{"id":874579,"date":"2026-10-08T01:14:11","date_gmt":"2026-10-08T01:14:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/874579\/"},"modified":"2026-10-08T01:14:11","modified_gmt":"2026-10-08T01:14:11","slug":"tokofoto-brings-asias-viral-self-service-photo-trend-to-chicago-for-the-first-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/874579\/","title":{"rendered":"Tokofoto Brings Asia’s Viral Self-Service Photo Trend To Chicago For The First Time"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our team at Time Out recently named<\/a> West Town the coolest neighborhood in Chicago, noting that it\u2019s a magnet for the city\u2019s coolest new openings. We\u2019re reminded that\u2019s the case once again thanks to the recent opening of one of Chicago\u2019s coolest new experiences:\u00a0Tokofoto, a self-service photo studio in the Ukrainian Village.<\/p>\n

After trying\u00a0something similar themselves during a trip overseas, Tokofoto co-founders, Jennifer Liu and Elizabeth Xu, decided it was time for Chicago to have its own version of the ultra-popular Asian experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The new photo studio at 860 N. California Avenue makes taking professional photos easy\u2014and a lot of fun. You don\u2019t need to worry about finding a photographer or having equipment. Simply show up and start snapping.<\/p>\n

RECOMMENDED: The best things to do in Chicago right now<\/a><\/p>\n

On a recent visit, I booked a 50-minute session (you can also reserve 20 minutes) and arrived with two easy outfit changes in tow. Behind the lobby, smartly appointed with mid-century modern furniture, inspiration from previous shoots and decor referencing Asian pop culture, is the photo studio.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Inside the small room, the setup is ready to go, with a professional camera, light, clicker, background color of your choice (pink, blue or white) and a desktop and large monitor for reviewing shots. Tokofoto also provides props like flowers, glasses, blazers and seasonal items like fake pumpkins, plus chairs and stools of varying colors and sizes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"A
\nPhotograph: Courtesy TokofotoA couple’s shoot at Tokofoto <\/p>\n

There\u2019s no photographer in the room (you use a clicker to take photos), so there\u2019s no need to be shy in front of the camera. One of the best aspects of this experience is that you can see a preview of the shot on a large monitor, which allows you to adjust your hair, angle and pose before snapping. Plus, you can choose the soundtrack for your shoot.<\/p>\n

The 50 minutes were over before I knew it. As someone who usually doesn\u2019t like being in front of the camera, I actually had fun taking photos of myself\u2014something I\u2019ve never said before. Because there\u2019s no photographer in the room,\u00a0I was able to let my\u00a0guard down, experiment with poses and props, and even leave with a new favorite photo of myself.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This experience certainly does not replace the need or luxury of having a photographer shoot your photos. It is, though, more cost-effective: Liu says the entire experience with a photographer can cost an average of $300, whereas Tokofoto\u2019s rates are $80 for 20 minutes and $150 for 50 minutes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For those prices, up to two people can join the shoot, and you\u2019ll take home two prints of your choice. You can also add on additional people, pets, digital photos and more prints.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019m already thinking about gifting the experience to people in my life for the holidays.\u00a0It’s also a\u00a0great\u00a0activity for a friend group, a couple, a dog or for yourself just because.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Thanks to its welcoming atmosphere and accessibility, this cool experience is a welcome addition to Chicago\u2019s coolest neighborhood.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Our team at Time Out recently named West Town the coolest neighborhood in Chicago, noting that it\u2019s a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":874580,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[228,226,227,2629,229,88,27368,2628],"class_list":["post-874579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-categories-things-to-do","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-news-city-life","tag-things-to-do"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/874579","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=874579"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/874579\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/874580"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=874579"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=874579"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=874579"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}