Virtual Photography a.k.a. My Obsession with Gaming Screenshots

Feb 26

Written By Nim

The main reason I returned to a subscription based blogging/website platform is photography. And by photography, I mean both real life and virtual photography.

Hi, my name is Rhekkit (my gamer tag) and I’m a gaming screenshot junkie.

During the past two plus decades my husband, bless him, has heard the words, “Hold up, I’m grabbing a screenshot” more times than I can remember. He’s really good about it in-game. He rolls his eyes when I blurt out, “Stop the truck I need to grab a shot!” Road trips can be a nightmare when you’re married to a photographer. I’ve learned to not insist on stopping EVERY time I see a shot and he’s learned to bring his Kindle along for the ride.

Sometimes a simple shot turns into a lengthy “Just one more” pit stop.

With the recent purchase of two games, Hogwart’s Legacy and Marvel’s Midnight Suns, my obsession with capturing shots is full throttle. Hogwart’s alone has my mind reeling. As a person who appreciates visual aesthetics, I find myself speechless as I wander around the world that Avalanche Software created for this game. It’s one thing to read the books and watch the movies. This game allows a Potter fan to languish in shops and classrooms they’ve been dreaming about for two decades. In five hours of playing the game I’ve spent a lot of time gasping at the sheer beauty and attention to detail. At one point when I walked into the Great Hall and saw the floating candles, I got emotional.

View from the Stairs. An image from one of the shops in Hogsmeade, Hogwart’s Legacy.

My husband and I have been enjoying it together even though it’s a single player game. We don’t divulge spoilers but we babble like giddy kids about the game. While we love a lot of things our shared fandoms are the Kansas City Chiefs, Harry Potter, Marvel and Star Wars. And our home reflects that in every knook and cranny.

Final Fantasy XIV was the game that really took my screenshot passion to a new level. The in-game photo ability is the best and I wish all games did the same. But, alas, most games don’t have photo mode. Hogwart’s Legacy is one such game. In their defense, the game only recently released. Game developers usually add that feature after the initial release. I’m hoping Avalanche does it. Until then, I’m grabbing shots using my GPU app, GeForce experience. It’s okay but I’m not the biggest fan. I grab the shots in game and then edit them in Photoshop. That’s something I haven’t had to do with our other new game, Marvel’s Midnight Suns.

Marvel’s Midnight Suns in-game screenshot using photo mode. This is unedited.

The photo mode in this game is outstanding, second to only FFXIV. My opinion of course is based on the games I play or have played. There are probably tons of other games with amazing photo modes. The latest shots from MMS, are straight from the game and not edited in Photoshop.

You can change your character’s pose and expression, add additional heroes to the image and use filters. You can even create your own comic book cover images…