Just having the Photo Booth at a party is a hit right? Maybe. If you have the right pieces to the puzzle, so everything can fit together well.
Another component to a great Photo Booth experience is having the right props available for your guests to choose from. In my opinion, the more props the better! The more props available to your guests increase the likelihood of people getting extra creative with their pictures and making them extra special. It is exciting to see all of the different pictures and scenarios people create with the different props available to them.One component of the Photo Booth that is important as well is the backdrop. You want to make sure to pick the right back drop to fit the theme of your event, or party. Thankfully, at Maximus Parties, we have a great selection of some of beautiful backdrops. And if you don’t find something you like, we also have a backdrop that you can use as a green screen and fully customize what you want the background to be.
Ultimately, what makes a Photo Booth experience great, is when all of the guests are using the Photo Booth. Naturally, when someone sees someone else doing something fun, FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) kicks in and people get inspired to join in on the fun. If lots of people are using the Photo Booth, friends will naturally build off each other and try and make the most creative pictures possible. As the great cliche says “the more, the merrier!”
YES! One of the coolest features of our 2019 LED Photo Booth is the ability to send the pictures you just took directly to your social media account. Or if you’d rather send the picture to yourself and do a little bit of editing to the picture, the 2019 LED Photo Booth has a text message feature where you can send the pictures you just took directly to your phone.
Sharing pictures directly to social media also has some awesome utility if you are a brand, or a company trying to organically spread the word about what you are doing. Imagine if you have an event with 500 people. Of those 500 people, 350 take pictures on the Photo Booth and decide they want to share them directly to their social media accounts. If you brand the photos correctly by designing your own custom template, then when people post the pictures to their accounts, your logo will be on ever single picture that was posted to social media. In my opinion, that would be one of the smartest ways to organically spread the word about your business. At that point, your “marketing cost” is simply the cost of the Photo Booth. And for that price, theoretically, for this specific example I gave, you would have received 350 posts on social media to individual networks of 1000-3000 people… that’s a steal.
In addition to having people post the pictures to their accounts, you could even design a hashtag that is attached when the photos are posted. This way, people can click your hashtag after the event and scroll through the different photos that were posted that night.
As you can see, the Photo Booth has the freedom for your to not only get creative with pictures, but also incorporating it in different ways to market your business!
If you go peruse the internet and check out wedding blogs you’ll find a myriad of different articles about the supposed “Top 5 Must Have’s For a Wedding.” I don’t think you’ll find many articles leading you astray; ultimately it comes down to what you value and consider as important for your special day. BUT – there are some things that we believe you MUST HAVE. We have been planning and working weddings for years and have seen what 5 things you must have in order to set yourself up for success.
1) A great DJ, or live band
Without the right energy a party isn’t going to reach it’s fullest potential. Weddings are essentially giant parties, celebrating the love between 2 people, with all their closest friends and family. In our experience, having a great DJ, or live band creates the perfect atmosphere for everyone to have fun. An experienced DJ, or live band knows how to read the crowd and switch up the song list, when needed. Typically your DJ, or live band is also your MC (Master of Ceremonies) for the night, so you want to make sure him, or her has experience MCing weddings and large events. It is the MC’s job to keep the wedding on schedule, moving from event to event.
2) Photographer
Wedding day’s are always a little crazy and it’s hard to take every moment and memory and lock it in your memory forever. That is why, having an experienced wedding photographer is tied right for number 1 with having a great DJ, or live band. A great wedding photographer understands the flow of a wedding, where to be and when, which is one of the most crucial parts. If the photographer doesn’t know how to position him, or herself in the right spots throughout the night, they might miss a crucial shot. Make sure you ask to see your perspective photographers portfolio before confirming them for the night. This will give you a nice idea of the types of moments they capture.
3) Videographer
It’s so hard to give all of these definitive rankings because of how truly important they all are, but videographer is right up there with 1) & 2). A videographer’s job is to not only allow to see the memories from the night, but also re-live them. You hear about people watching their wedding videos, 15, 20 years down the road, so you want to make sure you can do the same with yours! Before you higher a wedding videographer ask him, or her to send you their reel, or the last video they did for a wedding
4) Great food
This might be a no-brainer, but I’ve seen weddings go astray because the guests were not pleased with the selection of food. The most efficient way I’ve seen food taken care of is sending out the menu with the invite (or putting it on your website link) and having guests pick from 4-6 options of what they want for dinner. That way, they can take some time to decide what they want and don’t have to be put on the spot of deciding to eat in the moment.
