Cosplayers are an interesting breed. The cosplay (a portmanteau of costume and players) community can be super serious. If you’ve ever been to a comic book convention, you’ve seen them wandering around in costumes ranging from extremely-high detail to lazily put together articles of clothing. There’s a special place in my heart for those that put the time, money, and effort into producing a high quality costume; there’s also a separate place in my heart for those that put too much time, money, and effort into producing a high quality costume. Nevertheless, the most dedicated of cosplayers can make a name for themselves both for their modeling, but also clothing design work. Outside of cosplayers are small community pockets of LARPers (Live-Action Role Players) and Furries (I don’t even want to get into the Furry phenomenon) who also dress up for personal/sexual enjoyment.
Austrian photographer Klaus Pichler took photos of various costumed people from 2011-2013 for his photo project, “Just the Two of Us.” However, instead of posing them into majestic, fantastical poses or settings, Pichler chose to photograph them in their homes, creating a duality between the relationship of reality and fiction within each person’s lives. Photos such as Halo‘s Master Chief sitting contemplatively on a living room couch are set alongside photos of a dragon playing a grand piano, a Furry rabbit lounging on a carpet, an occult member ironing clothes, and more. By shooting on 6×7 film, Pichler was able to capture just as much detail as one would with a dSLR and a large lens while illustrating just how amazing medium-format film cameras can be.
Check out some of Pichler’s photos from “Just the Two of Us” below, and make sure you check out the full photo set on his personal website; the photos I chose are meant to give you enough of a tease to ensure you see the full set.
[Klaus Pichler, via Wired]