AX Day 2: Saturday July 2nd, 2011 - Image Heavy!
So I wasn't really planning on doing 2 days in one go but I feel like I'm on a roll. There will probably be a little lag between this and day 3, and have no fear, a swag post will come as well :)
No long intro, onto the pictures, 1 will be a repeat just cause the teaser picture had to be something fun *g*
Teaser:
AX 2011: Day 2: Saturday July 2nd, 2011
Unlike previous years there were food trucks outside the convention between the two ends of the convention center. I never went over to check them out but I had to take this picture of the Nom Nom truck for my dad :) Earlier this year my dad was watching the Food Truck War tv show on the Food Network and the Nom Nom truck was the grand prize winner. He laughed when I said I got him a picture of the truck ;) I kinda wish that I had went out and tried something from them but it just never worked out. Usually by the time that I was leaving the con and heading back to the hotel every day they were already gone, which from watching the show with my dad - meant they ran out of food :)
Another picture of the convention center as I walked up to it. You can see a Trigun cosplayer though with the big cross :) I saw a lot of Trigun cosplayers this year, which was kind of odd but then I remembered the new movie is coming out this year. Was kind of one of those light bulb moments.
And just as a comparison to Friday, this is the crowd in the lobby on Saturday. I took the picture from the second floor where the exhibition hall was and all my coworkers could say was "how did you move?" >.<
So backside shot of this cosplayer but this guy was dressed up as the little kid from Up :D Something I never really thought of but it was so cute!
And this is another candid cosplayer shot of the cosplayer in the blonde wig, Alois from Black Butler season 2 (aka Kuroshitsuji 2). I saw a few people running around as Alois but always from a distance so I never got a really good shot of one. I finally decided to settle on the candid shot cause of it :)
Walking by the Bandai/Aniplex booth again I saw the staff dressed a little differently. I can't swear to it, since I haven't seen it yet, but I think they were dressed up for Black Exorcist. I know Black Exorcist was the studio's big reveal for licensing at the convention and they had a big display for it like they did for Durarara!! Either way I snapped a picture just in case.
Vash the Stampede (Trigun) sighting! This was painted on the back of Funimation's booth. I actually saw it on Friday but there were always way too many people in front of it to get a clear shot.
For the beginning part of my second day at the convention I decided to spend some time in the exhibition hall before trying to go to the panel I wanted to attend. And honestly most of my time was spent on Saturday morning in the artist alley. When it was time for me to leave the convention center had actually closed the passage ways between the exhibition hall side and the panel side of the center - we had a bomb scare apparently, which was false - so I had to go back down through the lobby and outside to walk to the other side of the center. Which turned out to be a good thing cause I got to see this awesome Predator cosplayer :D One of the other people asked if he'd attack their Domo plush, which is when I snapped this picture.
And another of the Predator when the guy stood back up. It was a really impressive costume and looked like it was all foam. So I have no idea if he made it or bought it but it was nice. I have to admit being at the con multiple days I really give people that do the full suits props, that has to be hot. Especially since bomb scare = bomb squad = air conditioning was shut off for a few hours in the convention center :P
A couple of other cosplayers I randomly snapped a photo of in the lobby on my way out. I don't know what the girls are from but the one on the right had an electric plate on her chest that was flashing lightning.
Now on my walk outside of the exhibition hall area to make my way to the other side of the convention center I happened on some Resident Evil cosplayers. Jill Valentine and Leon S. Kennedy.
Another quick one of the Resident Evil cosplayers. I actually ended up seeing a few Chris Redfield's (all from Resident Evil 5) and I believe one Wesker but I never caught those on camera.
Trigun sighting inside the lobby of the other side of the convention center. Typically I never am in the other side of the convention center since in the past my day at the con was always spent in the exhibition hall, so it was kind of interesting checking this side out. There were definitely less people wandering around but more clumped groups of cosplayers in the lobby. In some ways I have a feeling a lot of people used this area to regroup or sit down and eat since the lobby was filled with a lot of people eating in little groups sitting on the floor out of the main flow of traffic.
