And we don’t mean going mano-a-mano, mind you. ;3

Last Saturday, after joining up with Fariz, Hexlord and LEon to help them in a private Miku cosplay photoshoot, I had the opportunity to interview the cosplayer, Ami, and boy, did she had a lot to say!

I have to apologize about the images in this post, though; since they’re from a private photoshoot, I can’t post higher-resolution photos, so you’ll have to make do with these thumbnails. (; ^_^)

Anyway, here’s how our exchange went:

The Interview

What made you interested in cosplay?

It’s a bit of a long story, actually. I saw cosplay on TV while I was studying in Singapore. I got a little curious, but I was still a bit clueless since I wasn’t really open. Then after I moved back to Philippines, there was a small convention near my house. When I saw cosplay with my own eyes, I got really interested and slowly started researching on my own. I also got a tip from my cosplaying friends that the best thing to do is to find your favourite character and cosplay as him/her. After I did, I just kept on cosplaying, and it became a way of life for me.

You said that your friends advised you to “find your favourite character”. Who’s your favourite character?

Miku Hatsune! *laughs*

Oh, really? What do you like about her?

Miku’s voice captured me the most. I got interested in Miku at first after listening to Alice Human Sacrifice, and realized that she, along with the other VOCALOIDs, was just a voice synthesizing program. Slowly, I started to listen to more of her songs like World Is Mine and Melt. I really got to love her so much, and cosplaying as her was so much fun. Since then it’s always been Miku, though I’ve been doing different “versions” of her.

Have you cosplayed as any other character?

Yes, I have! Miku is the first long-running cosplay I’ve ever done, but I cosplayed Yuko Ichihara from xxxHolic first. I’ve also done Lightning from FF13, Tyurru from Ninety-Nine Nights, Chrome Dokuro from Katekyo Hitman Reborn and Ranka Lee from Macross Frontier. I think I’ll have a hard time listing all of the other cosplays I’ve done!

When did you start cosplaying?

I started cosplaying back in 2008, I think.

Will you be cosplaying for a long time?

Yes, this will probably be a long-term hobby for me.

I can tell that your family supports your hobby. How far do they go to support you?

Um, so far they’ve granted everything I requested, and they constantly support me. At times they do complain about “financial issues”, but in the end they’ll always pull through.

Did you make your costumes, like this Race Queen Miku outfit, yourself?

Not exactly. I don’t really have to skills to sew; I prefer to get the materials myself and explain thoroughly to my tailor what I needed. If there’s anything else that doesn’t need sewing, I’ll just do it myself. If I need props, I’ll just work it out with my friends.

Then do you look up to those cosplayers who sew their own costumes?

Of course! I totally idolize them! I mean, some cosplayers here even buy their costumes, so when I hear about those who sew their outfits themselves, it makes me want to bow down to them. *laughs*

Do you have any other hobbies besides cosplaying?

I love to play DJ Max Technika and write fan-fictions. Although I’m not an awesome artist, I also love to draw.

Do you have any memorable moments while cosplaying?

Yes, I do! I think one of the most memorable times was when I decided to cosplay as Miku at a convention, and my best friend cosplayed as Rin. Suddenly, this group of VOCALOIDs came along saying “Come join our group!” and “kidnapped” us! We went around the convention “stealing” other VOCALOID cosplayers until our group had about 20 cosplayers and had a large photoshoot altogether.

You mentioned that you were part of a group called the BAKALOIDS. When did the group form?

It officially formed only January this year, so it was pretty recent. You can also check out our Facebook fan page, if you like.

Do you find it difficult to juggle cosplay with your regular “issues” such as studies?

There were times when there were lots of pressure points, but in the end I always manage to balance it out.

Do you have anything you want to say to all the cosplayers out there, especially the newer ones?

Well, don’t ever think that cosplay is something about who’s better and who’s not, and who has the nicer costume, or who’s prettier. Just believe in yourself, and that’s all that matters.

Afterthoughts

I was actually quite moved by the interview. I mean, everyone knows you have to be a real fan of a character to seriously cosplay as him/her, but hearing Ami talk about her roots with my own ears was just…wow!

Kudos to Hexlord for letting me tag along (though all I did was wave a reflector around), and also to Ami’s parents who also turned up to help their daughter out. Man, I wish my parents were that supportive. ( *A*)

Source: Pixiv by YahaKo

Also, thanks to Ami for cosplaying Miku (from the illustration above), and for the wonderful interview. Hopefully we’ll see more of her in upcoming cosplay conventions. ;3

It goes without saying that her outfit looks awesome, but I’ll let the photos do the talking. ^_^

Catch Hexlord’s and LEon’s photos of Ami on their pages too!

