Savannah gets Wild!

As we quietly transition from the busy wedding and rental season to the somber tourist retreat of mid-winter, we thought it best for Savannah to continue the party instead of slipping into hibernation.  So, she has been moved and established at the Wild Wing Cafe in City Market Savannah, GA.  Her new post by the upstairs bar, next to the restroom hallway will ensure she offers plenty of opportunities for guests to get Wild at the Wing.  This sports bar is a favorite hangout to watch games at.  Swing by for the game and a shot (in the booth)!

A peek inside...

I have shown this set of pictures in the past, but I think they deserve another look.  For everybody who wonders how that little strip of black and white images is made, its much more complex than you ever thought.  Here are some shots of a handful of the inner workings that must all work together to produce a strip of images.  Pretty ingenious invention.

Credit Unit

Delivery Unit

Flash Strobe

Camera Relay -- cr. 1950s?

Camera

Spider Arm Assemble

The Sparetime + Sir Boothsalot = Good Times!

Sir Booths

We are super excited to have just placed our funky analog booth Sir Boothsalot at The Sparetime on Congress St. in Savannah, GA!

This guy fits right in and has already been well accepted.  This bar and late night avant garde hangout has become famous for its hand crafted cocktails and vinyl aficionados.   We can't think of a better place to have a vintage analog photobooth.  We are really excited to collaborate with the many artists and musicians who regulate this haunt.  Stay tuned for special promos and custom art backdrop photobooth parties in the future.  It's going to be the tits.

And in the mean while, here's some shots from the booth.  These were the first strips made by the booth in this location and I think they are a very fitting example of the general excitement about this booth and this bar.  Thanks to Ricardo and Jenn for sharing your engagement excitement with us.  Check out that bling ring.  Congrats!

Man in the Moon

Variations on a backless theme...

I was really inspired by the backless booth that Meags Fitzgerald in cahoots with A&A Studios was working with and thought I'd experiment with a variation.  I didn't have a busted booth without a back laying around but I did have an old mirror and some studio lights.  I also had a cowboy hat, a pipe, and an ostrich egg so naturally they became props.  Not quite as polished of a product but still a fun diversion from the classic photobooth mug shot.

Flower Study: no. 1

Patches saunters on over to The White Horse

Our sparky little booth Patches has found a new home in The White Horse over on Comal St in Austin.  Mad props to The White Horese for winning the Chronicles' awards for this year's Best New Club, Best New Bar, and Best Bar Staff... congrats!

An abundance of nothing.

Experiments with Chemistry

Part of the excitement of vintage and analog photography is the opportunity for experimentation.  The nature of the process lends itself to many different iterations and variations.  Even though the technology has been around for decades, the ability to reinvent and evolve the medium still exists.  Whether you find a new way to develop the strip, change the format of the booth itself, or conceptualize the content otherwise, the photobooth picture can be manipulated infinitely.

While this example cannot be truly described as a photobooth process, it still utilizes common components.  It uses the photobooth camera, strip media, and chemicals to produce an image, but it is created manually, not automatically as a photobooth would do.  In this respect it is closer to traditional darkroom developing than the automated process of the photobooth.  It is however a good example of how the medium can be stretched to extend beyond the confines of the booth itself, while still using the same components.

Here's the camera that was used:

It looks great for it's age.  This camera was manufactured for the Auto Photo booth and is fully automated to sync with the other components of the booth.  I simply manually opened the shutter and used it as a modified single lens camera.  And in traditional fashion, much like the pioneers of the craft, I photographed the inside of a workshop, and hand developed in chemistry.

Photobooth still life

Show us your strips!!

As the end of summer turns into the beginning of fall, and the weather begins to turn blustery, its a good time to take stock and plan for the coming months.  The lazy days of the Summer Swelter are behind us and the Fall Festivals, both in Savannah and Austin, are quickly approaching.  Forgive the bad pun, but here at Retro we are busy collecting our proverbial nuts.

So, what kind of nuts you might ask?

