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.