A couiple of weeks ago (on a Friday) Hexlord dragged invited me out to Mandai Orchid Garden for a shoot with the WLNF people, Amano, and TP.

Due to certain reasons, I arrived late, and by then nearly everyone was leaving, so we decided to head elsewhere.

We – that is, Hexlord, TP and Inferno (who got left behind :3c) – proceeded to a Kopitiam near SMU to chat a bit over dinner before heading over to Dhoby Ghaut Green to shoot my Kagamine Rin and Len figmas in the amphitheatre stage area.

And here’s what came out of that plan. The photos are courtesy of TP and Hexlord, since Fariz’s Mikunator wasn’t available at the time.

Flickr

Flickr

Flickr

Also, guest-starring Inferno’s Masked Rider Kiva!

 
Flickr

Flickr

The gist is that Rin, Len and Kiva are preparing for a concert. It’s a little clichéd, but I guess I’m not the type to try out more daring poses (like flying kicks or w/e).

The SIC (Soul In Chogokin) Kiva is Inferno’s (the lad behind me); for now I’ll censor his face out since I’ve little clue on how to contact him (and most bloggers prefer to be “anonymous” anyway).

It’s been a long time since I reviewed my figmas Oh wait, I haven’t even properly reviewed these since I bought them, have I? Wow. Guess I’ll do a review some other time (especially since I’m already taking a little too long writing this post).

It’s not the first time I brought Rin out, though; the first time was on some hill in Singapore with Fariz (though neither of us remembers where exactly) for a private photoshoot. One of the shots turned into my current display picture.

Len, on the other hand, took his first steps outside his plastic packaging on that night. I could tell, since the metal screws in his stand have yet to rust. He wasn’t completely vanilla though, seeing as I had already opened his box to extract his awesome piano-guitar.

Also, contrary to what you may be thinking, the amphitheatre was not conveniently vacant that night. When we came in (at about 8.30 PM) there were approximately 5 people studying and chatting in the seating area (and probably giving us weird looks). That number grew to about twenty/thirty an hour later, chatting and studying (and probably giving us more weird looks).

Meh. Oh well, grow a spine and all that.

In any case, I’ll have to thank Hexlord and TP for putting up with me that night. You can click on their names in this paragraph to view their photos for the night (I didn’t embed all of them).

Also, where are you Inferno? ( *A*)

Pics as follows….

Smelling the roses before the shitstorm hits

Beware of Bardiche... Fate can still hurt you if you don't succumb to the cuteness

Not to mention Arf can bite you into submission as well

Patrolling lecture theatres to make sure everything's fine

Special thanks to my lab partner (name withheld) for loaning me his Canon 500D.

Time to disappear.. Fate is now trying to enforce my studying timetable that I’ve set myself.

Look out for Fate’s adventures defending NUS from exams soon (ETA: unknown aka when I borrow a camera and in the mood to bring Fate to class…. it may even be after exams.. hahaha)

It’s finally done! Thank god. (; ^_^)

I have to apologize in advance, though; most of the pictures didn’t make it because they ended up blurry (some here still are, actually), though they looked pretty sharp on the camera screen. orz

SOY’B, which apparently stands for “Start of Year Cosplay” (don’t ask), occured on the 30th of January (last week) at Ngee Ann Polytechnic. SOY’B marks the third time SOY has been held, and we’ve already covered last year’s event as well.

The event was held in and around a lecture theatre, with the various competitions occuring within the lecture theatre itself, and booths selling art (as well as odds ‘n ends) were lined along the corridors around the lecture theatre.

This was pretty much the scene outside the event entrance for most of the day. It’s likely that some people didn’t bother paying the $5 entrance fee (or $3, if you pre-ordered, are a student or applied as a blogger) since most of the cosplay action was outside.

It may or may not have been intended by the organizers, but it’s pretty much impossible to perform proper cosplay in the corridors, especially with the booths taking up half the space.

Sadly enough, I only recall a familiar face, though the art sold at the rest of the booths wasn’t disappointing either. I was almost tempted to get a Rin/Len bookmark. >_>

By the time I got to the lecture theatre though, it was almost full, with people crowding the back area. I stuck around long enough to watch the emcees cosplay and imitate characters from Ouran High School Host Club as they welcomed other cosplayers on-stage for the singles competition.

