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Indian Express
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
The photo booth gets a rebirth in Bengaluru… with an Apple QuickTake 100 camera
During the opening credit sequence of the 1983 movie Superman III, Christopher Reeve's character, Clark Kent, runs into a photo booth, which captured his true identity and transformation into Superman. The four black-and-white photos—or strips, as they are commonly known—show the full sequence of Kent removing his glasses and changing out of his civilian clothes to reveal his superhero costume underneath. He then tore off the bottom photo and handed it to a kid, preventing his identity from being discovered. Many still remember the movie, especially this sequence, which highlights the photo booth and the time when such booths were a common sight across the US. Decades later, photo booths have become a rare sight, with only a few hundred still in existence. However, they are making an unexpected comeback in Bengaluru. K. Karthik, a 23-year-old computer science graduate, has set up India's first vintage photo booth in Koramangala, Bengaluru, using the QuickTake 100—Apple's first digital camera and one of the first digital cameras available to the general public in the early '90s. The photo booth, which was installed at BOHO Pub in Bengaluru earlier this month, aims to revive and preserve the charm of photo booths for the public, offering an authentic experience and a fun way to capture memories. 'My first exposure to photo booths was watching them in classic Hollywood movies, and it was only last year that I visited a photo booth at Bengaluru's Vega City Mall,' Karthik told in an exclusive interview. 'However, the photo booth was completely modernised, and an iPad was being used as the camera.' But Karthik had long dreamed of having a photo booth in the city he grew up in—one that tells a story and takes people back in time. The first patent for a photo booth—a self-operating photo machine—was filed in 1888, but it was never built. The following year, in 1889, the earliest concept of a photo booth was introduced by French inventor T.E. Enjalbert at the Paris World's Fair. It was a coin-operated photo booth that could produce a photo transferred onto a thin sheet of metal in just five minutes, but the machine was met with a lukewarm response. Around the same time, the 'Auto-Photo' was patented, though it required an entire room and a small team to operate. In 1912, a more compact design was revealed—the Ashton-Wolff automatic photo machine. However, it required patrons to sit in front of a bulky, box-like device, have their portrait snapped, and wait four minutes for their picture to develop. The credit for inventing the modern photo booth goes to Anatol Josephewitz, a Russian Jew from Siberia who immigrated to the United States. Always drawn to cameras and photography as a child, Josephewitz was trained as a photographer and, before arriving in the US., began his career working in photo studios—even setting up his own in the early years. It was Hollywood and Los Angeles that initially drew Josephewitz to the US, but no one could have predicted that the young immigrant carried with him an idea that would democratise photography: an automated photo booth for the masses. To realise his dream, Josephewitz travelled to New York and, in March 1925, filed a patent for a 'Developing apparatus for photographic film strips.' Originally called the Photomaton, the first booth debuted in New York in September 1925, when Josephewitz opened his Photomaton Studio on Broadway, just a few blocks from Times Square. His photo booth could develop eight photos in eight minutes. The response was overwhelming—his studio attracted thousands of customers, and meeting the demand became a challenge. In 1927, Josephewitz sold the North American rights to his invention for $1 million to a business group led by Henry Morgenthau Sr., a prominent Jewish New Yorker. By the end of the Second World War, there were over 30,000 functioning photo booths in the US. By the mid-20th century, photo booths had become a cultural phenomenon, appearing in movies and TV shows and becoming a lasting part of popular culture. When digital technology arrived, many companies began to give up on analogue photo booths as instant digital printouts became the norm. It is estimated that fewer than 200 analogue photo booths remain in the US while many others maintain a retro look on the outside but have been fitted with digital components inside. For Karthik, the real challenge was finding an analogue photo booth in India, as there were no traditional photo booths in the country. While sourcing an analogue photo booth was nearly impossible, so he took a middle path. 'We weren't able to get back the exact hardware components. But at least, in terms of looks, we wanted something that closely resembled photo booths from the 1970s or 1980s,' he said. 