A disposable camera app for your wedding guests
By Tony Syme · Updated
A disposable camera app gives every wedding guest a camera with a set number of shots and a film look, without the cardboard cameras on the tables. Kaptr opens in your guests' phone browsers from a QR code, and nobody sees the photos until the reveal you've chosen.
What makes it feel like a disposable camera
The charm of a disposable is the limits. You only get so many shots, and you don't see any of them until later. Kaptr keeps those limits and drops the hassle.
A set number of shots per guest
You decide how many shots each guest gets, such as 10 each. When they're gone, they're gone, so people save them for the moments that matter.
That changes how guests shoot. Fewer blurry photos of the ceiling, more of your gran dancing at the ceilidh.
The limit holds even if a guest reloads the page, so nobody can quietly give themselves a new roll.
A warm film look with a date stamp
Every photo taken in Kaptr's camera gets a warm, film-style colour grade and a bit of grain. A date stamp is burned in too, like the old cameras used to print.
Because the look is baked in, the whole set matches, from the newest phone at the party to the oldest. It also looks the part on the live photo wall if you run a slideshow at the reception.
A timed reveal the morning after
The best bit of a disposable was getting the photos back. Kaptr recreates that with a timed reveal: the shared gallery stays sealed until a time you choose.
The morning after is a lovely choice. Guests wake up, a bit fragile, to the whole wedding from everyone's point of view.
How it works for guests
Guests scan a QR code on the table and the camera opens straight away in Safari on iPhone or Chrome on Android. There's no app to download and no account, just a first name.
They take their shots, the photos come to you, and the guests wait for the reveal like everyone else.
If you want everything to have the film look, turn off camera roll uploads. Then every photo comes from Kaptr's camera instead of someone's own gallery. Our guide to QR code wedding photos has ideas for cards and signs.
You still check every photo
Real disposables give you whatever comes back from the lab. With Kaptr, every photo waits in your approval queue first.
You can approve it, reject it, or blur part of it, and guests only see the blurred copy. If you change your mind later, you can remove a photo you've already approved.
This works alongside the reveal. You approve photos at your own pace, and when the gallery opens, guests see only what you've let through.
Kaptr compared with real disposable cameras
Disposable cameras on the tables are a lovely idea, and they're where Kaptr's look comes from. They do have some well-known drawbacks.
What goes wrong with real disposables
Each camera has to be bought, then developed, and developing a table's worth adds up. Cameras go missing at the end of the night, or get taken home and forgotten in a coat pocket.
A typical disposable holds 27 shots, and it's easy for one table to use theirs up in the first hour. Then you wait weeks for prints and scans, and some come back too dark to use.
Side by side
| Real disposable cameras | Kaptr | |
|---|---|---|
| What guests need | A camera from the table | Their own phone |
| Shots | Fixed per camera, shared by the table | Set per guest by you |
| Lost cameras | Photos lost with them | Photos sent from each phone |
| Checking photos | Not possible before printing | Approve, reject or blur |
| Getting them back | Collect and develop, then wait | One full-quality ZIP download |
If signal at your venue is poor, that's fine too. Photos that can't send wait on the guest's phone and send automatically when signal or wifi comes back.
More ways to keep guests shooting
A limited roll is more fun with something to aim at. Post a photo challenge and the prompt shows on every guest's camera, one at a time. Our list of wedding photo challenges is a good place to start.
After the wedding, you can download the full set as one ZIP or make a vertical highlight reel from your approved photos and clips. The reel doesn't have music or audio yet.
Pricing
Your first event is free with no card needed. After that you pay once per event, from £29 for up to 50 guests. See the pricing page for every plan, and the wedding photo sharing page for the full picture of how Kaptr works.
Want to try the camera yourself? Set up your wedding free and take a few test shots on your own phone.
Questions
Can guests get more shots by refreshing the page?
No. Shot limits are counted on Kaptr's server, so reloading the page or reopening the camera doesn't give anyone a fresh roll.
Can we see the photos before the reveal?
Yes. As the couple you see every photo straight away. The timed reveal only keeps the shared gallery sealed for guests.
How many shots should each guest get?
It's up to you. A small number, like 10 each, makes people choose their moments, while a bigger allowance suits a long day with lots going on.