kansas city cosplay – Kansas City Photography

A SURPRISE Princess Serenity Cosplay Session!

February 10, 2021 by Kcityphotography, posted in Photoshoots

It was 25-degrees, but that didn’t stop Abby and me from surprising Jennifer with a SURPRISE photo session, despite her attempts to accidentally foil our plans! 😉

Abby (who lives in Florida) reached out to me mid-January about setting up a surprise photo session for her girlfriend over the weekend she’d be in town visiting. She was also making her a HANDMADE and GORGEOUS Princess Serenity gown to wear in said session.

We brainstormed and decided to tell Jen I was hosting a Moonie Meetup (for Sailor Moon fans) at Loose Park (there are some beautiful columns there, which would fit the Princess Serenity aesthetic).

Jen was worried about the cold. I was attempting to make it so she didn’t cancel on attending my fake “Moonie Meetup,” so I offered to move the madeup get together to my house since it was “all people I knew anyway.” She agreed. PHEW. Any time Jennifer would say something, Abby would message me in a panic.

The day finally arrived when Jen and Abby showed up at my house. I met them out in the parking lot, a camera casually strapped around my neck. AND THEN ABBY WHIPPED OUT THE SURPRISE! The moment we’d been waiting for!

THEN, we told her there wasn’t actually a Moonie Meetup … this entire thing was for a surprise photo session, all for her! Abby knocked this Valentine’s surprise out of the park!

Now, to the session itself. It was cold. 20-degrees cold. BUT WE ARE CHAMPIONS! Plus, as I told Abby in our chats … cosplayers and photographers are a touch on the crazy side. 20 degrees is child’s play. 😉

I am so happy the surprise and the session were a moontastic success! I have worked with Jen several times, and actually met Abby through photography as well (at this session below, actually)!

Here’s to many more! One of the greatest things about cosplay — the photos will always be different because the characters are! All of these cosplay sessions are the same person (Jen)! I have so much respect for cosplayers, and their infinite creativity bringing characters to life!

Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

And a very Happy Valentine’s Day to Jennifer and Abigail!

Featuring: Scattered Roses Cosplay

A Super Mario Themed Wedding: Daisy & Luigi Get Married!

April 28, 2018April 28, 2018 by Kcityphotography, posted in Photoshoots

I had the extreme honor to be in Joseph & Jeny’s wedding this Sunday. They are both very big in the cosplay community, and I have gotten to know them over the years at anime conventions (mainly Naka Kon).

This is how I’m used to seeing them, dressed in some sort of adorable Luigi/Daisy or Peach/Mario combo:

But I had the honor of seeing them dressed up in different attire this time!

Since I was in the wedding, Kansas City Photography wasn’t the official photographer, but being who I am … I of course still snapped some photos!

The theme was too unique to miss!

Handmade piranha plants adorned the tables. Lights were strung across the ceiling. Reds, greens, yellows, and blues were on the tables.

Each bridesmaid was dressed as current styled Daisy, and Jeny’s sister-in-law was Princess Peach. Jeny’s Maid of Honor was Classic Daisy.

Here’s me (on the left) with a fellow bridesmaid, Anna!

The flower girls were also little Daisy and Peach characters.

Jeny handmade her gown! She told me there were three patterns she loved and couldn’t pick between … so she combined them!

“I was trying to represent all three dresses worn by Daisy: classic dress, current dress, and the dress from the Mario movie,” she said.

And, of course, like many in the cosplay community know … sometimes you need help getting into your outfit.

I am so happy these two are now officially husband and wife! Joe lived out of state, and they had to survive a long distance relationship for years!

The day he stepped off the airplane and called Missouri his home — he proposed!

It was amazing to be involved in such a fun wedding! A huge congrats to Jeny & Joe!

Jeny’s photographer, Melody Joy, has more fun photos! Go check her out, and then you could see some photos of me as Daisy, too! 😉

It’s A Dog’s World — Meet Tatiana’s Furry Family!

