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Our first issue for the year is packed with cosplay fun and goodies. We’ve interviewed some brilliant new talents and caught up with fan favourites. Before doing this issue we talked about what we want to give back to the community. What is it we can contribute? Tips? Ideas? Sure, we can do those things but what’s really important is promoting the actual cosplay community. The very people that make Cosplay Live what it is, an amazing mix of talents from cosplayers, to costume and prop makers to the photographers that spend thousands on gear and then hours and hours learning to fine tune their art. Often it’s the cosplayers where it all starts though, the idea for the costume or character. Then comes the hours, weeks and often months of toiling over sewing machines, heat guns and the many other tools to create costumes that pay tribute to their inspiration. Colouring, weathering and sometimes even starting the whole damn thing again is what drives cosplayers to create their costumes so that they are as accurate as possible. For their dedication to their craft - we salute the cosplayers, the prop makers, the makeup artists, the photographers and of course the fans who follow with passion. This issue also asks cosplayers and photographers the big question: Can you make money from cosplay? Perhaps the other question is : Should you? Take a look at their answers. We hope you enjoy this issue, we loved putting it together. Rob Jenkins Editor and Publisher
Editor:
Rob Jenkins
Art Director:
Giselle Capobianco
Contributors:
Charlotte Nicholson JusZ Cosplay Mike Rollerson Tiffany Dean
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www.facebook.com/HarleysJoker
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In a previous issue of Cosplay Live (2 years ago almost to the month) we spoke to Harley’s Joker, a brilliant designer, photographer and Joker themed cosplayer who goes to incredible lengths to create art that shines in the world of cosplay. If you’ve ever thought about undertaking a cosplay project that is complex but ulitmately worth it, this is the artist to follow. We caught up with him recently on his latest project... Your latest project is a wonderful tribute to the original, did you do the graphic art too? Of course I did, and thank you very much. I’m extremely protective (and a bit obsessive) of my projects, and typically wouldn’t feel comfortable letting anyone else handle them. If it’s something I put out there, well over 90% of the time I’m the one behind the whole thing. I think my obsession over details simply comes out of the premise I apply to these projects, which is “if this were real, and a camera was simply there to capture this moment, what would it look like?”. I want the pieces to feel as if the original comic book art to which I am paying tribute is actually a drawing based on this photograph, instead of the reality which is the other way around. I hope that made sense. You’re doing brilliant and complicated art projects, does that cut into the time you’d perhaps spend at Cons? Not at all. Keep in mind none of this is employment - these are all just different hobbies that occur in my spare time. Let’s talk design for a minute - the comic covers - how long does it take to do one? Every project is different in terms of scope and time, though each is approached the same way. I ap-
proach them a bit like film making. Most of your time is spent in development and pre-production. A very small, dense, but occasionally costly amount of time is spent in production (shooting the material). Lastly a large chunk of time is spent in post-production, editing. Recreating “The Killing Joke” cover took a couple weeks. “Trophies” took about a month. “Five-Way Revenge” took over three months, primarily because I had never done any sort of 3D design before, so I had to teach myself as I went along, running in to MANY roadblocks and speed-bumps along the way. How do you source the additional graphics such as fonts and images? There’s no sourcing going on, I want to create everything from scratch. That’s why I photograph as much as possible. In “Five-Way Tribute” I photographed the Joker, Batman, the playing card, the sky, phosphorus streetlamp lens flares, automobile tail lights & headlights, and even bits of graffiti. If you look VERY closely you can even see a poster on the side of one of the buildings for “Amusement Mile in Old Gotham”, styled like a vintage circus poster complete with a clown painted on it. I actually painted that with watercolor, scanned it in and shrank it down. However I will confess to using some stock images for things like asphalt and concrete textures. And all the fonts in this image aren’t “fonts” technically, they’re illustrated letter by letter, just as Neal Adams himself did when he drew the original in 1973. I used to do playbills for theaters and would do all the lettering by hand. I even worked for a while when I was much younger at a Trader Joe’s as the store artist creating the signs. The truth is I’ve been drawing since toddlerhood. Art and design come very naturally to me. This isn’t to say that they’re easy tasks that don’t require a lot of effort, simply that given enough time
and focus I’m determined to achieve it “baking from scratch”. For readers who didn’t read our first interview 2 years ago - tell us how you got started in cosplay and cosplay art creation and where does your partner Joker’s Harley fit in? Cosplay happened sort of by accident for me. Halloween was always my favorite holiday, and (to make a very long story quite short) I spent about a year off and on working on a Joker costume intended for Halloween. I decided instead to wear it to San Diego Comic Con in 2012, and the internet went kaboom. The art pieces were a natural way for me to connect my lifelong passion of art and photography to something else I love that had developed an online following: the cosplay. Joker’s Harley (or “Alyssa” as I’ve always known her) is not only my partner in costume, but in life. We’ve been in love for five years now and counting. She is a very talented artist and designer in her own right and we really have found a great way to support each others projects. I know I can always trust her eye on something, and I’m fairly certain she feels the same way about me. Ok, a bit of a personal question if I may, when I’m working on photography post processing I usually have headphones on and blast music, what do you do? Also what equipment are you working with? Some of those projects would be memory intensive so I’m guessing you’ve got some sort of system that can handle moving all those pixels around? I will usually listen to music. Often if I’m editing I’m home alone, so no need for the headphones. Until recently I have been using the same computer since 2009. However this Christmas I got myself a new present: debt. I applied for a credit card, discovered I have a dangerously 7
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high credit score and was given far too much spending freedom, and am now the proud owner of a total beast of a machine. To be fair, I do a decent bit of video editing and effects work as well, nowadays usually in 4k resolution, so I need it. I’ve got 64GB of ram, an 8GB Nvidia Quadro graphics card made specifically for graphics rendering, and an 8 core liquid cooled Intel processor. And, again, a lot of debt. What’s next in the immediate future and for the rest of 2017? I actually make my living as an actor. It’s my greatest passion. I’m still climbing the entertainment ladder, one slow passing rung at a time. No one knows what the future holds, we’ll just have to keep out eyes open. Your artwork is now available to buy, where can our readers go to buy and view your work? harleysjokerart.storenvy.com
Editor’s note: If you’re serious about Cosplay - this is one of those artists you simply must follow. His dedication to his craft is second to none. Go here - like and follow... www.facebook.com/HarleysJoker
See next page for final image!
