How to make yourself taller for cosplay!
While some of us may be given a height advantage, maybe that doesn’t apply to you. I’ve seen this issue with a lot of my cosplay friends that are shorter; it can always be difficult or inconvenient to do things when you’re not as tall. In a group shoot, you feel like the others have to accommodate you in order to not look like the odd one out. Or when you cosplay a character that’s supposed to be tall, you wonder how the heck can you look anything accurate like them when you’re nowhere their height?
It’s true we cannot do much to change our real height; you play with the cards you’re dealt with! However, that doesn’t mean you cannot make yourself look taller in cosplay; let’s find out how.
How do you make yourself look taller for cosplay?
There are many ways to make yourself look taller for cosplay. The easiest by far is with your footwear; you can wear items such as heels and shoe lifts to give yourself a few extra inches to your current height. Behind the camera, a good photographer will use certain angles to accentuate your height to make you taller. And with the right poses and techniques, you can make yourself look even taller. When you combine all these methods, you can significantly add a lot to your perceived height.
In this post, I’ll give you 11 techniques on how to make yourself taller for cosplay. There are a wide variety of techniques such as the things you wear, as well as various camera angles and poses. No matter how short you may be, you can make yourself look taller.
Without further ado, let’s get started!
1. Heels
Let’s start with the easiest and maybe the most obvious method to look taller not just in cosplay, but in general. Footwear such as heels, stilettos and boots can definitely add a few inches to your height.
I’ve seen my shorter cosplay friends look really tall with some good boots and heels! So if the character you’re cosplaying wears boots in the series, then you need to take advantage and wear heightening boots to look taller.
2. Shoe Lifts
This is similar to heels and stilettos. But did you know that even running shoes have elevated lifts inside? Yes they do! So if you’re cosplaying a character who wears shoes (e.g. Pokémon trainer, Sports Anime), then you’re in luck. You can find lifts that fit right inside your shoe. That way, you can look a little bit taller not only in-person but on camera!
Speaking of photography, let’s get into the next point…
3. Camera angles
When it comes to looking taller in cosplay in photos, the camera angles can make a HUGE difference. Either you can look really tall, or end up looking really short. There are specific angles you’ll want to take and those you definitely want to avoid. Let’s find out:
Go for:
- Portrait photos. Of all the photos to take, portrait photos are the best for those vertically challenged. One trick with photos in order to hide your short appearance; take only portrait photos! Generally, this means taking pics above your chest. Taking portrait photos pretty much hides your height, whether you’re short or tall. I can tell you that it’s nearly impossible to tell someone’s height with portrait photos. These types of pictures emphasize your face, so you’re not focused on the vertical of someone. If you are vertically challenged, then make sure you get your photographer to get some portrait shots. You will look tall in these photos!
- Carefully planned group photos. One of my cosplayer friends told me once how inconvenient it is to be short, especially during group shoots. It’s because they always have to plan around her height, otherwise she will stick out as being much shorter compared to the other cosplayers in the group shoot. Fortunately, you can work around this and position each cosplayer in a way where everyone seems to be the same height. For example, have the shortest cosplayer be in the back and on an elevated platform.
- Photos taken at an angle. I’ll talk more about accentuating your legs later. But when you get your photo taken at an angle, rather than upfront, the viewer sees more of your body, which will naturally make you look taller.
Avoid:
- Full-body shots up front. If you’re vertically challenged, then you’ll want to avoid getting photos taken of you up in front. These type of photos do NOT look flattering for those who are shorter; in fact, it would show how much shorter they are!
- Landscape photos. This is personally my opinion. But if you are short and want to look tall, you’ll want to avoid getting landscape photos taken of you. Taking photos of you in a beautiful landscape is definitely nice. However, it will also make you look shorter and tinier, as you will be just a small object in a big area. And if you’re a chibi cosplayer, this will only be magnified in a landscape environment setting!
Click here for various cosplay photography tips that will help you out!
4. Utilize the stairs
This one I actually didn’t know about. But I noticed my shorter cosplayer friends using stairs to make themselves look taller! It does make sense; because there is a lot of up and down with stairs, you can manipulate height to your advantage.
Here are a couple of things to know when taking photos on the stairs:
- Stretching your legs on the stairs. Try sitting down on the stairs and stretch your legs downward. By taking more space up on the stairs, you will make yourself look taller. On the contrary, if you took up little space on the stairs, you would look smaller and chibi.
- Camera below you on the stairs. When you’re taking photos on the stairs, make sure the photographer takes the pics below you to emphasize your legs, making you look taller on camera.
5. Pick characters that have matching colors for shoes and pants/bottoms
This one involves manipulating color to make yourself perceived as taller. All you have to do is a pick a character that has the same colored shoes and pants or bottoms. Here’s why; when you have the same matching colors, it tricks the eye into thinking the shoes/feet are an extension of your legs, making you look taller. Imagine if you add an extra inch or two with your shoes; that’s what matching colors do!