April 5, 2017April 3, 2018 by Kcityphotography, posted in Our Silly Family

Hi, everyone! Tatiana here to talk about my beautiful (and stinky) family!

First, let’s start with Eric:

We met in college and there is no one else in the world I would rather share my adventures with. He loves Minecraft, Warcraft, arts and crafts … Kraft Mac N Cheese — you get the idea!

I am constantly on the go. My mom FORCES ME to take naps at her place because really, who has time for sleep? I’m always busy with my cosplay, both an art and a business, promoting my brand Momo Bunny Cosplay. I make the world smell good with Scentsy, and make the world look good with photos. I am constantly running around KC for photoshoots (on one end of the camera or another), and editing until my stomach tells me it’s time to stop and eat. Eric supports me through it all! He is the most understanding, optimistic person I know and he is the calm in my chaotic world.

I introduced him to cosplay and now we travel across the country every year, exploring different cities and going to different conventions. We are the perfect team and four years later we own a house together (Christine’s old house, actually)!

We have very few professional pictures together (we gotta change that!) but I think our “Lady and The Tramp” shoot has some of my favorite pictures of us together!

We love Disney, and we love dogs. Speaking of which, lets move on to my fur babies!

Meet Lily:

Lily is a Coonhound I rescued from KC Pet Project about three years ago. I was looking for a doggie to be my companion during hard times and I fell in love with her picture right away! She is my baby girl, my best friend, and she has a deep bark to scare off sinister solicitors. 😉

Her hobbies include sunbathing, chasing critters, and digging.

Here she is trying to hide one of her holes in the yard with her face. Quite the personality she has!

Next up is Luna:

(Christine and I definitely did NOT plan to name our children the same names. Funny how that works out though, right?).

Eric saved her after she was chained up in a yard, left behind by her previous owners at an abandoned house (savages!). I suggested we name her Luna after my love for Sailor Moon over the phone when Eric explained she was black. He left out the detail of her being a Chihuahua… now Luna is short for “Lunatic.” She has her sweet moments, but her breed only really bonds with one person, and like Frenchie from Grease explains, “The only man a girl can depend on is her daddy.”

She loves barking, biting, pooping, yapping, more barking, and sacrificing the blood of the innocent to her nethergods… I mean … napping.

Meet Zero:

It has always been my dream to have a basset hound! I was looking around and realized we really couldn’t afford what breeders were asking for and no shelter had any basset’s available. Then, a breeder contacted me asking if I would possibly want one of her pups that has to undergo a minor surgery. Because of his hernia, no one else wanted him no matter the price. As soon as I went to her house to meet him, he jumped around his brothers and sisters right into my lap! He chose me from the beginning.

He’s about a year old now and I still can’t get over his cuteness! I always say dogs are a lot like toddlers and Zero likes to prove that everyday. He pushes his limits and then gives me those puppy eyes to see how much he can get away with. Boy is spoiled!

BUT HOW CAN YOU SAY NO TO THAT FACE?! HOW??

Zero was named after the dog in “Nightmare Before Christmas,” another huge fandom of mine. He enjoys snuggling for hours, chewing on random objects abruptly without warning, and howling. He is currently pursuing a music career in yodeling. He’s really going places.

I can never get the three in a photo together! This is the best there is! Luna barking Lily away and Zero wondering why his older sister be so cray-cray … and so tiny.

My babes are crazy, noisy, and hairy (especially Eric), but I wouldn’t have it any other way!

Brian & Kellie’s Autumn-Colored Country Wedding

March 28, 2017 by Kcityphotography, posted in Photoshoots

I started this blog in 2017, so some of my favorite weddings of 2016 never got highlighted — until now! Today I wanted to take a look back at the last wedding I did in 2016 before winter fully set in.

Brian & Kellie Hudson

It was an unusually gorgeous day Saturday, November 12. Renyers Pumpkin Farm in Wetmore, Kansas, was usually already closed for the season, but it stayed open for Brian & Kellie’s big day. And it was in the 60s. The 60s! In mid-November!

