[Alice Margatroid Cosplay] The Seven-Colored Puppeteer of Touhou Project

Taking advantage of the National Day holiday, I completed this Alice Margatroid outdoor photoshoot at the Xiamen ANE International Expo Center. Many people who know this character often think of her as that elegant girl who can control puppets with magic, but actually within the player community, she also has a nickname called "Alice Megatron." This extreme contrast made this photoshoot full of fun. Regarding the costume, the visual focus lies in the harmony between the lace headpiece and the overall color scheme. The pure white top is paired with a royal blue layered large skirt, with a wide red sash and matching bow tied at the waist. This classic combination of red, white, and blue primary colors has a very high recognizability under the sunlight. The deep red grimoire in my hands is a key prop for interpreting the character's atmosphere. During the shoot, I alternately tried different movements such as cradling it against my chest, flipping through the pages, and gently holding it in my hands. To maintain the temperament of the Seven-Colored Puppeteer, I specifically chose an expression with slightly lowered eyelids to fit her "seemingly a bit tsundere" character setting. The weather in Xiamen was great on the day of the shoot, with plenty of outdoor light, but strong direct sunlight can easily cause harsh facial shadows. Therefore, during framing, I specially utilized the white pillars within the venue as a natural reflector, allowing the soft diffuse light to hit my face and enhance the transparency of the skin texture. I tried several different movements, including holding the grimoire with both hands, turning pages sideways, and gently lifting the skirt in front of the lens. The capture of motion and the static gaze, paired with a few white sparkling butterfly special effects added in post-processing, highlight the atmosphere of Alice being in a magical world. But to be honest, the biggest challenges for this outdoor shoot were actually "lighting" and "avoiding photobombs." After all, the International Expo Center is a public commercial area with many pedestrians. During the actual shoot, we had to avoid cluttered backgrounds while catching the fleeting best angles of light, so in the end, we invested a lot of energy into positioning. Fortunately, I am very satisfied with the sense of layering in the final photos, and the translucent texture of the clothing material under backlight was fully revealed. Every outdoor photoshoot is a brand-new challenge. Not only do you have to overcome sudden situations on-site, but you also need to quickly find a camera presence that resonates with the character's state of mind. Only by being truly invested can you live up to the accuracy of this exquisite costume.