Behind the Curtain: Ottawa’s New Enclosed Photo Booths

I’ve hunted down enclosed photo booths all over the world.

Whenever I land in a new city, I look for the nostalgic little booths that give you a real photo strip at the end. I’ll plan part of my day around finding one, step inside, take the photos, and tuck the strip away like the tiny time capsule it is.

There’s something special about closing the curtain, pressing start, and walking away with a memory you can actually hold.

I wanted that experience in Canada.

So we built it.

Now at the Fairmont Château Laurier

Our permanent enclosed photo booth is now at the Fairmont Château Laurier for weddings and events.

It feels right at home in one of Ottawa’s most iconic spaces. The classic enclosed design fits the history and romance of the hotel, while giving guests an experience that feels personal, spontaneous, and easy to enjoy.

Guests step inside, close the curtain, and get a few private moments to be themselves.

That little bit of privacy changes everything.

People loosen up. Couples get candid. Friends squeeze into the frame. Grandparents, siblings, wedding parties, and late-night dance-floor crews all walk away with something tangible from the day.

The result is not just a photo.

It is a keepsake guests can put on the fridge, tuck into a wallet, frame at home, or rediscover years later.

The Vision Behind the Booth

The idea was never simply to place another photo booth in another venue.

The vision was to create permanent places where people could return again and again.

A place for date nights, weddings, celebrations, family traditions, and all the in-between moments worth remembering.

Most photos now live on our phones and disappear into endless camera rolls.

A photo strip is different.

You hold it. You keep it. You find it years later and immediately remember the people, the place, and how that moment felt.

That is what I wanted to bring to Ottawa.

Not just a photo booth, but a place where people can start collecting pieces of their lives.

Ottawa Art Gallery: Never Lose Your Sparkle

And then came the Ottawa Art Gallery booth.

This one needed its own thing.

Not just another enclosed booth in another beautiful Ottawa space. We wanted the experience itself to feel like something you couldn’t get anywhere else.

So we made something that, quite literally, doesn’t exist anywhere else.

The Ottawa Art Gallery is home to the first enclosed photo booth ever printing photos on sparkle paper.

Yes. Sparkle paper.

And no, you can’t get these prints from another booth.

We wanted the entire concept to feel playful, collectible, and a little bit magical, which is where Never Lose Your Sparkle came from.

You step behind the curtain, take your photos, and seconds later your strip comes out with an actual shimmer to it.

It catches the light.

It feels different in your hand.

And it turns an already nostalgic photo booth strip into something you immediately want to keep.

That’s the part I love.

Because a photo booth should give you more than a photo. It should give you a tiny moment that feels connected to where you were.

At the Fairmont, that might be the romance and nostalgia of a wedding night.

At the Ottawa Art Gallery, it’s your reminder to never lose your sparkle.

A gallery afternoon. A first date. A family outing. A random Saturday downtown.

Step inside.

Make it weird. Make it cute. Make it completely you.

And walk away with a sparkling little piece of that day.

There is only one booth printing these sparkle strips right now.

And it’s here in Ottawa.

Building a Photo Booth Map of Ottawa

These two booths are just the beginning.

The bigger vision is to create a collection of permanent booths across Ottawa, each designed around the place it lives in.

Not carbon copies.

Experiences with their own concepts, details, and reasons to come back.

A wedding at the Fairmont.

A sparkling strip from the Ottawa Art Gallery.

A date night somewhere new.

A family tradition that starts because someone says, “We have to get a strip before we leave.”

I want people to start recognizing these booths around the city.

And, more importantly, start collecting the memories that come out of them.

More are coming.

Ottawa, start collecting your strips.

Looking for a Permanent Photo Booth Installation?

For hotels, galleries, venues, restaurants, retail spaces, and cultural destinations, a permanent enclosed photo booth can become more than an amenity. It can become part of the guest experience.

The booth gives visitors a reason to pause, interact, and leave with something tangible. It can also support brand awareness, customer engagement, social sharing, and repeat visits when the experience is designed to fit the space.

MDRN works with businesses to create permanent installations that feel intentional, on-brand, and easy to operate. From the booth design and guest journey to custom photo strips and ongoing support, every detail is planned around the venue and its audience. 

Interested in bringing a permanent enclosed photo booth to your space? Get in touch with MDRN Activations to explore the possibilities.