Photographer James Warner, known for his excellent YouTube channel, snappiness, is always taking on new photography projects. They often involve taking things apart and putting them back together in new, exciting ways. Warner’s latest project involves building a mini retro Kodak photo printing kiosk for his desk.

This new endeavor traces its origins back to nearly a year ago, when Warner purchased a real-deal Kodak Picture Maker Kiosk from 1999. Beyond printing photos, the model Warner bought can even scan film, including 35mm negatives, slide film, and APS film formats.

For someone like Warner, a self-described “90s kid” and a passionate photographer, the Kodak Picture Maker kiosk is an incredible part of photography’s storied history.

However, actually having a Kodak Picture Maker is not without its downsides, not the least of which is that Warner’s wife “hates it.” The “behemoth” kiosk is dripping with nostalgic charm, but it also occupies a significant amount of space. As Warner says, the Picture Maker has got to go, but its charm can be preserved in a more space-efficient way.

“I think it’s possible — and I want to — to make a functioning mini-sized version of the Kodak kiosk capturing all of its 90s glory to put on my desk to print photos,” Warner says.

To realize this dream, the mini desk-sized Kodak photo kiosk needs a few essential features. It doesn’t have to scan film like the real deal, but it definitely needs to print photos. It also needed to look the part, which meant designing, modeling, and 3D-printing a shrunken-down mini retro Kodak photo kiosk, complete with its classic bright Kodak color scheme.

Warner’s desktop kiosk also needs to function similarly to the real deal, which means the ability to print from external media and use a screen to control everything.

Close-up of a yellow machine with a small screen displaying "Select & Print," several control buttons, a card slot, and a speaker grille. The design has blue and white accents.

Close-up of hands operating a yellow and blue Kodak device with a small digital screen displaying a grid of colorful thumbnail images.

With those requirements in place, Warner settled on a Canon SELPHY printer, which accepts external media and includes a screen. Warner took the printer apart, rearranged its components, and put it back together inside a custom-built Kodak kiosk shell he printed using an Elegoo Centauri Carbon 2 3D printer.

There were some hiccups along the way, as is par for the course for an undertaking like this, but once he had resolved the issues, Warner had done it; he made a mini retro Kodak Picture Maker kiosk that sits on his desk and embodies much of the charm and appeal of the real, gargantuan kiosk he must get rid of.

A small yellow and blue Kodak photo printing kiosk sits on a table with printed photos partially ejected from the front slot and a display screen showing a "Now printing" message.

A hand holds a color photo in front of a small yellow and blue Kodak-branded photo printer on a wooden table, with window blinds in the background.

Warner admits there is still room for improvement, including a more refined design and possibly even porting the original Kodak Picture Maker software onto his new desktop kiosk. However, as it stands now, the little desktop photo kiosk is as cool as it is adorable.

Image credits: James Warner (@snappiness)