10 Things for Convention Travel

You did it. You have those tickets for that con sitting in your email inbox. No matter if this is your first convention out of town, or you have done this many times before, you still need to prepare. There is the actual logistics of traveling and getting to and from your home to the convention. Then there is also everything else that comes with being in a different city and being at a convention.

1. Budget

Before you do anything you kinda need to decide how much money you have, and how much you want to spend. Personally, like all things in my life, I have a spreadsheet for this. I copy them from trip to trip and add new things as I go. This is also the same spreadsheet I use for trips that aren’t convention related. Another benefit for having this document sitting in my drive is that I have the information on how much I spent on previous cons and I can go from there and decide how much I should be spending again on this trip. Really, I am a nerd and I could probably talk about spreadsheets and budgets for a real long time, so I am going to stop there. As long as you have a budget that works for you, great.

2. Plan Your Travel

Are you driving, busing, flying, or catching a lift a friend. Booking my flights for an out of province convention is the very first time I do right after buying tickets for a convention. I personally use https://momondo.ca to book my flights. I like that it gathers prices for me from all across different airlines, and I can sort it by cheapest, or quickest. After this, if you don’t have a friend’s place to crash at, do hotel bookings. Sometimes I will book my hotel for the actual convention weekend with my tickets if there is a deal with the organizers. After I have my flights booked I can then either change my hotel booking, or book an airbnb in a different neighborhood to explore before or after the convention.

3. Figure Out Transit

I generally do this at the same time as books hotels or Airbnbs. Because we don’t rent cars, we rely heavily on city transit and ride shares such as Uber or Lyft. In my bullet journal I write down my arrival time from the airport, the time it takes to get to my accommodations, and the time it takes to get to the convention center. Google Maps is great for giving you all of this information so you don’t need to hunt through multiple websites. Although I would suggest if using a city’s transit for the first time, take a peek on their website to figure out fares and how they work.

4. Get Travel Insurance

If this is your first time out of the country, I would take look into travel insurance. I am lucky enough to have travel insurance through both my work health plan, and my credit card. If you have either of these I would suggest checking with the first to see if you have some sort of travel coverage. If not, shop around for some plans. Travel Insurance isn’t that expensive, and often you can choose between single trip plans, or annual plans if you plan on traveling more through the year.

5. Check the Weather & Make a Packing List

These go hand in hand for me. Generally a couple weeks beforehand I will have my general list written out, and my travel toiletries packed away with my suitcase already. I probably do this earlier than most people, and earlier than really needed. I like to anxiously prepared though. This gives me enough time to also do an inventory of what I might need to go out and buy before my trip. A week or so beforehand I will see what the weather looks like, and start planning outfits and clothes to pack around that. Just keep in mind that weather is ever-changing, and if it says it will be super hot all week, maybe pack a sweater just in case.

6. Make A List of Nearby Interests

I mentioned google maps earlier and I shall do it again. Maps is my best friend on a trip. Before a trip I will mark interesting nearby shops or restaurants to check out. This really cuts down on the time wasted laying in your hotel room trying to figure out a place to eat after the con when you already have no energy. Just open up google maps, see the places that you marked weeks ago as interesting and pick one. I collect my list of places to check out by spending the weeks previously on Google or Pinterest, looking at other bloggers posts on places they enjoyed. Also put a call out on your twitter or Instagram to see if your friends have any places they would recommend.

7. Decide on Costumes & Make a Packing List

As soon as you can, try to make a line up of costumes you are wearing and bringing. When I figure out what I am bringing I write down a list of every single piece I need to pack. I get into really fine details personally. I also have these lists written down in a spreadsheet in my drive, so I don’t need to try to remember every single piece I need to bring every single time I want to bring a costume with me. Having it in drive also gives me the ability to add things as I need to, depending on if I redo, or do something different to my costumes.

I generally try to have a rule that I don’t bring costumes I don’t have finished yet to an out of town convention. If you do, it makes it even more important that you decide what to bring ASAP so you can figure out everything you need to get done. This brings me to my next point.

9. Make a Crafting To Do List

Whether you have a costume you are working on, or a costume is already done, make a to do list. Pull out your old costume and go over all the things you maybe forgot that needed to get repaired on it. Having everything laid out on paper in front of me also helps me realize how much I need to do however long before leaving for the convention, and how I need to spread my work load.

