Tag Archives: tokens

Getting started – Customizing Breeze print layouts

This video introduces the Breeze Print Layout Editor, and shows simple ways to customize your prints without Photoshop or other image editors.

DSLR Remote Pro, Webcam Photobooth and Hotfolder Prints all include a simple but powerful drag and drop print editor which you can use to customize your prints.

Note: This post was updated in September 2019 for the latest releases of Hotfolder Prints 1.8, and Webcam Photobooth 1.5.

If you are new to DSLR Remote Pro or Webcam Photobooth, first run the Photo booth Setup Wizard.  This creates all the screens for a basic working system. It also creates print layouts with a plain white background. The video demonstrates

  • How to change the background color of your prints
  • How to add logos and other graphic icons to your prints (DSLR Remote Pro 3.12, Hotfolder Prints 1.8 and Webcam Photobooth 1.5)
  • How to add simple captions
  • how to use Breeze tokens to show the correct date on prints
  • How to use Breeze tokens to automatically add the event name to prints (DSLR Remote Pro 3.12 andHotfolder Prints 1.8 only)
  • How to import pre-designed layouts
  • How to add a QR code

Notes

The video is intended to give you a taste of the Print Layout Editor. See the program help files for more details

Using tokens

Find a great video introduction to using tokens with Breeze here

There are minor differences in the way tokens work in these three programs:

  • {eventName} and {dateLess8h} are new in Hotfolder Prints 1.8
  • {eventName} is not yet supported in Webcam Photobooth
  • DSLR Remote Pro Print Layout Editor displays the current value of tokens
  • Hotfolder Prints and Webcam Photobooth Print Layout Editors display the token names in the print layout editor

Importing pre-designed layouts into Breeze

Learn more about using layouts I used in the video here .These free templates were kindly provided by SMOVE for use by Breeze customers.

NB: Logos are not saved in the Photobooth Print Layout (pblt file) in this release. To use both predesigned layout and logos, you need to import the layout before adding the logos to your design.

Try for yourself

Download copies of DSLR Remote Pro, Hotfolder Prints and Webcam Photobooth from our website

If you found this post useful please share it with others.

© Breeze Systems 2018

How to email photos, animated GIFs and videos from DSLR Remote Pro

Guests can email photos, animated GIFs and Canon M50 slowmo videos and other videos* they create in  DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.3. If Internet access during the event is poor, you can send the emails later.

Update March 2021: This post has been replaced by a new tutorial

This post explains  how to email images from a touchscreen photo booth running DSLR Remote Pro. You will also learn how to tell the program about your email server settings, brand and customize the emails you send.

Let’s run through this in more detail, starting with the setup wizard:

Run the Photobooth Setup Wizard

Start DSLR Remote Pro and run the Photobooth Setup Wizard (1). Choose which options to offer guests at Step 2 (2). In this example guests can choose between still photos and boomerang (aka burst) GIFs (3). You can offer video  (or photos and video) instead at this point.

Check the option Email photos (4) .

DSLR Remote Pro setup wizard step 2 screen
Checking the box Email photos at Step 2 of the setup wizard ( DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.3)

Select any other options you need before clicking on <Next> and completing Step 3 of the wizard.

You can set up your own booth with this sharing screen using just the 3 step wizard:

Showing email sharing screen created by the d Breeze DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.2 Photobooth Setup Wizard Breeze DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.2
Email sharing screen created by the Photobooth Setup Wizard (DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.3)

Setup the email server settings

The first time you email from DSLR Remote Pro you need to set up the  email server settings:

Select File (5) then Photobooth Settings (6) to access these settings

This will display the Photobooth Settings screen.

Go to the Output Settings (8) and check Email (9). You can then select Email Server Settings screen at (10)

To send an email you need to specify the host name and port number of your email server. Most email servers also require a username and a password. For additional security check Use SSL for secure email.

The values of Host, Username, Password, Email and Port (11) you enter on the Email Server Settings screen are specific to the email provider you are using.

Before you move on, check everything works by sending a test email to your own email address (12). DSLR Remote Pro displays Email sent successfully (13) when this message has been sent. Check that you receive the test email.

Remember to click OK (14) to save your settings as you leave this screen.

Including your name with the email address

To include the name of the sender with the email address enter the name followed by the email address enclosed in angle brackets e.g. Sue’s Blog <demo@breezesys.com>.

Here the sender name is ‘Sue’s Blog’ and the email address demo@breezesys.com (DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.3)

Logging guest email addresses & sending them after the event

You can keep a log of email addresses used by guests, providing valuable data for your own or corporate client’s use.

If an event Internet connection is flaky or non-existent you can save the email details and send them later.

See the program help files for more details

Be aware that

  • The port number is usually 587 when using SSL secure email or 25 otherwise (but check the port numbers used by your ISP).
  • Emails look more professional when sent from your own  domain.
  • Most free email services require the sender’s email address to the be the same as the email account specified by the username and password.
  • Gmail users should set access for less secure apps to Turn on in your Google account settings otherwise GMail will refuse to send the email.

Customize and brand your email messages

Use the standard email message

You do not have to customize the message sent with your photos and animated GIFS. If you use the standard settings in DSLR Remote Pro all emails will include the image(s) captured in the booth and the text Your photo booth photos taken on 14 August 2018 (or whatever date the images were taken).

Customizing the email subject and message

The emails guests send can be a powerful marketing tool for your business. Make them work for you by customizing the message sent with your image(s). Use Breeze tokens, your own text, images and html in the Email Settings screen.

Select File, then Output Settings, then Email settings to reach this screen:

Select File, then Output Settings, then Email settings to customize emails sent from DSLR Remote Pro

The first time you see the email settings screen it contains the default message DSLR Remote Pro sends with your emails. Edit this to meet your needs.