Well, here's what is going on:

First off, we've been busy working on a new art series exploring how the photobooth strip can be used to tell four-frame stories that can then be translated to public spaces.  Here's a strip going up on a building in Savannah:

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We've also been polishing up our booths and getting them ready for all the adoring fans who will no doubt pile into them after a round or two.  We wanted to change things up a bit on a couple booths and update the look for the new season.  Our flagship booth, The Professor, which has become quite the staple at the Social Club in Savannah, has just received a makeover and now sports some brand new curtains to make all those smiling faces look like they belong in the swinging 60's:

Shagadelic.

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Our Austin fleet has gotten an update as well, with booths moving to new locations and the introduction of a new member to the Retro family.  (Click on a named tab ^above^ to see the updated list of booths and venues.)  We are excited to present our newest booth, Oh Canada, a recent addition to the family and a transplant from our wintery neighbor to the north.  Stay tuned to find out more information about this guy and about where you can find him in the near future.

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And finally, we want to let all the analog junkies in Savannah know about our current project.  We want to see you strip... uh, your strip.  We know that you think you are brilliant and wonderful and ever so creative, so we want you to prove it and show us what you got.  We are holding a call for entries for the Savannah Strip Contest for unique photobooth artworks.  Submit your most awesome, most creative, most witty photostrip, one that tells a story or is just simply badass, and the winner will receive 1 hour of unlimited photobooth vends for you and all your drunken friends.  We know there are loads of artists and free thinkers here in town and plenty of people who understand the importance of analog photography.  This is our way of saying to you, "Thanks for caring about this old piece of metal and the magic it produces.  Without you it would be a very lonely piece of forgotten junk and we are really glad you appreciate the history and art it provides."  Or something like that.  Just like us on facebook: Retro Photobooths ATX and post your scan or picture to our page.

Here are some samples to get your creativity flowing:

And check out some other artists working with the photobooth as a medium:

http://thepaulabooths.com/

http://meagsfitzgerald.blogspot.com/

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Get busy and we hope to see you out and about.  Happy boothin'!

Free for All Austin Faces Project Strips

We did another Austin Faces Project last night.  Needless to say, it was a blast.  Cruise over to The Austin Faces Project's blog to see some strips from it.

Photoboothin' it!: Down-Under...

Photobooth artwork courtesy Paula Birch

It is always great to hear from fellow photoboothers.  Maybe it is the mutual appreciation of the old vintage booths, or the knowledge that there are so few of them (and us) left in the world, but the fact remains that those of us still operating and frequenting chemical booths belong to a shrinking niche-- a chemical booth fraternity.  While millions of people in the world can claim to have been in a photobooth at one point in their lives, fewer people are still seeking out and utilizing the booths for their nostalgic, historical, and artistic merits.  The very fact that true-vintage chemical booths are becoming harder and harder to find only increases the dedication.

That is why it is a treat to hear about new works and projects from photobooth nuts around the world. Through the internet and blogosphere, we came across an artist in Australia who is doing some cool things with a photobooth.

Check out Paula's work here:  http://www.thepaulabooths.com/
And read her story hear:  http://renewnewcastle.org/projects/about/project/strip-of-a-lifetime/
And follow this:  http://www.stripofalifetime.com/

Photobooth Reunion 2012

Family reunions are fun.  Family reunions that involve a photobooth are even better.

As our own family includes multiple enthusiasts and technicians, the draw to the booth was just too great to resist.  A photobooth technician is a photobooth technician, even on vacation, so naturally we all ended up at the booths when the family descended on Savannah last week.

We sat and tinkered most of the time, him-hawing about AP-10 stepper boards and misfiring credit units (much more fun than it sounds) but we did get the chance to cut loose and cram as many people in the booth as possible.

To quote a newly-initiated member of the Photobooth Awareness Club, "I had no idea photobooths could be so much fun!"  Live and learn, my friend.

New Booths in Austin

Thank God this summer isn't as hot as last summer in Austin.  We've been busy moving booths and installing them into new bars.  And by "moving booths and installing them", I mean lugging around 1,000lb cabinets full of steel, delicate machinery and sloshy chemicals.  I cringe thinking about what it would be like to do that in heat like last summer... 112 F, oh my!  

So where have we moved the booths?  The booth that was in The Beauty Ballroom has found a new home in Bar 96, on Rainy St.  We call her Ol' Pinkie and she has taken to Bar 96 like a fish to water.  Really just fit right in.  

