China Business News (reporter Tu Hanwen/pictures)
The ancient capital Luoyang has become the capital of Hanfu. The streets and alleys are full of "Wealthy Flowers of the Tang Dynasty", which complement the city's peonies; in Kaifeng's Qingming Riverside Garden Here, tourists dress up as ladies of the Northern Song Dynasty and experience the dream of Tokyo immersively; for example, in the Suzhou gardens in the middle of the painting, there are more "people in the painting", and the paintings of gods are restored among the pavilions and pavilions, reliving the romantic fantasies of the ancients; the art of Dunhuang Grottoes is also It has become "alive". From flying performers to donors, the figures in the murals have "appeared" across thousands of years... Under the rising "national craze", Hanfu culture has entered the public eye from the niche circle, and Hanfu travel photography has followed The rise of tourism has set off a new trend of cultural tourism across the country.
Hanfu travel photography has become a popular travel experience.
Hanfu travel photography is popular all over the world
“This summer I experienced Hanfu travel photography for the first time at Suzhou Net Master Garden. For me, This is a unique souvenir of the trip. I posted the photo on Moments and received unanimous praise." Ms. Pan, a Shanghai consumer, told a reporter from China Business Daily that she rarely learns about Hanfu, but she saw it near every scenic spot in Suzhou. There are Hanfu experience stores everywhere, and travel photography has become a popular choice for everyone. They can’t help but “follow the trend and experience the feeling of time travel”.
“Because this was my first time shooting, I asked the makeup artist in the store to help me choose clothes. She recommended that the Master of Nets Garden was built in the Southern Song Dynasty. You can choose a long robe and wear it in a special way. There are also many things to pay attention to in hair and makeup to make you look taller and slimmer." Recalling her travel photography experience, Ms. Pan was still satisfied and said that she was very satisfied with the photo shoot and the shooting experience, and would use this method to record her travels in the future.
A travel photography shop in the ancient city of Datong.
Ms. Zhao, a Hanfu enthusiast in Beijing, also said that although she has purchased a number of Hanfu suitable for daily wear, she is still keen to rent Hanfu to take photos during her travels. "Especially when visiting a place with historical heritage, the scenic area restores the style of that era. I feel that only by wearing Hanfu and taking photos can I blend in, such as being a bright Tang Dynasty beauty in Chang'an City."
According to a practitioner. Xi'an, the ancient capital of the 13th dynasty, has long been the "king" on the Hanfu travel photography circuit. Every day, a large number of tourists flock to the Tang Dynasty Everbright City, Tang Furong Garden, Bell and Drum Towers, Xingqing Palace and other scenic spots to take Hanfu photos. Popular local places Makeup shops and photographers are busy from morning to night, constantly innovating, and investing their energy in operating social media and short video platforms to create a series of popular models such as imperial concubine, koi carp, and rabbit princess.
In order to capture the "wealth and wealth" of Hanfu travel photography, famous historical and cultural cities such as Beijing, Luoyang, Kaifeng, Hangzhou, Handan, etc. have all played their own unique cards - taking advantage of the popularity of Xunpu hairpin flowers, Hangzhou The Hanfu merchants on Xiaohezhi Street decorated their hair crowns with flowers and paired them with Song elements such as pearl veneer makeup to recreate the elegance of "Southern Song Dynasty hairpin flowers"; Handan Cultural Tourism focused on the popular Warring States robes and launched activities such as free tours of scenic spots in Warring States robes , turning Guangfu Ancient City and Congtai Park into gathering places for "Warring States Princesses". The Hanfu travel photography industry adapted to local conditions is booming, releasing new vitality in cultural tourism consumption. Many tourists even said on social platforms that taking photos of Hanfu is the main reason for choosing travel destinations.
Tourists take photos of Warring States robes in Congtai Park, Handan.
The "China Travel Photography Industry Development Trend Research and Future Investment Analysis Report (2024-2031)" shows that while the popularity of tourism in my country continues to soar, travel photography has become a new way for young people to visit scenic spots. The market size is constantly expanding. Data shows that the market size of my country's travel photography industry will reach 34.85 billion yuan in 2022, and the market size is expected to be 39.53 billion yuan in 2023.
From January to May 2024, transportation services and tourism consultationRetail sales of rental services and cultural, sports and leisure services maintained rapid growth. According to estimates from the data center of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, during the May Day holiday, there were a total of 295 million domestic tourism trips, a year-on-year increase of 7.6%, and a year-on-year increase of 28.2% over the same period in 2019; domestic tourists spent a total of 166.89 billion yuan on travel, a year-on-year increase of 12.7% , an increase of 13.5% compared with the same period in 2019 on a comparable basis. Residents’ growing demand for travel and cultural tourism consumption may further activate the development potential of the travel photography industry.
Embracing diversified consumer demands
Behind the popularity of Hanfu travel photography, countless businesses are targeting consumer aesthetics and constantly chasing market demand.
With the rapid expansion of the audience for travel photography, a variety of photo packages have emerged on the market, with prices ranging from 99 yuan, 499 yuan to more than 1,000 yuan. There are also more and more shooting scenes.
A travel photography business has launched portraits of Warring States robes, Wei, Jin, Tang Yun and other Han costumes as well as other ethnic styles.
"Outsiders may not imagine that there is a 'chain of contempt' when taking photos of Hanfu." Ms. Zhao told reporters that after Hanfu "broke the circle" and became popular, in the face of consumers who are difficult to understand, the travel photography market naturally We are moving towards differentiated development, from explosive online makeup, cool fairy style, to restoration and light restoration full of ancient charm. Each positioning is based on the preferences of the target audience.
