far, the best picture I've gotten at SWW this year. I just love my new shirt!

After talking with Dave for a while, we headed out of the Hollywood Studios to grab some lunch but we returned later in the afternoon to see Ashley Eckstein. Every day she signs Her Universe merchandise in Darth's Mall from 3:00pm-4:00pm. I really wanted to thank Ashley in person for doing the interview/blog post with me so we decided to wait in her autograph line. While standing around for Ashley, a lady actually recognized me from posting pictures and comments on the Her Universe Facebook page. The awesome part was that I knew exactly who she was too! Stephanie and I had a super fun time just talking about Star Wars Weekends and photography. Turns out, she's really interested in film and photography too. I've definitely made a new friend! We're going to hang out more next weekend.

Seeing Ashley Eckstein pretty much wrapped up our day at Disney's Star Wars Weekends! We'll be returning very early on Friday morning to line up for autograph fastpasses. I'm looking forward to seeing Nika Futterman, who voices Asajj Ventress in The Clone Wars, as well as a "special guest" that Disney has not announced to the public yet. 

Day 8 of SWW 2012

Cutest little girl today's parade!!

Day 8 of Disney's Star Wars Weekends is complete! Today we arrived at the park a little later than usual since we didn't need autographs. Our main goals were to see the Legends of the Force parade and James Arnold Taylor's "Obi-Wan and Beyond" show. 

My mom, brother, and I got to the Hollywood Studios around 10:00am and immediately went over to Echo Lake so we could hang out with some friends. Our big group of buddies always get a photo together on one of the days at SWW and this year we had all planned to get the picture done today. After waiting around for everyone to get organized and placed correctly, we got a few group pictures and Silas Carson even got to be in one of them! He stood right next to me, which was pretty cool. When I get a copy of this picture, I'll be sure to share it on PLC!

Chase and I were both in our Jedi costumes for most of the day. A few families came up to us and asked if we could pose for pictures and everything. I love it when people recognize how much effort we put into our costumes and think that we look like Jedi Knights straight from the Star Wars movies. Plus, the kids are so sweet when they think they're meeting a "real Jedi". 

Later we walked over to our special spot to wait for the Legends of the Force parade. Time passed quickly and it was finally time for the parade to start. Thank goodness it didn't get rained out again! Today Dave Young was geared up in his Commander Colt armor and walked alongside his fellow ARC troopers, Fives and Echo.  When the parade was about half-way through, we decided to head out and meet Dave in the parking lot again for group pictures with the ARCs. I got some nice shots of the guys and my mom even got a few photos of me with them! After chatting for a little bit, Dave gave me the big surprise that he's been waiting on for a while. It was a T-shirt that says "I (Wolfpack Logo) Commander Wolffe"...because everyone knows how much I love Wolffe! Since Dave and his friends will be in Wolfpack armor tomorrow, I'll definitely be wearing my new shirt to support the pack and show off my love for Wolffe!

Since it was getting really hot in the afternoon, Chase and I decided to change into normal clothes around lunch time so we could enjoy the rest of the day without dying from the heat. We love wearing our Jedi costumes but, they can get pretty unbearable after a few hours. When we went back into the park, Chase split off to ride Tower of Terror and Rockin' Roller Coaster a few times while my mom and I watched the Stars of the Saga show. James Arnold Taylor is a fantastic host at Star Wars Weekends and I enjoyed seeing him talk to the other celebrity guests in this show. Silas Carson was really funny and told some neat stories about his experiences on set for the prequels. Jake Llyod was a little more quiet than Silas but, he told some interesting recollections too. 

As soon as this show let out, my mom and I turned right back around to line up for JAT's "Obi-Wan and Beyond" show. We've seen this at last year's SWW but it such a wonderful show that it deserves being seen multiple times. I had also heard from a few friends that James had added some new segments to the show that weren't in there last year. James' show was absolutely AMAZING!! If you only have one day to spend at SWW, this needs to be at the top of your "to do" list. JAT is so talented and inspiring; you'll walk out of that show feeling like you can conquer the world! Also, when we were sitting in the theater waiting for his show to start, a woman sitting behind me caught my attention and said "Hey! You're the girl that Ashley Eckstein interviewed for Her Universe!" I was really shocked and excited to see that someone actually recognized me from that! 

So that wraps up my awesome day! We all had a great time just seeing friends and hanging out with everyone. I'll be back at SWW tomorrow too. Nothing much on the schedule other than seeing the parade and Wolfpack again for more pictures! Oh, and flaunting my new Commander Wolffe shirt. Ha ha! I can't believe the third weekend is almost over. Wow, how time flies! 

