When you offer a Photo Booth at an event, you are offering the opportunity to people that they will have a great time. But in order to do that you must make it safe to use – that is your responsibility. Thankfully, by properly protecting your Photo Booth you will ensure it is safe to use and will also ensure it is not abused throughout the evening.
Even with the best of intentions, setting up a Photo Booth is risky. Whether you set it up as a personal favor for someone or as a business – there are risks.
The Legal Risks
I’m not going to dwell on this aspect here because I’m not a legal expert and you should definitely take legal advice on this aspect of the Photo Booth. Suffice to say, there can be legal consequences if anyone it hurt at your Photo Booth. If you are running the Photo Booth as a business you will already have considered this and have covered yourself with the proper legal clauses in your contract. Normally the venue will have already asked you about insurance, but whether they did or not, you will have taken out the relevant policies.
These policies will place a responsibility on you to ensure the Photo Booth is set up properly. Normally, to comply with the policies you must ensure the electrical aspects of the Photo Booth have valid safety certificates. You must also ensure that when you position the Photo Booth, you do not obstruct a fire exit or the free path to a fire exit, or the fire exit sign.
Photo Booth Safety
When you connect cables and assemble the booth you will ensure there is no trip hazard. For example you won’t simply run trailing wires from the electrical socket to the Photo Booth – you will ensure these are taped to the floor. Sometimes the best electrical outlet to use is not the nearest one to the Photo Booth. It may be further away but allows the cable run without presenting a trip hazard. (Note: You should use only one extension cable, so make sure it is long enough for any eventuality. Don’t daisy-chain two or three extension cables together and think it’s ok – it’s not ok. It’s dangerous and also most likely illegal.
The Photo Booth will be sited in an area where it does not obstruct the normal flow of foot traffic in the venue – you can’t have people side-stepping to avoid the Photo Booth as they enter and leave the venue. This constitutes a fire hazard.
You will make sure the Photo Booth is sturdy enough that it will withstand people bumping into it (or even falling into it if it’s late and especially if there was a free bar). If your Photo Booth consists of all your gear sitting on a table (provided by the venue) then make sure everything is duct-taped to the table so it will not come crashing down if the table is bumped.
To be blunt, you must assume that everyone who uses your Photo Booth or even walks past your Photo Booth is an idiot. Or drunk. Or both. Hope for the best, but expect the worst. I have tried for many years to cater for these types of people and they still manage to out-fox me.
Of course most of the people using your Photo Booth will be responsible and will have a great time. But it only takes one. And believe me, there is always one.
After a while you will become an expert for how to set the Photo Booth up in the safest way possible given the limitations of the venue. Those of you who have a baby who has just become mobile will understand this. Your home is completely child-proof but when you walk into a friends home your eye will be immediately drawn to all the delicate knick-knacks that should be moved to a higher position, and the sharp corners that signify no-go zones. It’s instinctive. You develop an eye.
Don’t Leave The Photo Booth Unattended
Your Photo Booth is filled with expensive equipment. The setup can be quite complex and you have set it up so everything runs perfectly. Don’t assume people will respect this and just press the button without tinkering about with the controls. Mostly this will be a guy – and it’s always a guy (sorry guys) – who is probably only allowed to operate the TV remote at home, and nothing else. He will instantly see that the camera is not adjusted properly, or some laptop setting should be changed. If you do leave the Photo Booth unattended for even a few minutes, maybe for a toilet break, it’s always a good idea to check everything is still the same as before. Make sure the images are properly framed and in focus, etc.
I have never had anyone fiddling with the Photo Booth with any malicious intent. They’ve always been well-meaning, but the result has always been the same. Suspicion is healthy in this regard. The alternative is that some of your images could be scrapped because some settings had been changed.
Later in the evening when you have the DJ announce the Photo Booth will close in 30 minutes or so, you will have a flood of last-minute customers. Mostly it’s a chance for the bride and groom to have some time in the booth as they were just too busy for that earlier in the evening. These are your most important customers of the entire event – you must get this part right. But after them will come the rowdies. These guys – and I include the girls in this one (sorry girls) – have usually had more than their fair share of beverages throughout the evening and will normally have some ‘great ideas’ about what poses to strike in the Photo Booth. Be extra-attentive for this. Don’t be afraid to lay down the law. Hard. If it is needed. Again, there will be no malicious intent, but drunken idiots are drunken idiots.
To Summarize…
The Photo Booth is a great idea for weddings, birthdays, etc. but it must be safe to use and it is up to you to ensure this safety. So…
- Build your Photo Booth to be as sturdy as possible.
- Make sure all the local regulations are complied with.
- Ensure all your documentation is up to date.
- Make sure you, or someone you trust is in attendance at all times to ensure the Photo Booth is operated safely.
- Lay down the rules – your rules.
People mostly respond well to a degree of control and generally just want to know what is and what is not permitted. Once they understand the rules, they will happily play within them. It is up to you as the Photo Booth owner to set these boundaries. - It is also up to you to take care of your Photo Booth so it is ready to use again.
- If you are happy with how the Photo Booth event went, you will be happier to do it again.
As you are looking after the Photo Booth you may as well help the people get the best from it. So many times I have provided a Photo Booth and have had people looking at me for guidance as to what to do. Rather than have them read a set of instructions or select from all the options on the screen, I just fire off a shot when they are not expecting it. If they still don’t get it, take another photograph. If they complain they were not ready, fire off another shot. They will get it eventually. That’s how I get reaction shots like the photo above. The more excited you are about the Photo Booth, the more excited they will become.