"I proclaim to heaven and earth, to deities and gods: meeting the holy monk has fulfilled my heart's desire." The moment this line is spoken, the entire look of the Jade Rabbit Princess takes concrete shape in my mind. For this shoot, I chose Gongsun Li's Jade Rabbit Princess skin from Honor of Kings. The costume overall is an interplay of orange, light yellow, and gold; the cropped midriff top is accented with dark red floral patterns, while the light yellow diagonal shawl and pleated skirt give the outfit distinct layers. The long cloth with dark red and gold horizontal stripes hanging directly in front of the waist serves as the visual focus of the lower outfit. Huge semi-transparent gauze rabbit ears are secured to a golden tiara inlaid with red and white beads. A red silk flower sits on the side of the head beside long hair, while a thick black braid drapes down the left side of the chest, strung with golden ring ornaments—full of details.
The temperature at the convention was quite high on that day, and wearing a cosplay outfit made of various stitched fabrics with numerous metal accessories was certainly not easy. Props-wise, the large pink paper umbrella with orange ribbons yielded fantastic photos, but during dynamic poses, maintaining the umbrella's orientation while keeping the long ribbons from tangling around arms and clothing required constant care. The two giant white fluffy pom-poms on the shoe toes added a cute touch, though I had to constantly pay attention to ankle stability while standing.
To make these Cosplay convention photos turn out great, photographer Pulao and I worked together with fantastic chemistry. The core elements of portraiture really matter in practice, and I tried several different pose structures. Standing on one leg lifted high while holding the umbrella in one hand demanded great balance; this pose happened to show off the costume's high-slit design from the side, visually elongating leg lines and making the overall red and orange pop remarkably against the dark background. Another kneeling set lowered my center of gravity; resting the umbrella handle on my wrist and forming a geometric triangle composition with orchid-like fingers and torso made the frame look fuller while expressing Gongsun Li's vivid agility. The cross-legged sitting posture on the floor leaned more static, creating a feeling of a cozy exotic rest alongside the tilted oil-paper umbrella and white fluffy rug underneath.
For makeup, red contact lenses paired with pale foundation and exquisite eyeshadow created a playful yet slightly assertive vibe, which looked amazing under spotlights when complemented by the metal collar necklace and multi-layered gold wrist accessories. Although people kept coming and going in the hall and lighting was complex, Pulao utilized overhead lights and dark backgrounds to suppress ambient light effectively without letting cluttered crowds steal the show. During shooting, I opened my elbows as much as possible to stretch my body language so folds in the outfit and side slit details were fully recorded.
From putting on these complex clothes and headpieces in the morning to wrapping up at the end, it truly drained a lot of energy. But seeing these Convention photos, all the fatigue vanished into thin air. Adding my own understanding on top of faithfully recreating the character, and striving to present the confidence, beauty, and unique color impact of the Jade Rabbit Princess—that is probably where the true fun of Cosplay convention photos lies.