As Oni-Con creeps up again, I realized I never posted my pictures from Oni-Con 2016. So, this post is almost a year late. It’s been about 2 years since I’ve descended into Daiya no Ace hell, but it really doesn’t seem that long ago! On the Saturday of this con, I cosplayed my son Sawamura Eijun who is the protagonist of this series.
Making the Cosplay
I picked Sawamura Eijun as my first Daiya cosplay since his face is more youthful shounen than handsome ikemen. I have round features, so it’s difficult for me to pull off characters with sharper features at my current contour skill level (read: low). So I went with the standard game uniform. I really did not want to drop $100+ on a baseball glove which is really the key part of the character since he’s a pitcher. The jersey, undershirt, belt, pants, and shoes are all from Mizuno, the brand which sponsors the anime and manga. The jersey is official merch! The socks and hat I bought from the local sports shop, but I did not account for the wig’s thickness, so it was uncomfortably squeezing my head throughout the day. The “S” patch I bought from QuidVis on Etsy who specialize in making embroidery patches for cosplay.
I messed up ironing the patch the first time. Luckily I thought ahead and ordered two because I knew I would mess up somehow. My wig is Airily‘s easy short cosplay wig in chocolate brown. Ribanns kindly cut for me and I styled it afterwards. For the jersey number, I just bought some cheap white cotton from the fabric store. Then I used inkjet transfer paper to apply the numbers onto the rectangle. I used fashion tape to temporarily apply it to the backside of the jersey. I want to use it for other characters in the future. For the sock bands, I bought some bias tape in yellow and sewed it into a loop. They stayed up without adhesive for most of the time, but if I was running around more, I’d secure it with fashion tape.
Sawamura Eijun Cosplay Photoshoot
I’ve casually cosplayed before, but I’ve never done actually done a real photoshoot for any of them. I was a bit nervous as I’ve never really worked with another photographer, but my buddy Ruiki guided me well! Thanks, aniki.
We went to an actual baseball field which I had scouted out a few weeks beforehand. Thankfully it was not in use because October is in the middle of baseball season, so we had the whole field free from judging eyes. Ruiki had never been to a baseball field until this shoot. Sawamura is seen practicing with his tire often, so I picked up a tire and used it as a prop. We couldn’t find a rope, so I just settled with carrying it; definitely got my arm workout for the day with how heavy it was (rather I am weak).
The sunset glow turned out gorgeous in the pictures. It was definitely worth all of the sweat of standing outdoors. Firsthand tip, inkjet transfer paper will bleed with said sweat. For the poses, I collected a bunch of screenshots from the anime and a few official photos of Sawamura in the live action stage play. We referenced them during the shoot since neither of us actually play or have knowledge of actual sports. P.S. it’s a great help to collect references for photographers especially if they are unfamiliar with the series; they will thank you.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I’m happy how the cosplay turned out! I rarely take off my glasses for photos, so it’s funny to see myself in such nice pictures without them. Without them I feel a little naked, not to mention blind. Next time I would like to style the wig differently. Since I didn’t account for how much the hat flattened my hair, the tips need some work. I also need to buy a larger hat and redo the back number. It’s a good thing that all the characters wear the same thing essentially because they’re on the same team. I could eventually cosplay every member! Though I only cosplay twice a year max, it’s going to take me awhile to get through the list. My next post will cover the rest of my Oni-Con 2016 memories, so stay tuned!
Photography by Sakuran
