Behind the Lens

The photo booth company helping Houstonians make memories one pose at a time

Photo booths have exploded in popularity, and having one at your event is almost a given nowadays. But it definitely makes a difference who you rent from, and not just in what types of machines they can provide.

PicMe Events believes in the power of moments. It’s not just about taking a picture or video — it’s about creating an experience that brings people together, sparks joy, and leaves lasting memories.

Hear a little bit more about the company, its founders, and what drives them to make every event unforgettable.

Meet the founders: Michael Vayner and Eric Reed

Behind PicMe Events are two dedicated co-founders who bring their unique talents and hearts to the business every single day.

Michael Vayner, the operations expert
Michael is the organizational backbone of PicMe Events, making sure everything runs smoothly before, during, and after each event. He ensures every detail aligns with their clients' visions and executes it to perfection.

His family is at the center of everything he does: his loving wife, Holly, and their two daughters, Leora and Eliana. In a beautiful turn of events, the couple is currently in the middle of adopting a 7-year-old girl, expanding their family and love even further.

Eric Reed, the creative visionary
Eric is the artistic soul of PicMe Events. With an eye for design, he crafts experiences that go beyond traditional photography. He brings a unique blend of creativity and precision to each event, infusing them with personalized details that reflect his clients' personalities and themes.

His family — wife Amy, twin daughters Keely and Kenzie, and son Conrad — inspires him daily and motivates him to put his heart into every event.

Their story: Resilience, passion, and growth
PicMe Events began in 2016 as a part-time project to make some extra income. But life had different plans, and the story of how it grew reflects the challenges and resilience that brought the company to where it is today.

In 2017, Michael’s corporate job was unexpectedly cut. A week later, Hurricane Harvey hit, devastating his family’s home and taking nearly everything. But amid the destruction, Michael managed to save the first piece of PicMe’s equipment — a Mirror Photo Booth — by placing it on the bed to keep it safe from the floodwaters. That small act of hope marked the start of something much bigger.

Later that year, just as things were starting to look up, all of PicMe’s equipment was stolen on Christmas Eve. It was a devastating blow. Yet instead of giving up, Vayner and Reed chose to start anew, reinvesting in new equipment and recommitting themselves to their mission. Since then, they’ve poured their hearts into building PicMe Events from the ground up, and today the business is thriving.

The "why" behind everything
"When we see the smiles on people’s faces, we know this work is worth every moment of hardship," says Vayner. "Each time we provide a photo or video experience, it’s a chance to bring a little more joy into someone’s life, to create memories that people can cherish forever. From weddings and birthdays to corporate events and holiday parties, our job is to help people celebrate and remember their special moments."

"Our families are a big part of this journey, and everything we do is driven by our passion for creating lasting happiness," adds Reed. "Whether it’s Michael’s expertise in operations or my flair for design, we both love using our skills to make people’s events truly special."

Today: Immersive, innovative, and always growing
Fast forward to today, and PicMe Events has grown into something even greater than the pair could have imagined back in 2016. It offers a range of cutting-edge, immersive experiences, from AI photo interactions to the “Bot Ross” AI Draw Bot, which brings a unique, creative touch to any event.

These innovative options allow the company to connect with clients in new ways and keep pushing the boundaries of what a photo booth experience can be.

"Our goal is to help our clients take their events to the next level, creating memories that guests will talk about for years," says Reed.

Discover the PicMe Events difference
"For us, PicMe Events is more than just a business — it’s our way of bringing joy, beauty, and connection to people’s lives," says Vayner. "We’ve faced challenges, but we’ve never lost sight of our purpose. When you choose PicMe Events, you’re not just getting a photo booth; you’re getting a family that’s passionate, resilient, and dedicated to making your event unforgettable."

Photo courtesy of PicMe Events

They offer more than just photo booths.

Come see what so many others have discovered—PicMe Events will elevate your event, adding that special touch that will have your guests talking about it long after the night is over. We’re here to make memories with you, one photo at a time.

PicMe Events is available throughout the Houston and Galveston areas, as well as Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin, and San Antonio.

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Movie Review

'I Know What You Did Last Summer' reboot lacks energy or thrills

Photo by Brook Rushton

Sarah Pidgeon, Madelyn Cline and Chase Sui Wonders in I Know What You Did Last Summer.

When the original I Know What You Did Last Summer came out in 1997, it was riding the coattails of Scream, which came out in 1996. Like that film, it featured hot young actors of the time, albeit with a story that was much more standard than the inventive Scream. Still, it made enough of an impact for some studio executive to think it was worth reviving nearly 30 years later with its own legacy-quel.

In the new I Know What You Did Last Summer, a group of five high school friends — Danica (Madelyn Cline), Ava (Chase Sui Wonders), Milo (Jonah Hauer-King), Teddy (Tyriq Withers), and Stevie (Sarah Pidgeon) — have reunited at the engagement party for Danica and Teddy on the 4th of July. While on an impromptu trip to watch fireworks on a twisty road in the nearby hills, Teddy goofs off in the middle of the road, causing a truck to swerve and drive off the cliff.

A year later, having sworn to each other to not speak of the accident to anybody, they start getting stalked by a mysterious person in a fisherman’s slicker carrying a hook. With Teddy’s rich father, Grant (Billy Campbell), actively trying to cover up what his son did (as well as the fallout), it’s up to the group to figure out who is coming after them and how to stop that person.

Written and directed by Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, and co-written by Sam Lansky, the film doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel; in fact, it barely builds something that can roll. It might just be the laziest and most incompetent attempt to capitalize on an existing piece of intellectual property. There is almost zero effort put into establishing a connection between the members of the friend group, making them feel like strangers for the entire film.

It doesn’t help that the young male actors in the film — which grows to include Wyatt (Joshua Orpin), a new fiance for Danica — serve no purpose other than to be generically good-looking. The most impactful of the men in the film is the returning Freddie Prinze, Jr., who — along with Jennifer Love Hewitt — has his old character from the first two films shoehorned into the new story. The filmmakers undercut any good feelings from their return by giving them hardly anything to do and then having Hewitt deliver the line, “Nostalgia is overrated.”

The film as a whole never has a sense of momentum. The inciting incident is so tame — they even attempt to save the driver before the truck goes off the cliff — that the guilt they feel and the anger of the person going after them doesn’t feel warranted. Once the attacks start, it is shocking at how low-energy the sequences are, providing no sense of suspense or thrills. The filmmakers resort to the lamest of horror movie tropes, turning the film into a paint-by-numbers affair.

Cline (one of the stars of Netflix’s Outer Banks) and Wonders (The Studio on Apple TV+, Bodies Bodies Bodies) are the clear stars of the film, but their characters are made into inert scream queens, negating any acting talent they possess. Hauer-King, Withers, and Pidgeon don’t bring anything interesting to their characters, existing merely to have someone else for the killer to go after.

Even the worst films can have some kind of redeeming value if you look hard enough, but the only thing I Know What You Did Last Summer has to offer is that it becomes so comically bad by the end that you can’t help but laugh at its ineptitude. Both fans of the original and fans of horror movies in general will feel cheated by the experience.

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I Know What You Did Last Summer opens in theaters on July 18.

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