[Sui family cosplay] Arknights: Complete Record of the New Year Outdoor Photoshoot at Fuzhuang in Baogong Park

Taking advantage of the New Year atmosphere, we finally finished shooting the group photos for the Arknights Sui family cosplay. The outdoor location chosen this time was Fuzhuang in Baogong Park, mainly because we liked its authentic Chinese gardens and waterscapes, which perfectly match the festive feeling of the Spring Festival, filling it with a traditional New Year flavor from beginning to end.

There were actually quite a few challenges in doing this hair and makeup styling. The core lay in the fact that each character's hair color and accessories are highly recognizable, with combinations of cyan-blue, snow-white, and flaxen tones, along with elf ears and horn-like hair ornaments, which can create a distinct sense of layering visually. To prevent the hair texture from looking stiff under sunlight, we carefully did pre-styling and setting for the wigs, and the subsequent installation of accessories also consumed a lot of glue and hairpins. In terms of clothing, asymmetrical cuts, cutouts, and patchwork were the focus; to keep the garments flat and properly contoured while walking outdoors, we temporarily handled many subtle areas with safety pins and double-sided tape.

Fuzhuang, the outdoor location itself, is a treasure trove for great shots. Bamboo-and-wood pavilions, carved wooden fences, stone steps on the water, as well as pillars and corridors—these elements provided a natural frame for the shoot. On-site, we arranged prop signs like "Sui Family Shop," long red couplet scrolls, and trays filled with simulated sugar-coated haws. These red props stood out in stark color contrast against the dappled sunlight on the green trees and the grey tiles and white walls, adding a lot of vitality to the frame.

In considering the posing and composition, we had to both reflect the personality of each character and maintain the overall harmony of the group shoot. The railings of the pavilion gave us great support points; whether leaning, half-squatting, or leaning out, we could use high or low camera angles to create a sense of depth. For example, in the group photos on the stone steps and by the waterside, we paid more attention to the perspective relationship between the characters and the river channel behind them, filling the frame through staggered and well-arranged standing positions to avoid everyone lining up in a row, which would look dull. During single-person interactions, everyone used props in their hands like spring couplets and sugar-coated haws as much as possible to enrich their body language, while their eyes tried to find the highlight points in the natural light based on the lighting angle, making their gaze look more spirited.

For the post-processing of this shoot, we did not use excessive filter blending. Because the raw light and shadow conditions were excellent, with sunlight filtering through the leaves and casting a very natural warm yellow afternoon tone. We leaned toward preserving this realistic ambient light, only making slight brightened adjustments to the shadows and subtly enhancing the red-green contrast of the image. During processing, we also paid special attention not to let the subtle textures and metal ornaments on the clothing get swallowed by the highlights, keeping all details as clearly visible as possible.

The most interesting part of the shooting process was the interaction with passing tourists. Since it is an open park scenic area, our set-up "Sui Family Shop" was very eye-catching. Many tourists would look over curiously, and some even thought the scenic area was hosting some kind of New Year event. Being able to get the attention and even praise of passersby proved that our choice of a Chinese garden as the scene for the group shoot was highly successful, which not only gave the shoot an immersive feel but also broke the dimensional wall between anime works and real-life scenes.

In fact, coordinating such a multi-person group cosplay photoshoot is quite a test of stamina and communication, from scheduling the makeup time to coordinating the shooting sequence. The photographer needs to quickly dispatch everyone's positions while coping with the changes in light patches brought by the sun's movement at any time. However, the final cosplay photoshoot managed to present this bright and festive atmosphere, and everyone's dedication in the team was indispensable. This Sui family group shoot at Fuzhuang in Baogong Park counts as a highly fulfilling creative experience.