‘Home’ is still the top destination for many holidaymakers this summer. While that may not be the dream holiday location, a new virtual reality book is offering a new way to break up days spent sunbathing in the garden or sipping a Margarita from a paddling pool.
Kiss & Fly offers virtual vacations to nine different locations: France, Brazil, Iceland, Mexico, Italy, Jordan, Greece, India, and Israel. The images are the work of sister photography duo Lauren and Annael Tolila, known professionally as Via Tolila, and they are pure escapism – pictures of sapphire blue water, sunbathers lounging on rocky cliffs, colourful cocktails served up in beach cabanas.
Kiss & Fly claims to be the world’s first augmented reality coffee table book, with glossy images that can be scanned with a smartphone or tablet, directing users to various online experiences.
It is the first title produced by Studio 96, a new publishing house in New York City that aims to make ‘experiential print’ a new norm. That means books with moving images, hyperlinks to interactive forums or social media channels, codes to download playlists curated for your reading experience, and even links to tickets for exclusive in-person and online events.
It is a familiar type of imagery that is not revolutionary in itself, but it’s made compelling by your ability to swipe your phone over it and watch it move – the sunbather goes from lounging to jumping off the cliff, the cocktail is stirred with a straw.
It makes for an entertaining reading experience and, perhaps, even offers a hint at what is to come for print media, with physical publications using digital technology to create a multi-platform reading experience.
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