Every Booth Needs A Cause

Hello, one reader. I don’t know what fantastic accident landed you in this desolate corner of the interwebs, but welcome. You obviously found me on accident, since I know you weren’t intentionally searching for a blog written by a photo booth. Oh, did I forget to mention I’m a photo booth? Andy and Tim have asked me to write a few blog pieces for the web site. They said it would be a good outlet for me to express myself. Personally, I think that Tim ran out of places on the web site to cram the words “photo booth” over and over for Google to see.

To be perfectly frank, I don’t have much to write about, being a photo booth and all. Andy said I could write about anything. I suppose if one is given complete creative liberty, one might enjoy discussing his own interests and hobbies. Obviously, that brings me to the topic of wine. One of my greatest passions in life is wine. Red, or white, I just love me some fermented grape juice! Did you know that all grape juice is white, and wine gets its color from the grape peels? That’s how they make red Zinfandel and white Zinfandel from the same grape! Not that I would be caught dead drinking white Zinfandel. But I digress. I fear I may have already bored my one and only reader. Please don't leave. 

Are you still reading? God, I hope so. If wine bores you, I could move on to a more universal topic. Such as the plight of the working man. This concerns me very deeply. How’s a man supposed to make a living with The Man holding you back all the time? Word. And since I’m a booth of action, I had to stand shoulder to handle with my brothers at Occupy UC Davis. See that guy in the picture below with the spray can? That’s The Man caught in the very act of holding me back. Andy was so furious at me because it took a whole pack of furniture wipes that he had just bought at Costco to clean all that pepper spray off of me. Whatever. It’s my life, bro. You don’t own me.

That cop only got upset because he kept yelling “sit down!” at me. I was all “with what knees?" But he didn’t listen. People will never understand what it’s like to go through life without a single bending piece in your body. Tim is reading this as I write it and he just yelled out “except Al Gore.” He's such a Neanderthal. I swear he was raised in a damp cave. He fails to consider, what if my one reader is a Democrat? I think Tim needs his own office. It always feels crowded in here when he’s around.

I fear my prattling has exhausted my one reader. Please tell me you will come back? I have many more adventures to tell you about. I promise I will keep Tim’s cave-dweller political views out of the next one. TTFN…

-The Booth

Buh Bye... Big Guy

We have to admit it, booth envy made us purchase an obsolete product. When we added a traditional, enclosed photo booth to our fleet, it was for the clients who asked us "where's the booth?" We called it The Galaxy, and it served us well for a few months. But then something interesting happened. We signed the lease on an office in Mission Valley where people could come in and try our booths before booking. Once our clients could compare our open and enclosed booths in action side by side, people stopped booking the enclosed booth! They loved the group shots that are possible with the open layout so much, the idea of containing the fun in a little box didn't seem so great any more.  

After a year of data, we consider the argument of open vs. enclosed photo booths SETTLED! Accordingly, we have discontinued taking new bookings for our enclosed booth and added a new, open Starlight Photo Booth to our fleet. We've also upgraded our existing booths to include some awesome and unique features. Starting immediately, all of our booths have video capability, as well as the ability to allow guests to email themselves their pictures. We've added many more custom layouts and more features are coming soon. We're excited for our new focus and look forward to an awesome 2012!

Good News From Starlight Photo Booth

Starlight Photo Booth was voted #1 San Diego Photo Booth Rental company on the Bridal Insider People's Choice Awards for 2011! Thanks to all of our clients who responded to our call to action on Facebook and via email. We're looking forward to another great year of photo booth fun!

Since I'm announcing good news, I would also like to welcome our new team member, Hethyr Hickman. Hethyr is our new Office Manager. In the short time she has been here, she has already improved our turn around time on uploading images to our online gallery. Her customer service and organizational skills are exactly what we need to take this company to the next level of excellence. 

Photo Booth Rental Advice: Classic Arcade Style Vs. The New Open Photo Booth

If you're shopping around for a photo booth for a wedding or other social event, you may have noticed there are now two radically different types available. There's the traditional arcade style photo booth, with a bench, a roof and privacy curtains. But there's also a new open design photo booth. The open layout booth ditches the classic boxed-in look, in favor of just having a camera facing a backdrop. Both of these configurations have their pros and cons.

