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This Camera Runs on Diesel: 'Photo-Booth Truck' Debuts in Midtown

 Midtown-based events producer Allen Dalton has launched what he says is the city's first photo-booth truck.
Motorbooth Photo Truck
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MIDTOWN — Smile for the camera-truck.

The owner of a Midtown-based events company has launched what he claims is the city's first photo booth on wheels.

Dubbed "Motorbooth," the food-vendor-style panel truck sports a professionally-designed white-walled photo studio in its cargo bay, allowing as many as 10 people at a time to strike a pose as a digital camera clicks away and music booms from overhead speakers.

"We're in the special events business. We do parties and events for a living, and people are absolutely enthralled and obsessed with pictures," said owner Allen Dalton, who also runs Allen Dalton Productions, an events company that organizes everything from school fundraisers to weddings to major corporate and Las Vegas events.

"There are a lot of photo stations that can be set up at an event, in a ballroom, at a trade show, but this is the first ever of its time that is in a truck," he added. "Streetfest, concert, tailgate party — I could be in a field in the middle of nowhere. It's completely self-contained."

The truck, on its surface, works like any other photo booth: Would-be models simply hit a red-button, a timer counts down, and then the camera starts firing.

But the booth also boasts some high-tech bonuses: A green screen allows users to superimpose any background imaginable — from company logos to tropical sunsets. And with Wi-Fi on board, users can email and share their photos almost instantly, which, for businesses seeking to promote their brands, means plenty more eyeballs on their companies' names and logos.

"If I take a photo and put it up on Facebook, and you have 1,500 friends, as many as 1,500 people are now looking at that logo," said Dalton, who launched Motorbooth with Allen Dalton Productions' vice president Marc Berman and photographer Jamie Watts.

Renting the truck, which can be "up and ready to go in about 20 minutes," costs about $5,000 for a standard five-hour event, Dalton said.

It made its debut at two events in early June, one at Belmont Race Track, the other at the future Moynihan Train Station at the former James A. Farley Post Office building. A third event is slated for later this month.