There was a mini-cafe outside the exit (a “Tofu Cafe” to be exact), though I couldn’t find anyone else who wanted to go and have a look. I believe they served simple pastries and bottled drinks, and it wasn’t a complete bank-breaker like the Moe Moe Kyun~<3 cafe was, thankfully.

There was an entire team of BRS-themed cosplayers, probably based on the other BRS PV variations you can find on Nico Nico Douga. There was a Rin, Len, Meiko, Kaito and IBRS (!!!). Thankfully, their choice of weaponry appeared to differ, since it’d be pretty weird if everyone wielded a gun and a single blade.

Here’s a solo shot of BRS, Rin-version. I like. <3

Here’s an actual Masked Rider Kiva cosplayer who has paid very close attention to detail to the Emperor Form with the Zanvat Sword (along with the Wake Up Fuestle) to boot. I didn’t actually watch the series though. :/

I hung out with some WLNF (We Love Nendoroids and Figmas) mates, and some of them were taking pictures of their figmas and dolls outside, I snapped this one who was aiming for me but missed. ^_^;

Also, anyone know what these people were doing? I was told they’re doing a school project, but I cannot possibly fathom what sort of project would have you shooting scenes at a cosplay event.

I saw the full costume later; apparently it also had a dragon-like helmet. Does anyone know whether it’s real cosplay, or just something completely made-up?

My photography has improved, but not by leaps and bounds; for some reason this shot turned out relatively sharper than the rest, but I completely screwed up the composition by blocking BRS (Meiko version)’s face. Aaaargh.

P.S. IBRS needs more…insane look. Also, thanks Hirito for lending me your camera to use!

Finally, here’s a Miku (World is Mine version) by Joy. You may have already seen this one in the preview post, so here’s some more to satisfy you:

World is Mine Under Construction

Naturally enough it wasn’t long before everyone was camera-whoring her (though I kinda started the whole thing). Eventually some bugger decided to ask her to wear her shoes to satisfy his shoe fetish, and this was the result:

On an unrelated note, do visit Kodomut’s blog. Also, sorry dude, didn’t recognize you without the beanie hat. >_<

Here’s Rin and Len, done by Snowi and Revive respectively. Note that this shoot was more personal and was done after SOY’B, so there was actually a lot more room to breathe and shoot. Also, kudos to both of them for letting me shoot them, and let me tell you, shooting cosplayers personally is a totally different experience compared to shooting them during an event.

They were cosplaying the twins from this particular song named 夢桜 (Yume Sakura, above), and though I had no clue about the song, they quickly filled me on the details. Thankfully they didn’t need to explain about the whole VOCALOID thing. XD

Source: Pixiv by yucco

I tried my best to recreate some scenes from the PV, though taking a photo at night with no tripod is a recipe for disaster. For some reason though, the above photo made it out okay, with the help of a diffuser for my built-in flash provided by Snowi herself.

Coincidentally, the above photo was the very last one I shot, after multiple pleas for “just one more shot”. Thanks for putting up with me, you two.

Returning to SOY’B, it was a fairly alright event, with a decent amount of management. Excluding the competition though (which was exclusive to the small lecture theatre), the event turned into a simple cosplay meet-up, and I was hoping for more than that, actually.

It was also a great chance to meet up with friends (since I don’t go out much myself), and though I came sleepy and returned exhausted, I had a great time. Looking forward to next year’s SOY, guys!

You can check out additional coverage by our friends:

• The Banzai Effect!: [1], [2] and [3]
• Kodomut

And a final question: did you visit this post just to see Joy’s photos? =P

Got myself here a very nice figurine from LaTendo on the Lucky Star OVA figurine by SEGA.. Kagamiku comes together with Konata Izumi Witch ver. figurine as well as part of a set~ Will soon do a figure review very soon I hope (After I play Allods Online; Feels like WoW lol.. ).. Till then, take care… ^^

It turned out to be figure + mecha photoshoot though. Not that it’s a bad thing.