10. Keep Your Immune System and Skin Healthy

On a good day I suck at taking care of myself. The weeks coming up to travel though, I try to be better about it. I generally do a lot more in regard to skin care coming up to a con to make sure I don’t have any unwanted breakouts in photos. Face masks and moisturizing happens a lot more 2 weeks before a trip for me. Also remember to drink lots of water, and actually get a good amount of sleep before a convention as well. It sucks to be on your way to something exciting, only to realize that you have gotten sick.

Are there things on your list of preparing for con travel that I missed out? Let me know.

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Vintage and Retro Portland

Portland Oregon is just full of really rad vintage stuff. From their old building, to mid century furniture stores, and so many vintage clothing shops. There are so many vintage shops that it is impossible to do all of them on one trip to the city. Here are 8 stores I got to check out on my 4 day trip to Portland back in March.

Classic Collection Hats. So this isn’t specifically a store that has to do with vintage. This Classic Collection Hats has so many styles of hats for a lot of different budgets. I loved that they carried a lot of styles that came in multiple sizes. Both my partner and I suffer from having larger than average heads. I walked out buying myself an olive green beret, and my partner a matching newsboy cap. They also had so many different sort of straw sun hats that I wanted to take home. Check this place out no matter the style of hats you enjoy, there will probably be something there you would like.

House of Vintage. One of the least curated shops on this list, you want to come in with a lot of patience and time. I came into House of Vintage with neither. We had gotten coffee at Tov just down the street and stopped in quickly on our walk back to our Airbnb. I can say that if you have the time though, I can see this store paying off. It’s set up in a mall style, with different vendors, so they have a vast range of really neat things, to shrug worthy stuff. Things seem to be organized within individual vendors and not eras, or type of clothing. So hence the need for patience and time to find the gems. With my 20-30 minutes in the store, I did walk out with a lovely mustard yellow wool blouse circa 1950 for I think about 13 dollars. It was missing the button, but nothing that I couldn’t fix. Just be prepared that if you are on the hunt for a specific era, they do have the whole range of stuff from the 20s right up to the 90s.

Red Light Clothing. A little more curated than House of Vintage, but expect there to be a little bit of everything at Red Light Clothing, and to do some hunting to find something neat. Things here are at least organized by pieces of clothing and size. So if you are only on the hunt for dresses, it’s a bit easier to work with than House of Vintage. I tried on a couple of pieces, and nothing either fit nicely or were super my style. Truth be told I could take it or leave it. A lot of their stuff is way more 80s-90s which personally isn’t my jam, if it’s yours go check it out. Just don’t expect to be swimming in mid century clothing.

Hollywood Vintage. I saw online that Hollywood Vintage was praised for having this huge collection of vintage eyewear. Seeing that I was considering picking up some new glasses myself, I figured this was a place I would have to check out and threw it on my to-do list. Unfortunately when I visited, a couple weeks beforehand they had a break in occur, which resulted most of their eyewear stock stolen or destroyed. Besides the very empty room that once held the collection of glasses, they still carried a variety of hats and a very small selection of vintage clothing. The rest of their store was a mix between thrifted house wear and knick-knacks, and old costume stock. Go if you want to see some neat things, not on the top of the list for some true vintage clothing items.

Hattie’s. One of the smaller stores that I visited, but it was pack full of really neat things. Hattie's had vintage ranging from the 30s to the 70s for both menswear and womenswear. Prices here varied from very reasonable to way out of my budget. I would especially suggest checking out this store if you are on the hunt for some gloves. I found myself a pair that fit my hands which never seems to happen. There was also a 50s crop jacket with embossed flowers in black that screamed my name while there, that I got to wear a couple days later for my anniversary dinner.

Simply Vintage Co. This is a store that I wished so very dearly was where I lived. I visited Simply Vintage after a sweaty bike ride (and getting lost) from OMSI. I am so glad I did. The person who ran the store was so sweet, and loved giving me suggestions of things to look at. It didn’t really take her all that long to figure out what stuff would look good on me. This is a person who obviously has a passion for what she does. The store itself is wonderfully curated with a mix of true vintage and newer reproduction stock. If you have any interest in 40s or 50s era of women’s clothing, you must go to this place. I walked out of there spending roughly $200 CAD for two vintage pieces. Probably more than I was intended to spend, but I wouldn’t even be able to get two repro pieces where I live for that price.

