Planning a wedding can be stressful, frustrating, confusing…but also a lot of fun. When it comes to selecting wedding day vendors, you may wonder if you need a wedding photo booth at your wedding.
You may even be a little unclear about what a photo booth is, or how it can benefit you and your guests on your big day.
To take one more thing off your extremely full wedding-planning plate, we’ve put together this guide to answer all your photo booth questions.
So kick up those busy bridal feet, enjoy a cuppa your fave beverage, and dig into everything about the wedding photo booth.
Table of Contents:
- What is a Wedding Photo Booth?
- How will a Photo Booth benefit my Wedding Day?
- What are The Photo Booth options for a Wedding?
- Photo Booth Templates and Sizes?
- What Are Some Photo Booth Experiences I Can Choose From?
- How Do I Choose The Best Backdrop For My Wedding?
- How Much Does A Wedding Photo Booth Cost?
- When should I book my Photo Booth?
- How Long Does It Take To Set Up The Booth?
- How Long Should I Book The Photo Booth For?
- Can I Pause The Time On My Photo Booth At Any Time?
- When Should We Start The Photo Booth?
- Where Should We Put The Photo Booth?
- How To Choose The Right Photo Booth Vendor
- Conclusion
What is a Wedding Photo Booth?
A photo booth is a modern device that contains a digital camera in order to take photos, and usually comes with a printer so that you and your guests can get the prints on the spot. A photo booth is much more than just a DIY kiosk for taking pictures; it is a memory machine. It is the perfect way to engage your guests, it’s suitable for all ages, it yields high-quality results, and it will set your event apart from others.
Users are able to take photos, create animated GIFs, share images instantly via text and email, and print high-quality photos on the spot so guests can enjoy them after the event. Physical and digital pictures are memories, keepsakes, and treasures that bring you and your guests back to your big day, every time they are passed around the room…for years to come.
Photo Booths often come with the assistance of an attendant who will help to manage the equipment, distribute prints and create an enjoyable atmosphere throughout the duration of your event.
How Will a Photo Booth Benefit My Wedding Day?
Aside from the fact that a photo booth can also be a “guest babysitter” for the lulls in your big day (cough cough, as you and your beloved pose for the photographer) there are countless reasons a photo booth is a must-have wedding feature.
1. Entertainment for You and Your Guests
There’s nothing worse than being a guest at a boring wedding. A photo booth provides additional entertainment (besides of course the dancing and dinner).
Having more activities for your guests makes for more laughs, more interaction, and in turn, keeps moods elevated and promotes party-ready attitudes.
After the wedding, you’ll get an album full of guest photos…use them as keepsakes, or friendly blackmail.
We’re ok with either!
2. Keepsakes
Your guests will have immediate access to printouts to keep and look back on for years to come. Plus, social media booths provide the opportunity for users to instantly and easily share images via text and email.
3. Memories
Photos provide physical memories to be held in your hand, but the moments will also be remembered forever. Photos with props and goofy moments will spark nostalgia—all leading back to your big day.
💡 Having the guestbook next to the photo booth is a tip we like to share with all brides. Signing the guestbook is a natural next step for guests, and having the photo booth in plain sight will introduce it to the party at exactly the right time.
4. Time Filler
You’ll never have to worry about boredom for your guests. If you’re busy with your photographer or guests are waiting to be called up to the buffet, they can grab a drink and snap the time away with prop-filled poses.
5. Ice Breaker
Weddings are a melting pot of family and friends, and not everyone will know each other. When the line for the photo booth starts forming, we guarantee that people will start up conversations with each other. Looking back at your photos, you’ll be shocked to see strangers posing together, smiling, laughing, and creating new friendships.
What Are My Wedding Photo Booth Options?
A photo booth isn’t just a cut-and-dry installment at your wedding. There’s a lot of features and options to choose from, well at least with us there is.
Open-Air Style Photo Booth
The open-air style photo booth are just that, open. They can fit as many as 25 guests in a completely open space.
An Open Style Photo Booth provides a modern, memory-making session that uses space efficiently and can fit more people in one single shot. With the added bonus of outrageous props, top-notch camera quality, and the ability to customize your experience, open-air booths are the perfect way to capture your memories in a unique and exciting way.
Enclosed Photo Booth (or Closed Photo Booth)
The classic photo booth experience brought to the modern-day wedding might be the way to go if your wedding has an old-school vibe.
An enclosed photo booth typically has 4 walls that are either fabric or solid material. The key feature here is privacy because enclosed booths allow you to enjoy photos with family and friends without outsiders being able to see what you are doing.