'We searched in Chennai, Delhi, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh to develop a photo booth that would replicate the design of those from the 1970s. I contacted more than 30 manufacturers, but all of them declined—except for one manufacturer from Chennai, near the Karnataka border, who agreed and created a vintage-style photo booth for us.' 'We made sure that the ambience, both inside and outside, looked exactly like it did in the 1970s, including the posters,' he added. Karthik then chose the Apple QuickTake 100, a digital camera built in collaboration with Kodak. It was launched in 1994, long before digital cameras became mainstream. The QuickTake 100 shot 0.31 MP (640×480) photos in 24-bit colour and retailed for $749. It may not look impressive now, but at the time, it was both technically advanced and affordable. The camera itself resembles a pair of binoculars, with a design that is unconventional and different from traditional cameras. The QuickTake 100 came with a viewfinder and an LCD panel, and you could control various features using the small buttons around the LCD. Three buttons controlled the flash, resolution, and timer, while a fourth recessed button was used to delete all images at once. It features a front slider that reveals an 8mm fixed-focus lens, equivalent to a 50mm lens on a 35mm camera. The aperture ranges from f/2.8 to f/16, and the focus ranges from four feet to infinity. The shutter speed ranges from 1/30 to 1/175 seconds, and the ISO is approximately 85. The QuickTake 100 was launched at a time when Steve Jobs had long been gone from the company he co-founded, and Apple had no clear direction, with Cupertino trying its hand at everything. While many today don't remember the QuickTake 100, it was the camera that brought digital photography into focus. These days, the QuickTake 100 ranks high in collectibility among vintage Apple collectors. Karthik, who is a vintage collector himself, said he found something truly distinct about the QuickTake 100. Although it's not an analogue camera, it holds significant historical value. And while very few people in India have been exposed to the QuickTake 100, the Apple brand has a strong recall value. He felt it would be great to modernise the concept of a photo booth for a younger generation while preserving the authenticity and vintage experience. However, finding the QuickTake 100 was not easy. When the original QuickTake 100 was launched, it came only with software compatible with Mac. Later models, however, were released with support for Windows as well. Karthik wanted a Windows compatible version, and it was extremely hard to find. 'I began searching for the QuickTake 100 last year and reached out to a friend who was in the US, pursuing his master's at Texas State University. I asked him to look for the QuickTake 100, and he found one with Windows support on eBay for $7,' he said. Once Karthik secured the QuickTake 100, another challenge was making the camera work in a photo booth environment. With the help of a retired software engineer in the US, he built custom software and a hardware interface to make it compatible with modern settings and the entire process took 6 months. 'I thought of getting a Windows laptop from the '90s, but it wouldn't run modern software. However, the modified QuickTake 100 I am using can be connected to a Raspberry Pi or any Windows computer,' he said. 'Once you enter the photo booth and sit inside, you will notice a small screen. Click on 'Start,' and then it will ask you to select the number of prints you want. Once that's done, it takes you directly to the payment gateway. After payment, the camera takes the pictures, and the software places them into a preset template that mimics the 1912 style,' he explains the process of getting the physical photo—or strip—in your hand. Each strip contains four photos, and Karthik charges Rs 199 for two strips. He says the software has been customised to replicate the 1912 style in every template, and he uses a DNP printer to reproduce the print quality of the original photo booths from back in the day. Karthik says the initial feedback has been encouraging. He calls it a 'fun project,' but he is already planning to set up another booth on Church Street/MG Road in Bengaluru and is currently scouting for another Apple QuickTake 100 camera from the US or Canada. His revenue model includes a profit-sharing arrangement with the venue hosting the photo booth. With photo booths now over 100 years old, and despite the availability of smartphones and digital cameras, Karthik still believes photo booths will continue to exist—perhaps not in their original form, but adapted for a modern context. Nostalgia and the unique user experience are what keep photo booths alive, serving as a testament to the origins of a revolutionary invention that changed the way we capture moments.
