Photo booth hire is one of the few evening lines where suppliers do publish a price, which makes it easy to budget and easy to compare. A mirror booth is a full-length mirrored screen with a camera behind it, and it is priced like every other booth: by the type of equipment and the number of hours it stands in your room with an attendant beside it.
What the published figures cover
The supplier in this record who publishes prices quotes a named booth for a named number of hours, which is exactly the shape a budget needs. Three hours is the standard evening slot, because a booth is idle during the meal and idle during the first dance, and paying for those hours buys nothing. What varies between booth types is the footprint, the queue behaviour and whether it prints. An enclosed booth holds a small group and produces the classic strip; an open pod or a mirror holds a larger group and photographs the whole party at once, which is why mirrors and open booths have become the default at weddings with a hundred guests.
Prints, props and the attendant
Ask whether prints are unlimited or capped, because a capped package at a wedding runs out early and the top-up price is rarely as attractive. Ask whether an attendant is included, since a booth without one jams, runs out of paper and photographs nobody after the first hour. Ask what props come with it and whether a guest book is included, which is the version most couples actually want: prints go in the book, guests write beside them, and you have something at the end of the night rather than a folder of files. And ask how the digital copies are delivered and how long they are kept available.
Where to put it and when to open it
A booth needs a power socket, a footprint larger than couples expect and a position people walk past. Tucked into a side room it photographs the same six people all night; placed between the bar and the dance floor it photographs everybody. Ask the supplier what they need in space and power and give the answer to the venue before the day. On timing, the useful slot starts when the room turns over after the meal and ends before the last hour, since almost nobody uses a booth at the very end of the night. Suppliers know this, which is why three hours is what they sell.
Questions people ask about mirror photo booth
How much is photo booth hire?
This is one of the categories where a figure is actually published: the supplier in this record advertises a named booth for a stated three hours at a stated price, with longer hires and other booth types priced above it.
How many hours do we need?
Three covers the usual evening slot. Booths sit unused during the meal and the first dance, so extending across those hours costs money and buys nothing.
Mirror, pod or enclosed booth?
Mirrors and open pods photograph large groups and suit a big reception; enclosed booths produce the classic strip for two or three people. The choice changes the price, so decide before comparing quotes.
Do we need an attendant?
Yes, in practice. An unattended booth jams, runs out of paper and stops working at the point in the evening when it is most in demand, and no photograph of that appears in your album.