![]() Take a look at the difference in picture quality between the built-in webcam on my MacBook Air and my Logitech HD webcam. The Logitech HD webcam I have shoots streaming video in 1080p but it also takes fantastic still shots thanks to its built-in Carl Zeiss lens. In the end I decided to use my Logitech HD webcam instead of the built-in webcam on my MacBook Air. This I laid out in an accessible place for party attendees whether they wanted to be in a picture or not. In addition, we laid out a bunch of New Year’s Eve themed noisemakers, glasses, tiaras, and party hats. I laid them out off camera view and to the side to contain them in a specific area and make readily accessible to change out between pictures. I happened to have a ton of funny props from my other video endeavors and they add some extra fun to the photobooth experience. I hung them with some clips at the crossbar of the backdrop stand. This sign was perfect and will eliminate the need for me to date the pictures with a watermark in the future. I wanted something to signify the New Year’s Eve theme but not something too distracting. The final part of my backdrop was my “2013” sign. ![]() You can totally get by with a sheet taped up behind you. Note: I happen to have some nice additional studio equipment but this is a nice to have not a requirement. As a bonus they had eyelets already built-in so they were a breeze to hang with my backdrop stand. These worked out so great as they are an off-white color to provide brightness but not blindness, and are thick enough to block out anything behind it. Instead, my wife had a great idea to use these canvas window curtains that we owned and never put up in our current house. Once I set it up however, I realized there wasn’t nearly enough light to light the green screen properly and I did not want to create a minefield for my guests by setting up more lights and light stands. I have a backdrop stand and a green screen and my initial thought was to hang my green screen and color key it out to add custom backgrounds. In my case the background were the blinds on my windows. Whether you like to believe it or not, your house is cluttered and the point of a backdrop is to minimize the distracting items in the background so you can concentrate on the party goer subjects. I did this to be able to control the flow of traffic and eliminate the risk of people tripping on power cords.Ī backdrop is not necessary but a very nice thing to have for a photobooth setup in your home. I ended up pushing it towards one side of the room and forming an L shape with a second table. We have a chandelier hanging from the middle of the ceiling so I knew the dining room table would have to remain close to the center otherwise guests would be walking straight into it. I settled on my dining room which is adjacent to the living room and close to the front entrance. Being a New Year’s Eve Party I knew there would be tons of focus on the television especially during the ball drop so I immediately ruled out the living room. I wanted the photobooth to be in a place that was high trafficked but not in the way. ![]() So I knew I was going to use my laptop but now I needed to to plan where my photobooth would be. Fortunately I own this Belkin laptop stand that gave it an additional 5 inches of height off the ground and gave me added reassurance that any spilled drinks would not hit my computer. I placed my laptop on the table and knew immediately that it was too low to the ground to get a good camera angle using my webcam. I play around with the Photobooth app all the time with my kids so I was familiar with its capabilities and knew it was a good fit for what I wanted to achieve. It has a slick, simple interface with basically just one red button to push to enable the countdown timer and picture taking. Photobooth is a free app that comes installed on all new Mac computers and it allows you to use your built-in webcam to take pictures of you and your friends photobooth style. The basis of the idea evolved around the Apple Photobooth application on my MacBook Air. ![]() In the end I was able to create a photobooth experience using just my mac laptop and a webcam and it turned out to be a fun feature of our New Year’s Eve party. (More on the advantages of paying for a photobooth company later). I wanted a photobooth but didn’t want to shell out that type of dough. But to rent one from a professional photobooth company could cost you at least $600 for a 4 hour period. Photobooths are a great way to get your guests into a partying spirit and capture the moments that they will enjoy. One of the features of the party that I wanted to have was a photobooth. Last night my wife and I hosted 25+ neighbors for a New Year’s Eve bash at our house. ![]()
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