Obviously not all. But I’ll bet they could make a comeback. Are there any left? Is there any truth to my premise? I remember when they were proudly featured in every tinpot mall.
Surely the advent of the selfie has more or less destroyed any demand for photo booths. I can’t imagine someone using them for any reason other than the novelty of using a photo booth.
As for the gendered nature of the question, I think vanity is a universal human characteristic, women are no more likely than men to want to take a picture of themselves.
Could you say why women and photo booths are somehow linked in your mind? Tip: whenever you want to write a sentence that begins “do all women like …?” try substituting ‘Black people’ for ‘women’ and see how that reads to you.
I’ve seen them and a box of wacky hats & wigs at a few wedding receptions. I’ve had fun in them.
WHY do you think this is true?
Here my wife and I are, back in 1973. It’s the first pic taken of us together. I had just turned 16, she was still 15 for 2 more months. Taken in a mall photo booth, of course.
I can’t say we ever took any more photo booth pics after that one, but we both had fun in that booth! She made me destroy the pics taken of us kissing in it, as she feared her parents would find them. She even wanted me to destroy this one, but now is glad that I saved it.
We didn’t revisit a photo booth until our youngest kid had a photo booth installed at their wedding reception in 210. That’s the only time I’ve seen photo booths in recent years, at weddings and parties. Not sure if it’s a thing now or not.
ETA: Damn, I sure had a healthy head of hair back then. No more . . .
us back in 2019. That’s the same scarf she had in the original. A photographer helped us recreate the original photo booth pic
This is beautiful! Thanks for posting them!
The inspiration for this thread was a throwaway line from the comedian Iliya Schlesinger: “fun fact, all women like photo booths”.
It wasn’t meant too literally, what being a fun fact and all. I did not mean it literally either.
Obviously there is no need for photo booths with smartphones. But I would bet people will come to consider them cool. It’s not needed, probably never was, but hardly a major investment. These things have high nostalgia value. Polaroid cameras are supposedly coming back. Why not these?
The sweetest post I remember seeing on the SDMB I think. Unfortunately I have nothing to contribute on the subject of photo booths myself.
Yeah, that is insanely sweet. Just perfect pictures.
I don’t think that taking pictures was ever the purpose of photo booths. That was always just a pretext. The purpose was for young couples to have a place to cuddle and kiss in public with a slight veneer of privacy. Until cell phones can do that, I don’t think that selfies can compete.
You still have the xymosely polydactyl tongue, though, right?
Yeah, and that was one other reason she wanted the ‘kissing’ pics destroyed. But also that has kept us together for yet other reasons . . .
I’ve never been in one and never really wanted to. But that probably has less to do with the booths and more with the fact that I hate having my picture taken.
Thank you so much @Qadgop_the_Mercotan for sharing that, really really beautifully captured an essence of love over time 
Photo booths are just the thing at weddings or company holiday parties. With props and alcohol it’s a hoot.
But I avoid having my pic taken too.
I have a series of photos like that from 1986. I too once had quite the head of hair, once. Not sure why the photos are such different sizes. And no recreations as yet. My wife and I just had our 34th anniversary on April 1st.
They’ve got them at amusement parks. My wife, kids and i get in the one at Michigan Adventure every summer when we go, and we have some from Disney a few years (er… has it been 8 years?!?) ago.
@QtM. As others have said that’s just a beautiful sight. Here’s hoping there are many more years of that long-term togetherness.
Sadly I’ve got nothing similar to share.
No reason they couldn’t. Updated with modern tech, at least.
I actually think we’re moving back into perfect conditions for photo booths.
Back in the day, what made photo booths special? You could get a printed photo instantly! Nobody had the ability to just print out photos at home.
What makes photo booths special today? You can get a printed photo instantly! Who the heck owns a printer anymore?
@Qadgop_the_Mercotan, those are beautiful pictures!
There are quite a few photo booths in Austin that you can find in the bars on 6th Street and other entertainment districts: The Best Bars with Photo Booths in Austin
One of the bars that I worked in a few years ago, before switching back to office life, had a wall filled with pictures of regulars and employees. The pictures were a mix of photo booth, Polaroid Go, and Instax (Fujifilm instant camera) pictures. Customers used to ask how they could get on the wall and we would tell them to bring in a picture and we’d find a spot for it. Some folks would come back days or weeks later with a picture for us, but most of the photo booth pictures were provided by people who already had the picture with them in their wallet or purse.