Hiding behind the lens
In the official profile, Xu Yizhou watches the world calmly and closely through the viewfinder, catching beautiful moments before they vanish. With the camera covering most of his face, the portrait shows exactly that.
Portrait·Character assets
Character profile
Xu Yizhou · University Photography Club President
More school character cards →Reusable comic characterPhotographyReservedObservantCampus
At a glance
- Role
- University Photography Club President
- Genre
- School
- Gender
- Male
- Form
- Human
- Art style
- Japanese-style illustration
- Main colours
- Golden yellow, pale blue, off-white
- Home scene
- Under campus ginkgo trees in autumn
Appearance
Short dark brown hair with bangs brushing his forehead and one visible amber eye. He holds a silver and black film camera up in front of his face with both hands, so only a faint smile shows at the edge of the camera, and wears a navy braided bracelet on his right wrist.
Signature outfit
A pale blue long-sleeved shirt under an off-white knit vest, sleeves casually pushed up, dark grey trousers, brown lace-up sneakers and the black strap of a camera bag over one shoulder.
Where you will find them
Under ginkgo trees on campus in autumn. The branches blaze gold, sunlight filters through the leaves as they drift down, a blurred teaching building sits behind him and a few instant photos of tree shadows and backlit campus scenes float around him.
Personality and what makes them interesting
Rarely in the frame
He almost never steps in front of the camera. Only for the people he truly treasures will he lower it and step into the picture.
From observer to participant
Lowering the camera is his sign of trust, and that shift can carry an entire romance arc.
Characters that pair well
Suggested pairing: a friend who keeps pulling him into group photos
Time after time they try to get Xu Yizhou in front of the lens and he slips away, until the day he hands the camera over himself.
Suggested pairing: a stranger he photographs by accident
A chance photo introduces them, and for the first time he wants to know what the person in his lens is thinking.
Story hooks
A stranger on the film roll
A possible opening: developing a roll of film, Xu Yizhou finds the same person's back in the corner of every shot.
The missing self-portrait
The club exhibition asks every member for a self-portrait, and the president is the only one who cannot hand one in.
Lowering the camera
On the day the ginkgo leaves are at their brightest, he should be taking the shot, but lets the camera drop instead.
Character card FAQ
What kind of comic suits Xu Yizhou?
Campus romance, coming-of-age and quiet, delicate slice-of-life. Photography itself can become the thread that records feelings.
Which details matter when drawing Xu Yizhou?
Short dark brown hair, the silver and black film camera over his face, a pale blue shirt with an off-white knit vest, the navy braided bracelet, falling ginkgo leaves and instant photos.
How can visuals show his reserve?
Use plenty of viewfinder framing so readers see the world through his lens, and save putting him at the centre of the frame for the key moment.