So during the convention I went to 2 panels, the first was on Saturday and was Vic Mignogna's panel. For people who aren't familiar with Vic he is a voice actor for anime and has done TONS of anime. Personally for me the first character I ever heard him do was Fai from Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles, but he's also done Tamaki in Ouran High, Edward in Fullmetal Alchemist, Spirit in Soul Eater, Zero in Vampire Knight, etc, etc, etc. Vic was one of the guest's of honor at AX this year and I REALLY wanted to go to his panel. He had a concert you could go to on Saturday too, which cost extra money, but I passed on that because as cool as I think it is he composes music too, I wanted to hear him talk about his profession.
Well from the picture above - I did get in the panel. I had a really crap-tastic seat, but I got in. I couldn't see him most of the time because they didn't have a video camera on him even though he was in a huge room, but I could hear him. The only reason I got the few pictures I did was when he was picking people on my side for his Q&A session. But man, that all said, can I just mention how much crap I went through to get into this panel? And since I have been to other cons (Fangoria and Wonder-Con) where I went to panels this was the first time I really didn't get their reasoning.
Because of the bomb scare I got there a little later than I wanted, I was shooting for being over an hour early for the panel (cause hey I'm not dumb enough to think there wouldn't be a line) and got there just about an hour early. His panel was on the second floor, though technically you would consider it the third cause there are two other floors below it to reach street level, so naturally I went up there first. Found out you had to go down a floor to get in the line for the panel because the line was so long upstairs they moved what wouldn't fit upstairs downstairs. I found that odd but went with it and headed downstairs, and got directed outside, again a little odd. Well the line for the panel was done in a snaking pattern and was completely out in the sun. I got moved around a bit to find the actual end of the line and then proceeded to wait in line with no shade or breeze in really humid hot weater for 45 minutes.
Then when they moved the line to go into the panel it looked like you were going back inside where we came out - wrong - they walked you down to where you came in, snaked you around the whole mass of people still waiting, wrapped you around the building, went in some side door, walked through the whole lobby and up the double flight of stairs, then back down the corridor to where the panel was actually being held *face palm* After 45 minutes baking in the sun I was definitely feeling the heat and my legs were not happy with me going up the stairs after all my other walking, but I made it. And after all that I was just estatic to be in the damn panel.
To be a little more positive Vic is a wonderful guy to listen talk. He just really gives off the impression that he loves what he does, which as a fan, makes me like him all the more. He was really amusing when he was interacting with fans. I even for awhile forgot that he voiced Spirit in Soul Eater until he called on a girl cosplaying as Maka and slipped into Spirit's voice going "Maka - daddy loves you." *g* Though I think my favorite thing he did when he slipped into a character voice was when he picked a Fai cosplayer to ask a question and went "Fai! I love Fai! Have you seen Kurger-burger today?" Man I wish I had an audio recording of that :D
Now funny thing with this picture, he was a row in front of me, he actually stopped right next to me, which I was on an end seat in the aile. I so could have gotten an awesome shot of him but I restrained myself cause I have a really bright flash and I didn't want to be rude. I know most stars or celebrities kinda have to get use to flashes going off all the time but most of the people snapping photos around me had little pocket cameras and I had my Cannon with me that is most definitely not a little camera with a weak flash. Besides, not taking a picture meant I just got to look and listen ;)
And yes, I took a backside photo when he walked away XD Bad me, but one of the friends I went to the con with is gay and I thought he'd appreciate the tight purple pants - which he did when I showed him the picture later that night in the hotel ;) Either way I absolutely hated having to wait outside for 45 minutes in the sun and all of that aggravation but I am really thankful that I made it to Vic's panel. He's a very fun actor to listen to.
Another lobby shot, but this is on the panel side of the convention center. I took this picture after I got out of Vic's panel when I was waiting for my friend to pick up her cell phone. She wanted me to check in after Vic's panel because we all had agreed to leave the con earlier on Saturday because she bought us tickets for a movie in a theater in Hollywood. At the end of Vic's panel, which ran long since they didn't start it til they got everyone they could from outside into the room, they announced he'd be doing autographs in the exhibition hall. Well when I talked to my friend I told her that but said I might go back to the hotel so I could take my time. My friend encouraged me to go try for the auto session, told me the latest I could get back to the hotel, and after I realized the walkways were open again I figured I'd give it a go.
