[Ye Lanyi cosplay] She from Empresses in the Palace has come to the Drum Tower

Wearing Ye Lanyi's outfit and standing under the street sign of Gulou Xidajie truly put into practice the saying "Hearing about the Drum Tower ten times is not as good as seeing it once." Bringing out Ye Lanyi from Empresses in the Palace this time was a very special experience for me. I usually do a lot of studio shoots, but coming to a real Beijing night view landmark this time, the environment and atmosphere were completely different.
This outfit features a modified traditional style design, dominated by light blue and mint green. The collar adopts a high-neck lace design, paired with pearl pendants. The shoulders feature a translucent tulle shawl with delicate green floral embroidery. The skirt hem is multi-layered, with the outer layer being printed tulle and the inner layer being solid fabric, giving it a great drape and flowing feel when walking. The hair accessory on top is a pale blue cluster of flowers with two very long light-colored ribbons that flutter in the wind, making it very lively.
In terms of makeup, I didn't choose overly heavy eye makeup, but instead emphasized a clear and translucent look on the face. The blush is applied relatively distinctly, paired with blunt bangs. The overall makeup has both a bit of classical charm and a hint of girlish cuteness. However, Ye Lanyi's character is detached, stubborn, and unyielding. Therefore, during the shoot, I consciously adjusted my body language.
For example, when holding the green candied haws in my hand, I didn't make a particularly sweet and cute expression, but slightly tilted my head with a hint of casualness and disdain in my eyes. This is both the common worldly atmosphere of Beijing streets and the carefree attitude of the character facing life's twists and turns. In another photo, I held a dark folding fan, placed one hand on my hip, relaxed my shoulders, and let my body present a natural S-curve. This posture better showcases the layers of the dress and gives the image more tension.
Shooting at the Drum Tower at night, the biggest difficulty lies in light control. The background consists of ancient architecture lit with warm yellow lights and the traffic on the road. If relying solely on ambient light, the subject's face would easily darken. Therefore, the photographer used off-camera flash with a softbox to fill in light on the front of the subject. This preserved the night view atmosphere of the Drum Tower in the background while allowing the clothing's colors and embroidery details to be clearly presented. Choosing to shoot at night was also because the Drum Tower at night has a heavy sense of history, which, combined with modern vehicles and street signs, creates a visual impact of interlaced time and space.
Since the shoot took place behind the metal guardrail by the roadside with traffic passing behind, the timing for candid shots was crucial. I had to hold my pose, waiting for the background headlights to draw light trails or just pass by when the photographer pressed the shutter. The fluttering of the long ribbons also required me to use my arm movements to create wind to capture that natural dynamic feel. Although moving around in a long skirt was a bit inconvenient, bringing my own understanding of Ye Lanyi to a place full of earthy warmth and historical sense like the Beijing Drum Tower made the whole process extremely satisfying. The overall image has both classical magnificence and urban modernity, making it a very interesting visual collision.