Social Photo Booth (also called Selfie station or Ipad booth)
Socially shareable photos require high-quality LED lights and filter options that put Instagram to shame. Social media-friendly photo booths include the ability to create boomerangs and gifs to share as soon as the photo is snapped. As you can probably tell by it’s name, this option doesn’t allow you to print any of the photos. You receive them by sharing them to yourself via text or e-mail.
Mirror Photo Booth
The Mirror Booth features a user-friendly touch screen experience that includes interactive games, animations to add flare to your photos, and digital props to take the guest experience to the next level.
Our Mirror Booth is the perfect way to bring sleek and elegance to any bride’s special day. Complete with a modern touch and advanced customization capabilities, the Mirror Booth is the perfect fixture at any wedding.
Photo Booth Templates & Size Options
What’s the template, you ask? Well, it’s the frame around your photos…or the section that appears around the outside of your pics.
When selecting your template and backdrop, consider your wedding’s themes, colors, and guest vibes.
Here are three examples of template options:
- Customizing with your names and wedding date
- Customizing with symbols and fonts
- Adding a hashtag for social media-ready sharing
Looking back at photos from your big day should take you and your guests back to those special moments. Colors, fonts, and other phrases can help to invite them back to the intimate atmosphere you created for them.
Talking about the photo booth prints sizes, here are some common sizes utilized by the photo booth companies:
1. Strips (the traditional 2×6 photos)
Our photo booth strips recreate the style of an old photo booth, (like the one create a decade ago in New York). In terms of design, you will be able to choose between 2, 3, or even 4 photos on the template. The most used version being 3 photos – leaving more space for your names and elements of design.
This photo size is small, very portable & makes a great bookmark.
2. 4×6 Postcard Photos (Single Photo)
If you want larger images of your guests this is the way to go. The whole idea is pretty simple… you and your guests will be able to prepare and choose the props that you like from the table and then snap a photo. The photos will be printed in seconds and you will be able to look back on them for years to come.
Compared to a 2×6 photo, this option is twice as big. You know what they say… the bigger the better. 😎
3. 4×6 Postcard Photos (2-4 Photos)
For sure you recognize the 4×6 photo strip. It’s actually the same as the ones described above, with one small difference – has more photos in it. With it’s classy look, all the guests would like to take it at home and hold it on their refrigerators for years to come.
Depending on the context, we think that the 4×6 strips are funnier than the 4×6 single photos because it makes you and your guests improvize, and think faster what to wear and how to look next (being pressured by the time restraint between the photos).
What Are Some Photo Booth Experiences I Can Choose From?
It all comes down to whether you prefer printable memories or ones you can share digitally!
1. GIF’s + Boomerangs
Besides regular photos, our Social Booth allows for a seamless, paper-free experience that allows guests to share & save memories quickly and instantly.
2. Unique experiences with Printed photos
Our Luxe Photo Booth & Our Mirror booths, use top-of-the-line technology to allow guests to take high-quality pictures & print them instantly for tangible memories on the spot.
3. Glam Photos or Kardashian style photos
With the capability of using the Glam Filter (designed in house) all the photos shot in front of the photo booth will get it’s custom touches that will make you feel like a star. With it’s minimalistic set-up, it usually comes with a white or black backdrop. After taking the photos, a beauty filter will be applied on top, that will smooth up your faces and make you look amazing & will have jaws dropping left and right.
4. Photo Filters
You can always get creative and do something unique for your wedding. With an array of filters, you can creat scrap book type photos – that cuts people out of the image; or as simple as applying a different picture on top of every photo.
How Do I Choose The Best Backdrop For My Wedding?
You need to get in touch with your big day’s vibes! Are you going for the traditional vibe? The modern vibe? Retro? Establish a vision and choose accordingly — but don’t stress too much. Our wide array of backdrops and experienced team are here to make your decision-making process seamless. 
How Much Does A Wedding Photo Booth Cost?
According to Wedding Wire, “On average, most couples in the U.S. spend between $425 to $1,000 on wedding rentals, with photo booth starting prices coming in at about $551”
Take into account that this varies based on the type of photo booth you choose for your wedding and the amount of time the photo booth is up and running.
For example, our Social Booth starts at 499 for up to four hours of service.
When Should I Book My Wedding Photo Booth?
If you’re reading this, it’s because you’re planning ahead…good for you, it will reduce stress as the big day approaches.
We recommend researching your wedding photo booth as soon as possible. Especially if you are looking for a quality photo booth vendor in the Chicago area. Some brides secure their booth six months or more in advance. And these are the ones who can relax as the wedding date approaches because they’ve got their ducks in order.
Another reason you’ll want to book your booth asap?
Supply and demand.
Let us explain:
Most vendors have a limited amount of photo booths, and if you’ve got your eye on a specific option, like the Open Air Style Booth, for example, you’ll want to call dibs as soon as possible in case it gets booked for your big day before you have the chance to call it yours.
