Imagine a place where you can see all of your favorite comic book heroes and heroines, argue over whether organic web shooters are better than classic ones, and witness creativity on so many different levels. The New York Comic Con was a 4 day spectacle of pop culture madness mixed with tons of cosplay. I only picked up a ticket for Saturday, but I really have to one day shoot for a 3 or 4 day pass next year.
I think I may have made 4 passes through the interior and exterior areas of the hall, and for every pass there was something new to catch your eye. There was a Transformers booth with some of the classic toys that was a treat. Kotobukiya was on hand with someone their great pieces. The Psylocke one in particular was really sweet. Also on hand were various fantasy sword manufacturers, somewhat surprising in New York given how much security we have here. Clothing, toys, books, drawings. You name it and chances are that you’d run into someone creating a print – like Destiny Blue’s beautiful art.
I was basically there for to use my camera, which didn’t really work out the way I planned. Between the bustle of the crowds (which was immense) and also trying to snap pics with my phone…they kind of came out a bit blurry. I made the mistake of adjusting the shutter speed to get the exposure right, meaning that in some cases the speed was so low that the slightest nudge or shift would blur the image. The next Con will be better, apologies all around.
I met cosplayer VampyBit.me (Linda Le) at her booth, picking up a Nightwing print which she autographed for me. She is so tiny and cute! Somehow in the course of being there, I missed out on seeing Ivy Doomkitty. She happened to be located just off of the Marvel booth. Speaking off the Marvel Booth, Chris Clairemont was on hand, signing pictures and comics. Additionally, Coulson’s car from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. was also there, though of course no one was able to touch it.
So, without further ado, I give you my picture set for the NYCC 2013. These are some of the better ones. The full set is visible on my shared Flikr Page. Enjoy.
Through the Shattered Lens 
Pics turned out pretty good. I recognize at least three of the cosplayers you took pics of Katie Cosplay (Wonder Woman), Vampybitme (New 52 Nightwing) and gillykins (Poison Ivy).
If I had mone to burn I would so get that full scale Geth Pulse Rifle.
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Thank you!! 🙂 I’m not familiar with the other cosplayers there, but will keep an eye out for them. Yeah, that Pulse Rifle was beautiful. That and they had a Megatron I seriously wanted.
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You’re one step closer to becoming a full-time con-goer. You’ll graduate to that level when you finally drop several hundred at the dealer’s hall on just one item….ONE ITEM.
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Quote from above:
“Also on hand were various fantasy sword manufacturers, somewhat surprising in New York given how much security we have here.”
Odd you should mention this, Leonard. That same weekend on the other side of the world, I attended Armageddon, one of Melbourne’s two big science fiction, comic book and whatever else conventions of each year (the other being Supernova). And yes, somebody was selling some rather nasty looking blades that looked as if they could’ve taken down a dragon. All this from such a family-oriented affair.
Those are some great photographs: you at least got some really good ones, that’s what counts. Scary that Arleigh can name some of these cosplay folks: is there such a thing as a cosplay celebrity?
All this makes me wish I’d brought along a camera to Armageddon–so many of the characters above were also portrayed by folks at Armageddon!
Oh yeah, there was a young woman strolling around in costume, I think she was meant to be a neko. Believe me when I tell you she was even more revealing than the “Avatar” woman pictured above. Seriously, I could see neko girl’s goose skin from where she’d shaven her privates parts. She also looked all of sixteen–where’s her parents?
In regards to cars on display, Armageddon had a Batmobile replica (the 1966 classic) as well as a time travelling DeLorean on display–not sure if it’s the same DeLorean that normally tours Australia, it looked a bit different somehow.
PS: That lady in the Wonder Woman outfit has an exquisite looking nose–I bet she has a wonderful profile. Sounds like a certain redhead who writes for this site!
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There are cosplay celebrities if only within the cosplay and convention community. They tend to be the ones who are pretty open and helpful about how they go about creating their costumes and helping other cosplayers.
The scene itself has gotten more press these past couple years due to more companies starting to hire the more we’ll-known cosplayers to do promotional work for them at the bigger conventions like SDCC, NYCC, Anime Expo, Comiket, E3 and Gamescom to name a few of the larger events.
Some think that the more well-known cosplayers are fake geeks or nerds and just models looking to take advantage of the rise in popularity of geek and nerd pop culture, but most like Vampy have no professional modeling experience (though she is professionally trained as a make-up and fashion consultant in the modeling industry).
I’ve looked at cosplaying as just the next level in people enjoying their appreciation of film, tv, comics and other entertainment-related media. Plus, it’s like dressing up for Halloween year-round.
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It reminds me of the superfans who dress up to attend football games and become popular in their own right (e.g. Barrel Man, Fireman Ed, those annoying Raiders fans with the facepaint and spiked shoulder pads–you know the ones I mean). In the case of Fireman Ed, all he really did was put on a firefighter helmet–he got good value out of that. When Fireman Ed walked away from the Jets, it was big news. Not even Mark Sanchez will garned such attention when the Jets eventually send him packing.
I wouldn’t have a problem even if these cosplay superfans were just models dressed up in superhero outfits and what have you. As a child, I remember going to the shopping centre to see a Masters of the Universe pantomime. I knew they were actors and actresses in outfits–He-Man didn’t just have fake muscles, he actually wore this creepy looking mask that covered his whole head–couldn’t they find someone who looked like He-Man? Anyway, I didn’t care too much about that, I got to shake hands with Orko, and that’s what mattered most.
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