How much does a photo session with a “flying” dress cost in Santorini – the new trend

There isn’t a self-respecting influencer who hasn’t been photographed in the viral “flying dress” in Santorini. This is a new industry that has emerged recently and has brought in millions of dollars, Bloomberg notes.

Scrolling through the Instagrams of influencers, you often come across some enchanting photos with a model in an airy dress, in one of the most scenic parts of the island. But how much does it cost?

As the publication writes, in recent years, Flying Dress Photo Photographers in Santorini have been spending their summers snapping the same photo over and over again: female tourists posing against a backdrop of whitewashed houses and blue domes, in luxurious satin dresses with extra-long tails.

How much does a photoshoot with a “flying” dress cost in Santorini?

With an average of eight photo shoots a day, each costing more than €550 an hour per person, this small business – whose entire model is based on providing just one type of photo that goes viral on Instagram – can bring in nearly half Million dollars in sales in just four months.

And that, as the Bloomberg article notes, is a conservative estimate: Clients tend to be charged extra services, which include transportation to and from the photo shoot location (€90), make-up and hairdressing (€300) and a personal assistant who will help throw the tail of a dress in the air (€50). ). The rent of the dress is included in the price, but if you want to use more than one dress it will cost you an extra 120€. For the client who books the full package, the cost of the photo session amounts to a total of 1,500 euros.

A huge boom in the holiday photography industry

And it’s not just Santorini that the photography business is booming. In Dubai, Aruba and even Cappadocia, there are similar companies that are ready to serve tourists who are willing to spend hundreds of dollars on vacation photos.

Of course, it’s not just dress photoshoots that are making waves post-pandemic. Canada-based photo booking platform Flytographer reported $1 million in monthly sales in May — the first time the company has broken seven figures in a single month, compared to $400,000 in sales during the same period in 2019.

This company has a network of local photographers in more than 300 cities. Her three most popular photo shoot destinations this year include Paris, Maui and Honolulu.

Because more and more people choose holiday photography

“People have paused travel and put a lot of things on hold because of the pandemic,” says Nicole Smith, founder and CEO of Flytographer. “This is the year when many people finally take their dream trip and want to make sure they have the best memories of it,” he adds.

Exactly what does it do? You can choose your vacation spot and contact them in order to provide you with a photographer – for a small fee – who captures the beautiful moments in that particular destination. the cost; Starts at $385 per hour and the customer receives a set number of photos within five days.

A similar company from Indonesia, Sweet Escape, has 8,000 photographers in 500 cities and charges between $130 and $300 for shoots that last an hour or more. Founder David Song says his company is almost back to pre-pandemic levels, especially now that Asian travelers are beginning to return to the world.

Luxury resorts also play a role. Five-star Santorini hotels like Katikies, Canaves, and Andronis recommend Flying Dress Photo Services, as do luxury cruise ships like Celebrity Beyond, Celestyal Crystal, Virgin Voyages, and Disney Dream. “We have a lot of collections this year,” says Vera Arachelova, booking director for Flying Dress Photo.

Many consider it worth the cost

And despite the high cost, consumers consider it worth it. Sandra Upton, diversity, equality and inclusion expert and founder of the Upton Consulting Group, says her own photo, taken in Greece in 2022, was a way to celebrate a historic moment. “Exactly a year ago this month, I made the important decision to create my own consulting firm again,” he says.

So did Leah Fraser, managing director of Dallas-based creative marketing firm Think Three Media, who at first thought the images were frivolous, but then backtracked and went ballistic. She booked a photo session on a hammock overlooking a stunning jungle setting, thinking it might inspire others to travel to the island. “It definitely became a topic of conversation,” he says. “There were a lot of people who said, I’m interested in going to Bali too, how did you do it?”

The two women say they will again share a future trip: Upton is considering another flight dress shoot in the south of France at the end of September, and Fraser is considering a trip to Dubai in October.