ONLINE:
www.facebook.com/HarleysJoker harleysjokerart.storenvy.com 9
The original inspiration and Harley’s Joker’s tribute - right.
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Ireland Reid’s bio says: “I truly believe in following your dreams and that anything you want to do is possible. I love being a positive influence and making this world a better place.”
One thing you talk about is making the world a better place through cosplay, it’s a wonderful passion, tell us about that. Cosplay is a person’s interpretation of how they view their favorite characters from a particular fandom or fandoms.
We just had to interview her... Hey Ireland, please tell us a bit about yourself, how you got into acting/cosplay and where you are based. Hi! My name is Ireland Reid and I currently live in Southern California in the USA. I have personally been involved in the cosplay community for about 4 years now. Before being personally involved, in wearing my own creations, doing online tutorials and workshops, I worked on commissions for years for others in the community or other communities involving costumes. I have a background in 9 years in school/community theater along with mechanical engineering work experience. I am currently enrolled in my PhD program for Business Management. Outside of all this, I am a fitness enthusiast, and love reading Sci-fi books. 12
I love being able to have not only the opportunity to create exotic & heavily detailed cosplay pieces, but being able to meet people all over the world who are into the same thing. Cosplay is like this worldwide community of amazing people, that thrive on art and personal expression within one another. It’s such a beautiful thing to see firsthand in person to be honest. I always try to be that positive light in the community, pushing that cosplay can be for everyone. You travel a lot for cosplay and events, what’s been some of the highlights? The biggest highlight is getting to be able to travel all over the world, meeting everyone & experiencing all new places & cultures. It is something that is pretty dear to me and I never take one second of it for granted. I love
diving into learning about new cultures and I love meeting new people. What’s coming up in 2017? This year I am doing something a little bit different then I have done in the past few years. I am not traveling so much, but focusing on content more heavily for all my social media outlets. It will be more content as far as adding more cosplay videos and cosplay related education pieces to my YouTube channel. I will also be filming crafting and tutorials live via Twitch Creative, all the way to making more elaborate costumes to showcase my style of art & engineering. I have a few other things outside of the cosplay community which I am getting involved in, still in the spotlight per say, but they are pretty big projects. I will release more information when I can about them, but I am beyond excited to be part of them. Tell us about your favourite cosplays. Every cosplay build that I create, to be honest, is a love and hate feeling towards it. I challenge myself in different
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areas with each build, from overall design to time & costs involved. I try to always find the best way in both quality and longevity with all builds. Then I take what I have learned, and turn it into tutorial videos for others. This includes the horrible things that went wrong, to what is the best bang for your buck wise, and so forth. It’s all about growing together as a community and that is the part I love the most. You’ve got a huge following on Instagram and you’re also on Youtube, what sort of videos are you doing and do you have some advice for new cosplayers getting started in social media? I am always looking for ways to reach out to my following and connect with them more and more. I actually covered this part with some tips & tricks for building a social media based brand on my YouTube channel. I do this mini-series on there, where I break down little parts for someone, if they are interested in taking their craft from a hobby to a profession. One of the parts I break down is social media, from what social media outlets you need to get exposure in, to creating a uniform image of your name, (or brand in this case), and more. Who inspires you ? My mother. She is my hero and why I have the drive/motivation I have every day to push all limits within myself. I am extremely blessed to have her in my life. She taught me at an early age that if you want something in life, you have to work hard for it. Finally where can our readers go to find out more about you? I will admit that due to the nature of modern day social media, I am pretty much everywhere to be honest. I’ve created a “central hub” for all social media, cosplay tutorial videos, my blogs and much more just to help avoid confusion. You guys can find everything at www.irelandreid.com.
ONLINE:
www.facebook.com/OfficialIrelandReid www.irelandreid.com www.twitter.com/irelandreid www.instagram.com/irelandreid www.youtube.com/irelandreid27 15
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www.facebook.com/abbypeeofficial
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The amazing Abby holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Visual & Performing Arts, and a first degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do. She hopes to use her talents to contribute a little something to this world... Hi Abby and welcome to Live Magazine and also Cosplay Live. Can you give us a bit of background on yourself? Thank you so much for having me! I’ve been in the cosplay game for a while but this is actually my first cosplay interview in a magazine so I’m really excited and honored to be a part of your publications. Really appreciate what Live Magazine and Cosplay Live is doing for cosplayers and the community! As for my background, I’m originally from Southern California in the U.S. where I grew up doing a lot of random hobbies other than cosplay. I grew up with strict parents so I guess I had to find my own ways to keep myself entertained at home. Once I got into cosplay, there was just nothing else like it and my passion for it grew and grew, simply becoming a part of who I was and am today. Along with cosplay, I run my own blog and two Youtube channels while also working full-time here in South Korea where I currently reside. Looking at what you do, you must be so busy. You’re a member of Honey Toast Cosplay - what does that entail? Honey Toast Cosplay consists of my good friends and I, and what it entails is simply the opportunity to be closer in the things we love: video games, anime, manga, cosplay, and more. We excitedly fangirl over things together, or plan out future cosplays and cons. We haven’t had much cosplay activity as a group recently because each member is busy saving animals as a vet tech, going to pharmacy school, or teaching English to school children in Japan and South Korea. Since Honey Toast Cosplay is
