The inspiration for this photoshoot came from seeing the merchandise for the Luckin Coffee collaboration with Honkai: Star Rail; the Castorice illustration on the paper bag was so gorgeous that I decided to do a casual, slice-of-life Castorice cosplay shoot right at the physical store. For the outfit, I picked a taro-purple off-the-shoulder chunky knit sweater. The sweater was actually super thick and layered over thermal base garments, so I didn't suffer from chilly winds at all during the shoot; the only downside was that it made my frame look a bit bulky, requiring careful camera angles to flatter my figure.
For makeup and styling, to capture her unique essence, I wore a long pink-purple gradient wig, added Elf ears props, and paired them with blue-purple colored contacts. As seen in the photos, this cooler-toned filter balanced out the cozy warmth of the sweater perfectly. Styling the wig took the longest—curling the hair into irregular waves and setting them with hairspray was a true test of patience. To achieve an ethereal yet everyday casual aesthetic, I specially wore a British-style grey plaid skirt and White socks. Although my legs look slender in the photos, finding the right angle took extensive adjustments. Flattering leg lines come not only from wide-angle lenses but also from leaning your center of gravity forward while standing and minding where your toes point. One full-body shot showcases the entire ensemble, where I took extra care with angles to keep the look slim. Another shot holding a card while tilting my head slightly down toward the camera captured a gentler gaze, highlighting the character's approachable warmth.
I held the collaboration cup and paper bag to add visual richness to the frame, deliberately avoiding close-up shots of the cup to let it blend into the background naturally, making it feel more like a casual, everyday coffee run. For posing, the shot where I hold my bag and look back over my shoulder focused on upper-body torso twisting and hand placement for a dynamic feel. The seated shot holding the cup was completely relaxed, capturing that candid afternoon coffee vibe snapped by a friend while subtly flattering my leg lines from the side.
In post-processing, heavy effort went into color grading. Since the store's original lighting was warm and yellowish, we shifted the palette toward purple-pink tones while bumping up cool-light contrast, even adding a dreamy purple wing-glow aura in the empty space behind my back to echo the character design and boost ambiance. Because the sweater was so thick, lifting my arms was tough at times and posing got tiring. I did my best to convey that otherworldly elegance, though I know within the community I might not be 100% canon and there might be some OOC elements, so I honestly included an OOC apology in the post. Thankfully, the venue ambiance fit nicely and shooting was super fun. If given the chance in the future, I’d love to explore more concepts blending 2D anime elements seamlessly with 3D everyday life.