Magpie. I feel like Magpie is what I think of when I think of vintage stores. This place carries products ranging from the 20s to the 70s. Both quality and price points are seen on lower and higher scales. I walked out personally with a short sleeve green wool cardigan that very quickly made its way in my everyday wardrobe. I got a steal of a deal also on a 1940s felted hat with netting and feathers, albeit the deal was probably due to the fact it not being in the greatest condition. No matter what you are on the hunt for Magpie is a pretty safe bet on checking out if you are traveling through Portland.

Red Fox Vintage. We visited Red Fox’s Woodstock store on our walk around the neighborhood after checking out a pool nearby. One of those places that does a bit of everything, and seemed to work off of consignment, don’t expect this place to be stuffed with clothing. Most of the store had knick-knacks and housewares. A neat place to check out if you are in the area, but I wouldn’t say make the trip out of your way for it. I can’t speak to their other location though as I only checked out the one.

Are there some really rad places that I missed out while in Portland? Let me know and I will check it out on my next trip out there!

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Cosplay Planning and Reference Hunting

You just watched a new rad show, or played a freaking amazing game, and fell in love with a character. Everything in you is screaming that YOU MUST COSPLAY THIS WONDERFUL CHARACTER. Yet, where do you start? Whether you are new to cosplay, or seasoned to the hobby, you aren’t the only one who finds themselves in this boat. How do you plan on what to work? How do you figure out what you need to make this costume? Can you even make the costume?! I decided to layout how I personally start a costume, and that is with resource hunting.

My first step is always to find resources. Truth be told, step one often bleeds into step two, and three, and four, and so on. When working on a costume I am never not hunting down more reference photos or videos. You can never have too many photos. Keep these photos however works for you. I personally have a folder in my Google Drive that I store all my reference photos. Each character I am working on, or even thinking of working on gets their own sub folder, and I save every photo I decided is even a little bit useful. Drive works best for me cause then these references are always with me on my phone. If printing photos and keeping them in a planner is what works for you, then do that.

So where do you find references? I personally have five main places I look for references. First, and I hope the most obvious, is the source material. I have screenshots, upon screenshots of Sera from Dragon Age Inquisition saved from my Playstation account. If you are a PC gamer, console commands and flycam are your best friend. For a lot of my Sole Survivor from Fallout 4 I used my partner’s computer. I console commanded in all my armor and clothes I needed, and would drop her into different location into the maps for different lighting. I screenshotted everything I needed, and saved it to my drive. When working on Hannah from Rat Queens I would bring the actual comic into the fabric store with me. Using my phone I also took photos of specific frames from issues and, once again, threw that into drive.

Art books are also fantastic. I tend to have buy art books from my favorite series anyways, even if I didn’t cosplay I would still probably own these books. A lot of these books might have concepts that had long before been abandoned, but they can still give insight to how maybe armor could be strapped. My Fallout 4 artbook, and Dragon Age Inquisition artbook have been home of many sticky note tags so I can easily find the photos I need later.

The next place I look is Google. Google anything and everything pertaining to your costume. Right now I am currently hunting for references of the vagabond girl in Supergiant’s Pyre. I have so far for this costume googled; pyre, pyre cosplay, vagabond girl, vagabond girl cosplay, vagabond girl pyre, vagabond girl pyre cosplay, fae pyre, fae pyre cosplay, and probably 5 more combinations of the above I can’t remember. Look in images, look in web results from the first 3 pages. Save anything that you think could help. Save screenshots other people have taken. I have fan art that have been created, and other peoples cosplays. If the creators have released concept art for your character, save that too. I have some concept art save for Sera and The Lutece Twins that are pretty different from the final release of these characters.