Let me just say right now the auto session for Vic did not go as planned and I realize I'm jumping ahead of my photos but might as well say it now. Apparently a lot of people left his panel early cause when I got there the line was HUGE for his autograph session. So big that guess what, we were funneled outside to stand in the sun again *face palm* I waited for awhile til the con staff came out to make a cut off point saying people beyond that point wouldn't get an autograph. Which I fell in that area and due to the time they were saying other people would wait fell too late for the movie, I left the autograph line. I admittedly by this point was really dehydrated and tired but did a little tour around the exhibition hall - did a little angry shopping (honestly thats when I got my Durarara!! wallscroll) and ended up finding the one art book (Fullmetal Alchemist) I'd been hoping to. I kind of calmed down after that, ran into some cool things which are in pictures below, and bought myself a nice fresh squeezed lemonade on ice before leaving to head back to the hotel.
Now this big Soul Eater group (left to right: Asura, Spirit, Stein, Black Star, Tsubaki, Death the Kid, Soul, & Maka) I ran into in the lobby of the exhibition hall when I was making my way over from Vic's panel. I've never seen an Asura which is really what made me stop.
And this is just a closer picture of Asura, Spirit, Stein and Black Star.
After finding my art book and getting the wallscroll I was starting to make my way back to where I saw the lemonade stand and happened to run into a Fullmetal Alchemist cosplay meet up - for some reason around the big Al :) So naturally I had to stop and take some pictures. Although I fully admit these weren't the best because I was trying to take pictures completely one handed because of the wallscroll, which I had in my other hand and was trying not to hit people with.
Same little gathering. I was pretty impressed to see someone cosplaying Kimblee (cosplayer in the full white suit).
And another showing Lan Fan and Ling a bit more.
Action shot.
Sorry I don't have more exciting commentary here *face palm* I was snapping quite a few since I wasn't sure what would turn out doing all these one handed.
Now something really amusing was across from the group in the pictures above was another little Fullmetal Alchemist gathering but Mustangs men, including 1 of the 2 Armstrong's I saw running around. I have to admit the other one, who I never got a picture of, was way better since he had the build to run around without his shirt on like Armstrong is known for.
And I caught a picture of them when they moved to pose in front of Al. After this shot I decided to leave and get my lemonade so I could head back downstairs. And oddly enough I found few other ways to get around the exhibition hall which came in REALLY handy on Sunday *insert evil grin*
Back in the lobby on the way out of the convention center I ran into a Yuko from xxxHolic! This picture could have been a lot better but because I like to be a glutton for punishment apparently I not only had my backpack and camera hooked to me I was carrying a bag with my art book, the wallscroll, and a lemonade all in the other hand. One handed photography is not my strong suit at the moment.
And then just after Yuko left I ran into these lovely guys all dressed up as Fai and Kurogane from Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles. I don't know if this is the Fai from Vic's panel - since I never could see that cosplayer - but it's the only Fai I saw :) And honestly I've never been lucky enough to see a Fai & Kurogane together so *squee*
After that I found a spot to sit outside in the shade and enjoyed my lemonade while I packed up my camera and goodies in the backpack, then made my way back to the hotel so I could meet up with my friends/hotel mates. Although I almost wish I had left my camera out cause I missed yet another cosplayer that was done up as Cross from D.Gray-Man and looked excellent, but honestly by that time I was so burnt out. When I got back to the hotel we went out to eat and finally went to the theater for our movie, which just in case anyone is wondering the movie we saw was Jaws :D And yes the original Jaws, not any weird thing with the same name. We went to a theater that shows old movies and they were doing Jaws for the 4th - my friend is a huge shark fan so she wanted to go but I've always loved Jaws since I saw it with my dad when I was younger at home. I have to admit it was nice seeing it on the big screen with an audience - who surprisingly had a lot of people that hadn't seen it before...at least I hope so with the jumps and screams people were doing. So yeah, that was day 2 of the convention.
Please do not hotlink.
If you missed it Day 1 can be found here.
