Electricians Closet: The Boardwalk Lobby

The Boardwalk has the feel and charm of the American Boardwalks of the early 1900s. And with that comes some beautiful Lighting. In the Lobby of the resort are several amazing chandeliers and accent lights. One thing to notice is the amount of natural light that illuminates the lobby. This is a nice touch as it's a tribute to those early days. Although the electric light was common at the time the bulbs were not as bright as today's are. In fact, they would not light a room much more than a lantern. So to compensate you need many lights and ways to reflect the light. Hence the chandeliers with many bulbs and also the use of mirrors and crystals in the room.

 

The next to photos show some of the accent lightings found around the lobby fireplace. These lights are more for accenting and reading as opposed to the large chandeliers used for lighting the whole room.

 

Dundy's Sundries has a beautiful stain-glass sign illuminated from behind.

The fun model of a roller coaster has very tiny pin lights on the loop.

Two built-in bookcases in the lounge use photo frame lights to illuminate vintage board game boards. Also, we see some vintage radios that are used to pipe in background music. In the good old days, they would glow from the tubes inside. The model of the Singer sewing machine in the upper right would not be electric but it would have an electric light attached to it to see the needle better.

One more Chandler, this one located in the lobby of the conference center.

Electricians Closet: The Wilderness Lodge

Today on the third installment of Electricians Closet we head to the shores of Bay Lake to take a close look at some of the lighting of the Wilderness Lodge. One of the most highly detailed and themed resorts at Walt Disney World, The Lodge resembles the great lodges of the American National Parks. This includes the Old Faithful Inn, where most of  the exterior and lobby get its inspiration. The look will defiantly put you in a place where you wouldn't be shocked to spot a buffalo roaming near the pine trails. But its the lighting that really delivers the final punch to full immersion. 

Animal hide is a recurring theme it makes great lamp shades. Below we see some great examples. From top left going clockwise we have: A hard to spot Chandler in the Wilderness Mercantile shop just off the lobby. Next a floor lamp in a side room off the villa's entryway. One of many wall sconces along the halls of the main building, most have unique paintings on them. And lastly in the lower left we have famous Tepee Chandlers. The sad thing is this is also an example of what the folks at Disney like to call bad show. if you look close enough you'll see that the first tepee's top half is not illuminated... and that makes me sad.

The next example or set of examples of themed lighting I want to show off is the integration of stained glass. It gives almost the same look as hide or canvas but changes it up just enough to add some Art Deco nods of class. Below from left to right: Chandler in Villas hallway, below that a wall sconce in the main guest hallways. The middle we have the Marquee for Artist Point restaurant. And on the right top a lantern from the hall by Artist Point leading to Roaring Fork. Below that a sconce at the Old Faithful Club on the concierge floor.

This next photo shows two more examples of stained glass but here we see how they work to light the room and set the mood. On the left the main room of Artist Point. On the right the seating area in the Golden Spike Room at the Villas.

And lastly today we are going to look at the lighting of the night. All that external lighting that not only helps you see where your going but again sets the mood. This time it sets a mood of relaxation and calming. Taking the pool and courtyard areas from loud and sometimes crazy spaces to one of serenity and even romance.  Below from top left going clockwise: Path lights leading to the small pool, The front of the Lodge. The back of the lodge. Path Lighting on the trail that leads to Fort Wilderness Campground.

Electricians Closet: Main Street Holidays

No place do we see the seasons change like we do on Main Street U.S.A. From the normal pin lights threw Halloween and right up till Christmas the lighting sets the stage. One of the best displays of thematic lighting in the parks. At Halloween the colors on the buildings make them look like pieces of candy. But at Christmas the lighting takes you from magical to enchanting. The addition of soft blue lighting to the buildings helps add to one other special effect... Snow! The fake snow that falls onto Main Street is made to look as real as possible with the help of that soft blue lighting. It reflects on the snow the same way moon light does on real fresh falling snow and that is magic.

Main Street Station at Halloween and Christmas.

Electricians Closet: The Polynesian Resort

Electricians Closet topics will focus on some of the more beautiful lighting around the Disney parks. Both the artful and practical. Today we take a look at some of the thematic lighting of the Polynesian Resort. Above are a few examples of the resorts interior. Starting from the top left clockwise, The Great Ceremonial Hall's lobby has several beautiful water features, but not till night fall do they really show with some soft underwater lighting. Next we head up stairs to the Kona Cafe. Here we see several styles of lighting mixed to give enough light to be functional but also keep the mood soft and warm. Our last two photos take us downstairs to Captain Cooks. First one of several hallway lights, second the general seating area of the restaurant. Both featuring a native theme and soft ambient light.

Now outside for some fresh air. Two main themes on the beach tropical and nautical. This is visible threw the tiki touches and the nautical lanterns that line the beaches and the docks. Take a close look at the middle lantern, I spotted this awesome spider web and had to take a picture of it. Another great bonus to having tiki tourchs is the amount of kinetic energy or “life” it adds to a location. I'll go into my resort “Life” theory in future posts.