Even though I spend very little time on Tumblr now, I still use it alot when hunting down references and resources. Tumblr is a huge source for fan art of anything and everything. It’s also great at finding other people’s cosplay that they have done. You can hunt through their account, maybe find WIP posts they have made, and then you have even more references and resources to work off of. Just don’t message people asking how they made their costume. They have already put in the time and effort into their own costume, never mind yours. If there is a particular question you have for someone, hunt through their page first and see if maybe this is already addressed. Don’t be rude about it, and don’t expect them to share their information. Just the other day I asked someone where they got their wig from. It was a simple “Hey I hope you don’t mind me asking but where did you get your wig from? It’s fine if you don’t want to share.” Just don’t guilt people into giving you information that they themselves worked hard on finding.

Pinterest is a resource I use often, which tends to surprise a lot of people. I tend to use is for more of the historical end of reference hunting. I found the pattern that I used for my lutece skirt through pinterest. It’s not the first place I would suggest looking, but there tends to be no harm looking around in it. Worst case scenario, you come out with a banana bread recipe. One sort of crummy thing about pinterest is its lack of credit. Often you will find photos taken off someone else’s page thrown onto pinterest. I often will reverse image search things a lot on pinterest to not only find the original poster, but also to see if maybe they have other photos along the line of what I am looking for.

If you think it’s even in the slight bit useful, save it. I would rather save a photo to my drive and not need it, then come back in 2 months and go, man I really wish I had saved that photo I found on this really obscure website. Too bad I can’t remember what the hell I searched to find it.

Save photos of hairstyles that look even slightly like your characters hair. Save in action screen shots so you have something to reference back to before photoshoots. I have pictures of edwardian walking skirts, archers gloves, viking shoes, and random people with freckles. In the end, you can never have too many references.

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Anxiety & Conventions

Managing anxiety can be a challenge and conventions have the ability to add some extra challenge and stress when already dealing with an anxiety disorder. Crowded halls can over stimulating, and not feeling properly prepared can put a person on edge when they are just trying to have fun.

I’m not a psychologist, or work in any sort of profession involving mental health. I do however believe in talking candidly about this stuff, and reducing the stigma that clouds the topic of mental health. In the last few years of attending cons, I have discovered some trips and tricks that help ease my own anxiety. Hopefully these tips can help some people ease their own, and prevent uncomfortable situations, and possible panic attacks!

Pre Con

Avoid con crunch as much as possible. The cosplay community has this strange toxic view that if you aren’t making something new for every possible con, then you must be doing something wrong. About a year and a half ago I allowed myself to throw that idea out the window. Personally I would rather take my time and work on something slowly, rather than rush it, and have to re do half of it come the end of the convention. If I don’t think a costume is going to get done in time, I step away from it and focus my energy on other things.

Plan as early as possible what costumes to bring. As I’ve started traveling more for conventions, I realized what does and doesn’t work for me when it comes to costumes. I like to know what I am bringing roughly 2-3 weeks before a large con. This gives me time to do an inventory of what I need to pack, look over my costumes, and make sure I have time to do any repairs that might be needed that I’ve forgotten about.

Pack as early as possible. Generally speaking, I usually start packing 2 weeks before I have to leave for a con. I slowly start putting things together in a suitcase in the weeks to come. This mostly is due to the fact that I am an anxious person and I feel the need to be well prepared. Everything doesn’t get packed this early. I set aside my travel sized toiletries in and empty suitcase, find my cosplay emergency kits. This way I am not running around the day before I fly somewhere and can’t find my dry shampoo or something silly like that. I also create myself packing lists in my bullet journal for any trips I go to. This allows me to look back on past trips when creating a new list, remembering the things I needed.

Look over the schedule, highlight what you want to do. This has become less and less important to me over the years. If you are someone big on panels though, look over the schedule, figure out what you want to do. My scheduling routine before cons tends to be just go over what fan meetups I will be attending, and look over if there is an celebrity signings I want to attend. My bullet journal is a great help for me to keep track of what I am doing, when.

Con Time

Stay hydrated and eat. Okay yes, this is in every freaking con survival guide. Like most people I know, I personally find that my mental health goes down if I get hungry. I am more antsy, and tied with the crowds, that can be a bad formula. I often have some larabars and cranberry juice that hides away in my pack or pockets for a quick pick me up if lines for food are too long.

