Professional cosplay photography is a new and growing field. I've been getting a lot of inquiries about how to approach photographing cosplayers in action, so I thought it would be helpful to share some tips and techniques here.
A photo of a cosplayer in action expressing the character's personality
- A photo of a cosplayer in action expressing the character's personality.
- Use action, not standing still.
- Use lighting and background to highlight the character and costume.
- Use camera settings to get the right shot
A photo taken with a creative background to highlight the character and costume
If you want to capture the personality of your subject, it's important to choose a background that will enhance their costume. This can be done by finding a location that matches their character or costume.
If you're photographing someone who is cosplaying as Link from The Legend of Zelda, for example, it would make sense to find an environment with trees and grasses—but not too much water in case there are any bodies of water nearby as well. If you're photographing someone who is cosplaying as Alice from Alice in Wonderland, then using a background like an old Victorian house would provide extra depth to your photos by matching the setting of this popular storybook tale.
A good way to think about what kind of environment might work best for your photo shoot is by looking at how people behave themselves in real life when they are excited about something specific (such as going into space). When they're excited about something specific (like being on Earth), they tend not only pay attention more closely but also feel more comfortable because they're around people who understand what makes them happy: namely being surrounded by things such as trees and grasses; oceans filled with fish swimming around all day long; planets floating through space out there somewhere between us all—and maybe even some alien species watching over us too!
Informal on-site portrait of a cosplayer
As a photographer, you have many options for shooting your subjects. The most common approach is to stand beside the cosplayer and shoot upward. This is fine if you don't have time to set up another shot or setup nearby. Another technique is to position yourself on the same side as your subject, but further back so that they cut off at the waist or below their heads in the composition. If you're working with a group of cosplayers, it can be helpful to step back even further so that everyone has room to move around during their photo shoot. In addition to shooting from different angles, there are several other things you can do with lighting. One option is using natural light by choosing an outdoor location where there are good shadows and plenty of sun on both sides of your subject's face; this gives them dimension while keeping everything else looking bright and vibrant without causing overexposure issues like backlights do when used indoors.
A formal portrait of a cosplayer in their costume
In a formal portrait of a cosplayer in their costume, my goal is to focus on the subject's face and capture its expression. In order to do this, I use a large aperture (low f-stop number) in order to blur the background and create a shallow depth of field. This helps draw attention toward your subject while also making sure they're not distracted by any unnecessary details that could be distracting away from them. If your lighting is not great and you need more light on your subject, consider using flash with some modifiers like an umbrella or bounce card attached directly onto your flash head so that it fires upwards toward your ceiling instead of straight at the camera lens where it may cause unwanted reflections off the glass surface into our image—this will also help diffuse light for softer results as opposed to harsh shadows created when direct sunlight hits someone's face directly without being diffused first! Just be mindful of overexposing subjects as well; it's always better to expose too little than too much so err towards underexposure if unsure about how bright things are getting when shooting outdoors under natural sunlight conditions--you can always adjust exposure later after reviewing photos later on at home but once something has been recorded onto film there’s no going back! When shooting indoors during daytime hours when there isn't enough available light coming through windows (or other sources), I recommend using tripods because they keep cameras steady while taking pictures--and don't forget about using wide angle lenses too!
Professional cosplay can have a good personality and variety.
Professional cosplay is a very rewarding hobby and career. If you have the dedication and passion for it, you can be successful on many levels. The best thing about professional cosplay is that it allows you to express yourself through characters that are close to your heart. You can also get paid for doing something that you love! It’s not easy though. Cosplayers need to be able to produce quality costumes (including props), develop good relationships with photographers and other cosplayers, network with people who might be able to help them grow as artists/creators, etc., all while dealing with various challenges along the way such as working full-time jobs or going to college classes at night (or both!). But if they want it bad enough—and work hard enough—then they will succeed!
In conclusion, I hope that this article has given you some insight into the world of professional cosplay photography. It can take years to master the art of capturing a cosplayer in action, but with these tips on hand you should be able to get started with confidence!
Cosplay photography by Fungirlwithacamera Photography
Hope from Fungirlwithacamera Photography specializes in Cosplay photography.
