Tag Archives: comikaze

Portraits

Tashi Cakes at Comikaze 2013

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While at Comikaze, I got to meet Tashi Cakes and schedule two photoshoots with her. I really love the detail on her makeup and costumes, so it was great to be able to take photos of both her Samus Aran (from Metroid Prime) and Nightmare 2P (from Soul Calibur) cosplays.

Saturday was the Samus shoot. I’d initially intended to shoot at one of the balconies overlooking the lobby of the convention center, but the ambient light was a lot darker than I’d expected once night came along (plus a security guard had stopped by saying they wanted to clear the place out soon). We ended moving to a lower level with a little more light and it worked out well, got some really nice shots.

On Sunday as I was setting up for the second shoot, I realized I’d left the battery for my light at home. Fortunately there was a power socket nearby or else it would’ve been really embarrassing.

She was a pleasure to work with, and I think I got some great shots out of both shoots. I’m definitely hoping to get the chance to shoot with her again.

Camera: Canon 6D with 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II. Light: Einstein E640 with 22″ white beauty dish

Portraits

Maru and Seri at Comikaze 2013

Gallery

While at Comikaze, I met two cosplayers who came as characters from Love Live!: Maru as Maki Nishikino and Seri as Niko Yazawa. I had some free time and wanted to get used to approaching cosplayers for shoots, so I asked if I could do a quick photoshoot with them. They agreed and we met up later once I’d setup my equipment.

Lighting for two people at once using just a single light source was a little challenging, especially when they’re back to back. But it was a good learning experience for me and I got to do a little experimenting with moving the light around.

The windows there had a slight greenish tinge though, so post-production was a little tricky. Sometimes I’m still not sure if I’ve adjusted the color balance properly or not.

Camera: Canon 6D with 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II. Light: Einstein E640 with 22″ white beauty dish

Events, Portraits

Comikaze 2013

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Well, it’s been a busy few weeks. Two weekends ago was Stan Lee’s Comikaze Expo, and just last week was both Blizzcon and PMX. It’s been taking a while to sort through all the pictures but I’m slowly making progress!

Comikaze took place at the LA Convention Center, and even though there were fewer people than during AX earlier this year, there were still tons of cosplayers around. A smaller crowd meant fewer people in the background though, and more room to take pictures, which was really nice.

Most of my time was spent alternating between the exhibit hall and the lobby. I didn’t expect the main stage to be standing room only, but I did manage to get good spots to see the panels featuring Edward James Olmos and LeVar Burton (also spotted Richard Simmons!). And I got right up to the stage for the Geek Fashion Show, which I’ll probably post pictures of in a separate post.

Flickr set

Camera: Canon 6D with 24-105mm f/4L IS