The convention photos from the Changsha ACC Anime Convention have finally been sorted out. The details of this outfit can truly only be fully preserved with straight out of camera photos. For this convention, I put a lot of thought into the makeup and wig styling. The wig was cut into a neat short style, and the bangs were specially made into a signature ring shape. In terms of makeup, blue contact lenses were used, a large area of pinkish-red eyeshadow was applied around the eyes, along with exaggerated eyeliner, prominent blush on the cheeks, and a mole drawn at the corner of the mouth. The overall effect closely matches the 2D setting.
The layering of the costume is what satisfies me the most. The high-neck part has a black base with purple auspicious cloud patterns on it. The gold-and-silver spliced mechanical eye device on the chest serves as a visual center, embedded with a red gemstone in the middle, with a golden ribbon hanging below. The white top features large-area cutout treatments, perfectly revealing the skin, increasing breathability without appearing overly heavy. The equipment on the arms is also very complex; black-and-white wristguards accented with yellow and purple, while metal rings and pipelines significantly boost the sci-fi feel.
The shooting process on the convention day went extremely smoothly. Initially, I stood in front of the booth taking mirror selfies with my phone, and the venue lights hit the metallic accessories, giving them an exceptionally good reflective texture. Later, I tried holding paper and a pen, bowing my head to read or sign documents, or organizing scattered files on the desktop. These dynamics make the photos look more natural and not stiff. While I was organizing props and papers, the photographer captured a few moments of me looking down; the state in the picture was very relaxed, and the red nail polish on my hands added a touch of bright color to the frame.
For this styling, I repeatedly adjusted the proportions of the costume during the preliminary preparation. Because it inherently carries many mechanical elements, if the whole body consists of rigid lines, it would look too heavy, so the white top and skin-revealing design played a neutralizing role, making the overall styling both cold and sci-fi yet possessing a certain lightness. While walking around the convention site, many photography enthusiasts came over to ask if they could take photos, and I cooperated very well by showing different actions. Straight out of camera places high demands on skin condition and costume texture; usually, pre-makeup base preparation is needed to ensure no reflection or patchiness under flashes.
The atmosphere of the Changsha ACC Anime Convention is as great as ever. There are many excellent enthusiasts in the venue, and everyone is very enthusiastic when exchanging thoughts on costume making and prop tips. The lighting of the shooting venue this time was relatively complex; I tried to choose top light and side fill-light positions to make facial shadows more three-dimensional. This styling has quite some weight when worn, especially the arm accessories, but being able to present a satisfactory visual effect makes all the hard work in preparation totally worth it. Recording the whole process was also a very interesting attempt.