NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & TΕ«rangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • ManawatΕ« - Whanganui
    • All ManawatΕ« - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • ManawatΕ«
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Lifestyle

This app helps users look like world travelers on Instagram

By Peter Holley
Washington PostΒ·
4 Aug, 2018 12:00 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber? Β Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access contentβ€”explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
β€Œ
Save

    Share this article

Ever been jealous of someone's travel snaps? They might not have even been there. Photo / 123RF

Ever been jealous of someone's travel snaps? They might not have even been there. Photo / 123RF

There was a time, not so long ago, when your travel destination determined your photos. Now, experts say, your photos increasingly determine your travel destination.

That's because Instagram has turned "travel bragging" - posting alluring images from exotic locales to one-up your followers - into something of an art form.

Amass enough followers and you could gain influencer status, allowing you to leverage your "social media clout to travel the world, frequently in luxury." That goal may partly explain why surveys from around the world are beginning to show that significant numbers of millennials spend multiple hours a day on their smartphones while traveling and would prefer posting jealousy-inducing selfies to photos with loved ones.

Now companies are beginning to capitalize on the pressure to post awe-inducing photos on social media as well. Among the most successful is Krome Photos, a photo editing website that uses artificial intelligence to pair people with professional photo editors who can take your images and transform them to make it look like you're anywhere in the world. The cost of edits range between $3 and $12 and most take between 12 or 24 hours.

"Anything is possible" the company's website says.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
View this post on Instagram

Into the wild I go :Losing my way, finding my soul...πŸŒ²πŸ” This πŸ“· : @thetravelingveganista πŸ“ Tag a friend you'd love to travel with below... ___ For features hashtag us #girlsthatwander or click the link in bio for more info πŸ’Œβœ¨ ___ ❊ Join our Facebook community for travel Q+A, opportunities and ofc more inspo! Search: Girls that Wander ❊ ___ #wanderlust #travelphotography #travelgram #welivetoexplore #doyoutravel #begoodtotravel #teamtravelers #awesometravel #roamtheplanet #travelblogger #beautifuldestinations #exploretocreate #lifewelltravelled #girlgetters #passionpassport #awesomeearth #lifeofadventure #soulsociety #citizenfemme #femaletravel #backpackwithme #joffrelakesprovincialpark

A post shared by Travel Community & Tips (@girlsthatwander) on Aug 3, 2018 at 1:00pm PDT

"In the old days our car or our house represented who we were," said Eduardo Llach, the company's chief executive and founder who compared his employment model to Uber. "Now, your online persona is everything and people are realizing that photos give you the ability to create whoever you want to be."

For some people, Llach said, that means creating detailed images that place them in iconic locations around the world, images in which lighting is perfected, teeth are whitened and skin is tanned. For others, the service is a chance to create imaginative scenes that would require Photoshop expertise and a significant time investment to create on their own. Editors can also remove an object from an image, swap one head for another, correct color, alter the background, add people or merge multiple images.

As people become more image conscious online, he added, the primary forces driving people to his site are Instagram and Facebook.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Llach said his customers range from social media influencers posting doctored travel photos to a mother who uses the service to create elaborate images with her children. Before Krome she had about 20,000 followers, Llach said, and now she has around 150,000.

"Instagrammable really means, 'Am I taking a photo of something that I want someone to - quite frankly - be a little jealous of?' We here call it a 'hashtag travel brag,'" said Jennifer Dohm of Dallas-based Hotels.com told ABC affiliate WFAA.

"We have a survey that we did that shows nearly a third of millennials in the U.S. say that while they're traveling, they're tracking how many likes they're getting on their Instagram photo," she added. "So, people really care that there's some interaction there."

View this post on Instagram

Hello Lisbon πŸ‡΅πŸ‡Ή . . . . . #lisbon #portugal #fslisbon #fourseasonhotel #fourseason #traveller #travelblogger #waelontour #lisboa #travel #lisbona #photography #europe #lisbonne #lovers #ig #street #architecture #o #travelphotography #blackandwhite #igersportugal #city #streetphotography #belem #Lisbon #summer #lisbonportugal #lissabon

A post shared by Wael Abualteen|ΩˆΨ§ΩŠΩ”Ω„ ابو Ψ§Ω„ΨͺΩŠΩ† (@waelalteen) on Aug 3, 2018 at 12:54pm PDT

The news outlet reported that CheapCarribean.com sold a package to Bermuda that paired travelers with social media experts who provided Instagram coaching.

Discover more

Lifestyle

Makeup trend transforms woman into a different person

04 Aug 02:24 AM
Tourism

Watch: NZ International Convention Centre explained

05 Aug 08:05 PM
Business

Why New York has hit the brakes on Uber

09 Aug 01:15 AM
Infrastructure report

Is New Zealand prepared for artificial intelligence?

15 Aug 05:00 PM

The package's name: "Vacation Envy."

"We helped them frame their pictures, taught them how to edit them in Instagram, what filters to put on, we gave them free hair and makeup, and showed them how to pick the best lighting so they actually had a really brag worthy vacation, which is what a lot of people are really looking for," Mike Lowery, the chief marketing officer at CheapCaribbean.com told WFAA.

For some, Instagram filters are already passΓ©. Now, Llach noted, people are beginning to bypass conventional filters and editing apps on their smartphone and relying instead on artificial intelligence.

"What we've done is added machine learning that takes your photo and compares it to 300,000 other consumer-submitted photos to give you a suggested design and background," Llach said. "Once you've chosen a background, you can make custom requests, such as brightening your teeth or softening your skin and then our AI will find the best editor for your particular requests."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Lifestyle

Premium
Lifestyle

Do regular facials actually improve your skin?

06 Jul 06:00 AM
New Zealand

NZ actress accuses Australian policeman of using CCTV to spy on her

06 Jul 12:48 AM
Premium
Lifestyle

Weighted vests trend: Fitness experts weigh in on benefits and myths

05 Jul 11:00 PM

Sponsored: Get your kids involved in your reno

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Lifestyle

Premium
Do regular facials actually improve your skin?

Do regular facials actually improve your skin?

06 Jul 06:00 AM

New York Times: Here’s what dermatologists think.

NZ actress accuses Australian policeman of using CCTV to spy on her

NZ actress accuses Australian policeman of using CCTV to spy on her

06 Jul 12:48 AM
Premium
Weighted vests trend: Fitness experts weigh in on benefits and myths

Weighted vests trend: Fitness experts weigh in on benefits and myths

05 Jul 11:00 PM
Noel Edmonds to marry again: British TV star proposes in hot tub in NZ

Noel Edmonds to marry again: British TV star proposes in hot tub in NZ

05 Jul 09:00 PM
Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper
sponsored

Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • Β© Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP