On January 10th, I did six studio session during Magfest, at the blackout studio located inside Plus Ultra Entertainment in National Harbor, Maryland. These were the only sessions I did during Magfest, because I didn’t get a Magfest ticket, didn’t feel like playing in the hotel lottery, and honestly, I’m tired of photographing the Gaylord. I billed these sessions as an alternative to chaos of a convention session and allowed for a more relaxed and private experience. Additionally, with doing the sessions in studio I could use more creative lighting techniques, go at a slower pace, and not have to worry about random people in the background or fighting for a location. For the cosplayer, they got to step away from the noise of the con for a little bit and chill during the session.
For this session, I used:
|
Photography Equipment |
Props/Miscellaneous |
|
Cannon R6 24-105 mm Lens Transmitter/Trigger 2 Westcott FJ400 2 Manfrotto light
stands 1 Backdrop stand 1 grey canvas
backdrop 2 rectangular soft
boxes 2 soft box grids Silicon gels Backdrop clamps Spyder Color
Checker |
Fake flower arrangements Posing box Length of white
fabric Laptop Teather cable Laptop holder/clamp Dolly for
equipment transport
Studio Provided White seamless Background stand Yellow chair Paper wall |
The set up
I did six different sessions which all started with the
same basic set up, which I then modified slightly based on the mood of the
photo I was trying to achieve. This meant
I reset after each session, which allowed each client to have a clean start,
and for me to switch gear to that specific client’s needs. The basic lighting set up was placing one light
stand with a strobe and soft box at about 45 degrees to my right. The second light stand with strobe and soft
box was placed about 15 degrees from left. Then depending on the cosplay I would add
colored gels, move lights to create mood, or bring in the posing block or yellow
chair as necessary.
Camera Settings
Since I was in studio and using strobes, I basically kept
my camera setting consistent throughout all six sessions. My ISO was set to 100, I used an aperture of
F6.3, and my shutter speed was either 1/200s or 1/250s. My focal lengths varied from 24mm to 93mm
with the most common focal lengths being 35mm and 40mm.
The Photo
I did six different sessions, but my editing process was
the same for each session. I started by
ensuring the exposure was correct then used the Spyder Color checker to verify
the colors were correct. I then did the basic adjustments to the blacks,
shadows, whites, and brights, and adjusted the contrast. I then dialed in the appropriate color
vibrancy, and clarity. Finally, I copied these setting across all the images from
that session and made tweaks and refinements as needed for each image. I’m now going to talk about one image from
each session.
This first session was with Inkraven Cosplay as Atton Rand
from “Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords”. They wanted dark low-key images that aligned
with the smuggle background of the character. So, I went for a short Rembrandt lighting with
a hint of edge lighting, which resulted in me moving the lights from the
starting position. During post
processing I added an orange color grade to the highlights to give the image a
brown rustic look and added a strong vignette to the image.
The next session was a trio (@slanderouslies, @variegatedblooms, @irisinstilled) doing
cosplay from Critical Role Campaign 4, that wanted something similar to the 1980’s
early 1990’s mall family portraits. So, I brought in the grey canvas backdrop
and tried to keep the photos as high-key as possible. For this image the lights are evenly
distributed to get a nice even spread of light across each of the cosplayers.
When editing this image, I did all the basics plus I had to extend the
background to account for the horns and the number of cosplayers. The canvas
backdrop is 9-feet tall and about 6-feet wide thus is good for one maybe two
people not 3 people, but that is why there is AI extend background in
Photoshop. The extended background
function usually does a decent job on simple backgrounds.
The third session of the day was two of my favorite people
to work with Gloria of In
The Long Rund Designs and Saragobragh.
They were doing mid- to late-18th-century gowns inspired by two Pokémon characters,
Pikachu and Bulbasaur. They wanted images inspired by the late 18th
century painting of Thomas Gainsborough, George Romney, Thomas Lawrence. This
meant I needed to bring in some set pieces. In this case I used the grey canvas
backdrop, added a fabric swag, used the posing block as a table, added flowers,
and used the yellow chair provide by the studio even though it wasn’t the right
century. Then in post processing I need
to used generative AI to extend the grey background, as dresses are a bit wide.
The next session was of Jada as Maelle from “Clair Obscure
Expedition 33”. Based on the initial set
of refence images sent to me I knew this session was going to tend towards low lighting
and have regal or noble charter about it.
I used the grey canvas background with the drape of white fabric to align
with a few of the refence images and the cosplayer brought the rose petals to
scatter. For the image below the light
on my right in line with the cosplayer’s face so it was acting as a side/rim
lighting then added the second one about 15-degrees off my left to act a bit a
fil light. I just did basic edits and
added the vignette.
The final session of the day was with Acorn as Nico di Angelo
from the Percy Jackson series. This was
a very relaxed session and felt more like an emo fashion session than a cosplay
session. To go with the character’s backstory,
I used a combination of red and yellow gels during the session to add some depth
to the images as well as the posing block.
I did all the standard edits, but did pump up the reds, so the color
would stand out and be a bit more saturated in the image.
The Wrap Up
First, I want to say that staff at Plus Ultra Entertainment
were great, and super easy to work with.
They met all my clients in the lobby of the building and brought them up
to the studio. The studio was clean, and
had easy access to parking and ramps for me to bring my equipment in. I would definitely use their studio again.
Second, several of the cosplayers commented on how relaxing
the sessions were compared to sessions within the convention center
itself. They mentioned it made them feel
less self-conscious and relaxed. Also mentioned how nice it was to get away
from the noise and busyness of the convention itself.
Finally, I enjoyed doing the sessions and felt they gave people
choices beyond the standard Gaylord interior and freezing down by the waterfront.
While I priced these sessions slightly higher than my standard convention
session (had to cover studio rental costs) they were cheaper than my standard
studio sessions. I priced them cheaper than
my standard studio sessions because I couldn’t bring in a ton of set pieces
like I normally would use and didn’t have my full contingency of lights with me.
Renting a studio usually limits what I bring, as opposed to using my in-home
studio where everything is accessible. I
may do these again for next Magfest, we will see how I feel. Overall, it was a
good way to start the year.
Comments
Post a Comment