And with that ends post 2. Stay tuned for day 3 to come soon, definitely not tonight though. Two posts was more than enough for me to do in one sitting and with tomorrow being Monday and back to work bed is calling *hugs flist*
No long intro, onto the pictures, 1 will be a repeat just cause the teaser picture had to be something fun *g*
Teaser:
AX 2011: Day 2: Saturday July 2nd, 2011
Unlike previous years there were food trucks outside the convention between the two ends of the convention center. I never went over to check them out but I had to take this picture of the Nom Nom truck for my dad :) Earlier this year my dad was watching the Food Truck War tv show on the Food Network and the Nom Nom truck was the grand prize winner. He laughed when I said I got him a picture of the truck ;) I kinda wish that I had went out and tried something from them but it just never worked out. Usually by the time that I was leaving the con and heading back to the hotel every day they were already gone, which from watching the show with my dad - meant they ran out of food :)
Another picture of the convention center as I walked up to it. You can see a Trigun cosplayer though with the big cross :) I saw a lot of Trigun cosplayers this year, which was kind of odd but then I remembered the new movie is coming out this year. Was kind of one of those light bulb moments.
And just as a comparison to Friday, this is the crowd in the lobby on Saturday. I took the picture from the second floor where the exhibition hall was and all my coworkers could say was "how did you move?" >.<
So backside shot of this cosplayer but this guy was dressed up as the little kid from Up :D Something I never really thought of but it was so cute!
And this is another candid cosplayer shot of the cosplayer in the blonde wig, Alois from Black Butler season 2 (aka Kuroshitsuji 2). I saw a few people running around as Alois but always from a distance so I never got a really good shot of one. I finally decided to settle on the candid shot cause of it :)
Walking by the Bandai/Aniplex booth again I saw the staff dressed a little differently. I can't swear to it, since I haven't seen it yet, but I think they were dressed up for Black Exorcist. I know Black Exorcist was the studio's big reveal for licensing at the convention and they had a big display for it like they did for Durarara!! Either way I snapped a picture just in case.
Vash the Stampede (Trigun) sighting! This was painted on the back of Funimation's booth. I actually saw it on Friday but there were always way too many people in front of it to get a clear shot.
For the beginning part of my second day at the convention I decided to spend some time in the exhibition hall before trying to go to the panel I wanted to attend. And honestly most of my time was spent on Saturday morning in the artist alley. When it was time for me to leave the convention center had actually closed the passage ways between the exhibition hall side and the panel side of the center - we had a bomb scare apparently, which was false - so I had to go back down through the lobby and outside to walk to the other side of the center. Which turned out to be a good thing cause I got to see this awesome Predator cosplayer :D One of the other people asked if he'd attack their Domo plush, which is when I snapped this picture.
And another of the Predator when the guy stood back up. It was a really impressive costume and looked like it was all foam. So I have no idea if he made it or bought it but it was nice. I have to admit being at the con multiple days I really give people that do the full suits props, that has to be hot. Especially since bomb scare = bomb squad = air conditioning was shut off for a few hours in the convention center :P
A couple of other cosplayers I randomly snapped a photo of in the lobby on my way out. I don't know what the girls are from but the one on the right had an electric plate on her chest that was flashing lightning.
Now on my walk outside of the exhibition hall area to make my way to the other side of the convention center I happened on some Resident Evil cosplayers. Jill Valentine and Leon S. Kennedy.
Another quick one of the Resident Evil cosplayers. I actually ended up seeing a few Chris Redfield's (all from Resident Evil 5) and I believe one Wesker but I never caught those on camera.
Trigun sighting inside the lobby of the other side of the convention center. Typically I never am in the other side of the convention center since in the past my day at the con was always spent in the exhibition hall, so it was kind of interesting checking this side out. There were definitely less people wandering around but more clumped groups of cosplayers in the lobby. In some ways I have a feeling a lot of people used this area to regroup or sit down and eat since the lobby was filled with a lot of people eating in little groups sitting on the floor out of the main flow of traffic.
