JB's 25th Birthday Party

On Friday December 9th FlashBoxUK PhotoBooth Rental were privileged to be selected as the PhotoBooth supplier for the party celebrating JB Gill's 25th birthday, he is a member of JLS.

The party was held at the 'River Room' in the Millbank Centre in Central London  http://www.riverroomlondon.com/  - a terrific contemporary venue for our contemporary photobooth! The party was attended by over 300 guests.

We ran the booth from 9pm until about 1:45am and in total printed close to 400 prints.

Since the event we have had over 900 visits to the password protected gallery on our website and had orders for over 60 prints. Which just goes to show, how, as part of any PhotoBooth hire, this is a much forgotten added extra (that we include in all our packages).

At the end of the party we presented JB's mother with the 'message book' that was absolutely full with over 100 messages from friends and family and with over 150 of the prints. We spoke with a guest the other day and she told us that JB had the album out on Sunday evening showing all his mates at his flat - a great recommendation for a photobooth - they all had great fun - here are some of the images captured from the photobooth :-


JB with friends :-

Olly Murs was there, and certainly knows how to party in a photobooth :-

Here is a full print of Olly Murs from the photo booth, showing the print graphic for the evening :-

Overall a great night was had by all . . .  . . . .  . .

Book your Xmas Party Photo Booth NOW

This week and next week are when the majority of UK schools have their half term holidays. When people return all thoughts are on the next break, and this is of course Christmas. But before then many corporates/individuals/groups have a Xmas party - and these will tend to get arranged in the next 2-3 weeks.

Already we have many bookings in December for photobooth, so if you are thinking about getting a photobooth as entertainment for a Xmas party then do get in contact quickly.  Actually at the moment, the majority of our December bookings are for birthdays and Bar Mitzvah, so it seems that maybe the economic climate may be affecting the timing of Xmas party bookings - but they will arrive . . .

A photobooth at a Xmas party is so adaptable, it would be an ideal opportunity to use our greenscreen technology that would really enable the Christmas spirit to enter the booth, and be on all the images :-

Also, of course, the whole print graphic would be personalised (as usual) for your event, so this could also get the Christmas effect . . . . . .  and remember we can easily place artwork in the skin of our booth, this could also easily be xmasified . . . .

With most Xmas parties being on Thursday/Friday nights (at least where we have worked), then there are only so many available dates for our photo booth hire, we are already fully booked for Friday 9th. Make that phone call, or send that email NOW.

The Wedding Photo Booth - as a present.

We have provided a photobooth at a couple of Weddings over the last month where the booth hire has been given to the bride/groom as a present.

At the first such wedding the best man had offered to give a cash float behind the bar, but the bride (who had seen our booth at a wedding show) asked him to use the money for the booth hire instead. He booked us, the bride was happy and everyone had a great time in the booth, including the best man . . . .on several occasions.

On the second occasion, the bride and her mother had again seen our booth at a show - and the bride desperately wanted to book, her mother took this onboard.  A couple of the brides friends then contacted us and we discussed the wedding and we gave a price quote - the mother then phoned to just confirm that it was us she had seen at the wedding show . . . .  as the friends had also contacted other companies, and had got confused .

The booth was to be a surprise gift for the bride. We set up early, then put a cover over the booth - the friends then attached a big gift label :-

When the bride/groom arrived at the reception and saw the booth, they were gobsmacked . . . . .  apparently the bride had a little tear in her eye, of joy . . . . .

The booth had a record number of prints for a 2011 wedding (for FlashBoxUK), 406 prints in 3hr 20mins - maybe it was all the friends who had payed, getting there moneys worth?  Certainly they were seen making sure some of the 'older folks' had a go and got their momento :-

So if you budget is stretched, but you really want the entertainment of the photo booth at your wedding - why not suggest to your friends/family that it can be a joint present . . . . . .  why not add it to your wedding list ?   As can be seen from the label and looking at our 'Price plan' webpage, the cost per individual was very reasonable . . . . and the entertainment value . . . .

Here's a selection of photos of the booth at the weddings mentioned :-

Your own artwork, in the skin of the Photobooth - Unique !!

Our photobooth is unique in the UK market, in that any graphic artwork can actually be placed 'inside' the skin of the booth - to give a really professional look.  Other UK PhotoBooth hire operators say they can offer 'personalised graphics' but in reality these are just stuck onto the outside of the booth, sometimes even with blu-tac.

As you can see from our price plans page, we can create these graphics for £100/panel - for this we get a professional external graphic designer to do the artwork and then have it printed onto plastic paper (the type used in lightboxes in shopping arcades) - this gets used for your event and then given to you at the end, for your own use (or to use in the booth at your next event!).  Here is an example of the booth, kitted out for a corporate function :-

However, not everyone wants to spend £100 0n a panel, and although many think about the 'idea' we tend to only get corporates who actually order it, also it takes 3 weeks to order, and this isn't always possible.

