[Ishtar Cosplay] Fate/Grand Order: The Ritualistic Sense of The Descent of the Goddess

The goddess Ishtar from Fate/Grand Order has always enjoyed extremely high popularity, and this time I bring a set of portraits leaning towards the atmosphere of a divine descent. In fact, when I received this costume, my first consideration was how to combine her haughtiness and liveliness that rise above mortals within a flat photo studio environment.

What struck me the most was the asymmetrical design of the headpiece and legs. The golden tiara has a unique shape; though it looks very cool, its center of gravity is quite high, requiring it to be fixed very securely to achieve that state of tilting and looking around freely as shown in the pictures. Meanwhile, the deep blue high-top armor on the left leg paired with transparent high heels elongates the overall visual proportions, but also adds a lot of physical limitations to performing high-difficulty movements. During the on-site shoot, because I needed to strike wide, extended poses such as high leg raises and kneeling on one knee, I had to adjust my center of gravity and the folds of the skirt hem every few shots.

As for the shooting environment, although many blurred pieces of equipment can be seen in the background, such as the huge beauty dish and reflection umbrella next to me, as well as the surrounding staff watching, it is precisely because of the collaboration of this behind-the-scenes team that the direction of the light could be precisely controlled. The photographer used very sharp high contrast lighting. This kind of hard light is actually quite a test for the model's contours and makeup. To match this goddess-like cool and detached aura, I made my base makeup exceptionally fair and paired it with highly piercing red eye makeup.

The ground underfoot was polished very smooth, just like a mirror. When the white skirt hem spread out on the ground, or when the skirt was blown up by the fan, the reflection formed an extended image on the floor, greatly enhancing the visual tension and sense of space of the studio portrait photos. All in all, this was an attempt where a lot of homework was done on both light and shadow and physical expressiveness. Every press of the shutter was actually a visual recreation of the divinity and pride inherent in the goddess's personality.