5) Photo Booth
You’re probably thinking a photo booth? What? What about flowers, or decorations? Well, those things typically come along with weddings, but a photo booth can often times get forgotten about. A photo booth is great because it offers an opportunity for every guest to go and form their own unique memories with friends and family AND walk away with a physical memory as well; each photo booth immediately prints a physical strip of the photos that were just taken, something that can be cherished for years to come by many people at the wedding.
There are many more components to a successful wedding, but these are the top 5 things we felt are MUST HAVE’S for every wedding. If you have any more questions about planning a wedding, or would like to inquire about what kind of services we offer, please feel free to call, or email us.
We have all heard the expression: “It’s in the details.” Uplighting, is one of the most unnoticed, yet important components to taking an average party, to an excellent party, or event.
Maybe you are planning a corporate event, or graduation and you want to use blue uplighting to have a calm, soothing energy, but also something that exudes confidence and forward movement. A lot of times, uplighting goes unnoticed, which is awesome because then guests are left wondering why the event felt so different and cool…. If that’s the case, your mission was accomplished. If you are hosting a corporate event, or an event where there is a center of attention, uplighting is also a great way to bring attention to the speaker and naturally draw the eyes of the attendants to where they should be.
If you are hosting a fancy event, uplighting is also a fantastic way to bring a “regal” feel to the party. I was at a party once where they had every window sill illuminated with blue uplighting – I felt like I was in Beverly Hills for some exclusive party! If you like to make sure people who attend your event, or parties that you host are left with a lasting impression and memory, it is in your best interest to have uplighting at your event. Remember the last awesome concert you went to? As good as the music was, there was probably an accompanying light show that blew your mind. Think about a party in the same way. It’s in the details that you may not notice right off the top.
The DJ is debatably the most important part to any smooth wedding, or the reception at least. One of the main reason is that typically the DJ you hire is your MC too (Master of Ceremonies) and it is the MC’s job to keep the reception flowing and on time. If you don’t have experience being an MC, especially at a wedding, it could be difficult to work with so many moving parts.
The first thing you want to look for in a wedding DJ is experience. Ask him, or her how long they have been doing this for, how many events they have done, what sets them apart from all the other weddings DJ’s? If they can’t answer these simple questions, it might be time to look for someone who is better prepared for the job. It also wouldn’t hurt to try and get in touch with a few couples who hired the DJ you are looking into.
One of the main things you should look for is also his, or her ability to perform. Ask when the DJ will be performing next and go watch them do their thing. Do they get the crowd pumped up? Are they mixing the songs well and blending in and out of songs seamlessly? What kind of equipment are they utilizing? Is it enough power to fill the venue that you want to hire them for? All of these may seem like obvious questions, but you want to cover all your bases before you pay someone a large amount of money to come DJ the most important day of your life.
Ultimately, you want to know that this is something they do, take seriously and do well. It will be evident if the DJ you are speaking with is the right person for the job. If you are second guessing yourself on someone in particular, do some more shopping around until you find someone that you feel like you connect with and will do your event justice.
Art is subjective to an extent, which makes photography subjective… to an extent. There are a few things that if you see a photographer doing, you know they don’t know what they are doing.
How is the exposure? Does the picture look too bright? Or too dark? An excellent, or good photographer should have a firm grasp on exposure and be able to adjust his camera settings to look right in any setting. And if the lighting isn’t optimal in a particular setting, a great photographer will know how to work with flash, or additional lighting. If the pictures are too bright, or dark, you can’t use them. Make sure you when you’re checking out a prospective photographers work, you are keeping “exposure” in mind.
What is the composition of the picture? Are the subjects having fun? A poor photographer will never get people having fun in the pictures. It will seem like people are upset and perhaps the party wasn’t even all that fun. An average photographer, at the very least, will understand the basics of composition and where to be in order to get the best shots possible. A photographer who is great, or even excellent at what he, or she does will make your event look like it was the greatest event since the last Olympics. An excellent photographer understands composition well, and also how to position him, or herself in places throughout the night to get the best and most genuine photos.
Drone Footage For a Wedding?