Chicago Tribune
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Today in History: Eiffel Tower opens for the Paris World's Fair
Today is Tuesday, May 6, the 126th day of 2025. There are 239 days left in the year. Today in history: On May 6, 1889, the Eiffel Tower opened to the public as part of the Paris World's Fair. Also on this date: In 1882, President Chester Alan Arthur signed the Chinese Exclusion Act, which barred Chinese laborers from immigrating to the U.S. for 10 years. (The act would remain in effect until 1943.) In 1935, the Works Progress Administration was established under an executive order signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1937, the hydrogen-filled German airship Hindenburg caught fire and crashed while attempting to dock at Lakehurst, New Jersey; 35 of the 97 people on board and one crew member on the ground were killed. In 1954, medical student Roger Bannister broke the four-minute mile during a track meet in Oxford, England, finishing in 3:59.4. In 1994, former Arkansas state worker Paula Jones filed a suit against President Bill Clinton, alleging he'd sexually harassed her in 1991. (Jones reached a settlement with Clinton in November 1998.) In 1994, the Channel Tunnel connecting England and France beneath the English Channel was officially opened in a ceremony attended by Queen Elizabeth II and French president François Mitterrand. In 2004, President George W. Bush apologized for the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by American soldiers at Abu Ghraib prison, calling it 'a stain on our country's honor and reputation,' but rejected calls for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's resignation. Today's Birthdays: Rock musician Bob Seger is 80. Country musician Jimmie Dale Gilmore is 80. Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair is 72. TV host Tom Bergeron is 70. Actor Roma Downey is 65. Actor-director George Clooney is 64. Hockey Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur is 53. Actor Adrianne Palicki is 42. Actor Gabourey Sidibe is 42. NBA point guard Chris Paul is 40. Actor-comedian Sasheer Zamata is 39. Rapper Meek Mill is 38. Actor-singer Naomi Scott is 32. WNBA forward Angel Reese is 23.
Boston Globe
06-05-2025
- General
- Boston Globe
Today in History: May 6, the Hindenburg crashes in flames in New Jersey
Advertisement In 1889, the Eiffel Tower opened to the public as part of the Paris World's Fair. In 1935, the Works Progress Administration was established under an executive order signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. In 1937, the hydrogen-filled German airship Hindenburg caught fire and crashed while attempting to dock at Lakehurst, N.J.; 35 of the 97 people on board and one crew member on the ground were killed. In 1954, medical student Roger Bannister broke the four-minute mile during a track meet in Oxford, England, finishing in 3:59.4. In 1994, former Arkansas state worker Paula Jones filed a suit against President Bill Clinton, alleging he had sexually harassed her in 1991. (Jones reached a settlement with Clinton in November 1998.) In 1994, the Channel Tunnel, connecting England and France beneath the English Channel, was officially opened in a ceremony attended by Queen Elizabeth II and French president François Mitterrand. Advertisement In 2004, President George W. Bush apologized for the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by American soldiers at Abu Ghraib prison, calling it 'a stain on our country's honor and reputation,' but rejected calls for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's resignation.
Euronews
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Euronews
High buildings, loose morals: Art Deco movement celebrates its centenary
ADVERTISEMENT The French capital experienced the first emergence of the art and design phenomenon that was later termed Art Deco in the 1910s but only truly blossomed at the Paris World's Fair of 1925. An artistic and philosophical response to the Art Nouveau movement of the late 19th century meant that, after the brutality of war and destruction during World War One, intricacy, whimsy and romanticism gave way pretty quickly to clean lines and geometric design. But there was also a sense of the need to enjoy oneself in style now it was possible again. So, 100 years later to the very week, let's find out more about it. How did Art Deco emerge? The 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes inspired what became the more snappy name of Art Deco in a 1968 text by Bevis Hillier. The fair took place in the French capital and showcased the latest in modern design. Thus, the new movement became the embodiment of Modernist principles in the arena of art and design. Having many elements in common with Cubism and Russian Constructivism, Art Deco moved the focus from the ephemeral to the practical and the engineered. A craving for order after chaos, one might say. But that's not to imply it was in any way banal or down-at-heel. Quite the opposite. The Savoy (Strand side), London Jez Fielder Where can I see Art Deco? London's Savoy Hotel began life as very much an Art Nouveau entity but one of the company attended the Paris fair in 1925 and came back