The outdoor photo delivery set from the 2024 Guangzhou Anime Convention at the China International Comics Festival (CICF) is ready! Sharing two distinct styles and my experience from Outdoor shooting at Pazhou.
The first set features a black-and-white plush animal theme. The main skirt is a white multi-tiered puffy tier dress with a light internal support frame to hold its shape, accented with black lace trim along every tier edge. A prominent black satin bow ties at the waist, forming a crisp contrast against the ruffled skirt. For headwear, I selected a fluffy panda-styled hat with symmetrical black ears and a small green bamboo leaf motif embroidered on the front. The oversized plush beast paws gloves are the soul of this cosplay look—stuffed generously with cotton, complete with pink paw pads and black claws, with green ribbon straps around the wrists tied to two golden bells. As I moved or turned on site, the bells jingled pleasantly, greatly enhancing interactive fun.
For the lower body, I paired sheer black tights with a lace-trimmed thigh garter ring, retaining cute charm while adding visual layers. The high single-leg kick pose was intentionally struck to display the natural flare of the skirt hem alongside leg lines; executing it required solid core balance while keeping facial expressions relaxed. Black-and-white plush slippers carried the cute theme down to the ground.
The greatest advantage of Outdoor shooting is natural sunlight. As afternoon rays filtered through tree canopies, the edges of the plush fabric were outlined in bright rim light, capturing every bit of soft fur texture clearly through the lens.
The second look offered a complete style reversal. Switching to a bright pink wig styled into double buns, I tied a long red fabric ribbon to one side that fluttered dynamically in the breeze. The outfit combined red, white, and black panelling, trimmed with delicate gold edging along the lapel and cuffs, adorned with a red gem pendant at the neck, a white metallic flower piece across the chest, and blue-pink waist fabric breaks to elevate traditional-meets-modern tailoring.
I brought two pairs of glasses as extra props: wire-frame round sunglasses and black-frame clear glasses. Resting sunglasses atop my head or wearing them yielded subtle shifts in facial vibe. The shots crouching down sipping a drink leveraged the black-frame glasses and casual pose to create an effortless lifestyle feel. Switching to the prop sword, I leaned forward with a focused gaze to instantly pivot into a fierce combat stance. While long red ribbons and pink buns were prone to wind messiness, securing them tightly with pins ensured smooth navigation through crowded expo halls.
Pazhou's outdoor surroundings get extremely dark at night, so direct flash photography was used for optimal results. Against pitch-black backdrops, high-saturation color-blocked garments popped intensely, carving out sharp, dimensional facial contours that offered a totally different visual experience from soft daytime natural light. Both sets highlighted unique strengths—one embracing plush friendliness, the other celebrating bold color pops. It was an absolute joy recording these event photo deliverables at our familiar Guangzhou CICF Pazhou venue.