When I did the couple’s engagement photos in February, Kellie told me she wanted to encompass the colors of fall in her wedding colors — oranges, purples, yellows. We even incorporated that into her Save the Date!

And when I walked into the Coach House to see her wedding decor in person, I gasped. She nailed it! It looked like a lovely autumn day — but inside! The chairs were lined with colorful orange and red leaves. There was a fire going, and logs were set to place their delicious wedding cheesecake upon (yes, cheesecake!! It was so good!).

Since the weather hadn’t yet turned bitterly cold, the leaves were still clinging to the trees. We could really get some great shots that reflected everything we love about fall — there were some leaves that already said goodbye to the season on the ground, but there were still some clinging on hoping we’d just skip winter and prance right into spring.

The dresses and vests were a dark, autumn purple. Kellie’s bouquet had twine and fall flowers interlacing.

It was truly a fall wedding — gorgeous colors of nature represented throughout! There was a shot from the couple’s engagement shoot that they absolutely fell in love with — and asked me to recreate it for their wedding day. Done!

Brian & Kellie were adorable. The cute little forehead kisses Brian kept sneaking. The way Kellie would reach for his hand instinctively — the same hand with a new promise displayed on his ring finger.

The two didn’t want to see each other before walking down the aisle. Kellie was so nervous he would catch a peek, but Brian said it was so important to him to get this shot. They held hands around the corner, not seeing each other for the first time on their wedding day until Kellie walked down the aisle.

After the vows and the tears, it was time for some fun! Renyers has a life-size foosball! I have never seen one of these, but before I could even make the suggestion they go play, the groomsmen’s jackets were flying off, and the bridesmaids were sprinting into the game!

We ended the evening with gorgeous country sunset shots. It was an unforgettable day of love, laughter, vows, cheesecake, and foosball.

The best touch — Kellie gave me a card at the end of the evening. A handwritten letter thanking me for being her wedding photographer. It was so humbling — especially when the honor was all mine!

Thank you, Kellie & Brian!

Are you getting married? We are in both Kansas City and St. Louis — plus, we travel! Contact us today!

“How Much Do You Love Me?” Amanda and Dustin’s Engagement Shoot!

March 22, 2017 by Kcityphotography, posted in Photoshoots

Hey, everyone! Tatiana here to talk to you about a celebration of LOVE. First off, congratulations to Amanda and Dustin for winning our free engagement shoot!

They chose the Love Locks Bridge for the shoot location. They picked it from our awesome list of the Top 10 Photoshoot Locations in KC. This was such a fun area to explore and I’m grateful they were willing to go on little adventures to get the perfect shots.

It was such a treat meeting them and seeing their love for each other shine through on camera. When I asked how they met, here’s what Amanda had to say:

“We both met each other on Tinder (what people nowadays consider a hook up site lol). Definitely not our case!”

They were both in search of their special someone and became head over heels!

This is one of Dustin’s signature signs of affection for Amanda: the forehead kiss!

When the proposal happened, Amanda was so surprised, she thought the conversation was heading for the worst. AKA a breakup … not an engagement!

They were at the Plaza for their anniversary and it was bitter cold. Dustin casually asked Amanda “so, how much do you love me?”

She put her arms out wide and said “THIS MUCH!”

“Alright, and how much do you think I love you?” Dustin countered, with Amanda giving the same response as before.

Dustin disagreed and held his hand up, measuring a tiny amount, almost an inch. At this point, Amanda was really confused and thought he was trying to break up with her.

He then said (and I’m paraphrasing) “Sometimes you need to appreciate the small things, because they can turn into something much more.” That’s when he got down on one knee and pulled out the ring!

And what a ring!!! Whoo-whee!

When I heard the touchingly romantic story, Dustin said jokingly: “Yeah, I had to bring her down a little bit to build up the moment.”

