Polaroid guest book for your wedding: how to set it up

A polaroid guest book is an album where every guest sticks in a photo of themselves and writes a few words next to it. After the wedding you have faces next to every message, not just signatures. It takes very little: an instant camera, enough film, an album and someone to keep an eye on it. Here is how to prepare, how much film to plan and roughly what it costs.

What you need

An instant camera. People say polaroid, but most rental cameras today are Fujifilm Instax cameras. At FotoRent you rent the Fujifilm Instax Wide Evo. It prints on instax WIDE film: prints of 108 × 86 mm, twice as wide as instax mini. A wide print fits a group of three or four guests.

Film. One cartridge gives ten prints. Ours cost €10 per cartridge, including VAT. You can also bring your own instax WIDE film; mini and SQUARE film do not fit.

An album with blank pages large enough for wide prints, plus double-sided tape or photo corners. Leave a few pens next to it: a permanent marker also writes on the white border of the print.

A small sign that explains the idea, for example: ‘Take a photo, stick it in the book and write something for the couple.’

How much film to plan

Count prints, not guests. Couples and groups of friends usually pose together. A useful rule: one print per couple for the book, and often one more for them to take home.

Example: 50 guests means roughly 25 couples. One print for the book and a copy for the guests makes 50 prints, so five cartridges. Add one more for spontaneous pictures on the dance floor. If you only want prints for the book, three cartridges are enough.

The Wide Evo has a screen. Guests check the picture first and print only when they like it. Failed shots cost no film, and a good one can be printed several times.

On the day

Put the camera in one spot with good light, for example near the entrance or next to the bar. Prints taken in a dark corner come out dark.

Ask a witness or the master of ceremonies to look after the corner. They show guests how the camera works, change the cartridge and make sure the prints end up in the book rather than in coat pockets.

A print appears after about a minute and a half; in the cold it takes longer. There is no need to shake it: lay it down with the picture facing up.

Charge the camera fully the night before; the USB-C charging cable is in the set. Install the free instax WIDE Evo app in advance too. With it, guests can also print photos from their phones, for example of the ceremony.

What it costs

Renting the Instax Wide Evo costs €12.50 for the first day and €7.50 for each extra day. The minimum rental period is two days, and Friday to Monday counts as two days. Collect the camera on Friday and return it on Monday, and you pay €20 rent. Gearbooker, where you book, adds its service fee.

With five cartridges of film (€50), a wedding with 50 guests comes to about €70 plus the service fee. For comparison, a photographer walking around with an instant camera easily costs several hundred euros per evening.

Collection or delivery

You collect the camera in Diemen, ten minutes from Amsterdam Centraal. Within 30 km of Diemen we can also bring it to your home or the venue and collect it afterwards, for €3 per km covering both trips. Elsewhere in the Netherlands, PostNL ships it for about €15 both ways. Choose the option when you book on Gearbooker.

Book early, especially for Saturdays in the wedding season. Note how many cartridges you want in your booking, and they will be ready with the camera.