[Xie Yu cosplay] Fake Slackers Chao Yu campus birthday fragments

Releasing this Fake Slackers photo set happens to coincide with Xie Yu's birthday. Cosplaying this Chao Yu set with my partner, what we wanted to recreate most was that atmosphere of relying on each other amidst the bustling campus. To avoid shooting school uniforms like ordinary student daily life, we did a lot of homework regarding scene selection and camera language. The old neighborhood, alleys, and park steps chosen this time carry an inherent grainy, slice-of-life texture. The black-and-white color-blocked sports jacket paired with a white lapel short-sleeve shirt forms the most classic campus configuration. To match the character's aloof temperament, the base makeup this time was handled quite cleanly, the eye makeup deepened the contours, the hairstyle was intentionally trimmed with layering, and combined with the red string detail on the hand, the overall visual appearance strove to stay as close as possible to the established state.

The first and seventh shots were taken in an alley. The photographer Changxiao st had us walk forward naturally and then candidly captured us looking back. To maintain the character's state, I controlled the tension in my shoulders, with my gaze carrying a hint of inquiry yet calmness. The greenery and power lines in the old alley intertwined, and light spots fell on us through the leaves, giving the frame a strong early autumn flavor. I personally love the composition of the sixth shot in the stairwell; utilizing the lines of the red brick and concrete stairs, the high-and-low positional relationship precisely hinted at the bond of mutual watchfulness and protection between the characters.

There were also relaxing episodes during the shooting process. The third picture shows us squatting in the park teasing a stray cat we happened to encounter. At that time, we completely dropped the character's persona and naturally petted it; looking back later, we found that this inadvertent state matched their private, relaxed appearance particularly well. After all, once they take off their guard, they are just ordinary high school students.

By the afternoon, the light became soft and we were both a little tired, which led to the second and fourth photos. Sitting on steps covered with fallen leaves, one rested their leg over the other's, leaning against each other and resting their heads down. The fourth picture is the moment when I pulled down the black mask on the other's face, closing the distance—without extra lines, that sense of tacit understanding belonging to the characters naturally flowed out. In the evening, we took a supplementary selfie with a mobile phone in front of the shopping mall entrance (Figure 5); the blue-purple neon lighting cast over created a strong contrast with the fresh feel of the daytime.

For me, the biggest takeaway from doing this photo set is that campus-themed cosplay tests one's grasp of the characters' inner emotions even more. The more everyday the clothing looks, the more one needs to use gazes and physical contact to tell a story. This photo set didn't feature many exaggerated props, but rather relied on the scene's atmosphere and the interaction between the two to support the frames. Once again, thank you to the photographer Changxiao st for their dedication, as well as all the teachers who participated in post-processing. Being able to record these fragments of youth belonging to Xie Yu and He Chao in my own way is a deeply meaningful thing.