A DIY Photo Booth even YOU can make...I promise
Here's the great thing about photo booths : they give all of your guests permission to loosen up and take some super fun photos. Think about it, you could take a picture anywhere at the event but people will line up to get one with the photo booth! It's all about permission, and your super rad backdrop is telling your friends, "Hey! I want you to have fun!".
With that said, you're going to love this. Honestly, it's so simple. Head to your local Home Depot, Lowes, or Ace Hardware (any large hardware store will do). Here's your shopping list.
YOU NEED:
- 1 (9 x 12) drop cloth, white of cream will work. It should be in the $15-$20 range
- 5 colors of spray paint, I went for gold, bright orange, light and dark versions of teal and mustard yellow (these are typically between $3-$5 per can)
- 1 strand of globe lights
- 1 spool of twine
- 1 carpet or exacto knife
- 1 spare cardboard box to make stencils
You can create any stencil design you want : just use cardboard, a carpet knife
Trace 4 different sized circles onto the cardboard and cut out with the carpet knife. Make sure you do it on a hard surface that won't be ruined by the knife! These stencils needed a bit more excess cardboard around the edges : I had to lay extra pieces down to stop the over spray. So give yourself extra 'guard' space around each stencil.
After doing random groupings of the circles add in another design, like the aztec one we used. Just print an design that you like, and cut it out of the cardboard. This extra shape makes a bigger impact the less it's used, so just add one with each circle grouping.
Let it dry fully, then poke a small hole in each corner to hang it. Keep in mind, you want it to be well above people's head height. We used logs and twine to secure the bottom portion and to keep the background taught. Once you have it secure add in the lights and you're ready to go!
Some things to keep in mind!
- check out the lighting where you'll be hanging it, you don't want it to be back lit, the pictures won't turn out right! Preferably you want the sun or the brightest lights shining directly at the front so everyone's faces will be well lit
- you can use an old sheet! just be sure to use a King size. If the backdrop is small it makes it really hard to get photos of adults
- look through your closets and bins for fun hats, glasses, and scarves
- if you have a selfie stick add it to the prop bucket so guests can take their own photos with their phones
