[Ardelia Cosplay] The Measurement Backdrop of Arknights: Endfield

Choosing to shoot this set of photos of Ardelia in front of a black-and-white striped backdrop similar to a police station height measurement is to strengthen the character's inherent gap-moe trait through a misplaced sense of scene. After finalizing this shooting plan, I spent a lot of thought during the preparation stage adjusting the restoration of the character elements.

The core of this Anime-style makeup and styling lies in emphasizing the character's agile feel. The pink curly styling and animal ears on the headpiece need to be precisely fixed at a specific angle on the head; otherwise, it easily affects the side silhouette on camera. And those two red and blue semi-cylindrical small hair clips are actually a very finishing detail; within the framework of the purple dominant tone and white ruffled sleeves, they provide an excellent color clash. The two-tone processing of the wig was quite time-consuming during styling, especially the gradient highlight from brownish-yellow to pink, which required micro-adjusting the curvature with a hair dryer so it could naturally drape into a slightly wavy state by the side of the ears, paired with that thin micro-braid, so the overall look wouldn't appear too heavy.

For the clothing, the pattern of this light purple sleeveless top requires adjusting the fit around the shoulders and neck. After putting it on, tightening the collar and the tying method of the striped tie are both quite particular—it must ensure free movement while presenting that lighthearted yet slightly casual feel of the character. The white sleeves and purple hem are parts I really like; although it's just a fluffy treatment at the wrists and arms, it creates a highly layered feel when doing hand-lifting movements without appearing bloated.

During the shooting process, using the height measurement backdrop as a prop was actually to break away from the conventional setup where figures completely fit anime backdrops. The alternating black and white stripes and numbers create a slightly humorous mugshot archive photo atmosphere, which instead highlights Ardelia's cheerful personality. Regarding camera angles and movements, I intentionally struck a few gestures that interact with the backdrop, such as the small hand gesture made by the right hand in the picture, which makes the forward-leaning composition look more powerful. I pay close attention to the folds of the costume and the shaking of the accessories, making sure to freeze the snapshot only when they are in a natural state.

In terms of post-processing, I retained most of the makeup and styling details, avoiding excessive skin smoothing because I wanted to express a real color texture. The frontal lighting makes the skin texture look very translucent, and the color saturation of the entire photo is controlled at a relatively soft level, ensuring that even if the background is sharply black and white in this scene, the subject won't look overly glaring.

Honestly, every time I do a character with special hair accessories, the biggest test is the stability of the headpiece and the durability of the makeup. When we were shooting this time, the ambient light was a bit complex, but fortunately, the color temperature was calibrated in advance, so no strange color difference occurred between the purple clothes and the skin tone. This coordination of costumes and props can be said to raise the degree of accuracy by a notch.

Overall, completing today's photoshoot against this measurement backdrop was a highly delightful experience, and the entire visual vibe flows within that happy and leisurely emotion. This styling is also another piece of my understanding of the game character; you don't necessarily have to stand in front of a grand CG background—simple conflicting scenes can also embody the character's traits vividly. I hope this article can share some small details on shooting and outfit coordination for friends who are interested in this Ardelia look from Arknights: Endfield. This serves as a great piece of Cosplay photography, capturing a unique style distinct from standard Convention photos.