Stepping into the classroom in this blue-and-white cheerleader uniform with yellow pom-poms in hand instantly filled me with energy. This time, I chose the campus sporty style look of Nekozuka Hibiki from Blue Archive. The overall design is very refreshing; in particular, the black-and-white animal ear headband and semi-transparent blue goggles added lots of cuteness to the original sportswear while greatly boosting character recognition.
The design of this outfit places great emphasis on layering. The top is a white cropped cut that exposes the midriff, featuring a white neckerchief and a blue ornamental pendant at the neckline with refined detail work. The lower half consists of blue pleated shorts, where the blue-and-white contrast looks exceptionally clean and crisp in the sunlit classroom. I specially paired them with pure white ankle socks to reinforce the overall campus sporty style atmosphere. To enhance the character's nimble feel, I also wore a fluffy black plush tail—though it wobbled a bit during larger movements, it truly made the entire styling more complete.
The shoot was set in a beautifully lit classroom. Outside the window were urban skyscrapers, while inside were wooden desks, chairs, and a blackboard, thoroughly brimming with the everyday atmosphere of high school life. Bright natural light poured in through the expansive glass windows, giving the skin tone a translucent glow and making the blue-and-white clothing appear more textured. Posing in such an environment made it effortless to slip into the character's everyday state.
The shooting process involved interacting with props, with the bright yellow cheerleading pom-poms serving as the visual focal point. I experimented with different handheld poses to work with the camera. In the chosen cover photo, I raised one pom-pom high with one hand while resting the other pom-pom at my side, sitting cross-legged on the edge of the classroom desk. This movement captured the outward, upbeat energy of a cheerleader while retaining the charming, playful nature of a young girl. To complement this look, I tied the black-and-blue twin tails a bit higher, accented by loose bangs along the cheeks and a yellow star sticker by my left eye, looking even more spirited.
Special attention also had to be paid to body posture during the shoot. Because the outfit is form-fitting, maintaining openness and poise was necessary to present the cropped top and shorts in their best visual shape. Meanwhile, the white socks provided a smooth visual transition against the bright wooden desktop, echoing the overall minimalist color scheme. When reviewing the shots after the shoot, I found this look to be remarkably versatile, handling bold, breezy poses as well as relaxed seated postures with ease.
It should be noted that to comply with social media platform guidelines, some finished photos utilize cute overlay stickers, but this does not diminish the energetic vibe conveyed by this sportswear. This photoshoot experience gave me a deeper appreciation of the relaxed atmosphere brought by blending campus scenes with sporty anime-style fashion. After wrapping up the post-processing for this set, I've also been thinking about what other similar vibrant everyday styles I can explore in the future to expand my expression in this genre.