So during the convention I went to 2 panels, the first was on Saturday and was Vic Mignogna's panel. For people who aren't familiar with Vic he is a voice actor for anime and has done TONS of anime. Personally for me the first character I ever heard him do was Fai from Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles, but he's also done Tamaki in Ouran High, Edward in Fullmetal Alchemist, Spirit in Soul Eater, Zero in Vampire Knight, etc, etc, etc. Vic was one of the guest's of honor at AX this year and I REALLY wanted to go to his panel. He had a concert you could go to on Saturday too, which cost extra money, but I passed on that because as cool as I think it is he composes music too, I wanted to hear him talk about his profession.
Well from the picture above - I did get in the panel. I had a really crap-tastic seat, but I got in. I couldn't see him most of the time because they didn't have a video camera on him even though he was in a huge room, but I could hear him. The only reason I got the few pictures I did was when he was picking people on my side for his Q&A session. But man, that all said, can I just mention how much crap I went through to get into this panel? And since I have been to other cons (Fangoria and Wonder-Con) where I went to panels this was the first time I really didn't get their reasoning.
Because of the bomb scare I got there a little later than I wanted, I was shooting for being over an hour early for the panel (cause hey I'm not dumb enough to think there wouldn't be a line) and got there just about an hour early. His panel was on the second floor, though technically you would consider it the third cause there are two other floors below it to reach street level, so naturally I went up there first. Found out you had to go down a floor to get in the line for the panel because the line was so long upstairs they moved what wouldn't fit upstairs downstairs. I found that odd but went with it and headed downstairs, and got directed outside, again a little odd. Well the line for the panel was done in a snaking pattern and was completely out in the sun. I got moved around a bit to find the actual end of the line and then proceeded to wait in line with no shade or breeze in really humid hot weater for 45 minutes.
Then when they moved the line to go into the panel it looked like you were going back inside where we came out - wrong - they walked you down to where you came in, snaked you around the whole mass of people still waiting, wrapped you around the building, went in some side door, walked through the whole lobby and up the double flight of stairs, then back down the corridor to where the panel was actually being held *face palm* After 45 minutes baking in the sun I was definitely feeling the heat and my legs were not happy with me going up the stairs after all my other walking, but I made it. And after all that I was just estatic to be in the damn panel.
To be a little more positive Vic is a wonderful guy to listen talk. He just really gives off the impression that he loves what he does, which as a fan, makes me like him all the more. He was really amusing when he was interacting with fans. I even for awhile forgot that he voiced Spirit in Soul Eater until he called on a girl cosplaying as Maka and slipped into Spirit's voice going "Maka - daddy loves you." *g* Though I think my favorite thing he did when he slipped into a character voice was when he picked a Fai cosplayer to ask a question and went "Fai! I love Fai! Have you seen Kurger-burger today?" Man I wish I had an audio recording of that :D
Now funny thing with this picture, he was a row in front of me, he actually stopped right next to me, which I was on an end seat in the aile. I so could have gotten an awesome shot of him but I restrained myself cause I have a really bright flash and I didn't want to be rude. I know most stars or celebrities kinda have to get use to flashes going off all the time but most of the people snapping photos around me had little pocket cameras and I had my Cannon with me that is most definitely not a little camera with a weak flash. Besides, not taking a picture meant I just got to look and listen ;)
And yes, I took a backside photo when he walked away XD Bad me, but one of the friends I went to the con with is gay and I thought he'd appreciate the tight purple pants - which he did when I showed him the picture later that night in the hotel ;) Either way I absolutely hated having to wait outside for 45 minutes in the sun and all of that aggravation but I am really thankful that I made it to Vic's panel. He's a very fun actor to listen to.
Another lobby shot, but this is on the panel side of the convention center. I took this picture after I got out of Vic's panel when I was waiting for my friend to pick up her cell phone. She wanted me to check in after Vic's panel because we all had agreed to leave the con earlier on Saturday because she bought us tickets for a movie in a theater in Hollywood. At the end of Vic's panel, which ran long since they didn't start it til they got everyone they could from outside into the room, they announced he'd be doing autographs in the exhibition hall. Well when I talked to my friend I told her that but said I might go back to the hotel so I could take my time. My friend encouraged me to go try for the auto session, told me the latest I could get back to the hotel, and after I realized the walkways were open again I figured I'd give it a go.
