DIY photo booth: how to make your own

What you need to make a photo booth

A DIY photo booth is a simple chain: a camera takes the picture, a computer places it in a frame and a printer produces the keepsake. Here’s the kit to gather.

• A camera or webcam. A camera with interchangeable lenses captures more detail, especially in low light; a webcam is easier to plug in. Check your software’s documentation to make sure your device is supported.
• A sturdy tripod, set at face height and positioned out of the way so nobody knocks it.
• Soft lighting: one or two continuous, diffused lights facing your guests from slightly above. A bare flash aimed straight at faces casts harsh shadows, and a window behind guests turns them into silhouettes.
• A backdrop: plain fabric, a curtain, a greenery wall or a large roll of paper, far enough behind guests to avoid shadows falling on it.
• Props: hats, glasses, little chalkboards and signs that suit the theme (ideas in our props and backdrops guide).
• A trigger: a big button, a remote or a touchscreen, with an on-screen countdown so everyone has time to strike a pose.
• A computer running photo booth software, which controls the camera, shows the live view, drops the photos into the frame and sends each print to the printer.
• A printer. Photo booths often use a dye-sublimation printer, designed for printing one copy after another; a home inkjet works too, just more slowly, and the prints need time to dry.

Add a screen facing your guests, a table, extension leads and a power strip: they’re usually what’s missing at the last minute.

Where the photo booth template comes in

The frame is what turns a quick snap into a keepsake of the event: names, date, colours, artwork. In practice it’s a PNG overlay laid on top of the photos. The overlay is transparent where the photos go, so the software slots the day’s pictures underneath while the lettering and artwork stay on top. The file is rendered at 300 DPI at the exact size of the print.

For dslrBooth, the simplest option is the ‘<name>-dslrbooth.zip’ package, which you import as it is through dslrBooth’s template import feature, without unzipping it. If you chose ‘Download everything’, extract that archive first, then import the dslrBooth package inside it, again as it is. Menu names can vary between versions, so check the dslrBooth documentation. Our dslrBooth template page and the guide to installing a dslrBooth template take you through it.

With other tools, the overlay works in any software that accepts a PNG overlay. The JSON file that comes with it lists each photo space’s position and size in pixels of the delivered file, measured from the top-left corner, so you simply copy those values into your software’s settings.

Then pick a size. The 4×6 print comes in portrait and landscape, two separate layouts to match your booth’s orientation. The 2×6 photo strip template is placed twice side by side on a 4×6 sheet in the dslrBooth package, ready to cut. Our guide to choosing a photo booth print size helps you decide.

Choosing and customising your photo booth frame

For a first set-up, a simple frame keeps the focus on your guests. Pure Simplicity is just white and a single line of text, so the photo fills the space. For a livelier night, Disco Ball brings mirrored facets in purple and silver, and the disco party collection gathers more designs in that spirit. For a wedding, Taupe Monogram pairs a taupe background with a large monogram.

Everything is customised online with no account: open, say, customise Pure Simplicity, change the wording, choose how many photos from the layouts on offer, adjust the colours, and move or resize the text and photo areas. The preview updates instantly and your draft is saved automatically. The site flags any sample text you’ve forgotten to change and any text that’s too long for its space.

Test runs before the big day

A DIY photo booth succeeds or fails in rehearsal. Set everything up exactly as it will be on the day, at least once and a few days ahead.

• Run the whole chain several times: taking the picture, placing it in the frame, printing.
• Print at 100% with no scaling or fit-to-page option, and check portrait or landscape is set correctly.
• Check the framing: the software crops each photo to fill its space, so make sure nobody’s head gets cut off, including with a group.
• Look at colours and text on a real print, not just on screen, and keep text a few millimetres from the edges.
• Test in light close to the evening’s: a room that’s bright in the afternoon can turn dim once night falls.
• Time a full cycle so you know how quickly guests can take their turn.

Our photo booth printing guide covers these points in more detail.

Running the booth during the party

A photo booth left to its own devices rarely makes it through the night in good shape. Put someone in charge: a friend, a cousin, or a rota of volunteers. The job is simple: reload paper, clear a jammed print, tidy the props and remind guests to have a go.

• Keep spare paper and printer supplies within reach.
• Bring an extension lead, a spare cable and the camera’s mains adapter rather than relying on its battery alone.
• Put up a small sign explaining where to stand, what to press and where to collect the print.
• Set a guest book next to the booth: with the strip printed twice, one copy goes home with the guest and the other goes in the book.

At a wedding, consider adding a hashtag to the frame so you can find the photos guests share; our guide to wedding hashtag ideas explains how to choose one. The next day, copy the photo folder to a second drive.

The alternative: hiring a photo booth supplier

If time or kit is short, a photo booth supplier brings the booth, the printer and often someone to run it. You stay in control of the frame: choose your design, customise it, then share a link to your files with your supplier from My account, which you reach by signing in with a link sent by email.

A last-minute change to a name or the date? Make it from My account: the files are updated and your supplier picks up the new version through the same link. To find a style for your event, browse by occasion or explore every photo booth template.