with some very different ideas for design. British designer Basil Ionides' reworking of the private dining room ' Pinafore ' in 1926 embodied the stylistic change to Art Deco and is still untouched to the present day. Then, in 1929, architect Howard Robertson unveiled the iconic stainless steel 'Savoy' sign which runs the width of Savoy Court, above. Brussels is also full of Art Deco. And not just in its celebrated municipal buildings such as the Villa Empain, the Basilica of Koekelberg, and elements of Stoclet Palace, but also in some of the Belgian city centre's residential areas. And of course the city that kicked it all off, Paris, is a haven for Art Deco lovers. The Palais de Tokyo and the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées are two notable landmarks for this style. But the movement outlived its European genesis to take the US by storm as evidenced by the imposing edifice below. Chicago's Merchandise Mart opened in 1930 with a staggering four million square feet of floor space. Chicago's Art Deco Merchandise Mart AP Photo 1998 What defines Art Deco? An art movement is often hard to define as, even if it has a manifesto, that's usually only written by a handful of people at most, and later, others develop or even disown the early form. Emma Bastin, historian and treasurer of the Art Deco Society in the UK says this is one of the reasons a definition is hard to pin down. "It had so many influences feeding into it, from the very old, such as Ancient Egypt and Greece, to the very modern - for example, the most avant-garde art of the early twentieth century. It also draws from mass commercialisation, the work of artisans and the use of new-fangled man-made materials. Finally, it emerged in many different European countries at a similar time, all of which added to its eclecticism." Ancient Egypt may seem a world away from the 'roaring twenties' but Howard Carter's discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb in 1922 brought antiquity back into the contemporary conversation. Only a short boat ride down the Chicago river stands the Riverside Plaza (completed in 1929) which, if you look closely enough, has an image referencing the pharaoh beneath its clock face. The face of antiquity on the former Chicago Daily News building Jez Fielder But don't all these influences make these landmarks impossible to recognise as part of any specific movement? "There is something which makes Art Deco instantly recognisable," Bastin insists. "Geometric shapes, clean lines and bold colours are often used. There are also repeated motifs in many forms of art deco such as zig-zags, sunrays or human figures. Anything decorative is normally very simple and pared-back, rather than being photo-realistic. The upshot of this simplicity is that objects/buildings/art often looks very modern and glamorous, and this is why it also has such an enduring appeal - think of the glamour of Gatsby, the use of art-deco inspired interiors in luxury hotels, or the long-lasting appeal of posters which are now popular as art in their own right." ADVERTISEMENT The Knickerbocker Bar inside the ocean liner 'The Empress of Britain' May 16, 1931 AP PHOTO 1931 References to geometric shapes and clean lines don't simply apply to architecture, of course. Fashion leaps to mind. An Art Deco red and black galalith and chrome necklace, Bonhams, London, Jan 2008. AP Photo And the release of perhaps the flagship Art Deco text 'The Great Gatsby' as a film over a decade ago was a fine platform for costume designers to revisit the styles of F. Scott Fitzgerald's heyday. Stocks reached record peaks, and Wall Street boomed a steady golden roar. The parties were bigger, the shows were broader, the buildings were higher, the morals were looser, and the ban on alcohol had backfired F. Scott Fitzgerald The Great Gatsby Dancers perform on the red carpet for the screening of The Great Gatsby in Cannes, May 2013 AP Photo How did the movement develop? Art Deco morphed into a more streamlined style as the 1930s progressed. Elements of excess were tempered and made less obvious. The focus was now on horizontal lines rather than vertical ones. St Olaf's House opposite London Bridge Station Jez Fielder The look was inspired by upgrades in technology, particularly those aspects of technology that developed the lives of the glamorous. Ocean liners, aircraft and increasingly sleek trains. And the "new-fangled man-made materials" that Bastin talks about were chromium plating and the ability to build much higher that the burgeoning use of steel enabled. The verticality of the American Skyscraper is the clearest testament to that, but closer to home the use of Portland stone and gilt lettering as seen with London's St Olaf's House are also hallmarks of Art Deco and Streamline Moderne. ADVERTISEMENT At the same time, urban development created the need for more municipal buildings in the expanding suburbs and so there were increasing opportunities to build using this style and these elements. In a way, then, Art Deco and its streamlined development could be seen as less of an art movement and more of a result of a changing society due to economic shifts and the need for a new environment with more services.
