Overview:
I think the general consensus of this little event was that of great praise. Everyone seemed to be having a great time and everything went very smoothly. The gathering venue was Saratoga’s Hakone Gardens. We wanted to do it at another venue but they weren’t being very cooperative with selling us a permit so we had to choose somewhere else to go. Though a minor setback, it seemed to all work out in the end. Everyone gathered at about 11:30 and the gathering kicked off at high noon, ending at 2pm.
I enjoyed Hakone Gardens as there seemed to be a good amount of diversity and just enough space for our group to move around. The cloudy lighting conditions (for me) were less than ideal but coping with them was just a matter of placing the model correctly. By the end of the allotted shooting time, we had all gotten to know at least a few people better and decided to “after party” at the Mitsuwa 15 minutes away. The day ended with a much needed lunch and a good number of new acquaintances that hopefully will keep in touch.
What Went Well:
First of all, for last minute organization, things went incredibly well. We weren’t sure what the venue was going to be until the last minute but thanks to some hard work, we managed to put on a great event.
The venue was very nice, had a good amount of different backdrops and offered just enough space for our group. From what I heard, the venue also cooperated with us nicely, especially given the last minute nature of our request and some trepidation at the unknown (to them of course) world of cosplay. The normal patrons of Hakone Gardens also seemed very nice and genuinely interested in what was going on as they were unexpectedly thrust into some sort of Manga Mashup. The venue was also very easy to get to with ample parking.
Most importantly, everyone seemed to have a lot of fun, cosplayers and photographers alike. I’m pretty sure everyone met at least a few new people and the group seemed to be a very social one. No one was made uncomfortable and everyone seemed to get their say.
What Could be Improved:
Now, before anyone takes offense to this part, I feel that in order to make an event better than it was (not that it was bad at all), means that we must be honest with what can be improved and how to achieve that. No offense is meant, just idea on how to make the experience even better.
Firstly, it was last minute. Now, much of this couldn’t be helped and the organizers did an amazing job regardless, but for the next one, I would like to see more people pitch in to help. Instead of one person investigating venues, let’s all take charge of investigation. That way we are able to choose 2nd 3rd and 4th choice locations quickly and reserve the time we need.
That brings me to my second improvement, the time. Again I realize that the time of day or length of time was our choice however I’m not sure anyone was really ready to leave when we did. It would be nice to have more time to do a more relaxed shoot and be able to cover everyone equally. Also, from a photographers standpoint, noon to 2pm is one of the least desirable times to shoot. It would have been much better if we were able to shoot either earlier in the morning or later in the day. The sun would have been at a much nicer angle with warmer tones and the light wouldn’t have been so harsh when the sun peaked through the clouds. Also, we need to appoint a “Gathering Leader”. As it is for all big gatherings, deciding a plan democratically never works if you want to be efficient with your time. This person needs to come up with a day plan before the gathering with help from the group and then once decided, no more changing. Especially at noon when the gathering started, we should have already come up with a plan to decide how the groups were going to go rather than using a precious 15-20 minutes deciding what groups are going to go where and who is going to shoot who.
Next for me was the amount of space. It was great for what we had but if there were any more photographers, cosplayers or both, we would have run out of space. It was already difficult to get a cosplayer one on one to do a shoot and many times it would encroach on someone else’s space. Judging by the great success of this shoot, there will be more people next time and I just don’t think the same venue or same sized venue will work again. Also with the venue, as wonderful as it was to have the different aspects of tea garden, it would have been nice to have some more desolate areas (i.e. something like a desert, rundown building, brick wall, etc.).
My only other room for improvement was with the organization of the photographers and cosplayers. I don’t think that splitting up into groups and tackling it that way worked. I think that a much more effective way would have been for people to just mingle, talk and go off with an individual or group and those cosplayers who aren’t taking pictures group in one central spot. That way the photographer gets the shots of a cosplayer they want, in the location that they want and the cosplayer isn’t waiting somewhere that a photographer can’t see them. There were a few people who I didn’t get to photograph that I wanted to because I simply had no idea where they had gone off to. This way, if they aren’t being photographed, you know where they are and if they are being photographed you can either wait or politely ask to “share” the cosplayer. Near the latter stages of the gathering, it ended up being organized more this way however if done at the start, I think it would have yielded a much more efficient use of time.
Conclusion:
In the end, it was a great gathering. While there is always room for improvement (even at huge conventions), the organizers did a wonderful job and a lot of new friendships were forged. There are already plans for a second gathering and I’m sure that it will be even better than the first one.
PM me if anyone wants to do a photoshoot near the SF area at some locations I have in mind already. Also, here is a list of blog posts and galleries from the gathering:
bishop (my shots, keep checking back as I’m always really slow to post photos)
shinjixikari
davidyuweb
peiqinglong
OscarC: gallery, blog
Wren
Travel-Valenti
dantris_driffen
kimu
RyuHayabusaDOA2
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I think you make a lot of great points about how to improve next time. This gathering was a very good learning experience, and I think we have a better idea of what to do and what not to do for the next gathering.
Part of the difficulty of planning ahead is it’s hard to pin down who’s coming and what cosplays they will be bringing. However, we can set aside more time before the shoot formally starts (we learned this time that 30 minutes isn’t enough), and better use that time to get organized.
Time of day is another challenge. 9am – noon might be better, but it’s hard for people who are coming from far away to get there at 9am. Evening is a possibility, but if the goal is to avoid peak sunlight, in the summer it would need to be after 4pm, so we’d have to find someplace that would let us stay until at least 7pm. This rules out locations like Hakone that close at 5 or 6pm.
i definitely agree with the time constraints. i felt like a lot of people were still trickling in at 11:45 and noon which may be even more reason to simply have a central meeting spot for all cosplayers to go to and have each photographer conduct a photoshoot with whome they wish. the downside of that is that it may require more time.
i think we should also try and make it more of an all day thing. that way people can come and go when they wish, hang out and talk as well, we can possibly do a lunch thing if u “pre-register” and shoot in all different types of conditions.
as far as Hakone goes, while it was a great venue, i think we need a bigger one for next time judging by the popularity of this one.