[Genshin Impact Ganyu Cosplay] Wearing the Liyue Original Skin Again After Five Years: A Wondrous Collision Between AI and Reality

After a five-year hiatus, putting on Ganyu's original skin—the halter black dress, the bell, and the red horns—felt as if time had been wound back to a certain moment five years ago. This shoot is not only a tribute to a classic Liyue character but also a check on my own current state. I handled both the modeling and photography myself, with special thanks to Meili-laoshi for the meticulous makeup and styling, and DEVINJ for the post-processing.

This costume actually has a lot of details. The design with a black base and white edges, coupled with gold patterns and that highly recognizable large gold bell at the neckline, requires strong camera presence to capture a look that is both cool and slightly playful. During the shoot, we tried various scenes, such as sitting on stones in the outdoor grass or on old steps, with a starry sky background and scattered flower petals, maximizing the overall atmosphere.

There was a very interesting little interlude during this shoot: I used AI to do a secondary creation of the retouched photos, playing around with a comparison against the edited shots. The 2D version generated by the AI was truly amazing, possessing the unique linear beauty of original art and the soft lighting characteristic of the 2D world, which perfectly matched the aura of a Liyue adeptus. However, combined with my own 3D real-life shoot, it offered a completely different feeling. The real-life shoot had more texture, allowing one to directly perceive the fabric materials and the three-dimensional light and shadow. Everyone said the 3D version looked quite cute and adorable.

This cross-boundary comparison between AI creation and a real-life cosplayer prompted a deep self-analysis. While resting, when I saw the close-up of my three-dimensional face with elaborate makeup, my mind was literally screaming, "OMG, just destroy it," always feeling the gap between it and the flawless 2D face was too vast. But when I went to the restroom and looked in the mirror at my usual, completely unmakeuped, bare face, I felt a sense of relief instead, even a feeling of "rebirth." In the end, I couldn't help but joke in my heart that if there is a next life, I really want to be a 2D character who never has to worry about putting on makeup.

But returning to reality, my greatest realization from re-wearing this original skin is still that the charm of Cosplay lies in the warmth that "people" give to the character. Whether it's the carefully retouched photos or the stunning secondary creations processed by AI, the core emotion still stems from the cosplayer's own dedication during the shoot. Good makeup and styling, an appropriate setting, plus an understanding of the character archetype are what keep the costume from looking hollow when worn. Over the past few years, I have become less awkward and more composed in front of the camera, which is probably the growth that time brings to a cosplayer. I also really enjoy designing poses and adjusting light sources during the shooting process until that perfect moment when the photographer presses the shutter. I hope this passion for cosplay sharing and creation can be maintained forever.