something that is completely for fun, we freely and happily try to live our own lives and also come together to work on cosplays or attend cons together whenever we can. It’s always good to know we’ll have that special group of friends we can turn to and still talk to on the daily, and I love and appreciate my girls Ash, Moni, and Amelia so much for that. Hopefully we can show the world more of Honey Toast Cosplay in the future! Also, you’re a cosplay ambassador for Kpop College - tell us about that too and also Andong in South Korea. I am that Honey Toast Cosplay member I mentioned in the previous answer who is currently teaching English in South Korea! With this job and living in another country, I’ve fortunately had quite a bit of free time to be able to continue pursuing my own passions and more. This includes starting a vlog channel on Youtube to share my experiences. And somehow, I also became the cosplay ambassador for Kpop College and an honorary ambassador for Andong, the city I’m living in here in South Korea. As a cosplay ambassador, I work closely with Kpop College thinking of ideas and carrying those out in order to create more interest and participation in cosplay, as well as share about the cosplay and con scene here in South Korea. And living here in Andong has been great because it’s a very comfortable city where I’ve made lots of memories. Andong is known as the capital city of Korean spiritual culture! If you ever visit South Korea, be sure to let me know and I’ll gladly share more about my city! Now if that isn’t enough, you’re also into Parkour which stems from your interest in Mirror’s Edge right? Yes, haha! I got really into parkour a number of years back which did stem from Mirror’s Edge. That game is still one of my favorites for its sleek aesthetic and gameplay, and I
love Faith’s character so much. With parkour, besides the obvious fact that it just looks so bloody cool, it feels amazing when you’re finally able to perfectly land a move you’ve been working so long on. It’s also a great physical workout and you gain stamina and skills that are definitely useful for something like a zombie apocalypse, duh. But first and foremost, parkour has always been a freeing discipline for both body and mind. It’s scary to try something we’ve never done before - jumping over a huge gap or clearing a high wall. But as we train, practice, and build confidence, we can eventually make it over to the other side. That same philosophy can be used in life. Sadly though, my knees haven’t been in the best shape as the years have gone by, so I haven’t trained in forever! You’re living in South Korea but are from the U.S. - how did you and why did you move? (As in, how does a person get resident status in South Korea?) I have a work visa! It was a really long process, and there was so much paperwork and documents involved, but all was made possible through the teaching program I came through. As for why - I’ve always wanted to try living and working in another country (South Korea, especially!) as a challenge and new adventure, and being able to do so by teaching kids has been so fulfilling. Ok so on to cosplay, tell us how you got into cosplay and what your first cosplays were... I think I was in high school - I came across cosplay photos online and just thought it was the coolest thing. I think it also stemmed from me just loving the characters in a game I played or an anime I watched SO much that I wanted to literally be that character myself. So I knew I 21
Andrew Pandes: www.andrewpandes.com
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had to try cosplay eventually. My first cosplays were at my first cons: Tifa Lockhart from Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, Haruhi Suzumiya from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, and I think Misa Amane from Death Note. Do you make your costumes and what’s been your most difficult cosplay? In my earliest years of cosplay, I didn’t even know how to sew or make props, so I would commission outfits or customize and put pieces together, in addition to buying wigs or any other necessary accessories. For many years now though, I’ve learned to sew entire costumes and create any accompanying props or accessories. Making my own costumes is always exhausting or stressful when there’s a time limit for a con or photoshoot, but I love taking that opportunity to give all of my love and hard work into something I care so much about, and then wearing the final product. I’d say the most difficult cosplay so far has been my Crimson Akali (League of Legends) because of all the components and details, which also makes it the one I’m still most proud of so far. Who inspires you in life and in cosplay? In life, I’m inspired by my parents and pretty much anything around me music, other artists, even the other teachers I work with and the kids I teach. In my earlier cosplay days, I remember being inspired by Li Kovacs aka “PikminLink”, Jin Joson aka “behindinfinity”, and the Japanese cosplayer Kipi. I’m also inspired by my fellow cosplayer friends and seeing other cosplayers at cons just having a fun time.
You run a successful blog and social media sites - do you have some tips to share with new cosplayers wanting to do the same?
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Sure! I guess for starters, think of a fun name you’d like others to know you as.
For me, I started off with the online alias “hellozombie”, which is the username I used for my deviantart.com account and cosplay.com account, and then later, my blog. It was really strange but funny when I’d hear random people yell “ARE YOU HELLOZOMBIE?!” at cons, haha! So I just went with that for a while. A major tip I have though, is to stay true to yourself and to your art. For me, cosplay has always existed as a fun, creative outlet where I can also utilize the things I’ve learned from the random hobbies I grew up doing (they turned out useful after all, yay!), to my skills as an artist, martial artist, and lover of music, singing, dance, and performance, all the while paying tribute to a character I love so much. That genuineness will show on your blog and social media sites if you stay true to your passion! Stay humble, be kind, maybe study a bit of design, HTML, and CSS (or get a friend to help you), and most importantly, have fun! Some fun questions -
Tell us 3 things you can’t live without Food, sleep, music Tell us 3 movies you just love Titanic, 500 Days of Summer, Princess Mononoke 3 Books you just love Harry Potter (all of them count as one), Life of Pi, The Architecture of Happiness
Stay true to yourself and to your
” art
Thanks so much for being part of this issue - can you let our readers know where they can go to find out more about you? Blog: abbypblog.tumblr.com facebook.com/abbypeeofficial youtube.com/byebyezombie Email: official.abbypee@gmail.com Thank you again for having me! Really enjoyed the interview, more power to Live Magazine and Cosplay Live, and much love to all my fellow cosplayers out there! ‘Til next time!
ONLINE:
www.abbypblog.tumblr.com www.facebook.com/abbypeeofficial www.youtube.com/byebyezombie 23
Marvin K. Sola: www.facebook.com/MKSolaPhotography
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Priscilla Vesper: www.facebook.com/priscillavesper
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Jim Lee: jimleephotography.zenfolio.com
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Shaun Anderson: shaunandersonphotos.wordpress.com
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Jim Lee: jimleephotography.zenfolio.com
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One of the best things about publishing a cosplay magazine is talking to both established cosplayers and those who are fairly new to it. Today we spoke to someone we admire for their honesty and passion... hello Suddenly Green, Tell us about yourself - where you’re based and how you got into cosplay. I’m an Adelaide based cosplayer who, as a child, always had a love for costumes and dressing up. Cosplaying as specific characters started for me as something I did at home with friends or at theme parties. My public Instagram account began getting popular for my gaming content and unique personality, and when I started posting photos of my cosplays, I received overwhelmingly positive support. I have only started cosplaying publically at conventions over the past year, and the community has been so friendly, welcoming and supportive that I wish I had started sooner!
