Experiencing Cosplay at the 2013 NC Comicon

Sometimes you find yourself driving back from the beach then heading to work, where you find out that something like the NC Comicon is going on in your hometown. Upon inquiring further, you might discover that even though you missed the first two days, there is a final day that involves a group photo of all the cosplayers, and some other stuff worth seeing–in other words, even though it’s the last day, there will still be a decent crowd. You might discover that you missed some of the cooler stormtroopers, or Bane, but then you might find that you have the Red Power Ranger posing, just for you, picturesquely in front of Durham’s fine Carolina Theatre.

Oh, that’s never happened to you? Well, maybe next time. It was the situation I found myself in, and knew that this was something I had to experience. If you know me, you know that I am a more-than-casual fan of the Marvel universe, of Star Trek, Star Wars, Batman, Spiderman, and that guy with the sonic screwdriver. I’m not a rabid fan–I was very clearly outplayed by very many of the folks present. Given a little more notice, I might have come better prepared with a costume or at least a nod to those who put in such an incredible amount of time and creativity to build a Dalek, a Samus, and a Master Chief (those last two complete with lights!!). I came armed instead with my inconspicuous Fuji X-E1 and its trio of unassuming primes, the 18mm f/2, 35mm f/1.4, and 60mm f/2.4.

For a photographer that is also a comic and sci-fi nerd, a Comicon is, to quote Maverick, a target rich environment. Not only do you have folks in fantastic costumes who care deeply about the character they are portraying, but they are there to be seen and to be photographed, so opportunities abound. When I told my wife I was going to the Comicon, she was asking a lot of questions about what is was, what was there, why it happened. So, in addition to trying to get some interesting shots of the cosplayers interacting, I also wanted to try to capture the milieu–the collector toys and figures, the racks and racks and racks of classic comic books, the posters and illustrators and demonstrators and caricature-painters.

It’s a place where The Hulk mingles with Gene Simmons, where the Red Pyramid waits near a bold poster of the Man of Steel. It is the only place I would ever imagine seeing a three-dimensional, plastic re-enactment of Michonne viciously slaying zombies. Yep, that really exists.

I had always thought it would be fun to attend a comicon of some sort, and see and photograph cosplayers doing their thing. It is a fascinating window into another world that I’m not quite a part of, but not quite NOT a part of. I mean, even though I didn’t recognize every costume, I can’t feign ignorance upon spying Link, The Scarecrow, even the 4th Doctor with his impossibly long scarf. Though I may not have been able to positively identify this quartet…

…I could tell you that they clearly come from something Japanese, and there’s no way I was mistaking the identity of this guy:

Following are more of my favorite photos–if you are a cosplayer and found this blog and are wondering if I have a photo of you, please feel free to make Contact and describe who you were–it’s important to specify whether you were the Wolverine in the X-Man suit or plainsclothes, for example. I have a lot more photos, I just had to cull for the blog–I’d be happy to sift through and see if I have one of you. To all of the cosplayers: absolutely FANTASTIC work on your costumes–there was obviously a lot of enthusiasm and creative problem-solving that went into making them!

 

And just in case you were worried–no, we didn’t leave empty-handed:

If you like this blog, please like it below and/or share it on Facebook or whatever the social media flavor of the day might be. I would especially like to make it as available as possible to the participants!