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Bored with pre-packaged costume sets?

Tired of putting together rushed, ho-hum outfits right before hitting up that Halloween shindig?

Well, it’s time to get excited, stop procrastinating, and grab that glue gun cuz have we got the round-up for you!

Get inspired and delighted with 7 photo-inspired costumes ideas that include: cunning grayscale attire, the pixelation of a person, and a wicked pair of interactive paper iris glasses!

Make this year’s Halloween costume truly photo-worthy —and maybe contest-winning, too!

7 Rad Photo-Themed Costume Ideas!

p.s. Like us on Facebook today! We’re giving away a Double Exposure Digi Camera!!

Main GIF: Grayscale – BoingBoing, Pixel guy – Joe Nicosia, and Glasses – art.makes.

1. Gray is the New Black

Who says lack of color means lack of fun?

Desaturated Santa was a hit, and so were these Grayscalers. You’ll stand out among the colorful, costumed crowd in this distinctive, desaturated dress!

Kick this idea up a hue or two:

• Dress up as your favorite black-and-white film star.
• Be one of the characters from the movie “Pleasantville.”
• Who says you can only be gray? Try sepia or another monochrome!

Get the deets for making your own grayscale costume.

Costume idea by Brody S., and photo taken by Andy Thomas.

2. Shake it like a Polaroid Picture

Thankfully, there’s no shaking required to develop this costume idea!

Costume building tips:

• Use some white foam board to create a durable Polaroid frame for you to wear.
• Don’t forget to add a colorful background to your Polaroid photo!
• Make sure the width of the box you’re going to be in, as well as the bottom opening from which you’re poking your head and shoulders through is wide enough for you to fit in.
• Enlarge & print out the Polaroid logo as a finishing detail.

Another awesome costume idea & photo by krizsa.

3. Pixel Perfect

The one’s for the tech geeks who are thinking of doing something more “retro” this year.

Tips for going 8-bit (with help from Dan Liuzzi):

• Sketch out your pixelated head design.
• Personal tip from Dan:”When designing your head, try and find unique features about your face to accentuate. In my case, I have dark glasses, thick eyebrows, a constant 5 o’clock shadow, and smile a lot.”
• Test your design by making a scaled down version with small paper cubes.
• For the “pixels,” use dense foam cubes covered in colored paper, or use color paper to fold into origami cubes.
• Use a cardboard box as the base to glue your foam or paper cubes.
• Don’t forget to designate an opening so you can breathe in your head piece (and see, too)! Use speaker screen black mesh to hide the opening.
• Spectacle wearer like Dan? He constructed his glasses from wooden dowels!
• Be patient! It took Dan 2-3 weeks to create his 8-bit masterpiece.

Check out more photos of Dan’s sweet 8-bit costume!

Photos by Joe Nicosia

4. My, What Big Irises You Have!

The above costume ideas not challenging enough for ya?

Well here’s something that’ll blow your mind—and eyes—away!

Rock your own pair of these rad paper iris glasses this Halloween using this tutorial.

There’s even a video that shows how they open and close just like your camera lens!

With Halloween being a nighttime activity, make sure you adjust your specs to let in all the light you can.

Spectacle idea and photo by art.makes.

5. Picture This

Cuz this is how photographers roll, yo!

Costume building tips:

• Roll up part of a long, rectangular piece of black poster board, leaving some length to “hang” as the negative piece.
• Make your costume sturdier by using a thin cardboard sheet to line the inside.
• Dress as your favorite roll of film. Kodak points awarded for dressing up as classic and/or discontinued film rolls!
• Tweak the costume so you can show off some cool negatives! Create your own larger version of negatives by printing photos on transparencies or vellum.

Costume idea & photo by ebermall.

6. What a Piece of (Pop) Art!

Gray ain’t your color? Bring on brighter hues with this costume idea, inspired by Pop Art king Andy Warhol & his colorful works!

Crafty creator krizsa “framed” herself inside a box as a living portrait alongside her Warhol-inspired self-portraits!

Costume building tips:

• Use a photo-editing program to create your own Warhol-inspired self-portraits.
• Make sure the self-portraits you print out are relatively the same size as your actual face!
• Find foam boards to use as a sturdy but lightweight solution to build the frame box you’re going to be in.
• Take this idea to the next tone by using body paint to color yourself to fit in with your other vibrant self-portraits!

Costume idea & photo by krizsa.

7. Capture the Night With Canon

A point-and-shoot camera costume that can actually take pictures? With an external flash, too? Creative and functional costume, FTW!

Personalize it like creator asolidum did by naming the camera model after yourself!

Learn how to make your own point-and-shoot camera costume.

Costume idea & photo by asolidum.

Other Outstanding Outfit Ideas:

• When in doubt, dinosaurs are always an excellent costume choice. Photo above by Jacob Barss-Bailey.
• Ah, those old yearbook pictures—be an old yearbook photo for quite a memorable costume!
• Don’t want to be seen in photos? Make some censored glasses by attaching black cardboard over an old pair of glasses.
• Be a living Banksy graffitti tag!
• Oscar Wilde said, “Life imitates art far more than art imitates life.” These famous painting costumes certainly take his words to heart!
• Get inspired, creeped out, or a good laugh from these old photos of past Halloween costumes in the Retro Halloween Flickr group!
• Don’t forget to outfit your four-legged or feathered friends in their best Halloween garb, too! This AT-AT costume’s got the Dark Side’s approval, for sure.

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