Dragoncon 2012: More Pictures

After Dragoncon I get together with my friends and we have a Dragoncon picture swapping party, where we share each other's pictures. My friend Ken, who is also a photographer, took a lot of pictures, more than myself, as I was in costume more than he was. These are his pictures. Enjoy!

Left: in my hotel room, I do a last minute check of my Civil Protection costume before heading out.

This woman's expression just makes this picture as she looks disdainfully at the other costumer, whose eyes are not where they should be 

Below: my friend Randy (in the William Riker Star Trek costume) built this R2-D2 droid. This is its first con. His wife is in the Captain Janeway Star Trek costume beside him, and on the other side, another friend of mine in a Sith cheerleader outfit. There are a number of female members of the 501st Legion who have Sith cheerleader ensembles.

Snake Plissken with apes from Planet Of The Apes. They were wandering around throwing their net on people!

More Planet Of the Apes costumers

Above right and below: the perfect makeup and beautiful costumes are a testament to how much effort and devotion some attendees put into their costumes. These women look ready to step onto a sound  stage.

Above: Speed Racer hams it up for an enthusiastic crowd as the parade rolls out of the park through downtown Atlanta

Left: The fabulous Big Daddy costume from the video game Bioshock, accompanied by the Little Sisters. For more information about this fantastic video game, click HERE.

Below: The 501st Legion prepares to move out as the parade begins

Below: Stan Lee, the Marvel Comics master

Above: Batman is always a popular costume genre; these are some costumes from the sixties' television show, including a foxy Julie Newmar Catwoman (above right). 

Left: A really good Trinity costume from The Matrix

Below: the staff of the host hotels love Dragoncon. Not only does the event pump lots of money into the local economy, but attendees are generally well behaved, respectful and fun loving. The staff have a lot of fun hanging with all the crazy costumers. This is what life is all about: being yourself (or a favorite character) and having fun doing it.

The Miniature Worlds of Alan Wolfson

This is not the interior of a real deli. It is a model (note the quarter leaning against the counter).

Alan Wolfson creates insanely detailed miniatures of buildings from the 1970s and 1980s, down to the last detail, sculptures so realistic looking it's hard to believe they are not real. 

This piece is called Katz's Deli, commissioned by someone who used to live in New York and had fond memories of having eaten there as a kid. There are even neon lights that can be turned on to simulate the deli after dark. Yes, the picture below is of the model, not the actual building.

Wolfson's website has a lot of fantastic photographs of his work. I wish I knew how to build models this insanely realistic!

LINK

Civil Protection Costume

My friend Serena clowning around with me in my newest costume, Civil Protection from the video game Half-Life 2.

You can read more about this groundbreaking game, and see a video clip of this costume, HERE.

There will soon be lots more Dragoncon pictures posted, as well as the Magnum Arts Dragoncon podcast, so check back soon!

Snake Vs. Snake

Like the photos in the previous post with Batman, I spent some time at the Marriott Marquis posing for pictures for DeOndre Bonds with Atlas Photography. This set is with a cool costumer named Poco Nguyen in a Snake costume from Metal Gear Solid. It was Snake vs. Snake, and it was another highlight of my Dragoncon. 

You meet the coolest people there, and take away memories that last a lifetime.

Thanks, DeOndre, for taking such wonderful pics! Atlas Photography has no website, but is on Facebook, under Atlas Photography. "Like" the page and check out the other pictures!

Poco Nguyen, Nicole Rager and I hanging out during the photo shoot on the mid-atrium level of the Marriott Marquis. Outside, the sun is beginning to set on another awesome day at Dragoncon.

Snake Plissken and Batman

Courtesy of Atlas Photography, enjoy these pictures from the photoshoot I did at Dragoncon 2012, with Batman (whose real name is not Bruce Wayne, but Zoltan Hawes). Atlas Photography does not have a website, but is on Facebook, under Atlas Photography.

Superheroes of Hollywood Boulevard

The website Cherry Plucker has a gallery of movie  impersonators who dress as famous television and movie characters and pose for photographs with tourists for tips. Some of these impersonators have, or had, dreams of becoming actors, and it's clear from the photos they are filled with regrets about the choices they've made.

The documentary Confessions Of A Superhero follows four such people and examines the lives of the street impersonators, a life filled with more than a little sadness and regret.

LINK

Quick Sketch

This is a quick sketch I did while waiting to enter a veteran's job fair in Tampa. I carry my sketchbook wherever I go, and I had about fifteen minutes to kill before they were letting job seekers into the ballroom.

Sketching is not only about documenting or capturing something, but  also about becoming comfortable with not achieving perfection.

Is this sketch imperfect? Of course. I did it as quickly as possible while standing up. But it's good practice, and it relaxes me, and that is the intrinsic worth of sketching.

Carry a sketchbook with you wherever you go. And buy this book. It should be on the bookshelf of every artist.