Geologic Fireplace in Disney’s Wilderness Lodge

Photographic Innoventions by Scott Thomas

A guest relaxes in a rocking chair in front of the 82 foot tall stone fireplace in the Wilderness Lodge Resort, Walt Disney World, Orlando, Florida.

A guest relaxes in a rocking chair in front of the 82 foot tall stone fireplace in the Wilderness Lodge Resort.
Nikon D700/Tokina 11-16mm, 1/20s, f/8, ISO 6400, EV -0.3, 16mm focal length.

The Geologic fireplace in the lobby of Disney’s Wilderness Lodge is a recreation of the strata of the Grand Canyon. Over 100 colors in hues of green, magenta, buff, red, black and brown are visible, as are fossilized remains of prehistoric plant and animal life. From the Vishnu Schist to Bass Limestone to Tapeats Sandstone to the Redwall and Temple Butte Limestone and finally ending with Kaibab Limestone and Toroweap Formation, the fireplace represents 2 billion years of the time it took for the layers of rock to form.

I selected the Cross Process I preset in Apple Aperture 3 photo editing software to pull out the colors and details of the fireplace. I used a Tokina DX 11-16mm ultrawide angle (UWA) lens on a Nikon D700 FX camera at 16mm to get the entire structure in.

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Scott's "Photographic Innoventions" blog focuses on intermediate to advanced photography concepts and techniques relevant for Point and Shoot and Digital SLR cameras.

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One Reply to “Geologic Fireplace in Disney’s Wilderness Lodge”

  1. I have enjoyed this fireplace many times. I often wondered why the various hues in the fireplace, but never realized it reflected the strata for the Grand Canyon. Love your photos, as they are great leaning experiences and provide better pictures for our family trips.

    Scott replies: I just found out on my last trip about the fireplace. Always something fun to learn at WDW! Thank you for your comment.