It started with a big idea and a simple plan…

We thought it would be easy. Buy the parts. Put them together. Boom – custom photo booth built and ready to hire out.

What actually happened? A full-blown rollercoaster of late nights, printer drama, panic pivots, and the kind of DIY chaos that tests your patience and your relationship.

The good news? We made it. We launched. People loved it. 

But getting there was a saga… and we’ve got stories to tell.

The dream design that turned into a nightmare

We wanted something special. Not just another booth slapped together from eBay parts, but something that actually looked good, worked seamlessly, and could travel with us from event to event. 

We didn’t want to fork out tens of thousands for the same hackneyed, robotic-looking setup everyone else was using. It had to feel different – cleverly designed, a bit more stylish, and totally ours.

Luke (resident tech wizard) spent weeks sketching, researching, measuring and double-checking every detail. We decided to order custom-built flight cases from a UK company. They’d house all the electronics, cables, lighting and printer, with precision-cut compartments.

The designs were sent. Measurements locked in. Payments paid. We waited.

When the cases finally arrived, they looked amazing. Solid. Sleek. Professional. We were stoked. But they weren’t ready yet. Luke and his dad spent the next week in the shed, cutting into the boxes with surgical precision – measuring, drilling, lining up the camera mount, installing the laptop shelf, fitting the flash, sorting airflow for the tech. 

Every cut had to be right. Every fitting had a purpose. After days of dusty, painstaking work, we finally brought the booth back to the office for testing. 

One last thing to check…

Did the printer fit?

It didn’t. The box was just 15mm too narrow.

Fifteen. Millimetres.

And that moment was devastating.

Realising something’s very wrong

I walked in and Luke’s face said it all. Blank. Shocked. No words.

He just looked at me and said, “The printer doesn’t fit.”

I thought he was joking. He wasn’t.

We tried everything – tipping it sideways, removing trays, imagining bizarre Tetris configurations. But no matter what we tried, the booth was completely unusable in its current form.

I genuinely said to him, “Please don’t have a breakdown. Let’s assemble the issues, take photos, and see what tomorrow brings.”

But in honesty. The timing couldn’t have been worse – we had a launch event lined up in 48 hours. Kate’s 60th birthday party. We’d promised the booth. There was no time to send it back and wait.

Crisis mode: Do we yell… or pivot?

That night I did what any reasonable adult would do – poured a glass of wine and started writing an email.…

I debated whether to go full rage mode or keep it professional. I chose professional. I attached photos of the mistake, explained the problem clearly, and sent it off. Within 20 minutes, the UK company replied. They were genuinely apologetic, took responsibility, and promised to rebuild and resend at their expense, fast-tracked and with no additional import fees.

Huge relief… but it didn’t solve our problem for the weekend.

The scrappy job that saved the day

With no other option, we pulled together a makeshift solution. We used both flight cases as display pieces, set the printer up off to the side on a separate table, and worked obsessively to make sure it still looked cohesive.

Luke spent hours on cable management so it wouldn’t be a mess of cords and chaos.

“It still looked like a photo booth,” he said. “People actually thought the setup was intentional.”

And the best part? It worked. The photos printed perfectly. The guests lined up. There were laughs, poses, and party vibes all night.

After all the chaos, watching it function flawlessly at Kate’s party felt surreal. That moment was magic.

Post-party: We crashed hard

After the adrenaline wore off, reality hit. We were absolutely wrecked.

“I think we just forgot about the booth for a week,” I said.

Luke had worked days in a row out in the shed, troubleshooting, building, testing, and panicking. Then straight into party mode. Then straight into getting sick.

We’d launched… but we were exhausted.

Still, the to-do list didn’t disappear. In fact, it got longer.

The little things that turn into big things

The more we looked, the more we realised there was still heaps to do.

• The flash wasn’t bright enough.
• The cable pass-throughs needed adjusting.
• The default templates in the software were… hideous.
• And don’t get us started on risk assessments, insurance, service agreements and delivery logistics.

We had a great booth, sure. But if we were going to offer it professionally, it had to be more than “great” – it had to be safe, reliable, and polished.

We also didn’t want to just throw something out into the world half-baked. And so the teasing began.

Coming next week.
Coming Friday.
Coming… eventually?

A sparkly soft launch at Christmas in July

Then came Christmas in July. Thanks to Sophie and the team at the Deniliquin Golf Club, we had the perfect opportunity to trial the booth again – this time at their sold-out festive dinner. 

We quietly set up the booth, ran our own little trial, and waited.

The result?

Magic. Again.

People lined up. Laughed. Posed. Took home prints. Kids jumped into group shots. Friends doubled back for a second go. We had strangers asking, “How do we book this?”

That week, we were stopped multiple times on the street.

“We saw the photo booth last night!”
“It was so fun!”
“Where do we find it?”

That was the moment we knew – no more stalling. This thing had legs.

Behind the scenes: the moments that mattered

There’s so much more to this story than cables and cases.

Like when I first saw the booth fully built and genuinely lost my mind. I was grinning like a kid on Christmas morning.

Or the moment we printed our first test strip, even with placeholder text and a blank background, and still cheered like it was a win.

Then Luke added the Highlight Creative logo to the film strip. Suddenly it wasn’t just a photo. It was a thing. It was ours.

At every event since, seeing people’s reactions has reminded us why we did this.

“There’s something about watching people enjoy something you’ve built from scratch,” Luke said. “It’s rewarding in a way that’s hard to explain.”

Introducing… Highlight Moments

We’re proud to officially introduce Highlight Moments – the photo booth arm of Highlight Creative.

Yes, it’s separate. No, it’s not just a fun side hustle. It’s something we believe will genuinely make Deni events better – from birthdays to business launches, hens nights to fundraisers.

Always attended. Always reliable. Instant prints and digital galleries. And we’ll keep improving it after every event.

Our goal is to bring more fun, more memories, and more spark to local celebrations. And thanks to the chaos of building it, we now know we can deliver it under pressure.

We’re live. We’re ready. And we’re stoked.

Want to hire it?

Bookings are now open.

📸 Always attended
🖨️ Instant prints
💻 Digital gallery included
🎉 Birthdays, weddings, community events and more

Follow @highlightmoments.au or send us a message to check your date.

Let’s capture your highlight moments – without the printer panic.