125 lines
4.3 KiB
Markdown
125 lines
4.3 KiB
Markdown
# CRT Photobooth
|
||
|
||
A fullscreen photobooth for a Linux laptop mirrored to a 4:3 CRT. Guests press
|
||
the button (any mouse button) to take a 3-photo shoot with countdowns and
|
||
flashes. After 4 shoots, all 12 photos are printed on one contact sheet.
|
||
When idle for 5 minutes, a fish-tank screensaver protects the CRT from burn-in.
|
||
|
||
## Setup on a new laptop
|
||
|
||
1. **Install Python 3.11 or newer** (check with `python3 --version`).
|
||
|
||
2. **Install the dependencies:**
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
pip install pygame-ce opencv-python pillow
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
Note: it's `pygame-ce`, not `pygame` — the community edition has wheels
|
||
for newer Python versions. If pip refuses because the system Python is
|
||
"externally managed", either use `pip install --user ...` or create a
|
||
virtual environment:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
python3 -m venv ~/photobooth-venv
|
||
~/photobooth-venv/bin/pip install pygame-ce opencv-python pillow
|
||
# then run with: ~/photobooth-venv/bin/python photobooth.py
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
3. **Plug in the Macally webcam** and confirm Linux sees it:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
ls /dev/v4l/by-id/
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
You should see something like `usb-SolidYear_Macally_USB2.0Camera-video-index0`.
|
||
The default config finds it automatically by name.
|
||
|
||
4. **Set up the printer.** The booth prints via CUPS with the `lp` command.
|
||
Check what's configured and set a default:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
lpstat -p # list printers
|
||
lpoptions -d NAME # set the default printer
|
||
lpstat -p -d # verify: should show a default destination
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
Print a test page from the printer settings GUI to make sure it works
|
||
before an event.
|
||
|
||
5. **Copy this whole folder** to the laptop and run it:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
python3 photobooth.py
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
Add `--windowed` to test in a window instead of fullscreen.
|
||
**Press Esc or Q to quit.**
|
||
|
||
## Customizing
|
||
|
||
- **All settings** live in `config.toml` — camera choice, screen text,
|
||
countdown lengths, screensaver timeout, printer options. Comments in the
|
||
file explain each one.
|
||
- **Idle screen background:** replace `assets/background.png` (any size,
|
||
it gets scaled to the screen — 4:3 looks best, e.g. 800×600).
|
||
- **Fish:** drop your fish drawings into the `fish/` folder as PNGs with
|
||
transparent backgrounds. Draw them **facing right** — the program flips
|
||
them automatically when they swim left. Bubbles come out of the front
|
||
(mouth) end. Delete `placeholder_fish.png` once you have real fish.
|
||
|
||
## Switching cameras
|
||
|
||
In `config.toml`, `device = "auto-macally"` finds the Macally cam by name.
|
||
To use a different camera:
|
||
|
||
- `device = "auto-integrated"` — match another camera by (partial) name
|
||
from `ls /dev/v4l/by-id/`, case-insensitive
|
||
- `device = "/dev/video2"` — an exact device path
|
||
- `device = "0"` — a plain index
|
||
|
||
## Where things go
|
||
|
||
- `photos/` — individual shots for the current print cycle. Deleted
|
||
automatically after a successful print. (If the program is restarted
|
||
mid-cycle, photos here are counted so no progress is lost.)
|
||
- `contact_sheets/` — every printed sheet, kept as a backup in case of
|
||
printer trouble. Delete them manually now and then, or set
|
||
`delete_contact_sheets = true` in the config to remove each one right
|
||
after it prints.
|
||
|
||
## If printing fails
|
||
|
||
The booth doesn't lose anything: the contact sheet is saved in
|
||
`contact_sheets/`, an error shows on the idle screen, and you can print the
|
||
sheet by hand with:
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
lp -o media=letter -o fit-to-page contact_sheets/sheet_XXXX.jpg
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
Common causes: printer off or unplugged (`lpstat -p` says "disabled" —
|
||
re-enable with `cupsenable PRINTER_NAME`), or no default printer set.
|
||
|
||
## Troubleshooting the camera
|
||
|
||
Test the camera on its own (uses the device from `config.toml`):
|
||
|
||
```bash
|
||
python3 camera.py
|
||
```
|
||
|
||
**If it reports black frames** (or the live preview shows a warning): the
|
||
Macally cam's chipset sometimes wedges and streams pure black until it is
|
||
power-cycled. **Unplug the camera, plug it back in, and restart the
|
||
program.** Worth doing a quick test shoot at the start of an event.
|
||
|
||
## Heads-up
|
||
|
||
- The Brother HL-5470DW is a **monochrome laser** — contact sheets print
|
||
in black & white.
|
||
- The live preview is mirrored (like a mirror) so posing feels natural, but
|
||
saved photos are not mirrored. Set `mirror_preview = false` to change that.
|
||
- CRT overscan may crop the very edges of the screen; once the CRT is
|
||
connected, adjust text positions/sizes in code or the CRT's own controls.
|