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What are your favourite cosplay characters, and why? I’m drawn to characters that are of a stark contrast to my own personality. I love the crazy obsessiveness of Harley Quinn, the psychopathic Joker or the seductive sultry Poison Ivy. I love to cosplay characters that allow me to experience something new, or become a person I would otherwise never become. Being in Adelaide, do you go to any of the cons that are on during the year? Absolutely! This year I’ll be at Oz Comic Con, AVCon and Supanova in Adelaide and I may even make it to PAX in Melbourne and Supanova in Sydney. You’ve got a large Instagram following, do you have tips for new models or cosplayers just starting out?
Social Media is about engagement. I always engage with my audience. My online friends and followers are real people and I’m very aware of that. I always do my best to interact with people on a personal level. Your content should also be clear and concise. I try to stick to only a few subject matters, that way I can properly cater to my audience. Ok change of direction - who inspires you? My cosplay idol has always been Jessica Nigri and I was so grateful to meet her when I attended Tampa Bay Comic Con in 2016. She has always shown her true self and can be silly and poke fun at herself without worrying who will freezeframe on an awkward facial expression (in fact, she encourages it!) and I can really relate to that. Jessica shows brilliant craftsmanship with her work and has so many incredible talents. Plus, she touched my butt... What’s not to love?!
Steamkittens: www.facebook.com/steamkittens
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Sean Pualic Photography: www.facebook.com/shoottothrillbyseanpualic
What are you reading, watching? Right now, I’m reading these interview questions and watching my tray of chocolate truffles disappear before my eyes. Oh, you meant geek related! I’m rewatching Attack on Titan in anticipation of Season 2 and actually on the hunt for some new Anime’s to get hooked on. Recommendations appreciated! What 5 things would you take to an island? Chocolate, chocolate, Jason Momoa, more chocolate and... My filtered water bottle. Finally where can our readers go to find out more? @suddenlygreen on Instagram and Snapchat or people can follow my new Facebook page specifically for my cosplays www.facebook.com/ suddenlygreencosplay
ONLINE: www.instagram.com/suddenlygreen www.facebook.com/suddenlygreencosplay
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SFX Images: www.facebook.com/SFXImages
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First up - tell us a bit about you. Where you live and what you do. Hello. My name is Tatiana DeKhtyar and I am an actress/model/ producer/cosplayer from Los Angeles ca. You’ve got a huge resume of skills - how did you learn all that and did it take long?
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I do enjoy expressing myself in various ways and utilizing different creative outlets. Most of my skills I just picked up naturally at first, due to having a predesposition to such. However, once I got in too deep - I educated myself to take my skills to the next level. Most of my skills I learned and perfected on the job. So technically I got paid for learning them, which is awesome. Some of the things that I have done include, but not limited to: photography, makeup, wardrobe styling, graphic design, most, stunts, acting, modeling (yes, it is a skill, it is not enough to look pretty in front of the camera, there is a lot more to it than meets the eye... ), and of
course among honorable mentions I could list a few funny hobbies, such as writing poetry, songwriting, singing, cosplay, dancing, martial arts, cooking (occasionally these days, but I had a phase when it was a “thing” hahaha), drawing and painting, handling various weapons and massage and healing techniques. And the list goes on... but I think we will stop here for now.
a lead part in an indie film and I booked it right away. Since then I had added a several TV shows, Feature films, award-winning Short films, best actress nominations, viral web-show appearances, national commercials to my acting resume. And now I am ready for the next round. I am very excited to see what this year has to offer. There sis only one rule: once you set sails - never give up !
Tell us about getting into movies/ TV - is that difficult and what was it that got you started?
What’s been your favorite role so far?
Embarking on any new journey is difficult at first. But perseverance and determination work wonders. If one is loyal to their dreams and is persistent in the pursuit of their goals - they will succeed. There is a will - there is a way. Just find out what is it that you want to do and keep moving towards that goal. I started getting into the TV SHOWS and FILM through my modeling career. And eventually transitioned into acting. It went well for me right away. The very first audition I went to was for
Oh goodness, it’s hard to pick a favorite... Each one of them means so much... There is a whole world around and within each character I portray and I am a traveller and adventurer at heart, so I love exploring those new realms .... If I had to choose my favorite, I would have to go with Wonder Woman that I portrayed for the “SUPER POWER BEAT DOWN”. Never thought we had so much in common until I have done my research... What a remarkable character she is! So many amaz-
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ing traits... Larger than life and yet still so relatable. I wouldn’t mind exploring her further and in more depth... I do hope that I will get to cross paths with her in another project in the future. What about coming up in 2017, anything you’d like to share? 2017 is shaping up to be a great year so far. There are a few new projects cooking in the oven that I am not yet at the liberty to discuss, but I will mention a few: “Bat in the sun” studios has teamed up with “VALIANT’ entertainment to deliver an amazing new web series “NINJAK VS THE VALIANT UNIVERSE” that is coming out in 2017. I had portrayed the role of Colonel Capshaw in I this project and while not giving away to much, I ca tell you that this action packed new super hero web show will definitely satisfy your craving for some intense awesomeness ! Featuring such amazing actors as Jason David Frank, John Hennigan, Kevin Porter, Mike Rowe and Derek Theler, among many others, it really does deliver some amazing action going hand to had with great acting and, of course, the greatness that is “Bat in the sun” production studio work ! These guys always deliver amazing stuff! Another project I am excited to see grow rapidly is one that I happen to be a co-creator of, which you may already know of as it has been aggressively winning the hearts of the geek communi40
ty: “HEROES WITH ISSUES”, the web show that puts Heroes and Villains alike on the shrink’s couch and makes them work through their problems... We have a lot of new episodes lined up and you will see more of me and our other core cast members in the upcoming episodes in 2017. Aside from that and a few other projects I can’t yet mention, there is one more that I am looking forward to, which is “Tales of the Frankenstein” feature film that consists of three parts in one of which I played the wife of Professor Frankenstein portrayed by the amazing Len Wein that most of you may know as the creator of the original X-men (Storm, Colossus, Nightcrawler, Wolverine and many others). Working with the director Donald Glut and my amazing scene partner Len Wein was simply a dream come true! One of the most wonderful experiences I had on set to this date! Some of your photos are in costume - have you done cosplay at events or is it mainly modelling shots for editorials? I love doing cosplay. It is one of my favorite things to do. So if you ask me. - I would do grocery shopping in a superhero outfit (which I have, so check that off my bucket list lol). I managed to incorporate a lot of it into my career and have done appearances in costume at various conventions, even though I was listed as an actress... I just love to play dress up!
