Customer Reviews

Cosplay in America

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Full of photos and great value if you like looking at cosplay then this book is for yo,u in this book much looking and less reading it's really loaded with pictures i loved it

I was at this year animefest and just so happen to meet the author of this book. After talking to him, I find out that there was no books about cosplay here in America and we have some really good cosplayers here. I want to thank him for doing this book and giving our guys chance to shine. I hope in the futue he does another one.

I purchased this book in December 2011 before it hit the stores and had some time to browse through.

The ambitious title 'Cosplay in America' is a bit misleading. More correct title would be, for example 'Cosplay in America - above the waist' or 'Cosplay in America - forget about poses'.

If you are new to the anime/manga/cosplay fandom, you might find this book interesting. However, if you, like me, attended several anime conventions and know what is what, you'll find this book under-performing, to say the least. In this book, quantity rules over quality.

But let start with the good points.

First, I really appreciate great publishing quality when I see it. Glossy thick paper, excellent printing, good design.
Second, my thanks to the author who did the job of taking all these two hundred and some more photos.
Third, if I was a Japanese, I would have appreciated bilingual text too, but I am not, so the quality of the translation is unknown to me. But it surely looks cool.

The rest is disappointments.
(1) The backdrop was too small. This, probably, was the reason of severe cropping of all cosplayers at or just below the waist. I know, I know, we are all on a budget, but... you got your book very nicely published, it kind of contradicts with the 'don't whine, I'll only take picture of half of you. And forget your best attacking swordfighter pose, just try to fit into the backdrop" approach that I see here.

(2) This 'portrait' framing draws a lot of unnecessary attention to the faces of cosplayers. I just want to say that when you take a picture of male Sailor Moon, face should not be your main attention point.

(3) It would be really helpful to add a character name as a tiny footnote to each photo.

All in all, three stars. Would not recommend to spend $40 for this book. Instead, add another $30 and attend Anime Expo, you'll see most of these people live and will take a lot of pictures without need to fit into a backdrop frame :)

Great coffee table book. For those in the know, it serves as a fun guess-who game. For those not in the know, it does exactly what a coffee table book should do: spark conversation. It's clear that a lot of work and passion went into the many photographs, and each cosplayer brings their character to life in the costume and their expressions.

Great representation of a variety of cosplay skill levels. Beautiful photographry and people are actually in character. One criticism would be that the character and where it's from is not listed with the person's name/location.

This is an excellent book especially for those people with a casual interest in the world of costuming and people who perform this hobby. It's a celebratory book of people dressing up, mainly as anime characters. The photos are good and show some creativity owing to a cramp space used to take the pictures. The is a joyful tone to the book

Came earlier than expected, and in perfect condition. Good, honest photography - really portrays cosplayers in a positive light and has real variety! There's something for everyone in Cosplay in America.

This book shows how cosplay has followers of all ages. I love how the book is also has tranlated in japanese.