The Self-Portrait Project
The Self-Portrait Project designs interactive two-way mirror photo booth installations that let participants capture their own self-portraits. Founded in 2009, it serves brands, venues, and public spaces through permanent installs, custom activations, and pop-up studios across 31+ cities.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What The Self-Portrait Project does
The Self-Portrait Project (SPP) is a Brooklyn- and Lower East Side–based participatory art and technology company founded in 2009 by National Geographic Traveler award-winning photographer Andy Lin. It designs and operates interactive self-portrait photo booth installations built around a proprietary two-way mirror system: a camera shoots through the transparent side of the mirror while the participant stands on the reflective side and triggers the shutter via remote control, making the subject both photographer and subject. The product lineup consists of the "Classic" Mirror, the "Salon" Mirror for permanent venue deployment, full Installations, Custom Activations for brands and events, and a Pop-Up Portrait Studio service. By the end of 2025, the platform had captured over 1.8 million self-portraits across 31 cities and 86 unique locations, with the 1.8 millionth portrait logged in 2025 alongside 448,288 portraits taken that year.
The Self-Portrait Project firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Self-Portrait Project
- Legal name
- The Self-Portrait Project
- Website
- https://selfportraitproject.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- The Self-Portrait Project designs interactive two-way mirror photo booth installations that let participants capture their own self-portraits. Founded in 2009, it serves brands, venues, and public spaces through permanent installs, custom activations, and pop-up studios across 31+ cities.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Self-Portrait Project industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Interactive Photo Booth Installations
- NAICS
- Photography Studios, Portrait (541921), Photographic Services (54192), Commercial Photography (541922)
- SIC
- Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330), Photographic Equipment & Supplies (3861)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Party Photography & Videography Services (HSACACAH)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Event Signage, Props & Custom Installations (HSACAOAG)
Keywords
Where The Self-Portrait Project is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Self-Portrait Project business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Event Activations: Custom event activations and photo booth rentals for brands, venues, and public spaces. One-time service fees for installations at events.
- Permanent Mirror Installations: Long-running mirror systems installed at venues with ongoing maintenance and support.
- Pop-Up Studio Sessions: Paid appointment sessions at pop-up portrait studios, including prints and digital images.
- Print Sales: Sale of physical prints from photo sessions at various price points.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Pop-Up Appointment Session |
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Walk-In Session |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Venue Photo Booth Prints |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
The Self-Portrait Project product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Self-Portrait Project designs and deploys interactive photo booth installations using a proprietary two-way mirror self-capture system. Its products include the "Classic" and "Salon" mirror systems, delivered through permanent venue installations, custom brand activations, and pop-up portrait studios that produce self-directed black-and-white portraits. The company also operates a public Living Archive of self-portraits and provides physical prints and digital images to participants and venue partners.
Product overview
The Self-Portrait Project offers a unified ecosystem of interactive photo booth products centered around its patented two-way mirror technology. The core offering consists of the "Classic" and "Salon" mirror products, which use a camera, two-way mirror, and remote control system where participants photograph themselves on their own terms. These are deployed through permanent venue Installations, Custom Activations for branded events, and the Pop-Up Portrait Studio service for temporary activations. The system enables participant-led self-portraiture with a living public archive of over 1.8 million photos. In 2025, the company expanded to 6 new installations and operated across 184 activations in 31 cities.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- "Classic" Mirror Interactive photo booth installation using a camera, two-way mirror, and remote control. The camera shoots through the transparent side of a two-way mirror while the participant stands on the reflective side, choosing when and how to capture their self-portrait.
- "Salon" Mirror Interactive photo booth mirror system designed for permanent venue installations, offering the same self-portrait mechanism as the Classic but configured for long-running deployment at bars, venues, and public spaces.
- Installations Long-running SPP mirror systems permanently installed at partner venues globally, including the SEAT Spotter geolocation capability, session tracking, and contribution to the Living Archive.
- Custom Activations Bespoke event activations tailored for brands and events, combining the SPP photo booth technology with custom design, theming, and experiential elements.
- Pop-Up Portrait Studio Temporary pop-up photo booth experience offering paid appointments and free walk-in portrait sessions, delivering high-quality black-and-white portraits as 6x8" prints and digital images.
Quantifiable outcome
- 1,250 people took 36,000 self-portraits in one NYC pop-up event
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use The Self-Portrait Project
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
The Self-Portrait Project technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
The Self-Portrait Project partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Skinny Dennis NashvillecoreMajestic Photobooth x Self-Portrait Project collaboration at the Nashville honky tonk bar. Permanent mirror installation capturing self-portraits for venue guests. In under a year: 139,364 photos, 17,253 sessions, 14,143 unique participants.