YOLO! Gotta do what makes you happy... And I do a lot of modeling shots, creating cosplay artwork and filmed a bunch of projects that are superhero related. Any advice for people starting out in this sort of career direction? Absolutely! If you have chosen acting as your path - you must remain adamant about it. There is no place for doubt, once the decision is made. Get on the path and stay on the path! Learn, strive for higher levels of accomplishment and achievement! Work hard. Never stop. It is the only way. All in or all out. Give it your best shot. Repeatedly. Success will come. Finally where can our readers find out more about you? You are welcome to visit my website: TATIANADEKHTYAR.COM As well as follow my social media: facebook.com/tatianadekhtya Instagram: @tatiana_dekhtyar twitter.com/tatianadekhtyar patreon.com/tatianadekhtyar youtube.com/tatianadekhtyar I am very grateful for all the blessings that I was granted in my life and am looking forward to what future holds. Wishing everyone a blissful, joyful, fortunate and prosperous new year!
Photo by Aaron Schoenke (IG: @batinthesun) ; Edit: QPQ STUDIO (IG: @qpqstudio)
ONLINE:
www.tatianadekhtyar.com www.facebook.com/tatianadekhtyar instagram: @tatiana_dekhtyar
www.twitter.com/tatianadekhtyar www.patreon.com/tatianadekhtyar www.youtube.com/tatianadekhtyar 41
Photo by Aaron Schoenke (IG: @batinthesun) ; Edit: QPQ STUDIO (IG: @qpqstudio) 42
Photo by Aaron Schoenke (IG: @batinthesun) ; Edit: QPQ STUDIO (IG: @qpqstudio)
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Photo by Nelson Seralbo (IG: @ nels._ )
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Welcome to Live Skyler Jean! Can you tell us a bit about yourself and where you’re based. In my free time I love to play video games and work on new cosplay ideas. I also volunteer at a Humane Society where I help cats get adopted. I love volunteering for non profit organizations and doing things to help improve the community. Growing up I was very much of a tom boy, loving superheros and comic books. I also grew up around mostly boys; one of which was my brother who is 5 years older then me. He introduced to me video games at a very young age and never let me win or went easy on me. This made me try even harder to become better then him.I was born and raised in California (in San Diego County). I am now working towards a degree in hospitality and management. How did you get into cosplay and when was that?
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Most girl’s fairy tales are about a princess finding her prince, yet mine where about superheros and characters in games coming to life. Later on I discovered cosplaying and I had always wanted to try it. A little over a year
ago I had finally created my first cosplay. Do you visit cons and what’s been your favorite so far? I love to visit as many conventions as I can. My favorite so far has been Nerdcon 2016. It was a smaller convention but I loved how nice and interactive everyone was. Speaking of favourites - what’s been your favourite cosplay? Based of off the character I would have to say Samus, but if we are going off of comfort it would be Supergirl. Plus the cape was fun to take photos with. Who inspires you? Honestly meeting genuine people in the cosplay community and seeing how much they love what they do really inspires me. Even meeting children that are so excited to see a character makes me want to go to even more conventions and make new outfits. What cosplay’s are you working on next? That is top secret information. ;) I am currently working on several different cosplays.
Do you have some tips for new cosplayers attending their first con? I would say definitely go with someone who you are comfortable with (like a friend or family member). Also the night before think up some poses and practice them in front of a mirror so you see what you would like in photos. It doesn’t matter how many photos are taken of you or if any are taken of you. Just remember to have fun and make friends with like minded people. Ok, 5 quick questions for fun: 1 - Who would you love to sit and have dinner with - past or present? My best friend because she will never judge me for what I eat. 2 - Your heading off into space for a year long journey - what book, movie and music do you take? For a book I would say Harry Potter because I have never had the time to read it. The movie would be ether Pirates of the Caribbean or Grease. The music would defiantly be any of Michael Jackson’s albums. 3 - What sci fi character would you love to be? If it had to be a girl then Princess Leia, but if I could I would be Han Solo. I most relate to him.
Brian Calilung | www.instagram.com/briancalilung
4 - What super power would you wish for if you could have just one? Shape shifting would be the best. 5 - You’re going on holiday - what destination would you choose if money were no object? I have always wanted to go to the U.K.
Finally where can our readers go to find out more about you? I have an Instagram which is: Skylerjeancosplay I will soon be making a facebook page for my cosplay.
ONLINE: www.instagram/skylerjeancosplay
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Brian Calilung | www.instagram.com/briancalilung
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Brian Calilung | www.instagram.com/briancalilung
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ROLLERSON
Harley Quinn (Suicide Squad) by Nicolette Fornasari
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PHOTOGRAPHER
MIKE
Mike Rollerson is a long time favourite of ours. If you browse his portfolio, like the one on Flickr you’ll see a consistancy in his work. The style remains true to his vision and the processing is just right. Never too much or under done. His photography and particularly for us, his cosplay photography shows a real dedication to the artform. We do our best to catch up with Mike a couple of times a year and find out what’s happening in his world all the way over in San Diego...
camera and lighting systems and these should give a great opportunity to put them to use! Also how’s the Polaroid project going? Besides the digital work, I’ve been pushing forward with shooting instant films (Instax Mini and Instax Wide) on a regular basis. I tend to take a couple instant cameras along with me to shoots and events as
they provide such a unique look from the digital files; I’ve built up a small collection of cameras (and large collection of film!) this year and still use them all multiple times per week. Having a one-of-a-kind shot is very neat and I’m hoping to put these together as part of a larger project later this year. Knowing the limitations and unique benefits of each camera (such as being able to sync with studio lights) can give some really great results!
