Moving Pictures

If you are following along, you know I've recently attended four comic book conventions. Considering I have absolutely no understanding of the genre, and a fairly strong aversion to crowds and meeting new people, you would think I would not have had a positive set of experiences. Well, surprisingly, the exact opposite is true. I spent many years as a shoot and run photographer. In the last few I have found that actually speaking to the people I take photos of has enhanced my life greatly. Performers, Pirates, and Renaissance festival participants I understand pretty well. Cosplay folk - not so much. Most are half my age... or less. A lot less. And the fact that I have no knowledge of what they live and breathe does not lend itself to common ground conversations. Yet, here I was con after con, making friends, learning about the characters, marveling at the art, the crafts, the makeup, and the work that these folks put into their costumes. I made connections I never thought...

UltraCon of South Florida  was my fourth and last comic convention for the year. Parking was steep at $12.00 and the price at the door was $25.00. That said,  this was by far my favorite event. Not too small. Not so overwhelming large I suffocated in a pool of my own anxiety. (Breathe....) This event was perfect - for me at least. I had a few favorites among the hundreds of cosplayers I met these last few months and it seemed they all showed up for this event. I had only planned to go one day but my friends from the Florida Ren Fest decided to beam in and time travel on two separate days. Kristal and her Star Trek crew on Saturday. The Andorian Kristal and her crew The South Florida Pirates in full Steam Punk finery on Sunday. South Florida Pirates and Freya With my friend and guide Scarlett Rose Cosplay out of town, I had to make some new friends while I waited for my old ones to show up - or wind up sitting in a corner. I was at this event 17 hours non ...

Supercon at the Miami Beach Convention Center was my third comic book convention this year. I spent $8.00 to park, $30.00 at the gate for a one day admission. This event was a little more expensive than the last two, but a thousand times larger than both combined. Scarlett Rose Cosplay and Shaan Prime-Time Hogan As Katniss Everdeen and Cinna from Hunger Games: Catching Fire My guide for the previous two events, Scarlett Rose Cosplay, was busy a good part of the day with photo shoots so I was pretty much on my own this time. Typically when I attend an event like this I spend a full day, meet a lot of people, shoot around 1,000 photos. Generally make a day of it. The Ox and friends Even though this is my third Supercon, and it has moved to a much larger venue this year, I was still exceedingly claustrophobic. My problem. Not theirs. I actually do this event to get over my aversion to crowds. It's the people at these events that allow me to walk through the door and ...

Hero Hype Con was a much larger show then Mini Con but still a small and personal event. $15.00 got me in the door and parking was a few bucks. My friend Scarlett Rose Cosplay (Jenna) changed cosplay gears a bit and came as Queen Elsa from Disney's Frozen. She was also my guide, introducing me to some of the better known cosplayers and photographers. Scarlett Rose Cosplay as Queen Elsa from Disney's Frozen Even though this was a small convention, there was plenty to see and do. I arrived just before opening and spent the entire day. This included a costume contest playing to a packed audience. The one thing that I'm learning is that everyone I meet, be they photographers, cosplay personalities, vendors, or staff, they are all pleasant and friendly. This show was a way to practice my photography and ask for poses. Not to mention the 50,000 hits I got on my Flickr page from it. Speaking of which, for more photos from the day,  [click here].