This activity involves the art form of game photography or virtual photography through the lens of video games. This was an exercise that practiced different photography principles and elements while doing what most of us enjoy.

I chose Genshin Impact for this assignment because it has good visual aesthetics and art direction. Unlike other games in my library like The Sims 4, the expansive open world of Genshin Impact provides better landscapes, dramatic lighting, and architectural styles drawn from different cultures.

Since I am still a beginner in the game, I have asked the help of my partner, who is a much better Genshin player than I am, to tour me to different parts of the world inside Genshin. I want to focus more on the landscape of the game since it shows cultural and fictional historical places.

I plan on using my computer, which has a core of AMD Ryzen 5 2600 and 16 GB RAM. However, if things go sideways, my second option is to go to an internet cafe, which I'm sure has better computer specs than mine.

Right now, the challenge I'm anticipating is really the quality of the game on my computer; it may become laggy, or I might need to lower the graphics quality to control it better. Another problem I am expecting is the difficulty of controlling the camera, I may not get the result I wanted or it may come off as a low quality work. Either way, I have some second options and I'm also studying, that way it will be easier once I try to do the activity.

The solemn statue of Inazuma’s Archon, the Raiden Shogun. In every region of Genshin Impact, an Archon represents them. This statue is exceptionally beautiful to look at when the sunset is out. 

I found this statue really beautiful at first glance, with pink leaves flying down all over it and the dramatic effect with the sunset. I tried various positions and angles with this subject, and found that including the sun setting is the best way to enhance the beauty of the statue. It's a great example of scale photography, with the massive statue against the tiny human figure in front of it. 

The composition techniques in mind I tried with this photo were:

Golden Ratio, I wanted to practice golden ratio spiral as I am new to the concept and thought this would be the perfect angle to establish that composition. 

Rule of Thirds, where I placed the statue at the left third of the frame and the sun setting at the right third, also allowing the balance it needed.

Negative Space, with the open sky serving as the negative area that allows the eye to focus on the statue and the sun.

I also picked sunset to focus more on the emphasis, harmony, light, contrast, color, and scale to help enhance the subject, which is the statue of Raiden.

This was taken in the Mondstat cathedral, with Ningguang as the main subject. Although the character has nothing to do with the location, Ningguang’s elegant outfit matches the cathedra’s interior well. 

I wanted to capture the ethereal quality of the cathedral, with lights streaming through the stained glass windows, and of course, with for me, the most ethereal character of the game, Nigguang. I positioned her at the spot where most of the light rays are maximized and with enough space in the background to capture the center of the cathedral and its columns.

The composition techniques I tried with this photo were: 

Rule of Thirds, where I position Nigguang at the right third of the frame, while allowing the other side to focus on the cathedral's center.

Leading Lines, where the cathedral's tiled floors creates diagonal lines that guides the viewer's eye towards the center and the subject.

Depth of Field, which I used to keep the subject in focus while also showcasing the background of columns and stage.

With a little framing, which was served by the columns in the background. The elements and principles of colors, light, lines, harmony, and emphasis also helped enhance the subject from the background. 

This is the entrance gate of Liyue Harbor. It is the city wherein merchants gather to make a living. It somehow resembles old Chinatowns, like Binondo, because of the buildings’ architectural designs. 

When I first saw the Liyue Harbor, the arch at the entrance immediately caught my attention. I loved how it showed the beauty of the whole place.  This place reminds me of the ancestral places inspired by China, Japan, and Korea. The amount of wood details and outside is really beautiful. With this in mind, I wanted to focus on framing, showcasing not just the arch but also the home inside it. The golden light of the sunset made it more dramatic and beautiful.

The compositions in mind I had here were:

Framing, with the arch serving as the frame of the harbor, gave emphasis not just on the arch structure but also on what will welcome you as you step inside.

Symmetry, I positioned the camera at the center to emphasize the symmetrical architecture of the arch.

Leading Lines, the bridge and pathway served its purpose of leading the eyes of the viewers to the harbor inside.

I purposely set the time to sunset to enhance the color of the whole harbor, which is in a warm tone. It enhances the color harmony, as well as the light contrast, while also emphasizing both the arch and the harbor.

A photograph of Yoimiya on Ritou Island. It is a subarea of Narukami Island in Inazuma. The whole region of Inazuma was inspired by Japanese landscapes and culture, hence, its heavy resemblance to the aesthetics. The sunset and the red-leaf trees complement the character’s color palette very well, and it just gives an overall vibrant and fun energy. 

This was the first scene I practiced on, with the warm tones of Yoimiya clothes, it was perfect for the sunset. The vibrance of the place really gave the visual impact I was looking for. Much more when she did some actions, I immediately took the photo, I even had to wait for the second time she'll do it just to have a proper shot. 

The compositions I had while doing this shot were:

Rule of Thirds, since this was the first one, I focused mainly on the subject and rule of thirds. I place Yoimiya at the right third of the frame, while allowing her hand or power to be on the left third of the frame. 

