5 posing and 5 photography tips and tricks for Cosplay!

Hey peanut butterflies! We are back this saturday, the first in a while sadly, but back non the less. This week we are in great spirits due to our brand spanking new camera! Whooo hooo! New camera!!! So I decided that i'd be fun to educate ourselves on camera men ship.... ya lets just get to it....

After gathering from various sources, here are the best posing tips for Cosplayers that any of us here at Cosplay confessions can hope to give. Don't worry, there will more to come.

1. Know the angles of your face. 
2. Know the angles of your face
3. Watch America's next top model if you don't get what your angles are.
4. Did I mention know your face? 
5. Know your posing limits

Now growing up with ANTM posing and knowing your face have always been a thing for me. What it means is very simply know your face. Know what angles your face looks best and worst in. Do you need to open your eyes more? Relax your face? Is it better to get the glare going on with your eyes to make them pop? Double chin a problem? Big ears? Big nose? So how do all of these imperfections work together?Practice in a mirror or with photobooth or a regular webcam to test everything out. Put it on continuous shots and see what worked and what didn't. 

As for posing limits, I mean know how flexible you are and can be. If you know you can't climb up a hill or balance on a log to get a good picture then that's ok. Know how much you can do before you hurt yourself or your costume or both. We all have limits to posing and that's normal, in that case talk to the photographer. This also applies to weather, if the weather is extreme talk to your photographer about discomforts because it might be time to call it quits before you get seriously hurt. 

Now on the photographer end of stuff. 

1. Cosplay photographers, don't be afraid to be back seat drivers here. Cosplayers depend on you to tell them if something looks good or bad. Keep them informed if their outfits are disheveled, fix wigs, get feed back from them about poses they want to do or don't want to do. Give them options. GET INVOLVED.
2. Just as cosplayers need to know their face and body you need to be on your toes. You need to find the most flattering angles to get them from or ask them to change slightly. Find what looks really good don't be afraid to move them if it looks bad. 
3. Photographers, I don't know who first said it but, Cosplaying is a work out. Not just for cosplayers but for you as well. If you aren't causing traffic jams at conventions or breaking a sweat then you need to get in motion. Moving around will get you those great flattering shots. 
4. Know your rule of thirds. This is the idea of mentally griding off a picture to be three by three squares. Cosplay photography is about big hits and huge focal points, the rule of thirds can help you do this. Mastering this can really get you those golden shots! Read up on it here!

1. Get rid of negative space! Whenever I'm creating something I like to stop and ask "do you really need it", ask yourself this when it comes to empty space. Does it help create a dramatic picture? If not you are probably losing an opportunity to get up close and personal with the cosplayer. Along with that you may be losing important details from the costume from really far way. Please..... don't lose that opportunity.... 

So that was about 5 and 5, next week we will get more in depth with some of this stuff! Be prepared! 

~Lulu