Episode 26: From Russia with Photobooths

On this week’s show we are laser-focused upon photobooths! Where did they come from and where have they gone? And what were they doing along the way? We’ll also be talking to Breanna Conley Saxon (@saybrebooth on IG) about … photobooths! She’s got a few and we get to talk to her about them! There’s the answering machine and zine reviews too. (We’ve even got some photobooth sound effects provided by Bre!)

After a bit of chitty chattery (Vania’s been surfing, Eric’s been not), we push the button on the answering machine. This episode’s question is:

Do you compose differently for color vs. black & white?

After listening to you folks, we gave our answers too.

Breanna Conley SaxonLET’S CALL BRE!

This episode, we gave a call to Breanna Conley Saxon (@saybrebooth on IG). Unlike most of us, she collects photobooths. Her journey has taken her from one coast to the other. From a Alabama thrift store to a Russian in Pennsylvania. And another Russian in California. It’s a weird tale, so hold tight.

We asked her everything we could think of about photobooths – from how she got her first one, how she learned to restore them and keep them running. Simple questions, but it’s quite a story.

Here are a few of her strips:

A QUICKISH HISTORY OF PHOTOBOOTHS

If you Google, “who invented the photo booth,” Google will tell you that it was Anatol Josepho in 1925. And that’s not exactly wrong. But it’s not exactly right, either. Josepho’s story is the most interesting and the most successful, but he wasn’t the first.

But who can resist the tail of a poor young man fleeing Siberia and attaining the American Dream? We sure can’t, so we’re going to talk about this fellow soon enough. But first we’ll dig into the 1800s to figure out where this whole idea came from.

Anatol Josepho sitting in one of his Photomaton photobooths, late 1920s.

We cover the many attempts before Anatol Josepho’s breakthrough and subsequent sale of his Photomaton.

Created with GIMPPHOTOBOOTH BOOKS AND RESOURCES

We recommended three books:

American Photobooth
by Nakki Goranin

Photobooth; A Biography
by Meags Fitzgerald

Photobooth
by Babbette Hines

All three are wonderful, and there are definitely more out there.

We also mentioned two websites:

https://photoboothjournal.com/

http://www.photobooth.net/

SURREALIST GALLERY

ZINE REVIEWS

We also reviewed two zines this episode.

Smash the Skatriachry – You can get it here or here.

Caveland – by Jesse Knifley (@hauntedfilmco on IG)

 

 

Old photobooth photo recently picked up by Eric.
Note the rare use of a prop.PATREON SHOUT OUTS

We’ve had so much support from our Patrons! Our thanks go out to:

Alan Mills Mike Crawford Matthew Stubbs Ken Bertram shades Janet Devereaux-Gaffney Ryan Barker LIz Potter Michelle Singletary Ralph Brandi Martín Ventura Colin Cameron

Space_Critter Jaya Bhat Alex Purcell Omols Steve Tester Alex Morrison MillsMills Adam Roberts Tim Anderson Dan Tree Or sachs Kate Miller-Wilson

Jonathan Feng Juliet Schwab Michael Dales kollimatorn Robert Burton Abel Silva Kikie Wilkins Alan Joseph Marx Dave Walker James Huffstutler Jamie Maldonado Nick Gaylord

Featured Patron

This episode’s first featured patron is Nick Gaylord – @gravity_train on Instagram.

 

 

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Be sure to check out our Dev Party episodes.

Music by Last Regiment of Syncopated Drummers

Vania: IG, Flickr, Zines
Eric: IG, Flickr, Zines, ECN-2 Kits

All Through a Lens: IG, Website, Patreon

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