A Paros photoshoot walks the white alleys and harbour of Naoussa, the wall to its Venetian castle, the waterfront of Parikia, the marble streets of Lefkes and the rocks of Kolymbithres. Plan the rest of the trip with Greece Tours.
Where do you shoot in Paros?
In Naoussa and along the wall to its Venetian castle, in the alleys and waterfront of Parikia, in the mountain village of Lefkes, on the rocks of Kolymbithres, and in Paros Park at the lighthouse on the northern cape.
Naoussa is the most photogenic town on the island and the most crowded from late afternoon.
Lefkes sits inland in the hills and stays quiet even at midday.
The eating side sits at Paros food tour.
What is a Naoussa photowalk?
A relaxed walk through the white alleys and the old harbour of Naoussa with a photographer alongside, shot without set poses, and timed either for the morning quiet or for the sunset along the wall that links the town to the Venetian castle.
The frame from beside the Barbarossa restaurant works early, when the harbour is empty.
The wall gives the sunset view back over the town and its waterfront tables.
The alleys hold their best light at the blue hour in the morning.
When is the best light in Paros?
Sunrise for Lefkes and the Paros Park coast, the hour before sunset for Naoussa and Kolymbithres, and the blue hour in the morning for the white alleys, with midday reserved for the inland villages where the streets stay empty.
Summer skies over the Cyclades stay cloudless, which favours the rock formations in Paros Park over wide sky frames.
The lighthouse frame at the park wants sunrise and cloud.
One studio meets guests before sunrise for the cliff-edge sessions.
What is a flying dress photoshoot in Paros?
A styled session where a long dress with a trailing skirt is lifted by the wind on a cliff edge above the Aegean, with the studio supplying the dress, the styling, the hair and make-up, the location booking and the creative direction.
The studio’s styling director has 20 years in beauty and styling, with magazine and television work behind her.
Sessions are set before sunrise so the light and the wind both work.
The same studio covers weddings, next-day shoots, proposals and events.
What is the Kolymbithres and Paros Park shoot?
A coastal session on the wind-carved granite of Kolymbithres, whose smooth rock shapes hold the foreground, and in Paros Park on the northern cape, where the lighthouse stands above a rocky coastline.
The rock formations in the park work as abstract subjects on cloudless days.
Kolymbithres faces the bay of Naoussa across the water.
The bay side sits at Paros sunset cruise.
What is Lefkes like for photographs?
A marble-paved mountain village with empty streets at midday, photographed best from the vantage points on the road above the public car park, where a long lens compresses the village against the hills behind it.
Sunrise lights those hills and is the hour to be up there.
Branches and power lines block half the viewpoints, so the spot is scouted first.
The village is 20 minutes by car from Parikia.
Who photographs in Paros?
A photowalk collective based in Parikia that also works on Mykonos, Santorini, Milos, Naxos and Chania, a flying dress studio running styled cliff sessions, and destination wedding photographers covering the island.
The collective builds each session around the guests, for couples, solo travellers, families and surprise proposals.
The flying dress studio runs a circle photo booth on the island as well.
Both take bookings by date through their own sites.
How do you get around for a shoot?
By rental car: Parikia, the port town, sits under 20 minutes from every location on this page, and the island’s buses link the main towns without reaching the viewpoints.
Naoussa is the most popular base and the most expensive.
Parikia gives more room for the money and the same access.
The island page sits at Paros tours.
How do you book a Paros photoshoot?
Sunset slots in Naoussa go first in July and August.
Styling, dress and make-up are arranged by the studio in advance.
The wine side sits at Paros wine tasting.
What does a Paros photoshoot cover in Parikia?
The waterfront windmill at the ferry quay, the marble lanes behind it, the Venetian kastro built from ancient temple blocks, and the church of Panagia Ekatontapiliani.
The kastro wall reuses column drums and marble slabs from a classical temple.
Ekatontapiliani is one of the oldest churches in Greece and stands in a walled courtyard.
The lanes behind the waterfront hold whitewashed arches and painted doors.
What does a Paros photoshoot cover in Naoussa?
The fishing port with its painted boats, the half-sunken Venetian castle at the harbour mouth, the white alleys behind the quay and the tavernas along the water.
The castle stands in the sea at the entrance and is reached on a low stone path.
The alleys hold bougainvillea over the doorways.
The harbour faces north-west, which puts the sunset across the water.
What does a Paros photoshoot cover at Kolymbithres?
The smooth granite shapes of the bay opposite Naoussa, worn into hollows and curves by wind and sea, with shallow turquoise water between them.
The rocks form small coves that hold two or three people each.
A boat crosses the bay from Naoussa in a few minutes.
The surface is smooth and warm underfoot.
What does a Paros photoshoot cover in Lefkes?
The marble-paved village in the hills, with a domed church, a windmill above the roofs and the Byzantine road that runs down the valley towards Prodromos.
The village was the island capital when pirates raided the coast.
Its lanes stay cool in summer because of the height.
The road is paved in marble slabs laid centuries ago.
What is the marble of Paros?
The white stone quarried at Marathi in the centre of the island, prized in antiquity for its translucence and used for the Venus de Milo and the Hermes of Praxiteles.
The quarry tunnels are cut into the hillside and stand open.
The same marble paves the lanes of Lefkes and the kastro walls in Parikia.
A Paros photoshoot uses that white stone as a background in almost every village.
Where does a Paros photoshoot find quiet corners?
In the back lanes of Parikia, on the Byzantine road below Lefkes, at the Marathi quarries and in the fishing village of Aliki in the south.
Aliki has a shallow bay and a row of tavernas on the sand.
The quarries are unfenced and empty most of the day.
Naoussa fills from late afternoon in summer.
When is the light best for a Paros photoshoot?
Early morning in the alleys of Naoussa and Parikia, the last hour at Kolymbithres and on the harbour, and the middle of the day in Lefkes, where the streets stay empty.
The white walls bounce light into shaded lanes.
The bay of Naoussa faces the sunset.
Summer skies stay cloudless, which favours close frames over wide ones.
How long does a Paros photoshoot run?
About an hour in one village, longer when the route pairs Naoussa with Kolymbithres, and half a day when it climbs to Lefkes and the quarries.
Parikia and Naoussa are twenty minutes apart by road.
Lefkes is another fifteen minutes inland.
The bus links the three towns but not the viewpoints.
What do you wear to a Paros photoshoot?
Flat shoes for marble paving and granite rock, light fabric for the wind in the bay, and a second outfit when the route covers a village and the coast.
Marble lanes are slippery when wet.
The rocks at Kolymbithres are smooth and warm but uneven.
Plain colours hold their tone against whitewash.
Does a Paros photoshoot suit families?
Yes. Kolymbithres has shallow water, Aliki has flat sand, and the lanes of both towns are short and level.
Lefkes involves a climb and a drive.
Boat crossings in the bay are short and calm.
Evening sessions avoid the strongest heat.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is a photoshoot in Paros?
Where is the best place to shoot in Paros?
Naoussa harbour and the castle wall at sunset, the Parikia alleys, and Lefkes from the road above the car park.
What is a flying dress shoot?
A styled cliff-edge session with the dress, hair, make-up and location arranged by the studio.