Here are some characters with matching shoes and pants that you could cosplay:
- Yor Forger from Spy X Family
- Sebastian from Black Butler
- Prison School
- Psycho Pass
- Harley Quinn
6. Show off those legs!
No matter how tall or short you are, showing off your legs while in cosplay will always make you look taller! Your legs are what give you the most height. You can do things such as wear stockings to show off your legs. Wearing fitted pants such as jeans or leggings will highlight your legs. I’ve seen some short cosplayers who look a lot taller than they really are, and all they do is wear fitted jeans. An example would be Nami from One Piece, where she literally wears a bra and blue jeans.
This is just my opinion, but I feel like crossing your legs will also help as well.
Another idea is to simply sit down and stretch your legs. You’ll be looking tall when you’re sitting down, that’s for sure.
Characters that wear long pants:
- Protagonist from Persona 5
- Chloe Price from Life Is Strange
- Roy Mustang from Fullmetal Alchemist
- Mary Jane Watson from Spider-Man
- Kim Possible
Whichever method you do, just remember to emphasize your legs with your cosplay.
7. Skirts and shorts are great
Not only do skirts and shorts look great, they also help in making you look taller! Again, wearing these will focus people’s eyes on your legs, which gets them thinking you are taller than you actually are. The shorter the skirts or the shorter the shorts, the easier it will be. So if you’re comfortable with it and want to look taller, bust out those short skirts and booty shorts!
Here are some cosplay ideas for characters with short skirts/shorts:
- Misty from Pokémon
- Faye Valentine from Cowboy Bebop
- Satsuki from Kill La Kill
- Junko from Danganronpa
- Marin from My Dress Up Darling
8. Poofy Dresses and one pieces are your friend
This is similar to the previous point about matching colors, but this one is even easier. Just find characters who wear one big dress or piece of clothing. Big dresses are great at hiding shortness, and they make everyone look taller. A lot of magical girl characters wear poofy dresses!
Just make sure it’s one continuous dress and not a separate piece. And the big poofy dresses with a petticoat underneath are more ideal.
- Madoka from Madoka Magica
- Cardcaptor Sakura
- Sailor Moon
- Princess Tutu
- Love Live!
- Azula from Avatar
9. Avoid cosplays that emphasize your waistline
When I think of cosplays that emphasize your waistline, I think of characters such as All-Might from My Hero Academia, Xiangling from Genshin Impact and Captain Marvel from the Marvel Universe.
All these characters either have a lot of stuff around their waist to draw attention to it, or their outfit divides prominently around the waistline.
In either case, you want to avoid cosplays like these if you’re a shorter person. When you draw attention to your waist, you’ll draw attention to your shorter stature.
10. Make sure your cosplays fit you perfectly
In general, you should always make or buy cosplays that fit you well (i.e. not too tight or baggy). I talk more about this in my article about avoiding making your cosplay look bad (click here to read).
But when it comes to looking taller in cosplay, having a costume that fits is VERY important. Because wearing a baggy cosplay that’s loose fitting will make you small and boxy, which is the opposite look you’re going for. For example, wearing baggy jeans for a Chloe Price cosplay will make your legs look smaller, not taller.
So do your best to wear cosplays that fit you well.
11. Stand up straight!
Last but not least, we have one method that doesn’t involve clothing or photography, but just you in general. You’d be surprised, but having good posture and standing up straight makes a big difference. It goes a long way with making yourself look taller for cosplay.
I myself have struggled with bad posture; I tend to slouch a lot because of all the video gaming and computer stuff I’ve done since I was a kid. So I know all about not standing up straight. But lately I’ve made a conscious effort to have good posture, and even I notice how much taller I look AND feel when I’m standing up straight.
So if you’re like me and don’t always have good posture, then definitely make an effort to do so. Picture yourself being pulled upwards by a strong, like a Marionette. So when you are standing up, think of a string pulling you up and making you stand straight!
Summary
To summarize, here are the 11 ways on how to make yourself taller for cosplay:
- Heels
- Shoe Lifts
- Camera angles
- Utilize the stairs
- Pick characters that have matching colors for shoes and pants/bottoms
- Show off those legs!
- Skirts and shorts are great
- Poofy Dresses and one pieces are your friend
- Avoid cosplays that emphasize your waistline
- Make sure your cosplays fit you perfectly
- Stand up straight!
And there you have it; 11 ways on how to make yourself taller for cosplay!
I hope you found this post helpful for making you look and feel taller. Do you consider yourself a short cosplayer? Or are you a tall cosplayer looking to add even more height to yourself? Let me know in the comments below!
My name is Roger Senpai. I’m a cosplayer that’s been in the community for well over a decade now. I’ve traveled all over the world to Anime and Comic conventions and hosted my own cosplay events. Now I’m writing articles for new and experienced cosplayers like you to help inspire, save you money and improve your cosplays!