- Common MolliescoreBrooklyn bar featuring SPP photo booth with print services. $5 for two identical 3x4" prints. Permanent installation serving bar patrons.
- Medusa BrooklynminorBrooklyn venue with permanent SPP mirror installation added in 2025.
- Pine Box Rock ShopminorBrooklyn venue with permanent SPP mirror installation added in 2025.
- WNY Times SquareminorTimes Square venue with permanent SPP mirror installation added in 2025.
- Holy Diver New OrleansminorNew Orleans venue with permanent SPP mirror installation added in 2025.
- Nikkilopez PhillyminorPhiladelphia venue with permanent SPP mirror installation added in 2025.
- BoothCamp CreateminorAnnual immersive workshop event for photo booth professionals. SPP founder Andy Lin invited to speak about company ethos and unique positioning in the industry.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
The Self-Portrait Project competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- BoothCamp Create: BoothCamp Create is an industry workshop and community for photo booth operators, where SPP's founder has been a featured speaker. They are an industry peer and ecosystem participant rather than a direct hardware/services competitor.
Direct peers
- Simplebooth: Simplebooth produces iPad-based photo booth hardware and software for events and venues. Comparable product (interactive photo booth) and customers (event professionals, brands, venues), competing on accessibility and software rather than a unique mirror concept.
- Foto Master: Foto Master manufactures and sells mirror photo booths (their "Mirror Me" product) and other event photo booth hardware globally. Closest direct competitor on the mirror photo booth concept SPP pioneered.
- TapSnap: TapSnap is a touchscreen-based photo booth platform sold/rented to events and corporate activations. Directly comparable in serving enterprise brand activations and event customers with an interactive photo booth product.
- Smilebooth: Smilebooth designs and sells open-air and enclosed photo booth hardware for events, weddings, and brand activations. Comparable in deploying photo booth hardware to venues and event professionals, though lacking SPP's two-way mirror / self-portraiture concept.
- Pixster Photo Booth: Pixster Photo Booth operates a national photo booth rental and installation business serving weddings, corporate events, and venues. Comparable in customer base (events, venues) and recurring revenue model, though they lack a self-portraiture narrative.
- Open Air Photobooth: Open Air Photobooth sells and rents commercial-grade photo booth hardware to event professionals and venues. Comparable product line and customer base for SPP's residential/venue hardware revenue stream.
- Majestic Photobooth: Majestic Photobooth is a direct partner and competitor — they co-built the Skinny Dennis Nashville installation with SPP and offer photo booth rentals and permanent venue installations targeting bars, events, and brands. Highly comparable in customer base (venues, hospitality) and product (mirror-based photo booths).
Broad incumbents
- Meow Wolf: Meow Wolf is a large-scale immersive art and experiential entertainment company. Comparable in participatory art positioning, cultural event programming, and using installations to drive community engagement, though at a much larger scale and venue-permanent format.
Regional players
- BrightEvent Rentals: BrightEvent Rentals is a regional event photo booth and equipment rental provider serving corporate events, weddings, and venues. Comparable product/customer fit but operating as a traditional rental business rather than a participatory art concept.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
The Self-Portrait Project social profiles
Digital presenceThe Self-Portrait Project financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Self-Portrait Project leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
The Self-Portrait Project funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Self-Portrait Project M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Self-Portrait Project
What does The Self-Portrait Project do?
The Self-Portrait Project designs and deploys interactive photo booth installations using a proprietary two-way mirror self-capture system. Its products include the "Classic" and "Salon" mirror systems, delivered through permanent venue installations, custom brand activations, and pop-up portrait studios that produce self-directed black-and-white portraits. The company also operates a public Living Archive of self-portraits and provides physical prints and digital images to participants and venue partners.
Is The Self-Portrait Project a public or private company?
The Self-Portrait Project is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was The Self-Portrait Project founded?
The Self-Portrait Project was founded in 2009. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is The Self-Portrait Project based?
The Self-Portrait Project is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Self-Portrait Project make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Event Activations are the primary driver. The others are permanent Mirror Installations, pop-Up Studio Sessions and print Sales.
Who are The Self-Portrait Project's main competitors?
BoothCamp Create is listed as an emerging player. Direct peers are Simplebooth, Foto Master, TapSnap, Smilebooth, Pixster Photo Booth, Open Air Photobooth and Majestic Photobooth. Meow Wolf is listed as a broad incumbent. BrightEvent Rentals is listed as a regional player.
Does The Self-Portrait Project have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Self-Portrait Project.
What industry is The Self-Portrait Project in?
The Self-Portrait Project's product category is Interactive Photo Booth Installations. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HSACACAH, Party Photography & Videography Services, with a secondary code of HSACAOAG, Event Signage, Props & Custom Installations. Its NAICS code is 541921 and its SIC code is 7330.