There you have it, folks! TRUE LOVE! This tree stump is a new favorite hot spot — we got so many cute shots by it.

I wish them the best in their happy future together!

May the playground teasing never die, and Amanda stay safe from the slide bandit.

P.S. Book us for your wedding! 😉

Day Two & Three: Naka Kon!

March 14, 2017 by Kcityphotography, posted in Photoshoots

WOW. Saturday was the busiest we’ve ever been at Naka-Kon, thank you everyone for stopping by our booth! We had hundreds of people stop by to get their photos taken. Tatiana and I were busy, busy bees!

We met so many fun people — and from the sounds of it, we’ll see a lot of you again for outside cosplay shoots! We also had someone look into us for a wedding and family shots! It’s just the con that keeps on giving.

We hope we get accepted for next year and will hopefully see you there in 2017! We will have a Canon printer right at the booth next year for faster prints!! I am so excited about it!

Highlights:

One of the best Serenity cosplays I’ve ever seen, complete with a silver crystal. Getting to hang out with Tatiana all weeked!!! A Kakashi with a sweet sharingan contact. Dabbing. Lots of dabbing. Some of the best handmade props I have ever seen in my life. TEACH ME YOUR WAYS, SEMPAI! Plus, getting to see my regulars every year! I LOVE catching up with everyone and seeing what they’ve been up to!

IF YOU USE ANY OF THESE, LINK US BACK: http://facebook.com/kansascityphotography

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Naka Kon 2017: Cosplay, Photography, and MomoBunny!

March 14, 2017March 14, 2017 by Kcityphotography, posted in Photoshoots

Note: We will have a blog up with a gallery of photos from the con later today!

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Hey, everyone! This is Tatiana (aka Momo Bunny Cosplay), the newest photographer on the Kansas City Photography team. I was asked to shed some light on my experience at Naka-Kon and my cosplay construction.

Here I am cosplaying Viktor Nikiforov from the award-winning anime “Yuri on Ice.”

I’ve been attending Naka Kon since 2009, back when it was based in downtown KCMO with 1,500 or less attendees. It’s touching to see the first anime convention I went to grow and evolve as my cosplays have over the years. Now, it is based in Overland Park, KS, and the attendees almost reached 9,500 people! YOW-ZAH!

Some of you may be wondering: “what the heck is cosplay?”

Let me break it down for you!

Here’s the technical definition (thanks, Google):

cos·play

ˈkäzˌplā,ˈkäsˌplā/

noun

a contraction of the words costume play, is a performance art in which participants called cosplayers wear costumes and fashion accessories to represent a specific character.

Here is a photo I took at the Kansas City Photography photobooth of Caitlyn Rook cosplaying the White Queen from Tim Burton’s “Alice In Wonderland”.

Cosplay, to me, is an art form. I have unlimited outlets to create (sewing, welding, sculpting, thermoplastic, makeup, wig styling, etc.) — and endless possibilities of characters to choose from! Sometimes, it can be putting an outfit together to create a characters image:

Above is a photo Christine took of my Prompto cosplay from Final Fantasy XV! Although I purchased all the pieces of this look, I styled the wig, detailed the vest with studs and patches matching the character, and used fabric paint to create the undershirts design.

Another awesome Prompto cosplayer above!

Each year, there’s always a favorite anime or character that you see EVERYWHERE! Naka was flooded with Prompto’s since the voice actor for him was a guest at the convention (Robbie Daymond). Cons will often have special guests (voice actors, actors, artists, famous cosplayers, etc.) to draw more people in.

Oh, look! Another Prompto!

It was amazing being able to meet so many talented and kind people at the booth. This was my first time getting a taste of the vending life at a con, but it was a lot easier to connect with people being in one location vs wandering the halls.

Above: Check out Christine and I from Saturday as Punk versions of Sailor Venus and Chibiusa from the Sailor Moon series! We took concepts from the original character designs, such as Sailor V’s signature red bow and Chibiusa’s buns and pink obsession, and put our own spin on things for a unique costume design!

