As a cosplay photographer, I believe that studying how cosplay is expressed in other cultures will make our own efforts stronger, more diverse and more nuanced.

Cosplayer: Reika

Photographer: zweit氏

Website: https://www.facebook.com/ pages/Reika/315573555144954

Looking at Japanese cosplay photos you may be surprised by how little costume is in them. Both photographers and cosplayers alike seem unconcerned with what is being worn. Often the costumes are out of focus, cropped out, covered up or not present.

Cosplayer: Yamada Ryoko

Website: http://cospooyan.web.fc2.com/

Cosplayer: Shinji

Photographer: 朔さん

Cosplayer: Hinaasakura

Website: http://hina.costume.jp/

Japanese photographers use costumes as one of many elements (light, staging, composition) to create photos that are more about mood and evocative suggestion then displaying the costume to best effect.

Cosplayer: 13

Website: http://saiten.under.jp/top. html

Cosplayer: Ringo

Photographer: 刹

Cosplayer: ICO

Photographer: あさひこ

This may stem from many Japanese cosplayers buying their costumes instead of making them. So they are less invested in displaying them in great detail. Culture begets culture, and even cosplayers in Japan who are building from scratch will tend to photograph their costumes the same way their friends and peers do.

Cosplayer: Mayu

Website: http://iki.blog.shinobi.jp/

Cosplayer: Kei

Website: http://anothersp.blog60.fc2. com/

Cosplayer: Root

Website: http://root050710.blog137.fc2. com/

I’ll leave the question of why fandom in America takes the form of painstakingly crafted representations of near impossible garments and why in Japan it is displayed through lovingly enacted character portraits to the cultural anthropologists. But if you’re a cosplayer who is trying to break into that market, you may need to put in a little more face time.