Fun with Purikura by former KCP Student Shenelle King
KCP alumna Shenelle King describes the charm of Purikura and the process of creating fun and funky Japanese photo stickers.
One of the first things I wanted to try when I went to Japan was the cute little photo stickers that all my Japanese friends had on the backs of their phones, on their binders, and pretty much everywhere. Purikura is pretty much American photo booths, but on crack. No exaggeration there. In America, you put in three dollars and you and one friend, maybe two, sit inside the booth and then you take three or four pictures. In a few minutes, you have semi-cute, poor quality, giant strips of pictures.
However, in Japan, Purikura is kind of a mini-fashion shoot. You put in 400 yen and step inside with as many people as you want. I have seen my friend fit up to TWENTY-FIVE people into one of these booths. After everyone enters, you are guided on screen through a process. On the most recent machines, before the photo shoot begins, you can choose if you want your skin tone lighter or darker, and your eyes big or small. With some machines, you can also make your eyelashes appear longer. This can be done afterwards as well.
You take anywhere from 6 to 8 photos— close-ups as well as full-length body shots. In newer machines, the camera also moves higher to give more of a diagonal angle, which is quite flattering for the figure.
Once you are done, the screen will tell you to go to either the right or the left side of the photo booth. (Sometimes they tell you go to the LIME CORNER which you will have to check on the outside to figure out what corner that is). In this area you can GO CRAZY and do what they call “Rakugaki”.
You can draw on your photos, write words, change your hair color, add make-up, stamps, and stickers. The options are endless. The most common thing to do with your photos is to write the date in one with some decoration, as well as what you did. And if you aren’t feeling creative, there are preset designs that you can chose from as well.
Things also vary from machine to machine. If you have two people, the machine will analyze this and sometimes you have the option to take single shots with one another.
Some machines are specifically for girls’ day out; other machines are for a boyfriend and a girlfriend. All the machines have a theme, and your options to draw with differ as well. They also play music and you can adjust the volume or change the song. Lately, American music has been popular.
After all is said and done, you can print the photos out for everyone! If you went in with two people, you often get cute strips that have designs on them. Some machines offer this for three people as well. If you have groups bigger than that, then the pictures will print out on a large sheet and you cut them with the scissors provided. If you have a Japanese cellphone, you can also send the pictures to your phone!
Purikura is definitely a popular “activity” in Japan. If you are hanging out with your friends, especially as a foreigner visiting for a certain amount of time, you will almost ALWAYS take purikura to document your day together and the adventure you had!