"Your Highness, Please Lift Your Dress Slightly and Smile"... Photo Studios Today Sell Customers an "Experience"

Traditional photo studios focused on basic photography are headed for closure
The industry shifts toward distinctive studios offering underwater photography
"Strong planning and spatial design are key to survival"

"Your Highness, please lift your dress slightly and smile."

A studio near Hongik University Station in Mapo-gu, Seoul. As soon as visitors stepped inside, upbeat theme-park music played, and colorful dresses hung densely along the walls. Guests choose dresses that suit them, are addressed as "princess" or "queen," and enjoy the photo shoot itself. Yang Cheolho, 42, who has run the studio since 2018, said, "Although the final product we sell is a photograph, what we ultimately sell is the experience of becoming a princess," emphasizing that "we don't aim to be just an ordinary photo studio."

A concept studio near Hongik University Station in Mapo-gu, Seoul. The venue offers an immersive experience where guests can dress up and become princesses. Photo by Park Jaehyun.

The rapid development of generative artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping the photo studio industry. As photo retouching through AI editing applications (apps) and prompt-based AI ID photo services have become commonplace, the functional value of traditional photo studios, where people have their photos taken, retouched, and printed, has fallen sharply. While neighborhood photo studios that had operated for decades are being pushed to the brink of closure, studios that offer experiences for customers to enjoy are gaining popularity.

According to the National Tax Service's National Tax Statistics Portal statistics on 100 major lifestyle businesses, as of August, the number of businesses in the photography industry nationwide stood at 22,353, up 3.4% from a year earlier. This increase is attributed to the sharp rise in the number of self-photo studios, including Life Four Cuts. According to data that the office of Cha Gyu-geun, a lawmaker from the Rebuilding Korea Party on the National Assembly's Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs and Startups Committee, received from the National Tax Service, the taxable sales base for businesses operating instant photo booths reached 319.6 billion won in 2024, 2.4 times the 134.4 billion won recorded four years earlier.

Hwang Suyeon, 67, takes a photograph with her camera. She has run a photo studio in Yeouido-dong, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, since 1984. The studio walls were packed with photographs bearing the marks of time. Photo by Park Jaehyun

Photo studios, once found in almost every neighborhood, are losing ground. The number of photography businesses that closed nationwide rose 2.6%, from 2,104 in 2024 to 2,159 last year. Hwang Suyeon, 67, who runs a photo studio in Yeouido, Seoul, said, "There used to be as many as 57 photo studios in the Yeouido area, but now only five or six remain." She added, "The number of customers seeking ID and passport photos has fallen by 30% to 40% compared with the past. These days, we can barely keep our staff on by relying mainly on contract work, such as corporate events and shoots for props used in broadcasts."

New studios that emphasize distinctive experiences and direction are filling the gap left by disappearing neighborhood photo studios. As demand has declined for services such as ID photo shoots and mobile photo printing, studios offering unique content, including miniature photos for key rings and specialized underwater shoots, are attracting attention. Lee Bora, 32, who has continued to create customized concept photos, said, "Customers bring their own clothes and props, and enjoy the shoot like a kind of role-play or performance, with everyone taking on a part on set." She added, "Rather than simply standing still in a set pose to get the finished product, customers spend time together thinking up poses, laughing, and working together, and that experience is captured in the photographs too."

Studios offering unique content such as miniature photos for key rings and underwater photo shoots. Screenshots from social media.

Experts say the spread of AI is reshaping trends in the photo studio industry. Lee Eunhui, a professor in the Department of Consumer Studies at Inha University, said, "As consumers have become accustomed to smartphones and digital devices, their expectations have risen to a professional level, and the ability to take photographs alone can no longer draw them into offline stores." She added, "How well studios combine technology with analog sensibilities in their planning will determine the success or failure of offline photo studios."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.