Shooting the official set of Genshin Impact Puppet Sandrone at MieMiMi Studio this time, the retro decor and warm-toned candlelight pushed the atmospheric ambiance to the maximum. The striking 3D perspective you feel when tapping in and tilting your phone actually stems from rigorous on-set layering across foreground, midground, and background. To harmonize with this dimensionality, I incorporated numerous detailed designs into my physical postures and prop interactions. The Puppet character possesses a unique robotic detachment and distance; therefore, when seated, I deliberately kept my upper torso upright with my neck slightly tucked, casting a vacant, glassy gaze forward into the lens. The glowing book in hand and my lace-gloved fingers served as the visual focal points, guiding the viewer's gaze tier by tier past the foreground skulls and candelabras to rest upon the vintage picture frames and gramophone behind me.
The elaborate layering of the costume was both an asset and a challenge for the shoot. The gown features a dark underbust corset, an intricate jabot collar ornament, bell-shaped sleeve cuffs, and tiered lace skirts, making wide physical movements practically impossible once worn. The fabric draping when seated had to be calculated with utmost precision to avoid collapsing the petticoat or crushing the rear ornaments. Pairing White stockings with a soft throw blanket heightened the frame's chiaroscuro contrast while lending an elongated extension to the leg lines. Throughout the shoot, I continuously communicated camera height with the photographer. To accentuate the 3D parallax, we made extensive use of foreground occlusions, such as the candelabras and skulls on the left. These elements softly blurred before the lens, contrasting against the razor-sharp focal plane of the subject, so that even a slight tilt of the phone creates a natural parallax shift between foreground and background. The starburst flare effect on the candelabra also took multiple fine calibrations on set to achieve perfection.
When portraying Puppet Sandrone, the key lies in grasping that delicate balance between an exquisite doll and an elegant antagonist. Rather than resorting to exaggerated expressions, I conveyed emotions through subtle shifts in eye contact and poised hand gestures. The curvature of my fingers clutching the lace gloves and the way I cradled the book demanded the precise calculation of robotic joints. Props like the gramophone and Roman pillars infused historical weight into the scene, which in turn demanded even greater restraint in my deportment. The entire process was immensely taxing on stamina, as merely maintaining the rigid seated posture took substantial time. Yet seeing the seamless harmony of light, shadow, and character in the final frames made every ounce of fatigue dissolve. This photo series boasts countless fine nuances well worth zooming in to appreciate, such as the hair accessories and the golden piping along the garments. I hope everyone feels the three-dimensional space we meticulously constructed as you swipe through the screen.