“Like many people who like to restore Hanfu, they don’t like the improved models and fairy clothes, and people who like classical makeup don’t like the rich Internet celebrity makeup full of false eyelashes, big silkworms, sequins and glitter. I I personally don’t support the mixing of different dynasties and styles, but no matter what, I can still understand that each one is in his own way,” said Ms. Zhao.
Traditional Hanfu and improved styles are popular among different groups of people.
Whenever enthusiasts talk about the topic of Hanfu travel photography on social platforms, they are often accompanied by "restoration makeup is more advanced", "modern makeup with Hanfu is neither fish nor fowl", "it's better to use online makeup for filming" Ordinary appearance should be carefully challenged and restored" and other arguments. Whether to follow tradition or boldly "renovate", these two completely different choices have become the "sweet and salty dispute" in the Hanfu circle.
Ms. Qiao, who specializes in taking photos of Hanfu, said that there is no need to distinguish the aesthetics of ancient people from those of modern people. Many "Hanfu novices" start with a lower threshold for their first attempts. , it started with online makeup that is not easy to “turn over”. "Not everyone can accept restoration, especially unconventional makeup such as Weizhuang and Taihe Xianzhuang. If a customer just wants to take a beautiful set of Hanfu photos, the requirements are to be cute, look young, have a small face, For large eyes, makeup artists generally do not recommend restoration rashly to avoid thankless efforts. ”
The popular hairpin style and mesh makeup.
It is understood that compared with the "one-size-fits-all" online makeup, restoration makeup tests the makeup artist's skills. Taking the popular Tang Restoration look as an example, the hair bun, eyebrow shape, flowers Details such as embroidery and dimples vary from time to time. If you are not careful, you may be confused and leave a bad impression on consumers.
"Some customers who like to restore have knowledge about Hanfu, and their requirements will be higher, such as specifying the look of the Tianbao period, the restoration of the same style of cultural relics, etc. The makeup artist needs to pay more for this. It takes a lot of time and energy, so we also make distinctions when pricing." Ms. Qiao told reporters that many Hanfu stores will include the price increase for restoration and complex shapes in the price list. In the segment of Hanfu restoration, compared with With the “roll” price, more peers have chosen the “roll” professionalism.
The industry still needs standardized development
The "Hanfu Travel Photography Craze" demonstrates cultural confidence and expresses the young group's recognition of traditional culture. but needIt should be noted that the explosion in demand for travel photography has promoted the rapid expansion of the industry, which has also resulted in a situation of uneven quality to a certain extent.
On a certain social platform, it is not uncommon for Hanfu travel photographers to experience "traveling" and "overturning" - many consumers took photos with great expectations, but found that the photographer's real level was very different from the sample photos. "If you have a camera, you dare to claim to be a photographer and take orders." It was even found out that the customer photos on someone's homepage were stolen from other people's works. A photographer angrily said that the summer lotus and Hanfu photos he took last year have been stolen by travel photography shops many times, causing consumers to be deceived.
Some photographers expressed anger at the stolen photos. (Screenshot of Xiaohongshu)
In the makeup process, which also plays a decisive role in the quality of the photo, there are also false promotions by businesses and they cannot achieve the promised "one-to-one restoration of the pictures." For example, some merchants claim in their promotions that they use authentic Hanfu, big-name cosmetics, that there are no hidden costs throughout the process, and that they can be redone if you are not satisfied, but the actual experience is completely different from the propaganda. In the "lightning protection" content posted by consumers, issues such as fake Hanfu, inferior cosmetics, false eyelashes charges, and makeup artists' perfunctory attitude frequently appeared.
“In tourist cities, many low-price Hanfu stores have just changed their business, and the areas around popular attractions are even the hardest hit areas. The initial investment in buying genuine Hanfu is not small, and operators also have to pay rent and labor. , water, electricity and promotion costs, it can be imagined that the photo packages cost 199 yuan or 299 yuan, and the money distributed to the makeup artists and photographers is pitiful, "said a practitioner who did not want to disclose his name. Increasingly fierce price competition is an important factor affecting consumer experience. Behind the “super value prices” are likely to be inexperienced novices, part-time service staff, and sometimes experienced layers of subcontracting by “scalpers”. In places such as Xi'an Datang Evernight City, consumers often mistakenly believe in "scalpers" soliciting customers and unknowingly pay for high commissions, spending hundreds of yuan only to buy low-end services.
In addition, with the expansion of the travel photography customer base, conflicts between photographers, travel photography consumers and other tourists have gradually emerged. Netizens often complain that photographers "occupy" beautiful scenery for a long time, interfering with their play experience, and some people complain to the scenic spot for this. For example, at the Luoyang Museum, one of the popular spots for Hanfu travel photography,There are uncivilized shooting behaviors such as illegal use of flash, touching showcase glass, and driving away tourists, which have caused many tourists to become resistant to travel photography.
It is inevitable that the classic camera position will be occupied for a long time when taking photos.
“Everyone wants to take good-looking photos when they go out for fun. Photographers who charge fees must be more responsible for their guests. They must take into account the composition, body posture, and expressions of the photos. It is indeed easy to cause others to think that they are taking advantage of them. The location is not accessible, so it is recommended to shoot on weekdays if it is too popular, and pay attention to strictly abiding by the order. Now many places have issued announcements to completely ban commercial photography, but I think it is better than 'one size fits all'. The best approach is to formulate complete regulations to guide businesses to shoot in a reasonable and civilized manner," practitioners said.