Day 7 of SWW 2012

Today was another successful day of Disney's Star Wars Weekends! Instead of going to see tons of shows and check out the merchandise again, my crew decided just to tackle autographs and try to meet all the celebrity guests.

Yoda gear

We arrived at the park around 4:00am in order to line up for autograph fastpasses again. I personally needed to see Silas Carson and Catherine Taber to get their autographs on 2 of my prints for the upcoming giveaway. Chase needed Silas to sign a few different prints and he also wanted to get Jake Llyod's autograph on his Episode I poster. We all decided to get in Silas Carson's line though because Disney has been enforcing a "one autograph per person" rule lately and we didn't want to break any guidelines. After getting our autograph fastpasses, my mom headed back to the car and sleep before having to be at the first signing session for Silas. Chase and I hung out with our good friends Josh, Troy, and Josh's little nephew, Jacob. This was Jacob's first ever time to Disney so we took it easy and let him ride Toy Story Mania and Star Tours a few times before moving on to other things. He had such a fun time on Star Tours and really enjoyed all the different combinations. And I was finally the Rebel Spy for once! Whoo hoo!

Later we headed over to Echo Lake and met up at Silas Carson's first signing session and got to meet him. I was really looking forward to meeting him today because Silas portrays my favorite Jedi, Ki-Adi Mundi in the prequels. We got to talk about that character a little bit and Silas mentioned that he's very popular in Japan due to having that role in Star Wars! Then Chase and my mom got to meet him and we all posed for a group picture. Silas had no problem signing extra pictures too so that was very nice.

After roaming around the park some more and just chilling out, I decided to head on over to the parade spot with Josh, Troy, and Jacob. We sat there for some time just holding a good seat for the Legends of the Force parade. However, it started pouring rain around 11:00am so the parade was eventually cancelled and we decided to eat lunch instead. I was disappointed that we wouldn't be able to see the Legends of the Force parade but, there's always tomorrow! 

Josh and I also went to watch the Behind the Force show again so Jacob could see all the cool Clone Wars stuff. During this time, Chase, Troy, and my mom went over to Jake Llyod's autograph session to see if they could meet him after he saw all the people with guaranteed and stand-by fastpasses. Jake signs very quickly so they were all able to meet him and get his autograph on whatever posters/prints they needed. 

At this time, it was still raining like crazy and showed no sign of holding up. Josh, Troy, and Jacob left because they had done everything they wanted for the day. Chase and I went over to Catherine Taber's autograph signing session and attempted to get another walkl-up autograph. It worked and she signed my Clone Wars print! Catherine is such a nice lady and we had a good time briefly talking about Behind the Force and the whole SWW event. 

Even though the weather was gloomy today, I wasn't upset because the rain was better than the sun burning me alive! I'll be back at Star Wars Weekends again tomorrow. Instead of getting autographs though, my goal is to see the parade, JAT's Obi-Wan and Beyond Show, and get some pictures again with Dave Young as Commander Colt and the other ARC troopers in the 501st. Chase and I will also both be wearing our Jedi costumes. Hopefully Mustaflorida will be nice and we won't get overheated or sick from dehydration. I hope you are enjoying these posts about SWW because I'm having a blast writing them! May the Force be with you! 

Her Universe Blog Post

Ashley Eckstein published a post on the Her Universe blog about the merchandise shop at Disney's Star Wars Weekends, my photographs of all the new products, and a video interview. Click HERE to check it out and don't forget to visit Disney's Hollywood Studios for Star Wars Weekends. It's a really great event that's full of fun!

High Dynamic Range Samples

Last week I did a couple posts about the process of High Dynamic Range photography. I've recently had a chance to get outside when it's not pouring rain and test out HDR frames. The first two pictures were taken around my yard. Both used multiple frames to create the intense contrast, light, and color combination. The third photo was taken at Star Wars Weekends and it's just a single frame that I filtered with an HDR effect. 

I love how this process really accentuates shadows and highlights...especially on the Wolfpack armor. You can see every little detail! What do you think of my High Dynamic Range shots?

Giveaway Progress

Here are all the autographs I've gotten on my Clone Wars print at Star Wars Weekends so far. I'll be getting Catherine Taber, Nika Futterman, and hopefully another very special celebrity to sign this in the next 2 weekends of SWW. This print will be given away when PLC reaches 100 followers (click the "follow" button or enter your email address). Signed Ki-Adi Mundi and Aurra Sing pictures will be given away as 2nd and 3rd prizes too. 

Ashley Eckstein (Ahsoka Tano), Tom Kane (Yoda), James Arnold Taylor (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Dee Bradley Baker (clones) have all currently autographed this piece.