Dragon Con 2021
“Dragon Con is the largest multi-media, popular culture convention focusing on science fiction & fantasy, gaming, comics, literature, art, music, and film in the universe.”
We all nerd out over something, right?
I nerd out over cameras. I nerd out over computer security. I also nerd out over comic book stories…not necessarily actual comic books. I’ve only read a few comics as an adult but I do love comic book movies, which is a big reason I went to Dragon Con this year to take photos. DragonCon is the closest you can get to capturing comic-like action in real life, without being on a movie set.
For those who do not know, Dragon Con is an event where thousands of people descend on Atlanta over the Labor Day weekend. Most of those people are dressed in full cosplay, living their very best life for the extended weekend. I have been a few times over the years but this was my first trip as a photographer. Due to the ongoing pandemic, I was unable to attend last year and had not bothered the two years previous to that.
Dragon Con is a photographers paradise! You have thousands of people, in character, dressed in very detailed and sophisticated outfits. You have people engaging in cosplay which can set up for some very interesting shooting scenarios which produce amazing results! And it’s great for all parties: the photography AND the cosplayers.
Photographers love taking photos.
Cosplayers love getting photos taken.
This year, Dragon Con served as a photography challenge. Over the course of about ten hours, I took hundreds of photos with dozens of people. This required me to direct the models, capture subtle reactions and quickly identify quality compositions. The last of those can be tricky. Most of the compositions I went for were hero shots. The kind I would typically look for in the movies. I wanted to capture memorable moments that left an impression.
The majority of these shots were taken when I approached people at the convention and asked to take their photo. The barrier for doing this is much easier at a conference like this where people want to be seen. As a result, it lends to people being much more willing to work with you to get a good shot. Shout out to all the great people at the conference, by the way. Everyone I spoke to was very willing to be posed and have multiple shots taken.
To see the entire collection, check out my DragonCon gallery here.