Allow yourself to be flexible. You have you schedule in front of you. It’s 2:45 and that line up for whatever celebrity signing you just attended ended up being way longer that you anticipated. The panel you wanted to attend starts at 3pm on the other side of the center. Take a moment and decided whether it’s worth the stress to run to the other side in time for the panel. It’s okay if things don’t always go according to plan, and allow yourself to know that sometimes that happens.

Go outside and get some fresh air. If it isn’t the middle of the winter, I usually go outside a lot during cons. I can still run into people and talk to them, but the fresh air, and lighter crowds tend to give my brain a break that it needs. If a convention center has doors along the entire building, I often skip walking from one hall to the other inside, and will just give myself the 5-10 minute walk outside.

Step away from stressful situations. It seems that cosplay chill rooms, and quiet rooms are becoming more and more popular at conventions. If you need to recharge your mental batteries then take advantage of these resources. If the con you are attending doesn’t have something like this, find yourself a quiet hallway to sit in. Walking a couple blocks away and have lunch or coffee in a local establishment can also do a lot for clearing your brain when you are overwhelmed.

Leave the con. There are no hard rules that you need to stay there the entire day. Unless I’ve worked a con, I don’t think I have ever stayed from open to close. If you are an introvert and know you have dinner with a large crowd later, leave a couple hours early to sit in your hotel and recharge. Feeling a bit over stimulated, just leave the convention to spend some time away from the crowds. If you can afford it, staying at hotels near the convention is over nice for being able to leave and get some quiet time, with the option on returning to the center if you feel up to it later.

Post Con Hotel Time

Stay with people you know. I know that cosplayers tend to cram as many as people into a hotel room to save money. If you are going to do this you better make sure these are all people you enjoy and get you. There was one year that we had 3 people sleeping on a bed, 2 on the pull out couch and one on the floor. Lucky for us we all really enjoyed each other’s company and understood when someone just needed some time alone.

Converse with your roommates. Complain about those long lines, or how that stuck up mom bumped into your costume. Did they eat really good food truck food? Obviously if you are more introverted then this might not be the thing for you. I find before I retire for the night, catching up with my buds from the day helps me relax.

Take some time by yourself. If your hotel room is cramped, leave. I like hotels with 24 hour pools. Con folk tend to be hiding in their rooms in the morning until they leave for con, leaving the pool empty for an early morning dip. I’ve also stowed away in hotel lobbies on couches with some headphones and a podcast. If leaving your room isn’t an option, pop in some headphones, sit on your bed, play a game.

Do whatever self care ritual you have. For years painting my nails was a huge self care thing. Skin care and listening to podcasts are more so my leaning now a days. You can incorporate your roommates if you wish. At Emerald City Comic Con last year, my friend and I threw on some sheet masks, and matching reading socks while watching some of the MBMBAM show.

Lastly for any leg of your convention, surround yourself with people who get you. Whether it's a partner who will walk to a coffee shop 3 blocks away for quiet time together, or the best friend sit in the hotel bar after the con eating sweet potato fries with you without saying a thing to each other.

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9 Cosplay Gifts Under $40

So It appears that the gift giving holidays are right around the corner. I know that trying to think of things to put on your want list can be hard, and it can be even harder to get that special cosplayer in your life something if you aren’t part of that hobby yourself. Your average cosplayer already has things like a heat gun, or a sewing machine. So what do you get a cosplayer if they already have their basic supplies? Well have no fear, here are nine great gifts from amazon that are no more than 50 dollars.

$21 Packing Cubes. These soft zippered cubes are a must need for any cosplayer that traveling for cons. I got mine just before my last con, and they saved my freaking life. I could separate my real people clothing from my costume stuff, while keeping my suitcase organized.

$45 Bill Doran’s Foamsmith Books. This year the foamsmith books came to Amazon Canada. At last! An inexpensive shipping options for Canadians. Both Volume 1 and Volume 2 are great books to have on hand for reference and inspiration. Volume one goes over more armor builds, where two goes over things such as weapons and props.

$35 Rotary Tool With Flex Shaft. I personally have myself a one speed dremel brand rotary tool with no flex shaft. I know lots of people who have purchases and love this Wen. It has a variable speed control, and a flex shaft, allowing for more finite control. So even if your cosplayer has a rotary tool, this might be a nice alternative.