Everyones favorite answer… “it depends.” Where is your wedding taking place? Is it at an indoor venue? Is it inside a church? Is it a small wedding in someone’s backyard? If the answer to any of these questions are yes, you probably don’t need a drone for your wedding.
Are you having a destination wedding? Is your wedding outside? If the answer is yes, I think having a drone is an excellent idea. As I mentioned, drones can capture footage and angles that a human could not dream of capturing. Having an experienced drone pilot/videographer can really take your wedding video to the next level. If you are spending the money to go have your wedding somewhere picturesque, I believe it’s worth it to try and capture the essence of the venue and a drone is one of the easiest ways to do it. Your mind will be blown when you see your wedding from the angles that a drone can provide….
A live band always makes a party better, in my opinion. Nothing can replicate the energy that great musicians bring to a party. Just ask yourself, would you rather hear a DJ play the song you want to hear, or instead have a band rock out it live for you? I know I’d choose the latter, every time.
A true professional cover band, that plays parties for a living should be able to play every song you’d give to a DJ that you want to hear. And if they don’t know how to play it, they should be able to learn how to fairly quickly.
If you are having a party in a smaller venue where volume restrictions might be a reality, perhaps it is better to higher a lower volume band like a jazz band, or an acoustic group. Most bands know how to “play to the room” and should be able to adjust their volume levels to the room they are playing.
Unlike a DJ, a live band can match the energy of the room. When a DJ is playing a song, the energy is as loud as the song he is playing. But when a band is playing a song live they have the ability to read the crowd and increase the energy, as they see fit. An experienced band will know how to dip down the energy when necessary and rock out hard when they feel it. One of my most memorable wedding experiences included one of the best bands I’ve ever seen! Their transitions were seamless, they played the songs flawlessly and even added their own twist to some classic hits. When you are hiring a band you are hiring an experience for your party attendants. Isn’t the point of a party, or event to provide the best experience for everyone who is attending? Hire that band you’re on the edge about and let the funk roll!
One way that you can assure the DJ you are hiring would know what to play at a Latin Themed Party is to ask if he, or she has ever played any Latin events before! If they have, ask them for the song list they put together for that party. Different Latin themes (Cuban, Argentinian, Mexican, etc.) will all have different types of songs that are being played, so you want to be sure that the DJ is familiar with whatever type of event you are putting together.
If for some reason all of the DJ’s who typically do Latin themed parties are booked, no worries. A professional DJ should be able to play any party, as long as he has a proper song list, or an idea of what songs he wants to play. If you give your prospective DJ a song list to familiarize himself with, he will have a good idea of what songs to play when. You could even go one step further and rank the songs in order of your favorites, that way the DJ knows which songs are the “bangers.”
Ultimately, the type of party shouldn’t hinder a DJ’s ability to do his job, which is play desirable music and keep the energy flowing. If a DJ is hired to play a Latin themed party it is his responsibility to do his homework and find out what are the most popular Latin songs (modern) and Latin songs from the past. Although, putting a nice song list together for your DJ will ensure that everyone at the party gets to hear their favorite songs and party it up!
If you want to give yourself the highest chance of capturing as many beautiful moments as possible, I think 2 photographers is always a safe bet. Granted, if you are working with a limited budget and can only work with 1 photographer, that is plenty and you will get some awesome shots undoubtedly. BUT ultimately, someone can’t be in two places at once and when one photographer is taking pictures of people on the dance floor, the other can be capturing candid moments around the party.
Next time you are at a wedding look around and notice how many photographers there are. The last wedding I attended I counted 4 different photographers and 2 videographers! The reality is, there are so many beautiful moments unfolding around a wedding, that it is almost impossible for 1 person to capture everything. If you are hosting a large corporate event, or get together, the same ideas would apply. During a wedding, corporate event, or even some larger parties, schedule’s are so fast paced that a single photographer would have a hard time keeping up and being able to be in the right place every time. I would say a wedding is probably the only event you would ever need 4 photographers. If you are hosting a birthday party, graduation, or a simple get together, one photographer would be plenty.
It also depends how many pictures you want to have from your party, wedding, corporate event, etc. It varies how many usable pictures you get from a photographer, but you can typically count on anywhere from 20-50 photos that are framable, top notch pictures. If you want to get this number closer to 100 usable pictures, it is probably a good idea to hire another photographer. If you want to stay safe, and you have the budget for it, I think two photographers are a great starting point for any event, large or small.