Tampa Bay Comic Con

Yesterday was Tampa Bay Comic Con and I had no idea how unprepared Alex and I would be.

First of all, prepaying for your tickets online is the best thing you can do-- the line is shorter, quicker, and you get to the vendor hall faster. At least we did that right.
Afterwards I fell into a panic because of all the people, all the tables and, well, just everything. No matter how much you think you know about your first convention, you probably don't know much. It's like a theme park. The best thing to do is just push through. 

If you get there in the morning you'll have a decent amount of time to sift through the vendors. Just walk in and keep walking, looking as you go. Then once you've absorbed the atmosphere enough and you've finished your moment of panic, enjoy. Stop at booths that interest you, ask questions. Don't buy anything just yet unless you know without a doubt you have to have it and it's something unique to that vendor. Otherwise, keep looking around-- you may find something better or cheaper. 

Do keep in mind how late the vendors will be at the convention; there may be events and panels that extend into the evening but vendors will be shut down prior. This happened to me. I was super bummed because I was going to make a trip back to the vendors after the cosplay competition for another super cute kawaiiuniverse sticker for my laptop. To my dismay the vendor hall was closed. So if you know you absolutely want a particular item-- go! Get it. This is a day for convetion stuff and spending money on cute things and taking pictures of everything are both definitely included. 

In regards to the cosplay contest, and any other panel considered premium, get in line early. I'm talking at least an hour early. This was a small convention compared to others so for big ones you may need to line up even earlier. 

Alex and I got in the cosplay contest line a little more than an hour early and we still weren't able to get the best seats-- they weren't bad either but at least we got seats. 

If you don't get a good picture of your favorite characters as they get on stage, you are most likely going to get a chance after the competition.

A tip that convention regulars and cosplayers alike already know but are not obvious to all con newbies is that you don't have to do candid. You can ask people in costume if you can get a picture-- of or with them-- and the vast majority of them will be happy to oblige. When people dress up they want people to ask them for photos; they want to be noticed. 

When Alex and I were sitting down for a PBJ break we watched people go by in costumes. When I saw a -------- bombshell Black Canary I had to get a photo. I went up to her and asked if I could take a picture and she was genuinely surprised "me? Really? Of course!"  Not only is it flattering to ask for a cosplayers photo, it encourages them to keep crafting and artsing (yes I made that word up). While there were lots of cool cosplays I picked out the ones that caught me the most to take pictures of-- whether they be as unique as Sharknado or as detailed as the third place winner Death Stroke. However I was ready to round up all the bombshell cosplays I could find. 

In addition to asking for pictures you can also ask them about the work they put into the costume. People spend a lot of time sewing and crafting their costumes and want to use those well earned brag rights!

I'm working on getting a photobucket up of all the pictures I took. I have all the ones from the camera now I gotta get the ones from my phone plus zoom in and edit for the cosplay contest stage.  

I allowed myself a nerdy t shirt moment and got myself and Alex official TBCC t shirts. They were only $20-- normal tshirt price.