| Copyright (c) 2010 Red Apple Auctions LLC | | | | "The Photo Booth That Can Capture the Whole |
| Three of my auction fundraisers this past year have | | | | Party." It talks about a new portable photo-booth — |
| had professional portraits offered on-site. The photo | | | | AKA, the Boothomatic — which rolls around the |
| offers guests a remembrance of your benefit auction. | | | | party, enabling guests to take photos wherever they |
| Portrait photography works especially well for charity | | | | might be. |
| auctions which tend to have co-workers attending, | | | | After reading the short article and checking out the |
| such as corporate and hospital foundations. Guests | | | | photo, here are my immediate thoughts as to whether |
| look spiffy, so the photos show employees in their | | | | the Boothomatic would work in a benefit auction |
| best light (all the better, considering those photos may | | | | environment. |
| show up on the company intranet). | | | | My first thought is that this is something for a younger |
| This auction idea works for four reasons: | | | | crowd. I can see as where Generation Y or |
| - The activity allows company departments and | | | | Generation Z would totally get into this! But I don't |
| smaller teams of co-workers to have their photo | | | | envision most of the guests at my benefit auction (age |
| taken together, which is a nice touch. | | | | 40+) comfortably jumping in front of the booth without |
| - A photo with a traditional background seems more | | | | encouragement from an outgoing photographer. |
| professional with your co-workers than, for instance, a | | | | I'm still unclear after reading the article as to whether a |
| backdrop of Las Vegas. | | | | photographer supervises the booth. If he does — |
| - The photos allow for more flexibility later, such as if | | | | and if that photographer is a gregarious type who can |
| the company's foundation wanted to include a photo | | | | comfortably corral guests for photos — this would |
| of the work team in an issue of the company | | | | work. But if the booth is not supervised, my crowds |
| newsletter, or even in a proposal for a prospective | | | | would ignore it. |
| client. | | | | In many hotels, the Boothmatic would work fine. But if |
| - When individuals have a portrait taken, the finished | | | | the auction is to be held in an unusual facility — such |
| headshot can be used for business cards or on the | | | | as a historic home or even an outdoor garden — I'd |
| external company website. | | | | consider alternative forms of entertainment. You'll want |
| Near the entrance to the silent auction is usually the | | | | a venue (and a floor!) that allows the booth to roll |
| best location for the photography station. The | | | | unencumbered. |
| photographer will show guests where to stand and | | | | I love that photographs of the event are available for |
| offer basic instructions to capture the best angle and | | | | download from a website! They also offer customized |
| shot. For group photos, the photographer often takes a | | | | packages. My only concern is that — once again |
| hands-on approach to ensuring everyone is in the | | | | — some of my less savvy older guests won't |
| photograph. Guests are given a 4″x6″ photo, | | | | understand how to download photos from a site. |
| often housed in a cardstock black frame. | | | | Those same guests *would* take home a photo of |
| The developed photos are displayed on a table near | | | | themselves if it's printed onsite, but they would be less |
| the check-out area so guests can take their photo as | | | | likely to check a website in the days following the gala. |
| they leave. Photos with groups of people are | | | | The price in New York is apparently $2500 for a |
| developed multiple times so each person in the photo | | | | 4-hour rental. I don't know NYC rates well enough to |
| can take a copy home. | | | | gauge if this is in-line with other forms of photo |
| In short, this is a good activity for fundraising auctions. | | | | entertainment or not. But given that there are no |
| The big perk is that you can use those photos in a | | | | printed photographs available to guests onsite, I would |
| multi-purpose way long after the event is finished. | | | | hope that the Boothomatic would be less in price than |
| A second photo option for charity auctions | | | | something, say, like portrait photography. |
| I read an article from BizBash's newsletter entitled | | | | |