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Cosplaying has become an international phenomenon. While originally just focused in Japan, this culture of sort has now set foot in every country, no thanks to the popularity of Anime that in some way leads to the birth of cosplaying (any historians want to dispute this please send the hate mails to my email). One of these countries is Korea, and if you are a cosplay fan, you should know of the cosplay group “Spiral Cats” whose cute cosplayers, high quality photography and accurate costumes immediately made them popular among cosplay circles around the world. We are quite lucky to get hold of one of their member, photographer cum cosplayer Sinme for a little chat.

More after the jump

AnimeShrine: First of all, what is your nickname and country/place of origin
Sinme: My nickname is Sinme, and I live in Seoul, South Korea.

AS: How long have you been doing cosplaying photography and why did you start?
S: It’s been 3 years since I started devoting myself to taking cosplay photographs. I originally majored in western paintings and was working as a 3D character designed at a game company when in early 2009 I had the chance to take photographs of Korean cosplayers Tasha and Ren. That was when I became interested in photography and started taking photographs seriously. This hobby developed into starting my own studio which turned into ‘Danahan Studio’.

AS: What is your current camera gear, and how much did it cost you?
S: I use the Canon 5D Mark II along with the Canon 50mm F1.4, 28-70mm F2.8 and 35mm F2.0. I definitely want to buy more good lenses in the future. My flashes are the Canon 430EX2, 550EX and a ring flash, but most of my photo shoots are done using the lighting equipment in my studio.

AS: What camera did you use when you first started doing photography?
S: My first camera was the Canon 350D, but until then photography was just one of my many hobbies. Then in 2009 I bought the Canon 1D and the Canon 28mm F1.8. This was when I realized the fun in using a camera and I immediately fell in love with photography. There were times when I was so frustrated because the camera was too heavy and it’s battery life was so short, but if I hadn’t used that camera I would never have chosen photography as my profession. For 3 years I have used about 12 camera bodies, but the 1D is the one that affected me the most.

AS: Usually when we see your pictures, they are mostly done in an indoor studio. What is the difference between this and an outside location (ie: an open park)?
S: The reason for that is very simple, I don’t have a driver’s license If I had a car maybe I would have done a lot of outdoor photo shoots. Excluding that, the most significant difference to me is the sun, and I usually use a reflector. Being used to indoor studio photography, working with a huge light source and not being able to change its direction is a difficult problem for me. In a studio, I can change the environment freely and that is why I prefer indoor shoots.

AS:The lighting in your pictures are awesome as they look soft while still maintain the character’s sharpness. How much studio light do you use per shoot and what are your usual camera settings?
S:Thank you for the compliment I usually use continuous light, and to put an emphasis on the model I usually try to go with shallow depths of field.

AS:Your favourite cosplay picture that you took?
A:Among the many cosplay photos I took as a hobby, the ones that I remember the most are the photos of Mei Lanfang from Full Metal Alchemist. We went out to a riverside and actually made a bonfire at night for those photos. Anyone who saw me that night would have thought I was up to something fishy There were many difficulties such as starting the bonfire, acquiring enough shutter speed, the weather, etc. and I thought that the photos would definitely not be good. Surprisingly though, when I came back home and checked the results they were quite good.

AS:Are there a lot of cosplay photographers in Korea and are you guys close with one another?
A:There are a lot of cosplay photographers in Korea and also a lot of active cosplay related community websites. I am the manager of one such website which has around 5,100 members and of that 5,100, about 1,000 members are photographers. Photographers are a very active element of the Korean cosplay culture and you can see a lot of photo shoots being held frequently. It may even be that there are more photographers than there are cosplayers

AS:How do you guys determine the setting and poses during a shoot?
A:We usually select the setting and poses on the spot. Because of the sheer amount of photos we usually take, it is difficult to prepare every time in advance. When choosing the setting and poses, the model’s suggestions are always taken into consideration first.

A:Any funny/weird stuffs that had happened during cosplay events/shoot?
AS:In 2010 I was taking photos of Korean cosplayer Tasha who was cosplaying Sheryl Nome from Macross Frontier. She seemed very cold so I turned on the stove for her, but she went too close to the stove and her costume caught fire. Everyone was running around in a panic but eventually put the fire out by stepping on the costume. Everyone was worried that Tasha might have been burnt, but she was OK and we were able to cut off the burnt part and get on with the photo shoot.

AS:right now your group (spcats) are quite well known in cosplay communities around the world. Did you ever thought this would happen?
A:At first we never thought Spiral Cats would be as well known as it is today. When Tasha and Ren first came together as team Spiral Cats they wanted Korean cosplay to be known to the world, but I think they never would have thought about having this amount of popularity. Additionally we added Tomia in 2010 and Miyuko in 2011 which definitely helped the team to be where it is today. Since then there were lots of happenings and obstacles, but I think constantly doing what we love without faltering is the reason we were able to be accepted by so many people.

AS:as you yourself does some cosplay, how different it is between being a cosplayer and a cosplayer photographer?
S:I never wanted to cosplay myself. The first time I cosplayed, I was so nervous that I was sweating all over and I felt like something would pop out of my mouth. I don’t think I’m the model type. I’m much more comfortable behind the camera However, I do want to have another go if I get the chance in the future.

AS:Does this hobby cost your guys a lot?
S:It is quite costly. I manage a studio so I’m slightly better off, but the models have to spend quite some money to cosplay what they want. There is the occasional cosplay part time job but it’s not nearly enough and they end up having to spend quite a lot.

AS:Would you come to Malaysia for anime conventions/events if invited?
S:I’ve never been to Malaysia, only other close countries such as the Philippines. I really do want to visit sometime. I’ve heard that the weather in Malaysia is very hot and humid and that worries me a bit, but apart from that everything else about Malaysia fascinates me. If I get the chance to participate in an event in Malaysia, I would definitely want to go and cosplay I’ll be looking forward to that day.

AS:Do you have any websites/facebook page where fans can contact you?
S:There is an official Spiral Cats website(http://spcats.com) and each member has their own blog or Facebook page. They usually use Facebook. Currently there is so much traffic on our website and it keeps going down But on the other hand, we’re very happy that there are so many visitors.

AS:Lastly, any messages to your fans in Malaysia?
S:Hello everyone who loves cosplay in Malaysia, I’m Sinme The only Malaysians I’ve met were the WCS Malaysia representatives and the staff members, and they were all so cheerful and kind. I love the lively cheerful energy that all Malaysians seem to possess so naturally. If I get the chance to go to Malaysia and meet everyone, I wish at least one person would recognize me and say hello. I would be so happy that I would take a photo with that person and upload it to my Facebook page or blog. Of course I would also like to take photos of Malaysia and Malaysian cosplayers as well. I even look forward to Malaysia’s hot weather Thank you for reading this and until then, have a very nice day.