Star Wars: Clone Wars Cosplayers

This Star Wars: Clone Wars Cosplayers series showcases 501st Legion members as Captain Rex and Bo-Katan. These photos predated the characters’ appearance in The Mandalorian.

I’m grateful for the cosplayers I’ve met over the years and for those who have posed for my cameras. My inner (and outer) geek thrives on this work.

Theme

When envisioning this project, I developed a shot list detailing over 80 different concepts that I wanted to cover and invested several hundred dollars of my own money into Star Wars-related toys and props.

When the session day finally arrived, time and fading light were against us, and I was only able to create a fraction of the photos I had planned. Nevertheless, I made 500+ images in just over an hour.

Later, when I returned to my studio and began the story design, my preliminary draft included over 80 pages. That was too long for this project, so I refined the story and only selected the strongest photos,

I settled on the photographs that you see before you—a 20-page story of only 23 photos. Less is more; that’s my motto for story design.

501st Legion

My subjects are members of the 501st Legion, a worldwide Star Wars costuming organization comprised of and operated by Star Wars fans—also known as cosplayers.

While the 501st Legion is not sponsored by Lucasfilm Ltd., it’s Lucasfilm’s preferred Imperial costuming group. Star Wars, its characters, costumes, and all associated items are the intellectual property of Lucasfilm. Lucasfilm Ltd. & ™ All rights reserved. Used under authorization.

The Characters

Captain Rex and Bo-Katan are characters in the animated television series Star Wars: The Clone Wars. The series, created by George Lucas and produced by Lucasfilm Animation, debuted on October 3, 2008. Bo-Katan also appeared in several The Mandalorian episodes, with her first appearance on January 13, 2012.

The animated series features a prequel storyline surrounding Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker and his path to become Sith Lord Darth Vader. During the series, the Clone Wars are just beginning and the Galactic Republic and Jedi Order are under siege from the Confederacy of Independent Systems.

The character Bo-Katan is a confident, fierce, and brave female warrior who is able to withstand heavy physical punishment and who is pleasantly plain-spoken. The Bo-Katan character was primarily created to give female fans more opportunities for armored cosplay. The pronunciation of her name is similar to the pronunciation of Boca Raton.

The character Captain Rex is one of the many clones of bounty hunter Jango Fett. These clone soldiers were bred to fight against the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Rex has served in command roles within the famous 501st Legion and was assigned to Jedi General Anakin Skywalker, participating in missions both separately and alongside the Jedi Knight.

For additional flavor and character, Rex has a scar on his chin that is modeled after the one on Harrison Ford’s. Captain Rex, believes strongly in his humanity and the humanity of his fellow clones. And although he doesn’t hesitate to follow great leaders into battle, he reacts violently when he feels that his men are treated inhumanely.

Credits

I’d like to thank the many people who helped make this album possible, including Michael, Stacey, Dina Douglas, Jerry Ghionis, Gretchen Hilmer, and countless others who contributed constructive and worthwhile feedback during the development process.

I’d also like to thank George Lucas and Lucasfilm for my inspiration and for their creations. I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I enjoyed making it. May the force be with you, always.