[Love Live! cosplay] Rainy day record with Stage style Stage outfit and a giant Plush toy

Browsing today's Love Live! convention from morning straight through the afternoon, my current feeling is completely sore legs and a slightly hoarse voice—truly an exhausting day.

This time I showcased the Stage style Stage outfit version. The costume features numerous layers of lace, sequins, and satin ribbons; just getting dressed and securing the accessories took nearly forty minutes. The sideburns and bangs of the wig also needed fresh trimming and styling, requiring plenty of hairspray to ensure solid form before the camera. The Stage outfit has rich layering: a blue top paired with a pink-and-white flared skirt, where the shimmering reflection of the sequins in motion required specific lighting to capture.

To match the grandeur of this outfit, I brought along a giant Plush toy as a photo prop today. The size of this plush was even larger than expected; hugging it in my arms almost blocked most of my upper-body field of vision. When shooting started, steadying the plush with one hand while posing with dance moves or finger hearts with the other was quite a test of core strength.

Today's outdoor weather was far from ideal, with rain falling on and off. Luckily, we found a beverage shop featuring massive floor-to-ceiling windows. The interior lighting was relatively soft, perfectly matching the tones of this costume. Shooting through the glass allowed us to use the rain outside as a background, adding a layer of atmosphere. However, transferring locations in the rain with a huge plush and heavy gear definitely added a lot of physical strain. The head of the plush has considerable weight; holding it for a long time made my arms ache, so I had to rest it on a chair between takes while adjusting the wig and clothing folds.

When shooting this Stage outfit, showing the dynamism and vitality of the character on stage was far more crucial than simply posing. Because the large plush served as a visual anchor in hand, my facial expressions needed to be even more animated, keeping my gaze locked on the lens and maintaining interaction with the plush. The photographer suggested trying subtle head tilts to make the composition more playful. Upon seeing the raw shots, the colors of the plush echoed the outfit wonderfully, and the final results exceeded expectations.

The entire shoot was not only physically exhausting but also demanded intense mental focus. Doing cosplay is never an easy task; from early costume selection and wig styling to makeup, dressing, and shooting on the day, every step requires meticulous care. Due to the constraints of the outfit and props, many simple movements had to be fine-tuned repeatedly during shooting. For example, to keep the plush from obscuring my face, an exact angle had to be found while keeping the drape of the skirt intact.

Now today's itinerary has finally wrapped up, and I'm ready to head back, remove my makeup, and wash my hair to let my scalp and skin breathe. Although my body is exhausted, looking at the frames recorded on camera makes all the prep work and hard work feel completely worthwhile. Being able to bring a beloved character and outfit to life while leaving behind visuals in such an atmospheric rainy-day setting is a wonderful experience in itself. I hope next time I wear this costume, the weather will be bright and sunny so I can capture a different vibe outdoors.