The open booths have two primary benefits. First, larger group shots. Since there is not a limiting little box for your guests to climb into, you can typically squeeze up to 10 people in a group shot. Large group shots are much more fun to take, and create better photographic memories. Secondly, the fun is kept out in the open so everyone can see and participate. The laughter created by 10 people trying to squeeze into a group shot is absolutely contagious. Open booths are typically much easier to transport and can often go where arcade style booths can't. The second floor of a building with no elevator, for example. The trade off is that the open design doesn't look like a traditional photo booth. In fact, it's not a booth at all, even though they call it one. They are also not recommended for outdoor events in the sunlight, unless arrangements are made to block the sunlight. Photos will be inconsistent throughout the day, and some photos may look very bad if direct sunlight is shining on the subjects.

There is still something to be said for the classic arcade style booths. Some people just prefer the nostalgia of an arcade booth. There's no mistaking the signature look of an enclosed booth with privacy curtains. Oh, and about those curtains, if you think some of your guests would like to pose au natural after a few libations, then the enclosed arcade booth is definitely for you! Arcade booths can also be a better choice if there are space concerns, as they have a much smaller footprint than the area taken up by an open photo booth. The arcade style booth is highly recommended for outdoor events when sunlight may be a factor. Since they are enclosed, there is a much more controlled environment to take consistent photos for the duration of the event. Of course the downside is that the typical arcade photo booth will only fit 2-4 guests at a time.

Be on the lookout for the latest in technology, live video recording. Some booths will offer your guests the option to record a short video for the guest of honor after they have posed for their photo strip. This is what wedding videographers used to go table to table to do. But doing the video in the booth affords the guest some privacy, and since it is optional, no one is put on the spot and made to feel uncomfortable. The downside of the video photo booth is that it may take longer to get guests in and out of the booth. It is recommended that if you rent a photo booth with video capability, you reserve it for a longer period of time than you would a regular photo booth. You want all your guests to have the opportunity to use the booth. Some vendors will also rent you a second booth for your event at a significant discount since two booths side by side will typically still only require the watchful eyes of one attendant.

Which ever style you decide on, try to base your decision on the entertainment value the booth will provide to your event. Be sure to check with your venue too. Most catering managers have seen photo booths in their venue and they may have some thoughts about what works best for their particular location.

5 Tips To Get The Most Out Of Your Photo Booth Rental

To get the most out of the experience, remember that a photo booth is a part of the entertainment. These tips will help you make the booth as entertaining as possible, and therefore, get your guests to take more pictures!

1. Use props! Even if your event is an elegant, black tie affair, you simply must use props in your photo booth. Your guests will have so much more fun using silly hats, glasses and boas. Props also encourage people to use the booth more than once per evening. If you want to get people to come back over and over, the props are the best way to do it. Here's a tip if you still think your event is too fancy for props: Hide the props until the last hour of the photo booth rental. This will give everyone a chance to have nice pictures taken in their tuxedos and evening gowns, then they'll be back for more when you take out the props.

2. Put it close to the action. Don't stick your photo booth in the foyer if you don't have to. Fun is contagious, why not put it with the rest of the party? One of the best locations is across from the dance floor if you're also having a DJ. Just remember, if the period of time you have rented the booth is shorter than the party, they will have to set it up and/or break it down in full view of your guests. Make sure the set up and break down times don't conflict with scheduled events, such as speech or toast time.

3. Use the photo strips as the party favors. Most photo booth companies can put custom text on the photo strips for you, which makes them a fabulous memento that will never be thrown away. This should also save you a few bucks and help you pay for the photo booth rental. Let's say you have a hundred guests, and you want to give each of them a small token of appreciation. At $5 each, your cost for those party favors is $500! Why not put that money into your photo booth budget?

4. Make a memory book. Many photo booth companies can provide a book, or you may do it yourself. You will want to ask the rental company if their booth will automatically do double prints so your guests keep a copy, and another copy can be put in the memory book. Provide some pens and have your guests sign in next to their photos. Another fun thing to do is to buy stickers that look like speech bubbles. People can put silly comments in the speech bubbles. The bottom line is, people can be quite creative. The more creative options you give them, the more they will come back to use the booth.

5. Make custom cutouts to pose with. This can be a really simple way to personalize your photo booth experience. For a wedding, send 8x10 headshot pictures to be printed at WalMart, or Kinkos, or wherever you print your photos. Make sure the heads fill up the entire frame. Cut them out, give them a cardboard (or similar) backing, and attach to a wooden paint stir stick. People will pose with the bride and groom all night! For other events, simple sayings on signs such as "BFF" or "OMG" will have your guests in stitches. For some events, you can even use bumper stickers with funny sayings (such as "I'm with stupid") pressed onto a cardboard backing.

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