Japan Gets Awesome 3D Printing Photo Booth
Sure, you have to stand in place for 15 minutes, but the final product is totally worth it
The concept of a photo booth is about to get a radical overhaul, thanks to a Japanese design group called PARTY. They’ve announced a pop-up store called Omote 3D, that’ll be running in the famed Harajuku district of Tokyo from November to January — where they’ll make a 3D model of you, while you wait.
The process involves standing still for 15 minutes while a 3D scan is made of your body, and then a 3D printer creates a perfect, tiny version of you for your mantelpiece (or wherever). The printings range from 10cm (4in) to 20cm (8in) in size — and for the smallest size, it’ll set you back ¥21,000 — more than $250. If you want to get scanned as a couple, it’s double that.
With a 15 minute “exposure time”, and a product running hundreds of dollars per print, this obviously isn’t quite ready for mass consumption yet. But I’m willing to bet, just as with the origins of analog photography, prices will drop and technology will speed up — and in 20 years, every wedding will have one of these set up, giving guests a 3D keepsake of how they looked on the day.
[via LaughingSquid]