How to make a DIY photo booth for your wedding
If the cost of magic mirror photo booth hire is outside your budget, but you'd like to have one at your wedding, read this article to find out how to make your own DIY wedding photo booth
For many people, magic mirror photo booth hire may not fall into the budget for their wedding. Although you can get a lot for your money when weighing up the cost of magic mirror photo booth hire, you can still create a highly desirable DIY photo booth for your wedding venue on a budget, with minimal technical know-how.
In this article, I’ll explain how you can create your own DIY wedding photo booth.
Getting Started
The three main things you will need for a DIY photo booth are an iPad/tablet, an LED ring light stand and photo booth software. The iPad will serve as the photo booth and the LED ring light stand will serve as the structure and lighting source for the pictures.
iPad
Most iPads will work with photo booth apps for iOS, but the newer the generation, the better the quality of the photos it will take. Many of you might already have your own iPads that you can use, but if you don’t have one, you can easily borrow one from a friend or colleague.
Something like a fourth-gen iPad Pro would provide great results. You should opt for the largest iPad possible as it will stand out more and make for easier use and navigation.
If you happen to own an Android tablet like a Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 or Lenovo P11 Pro 6, you can also use these as perfect substitutes for an iPad.
Software
To turn the iPad into an actual photo booth you’ll need a photo booth app. There are many great options available for iOS for free or for a small fee for single or short-term use. Here are some options:
TapBooth
Snappic Booth
LumaBooth
Mini Photobooth
Suitable apps for Android would be Photobooth mini, SLR Booth Pro and LOL Photo Booth.
When you’ve installed the photo booth app, it’ll provide a simple interface for your guests to interact with and take photos and videos. They’ll have the ability to save and send them to their emails or share them directly on social media.
Ring Light Stand
Amazon is littered with inexpensive ring lights for you to choose from. All you need to make sure of is that it’s a ring light with great brightness and it's large enough for your tablet to fit inside. It also needs the bracket to allow a tablet to screw in.
A great option would be the Neewer 18” LED ring light. Neewer is a renowned company when it comes to lighting products for professional photographers, so you can rest assured that your lighting setup will be A+. You can easily adjust the brightness and tone of the lighting to suit your wedding.
Another good option would be an iPad stand like the Luxtude LF6 tablet tripod stand. This would offer more flexibility when it comes to the height and positioning of the iPad. I would personally go for the Lamicall Gooseneck floor stand as it has a great clean look and premium feel to it, and the thick and broad base gives it good stability.
For a lighting source, you can use a dimmable LED camera or video light attached to a clamp mount with a flexible arm to connect to the stand.
Final Thoughts
Not only will you save money with a DIY photo booth, but many of the accessories you use - like the tripod stand or ring light, can be stored and used for alternative purposes.
You will just need some time to set it up and make sure everything works perfectly at your wedding reception. If you rather avoid the hassle, you can still opt for magic mirror photo booth hire Manchester, so you only have to worry about the important things for your big day.