Photo Booth History

Humble Beginnings

Invented in the 1880s, the photo booth is certainly not a new concept. Originally a permanent set-up and coin operated, the original photo booth produced black and white photo strips, which took almost ten minutes to print.

The process gradually improved, but basically remained “slow and steady” until recent times. The most common use for the machine in the late 20th century was for passport and ID prints.

In Australia, the shopping centre was one of the few places you would find a photo booth. Around the world they were far better known as sources of amusement in arcades and train or bus stations.

Modern Craze

Thankfully, in the early 2000s modern computer operated machines started to develop which allowed greater freedom for the photo booth. Soon enough, the photo booth hire industry was born.

For the first time, people could bring the once humble photo booth into their chosen location as entertainment for weddings, parties, school formals and corporate events. Stylish, cheeky and clever images started to appear between drinks, dances, awards announcements and mingling. And the guests loved it!

In Australia, the very first photo booth hire companies started with imported machines from Europe and the United States around the mid-2000s. Since then, the industry has flourished and as of 2014, there are a number of local companies manufacturing photo booths and more than 500 photo booth hire companies Australia-wide.

That’s a lot of party pics!