This week, Comic-Con International kicks off in San Diego, and just in case there wasn’t sufficient to do crammed into 4 days of the world’s most significant comic book and pop culture convention, we right here at ComicsAlliance have decided to add a tiny further entertaining of our own. So if you happen to be heading to Comic-Con, grab your camera (or camera mobile phone) and get prepared for the 1st-ever ComicsAlliance Comic-Con Photographic Scavenger Hunt!

Regardless of whether you are waiting in line for a panel, browsing the back concern bins, meeting your favorite artists or just basking in the warmth of 150,000 fans all crammed into the very same room, retain your eyes out for ten issues to take photographs of and you might just win our prize: A $ 50 gift certificate for Dark Horse Digital comics!

We want your photographs of: obscure cosplayers, mashup cosplayers, child cosplayers, gender swap cosplayers, massive costume weapons, bootleg products, weird back issues, anime body pillows, comic book tattoos and ComicsAlliance staff members. Submit and keep tuned, simply because We’ll be featuring the photos — and the names of these who contribute — on the web site!

Very first up, our ground guidelines:

1. Each and every Category On Our List Is Really worth 10 Points. For the best possibility of winning, take images of something for every single category, and send them all in to Comicsalliance.photos@gmail.com (or tweet them @comicsalliance with the hashtag #scavengerhunt)!

2. Only A single Picture Per Category: It is tempting to take pictures of every single cool factor you see in San Diego (and by all means, you really should) but for the purposes of this contest, we only want to see the best photos you have taken for every category.

3. Bonus Points For Several Categories In 1 Photograph! If you handle to find an item that fits at least two categories, you’ll get the points for each category plus an extra 10 points for each category beyond the 1st! So start seeking for kids with tattoos!

four. It ought to go without having saying, but if you’re taking pictures of a person, constantly ask permission and be polite. If we hear you are acting like a jerk, you happen to be out of the contest.

5. Submit all entries to Comicsalliance.photos@gmail.com (or Twitter) by 11:59 PM, Monday, July 25, 2011. Place all of your pictures (or links, if you are employing a service like Flickr) in one email and send them above to us, and preserve in mind that we may be posting them on ComicsAlliance.

So just what is it that you’ll be retaining an eye (and a camera lens) out for? Right here are the categories for our very first-ever Scavenger Hunt:

1. An Really Obscure Cosplayer. There’ll be lots of Slave Leias and Deadpools operating all around San Diego this weekend, but how many Super-Hips and Fatman the Human Flying Saucers are there going to be? Maintain in thoughts that the particular person should be truly cosplaying (no just taking a image of a dude in jorts and claiming he’s dressed as Kevin Smith), and you ought to be able to clarify who they are and in which they come from. Include a link if achievable.

two. A Mashup Cosplayer. An individual cosplaying as at least two diverse things at the same time. And for these of you looking to maximize your entries, here’s an chance for Bonus Points: For every mashup element past the 1st two, you’re hunting at an extra ten points. A Zombie Jedi may well get you a cool ten, but a Rollerblading Steampunk Zombie Jedi Elvis will land you a whopping 40.

three. Gender-Swap Cosplayer. Why let gender hold you back? Note: Good attempt, but Wonder Man and Energy Girl do not count, unless they are actual gender-swapped versions of Wonder Woman and Power Man.

four. A Kid Cosplayer. C’mon, they’re adorable. Just make positive you ask for their parents’ permission!

five. Ridiculously Massive Costume Accessories or Weaponry. Is somebody attempting to get a 10-foot papier-mache longsword onto the escalator? Is visitors in the aisle getting blocked by a pair of gigantic wings? Snap a image even though you happen to be waiting and it may just spend off.

six. Ridiculous Back Problem. What is Comic-Con without having comics? The staff at CA has witnessed a great deal of strange things above the years, but if you can discover some thing even we assume is crazy — whether or not it’s a bizarre back issue or just a slabbed 9.8 copy of Punisher 2099 someone’s bold enough to check out promoting for $ 100 — you’re on your way to an additional ten points.

7. An Clear Bootleg Item. C’mon, you know somebody‘s got a DVD of Roger Corman’s Wonderful Four for sale in there.

8. An Awesome Comic Book Tattoo. Just make confident it is someplace we can really show on our tough PG website. Also, any submissions that are photographs of the graphic novel Comic Book Tattoo will be disqualified, wise guy.

9. An Anime Physique Pillow. The trick right here is going to be discovering a single that’s exciting and hilarious without crossing over into horrifying.

And finally…

ten. A ComicsAlliance Staff Member. Laura Hudson, Andy Khouri, Caleb Goellner, Chris Sims, David Brothers, David Uzumeri, Chris Murphy and Bethany Fong are all going to be on the floor covering Comic-Con all weekend. If you can find us when we’re not operating someplace or conducting an interview, snap a pic for these last critical points!

One much more time, for ease of copying into your notebook or writing on your plan:

• Obscure Cosplayer
• Mashup Cosplayer
• Gender-Swap Cosplayer
• Kid Cosplayer
• Huge Costume Accessory
• Ridiculous Back Issue
• Apparent Bootleg
• Awesome Comic Book Tattoo
• Anime Sex Pillow
• ComicsAlliance Staffer

Remember to get your entries in by next Monday evening, for your likelihood at winning YYYY, and we’ll see you at Comic-Con!