Sneak peak of my first cosplay shoot: Liliana Vess from Magic: The Gathering!

Good evening, Steemit! It’s past the midnight hour and I’m sitting in bed reflecting on a really, really eventually day. Not in the “…running around, doing things” sense, but in the “….making myself manically consumed with crypto-trades” variety. If you read my tarot reading from yesterday with @tarotbyfergus, you’ll have some context for the trading turbulence I’ve been feeling.

Today, for better or worse, I sold all my IOTA for EOS and STEEM. Truthfully, I bought IOTA on a whim and the timing couldn’t have been better. Just hours before this unreal climb. I don’t know much about IOTA. It was a lucky break. I am, however, a Graphene loyalist, and in my heart I wanted to have more tokens from the blockchains I believe in. These kinds of gains are rare and I’m 100% okay that trade. I’m sure IOTA is going to continue it’s climb, but I’m thinking long term and EOS is where I’m placing my bets.

Tonight’s photography is a big step in a career spanning almost two decades. In all my years behind the camera, I’ve never shot cosplay. To be honest, I never had an interest. Most of the cosplay photography I’ve seen is really bad. I am a nerd, and I love geek culture, but it wasn’t “serious” enough. Finally, as an unapologetic Magic: The Gathering enthusiast, I found a cosplay theme that was serious! 

Liliana Vess, or as @tarotbyfergus calls her, “…fuckin’ Liliana!” […he calls her that when she’s cast and he can’t do anything about it. Usually, that means he’s going to die]. Liliana is a necromancer planeswalker and a cornerstone of the MTG world. She’s a brilliantly developed character.

Last year, I met a SP/FX make-up artist named Kaci Wegleitner. We arranged a lunch to discuss a fantasy shoot but the moment I saw her, I said “HOLY SHIT! You look just like Liliana Vess!”. I explained to her who she was, then we went forward with the scheduled fantasy shoot planning, but in the back of my mind, I was thinking “…we’re going to make this Liliana shoot happen, one day.”.

That day came. @vermillionfox totally played the costuming for this MTG cosplay. I found a gown at the local thrift store, Kaci created the signature Liliana crown and facial scars. We found a secluded, woodsy location in St. Paul with giant concrete ruins. Every now and then, shoots just fall in to place. This was one of those. As the sun went down, we equipped Kaci’s palms with small, purple LED’s and at points, that was the only light used to make pictures.

*GIF courtesy of @vermillionfox

This is just a preview of the entire Liliana Vess cosplay shoot. I’m looking forward to posted the entire set of these photos once they’re edited. Thanks for reading. For more photography, art, illustration and the stories behind the work, follow me here @kommienezuspadt!