Mike, what have you been doing recently and what’s next for you? Over the past 6 months I’ve had the opportunity to work on a lot of really fun projects and can’t wait to share some of the upcoming content. I’m a big horror fan, so September and October were filled with shooting haunted houses during the week, some horror cosplay on the weekends and getting into a bit of video work. Shooting video has been a really interesting change, but a lot of fun. I won’t be giving up photography for it, but with most DSLR’s able to shoot some very high quality video, it’s a lot of fun to add on to any project! Most recently I’ve had the opportunity to work with a steampunk-themed circus, covering their 2017 production for the past few months and I’ve been having a blast with it! The event mixes some of my favorite things (event photography, cosplay and special effects) into a really fun show. Right now is the start of the “Convention Season” with lots of local Comic, Video game and Anime events coming up over the next few months. I recently upgraded my
ONLINE:
www.facebook.com/MikeRollersonPhotography
www.mikerollerson.com
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Catwoman by Sarah B
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Hotline Miami by Kawaii Queenyan
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Loki by Loki Hates You
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Mad Moxxi by Enasni Volz
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Mariachi Samurai by Luis Projects
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Vanellope Von Schweetz by Dumbfounded Duo
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Grab your Pop Club from your local store & receive your 12th Pop! FREE! 67
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A while back Live Magazine spoke to Hiryuu, an Australian photographer with a nice cosplay portfolio. We asked Hiryuu what’s been happening and what’s next... What was your favourite shoot from last year? One of my favourite cosplay shoots for 2016 was shooting in Malaysia at a cosplay studio called Cupcat Studio. The studio had multiple amazing theme rooms to fit different types of cosplays. I was lucky enough to use it and shoot alongside cosplayer ‘Moko’: www.facebook.com/moko63cos and photographer ‘Annahem Photography’: www.facebook.com/annahem.photography
Some photos from me that I took at the studio are here: facebook.com/pg/hiryuucos/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1196717030414016
and facebook.com/pg/hiryuucos/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1195341290551590
What are you looking forward to in 2017? The most thing that I will be looking forward to in 2017 is going over to Singapore and attend Anime Festival Asia 2017. Check out Hiryuu’s work on Instagram: www.instagram.com/hiryuux/ and also on World Cosplay site here: worldcosplay.net/member/hiryuucos
ONLINE:
www.instagram.com/hiryuux worldcosplay.net/member/hiryuucos
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At every con you can see them doing the dance. Cosplayers and photographers mixing, sometimes awkwardly and sometimes not. The newbies are the most hesitant at the dance. They can be nervous at first. Will there be rejection? Is he (or she) a creepy photographer or, on the other side of the fence, a cosplayer who simply wants to be the centre of attention, look at me and take my picture damn it! I worked hard on this costume! Now before you head out to the shed and find your pitch forks and light up those torches to come hunting for me and call me a heretic or something similar, let me explain. First up not everyone is like that - of course... The great majority of cosplayers and photographers I’ve met are artists who love what they do. They mix well and, as I said, the “dance” together just fine. The cosplayer works hard on their costume and when they turn up for XYZ Con, they love to meet up with photographers and, other cosplayers and have a great time. Yes, they do want to show off their costume. Who wouldn’t. After spending months, creating their costume, they want it to be appreciated by their peers and by fans. Photographers too should be respected for their hard work. They buy expensive equipment and spend a lifetime learning the craft of photography. Believe me it’s not a thing you do a couple of Youtube videos and you’re now an expert. It takes time to learn about light, posing, composition and relationships and that’s all before you download a single frame onto your computer for post processing. So we have a perfect mix in many ways. Those who love to be photographed in costumes that let the photographer either capture a nice portrait of a cosplayer who stops and poses or, if both are wanting a more involved, 70
COSPLAY
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a more creative photograph, they can spend time working together on a photo that tells the story of the character.
But back to the newer cosplayers and photographers. Sure it’s a journey, you learn your craft, learn to use materials to create, learn to use your camera to create, your computer or tablet to process. The cosplayers and photographers as they grow make decisions about themselves. Where am I going with this? You create a social media profile and pages or sites to share your art. You develop your brand in the same way celebrities create and work on their brand. Think of Justin Bieber or Beyonce or Rhianna or, Miley Cyrus, all very different people with different personality types and I bet as you read each name you probably had a mental picture of them that represented who they are. Cosplayers and cosplay photographers are kind of the same. Think of the best cosplayers on the planet, who do you think of? Do you think of Yaya Han or Jessica Nigri or perhaps Spiral Cats? It doesn’t matter, they all have their own brand. And that brings me to the point of this article. Once you have your brand worked out, what next?
Is cosplay or cosplay photography a career choice, a hobby, an artistic passion? We decided to ask a few cosplayers and photographers what they think...
