Remy’s birthday party is scheduled to be two hours long. I had initially planned for three hours, given that we are renting a venue for it and I wanted to get our money’s worth. However, after reading a guide for a successful 1st birthday party, they recommended keeping any event closer to an hour long. So I compromised and made it two hours on the invitations.

That said, I thought that a two hour birthday for those people without children might get somewhat boring. I began to brainstorm ideas for fun ways to pass the time at a party. One thing that kept coming up over and over again on pinterest were photo booths. Photo booths are a great way to not only get the guests involved, but they also encourage them to play dress up for a few minutes, socialize with others, and help to increase the number of photographs shared on social media of an event.

All it takes to create your own photo booth is a simple backdrop, a few props, and a camera with a timer. Here is how I created my Moonrise Kingdom photo booth:

Supplies

Computer
Printer
Backdrop
Tape
Scissors
Camera
Tripod
Masks
Table
Wood crate

Steps

1. The first step will be to decide on a theme. There are a plethora of themes out there, so it’s really up to you, depending on how much work you will want to put into your photo booth. I obviously chose a Wes Anderson-inspired one.

2. Next, you will need to create signage to indicate what section of the room is a photo booth, and as such, what the “rules” are. It’s important to be as clear as possible, as many people may never have used a photo booth before. I found four photographs of the film that I thought would work well. From there, I went to http://www.befunky.com, which is a great online editing program that lets you add text to pictures quite easily. I cropped the photos to 8″ x 10″, and added the text. The first sign reads, “What kind of bird are you?” It’s a line from the film, where Sam and Suzy meet for the first time. It’s also great for the photo booth given that Suzy herself was wearing a mask.

The second sign is, “Photo booth instructions.”

The third reads, “1. Choose a mask 2. Shoot it 3. Share it.”

And finally, the last sign has the hashtag that I would like people to use at the party, so that I can search it later on social media. I thought that “#remysmoonrisekingdom” worked best.

3. After the signs are made, they can be printed out.

4. Next you will want to concentrate on hanging your backdrop. I chose a map, as maps were commonly seen throughout the movie. However, if you are going to create one from scratch, then there will be several more steps and supplies involved. Once the backdrop is hung, hang the signage on either side of it.

5. Place the masks and props on a table beside the photo booth. Choose a nice way to display them. I’m putting mine inside a small wooden crate.

6. Set up the camera and tripod in front of the backdrop. Make sure that the table and props aren’t in the camera’s view. Set the timer, and allow for a number of photos to be taken each time. Leave the camera on to ensure ease of use. However, encourage guests to use their cellphones as well.

That’s all. There are quite a few steps, but in the end, creating a photo booth can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. This one was actually quite easy, but I think that it will look and work great at the party!

<3

Emory

Hello, Followers:
Blog // Instagram // Pinterest // Twitter