Ah yes it is finally time to talk about the photobooth craze that hit the party industry by storm. This phenomenon has not only been popular at wedding receptions and mitzvah’s but any type of party you attend. It really enhances the reception entertainment by leaps and bounds.

In February of 2009 I purchased my first booth. My original thought was that it would have a good run for about 2 years because I saw it as a novelty item. What I didn’t take into consideration was that the booth was creating memories. Pictures are timeless and even if you’ve seen a photobooth at every event you’ve attended in the last couple of years, there’s no getting around the fun of it all. You will find yourself at the booth at every single event getting your picture taken with a your spouse, children, family members or some really crazy friend. You just keep on coming back for more.

In the last three years the climate has changed quite a bit. The industry got saturated with a photobooth company on every street corner. There are professional companies and what I like to call “mom and pop” companies. And now the big thing are photobooth scammers. Here is a little snippet about each type of photobooth company. This will help you in your decision when hiring a photobooth for your next event.

Photobooth scammers are very much alive and well. They seem to travel from town to town hitting the area until they are noticed as a scam. These companies do everything on line including receiving your payment in full. The only communication you will have with them is via email and then they never show up to your event. I’ve personally had to cover two of these kinds of events. A great way to find out if your photobooth company is a scam is to look on YELP. Most likely there will be some seriously bad reviews.

*Mom and Pop *are companies that build their own booths with sub-standard equipment. The typical things you will notice are that the booths looks home made and most of all, their pictures are not the best quality because of their printer. A key question you should ask the company is how long does it take for the strip to print? It should only take about 15 seconds. If it takes around a minute then they are most likely using an ink jet printer and the photos will fade over time.

Professional photobooth companies are the one you want to go with. They have professional booths with high quality photos because they use a sub dye printer which is an actual photo printer. The company you work with should send a sample of what your photostrip will look like with the name and date of the event for approval. If you have a logo or something from your invitation that you would like to incorporate into the photostrip, most likely the company will be able to do that. Lastly, the really cool photobooths give you the option of being open or enclosed and a choice between black and white or color photos when you are taking your picture. Props are huge. They will enhance your photos exponentially! Ask the company what kind of props they have. We carry a huge assortment and really try to be creative with our props by changing it up each week.

Research your photobooth companies well. An average starting price for a professional is about $800 for four hours. This should absolutely include an attendant and duplicate photostrips. Photobooths are so much fun and will bring lots and lot of joy to your event.

Lisa Capitanelli Kasberg