$17 Silicone Craft Mat. These little mod podge mats are great for laying under your hot glue gun. I’ve also used mine for mixing paint, and mixing epoxy sculpt. It allows for easy clean up, as most products just peel off.

$33 A Blade Sharpener. Even cosplayers I know who have been doing this for years, still don’t have a blade sharpener. A couple of years ago I picked myself up this kershaw branded one and it does me just good.This will save cosplayers money, preventing them from replacing their blades as often as they would without.

$40 RZ Dust Mask. I’ve seen Evil Ted sporting these slim fit masks on his youtube videos and livestreams. I believe they are made of cyclists to wear so they are safe from gas fumes from their bikes. They would make great alternative to traditional respirators. You can get it in black, but personally I want to pick myself up one of these spitfire patterns.

$32 A Dotted Notebook. I have officially been using my Leuchtturm for bullet journaling for a year. Really this is a great gift for anyone. For cosplayers though, this can give them a place to collect fabric samples, reference photos, to do lists, and whatever else they need for their cosplay planning. The dots are great for both being able to write nicely as one would in a lined book, but don’t have the nasty lines running through drawings.

$30 Spring Loaded Scissors. Whether you sew, or do armor smithing, these scissors will save your life. It will save your life twice over if you work with worbla. These scissors help keep your a lot of pressure of your hands, preventing that terrible hand cramp that happens when cutting a lot of anything.

$8 Chalk Wheel. I don’t know anyone who likes those fabric pencils. They never show up on any fabric, no matter the color of the pencil, or fabric. For years I’ve been using chalk pastels to mark my fabric. Recently I have discovered the joy of chalk wheels. They essentially have a tiny little pizza cutter like wheel at the tip. When dragged across fabric it leaves a thin chalk line behind.


If you are looking for any other ideas to get that cosplayers in your life, or looking for ideas to add to your own wish list, you can also check out what is on my own personal wish list here.

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Ways to Boycott a Con

Have you ever attended a con for a few years in a row, and watch it slowly change to do crummier and crummier things. Have you wanted to speak up about something they are pulling over their patrons but aren't sure how to get your voice heard? I’ve seen the cosplay community band together to make significant changes before with past cons. Whether is was removing an abusive con staff member, or demanding change in prop policy, when the community works together we can make change. So what can you do to make change in a convention that shows itself hostile towards their patrons? I’m going to go over ways you can boycott a convention

Don’t attend. This is the most obvious and will hit them the hardest. Show with your money where you stand. If you haven’t bought a ticket to the convention, don’t. If it’s before the refund cut off, return your pass. This is especially important if the convention you are boycotting is a for profit convention.

Don’t pay for a ticket and/or ghost. Obviously this doesn’t work for all conventions. Some are more ghost-able than others. Weather, and convention location are some factors that make a convention more ghostable than others.  I am not saying sneak into conventions. Stick to locations that are accessible to the public. I’ve been to cons with large outdoor parks that many cosplayers and photographers hang out at, and I’ve even seen some where artist alleys can be accessed without a pass. This is a nice option if you still want to see friends and dress up, or if you already have your time booked off for that weekend.

Don’t allow your photograph to be taken by convention staff or volunteers. If you do choose to pay for a pass to maybe support friends in the artist alley, you have a free one, or if the convention throws something shady after ticket refund window, there are still things you can do. If someone from a convention asks to take you photo kindly decline. Don’t allow them to use you as free advertising. I find this is really important when it comes to conventions being hostile towards cosplayers, but then still heavily rely on them for advertising through the year.

If you feel comfortable enough you can let them know why you won’t let them take your photo. Say something along the lines of “No sorry, I am not comfortable being free advertising for the convention.” or “Due to ____ policy that the convention has put in place I am going to have the decline.” You can also just say “No sorry.” and move on. Just don’t be rude about it.

Keep in mind that most conventions have a policy in place when you buy your ticket you agree to have a photo or video take and used for advertising. So if you see a staff member taking a hall shot and you happen to be in frame, they are technically in the right, and there isn’t really a whole lot you can do. If you notice someone is taking a sole picture of you just politely ask them to not take photos of you.

