First and foremost, hostess I am not. I do not cook, I get massive anxiety about having the house “ready” before a party, and the clean up? No, thank you. I’d rather hide under my bed until it’s over. I’m basically useless when it comes to the actual necessities of a successful party, but if you want to talk about the frivolous details — like a THEME and the DECORATING — I’m IN. There is one important thing I’ve learned in all of the birthdays, holidays, parties, and events we have hosted over the years… and that is everyone loves a good photo booth!
Sure, your guests might play coy and be bashful to the idea at first, but as the night goes on — and the cocktails flow — it’s a sure thing that the photo booth will become the hotspot of the party. We’ve used the photo booth trick for two parties now, and it has been a big hit for a few reasons:
First, a photo booth gets everyone up and circulating around. Stagnant parties are no fun. I’m not a huge “Pin the Tail on the Whatever” fan, but a low-key activity such as a photo booth is one that I (and most party-goers) can get behind!
Secondly, a it makes a great guest book. For our daughter’s birthday, we set up a Facebook event and then posted all of the pictures there when the party was over. The guests loved it. *Bonus points to you if you’re in the running for #MomOfTheYear, and you print out each guest’s photo booth pics to include with the thank-you note for their gift… I’m toying with this idea currently, but at 8.5 months pregnant, I don’t know how ambitious I feel.
Next, a photo booth can be a great buzz generator! The first time we used our DIY version was at a vendor show where my husband was selling his hot sauce. We put up the photo booth and tagged all of the pics on social media with our hashtag. Patrons went crazy commenting, posting, and reposting their photo booth pics all over social media, which gave us a huge sales boost. Plus, it was different and fun, so people all over the vendor show were talking about it. Basically we were hot-sauce famous for a weekend!
And finally, a photo booth is a great unifier. I’ve yet to meet anyone who will refuse a fake mustache prop when given the opportunity.
The best part is that a successful photo booth is so super easy to do yourself. As with any good recipe (not that I would really know), you will need a few key ingredients.
How To Make a DIY Photo Booth
1. An iPad and a photo booth app. My favorite is called Pocketbooth. It’s $0.99 for Apple and Android, and it can be customized with a caption, number of photos, background, font, and filters.
2. A Tripod. Amazon Basics tripod is the one that we used. It’s a versatile tripod that’s not only great for the photo booth set p, but also for actual photography.
3. An iPad-to-tripod attachment. Don’t skimp on this one, otherwise your iPad will end up smashed.
4. Optional, but highly recommended: backdrop, props, and a photo booth sign. I got a backdrop and pack of props for $7 at WalMart. You could also use wrapping paper, kraft paper, or a table cloth for your back drop. Easy. For the sign, I used a $1 piece of foam core board and Sharpies. Again, easy!
To set up the photo booth, choose a corner of your party area that is highly visible, but not in your main traffic pattern. Hang the backdrop and place the tripod (with the iPad attached and facing the backdrop) about 5-6 feet from the backdrop.
Add a stool if you want, though most people just stood at ours, and place your photo booth sign and the props to the side of the tripod and backdrop for easy access when people step right up.
When it becomes party time, make sure that your iPad is charged and unlocked, and you’re good to go! The prompts on the app are so easy to follow that it’s really not necessary for anyone to have to “work” the photo booth. At my daughter’s birthday party, this was a super handy feature for me, since I was far too busy being the hostess with the mostess to show people how to use the booth. At least until it was cleanup time, anyway…
Now grab that mustache prop and have some fun
