[Furina Cosplay] A Blue-Toned Custom Design in the Aquarium, Quietly Reading in Leisure

This time, I brought this custom design outfit of Furina to the aquarium for a shoot. Immersing myself in the dark blue light and shadow of the fish tanks, paired with a prop book and staff, I wanted to present a serene visual atmosphere as if being in a deep-sea legend.

For the costume preparation, to fit Furina's own temperament, I chose this custom design gown primarily in black, white, and blue. The wide-brimmed lace hat is the visual center of gravity for this look, and the pearl tassels on the right side beautifully add a sense of motion, echoing the cool-toned wig. The corset design of the outfit is very form-fitting, and paired with the multi-layered, lightweight blue and white patchwork tulle skirt, it showcases excellent layering and extension when sitting. The diamond-shaped gem decorations on the sleeves and gloves are the finishing touch, allowing the overall styling to find highlights amidst the large areas of dark colors.

The wig selected is silver-white, and the iconic curled hair tips on the forehead add a nimble touch of anime-style fashion. For the makeup, I chose a cool-toned eyeshadow that matches the underwater atmosphere, paired with a reddish gradient lip look, presenting an overall texture that is slightly cool and detached but not unapproachable. To adapt to the dim lighting of the aquarium, the highlight areas of the face were emphasized to a certain degree, ensuring that the facial features remain dimensional amidst strong light sources and dark backgrounds.

Two props were chosen for this shoot: a heavy, opened book and a slender staff adorned with a blue gem. The book, combined with a composed sitting pose, reflects the character's quiet and intellectual side, while the playful expression holding the staff in the sixth photo infuses the character with some lively and vivid daily life feel, which is a very interesting aspect of custom design cosplay. The charm of a custom design lies in the ability to add one's own understanding and interpretation on top of the original character.

The aquarium shooting environment poses quite a challenge for a cosplayer. The ambient light is dim and overall blue-toned, and the wide brim of the hat can easily cast shadows on the face, which requires the photographer to be exceptionally careful with lighting setup and camera positioning. We experimented with low-angle upward shots on the steps, as well as eye-level angles, trying our best to incorporate the silver-white schools of fish swimming in the tanks as the background so the frame wouldn't look monotonous or lose its main subject. During the shoot, one must pay close attention to the placement angles of the props, such as whether the opening angle of the book looks natural and whether the grip on the staff feels relaxed, as these directly affect the atmospheric expression of the photos.

During the shooting process, it is necessary to mind the reflection issues of the aquarium glass, trying to keep the lens as close to the glass as possible or finding suitable over-the-shoulder angles to avoid messy reflections from ruining the image quality. The long skirt hem and train are the difficult parts of this cosplay; walking along the steps while dragging it was somewhat inconvenient. When sitting down, extra time was spent arranging the skirt hem so the tulle could naturally scatter across the dark, vintage industrial-style steps, creating a distinct contrast between warm and cool, light and dark, instantly elevating the texture and atmosphere of the photos.

For post-processing adjustments, I leaned toward maintaining that deep-sea cool-toned feel of the original shots, moderately darkening the edges to concentrate the visual focus on the main subject. The character's skin texture and makeup details needed to be preserved to present a clean state reflecting a cool and detached beauty, avoiding excessive skin smoothing that would cause a loss of the character's traits. From medium close-ups to wide-angle overviews, shooting under different focal lengths can capture the multi-angled charm of this outfit. The medium shots can highlight the emotions of the makeup and gaze, while the full-body shots can showcase the flowing beauty of the costume's skirt hem.

This custom design experience was incredibly joyful. Being accompanied by swimming fish in the azure underwater world, amidst the interweaving of light and shadow, felt as though the character had truly stepped into another dimension. A great cosplay work is not just a presentation of costumes and props, but a combination of light, scene, and character demeanor. This aquarium photography experience has given me a deeper understanding of expressing custom design characters and has allowed me to accumulate plenty of experience in handling low-light environment shoots.