Don’t enter contests. Drop from contests if you have already registered. Whether it is a cosplay, AMV, video game, or any other competition, don’t enter. Once again when on stage the convention is allowed to take any photos or videos of you and use them for future promotion. This is another one I would suggest if a convention is being actively hostile towards cosplayers or the cosplay community.

Things like this also affect other people's opinions on the convention. Cosplay and contests are huge draws for conventions. Even if other patrons are unaware of the issues that is causing you or others to boycott the convention, going to a half empty cosplay contest is going to make them think. Even if that thought is just “Wow, that kind of sucked. Maybe I won’t go next year.” That is something.

Don’t pay for photo ops with celebrities. Let’s be honest, autograph sessions are much more personable for lots of cons anyways. You have actual time to talk to your favorite celebs, lots allow photos to be taken at their table, they tend to be cheaper, and the convention gets less money from that. Try to limit how much money you are giving to the convention and support local artists instead.

Spread the word and get in contact with the convention. yell on twitter, get in contact. Be vocal about why you are upset with whatever they are doing. Tell your friends the crummy thing they are doing, go on local Facebook groups and share your frustration, through email or social media with the convention about why what they are doing is making you boycott their convention. If you don’t tell them what they are doing is wrong, they are going to assume otherwise. Remember it helps no one to just yell “YOU ARE ALL A BUNCH OF IDIOTS THIS IS STUPID.” It paints a bad picture of a community if everyone does that, and doesn’t get the point across of what is actually upsetting to you. Be constructive, encourage others to do the same and don’t be rude. You can be mad without being insulting. You can encourage change without being abusive.. Post open letters to your social media. Most importantly

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Working With a New Photographer - Keeping Yourself Safe

Beginning a new creative relationship can be an exciting thing. When you do a photo shoot with a photographer for the first time it can be the start of a flourishing partnership. Sometimes, if you don’t cover your basis, it can be not so pleasant.


With cosplay popularity growing, the amount of photographers out there is growing alongside with it. It’s important to get the service you want and pay for. It’s also more so important that you are keeping yourself safe when meeting up with new people. I’ve heard horror stories of cosplayers finding photos of themselves on sites that they’ve never agreed to be on. I’ve heard even worse of stories of straight up inappropriate behavior from photographers that people have agreed to working with beforehand.

Yet if you try to find resources on how cosplayers can better protect themselves against these sorts of things there is very little. Wedding questionnaires and professional interview questions can only go so far. So I have compiled this list of questions to ask a photographer before working with them.

Can I See Your Portfolio? If you haven’t see any of their work yet, I find it’s best to ask to see a portfolio of their work beforehand. This way you know what style you can expect, or get a vague idea of the work that you will receive from the final product. This is especially important when paying for a photo shoot.

What is your experience? Ask how long they have been doing photographer in general. How long have they been specifically doing cosplay photography.

Can I see some references? If you have a friend who has worked with them before, you can also just ask about their experience working with this person. Were they respectful? Is there any reason you shouldn’t work with them? Sometimes you might not know someone who has worked with them before. Don’t be afraid to ask them if they have any previous cosplayers or models they have worked with before that you can talk to.

What Is Your Cost? Cover cost before hand. The last thing you probably want after a long shoot session is the surprise of a high bill. Many photographers have different packages for different budgets. A Lot of cosplay photographers have this information put together on little infographs.
If they don’t have the information listed, it is always good to ask if they require any deposit fee before the shoot. If the photographer does a lot of preparation and research before the shoot expect that to be reflected in a non-refundable deposit.

Sometimes photographers also charge extra for more people. If you think you might have more than yourself let them know, and ask what the cost is.

Also consider currency exchange. If an american photographer is traveling to Canada for a con, their price might not be in CAD.

What Is Included In Your Package? If they don’t have the information posted, or they didn’t cover it in your cost, ask what exactly you are getting with your packing. This can cover things such as; How long will the shoot be?  How many edited photos will I receive? Will I get the unedited raw photos? How will I receive the photos? One drive, google drive, and drop box are all very popular options. All of this information will help you decide if their fee and your time is worth what you are getting out of the package.

