Midwest Haunters Convention, 2016 - Part 1

With the 2016 Midwest Haunters Convention now wrapped up and a full night's sleep to recover from it all, it's now time to go through all of the photos and try to recap it all! 

The 3 days flew by, with something going on literally every minute of each day. With some skillful planning, we were able to cram a ton fun and learning into 72 hours. So let's start back at the beginning!

I arrived in Columbus bright and early Friday, with the first of two classes scheduled in the morning. Right off the bat, I hooked up with some friends...

Stacey Rager, Hector Turner and I discuss the finer points of Halloween prop building (nah, we were probably talking about how much alcohol was consumed on the Thursday haunt tour buses!)

After that first class, it was time to check in and wait for the arrival of my cohorts, James and Chad. I got everything into the room and it was time to head to class number two. 

With a ton of info gathered in the second class, I met up with the boys and it was time to rage...

We decided to skip the slated Friday Night Haunt Tour and Beach Party, as we had toured the ScareAtorium two years ago and the beach party sounded a bit goofy. Instead, we hopped a quick cab ride over to Arcade Super Awesome, a local neighborhood pizza/bar/pinball arcade. Soooo worth the trip!! Delicious pizza, great beers and even greater selection of pinball games!!

Elvira, Metallica, Ghostbusters, Twilight Zone and a handful of other killer pinball games.
We take this very seriously!

After pizza, beers and tons of pinball, we opted for the walk back to the hotel. We made it back for a nightcap at the hotel bar with a big group of fellow haunters. We retired early (2 a.m. is early by some haunter standards) and got ready for a full Saturday schedule.



On Saturday morning, James and Chad opted for a big breakfast while I went to class number 3. Another hour full of new info and then it was time to hit the tradeshow floor. I kept the camera snapping, focusing more on the individual pieces from all of the vendors. TONS of amazing props and masks throughout the show. 

After we did our first full lap through the show, we snuck out for some lunch at North Market. Amazing food vendors throughout. We filled our bellies and headed back to the show for another lap...

A cool charred figure that was hooked up to a fog machine, so that it looked like he was still smoldering.
A really nice effect!

Giant saw props from Slaughterhouse Studios.

Ooooh, how I love the silicone masks from Shattered FX...

Dave no longer wants to hear about James' custom mask order...

Fellow Akronites Closed Casket Studios had their increasing array of awesome prop heads, hands and masks.
A Highbury Cemetery order from them will be coming soon!

I'm actually kicking myself for not getting this voodoo staff from From Art to Zombies...

The fog-up showdown between Froggy's Fog and Master Fog.
The winner? This girl!

After another lap and a few purchases, we headed over to check out the Zombie Walk. We hung around a bit, checked out some interesting zombie makeups and decided to head back to the room early for a round (or two) of "beverages," a couple of incredible episodes of Scooby Doo, Where Are You? and to get ready for the marquee event of the weekend, the infamous Masquerade Party!

Check back tomorrow for MHC 2016 - Part 2. Tons of photos from the Masquerade Party! Even with the awful lighting, I was able to capture some of the amazing costumes and the hilarious shenanigans that went on!!