We have always offered to use clients own artwork for free - we give the dimensions, they provide the artwork - but again, it was mainly used for corporate functions.  Then a few weeks ago we went to a party where the host had created a large board and put loads of photos all over it in a collage - it was much admired by the guests, and as it was next to the booth, we saw the amusement that others saw in seeing themselves 10years previously with the host - this got us thinking . . . . . . .

Last week, we had the perfect opportunity to test this new idea. We were booked for a 21st/50th Party and the host wanted a 'personalised' panel - however we did not have time as the party was only a week away . . . . . I gave her my suggestion . . . . . . . 'create your own photo collage and we'll put it in the skin of the booth'. We gave the host the dimensions needed (approx 72cm by 170cm) and gave her some advice - get your favourite photos blown up large, scatter other photos around and mount them on card - you can get large card from any art shop - you will need 3 pieces for each panel, then just overlap them and sellotape together . . .

The result was spectacular :-

The photos looked so good 'in the skin'. The host made 2 panels, one for each end (slightly different sizes) :-

Guests thought it was a great idea and many spent ages looking at the photos.

It would have been possible to have done all 4 panels - but usually the shape of the booth means that 2 panels are always most prominent - the booth is actually horse shoe shaped at each end, and therefore more rounded than photos suggest - here is a photo showing the photo panels next to our usual blank panel :-

We think that this feature would really appeal to a lot of the events that we do, weddings, Bar Mitzvah, 21st Parties, Xmas Parties etc . . . . .  The hosts also get the fun of creating the 'collage', collecting the photos and putting them onto the card.  The cost remains low . . .we are happy, as it is another reason to book your photobooth through FlashBoxUK Photo Booth Rental.

August was soooooo busy . . . . . . soooo many photos . . .. . .. . . .

Like any business, photobooth hire has it's peaks and troughs through the year, with certainly August being one of the high points due to the demand from Weddings.  However, as you'll see in the photos below not all August bookings are for wedding photobooths, many other events also take place at this time of the year.

We started the month at Barnes in London for a superb wedding at the Wetlands visitor centre, where we were not the only entertainment, there was a great band and an ice-cream vendor as well . . . . .that doesn't happen often!
No photo here of the the band or ice-cream vendor (who had left when we arrived, champagne and ice-cream don't mix!)

For some reason we then didn't take any photos of the photobooth at a rental for 10-days, as the next picture on our camera was taken in Manchester at the 'Slug and Lettuce' where we were at a Corporate summer party.

As you can see, the booth was decked out in 'Corporate Colours' for the event and many of the guests had their photo on the 'shell' of the booth in the graphics, which they all loved!  Something that we loved about the party was the entertainment, here's a quick photo (it's of the photobooth really . . . not!) :-

The following Monday we were at a Wedding in Essex, yes, a Monday wedding, not that common, but actually it somehow felt more relaxed :-

We then  had a travel up to Durham county and a wedding at Seaton Carew, on the coast near Hartlepool, we arrived early and had a walk along the beach before we set up the photobooth - just as well we had some fresh air, as the booth had an extremely busy night - 380 prints in 3hrs 20 mins :-

The next day we travelled to Wales, to Clearwell Castle, which is on the edge of the Forest of Dean, a terrific venue for a wedding - no time for a walk before this photobooth event, our satnav took us the picturesque way, in fact down single track roads for the last 10miles!

2 days later we started a 5 day photobooth rental in a shopping centre for a Corporate client, over the event we printed off around 900 prints and took over 2000 photos, a great promotion :-

Then it was a local gig, in St Albans for a family party in a remarkable 'Moroccon tent', in fact it would have been no surprise if Col. Gaddafi were not hidden somewhere inside . . . . .  the booth wasn't inside the tent, but just outside, so I include an internal view of the marquee :-

Our next engagement could not have been more of as contrast, a wedding in a modern barn conversion at Hatfield House :-

Then back to St Albans and to a wedding at Sopwell House, where we are the preferred supplier of Photobooths, ended up being a late night, the wedding speeches didn't finish until after 9pm . . . .I thought my own wedding speech was a long one . . . . .

And, last Saturday, to a great wedding in Stevenage at the Holiday Inn and another 300+ prints

The day after it was an early start and into London for the 'In Wedding Show' at Alexandra Palace, attended by nearly 1000 brides, we printed nearly 200 prints. What a sensation the booth was to the upcoming brides, and we're sure to get many orders from the event.

So a busy August, certainly no down time for us. The beach beckons in October . . . .  .

Photobooth Hire isn't just for evening entertainment

Over 90% of our bookings for Photobooth hire are for evenings, with Saturday obviously the most popular followed by Friday. The 3rd most popular time is actually Sunday afternoons (ahead of Thursday evening), mainly because so many Bar and Bat Mitzvah are on at this time and they have a Photo booth very often at these events.