It’ll take weeks to months — even YEARS — to create a cosplay for an event such as Naka Kon, so I give everyone out there mad props (haha… props) who came to our booth to capture their works of art on camera!

Above: Featuring Madison Hankins from Akarii Cosplay as Neo from RWBY. She creates all of her cosplays herself! AMAZING!

Naka-Kon is a welcoming, happy place where I feel safe to talk to strangers and connect through the love of all things nerdy! I recommend anyone who feels shy or uneasy about expressing their interests to go and make friends! It’s impossible to NOT to find someone to share your fandom with and create wonderful memories.

Above: My niece Nya as Vocaloid Miku! Naka is a family-friendly event and I love that so many children have a way to express themselves in a safe, positive way.

Joining Kansas City Photography has opened up a whole new world of possibilities and fun times ahead! The Con season has just begun, and I’m excited to see how my photography and cosplay can inter-loop again.

A silly photo to end a memorable weekend. Lolita style!

Day One: Naka Kon!

March 11, 2017March 28, 2017 by Kcityphotography, posted in Photoshoots

Day one of Naka Kon has come and gone. We met some great cosplayers and are looking forward to today!

Did you come to our booth yesterday? Make sure you come pick up your CD and I’ll show you our print packages!

One of my favorites was Diane from “Seven Deadly Sins.” She was the only cosplayer from that series I saw. She made the dress in one day!!

And of course our own Tatiana was gender bend Yuri. She’s always so gorgeous … and I LOVE “Yuri On Ice.”

I met so many people who made their own props, sewed their own outfits, and even custom made wigs I’m always so in awe of how talented people are! I can’t even sew. 🙁

I didn’t see any “Sailor Moon” characters. That makes me sad!! So, any Sailor Moon cosplayers get $2 off if they visit me today!

Please note, if you use ANY of these photos, link us back! http://Facebook.com/kansascityphotography

Free Engagement Shoot WINNER(S)

March 8, 2017October 18, 2017 by Kcityphotography, posted in Uncategorized

On Monday, we started a free engagement shoot competition to help welcome our new photographer, Tatiana (she’s the one doing the shoot)! Over the last 48 hours, people voted for their favorite couple by “liking” the photo and also liking the Kansas City Photography Facebook page.

Typically, this is where I name the winner, but …

Look closely and you will see the conundrum.

They both had exactly 225 likes! This is unprecedented. I have never had a tie before! So, what to do? Both of these couples worked really hard to get those 225 likes, so I definitely didn’t want to do a “like-off” or some other “tie-breaking” competition.

The answer: They both win, therefore, they both get free engagement shoots!

Congratulations to Amanda & Dustin, and Briana & Brian!

Before the tie, I also promised a prize for second place.

So — Sydney & Zane get half-off an engagement session!

Have an amazing week, everyone, and congrats to our winners. Make sure to follow us on Facebook!

P.S.: Today is my birthday, so I am just handin’ out the gifts left and right. 😉

Free Engagement Shoot Giveaway!

March 3, 2017March 4, 2017 by Kcityphotography, posted in Uncategorized

To help welcome Tatiana onto the team — we’re giving away a FREE engagement photoshoot, and she will be your photographer! Details below this cute picture of her. <3

HOW TO ENTER: Send a picture of you and your significant other to kcityphotography@gmail.com, OR you can message it to us on Facebook.

HOW IT WORKS: On Monday, March 6, at 9 a.m., we will post all of the photos onto our Facebook page. To win, get your friends and family to like the photo we post of you AND the Kansas City Photography Facebook page. They must do both for the vote to count!

HOW TO WIN: The photo of the couple with the most “likes,” by Wednesday, March 8, at 8 a.m. wins! We will announce the winner at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, March 8. Second place will get a prize as well!

We will accept entries throughout the contest. Do not be surprised if you log on and see more pics added to the folder!

Please be available for the photoshoot within the next 2 weeks!