Will I get to review proofs before editing? To me this is something that is really important. After all it’s your face and costume that is being shown. Most of the time way more photos are taken than photos that ever reach the editing table. Ask if it’s possible to choose the photos that get moved editing. This will make sure that you get the images out in the world that show off your work how you would like.

Will I get to review the edits before publishing? Remember, photographers are human too. Sometimes it takes another set of eyes to see that they missed something in editing. Ask if you can see the photos before they publish them to their own social media or websites.

How long will it take to get the final product? REMEMBER PHOTOGRAPHERS ARE HUMANS TOO. I see too often cosplayers harassing photographers for not having a quick turn around. Often cosplay photographers do this as a side gig, or a hobby. Expect them to prioritize their day jobs, school work, or family first. Ask before you go in how long it will take. If you need edited proofs to make business cards in a couple of week, but their work take 3-6 months, maybe look at someone else or lower your expectation. The more popular an artist, the more demand, the longer wait.

What will I be allowed to use the photos for? Some photographers have strict rules on where and how you can distribute their photos. My experience has led me to some lovely photographers that have no qualms in how you use their photos. It’s still best to ask rather than get in trouble later. Will you use them on your social media, website? Can you use them printed for marking purposes? (such as banners and business cars) Can you sell prints? Ask how they would like to be credited. Sometimes their watermark is enough, sometimes they would like things to be linked back to their own website.

Also if you ask for raws with the intention of editing them yourself please make sure you okay that with the photographer.

How will they be using the photos? Distribution of photos goes both ways. Ask in what ways they will be using the photos to make sure you are alright in how they will be used. Make it clear in what ways you would be uncomfortable.

What costume would you like to shoot? If you have more than one costume that you want to shoot, you can always ask what they would prefer shooting. This give them the option to maybe choose a character they are more familiar with.

Are you familiar with the character/series? I find when working with someone who has a passion for the same thing I do it shows in their work. It’s up to you if you want  photographer who is familiar with the series your costume is from.

Do you have any sort of themes or concepts you’d like the explore? This is useful to ask if you yourself are completely lost in what you want out of the photos. I’m someone is particularly open to what the photographer would also like to do. If you would like to do a more romantic photo shoot with a love interest, but the photographer is only interested in doing a gritty action shoot then maybe they are not the person to work with at that moment.

Do you have a location in mind? When working with a photographer for the first time, especially without a group, I would suggest doing your shoot in a public area. Public parks, school grounds, and parking lots are all good options. Have a conversation on what sort of setting you would like for the shoot, and brain storm some ideas that work for both of you.

Can I bring an escort/handler? Any good photographer will have no problem with this. If they say they have a problem with this turn tail. You should be allowed to have someone to make sure that you feel safe meeting someone for the first time. Also let us be honest, lots of us have costumes with limited mobility where we need a handler to drag around water, purses or other junk.

Will you be bringing an assistant? Just as you should be allowed to bring a friend along, the same goes for the photographer. Often they will have someone carrying equipment or help with lighting. If you are like me, you want to be emotionally prepared and know with how many people you will be working with that day.

How much direction will you give me? Some photographers are much more hands on than others. If you are clueless at posing, then it might work better to work with someone who gives a lot more direction than someone who comes in expecting you to be coming prepared with a list of poses you want to do.

Ask how they will direct you. Remember that no one should physically touch you unless they ask for permission before hand and that you are allowed to say no.

When can you meet to shoot? This should go without saying, but ask when they are available. Make sure your schedules like up and plan something!

How would you like to sign a release/contract? One final thing you should remember is to ask about contracts and releases. Cover your bases. Some photographers will have a pre-made release contract for models to sign that go over this. Other times I have had people fine with just having everything written either in messaging systems, or email. Either way keep a copy for your own future reference and don’t sign anything you are uncomfortable with.

Do you have anything on your must ask list for photographers that I haven't listed? Give me a shout and let me know if you do!

Sept 7 2017

I would like to add that all of this is written in the mind that under Canadian Law that Photographers are the owners of the copyright to any photos they take. Your checklist may differ if your country's laws surrounding photo copyrights are different. In Canada this is why its especially important to get a signed release and contract saying that you are allowed to distribute the work as you have both previously discussed. 

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