Slit-Scan Photo-Booth

Slit-Scan Photo-Booth was a small project I made at the Royal College of Art as a way to explore a research question—how can we use digital technologies in public spaces to encourage people to play?

Slit-scanning is a photography technique with a long and broad history, but I think one of the most fun applications is portraiture. Being in front of a live slit-scanning program feels a bit like seeing a distorted version of yourself in a funhouse mirror. The first version of this project was a slit-scanning sketch made in p5.js, and I called it Reflections.

After testing this with people, I noticed that the number one thing people wanted to do was take their picture. I made a second version of the project in TouchDesigner and installed it in the RCA School of Communication foyer. People could take their portraits using a mouse click (in another iteration I’d have made this a big red button).

My idea was that images would be digitally displayed for a temporary, transient duration next to the booth in portrait gallery—a bit like the feeling of coming off a rollercoaster and looking for your photo in the gift shop. I never did pursue the idea beyond this point, but it was fun experiment where I learned about the enduring appeal of camera effects and the ways that we can have fun together in shared spaces.

Slit-Scan Photo-Booth was a small project I made at the Royal College of Art as a way to explore a research question—how can we use digital technologies in public spaces to encourage people to play?

Slit-scanning is a photography technique with a long and broad history, but I think one of the most fun applications is portraiture. Being in front of a live slit-scanning program feels a bit like seeing a distorted version of yourself in a funhouse mirror. The first version of this project was a slit-scanning sketch made in p5.js, and I called it Reflections.

After testing this with people, I noticed that the number one thing people wanted to do was take their picture. I made a second version of the project in TouchDesigner and installed it in the RCA School of Communication foyer. People could take their portraits using a mouse click (in another iteration I’d have made this a big red button).

My idea was that images would be digitally displayed for a temporary, transient duration next to the booth in portrait gallery—a bit like the feeling of coming off a rollercoaster and looking for your photo in the gift shop. I never did pursue the idea beyond this point, but it was fun experiment where I learned about the enduring appeal of camera effects and the ways that we can have fun together in shared spaces.

Slit-Scan Photo-Booth

Slit-Scan Photo-Booth was a small project I made at the Royal College of Art as a way to explore a research question—how can we use digital technologies in public spaces to encourage people to play?

Slit-scanning is a photography technique with a long and broad history, but I think one of the most fun applications is portraiture. Being in front of a live slit-scanning program feels a bit like seeing a distorted version of yourself in a funhouse mirror. The first version of this project was a slit-scanning sketch made in p5.js, and I called it Reflections.

After testing this with people, I noticed that the number one thing people wanted to do was take their picture. I made a second version of the project in TouchDesigner and installed it in the RCA School of Communication foyer. People could take their portraits using a mouse click (in another iteration I’d have made this a big red button).

My idea was that images would be digitally displayed for a temporary, transient duration next to the booth in portrait gallery—a bit like the feeling of coming off a rollercoaster and looking for your photo in the gift shop. I never did pursue the idea beyond this point, but it was fun experiment where I learned about the enduring appeal of camera effects and the ways that we can have fun together in shared spaces.