Guide
Family reunion photo booth: frames, wording and ideas
By La Cabine Bretonne · published
A family reunion can bring together dozens of cousins, aunts, uncles and grandchildren who have not seen each other for years, or who have never met. A photo booth gives them an easy reason to pose together, branch by branch, and leaves everyone with a dated print from the day. Here is how to choose the frame and the wording, and how to run the booth.
Why a photo booth works at a family reunion
At a big family gathering, people quickly split up by generation or by branch, and some guests leave without talking to the cousins they were meeting for the first time. The photo booth gets the tables mixing: brothers and sisters, cousins of the same age, then the older generation all take their turn. Every print becomes a keepsake to take home.
For the organisers, it is also an activity that runs on its own once set up, keeps children and grandparents alike entertained, and produces, by the end of the day, a collection of family photos you could not get any other way.
A simple, cheerful summer party frame
Our catalogue has no design made specifically for family reunions, but several frames suit a family party, often held outdoors. Bunting lines up triangle flags in an arch, with a village-fête feel; High Summer captures the midday sun and Golden Wheat the warmth of late summer with its golden ears of wheat.
For a softer look, gingham designs such as Sage Gingham or Butter Yellow Gingham recall picnic tablecloths, and Nautical Stripes suits a reunion by the sea. More ideas in the birthday party collection and on the birthday page.
What to write on the frame
The frame carries the family name and the date. A few ideas:
- “The Walker Family Reunion”, with the date and place;
- “All the Martins together”, followed by the year;
- “The descendants of Jean and Louis”, for a gathering around the great-grandparents;
- the name of the house or village where it all began;
- a family saying that everyone will recognise.
Keep one short main line, readable on a print a few centimetres wide. Text boxes can be moved and enlarged if your line is longer, and our guide to birthday and christening photo booth wording has more lines that are easy to adapt.
Organising photos by family branch
A family reunion lends itself to planned series of photos. A few ideas:
- announce a time slot for each branch of the family, so each one gets its own group print;
- photograph cousins of the same age together, then the eldest with the youngest;
- hand out labels showing each person’s name and branch, handy for working out who is who in the photos later;
- set the booth up in the shade and near a power socket if the party is outdoors, with a simple backdrop behind the guests.
Our guide to photo booth props and backdrops has more decor ideas, and our DIY photo booth guide helps you build your own if you are not hiring one.
A family book with the prints
At the end of the day, the prints can go into a family book: everyone sticks in their photo and writes their name, their branch and a note for the future. The album is then passed on from one reunion to the next, and the youngest find the faces of distant cousins in it. Our photo booth guest book guide explains how to prepare it, from choosing the book to the pens you will need.
Sharing the photos with the whole family
The paper prints go home with the people in them, but everyone will want photos of the other branches too. If the booth saves the files, ask one person to gather them after the party and share them in a private album for the family only, rather than on a public social network.
Let guests know at the start of the day, especially about photos of children: some parents prefer images of their children to stay within the family circle. A small sign next to the photo booth is enough, with the name of the person to ask if someone wants a photo taken down. That way everyone enjoys the memories with no unpleasant surprises.
Print size, files and printing
A landscape 6×4 print leaves room for big groups; a 2×6 strip lines up three poses and slips easily into an album. Our guide to choosing a photo booth print size compares the options.
Once the design is personalised, you download a high-resolution PNG overlay, transparent where the photos go, ready for your software; our guide to installing a template in dslrBooth covers the setup. If you are hiring the booth, our guide to hiring a photo booth lists the questions to ask. Customising Bunting takes a few minutes, with no account needed, and the text stays editable for the next reunion.