[Albion cosplay] Azur Lane Albion Hot Spring Bathhouse Scene Attempt

What I am shooting this time is Albion from Azur Lane. From the moment this plan was set, I had been thinking about how to restore that trait of the character being both lazy and carrying a bit of a sacred feel in a studio shoot. For this styling, I prepared a silver-purple long straight wig in advance, adding floral and tassel details to the hair accessories. In terms of makeup, this time the focus was placed on highlighting the blue pupils and the tipsy feeling on the cheeks, coordinated with Elf ears props, making the overall contour fit the character's setting closer.

The costume chose a white lace bodysuit; the three-dimensional roses on the chest and the lace trims along the edges were all organized bit by bit by hand. To restore that dewy, lustrous feel of picture 1, white semi-transparent suspender Stockings were worn on the legs, and a layer of highlighter oil was specially applied to the legs before the shooting. This kind of material is extremely angle-sensitive under studio lighting; turning just a bit will completely change the reflection effect. The gauze shawl on the shoulders is also the key to increasing layering; with just a slight breeze or movement, the fluttering effect of the gauze drapery looks very natural.

The scene setup took a lot of thought. The overall style is retro wooden, paved with faux-fur mats and wooden flooring. To create a hazy atmosphere, several smoke machines were used on-site. The background was filled with artificial cherry blossoms and plum blossoms, and a low table was decorated with a vase and a round fan. When shooting the lying posture in picture 1, I was lying sideways on the platform, with one hand raised upward and the other hand resting by the side of my head. The difficult part lies in maintaining body balance and the sense of extension of the lines, especially when the legs are bent and crossed, requiring a natural display of the Stockings' reflection and body curves. The splashing water effect was captured by the photographer, who tuned the water temperature and water height several times at the time.

The sitting postures for picture 2 and picture 3 were shot on the steps by the water, with one foot hanging down to touch the water surface. This action requires controlling the straightened feel of the instep, while holding the round fan in hand naturally without blocking the details of the costume. Picture 4 features sitting on a plush mat with overall softer lighting. Throughout the shooting process, the lighting arrangement was mainly warm-toned, combined with smoke to create the Tyndall effect, giving the character and background better separation.

Actually, the post-processing color grading of this set of pictures also took a lot of effort because the raw photos had a lot of smoke, making the frame prone to graying. Therefore, the focus was adjusted on color contrast and skin tone to make the skin look more translucent and prevent the white color of the clothes from overexposing. Regarding the Elf ears props, they are made of soft silicone material, and when worn, skin wax was used to transition the edges before applying base makeup so that they could look natural. The wig was cut with fragmented bangs to restore the layering of the original artwork as much as possible. The studio temperature was quite high on the day of the shoot, coupled with the operation of smoke machines, requiring constant attention to touch up makeup. The overall resulting effect carries a dreamy Anime-style photography vibe. As an attempt, being able to showcase Albion from different angles, though the shooting process was hard, it was also very worthwhile.