The crowd at today's Guangzhou Anime Convention (Black Dragonfly Anime Convention) was truly beyond imagination, with the barriers surrounded by photographers holding cameras and enthusiastic fellow ACG fans. This time, I wore this blue-and-white Traditional Chinese style cosplay sheer outfit. To present the most ethereal and flowing look on stage, several layers of sheer fabric were added; it felt quite stuffy to wear, but the moment I saw the final photos, everything felt completely worth it. The stage lighting was very complex, and the high-brightness background and flickering of the giant LED screen posed extreme demands on the camera's dynamic range. My friend helped capture these shots using an APS-C camera with a 50-140mm lens. This focal length is actually tough to manage in such a crowded convention hall. While the telephoto end provides beautiful background blur, compresses perspective, and isolates the subject from the cluttered crowd, taking two steps back to frame a shot was an absolute luxury in the sea of people. I could only do my best posing in place, using hand gestures and posture to guide the viewer's eye. Many times, to catch that perfect moment, I had to repeat the same pose several times. Fortunately, the sheer fabric of the costume reflected the lights beautifully, creating dynamic interplays of light and shadow with just a slight turn of my body.
The stage interaction segment was the most enjoyable part—everyone was so warm and enthusiastic. There were so many details on this costume, especially the frog closures and tassels, as well as the white stockings with garter straps on my legs. Since the straps easily slipped down during wider movements, I spent a lot of time adjusting them before stepping onto the stage. So many photographer friends squatted in the very front row by the railing just to find the right angle—thank you all so much for your hard work! The venue in Guangzhou was quite humid and warm, leaving my wig and inner clothing soaked, but thankfully the makeup artist's setting products were solid enough to keep my eye and base makeup intact until the very end. Today I ran into many familiar faces and met plenty of new friends; gathering together over a shared passion created such an amazing atmosphere.
The hair accessories were hand-sculpted from clay and painted, with the colors tuned multiple times to match the blue-and-white theme. I also trimmed and styled the wig's bangs in advance, otherwise they would have collapsed on stage with even a little sweat. To match the draped elegance of this outfit, I specifically chose white stockings with metal buckles—they not only flattered my leg shape and stayed put during big movements, but also created a more balanced visual proportion when paired with the shorter skirt of this Traditional Chinese style cosplay sheer dress. In fact, wearing such a fantasy-style costume at an anime convention means not only enduring the heat, but also dealing with the non-stop challenge of touching up makeup and adjusting accessories. With layers inside and out, every trip to the restroom was a major undertaking. Still, standing on stage, seeing so many lenses aimed at me, and hearing the continuous clicks of shutters gave me a wonderful sense of validation. Although the 50-140mm lens is heavy, it captured many natural, candid close-ups. I'm truly grateful to the photographer for finding such great angles in such a crowded environment. The beauty of an anime convention lies in this mutual passion where everyone shines for what they love. Being able to share my interpretation of this look with so many people on site is profoundly meaningful in itself. If you captured any great shots of me, please send them over—let's retouch them first before posting!