Interview & Story by: Rob Jenkins Charlotte Nicholson
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AY FOR CASH Tell us about yourself... I’m a semi-professional cosplayer and host. How often are you cosplaying? Depending on the time of year I am usually shooting cosplay at least once a month. Sometimes I have multiple shoots in a month and sometimes I go a month or two without shooting. I usually attend around four conventions a year but now that I’m the Championships of Cosplay host I will be attending upwards of seven a year.
tending conventions multiple times a month and working on a number of different projects almost constantly. I believe there is the possibility of a part time income if you’re good at what you do and have an interested following, but it’s not easy and requires plenty of dedication.
www.facebook.com/JusZcosplay
Do you think there is a career opportunity in cosplay? I think cosplay as a career is comparable to a lot of artistic endeavours and even modelling: if the opportunities are there and you can be selected for them, then there is a possibility to make an income from it. Similar to art and modelling it relies on a combination of what people like, what is currently popular and your abilities and personality. All those factors make it very difficult to have a steady income stream from cosplay and it’s why the most successful cosplayers are at-
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(Our favourite master of horror - photographer) Hey Mike tell us how you got into cosplay photography. Cosplay Photography has always interested me since it’s so different from the “traditional” genre’s out there. I was never interested in landscapes, weddings or headshots since there were generally rules on how shots needed to look and which shots you needed to get for clients. With Cosplay there was a lot more freedom and art involved. You have really interesting costumes, makeup and get to go all-out on photoshoots. Whether it’s in a grungy alleyway, shot at night with bright neon lights and fog machines or using effects to re-create your own “silent hill”, it’s always been a lot more enjoyable for me. Can you make money from cosplay photography? There are definitely ways to make money with cosplay photography (whether it’s doing paid photoshoots, selling prints or through outlets such as Patreon). I prefer to look at it as more of a hobby and focus on event photography as my main source of paid photography. Most cosplayers are in it for a hobby and it gives great opportunities to both them and the photographers to collaborate and create some great content. I do have some cosplay-themed
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clients who I regularly work with (typically shooting promotional photos for events and advertisements) but those are generally businesses rather than individuals. I think with how common photography has become over the last few years, it would be very hard to make a living off cosplay photography alone.. but it would make a great addition for photographers willing to focus on other, more traditiona areas (portraits, events, weddings and headshots).
www.facebook.com/MikeRollersonPhotography
Tell us about yourself... I’m Tiffany Dean Cosplay and am a cosplayer :). I’ve not been doing it regularly for long (maybe 2-3 years). I have started dabbling a tiny bit in editing photos though too.. How often are you cosplaying? I cosplay pretty frequently (outside of full time work lol). I don’t shoot as often as I like but it’s normally due to the fact I’m crafting almost every day and photographer availability is super limited here in little ole Adelaide! Do you think there is a career opportunity in cosplay? I think there is but not readily in Australia yet. I think it’s very limited and currently not a realistic career goal as it’s so difficult. Facebook likes at the moment still seem to be what people judge work by before quality, so unfortunately if your name isn’t ‘out there’ it can be extremely difficult to find ways to start earning money through it. That’s not to say it’s impossible though! Things such as Patreon are becoming more popular, and for some people it can be a great income bringer... I think with cosplay it’s more viable as a career if you have more to offer e.g. You write books (e.g. Tutorial ones), or you have a strong YouTube following etc.
www.facebook.com/TiffanyDeanCosplay
Overseas (especially America) it seems more people are able to begin making careers through cosplay, so hopefully it continues gaining popularity so people can turn their passion into a career they love...
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Tell us about yourself... My name is Adem and I do photography, videography and cosplay. My first cosplay was at AVCon 2007 as Black Haired Demyx. My business Partner Carl and I started JATSTV in March 2014. Originally it was meant to be a tech and gaming news channel and figured we would debut at Oz Comic Con Adelaide, the video we took instead turned into a Cosplay Music Video. We got a very positive reaction to our video and have since done a couple a year. How often are you shooting cosplay? Ideally I try and aim to cosplay at least one costume and record a Cosplay Music Video per convention. Photography is subject to availability but would like to aim to have at least a shoot per month. Do you think there is a career opportunity in cosplay... to make it either a part time or full time income? For a cosplayer, this is an interesting question and something that seems possible recently, thanks to a rise of
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developer and publisher commission requests. I personally believe, much like someone who is trying to become big as a videogame streamer, needs to put a lot of work into self-promotion. Staying active in the community and always uploading new content regularly, adapting to hype and trends is a great way to get noticed. With that being said, could you make full or part time income? I don’t personally believe so without assistance by a 3rd party service, such as Patron. For a photographer or videographer, at conventions specifically, we volunteer our time to take photos and video footage and believe it’s a great place to market your services. Outside of conventions, you can offer more personalised experiences, such as on site and studio shoots. With that being said, could you make full or part time income? I believe you could but you may have a difficult time since, especially here in Adelaide, we have wonderful talented people who offer these services for free.
www.facebook.com/JATSTV
Tell us about yourself... My name is Houng from HoungT Costography, I am a cosplay photographer originally based in Adelaide, now living in Melbourne. I started doing cosplay photography when I attended my first convention in Adelaide (AVCON) in 2012 and have enjoyed every moment of it as it is not only a way of practicing our craft, but a good way to meet new people. How often are you cosplaying / shooting cosplay? I typically attend all of the local conventions in Adelaide including Oz Comic-con, AVCON and Supanova, and recently branched out interstate to Melbourne and Sydney cons such as
PAX and SMASH. Now that I’m living in Melbourne, I’m sure I’ll be attending most and some in Adelaide (if time permits). So you could say, I do shoot a lot of cosplay at conventions, as well as a handful of on location cosplay shoots as well, outside of conventions. On the flip side, I am also involved in other genres of photography including traditional portrait and event/weddings. Cosplay photography has not only helped me expand my portfolio but also provided me experience in shooting a different genre of photography and doesn’t necessarily follow the traditional stylings/rules as traditional photography. This is something I think all photographers should experience, as a way to inspire but also expand their creativity as artists. (And of course to have fun) Do you think there is a career opportunity in cosplay... to make it either a part time or full time income? In terms of cosplay or cosplay photography, I believe it is difficult to predict whether or not this career opportunity is a viable option for income. Although we have seen many cosplayers rise and become famous celebrities in the pop-culture world, I believe it is becoming increasingly difficult to reach that level of fame with the ever increasing restrictions to social media marketing and promotional methods. However, so long as you are committed, target the right audience and have a good solid foundation and understanding of your career/business, I believe anything is possible.