Our second new booth, referred to as Patches due her to sad history of being smashed into pieces in a parking garage, has been installed in The Side Bar, off of Red River in downtown Austin.  Take a look at us creeping her along the path to get her inside: 

We have more booths to place in Austin.  I just hope this balmy mid 90s F weather holds out for us! 

  

Second Sunday Sock Hop 6th Year Anniversary

In honor of the Second Sunday Sock Hop's 6th Year Anniversary, we opened up several hours of free vends during the event.  Lots of beautiful faces at Shangri-La last night.  Go to our facebook page to look at the album : Sock Hop Album

May I introduce our booth at the Beauty Ballroom...

We affectionately call her Pinkie.  No, she doesn't have communist leanings.  She's just a lovely light shade of pink.

This classic Model 21 booth harkens back to the style of the 1950s.  She's not out-of-date though!  In fact, her playfulness stands in contrast with the more mature style of our booth in Shangri-La.  Her photos match this light hearted-ness.  She takes bright, sparkly photos that have an illuminated background that really shows off her shine.

So go introduce yourself to Pinkie and see why we're proud to have her as our 2nd booth here in the fair city of Austin!

We're Sponsoring a Cool New Art Project

With great power comes great responsibility.  Spider-man's uncle sure got that correct.  Since we've been blessed with the awesomeness of vintage chemical photobooths, we figure that it's only right to use that power in a responsible way.

So what have we decided to do?  We're putting on an art project that will explore the people who live in Austin and what they think about their fair city.  We're calling it The Austin Faces Project.

And the best part about this project is that anyone and everyone who lives in Austin is invited to participate in it.  All you have to do is come to the 1st project session on April 25th, from 6:00pm to 9:00pm at Shangri-La.  You'll have your picture taken, caption it with what you think of Austin, and get to keep the strip for free.

Of course, with the power of a free photostrip in your grasp, it will be up to you to handle that power responsibly...

The Life of a Fellow Photoboother

Our brother company out in Savannah found this really well done mini-documentary on Anthony Vizzari, who is a fellow photoboother.  Anthony is out of Chicago and we had the chance to meet him in February at an art exhibition in Lausanne, Switzerland.  Needless to say, Anthony knows his photobooth stuff. 

We made news at Photobooth.net!

For those that don't know, Photobooth.net is the premier online location for all things chemical photobooth.  They do a stellar job of researching where the remaining photobooths are around the world, as well as documenting how photobooths have been used in music, television, and film... just gobs of neat information.

We met Brian, the man behind Photobooth.net, at an art exhibition about photobooths in Lausanne, Switzerland and he was kind enough to give us a shout-out to the rest of the world of photobooths.  Thanks!

Here is the link to that article on the wondrous Photobooth.net: http://www.photobooth.net/archive/2012/03/04/meanwhile.php.

May I introduce our booth at Shangri-La...

This fine, Model 21S, Auto-Photo booth is both sleek and sexy.  A tight frame shows off its lines, while red curtains scream intrique and deviousness.  It's a classy booth for sure.  However, it's not above being direct about what it wants you to do with it... the light box on top says it all.  

The strips from this booth are dark and mysterious, while still being sharp and clear.  We kept out one flash bulb, so there's a hint of directional lighting that allows for more depth.  We also added Shangri-La's name to the strips, so you'll always remember where you were when you captured the moment.

The history of this booth goes back to at least to Savannah, GA, as far as we can tell.  She came out of a dusty storage unit in the low country.  She needed a fair bit of love to get back up to full-working order.  That being said, she makes minature portraits like a champ and has enjoyed the limelight of being back in a kickass bar like Shangri-La.

Go check out the booth at Shangri-La, get a drink, enjoy her classic photos, and toast to good times.

Hello World. May I take your picture?

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, step right up and see the newest invention in the marvelous world of chemistry and mechanical genious... the automated minature portrait maker!  Yessiree, just sit inside this machine and using real film paper and developing chemicals, it will capture your likeness not once, but four times.  It's like magic!

Welcome to the world of vintage chemical photobooths.