Cosplayer/Photographer Interview: Vicky Lau!
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| Photo by Benjamin Sim Photography |
In recalling her last convention, Vicky attended Aurora in Calgary. There she was dressed as the character Saber from the anime Fate/Extra. Many of her favorite cosplays up to now are ones I love as well such as her White Mage Agnes from Bravely Default, Battle Bunny Riven, and Christmas Bunny Riven! Vicky isn't the only geek in the family as 2 of her sisters cosplay with her. The oldest actually works with Vicky at Animethon in the same position! When it comes to editing and taking pictures, she usually takes about 40 shots and selects 1-2 of them to go crazy on. Course this only applies to private shoots with cosplayers. I imagine she did this with some of the girls in her recent group cosplays.
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| Photo by Camtography |
Vicky's other proud moment from last year was making the carrot sword for her Battle Bunny Riven! The sword was her first prop and she says it was definitely a surprise that she was able to make it. Trust me Vicky, I very much know that feeling :D. Her normal job working takes up majority of the week and afterwards it's either cosplays, photoshoots, editing shots or eating. In terms of where she got the name Vivid Vision, Vicky says it's actually a play on her former Internet Alias Vivi (named after the infamous mage from Final Fantasy 9!). I hope you guys enjoy the responses Vicky gave! I most certainly did ^_^.
What got you into photography and how long have you
been doing it?
I started photography 2 years ago. It was
really random because daddy bought me a DSLR camera for Christmas. I left it in
the box for half a year because I’m afraid of learning how to use new
technology! But finally took it out for my trip to Hong Kong!! Learned many
things with it and started experimenting with photography!
Do you mainly do cosplay photography?
For hobbies, I mainly do cosplay
photography on the side. But for hired photography work, I mainly shoot events,
weddings, portraits, etc.
You also dabble in making extremely cute cosplays. I
imagine photography had an influence on that as well?
I have been cosplaying for over 10 years
now! So a lot of my photography style comes from my cosplay inspirations (ie: I
like pretty sparkly magical cosplays/photography lol)
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| Model: Andy Rae |
Thinking
back to the last convention you were at, did you enjoy it?
The last convention I was at was Aurora in Calgary. Definitely was a
fun and relaxing convention ^_^
What cosplay(s) did you bring to this convention?
Saber from Fate/Extra
What is your favorite cosplay you’ve made so far?
From my recent list, I think my favorite
ones I’ve made so far are Battle Bunny Riven, Saber Fate/Extra, Agnes White
Mage from Bravely Default, Xmas Ayane from Dead or Alive, and Xmas Bunny Riven.
What
got you into being a geek?
IT’S IN MA BLOOODDD!!! MY CALLING XDD
Do you
have any other members of your family who are into what you enjoy? Or are you
at present the only “geek” in the family?
My older and younger sister are both into geek culture! My older
sister cosplays with me, and the both of us are directors at Animethon, the
longest running anime convention in Canada! <3 My younger cosplays seldomly,
but she is an anime artist that travels around North America and sells her art
at conventions as her full time job :)
You
truly know how take amazing photos from the work I’ve seen with some of the
other cosplayers. What’s the process like for editing each picture if you do
any?
If I am doing a private shoot with a cosplayer, I usually take less
than 40 photos of them, and try to pick one or two really good pictures and
edit it. I do the basic things like color correct etc, cropping the frame of
photo, then start editing all the details.
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| Model: Riki LeCotey |
Do you
have a personal favorite photo or set that you’ve taken during your time as a
photographer? What makes it your favorite?
My Seven Deadly Sins set!! This was a photoshoot I did as a
celebration of my 1 year anniversary as a photographer! Planned the theme,
designed and sewed the outfits, recruited 26 talents to hope on board to help
me with this project! Was definitely as very eye-opening experience!
Going
back to your cosplays for a bit, you’ve had 2 group cosplays recently last year
with other cosplayers including Andy Rae and Jessica Nigri. What was it like
working with all these talented women on your Disney Battle Princesses and
Armored Sailor Scouts?
It is very inspirational to be able to work with talented cosplayers
from different parts of the world! They motivate and encourage me to push my
cosplay to the next level!!! Looking forward to more future cosplays with
them!!
With
both those groups still in mind, I really loved your Armored Chibi Moon cosplay!
What was it like making that outfit?
It was my first time making armor with Worbla. And was definitely a
VERY challenging experience as I only had 3 weeks to make it!! A huge learning
curve but all my scouts were very encouraging and provided me support when I
needed, even when we lived in different cities!
How
did it feel wielding a giant carrot sword for your Battle Bunny Riven cosplay?
That must have been fun to make!
OMG BESTTTTTTTTT!!!! My carrot sword was the first prop I ever
made!!!!! Another huge accomplishment for me in 2014!!! I would never imagined
being about to make something like that!!! It’s a dream come true!!
What
do you think about cosplay as it is now hitting the mainstream?
I think it’s really cool that more and more people are getting into
this hobby!! It’s a great way to meet new friends and connect with people
around the world!! We’re all just really passionate nerds XD
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| Photo by FiveRings Photography |
Do you
have any upcoming cosplays for this year that you’re able to share?
Working on some Love Live cosplays for Hong Kong C3 convention in
Feb 2015!
What’s
a day in the life of Vicky Lau? Where did the name Vivid Vision come from?
Lol I work Mon-Fri, so when I come home from work, I’m either
working on my cosplays, doing a photoshoot, editing photos, or eating delicious
fooooodd!!! >w< My internet alias
name was Vivi (lol yes from Final Fantasy 9 :p) So I was trying to find a play
on words that kind of tied in with my name. Vi for Vivid, and another Vi for
Vision XD
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| Photo by Destiny's Curse Photography |
Any
upcoming game releases you’re looking forward to?
No time to play games!!! Must make more cosplays and travel XD
Do you have a favorite convention?
ANIME EXPO!!!
What’s the last thing you remember from New Year’s?
EATING DELICIOUS FOOOOOD!!!
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| Photo by Benjamin Sim Photography |
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| Photo by Benjamin Sim Photography |
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| Photo by The Will Box |
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| Model: Zombie Bit Me |
I hope you guys enjoyed getting to know the girl behind the camera and magical photos! If you want to follow more of Vicky's work, be sure to check out these links! Hopefully I'll get to meet her in person one day :D. All photos with model credits were taken by Vicky Lau!
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/vivivision
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/vickylau22
Instagram:
