[Zhongli Cosplay] People Fighting Downstairs at Midnight on New Year's Eve While We Calmly Shoot Photos

On the night of New Year's Eve for Genshin Impact Fes, a few of our old 2D daily life friends gathered downstairs at the hotel. There was a huge crowd gathered downstairs at the time, very lively, so we subconsciously assumed it was a New Year's Eve event organized by the hosts and casually found a corner to start passionately shooting photos. It wasn't until we finished shooting and went back to check our phones that we discovered the crowd downstairs was actually having a fight! But this hilarious interlude didn't affect our spirits at all. Instead, borrowing the crisp night air and the unique urban atmosphere, we quickly completed this set of Zhongli's Cosplay night scene.

Actually, the preparations for this shoot were quite rushed. To replicate that cold and composed temperament, the makeup intentionally emphasized the eye contours, paired with light amber colored contacts to look exceptionally sharp and spirited in the low-light environment. The fluffy short hair styling was the top priority; it required repeatedly texturing for a messy look when wearing it, and the reddish-brown hair ends happened to blend with the warm light of the night scene, enhancing the layers of the overall hair color. In terms of clothing, the silhouette of the black coat was stiff enough, and the visual center relied entirely on that wide yellow-and-white geometric pattern scarf to control. During the shoot, I adjusted the folding layers of the scarf several times to let the tassels drape naturally, showcasing the most three-dimensional sense of styling.

The venue we shot at wasn't dreamy at all; it was just a very ordinary storefront entrance on a commercial street, and the glass reflections in the background even showed a supermarket's neon signboard. However, the photographer was highly experienced and instead utilized this down-to-earth environment, adopting an excellent low-angle shot combined with a near-large-far-small perspective effect to instantly elevate the character's aura. Especially the use of side-backlight outlined the contours of the hair strands and cheeks very clearly, while retaining a half-shadow on the face, adding a touch of mystery.

For the pose design, I attempted various postures such as crossing my arms, resting one hand on my forehead, looking back, and leaning against a pillar while wearing leather gloves. The slightly glossy texture on the surface of the leather gloves unexpectedly enhanced a lot of detail performance the moment the shutter was pressed. To break away from the awkwardness of the passersby's gaze, we completely immersed ourselves in our own 'performance,' having no time to care even about the guests walking by. That full concentration instead made the gaze more steadfast, without the slightest distraction.

The wind was extremely strong on the night of the shoot. Although I dressed warmly, my fingers were still frozen stiff after shooting downstairs for a long time. However, seeing those few moments in the raw photos where the light and shadow were perfectly captured, all the coldness was thrown to the back of my mind. For this set of final photos, we intentionally retained the raw camera-straight-out deep blue tone of the night scene, letting it form a classic warm-and-cool contrast with the warm orange of the streetlights. We didn't over-pursue high brightness, which instead allowed the original tones of the costume and makeup to be perfectly restored. This shooting method in a bustling downtown area, closely aligned with real life, was very casual—even with people fighting nearby—but it also happened to give this set of images an extra touch of vivid, fresh documentary feel. After returning to the room, everyone looked at the masterpieces they shot, teasing and praising each other. This atmosphere was truly fun, and it can be considered my most unique film memory of this New Year's Eve cosplay.