DSLR Remote Pro Email Settings screen showing default settings
Default Email Settings screen in Breeze DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.3

You can change the both the subject and content of the emails sent with guest images.

Reduce the time and bandwidth taken to send and receive emails by choosing a suitable maximum image size.

Breeze tokens can be used to generate the date, event name and much more. See the full list of tokens.

Creating a standard email template using the {eventName} token

{eventName} is a special Breeze token which can be shared between Breeze programs. You can use {eventName} in your emails and print layouts to save time customizing your booth for each event.

Here I have both changed the text and used {eventName} to customize the email subject (17), plain text (18) and html (19) versions of the content. I also changed the message seen by guests if they type an invalid email address (20).

When the email is sent Images from {eventName}  will be replaced by Images from Sue & Chris’s Big Party. The text sent with the email will also say Having a great time at Sue & Chris’s Big Party. These are my images from the Breeze Booth on 14 August 2018.

{eventName} can also be used in print captions, and as part of folder and file names. For my next event I just need to change {eventName}  to John & Jane’s Wedding ….

Note: %L is another Breeze token, which will be replaced by the date the images were taken.

How do I enter and change {eventName}  for each event?

Start DSLR Remote Pro, click on File then Photobooth event info… to reach the Photo Booth Event Info screen
Photo Booth Event Info screen in DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.2
Photo Booth Event Info screen with {eventname} set to Sue & Chris’s big Party (DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.3)

You may have spotted Event Strings on this screen. You can  use  {eventString1} to {eventString5} in the same way as {eventName} .

Why do I need to send both plain text and html?

The emails  DSLR Remote Pro sends from your booth may be viewed on lots of different devices including Apple and Android smart phones, tablets and PCs. Most modern devices can read html emails; we also send a plain text version in case the html version cannot be read.

Thank you for reading this post. I have covered how to send emails from DSLR Remote Pro, outlined how to brand and customize the emails, create your own standard template which is automatically updated for different events, and tell the program about your email service provider.

If you are ready for more, Steve’s video is a great introduction to using tokens. You can also learn more about customizing emails in the program help files.

If this post is helpful to you, please share it with others in our industry.

* DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.3 was released today 15 August 2018, and is a free upgrade for anyone whose license was issued in the last year. This release introduces the ability to share videos captured in video booth mode, including Canon M50 slow mo videos.  Please note that emailing large attachments during events will slow the booth down.

Update 16 August: You can run this new script alongside DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.3  to rotate and resize videos and add an optional overlay and soundtrack before videos are shared. We expect to include these features into DSLR Remote Pro in a future release.

© Breeze Systems 2018

Breeze Tokens – your new best friend

Powerful, surprisingly simple, logical.  In this video tutorial Steve  introduces Breeze tokens and explains how they can be your new best friend.

Steve takes you through how to

  • Make life easier for your staff setting up events
  • Make life simpler – automate folder naming for different events
  • Collect data about guest choices for corporate clients
  • Group images by team name, zip code or other attribute chosen by your client
  • Automatically group images into different folders based on response to survey questions
  •  GDPR/ privacy  – split images into different folders based on guest consent
  • GDPR/privacy  – label images to show whether guests consent to using them for different uses

This tutorial focuses on DSLR Remote Pro  3.11.1 . Breeze tokens can also be used in Breeze Booth for iPad, DSLR Remote Pro Multi-Camera, Hotfolder Prints, Breeze Kiosk and Webcam Photobooth.

The following notes are intended as a quick reference to some of the details in the video.

Some of the Breeze DSLR Remote Pro tokens used in this tutorial

Event tokens are special tokens which can be shared between different Breeze programs running on the same PC. They include the event name {eventName} , and several print counters.

Note: Tokens are case sensitive.

Print layouts

Tokens can be used to print information like today’s date less 8 hours {dateLess8h}) without editing the print layout each time it is used.

Why ‘date less 8 hours’? Use when events run past midnight, but you don’t want the images created after midnight to be stored under a different date. If your booths are always fast asleep before midnight you can use  %d or %L token instead

Print template names

{printTemplateName} can be used in the folder path for images captured at an event.

Combining tokens with profiles

{photoboothSubdir} can be used to sort images into folders based on guest choices

Tokens for data collection surveys

DSLR Remote Pro surveys can have multiple screens each with multiple questions

{survey1_text1} stores the text a guest enters in response to the first question on the first survey screen

Information screens containing detailed information such as a Privacy Statement ot Terms and Conditions can also be added in DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.1 and later releases.

Tokens for check box surveys

Example of a checkbox survey used to obtained consent to specific uses of images taken in a booth. Breeze DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.1

In this example {survey1_chkbox1} will contain the value 1 if the first box (live feed) is checked, or 0 if it is not checked.

{survey1_chkbox2} will contain the value 1 if the second box (use for advertising) is checked, or 0 if it is not checked.

Check box surveys can also have multiple questions over several screens.

Friendly names for folders and images based on check box surveys

Example of separating images into two folders – one for images where guests have agreed that they are shared in a live feed, the other for images where guests have declined this.
Tokens can be included in the pathname for the follder where images are stored during an event. In this example images are separated into two download folders based on the guest’s answer to the live feed question in the survey. (DSLR Remote Pro 3.11.1)
DSLR Remote Pro creates the folders and stores images in appropriate folders as they are created

Take this further

Download DSLR Remote Pro

For a full list of tokens see the help files for each program:

Print counters : DSLR Remote Pro 3.11 introduces tokens for accessing the print counters : {printQuotaUsed},{printCounterEvent} and {printCounterLocal}. Print counters can be used to automate a photo booth with a fixed print quota e.g. by loading a “share only” profile when the print quota has been used.. They can also be displayed in print captions.