So early Sunday (yesterday) morning, I dragged myself out of bed and headed over to Clarke Quay together with my Kagamine Rin Nendoroid, where LEon and a whole bunch of other people were waiting in Liang Court. Here’s the full listing with links to their posts/galleries (if any):

• LEon
• Katsuden
• Zh3us
• Yuki-To
• ScorchNRoses
• Ederuferuto
• Hexlord
• XS27

We grabbed a bite to eat at the McDonald’s there before taking a group figure shot right there and then. Not all the figures ended up in my sharpest shot, though, so I guess this one will have to do. =_=

Cut3ness from the sidelines~

Miku looks really scary in this shot. Just floating there, expressionless. O_o

We headed outside and officially started the shoot. For me, it was the first time having a real shoot (without Fariz hogging the camera), and I came as a complete beginner too. Hexlord familiarised me with camera concepts, and I quickly got the hang of it. Thanks man!

I’m still not that experienced in figure photo composition though, so most of the pictures I took framed the figure on one side. I guess I was too focused on training my camera skills then. ^.^;

Also, how far would you go to get a good shot? I certainly wouldn’t dare doing this, since I don’t want my waifu to end up swimming with the fishes.

Ah, Yuki-To’s Fatina. Quite a sexy figure, and fierce to boot. Didn’t finish watching the Sword of Druaga anime though.

Don’t point that staff at me~! ( *A*)

Another Lily Saber Nendoroid. IIRC there was at least 2 of them during the photoshoot. I guess it’s expected though; it’s an extremely cute figure.

I’ve always been intrigued by the technique of getting Nendoroids to sit on ledges. I was told that the skirt acts as a “stand” to keep Saber (and similar Nendoroids) up there, but for skirt-less figures like Rin, one would have to resort to other methods.

So I tried some Blu-tack (guess where it is btw, and you get a cookie), courtesy of LEon. This is pretty much one of my favourite shots, though it came at a price: Rin fell off eventually, smashing into the ground. Thankfully Nendoroids aren’t so fragile to the point that they shatter into pieces upon impact from such a height, but Rin did get damaged anyway.

At first I was surprised there wasn’t a dent in her head or anything, but soon I noticed that some portion of her left shoe had been chipped off. I’m not sure whether they’re related, since it seems unlikely Rin had landed on her left foot (with a big head and all).

My other favourite shot of the day. The only thing keeping her there is the plant itself. Thanks to the rest for the tip!

Used too much Blu-tack in this shot. Oh well.

A flower for me~? You shouldn’t have!

By the way, this face isn’t Rin’s; it belongs to the Kagamine Len Nendoroid in fact. The expression appears to fit her though. ^.^;

There is a better shot, but it got overexposed thanks to a sudden burst of direct sunlight. I should have compensated. orz

Later we decided to head to Raffles Place and ruin an otherwise boring sculpture we found there. I bet we were making a lot of art/heritage purists mad.

Then again, lots of people were freely climbing up on the other side and taking photos of themselves while we were doing our photoshoot. XD

Rin appears to enjoy her time on the ship though. The grooves in the “ground” help to keep her standing.

Meet Zh3us’ Tsukasa MK II! They sure are happy to see each other.

Temple visit episode! Sadly there was no miko costume for Rin.

Rin hanging out with the locals.

But what’s this? Saber has turned rogue, and is attacking the city with Masked Rider Den-O as her right hand man!

The city (on the opposite side of the sculpture) calls for reinforcements!

They take their positions! Ending is for you to imagine.

I was messing around with aperture and shutter speed, and it seems that low aperture works best for this shot. Blurry backgrounds ftw.

I’ve always wondered how collectors transport their figures around for their photoshoots. Personally, I take my figs in their own boxes, though Yuki-To has advised me to simply use the plastic casing inside to avoid damaging the pretty box.

Seems to me that most figure collectors use boxes bought from Daiso for a couple of bucks. Maybe I’ll give it a shot.

Drossel wants a hug! D’awwwww

Some collectors simply use bubble wrap, though I guess it’s fine for Den-O and Urataros since they’re real action figures, built for abuse.

And to end the day (and post), some fanservice! Metal-on-Metal love~

We headed to China Square Central after that to check out the figures and toys there. LEon took the opportunity to show and explain me a lot of the stuff. I was thoroughly impressed.

After a trip to another McDonald’s and some interrogation of my animu knowledge (while the others played Monster Hunter) we went our separate ways again.