Depth of Field, the misty background, boats, and houses served as the layers of the depth of the photo.

Motion, as it was captured in the middle of the ability of Yoimiya, giving the sense of excitement and movement.

This shot was heavily focused on harmony, emphasis, color contrast, and lighting. I wanted it to give the vibe of sunset calmness.

A landscape photograph taken from Liyue, a region inspired by China. The tiny shine among the trees encapsulates the serenity of meditation. The surrounding was warmed by the sunset, adding another layer of comfort to the landscape. 

This scene caught my attention right away. I was already mesmerized by it since we caught it at the right time of sunset. I focused at the tiny meditating place. The elevated view and the floating mountain captured the focus of the light coming from a floating meditating place. I just went higher to give a balanced view between my place and the mountain so it would be at eye level.

The compositions I was trying with this photo are:

Golden Ratio, with the floating mountain as the pinpoint of the spiral, while also giving the sunset part of the bigger scene.

Overlapping/Layering, with the grass serving as the foreground of the frame, the floating mountains overlapping, with a few ones at the back as well.

I wanted to capture the color gradient with this photo, it speaks more on the color harmony, balance, and unity that the mountains and the sunset had, while also allowing to focus on one subject.

This has been a very fun experience for me; not only did I get to explore the world of Genshin Impact, but I was also able to spend some quality time with my girlfriend. This transformed how I view playing video games, and I didn't even think of the idea of game photography before this. I definitely learned a lot throughout the process of this activity, and will surely bring those with me as I hone my skills more.

The most enjoyable aspect of doing this, aside from roaming around the world, is discovering new takes on Genshin. I realized that I could control the camera when taking a picture, even having the option to control the blurriness of the background and the subject. Controlling the time of the day is another thing, it was fun to experiment each time of the day to know which lighting would be best in the shot I'm taking. 

One unexpected lesson was how much virtual/game photography can reveal about real-world photography principles, compositions, and elements. Practicing with composition, such as the rule of thirds, leading lines, framing, golden ratio, and many more within a virtual environment, made it easier for me to understand these principles in an intuitive and experimental way. I was able to concentrate on the concept of composition and creativity while also experimenting with changing the time and limited camera settings.

The pros of game photography are the ability to experiment endlessly without any restriction on resources like camera battery, films, or memory space; access of different angles and perspectives that are difficult to attain in real life; endless space of practice ground without having to worry if you are bothering other people, or if you are having limitations of the daytime; and to repeat your trials anytime without exerting physical effort.

On the other hand, the cons side of game photography are the limitation on the graphic quality. Nothing can truly compare to the beauty of real life, no matter how life-like the games are; lack of camera controls like the aperture, shutter speed, or ISO; the experience of seeing the view in real life and being able to admire it physically; less personal connection and experience in holding a camera or the unpredictability of real-world conditions. 

Although game photography offers a wide range of practice grounds, for me, it is still better to practice physically than virtually. Game photography is really great when it comes to practicing angles or positioning. However, real-life conditions are far better for teachers than those in video games.

The earlier challenge I had with this activity was definitely the specs I was playing with. Sure, my PC can definitely install and play Genshin, but only on limited quality, I can not really go overboard with the high quality or my PC will be able to fry eggs from the heatness. Thankfully, there are a lot of internet cafes around me, and I was able to complete the activity in one.

Timing and angle were the next challenges I had while doing the activity. In real life, it's easier to position yourself to find the perfect angle for your shot. However, the game had limited camera controls, so it was difficult to find the right angle after finding the perfect place. We also had to wait a few minutes for the perfect lighting; it was quicker and easier because you can change the time inside the game, but finding the right set of time and waiting is still part of the process. I tried so many different positions and angles and experienced the hassle of always restarting the camera settings as I switched from one place to another. 

Still, with all those challenges, I learned to be more patient in order to capture the perfect moment. One particular moment of this is when attempting to capture the cathedral interior shot with Nigguang, I spent so much time trying to experiment with different time of the day and waiting to get the perfect light rays through the stained glass to Nigguang. This waiting also happens when I want to capture the sunset with different subjects. 

My overall experience with this activity has been very educational, and I will definitely continue to try with other games as well. If I were to do this again, I would explore more on post-processing techniques, since with this I didn't do much post-processing as I'm still afraid I might ruin it. However, I know that real-world photographers study post-processing techniques as much as production techniques. Post-processing and editing are as important as finding the perfect angle, position, lighting, and space.

This activity has enlightened me with all the ways I can work on my skills as a rookie photographer. It gave me a better understanding of the principles and elements of photography and provided me with a creative outlet that I can use in the future. Other than this, I also improved my real-life skills that I can use in many various activities not just in photography. Improving life skills such as patience, perseverance, and determination is what I am also thankful for for this activity.

I had a lot of takeaways from this, but one thing that will be stuck most in my mind is that good work must not be rushed, indeed.