Did you all enjoy the East Coast snow storm we had this past week? While most people were wide eyed and shut in their houses, I (amongst many other photographers) were elated at the big fluffy mess that mother nature bestowed upon us. It’s not common to have snowfalls like this in the DC/Virginia area. With 17 inches of accumulation in one night/day, there was a lot to work with.

Cavan had approached me a few months ago asking if I’d be willing to do a cosplay photo shoot in the snow with a costume he made based on the Lich King from World of Warcraft. Of course I jumped on the idea because A.)Geek love and B.)Snow photo shoot opportunity. This was his first ever Cosplay outfit and SPOILER ALERT: It’s made mostly of paper.

PAPER! I’m so impressed. It’s a fancy thing called pepakura, which is apparently just another word for black magic. Because really, how do you go from flimsy paper to armour? It must have some sort of sorcery involved. Or a lot of cutting gluing, printing and coating… and patience. So much patience. The fact that this was his first costume and it turned out this amazing says a lot about his skills, creativity and craftsmanship.

Over the span of 1 year, Cavan put in hundreds of hours into this costume. I helped him put it on so I understood the intricate engineering that went into it. I have a background in technical theatre, and the inside strap set up to hold everything together impressed me. From the paper base start to the detail finish – I asked him to break it down in hours he said:
-60 on the helmet
-30 for each of the pauldrons
-20 on the breastplate
-15 on each of the upper leg plates
-20 on each of the lower leg plates
-6 on each of the hand plates
-25 or so on the straps and harness
-25 or so on the chain mail
-4 for Frostmourne, the sword
and 6 for the cape

If your jaw hit the floor, you aren’t the only one. Google “pepakura” to see exactly how and why this process takes so very, very long but achieves such magnificent results with the right person. If I could find time I would love to make my own pepakura Blood Dragon armour from Dragon Age, but alas with that kind of commitment I will be finished in the year 2079.

On Thursday we were lucky enough to get caught in the crossfires of the second snowfall and create some awesome photos together. I came out soaking wet like a mop at a carwash, but it was all so very worth it! I’m just glad I don’t have to suffer through 8 months/year of this weather anymore. Like a good little Canadian geese, I flew south. The novelty of cold weather has worn off this week and I’m ready for cherry blossoms and hyacinths in my yard. However until then….