Selfie Pod Photo Booth

The Selfie Pod Booth / iPad Photo Booth

The selfie pod / iPad booth explained

What is the selfie pod iPad photo booth (Pod booth) and how does it compare to other photo booths available to hire? Is this booth the right choice for your event?

The Pod booth is the most compact and easily transportable photo booth in the market today. These booths are generally controlled by current model Apple iPads. The units usually contain some kind of photography lighting within or atop of the unit casing. The pictures are taken using the inbuilt camera of the iPad.

Customers are often enticed by the sleek design of the photo pod and the speedy set up time for this machine. It’s also much more likely that your photo booth company will offer an attendant-free ‘unattended hire’ with this unit. This is routinely the case if you only require social media share of your pictures and not a physical photo printing service.

An example of a photo from a iPad photo booth.

So let’s get into a bit more detail about this booth and whether it is the right choice for you. Firstly, I would recommend considering how important it is for you to provide your guests with physical photo prints at your event. Most wedding and party clients are very keen to book the photo printing service and this is totally understandable. It’s such a fun and exciting element of the photo booth hire service and why would you want to miss out?

However, if you are hosting an office party it maybe more fun to instantly share pictures with colleagues on the Socials. It is certainly a great idea for retail and brand activation events because your business will acquire an instant customer database. Also, these events can last days and the hire costs will be significantly reduced without printing costs and attendant hire.

Most photo booth companies will provide an ‘attendant free’ option for your photo pod if you do not require a print service. One of the most important roles for a photo booth attendant is to manage the printing service. Without the printing element, there is little for an attendant to do on a photo pod gig. The photo pod is easily operated using the touch screen and with simple on-screen instructions, whatever software the booth is running.

So, the reason that I’ve gone into such detail about print or social media share options, and attendant / attendant free service, is because it will affect your hire schedule and it’s important to know which options are right for your event.

Your operative can set up a print-free service photo pod in as little as 15 minutes at your event. He/she can carry the unit into the event space in one go, and as long as no additional photography lighting is required, can have the unit fully functioning within minutes. This is a great when the turn-around time at your event is limited. Or if your guests are already in attendance as the booth arrives, and minimising any disruption is an absolute priority.

After set up, your operative can leave the premises (if unattended service is preferred), and guests can enjoy the booth and share pictures via social media. Always check with your photo booth company whether they need access to your WiFi or whether they bring their own mobile internet. Either way, your event venue will need to be in a serviceable WiFi area for social media sharing.

Set up time increases to about 30/45 minutes with the printing service. I would also always recommend booking an attended service for photo print hires at parties and weddings. Commercial photo printers can develop issues that need attention from a trained operative immediately. It is no good waiting on a 2hr call out if your party is only 3 hours long! We only offer unattended hires on print-free options and long term contracts (2 days plus) for this very reason.

Modern iPads take very good quality pictures and together with the in-built photography lighting on the Pods, the pictures are good enough quality for most. However, for a better picture, you may want to ask your photo booth company to bring an additional tripod supported photography light.

So, in summary the best things about the Pod booth are the compact size, quick and easy set up, and unattended hire options. The picture quality is not as good as a larger Classic or Mirror booth with DSLR camera integration.

Selfie Pod / iPad Booth - Pros & Cons

Pros

1. Super compact design. Can be carried into tight spaces and set up within 20mins (45 mins with printing service). Min 1m X 2m floor space.

2. Great for social media share unattended hires.

3. Stylish, modern and huge variety of design options. External branding available from many operators.

4. Hire costs are a little less for this booth.

Cons

1. Picture quality is not as good as larger photo booths with integrated DSLR (professional) cameras.

2. Additional photography lighting maybe required in some environments.