Photo Booth Etiquette with Kids
Tips for parents taking a small person to a real chemical booth
Children love photo booths. They love the curtain, and they love the slot where the pictures come out even more, usually at a volume the people waiting behind you did not sign up for. A little planning keeps everyone friendly.
Pick the right booth first
A lot of the analog booths still working today live in bars, because bars kept them running when malls and train stations swapped them for digital kiosks in the 2000s. That is lovely for adults and a problem for anyone with a stroller. Before you promise a child a photo booth, check where it actually is.
The family-friendly ones tend to be in arcades, museums, cinema lobbies, record shops and on the pavement. Berlin's Fotoautomat machines stand outside on street corners, where nobody checks ID and a queue of teenagers on a Saturday afternoon is completely normal. Every listing on the Booth Beacon map names the venue, so a thirty-second look will tell you whether you are walking your kid into a pinball hall or a cocktail bar at 10pm.
Photo booth etiquette tips for parents
One strip per family when people are waiting
Every sibling will want their own turn. With nobody behind you, go ahead. With a queue, squeeze everyone into a single session and come back later for the solo strips. A chemical booth takes three minutes to shoot and another three to five to develop, so three separate turns can cost the couple behind you twenty minutes.
Laps, not standing on the stool
The camera is fixed at the height of a seated adult's face, which puts a four-year-old somewhere around the bottom edge of the frame. The fix kids always suggest is standing on the stool. Most booth stools spin to adjust their height, which is exactly what you do not want under a small person who is already excited. Sit down and put them on your knee.
Let them feed the coins
Hand over the exact coins and let your child drop them in. It is the best part for a lot of kids. Keep an eye on the slot afterwards, though. Old coin mechanisms jam on foreign coins and, once in a while, a gummy bear, and a jammed booth in a bar can sit dead for weeks before the operator gets out to fix it.
Count the flashes out loud
Four flashes, a few seconds apart. Say so before the first one.
Give them a job while the strip develops
Five minutes is forever at six years old. Make one child the official slot watcher, standing to the side so the next people can get in, and the wait turns into a stakeout. It also stops anyone from reaching up into the delivery slot, where a small hand can drag a half-developed strip out early and smear it.
Grown-ups hold it first
The strip drops out damp and faintly smelling of chemistry. Hold it by the white border and let it dry for a few minutes before passing it to anyone with ice cream on their fingers. A thumbprint pressed into wet emulsion stays there for good.
The strip where your toddler is looking at the wrong wall will be the one you frame.
The curtain and the noise
Curtain rails on older booths are thin, and they were not designed for a child swinging on the fabric. Pull it closed yourself. Opening and closing it twelve times to play peekaboo with the queue is funny once.
Noise depends on the room. Shrieking with laughter inside a booth on a busy street is part of the point, and nobody minds. In a quiet museum or a café, a hand on a shoulder and a reminder that the people at the next table can hear you goes a long way, and if the venue sells something, buying it keeps the owner fond of the machine and of families who come in to use it.
More photo booth manners
For the general rules at coin-operated machines (checking the light, what to do when a booth eats your money) read our seven rules for public photo booths. If the kids are going to a wedding with a booth, the flower girl problem is covered in photo booth etiquette at weddings and parties. And before a strip of someone else's child goes on Instagram, see our etiquette tips for sharing strips.
Frequently asked questions
How old does a child need to be for a photo booth?
There is no minimum. Babies sit on a lap and come out fine, though they often close their eyes at the first flash and keep them shut for the other three. Somewhere around four or five, kids start to understand the countdown, and that is usually when the strips get good.
Can I take my kids to a photo booth in a bar?
Only if the bar lets children in, and many do not, especially in the evening. Ask at the door rather than walking straight to the machine. Booths in arcades, museums, cinemas and on the street in cities like Berlin are the easier bet for a family afternoon.
Is the flash in a photo booth safe for young children?
A booth flash is a short, bright burst, similar to a camera flash, and it is no different in kind from the one at a school portrait day. What catches small children off guard is the surprise. Tell them how many flashes are coming and count along out loud, and most kids treat it as a game by the second frame.
How many kids can fit in one strip?
One adult and two small children is comfortable. Two adults and two kids works if the kids sit on laps. Past that, somebody ends up as a forehead at the edge of the frame, and it is usually the youngest, who will notice.
Find a family-friendly booth
Booth Beacon tracks 1,509 booths across 40 countries. Search near you, check the venue, and bring a pocket of the right coins.