However, just last week we attended a terrific Hindu wedding, where the Photobooth was operated only in the afternoon (Saturday) and the Wedding was all finished at 6pm.  We, ourselves, were unsure how the booth would be used, as the Wedding ceremony was going to be held at the same time as the booth operated.

We need not have been concerned the photo booth hire was it's usual success and proved a great attraction for the 100's of guests - the prop box was also used extensively, despite there being not a drop of alcohol on the premises - who says you need a drink to wear large glasses and a silly wig !

Here we show a photo of the booth in situ, ready for action, whilst people were still arriving for the ceremony :-

At most Weddings we always try and get the older generation to use the photo booth through the rental, but at evening Wedding events we do tend to be dominated by the friends of the bride and groom. In this afternoon wedding, it was very different, yes the younger folk had their fun :-

but we also had many of the families going into the booth to do more 'studio' style photos, in fact after the event many of them have since purchased the individual photos in full 6x4 size (£2.50 delivered !) :-

but what was really great about the wedding was the number of the older generation who went into the booth, so that they would have a great memento to take away with them :-

and they also knew how to have fun, here we have 3 generations of a family with a photo of Granny to cherish :-

and how about this as a terrific photo of the bride and groom, even though the official wedding photographer took thousands of photos we'd be surprised if she surpassed this (she was actually using the same Canon DSLR that we use) :-

Thanks Kishan and Nisha for having FlashBoxUK Photo Booth Rental at your afternoon Wedding, it was a terrific Wedding, good luck for the future.

Photobooth rental isn't just for evening entertainment, here's one last photo of the booth in situ :-

One Month - such different venues -

In a moment of reflection we have looked back over the last month of our Photo Booth hire gigs, and really decided that the selection of venues could not have been more diverse. It just goes to show that with a portable photo booth we can just about go anywhere!

A month ago we were were at the High Road House Chiswick (www.highroadhousehouse.co.uk), which was a joint 18th and 21st party for 2 sisters. The event coordinator had to check the height of the booth (2m, by the way) just to check we would fit into the party room, as you can see it was quite a tight fit :-

The following week and we were at a school charity summer ball (www.beechwoodpark.herts.sch.uk),  and into a marquee :-

The next event was at a more 'traditional' Hotel venue where we provided some of the entertainment for a Wedding, the Cwrt Bleddyn Hotel and Spa (www.cwrtbleddyn.co.uk) :-

Then back into a marquee at Aldenham School (www.aldenham.com) where we forgot to take a photo of the booth (doh!), but what a busy Bat Mitzvah event - 396 prints, nearly 600 flashes from our studio lights and fun had by all, young and old!

Then last week end we were at Dover Town Hall for another Wedding (www.dover.gov.uk/leisure,_culture__tourism/heritage__museums/historical_sites_and_buildings/dover_town_hall.aspx) and found ourselves steeped in the past (no height problem here!) :-

What a selection of venues for photobooth hire, and come to think of it, what a selection of events as well, photo booths aren't just for weddings!

What do we need at a venue?
a) A space of 2.5m by 1.5m and a height clearance of over 2m.
b) Preferably 2 13amp electric wall sockets, but 1 will suffice.
c) A flat floor.
c) A table for props and the memory book, if those options are taken.

Otherwise, because our photo booth arrives dismantled, we can go upstairs, downstairs in lifts etc with no problem. We will always liaise with the venue before the event, as the complication/position of the set-up is a key factor as to what time we arrive before the hire.

Bat Mitzvah breaks FlashboxUK photobooth print record

For any photobooth hire we offer unlimited prints for the duration of the rental, and we really mean this - go in the booth as often as you like!

Last Sunday we were privileged to be part of the entertainment at a Bat Mitzvah and what a hit the photo booth was - other attractions included a Disco, Elvis Shmelvis (of 'Come Dine With Me' fame), a terrific solo from a guest, real fun fare dodgems and terrific food (and wine!) - and yet there was a queue at the photobooth for the full rental.

The result was that through the hire period we had 198 sittings, the printer threw out 396 prints and the studio flash went off 594 times!  This was our busiest 3hour rental for 2011 !  (ok, so we went on a bit after the rental period. . . . . .  .but hey, there were people enjoying themselves . . . . . ).

We always average over 300 prints for a 3hour hire (when doing double prints - 1 for a memory book, 1 for the guest), but to get so close to 400 was astonishing - in some respects the fact the marquee generator was turned off was the only reason that this figure wasn't reached.

Was it full of kids the whole time, being a Bat Mitzvah?  Actually, no, not at all, that is the beauty of having a photobooth hire as entertainment, everyone got to use it and had fun, here's a couple of photos from the event (these pictures have been requested on Facebook by the guests as well) :-

The age range of guests who used the booth stretched from a few months (obviously held for the photo!) to a great grandmother in her 90's.

Unlimited photos, really does mean unlimited with FlashBoxUK Photo Booth Rental !