Hipstamatic's new Party! Disposable Camera app is designed to digitally recreate the experience of guests taking spontaneous photos with a disposable camera at a wedding or other event. There's no cost to develop film, but the app is only free if your guest list is five people or less.
At its core, the app is another attempt to streamline the process of collecting all the smartphone photos guests take during a special event. Using a custom QR code generated by the host, guests are prompted to download the Party! Disposable Camera app and join the event. All photos taken with the app are collected in a single private gallery that the host and guests can view and comment on.
Similar solutions to this problem already exist, including many that allow guests to upload images from any device – unlike Hipstamatic's app (and the original app), which is only available for the iPhone. The potential appeal of the Party! app is that it goes a step further and simulates the disposable camera experience. The host can choose a specific visual style (or skip filters altogether) and any uploaded photos can only be viewed the day after the event, simulating the experience of waiting for film to be developed.
Anyone can download the Hipstamatic Party! app, but the host organizing an event must pay for larger groups. The options for 15, 25, or 35 users cost $2, $5, and $10, respectively. Additional users can be added, but must pay $1 to join, so PetaPixels. Hipstamatic also offers an “Event” option for $99 for up to 99 guests and a “Wedding” option for $200 that allows for unlimited users and higher resolution photo uploads.