I want to organize a birthday party for my son at home with about 15-20 guests. I'd like to have a nice photo booth, but I don't want to spend thousands on props. What can I make myself from stuff I have around the house?
Don't spend money on ready-made banners and stands - they're easy to replace. Stretch a beautiful fabric between two chairs or attach it to the wall (a sheet, tablecloth, even old curtains work), and add a garland made from paper flags or balloons on a string.
Homemade props work just as well as store-bought ones: cut frames, numbers, stars, hearts from colored paper or cardboard and glue them to a base. You can gather some branches into a nice vase, arrange candles in jars, hang photos of the boy with clothespins on a rope. Photo props (funny glasses, mustaches, hats) are easy to make from paper, sticks, and tape - guests actually like those better than store-bought ones.
How old is your son? That'll help figure out how serious the props need to be.
I'd add something to the previous answer about fabric: make your backdrop multi-layered. Stretch the main fabric, then hang cutout shapes, letters, stars made from cardboard or paper in front of it on fishing line or invisible thread - it creates depth and looks really cool in photos. Gold or silver tape for decorating the cardboard pieces costs next to nothing, but the effect is powerful.
The thing people often forget about is lighting. Bad light ruins even a beautiful backdrop. Shoot during the day by a window or grab some regular LED string lights (they give off warm light and are super cheap). Without proper lighting, even an expensive photo zone looks dull.
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