How to Use Photo Booth on a Mac
Connect a camera to your Mac (if necessary)., Open Photo Booth., Click the Camera menu., Click the camera you want to use., Line up your shot in the Photo Booth window., Click the Single Picture button., Click the Camera button., Take your picture...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Connect a camera to your Mac (if necessary).
Many Macs come with a webcam built-in, but you can install your own if your Mac doesn't have one or you want a higher-quality camera.
Most webcams simply need to be plugged in to a USB port and they're good to go, as long as they're Mac compatible. -
Step 2: Open Photo Booth.
There are a couple ways you can quickly open Photo Booth:
Click the Go menu from the desktop and select Applications.
Find Photo Booth in the Applications folder.
Click the Search button in your menu bar, type photo booth, and press ⏎ Return. , If you have multiple cameras installed, you'll need to select the one you want to use with Photo Booth. , You'll see a list of all of your connected cameras.
After selecting a camera, you should see the image from it in the Photo Booth window. , You'll see the image from your webcam in the Photo Booth window.
Move yourself or your webcam until your shot is lined up correctly. , You can find this in the bottom-left corner of the Photo Booth window, and it is typically selected by default. , The countdown will begin at the bottom of the screen. , When the countdown completes, the screen will flash and your picture will be taken. , You'll see this in the lower-left corner of the Photo Booth window.
The button looks like four small squares arranged in a grid. , You'll be taking four pictures in succession, with a few seconds in between to change poses.
Make sure your camera is properly lined up in the Photo Booth window. , This is in the bottom-center of the window. , You'll see the countdown at the bottom of the screen. , You'll see the screen flash each time a picture is taken.
Four pictures will be taken altogether. , You can apply effects to a picture yuou've just taken, or you can select an effect before taking a picture. , You'll see these at the bottom of the screen.
Clicking these buttons will change pages and display more effects. , You'll see a preview of each effect in the menu. , If the effect you chose can be adjusted, you'll see a slider appear.
This allows you to change the strength of the effect. , At the end of the list, you'll see backgrounds with silhouettes on them.
These allow you to apply special backgrounds or effects to your body. , Photo Booth will need to detect what is the background so that it can properly apply the effect.
You'll need to move completely out of the frame for it to work.
Make sure there's nothing moving in your background either.
This will work best with a solid background, but should work well as long as nothing is moving. , You'll see that the effect you chose has been applied to your body. , After taking a photo or video, you'll see it appear as a thumbnail at the bottom of the window.
You can click and drag this to your desktop or any open folder to quickly save it. , The Share button looks like a square with an arrow coming out the top.
This will open the Share menu.
Click an item in the Share menu to choose how you want to share it.
You can add it as an email attachment, send it in iMessage, or use any third-party apps that support sharing. , If you want to select where an image is saved, or change the format, you can use the Export menu.
Browse for where you want the file to be saved, give the file a name and choose the format, then click Export. , Your Photo booth photos are stored in your Pictures library:
Click the Finder button in your Dock.
Click the Pictures folder.
Find the Photo Booth Library package file.
Right-click the file and select "Show Package Contents." Open the Pictures folder in the Photo Booth Library and then find your pictures. -
Step 3: Click the Camera menu.
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Step 4: Click the camera you want to use.
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Step 5: Line up your shot in the Photo Booth window.
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Step 6: Click the Single Picture button.
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Step 7: Click the Camera button.
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Step 8: Take your picture.
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Step 9: Click the Four Pictures button.
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Step 10: Line up your shot.
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Step 11: Click the Camera button.
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Step 12: Strike a pose and wait for the countdown.
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Step 13: Change poses for each picture.
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Step 14: Click the Effects button.
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Step 15: Click the ◀ and ▶ buttons to see more options.
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Step 16: Click the effect you want to apply.
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Step 17: Click and drag the slider to adjust the effect (if possible).
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Step 18: Select a background from the list of effects.
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Step 19: Move out of the frame.
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Step 20: Move back into the frame once the background has been detected.
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Step 21: Drag a photo from the timeline to quickly save it.
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Step 22: Select a photo and click Share.
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Step 23: Click File → Export to save images.
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Step 24: Find your Photo Booth photos.
Detailed Guide
Many Macs come with a webcam built-in, but you can install your own if your Mac doesn't have one or you want a higher-quality camera.
Most webcams simply need to be plugged in to a USB port and they're good to go, as long as they're Mac compatible.
There are a couple ways you can quickly open Photo Booth:
Click the Go menu from the desktop and select Applications.
Find Photo Booth in the Applications folder.
Click the Search button in your menu bar, type photo booth, and press ⏎ Return. , If you have multiple cameras installed, you'll need to select the one you want to use with Photo Booth. , You'll see a list of all of your connected cameras.
After selecting a camera, you should see the image from it in the Photo Booth window. , You'll see the image from your webcam in the Photo Booth window.
Move yourself or your webcam until your shot is lined up correctly. , You can find this in the bottom-left corner of the Photo Booth window, and it is typically selected by default. , The countdown will begin at the bottom of the screen. , When the countdown completes, the screen will flash and your picture will be taken. , You'll see this in the lower-left corner of the Photo Booth window.
The button looks like four small squares arranged in a grid. , You'll be taking four pictures in succession, with a few seconds in between to change poses.
Make sure your camera is properly lined up in the Photo Booth window. , This is in the bottom-center of the window. , You'll see the countdown at the bottom of the screen. , You'll see the screen flash each time a picture is taken.
Four pictures will be taken altogether. , You can apply effects to a picture yuou've just taken, or you can select an effect before taking a picture. , You'll see these at the bottom of the screen.
Clicking these buttons will change pages and display more effects. , You'll see a preview of each effect in the menu. , If the effect you chose can be adjusted, you'll see a slider appear.
This allows you to change the strength of the effect. , At the end of the list, you'll see backgrounds with silhouettes on them.
These allow you to apply special backgrounds or effects to your body. , Photo Booth will need to detect what is the background so that it can properly apply the effect.
You'll need to move completely out of the frame for it to work.
Make sure there's nothing moving in your background either.
This will work best with a solid background, but should work well as long as nothing is moving. , You'll see that the effect you chose has been applied to your body. , After taking a photo or video, you'll see it appear as a thumbnail at the bottom of the window.
You can click and drag this to your desktop or any open folder to quickly save it. , The Share button looks like a square with an arrow coming out the top.
This will open the Share menu.
Click an item in the Share menu to choose how you want to share it.
You can add it as an email attachment, send it in iMessage, or use any third-party apps that support sharing. , If you want to select where an image is saved, or change the format, you can use the Export menu.
Browse for where you want the file to be saved, give the file a name and choose the format, then click Export. , Your Photo booth photos are stored in your Pictures library:
Click the Finder button in your Dock.
Click the Pictures folder.
Find the Photo Booth Library package file.
Right-click the file and select "Show Package Contents." Open the Pictures folder in the Photo Booth Library and then find your pictures.
About the Author
Emily Hamilton
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