www.facebook.com/houngtcostography
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Tell us about yourself... My name is Chris and I am the photographer behind SFX Images, based in SA. I’ve been involved in cosplay photography since mid 2015. How often are you shooting cosplay? I attend all the main conventions in Adelaide. I’m yet to travel interstate to conventions but that is definitely one of my goals. I do private shoots with cosplayers on average about 2 to 3 shoots per month. Do you think there is a career opportunity in cosplay... to make it either a part time or full time income? Speaking from a photographers perspective I think it’s difficult, but not impossible. I’ve had plenty of people, cosplayers included, tell me I should charge, and that is my goal at some point. So I certainly think the opportunity to make a small part-time income is there, but I don’t imagine it being something that could support a family, at least not in SA. Other areas in photography would need to be the main source of income, or other work. There are many views out there about whether cosplay photographers should charge for their services or not. These views are different among the photographers as well as among cosplayers. Another roadblock I see to making cosplay photography a realis-
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tic income is the amount of work that can go into producing high quality images. My particular style often involves big edits and composites, some of which can easily reach 10 hours of editing on a single image, even longer in some cases. If you worked that out to make a wage, for a self employed person that works out to quite a high cost for just one photo. That’s just the editing. Planning, finding locations, cost of maintaining gear and the shoot itself all need to be considered. My hope is to be able to find a balance between cosplay photography and other types of photography in regards to making an income. I’m passionate about photography, and i’m passionate about supporting the cosplay community. I have a real fear that if I started to charge for cosplay photography, that people would stop asking for shoots. There are so many excellent photographers that don’t charge, it’s not a difficult leap to wonder, ‘why would you pay’. This makes taking the steps to making it a career extremely difficult.
www.facebook.com/SFXImages
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One thing I hear a lot is something like “My photos just don’t look like the ones I love online!” But first let’s back up a bit to what many people do. They get a camera, a lens or two and they go out and take some photos. Not all of us are gifted artists. Sure, some people can pick up a camera and within a few weeks or months they are making photos that make you want to sell your gear and take up something like sky diving without a parachute. But that’s a rare person, the majority of us tend to go through stages of learning to create photos we’re happy with. But there are a few things that can help on your journey, some tips to get you going and stop the frustration. These are from my personal experience that make up my 15 year journey of learning and running a large photo group in South Australia.
Lens choice.
The one thing that I’ve found changes the look of my photos more then just about anything is getting a good quality lens that give you great looking bokeh. Bokeh?? Ok that’s is the out of focus (the blur) area of the image. Bokeh is pronounced differently depending on who you ask. Jump online and do a search for Bokeh and you listen to the different ways people say it. But what is it... take a look at the first two images.
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The first photo of Melody holding a scarf in front of her face has a very soft background - It has nice “bokeh”... it’s soft and the focus is on her eyes. The lens I used was (if my memory serves me correctly) the Fuji 56mm F1.2 and I shot this at an aperture of just 1.2 This lens is what is called a fast lens - it lets in a lot of light, and has a thin depth of field so if you don’t get the focus just right you can miss the focus point and get a soft or out of focus image. The second photo is a black and white, again of Melody and I really didn’t do a good job. It has her sitting on a bench but because I probably used F5.6 or F8 we see much more of the background in focus. That in turn doesn’t really isolate her from the background and so, in my opinion, the photo doesn’t work. Too many things are fighting for my attention. So tip one - get a good lens that has some length and allows you to get good bokeh. This is a much deeper, and more complex subject then I can fit in a simple tip but if you want a great little video example check this one by Gavin Hoey... https://youtu.be/4zBfBDNyGpA For most photographers, a 50mm lens with an aperture of 1.4 or 1.8 is a good start to getting nice bokeh. The good old 50mm lens is usually quite affordable and is a must for those starting out.
Photo One
Photo Two
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In summary - have a fast lens like a 50mm 1.8 - but even better is an 85mm on a full frame camera with a 2.8 aperture. - Step back so that you are a bit of a distance then frame your subject with a wide aperture - like F2.8 or F4... that way you compress the background like the first picture.
Post Processing.
One thing I hear a lot in our photography group is that people want to learn Photoshop or Lightroom or something similar because they’ve got this amazing new camera but they don’t know (yet) how to use the software. But... take a photo with your smartphone and upload it to Instagram with a funky filter and it can look pretty cool, pretty simply. Filters can add a look to a photo, but they are limited. If you use Lightroom you have much more control and can create your own looks. In the series featuring Mats you’ll see a flat looking original. Plus a few versions using only Lightroom to play with some looks and finally one with 2 Photoshop actions plus some grain and light added. Now you might not like them - that’s fine. They are there to show some examples of how you can experiment with different post processing software to get different looks. While I was experimenting I took into consideration the retro look of Mat’s clothing and the era we were working on creating - a 60s look. So I “crushed” some of the blacks in some examples to get more of a washed out look. Again... personal preference.
Styling.
You’ve got your camera, you’ve got a friend to model, you’ve got a fab lens but have you thought through your photo? What are you trying to do or say? Are you wanting to create a vintage look? Maybe it’s a bit of glamour or if it’s cosplay, maybe you’re trying to create a look that matches the character. So styling and add to that, location are so important. If you’re doing pretty portraits of a friend then maybe she needs some make up and hair styling. If you’re doing a Batman themed cosplay shoot - maybe you want a Gotham city feel - so a dark and dingy alley way would suit? Do your research and plan your shoot and you’ll get photos that give you a good base to work with . Then you can create some looks using Lightroom or Photoshop.
The model.
You’re model or cosplayer needs to come to the party and pose appropriately for the look you want. Batman might not sit with his (her) legs crossed looking nice and feminine. He’s traditionally portrayed as strong and powerful. If you’re doing a pinup look, take a look at some of the old style pinup art and copy the poses. Your photo comes together in stages. It’s rare you whip out your iPhone and take a snap and it’s a portrait for the cover of Cosplay Live. Plan out each stage, work it through and don’t forget to get help and mentoring if you really want to grow. Photo groups and clubs are a great way to learn from people who’ve been in the same place you are now. Most of all - have fun. It’s a beautiful journey, sure, frustrating at times, but rewarding when you nail that photo!
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Below - different Lightroom adjustments to give retro or black and white styled image.
Original Photo
ONLINE:
www.facebook.com/robjenkinsphotography www.robjenkinsphoto.com 81
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