How Long Does It Take To Set Up The Booth?
Good news for you! Set up typically only takes between 15 to 30 minutes. Attendants will arrive an hour before your event is set to begin and will ensure that everything is good to go for your big day! Another plus: the set up is included in the price! No extra fees = no extra stress!
How Long Should I Book A Photo Booth For?
In large part, this depends on the number of guests you have. You want to be sure everyone gets a chance to strike a pose. We recommend either 3, 4, or 5 hours for our photo booths.
Can I Pause the Time On My Photo Booth At Any Point?
Not all vendors do this, but we understand that there will be times when your guests will be preoccupied with other things…like the family-style dinner, for example. In other words, your guests won’t be interested in photography during the main course.
In a situation like this, we offer a 1-hour idle time so you can pick up after dinner without spending money on time that the photo booth would see very little action.
When Should We Start the Photo Booth?
We recommend starting your booth rental after the ceremony because there’s no reason to pay for it when all eyes are on you anyway.
Most couples decide to employ the photo booth during cocktail hour so guests can preoccupy themselves while you’re off doing what newlyweds do…take more pictures, of course…get your mind out of the gutter!
Cocktail hour allows guests to have a few snacks and a couple (or five) drinks. It’s during this time that guests begin to loosen up and start socializing…and they still look their best.
Where Should We Put The Photo Booth?
We usually recommend setting up the backdrop in front of an open wall so that it can be easily accessible from both sides. If you’re worried about prime placement, don’t be, our attendant knows all the tricks to keep your booth top-of-mind, but not distracting.
How to Choose the Right Wedding Photo Booth Vendor
Never settle for the first option you find on the internet, and don’t always assume the best deal is going to be the best experience for your wedding. Selecting your photo booth vendor is something to take seriously.
Here’s what you should look for in a professional photo booth vendor:
1. Excellent Customer Service
When you reach out to vendors to ask questions, get quotes, or just do a little digging, you should be met with smiles and enthusiastic support. You have the right to ask questions of any vendor before you sign a contract with them.
If your potential vendor is all gloom-and-doom and seems frustrated with your questions, cross them off the list and keep moving. Good vendors are happy to answer your questions and make sure you’re experience is stress-free and informed.
2. Social media presence
There are a few things you can determine from a vendor’s social media presence or lack thereof.
- They take the time to update their accounts
- They have quality photos
- They have reviews (hopefully from raving fans)
So go ahead, and cyber stalk your photo booth vendor shortlist because their social media presence says a lot about the experience they provide.
While you’re at it, go ahead and stalk us…it’s flattering. #noshame.
3. Portfolio Photo Quality
When you reach out to a vendor, ask to see their portfolio, and look for quality images. While photo booths are not the same as a professional photographer, the prints (or digital photos) should look professional and attractive.
4. Shared Interest/Style
Not only should you get along really well with your photo booth vendor, you should also mesh with their options and styles that they have available. Not everyone has a Mirror Photo Booth, for example, so don’t settle for less if you know what you want.
5. Attendant Attitude
No one likes to interact with a bored employee. It doesn’t matter if it’s in a retail environment, a fairground, or a wedding. A crabby, unenthusiastic, attendant can smack the smile off anyone’s face.
Attendants should be smiling, laughing, and happy to help your guests operate the photo booth. Good attendants will make pose and prop suggestions and enjoy the action and excitement a photo booth brings to the wedding.
6. Photography Market Experience
There’s nothing wrong with hiring a newer company but always check into the experience levels of the staff. Ask yourself these questions:
- Are they interested in photography?
- Do they have a customer service background?
- Do they understand basic photography terms?
- Have they done weddings before?
Enthusiasm and passion go a long way, but when you are trusting a vendor with your big day, going with an experienced company may serve you well.
7. Number of Prints Allowed
When a vendor advertises that guests can receive unlimited prints…it should mean unlimited.
No printing limits…period.
Watch for the fine print when it comes to this area, because the last thing you want is disappointed, photoless, guests.
A Truly Professional Photo Booth
As professionals in the entertainment industry, it’s important for photo booth vendors to provide a seamless, exciting, experience for you and your guests.
At In Light Photo Booths, we know you need professionals that will blend into your wedding day and keep things running smoothly behind the scenes.
It’s our goal to provide setup, service, and teardown without any hitches while you get hitched…which means you won’t even know we were there. (don’t worry, we’re cool with it).
Your wedding day is about the love shared between you and your beloved. And we will be there to capture the memories you may have missed while off doing what newlyweds do.
We hope this guide has helped answer your questions about wedding photo booths, but if we’ve missed anything, we are eager to help answer your burning questions and help guide you through the booking process.
Congratulations on your engagement, and we’ll be seeing your smiles soon!