Let me just say right now the auto session for Vic did not go as planned and I realize I'm jumping ahead of my photos but might as well say it now. Apparently a lot of people left his panel early cause when I got there the line was HUGE for his autograph session. So big that guess what, we were funneled outside to stand in the sun again *face palm* I waited for awhile til the con staff came out to make a cut off point saying people beyond that point wouldn't get an autograph. Which I fell in that area and due to the time they were saying other people would wait fell too late for the movie, I left the autograph line. I admittedly by this point was really dehydrated and tired but did a little tour around the exhibition hall - did a little angry shopping (honestly thats when I got my Durarara!! wallscroll) and ended up finding the one art book (Fullmetal Alchemist) I'd been hoping to. I kind of calmed down after that, ran into some cool things which are in pictures below, and bought myself a nice fresh squeezed lemonade on ice before leaving to head back to the hotel.
Now this big Soul Eater group (left to right: Asura, Spirit, Stein, Black Star, Tsubaki, Death the Kid, Soul, & Maka) I ran into in the lobby of the exhibition hall when I was making my way over from Vic's panel. I've never seen an Asura which is really what made me stop.
And this is just a closer picture of Asura, Spirit, Stein and Black Star.
After finding my art book and getting the wallscroll I was starting to make my way back to where I saw the lemonade stand and happened to run into a Fullmetal Alchemist cosplay meet up - for some reason around the big Al :) So naturally I had to stop and take some pictures. Although I fully admit these weren't the best because I was trying to take pictures completely one handed because of the wallscroll, which I had in my other hand and was trying not to hit people with.
Same little gathering. I was pretty impressed to see someone cosplaying Kimblee (cosplayer in the full white suit).
And another showing Lan Fan and Ling a bit more.
Action shot.
Sorry I don't have more exciting commentary here *face palm* I was snapping quite a few since I wasn't sure what would turn out doing all these one handed.
Now something really amusing was across from the group in the pictures above was another little Fullmetal Alchemist gathering but Mustangs men, including 1 of the 2 Armstrong's I saw running around. I have to admit the other one, who I never got a picture of, was way better since he had the build to run around without his shirt on like Armstrong is known for.
And I caught a picture of them when they moved to pose in front of Al. After this shot I decided to leave and get my lemonade so I could head back downstairs. And oddly enough I found few other ways to get around the exhibition hall which came in REALLY handy on Sunday *insert evil grin*
Back in the lobby on the way out of the convention center I ran into a Yuko from xxxHolic! This picture could have been a lot better but because I like to be a glutton for punishment apparently I not only had my backpack and camera hooked to me I was carrying a bag with my art book, the wallscroll, and a lemonade all in the other hand. One handed photography is not my strong suit at the moment.
And then just after Yuko left I ran into these lovely guys all dressed up as Fai and Kurogane from Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles. I don't know if this is the Fai from Vic's panel - since I never could see that cosplayer - but it's the only Fai I saw :) And honestly I've never been lucky enough to see a Fai & Kurogane together so *squee*
After that I found a spot to sit outside in the shade and enjoyed my lemonade while I packed up my camera and goodies in the backpack, then made my way back to the hotel so I could meet up with my friends/hotel mates. Although I almost wish I had left my camera out cause I missed yet another cosplayer that was done up as Cross from D.Gray-Man and looked excellent, but honestly by that time I was so burnt out. When I got back to the hotel we went out to eat and finally went to the theater for our movie, which just in case anyone is wondering the movie we saw was Jaws :D And yes the original Jaws, not any weird thing with the same name. We went to a theater that shows old movies and they were doing Jaws for the 4th - my friend is a huge shark fan so she wanted to go but I've always loved Jaws since I saw it with my dad when I was younger at home. I have to admit it was nice seeing it on the big screen with an audience - who surprisingly had a lot of people that hadn't seen it before...at least I hope so with the jumps and screams people were doing. So yeah, that was day 2 of the convention.
Please do not hotlink.
If you missed it Day 1 can be found here.
And with that ends post 2. Stay tuned for day 3 to come soon, definitely not tonight though. Two posts was more than enough for me to do in one sitting and with tomorrow being Monday and back to work bed is calling *hugs flist*