by RobertL | Jan 25, 2018
Possibly the most obvious thing that Photo Booth Expo attendees have in common in their interest in photography. In fact, many of the folks that you meet on the floor at PBX are professional photographers with impressive resumes. One such individual is Randy Licht, owner of Borel Photography serving Northern California (and beyond). Since 1980, Randy has personally photographed over one thousand weddings. A couple of years ago, he added Photo Booths to his business and will be making his way to the Photo Booth Expo for the second time this year. We have used several of Randy’s images (with his permission, of course) in various PBX posts. A couple of days ago, Randy assembled some of his favorite images from last year’s Photo Booth Expo into this video show and gave us the okay to share.
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by RobertL | Jan 24, 2018
As the popularity of Photo Booths continues to grow, the outlook remains positive for Photo Booth operators. This article tells how operating a Photo Booth business has gone from being a cottage industry into becoming a full-time business for many Photo Booth Professionals, and how this growing sector of entertainment services came to have it’s own International Trade Show. Read more
by RobertL | Jan 22, 2018
So, there you are, minding your own business, just walking through the exhibit hall, when, all of a sudden, you get that feeling… the feeling that you are being followed. As you turn and look, a soft flash goes off—and there’s your photo, displayed on a big screen with an invite to download it to your phone.
It’s name is OCCO, and while some attendees found it a bit spooky with shades of “Big Brother is watching,” most everyone agreed that it was one of the coolest exhibits at the 2017 Photo Booth Expo. The good news is, OCCO, and it’s creator, Greg Shirakyan will be back at the 2018 show (March 11-14 / Westgate, Las Vegas).
Greg is the CEO of Emergent Machines, Inc. where he created OCCO. Previously, Greg was a Robotics Researcher at Microsoft Research (Redmond, WA), and held a number of engineering and technical leadership roles at companies large and small all over the US and abroad. Greg’s background is inTheoretical Physics and Computer Science. In addition to introducing OCCO to the attendees, Greg will be speaking about “Robotics, AI and Entertainment”
Greg Shirakyan
OCCO’s purpose is simply to engage and entertain at parties, events and venues. As you walk by, OCCO’s intelligent head follows but won’t snap a photo until it sees your face. A large live view screen creates a mirror-like experience, so you see yourself before the photo is taken. According to Greg Shirakyan , “It takes only a few seconds of engagement for people to understand the purpose and function of OCCO. Even a three year-old can interact with OCCO without any help.”
A lot of innovation is happening in the fields of AI, Computer Vision and Human-Machine interaction. What does it mean for the event and entertainment industry? What are the trends to watch out for? In his talk, Greg we’ll take a look at the latest developments and look into the future of automated photo-tainment.
NOTE: Avoid the February 1st price increase! Register today at photoboothexpo.com and click REGISTER. Use code PBXSHOW2018 to get a key pass for $179 (save $70) or use code EXHIBITS2018 to get an exhibits only pass for $20 (save $30).
by RobertL | Jan 12, 2018
If you attended the 2017 Photo Booth Expo, no doubt you crossed paths with Nasser MK, Managing Partner in Selfie Boxx. Selfie Boxx (and Selfie Pad) technology turns any iPad into a portable Photo Booth, allowing the user to roam through the crowd, snapping and sharing shots on the fly. Here are a few of the photos taken on the show floor this past March. Selfie Boxx will be back at Photo Booth Expo 2018 (March 11-14), so be looking for Nassar MK with his iPad. Nassar MK is originally from Amman, Jordan but now makes his home in Irvine California.
by RobertL | Jan 11, 2018
One of the most popular cinematic tricks of the last five years has been an effect called bullet-time It’s typically used to add slow-mo drama to an intense sequence such as when an actor dodges a bullet or jumps from a building. It’s best described as a momentary freezing of time and space. In bullet-time, the subject is suspended motionless while the camera spins around them.
Popularized by movies such as The Matrix, shooting a bullet-time sequence involves dozens of cameras and some very specialized software. As a result, it has remained a tool far beyond the budget of the average film maker. But that’s changing as innovative amateur and professional film makers discover way to duplicate the effect with software and multi-camera setups.
SPINSHOT360 – Bullet Time for the masses
With SPINSHOT360, you can now create professional looking bullet-time images with your Photo Booth. Developed by Futureworks International Limited, SPINSHOT360 is software app system that runs a PC and mobile hardware for a 360 photo booth.
According to Rain Pengson, Country Manager for Futureworks, “It works just like any other DSLR-driven 360 bullet-time effect but using Android phones as cameras. We have the PC system that controls all Android phones to shoot in sync, and then within the PC, process video output ready for sharing and previewing in under a minute. That’s how fast SPINSHOT360 is in terms of process time. Perfect for live events!” As the accompanying images show, when the subjects jumps, the SPINSHOT360 system captures a series of images of them suspended in mid-air.
SPINSHOT360 is available as a software-only package, and as a software-and-kit package. The software-and-kit package comes with a complete non-electronic hardware needed to set up SPINSHOT360 and make it run (The hardware kit does not include the Android phones, computer, tablets, video lights etc.). Aside from purchasing it, is also available for lease and for distribution.
When asked how SPINSHOT360 came to be, Rain said, “The idea came to be when we tried to bring in a 360 bullet-time system to Asia but was shocked by the tremendous cost, so we thought of creating an alternative system with technology more accessible and user-friendly. Hence, we use Android phones because they are readily available anywher
e in the world, and created the software system that will work with it—the software system is designed to be used in event environments with engaging user-experience in mind.”
The soon to be released initial version of SPINSHOT360 has the traditional 360 output. Future updates are expected to include additional interesting effects.
MORE INFORMATION – FAQ