It’s obvious, though, that there’s a lot of room for improvement. I gotta learn to be more dynamic in my poses and composition, and have to (somehow) cure my shaky hands, which is why many of the good photos didn’t make it in this post. ;_;

Ironically, while we had planned for a morning photoshoot to avoid shooting annoying people, a tour bus showed up and began unloading right behind us. Some tourists gathered nearby and started talking about us. There was even a Japanese guy who was explaining to some people about our figures. LOL

But all in all, I had fun, and I’m definitely looking forward to the next outing. \o/

FarizAsuka and I had a personal photoshoot with our 1/8 VOCALOID figures over at Vivo City last night. We originally planned to have one earlier, but you know. Besides, both of us finally found some free time to spend together yesterday evening, so might as well.

Since this is also the first time I’m bringing the Kagamine twins out of their boxes, I guess it’s time for a review!

I’m well aware that I haven’t made an actual review till now, so I guess I better make this a good one.

I pre-ordered the 1/8 figures way back last year in December, and they arrived (friggin’ delayed) at the end of July. Can’t say I regretted buying either of them, since I just love ‘em, and I managed to save enough allowance to prevent the purchase from even touching my bank account. They also happen to be my first (and most likely last) 1/8 scale figures, so I finally have something without any joints and whatnot.

Credits go to Panther for helping me pre-order under his name (even up till now); if you’re familiar with Latendo you’ll know what this means. Thanks a lot. (b ^.^)b

Kagamine Rin’s figure is surprisingly simple, compared to Miku and Len. No long hair, and no large accessories. She sports a good (sexy?) pose, however, and comes with a small microphone and a logo stand for the twins (which isn’t included in this review, since it wouldn’t serve much of a purpose in an outdoor setting).

Getting Rin to hold the microphone is an easy matter of inserting it into her grasping hand…NOT. The problem here is that the distance between her hand and her face is less than the length of the microphone…so you have to push the arm back slightly. As a newbie figurine collector, this scares me, and it doesn’t help that the microphone itself (according to Fariz) is fragile on its own.

Kagamine Len (or Ren as some of you Japanese purists like to call him) has a “rocker’s” pose, complete with his signature keyboard guitar. His awesome pose feels slightly wrong, though; it looks like he’s trying to strum his keyboard guitar rather than press the keys.

While the guitar isn’t as difficult to put on as Rin’s microphone, it does take a few tries before you’re able to slide it under his arm and tie and insert the handle into his grasping hand. The strap is no biggie to attach, thankfully.

The attention to detail is incredible. The creases on the clothing make it almost seem like it’s cloth (though it’s still hard plastic you’re looking at), and the “rocking out” poses for both figures are accurately enhanced by the small “loose” pieces of clothing (e.g. their straps) and hair, which dangle in mid-air as if in motion.

The code-number “02″ is printed on both of their left upper arms, and the words “Electric Voice System” are also printed on both their legs to match Kei’s (the original artist) rendition of the twins (though you probably can’t see it from the angles we used). The only details that are missing are probably the displays on both of their arms; while Miku’s display was clearly painted on her arm, Rin’s and Len’s displays are depicted as a plain green rectangle.

They look awesome as a band couple, and I still don’t regret buying them. ^.^

I’m not forgetting the 3rd star of our little outing though, so here are pics of FarizAsuka’s GSC 1/8 Hatsune Miku!

Fariz didn’t do a review since he already did one 4 months back. Miku’s still as cute as ever though. =D

Enough indoors, let’s head outside!

Pretty pictures, no?

A sneak peek on what the “Kyouran Kyodais”; Fuzzy & Fariz Asuka did for the simple yet interesting figurine shoot.. It was already hard enough to find a good spot at the location to do the shoot due to alot of human traffic.. Well, more on that later on (if I have the free time).. ^^;;

Apart from the artworks and merchandise sold during the Singapore Toys, Games, Comic Convention (STGCC) ’09, there were also quite a number of cosplayers who attended the event.. You could say that there were alot of them (but that couldn’t beat the number of photogs who were there as well.. =3 ).. One of the most epic cosplay I’ve seen so far is by far the Black Rock Shooter (BRS) [Above].. Truly a wonderful cosplay done..

Well, there are also some good cosplays I took pictures of during the event.. I hope you guys like them.. Enjoy~

v

I shall end my post with this epic cosplay mix of Krauser in Kaito outfit.. Or shall we call him “KAISER~!!”?? XD

You could say that this year there are more Vocaloid cosplays than other anime cosplays like Naruto or D-Grayman (There were plenty of them last year, honest!!).. Well, other than that, they seem to enjoy the event as much as the rest did.. I do expect photoshoots coming out on forums and picture sites.. XD