[Irisviel von Einzbern Cosplay] Fate/Zero Black Holy Grail Version: Re-editing Old Prints from CICF Anime Convention

This set of Irisviel von Einzbern Black Holy Grail look shot at the 2019 CICF Anime convention was recently pulled out for a re-edit. Flipping through these old photos from several years ago, the scenes of running around the exhibition hall instantly became crystal clear.

The original decision to embody this character was precisely because the visual design of the Black Holy Grail form in Fate/Zero is incredibly striking, where the interwoven black and red tones naturally carry a profound sense of destiny. The most painstaking part of this costume lay within the color blocking and the proportions of the red and black elements; the red patterns inside the cloak, resembling both thorns and flames, heavily tested my patience during production. Structurally, we strove for a magnificent yet non-bloated silhouette. To stay faithful to the setting, the edges of the crown atop my head had to be sufficiently sharp, and the material was specifically chosen to have a certain lustrous sheen so it could reflect layered dimensions under the lights.

The wig selected was a pure white leaning toward silver-gray, which is the absolute soul of this character. To keep the long silver-white hair from looking messy while walking around the convention hall, braiding and styling took quite some time. The makeup didn't deliberately chase a heavy or intense look; instead, the focus was placed on carving out the eye makeup, striving to project that slightly sorrowful yet incomparably steadfast demeanor of the character in front of the lens.

The shoot took place live at the 2019 Guangzhou China International Comics Festival (CICF). The venue back then was exceptionally crowded, and the temperature was quite high. Navigating through the crowds in this heavy black-and-red cloak was indeed rather stifling, but noticing that the light filtering through the large glass windows outside the hall had an excellent texture, we decided to set the scene within the building's internal space, utilizing the vast glass curtain walls and clean black frames as a backdrop. Standing and walking on the hard floor in a pair of black high heels coupled with black sheer over-knee socks was genuinely a test for my leg strength. However, this pairing successfully elongated my overall body proportions beautifully, lending a more concrete expression to the slender yet majestic physique of the Black Holy Grail.

Re-editing these old photos after many years, my understanding of light and shadow has deepened a bit compared to the rough edits back then; I re-suppressed the overexposed highlights and applied necessary fill-light to the shadow areas. Due to equipment limitations at the time, there was some noise, so this time I applied a certain degree of noise reduction while preserving the underlying skin texture. The cloud stickers in this photo block part of the visual focus; actually, the original design hoped to emphasize the draped feel of the silver chains at the collar and waist, but the presence of the stickers instead returns the focus heavily back to the portrayal of the mask and the gaze.

As a relatively Niche cosplay type, there weren't actually many fellow fans at the convention site who could recognize the look at first glance, but because of exactly that, every single time I was stopped for a photo or had the character recognized, it felt like an incredibly special connection. The narrative tone of Fate/Zero itself leans heavily toward the somber side, and the Black Holy Grail can be said to be the concentrated manifestation of the entire story's tragic core. Embodying a character imbued with such a tragic color actually makes it easier to immerse oneself during a shoot; without needing too many exaggerated physical gestures, a simple gaze and stance can brilliantly convey the character's profound weight.

The process of restoring old photos feels like a dialogue with my past self. Being able to preserve my passion for cosplay and my love for the work from back then through these photos is inherently a highly meaningful endeavor. The memories of that 2019 CICF Anime convention are thus frozen within this set of photographs.