Customize Your Photo Booth Props While Saving Money!

April 29, 2013 by

Photo Booth Props -Photo By fantabandfrugalProps Make the Day

Posing with friends and capturing silly faces makes a photo booth fun for any occasion, but adding props really gets the party going. A cowboy hat or pink feather boa lets guests play around and let loose. It’s a good idea to have a collection of props on hand for your photo booth that lend themselves to different types of parties. But there’s no need to buy every prop out there. Think about what items guests will have the most fun with and plan accordingly when budgeting for props. Here are a few ideas to maximize both your collection of props and the fun your guests will have.

Pick the Best Props for the Occasion

Ask your customers about the party or occasion they’re renting a photo booth for. A birthday party for a 6 year-old boy has a different theme and vibe than an elegant banquet. Categorize the various types of events that your clients have and buy props based on these groups. For instance, guests at a graduation party or a high school prom could both enjoy funny hats, sunglasses, and message boards they can hold up.

Occasions with specific colors or themes, like wedding receptions and baby showers, may go better with props that complement the party details such as flowers or balloons. Stock up on your basic props but think about occasions that can be grouped together and buy a few of these distinctive props. Remember, to ask your customers if they have any preferences for props they want with their photo booth, and see if you can fill their requests with props you already have on hand.

Quick Customizations

What to do if you run out of props or don’t have the ones a customer wants? Instead of rushing to the store and buying more props, try creating your own. Simple and cheap items like foam board and ribbon let you customize hand-made props. Craft and dollar stores offer inexpensive items that can shaped into props fitting all sorts of occasions. Here’s a great video showing you how to save money by quickly and easily creating your own props.

 

 

Filed Under: How to, marketing your booth, Props Tagged With: ,

10 Photo Booth Props for Every Occasion

December 30, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Photo booth props add levity and a sense of fun to each shot taken in your photo booth. While the type and manner of the prop will vary by occasion—cartoon glasses might be a harder sell at a banquet dinner than at a jovial wedding reception—a steady cast of stand-by items will provide a base to build on for each event.

 

1. A small chalkboard and chalk – Guests can write messages about themselves or the event hosts, or phrases they’d like included in the photo.

2. Feather boas in various colors – Easy to pack and appropriate for kitsch or put-on class, a feather boa plays well at a young wedding or a 50-year reunion.

3. Flowers – From formal to fun, a small offering of fresh (or reasonably realistic artificial) flowers gives guests something to do with their hands while posing, and adds color to the shot.

4. Balloons – Whether they’re scattered at the base of a photo or filled with helium and held, a handful of inflated balloons are a low-cost, easily replaced item to keep in your kit.

5. Empty frames – Large enough to frame the face and small enough to avoid comedy, a set of empty frames add a level of depth and perspective to the overall shot.

6. Brightly colored pinwheels – Offering contrast to a solid backdrop and the ability to create a bright palette in a single group shot, a set of paper pinwheels in bold colors can be independently made or inexpensively bought for each event.

7. A quote bubble – Shaped from a chalkboard or paper, a handful of quote bubbles can add a nice message to the event host, or a playful phrase to the photo. Create one out of dry erase-board paper or paint to make it reusable.

8. Bowties in various colors – In prints that aren’t too flashy or glittery, easy-to-apply bow ties are useful at any event. Attach paper copies to the end of a wooden dowel, or offer clip-on cloth versions.

9. Sunglasses – Keep a small set of black, plastic sunglasses on hand for use at daytime or evening events. They add a small amount of humor to a formal event photo without going over the top, or play into a broader, sillier photo scheme in a more festive setting.

10. A fake moustache on a stick – Someone will use it, no matter the occasion. Same goes for a pair of bright red lips.

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Top 5 Prop Sources for Great New Props

March 18, 2012 by Leave a Comment

Photo booths are exciting on their own, with their combination of freedom and privacy, and few people can resist jumping in. How can you make a booth more irresistible than it already is? Simple—just add a few props! If you’re looking for new places to search for great props for your customers to pose with, here are a few great sites to consider:

 

 

1. Photographyprops.com

 Posing stools, angel wings, giant letters—all the stuff you think of right off the bat. This is a good first stop for finding the props that people hope to see.

2. Mallats.com

 A great source for a huge variety of props and costume pieces, and at good prices as well. In addition to everything you expect, Mallats offers interesting trinkets like police badges, fake cigars, crowns and temporary tattoos—it’s hard not to look at them without imagining the great poses you could use them for in a photo booth!

3. Etsy.com

 Etsy offers a wide range of high-quality one-of-a-kind clothes and accessories for customers to dress up in, all created by small businesses and independent craftsmen. With so many providers in one location, it saves you the trouble of hunting down the right individual and allows you to browse like you’re in an open market.

4. Buycostumes.com

 While your customers probably may not have the time to change into a full costume, the hats, wigs, and other bits and pieces offered here can be great fun. Whether you go for popular fictional characters, mythological beings, or just wacky looks, your customers will have a great time seeing how they look with these props. 

5. Oldtimephotostudiocostumes.com

 If you can afford to give your customers a little time to dress up, this site’s certainly worth a consideration. Let your customers dress up as pirates, cowboys, gangsters—you name it. These do tend to come with a hefty price tag, however, so you may want to limit your choices to the hats and accessories.

 With the props from these sites at their disposal, your customers will have blast. We dare say props might be the second most important thing after your photo booth!

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