Advertising

Unit 57: Photography and Photographic Practice

Research of other photographers work (P1, M1, D1)

Photographer: Jonathan Knowles

1. Natural Beauty Campaign

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Theme or focus of images

Jonathan Knowles is an established photographer in the advertising industry. The purpose of photography that advertises products is to entice consumers into buying the product you're selling.

Jonathan Knowles work is very simplistic yet puts the point across effectively.

Image 1 is for a natural beauty campaign launched in 2013. By choosing to only photograph the subject, it shows us that she is the focal point of the image. Jonathan Knowles has excluded all eye catching scenery and used a simplistic backdrop so that all our attention is on her. The subjects pose is very natural rather than forced, this allows them to convey the message they're putting across perfectly- a smile can make anyone beautiful.

The rest of the images I have chosen to look at are all advertisements for alcoholic beverages. Again the images are very simplistic In that they simply contain an image of the drink itself in front of a studio setting backdrop or of a person holding the drink. In those instances the image of the hand holding the drink is very crisp and clear whilst the backdrop has been completely blurred out- this is so all our focus is placed onto the object they're trying to sell.

Both images 5 and 6 consist of natural lighting and convey the idea of the beverages being refreshing with the use of bright eye catching colours. Images 3 and 4 have both been shot within a studio setting, therefore artificial lighting has been used- this is more obvious in image 4 in which we see a glass of carlings within a dark setting with a spotlight placed directly on it.

In the final edits of the posters, it's clear to us that the Guttenburg design layout has been used. Within the primary optical are we see some sort of statement and the beverage itself then in the terminal area we see either the logo or continuity of the photo of the drink. Photoshop has been used to manipulate the photos and add the effects we can see in the final edits- particularly in Image 3. By placing the advertised product in the centre of the image, are attention is being drawn straight to it.

Composition

Jonathan Knowles makes the object or person he’s photographing the focal point of the photo. In all his images the photographer chooses to take close up’s, therefore excluding all scenery that may take away our attention from the subject or object. The purpose of this is to emphasise the importance of the focal point.

Techniques used

The shutter speed In the photos varies between 1/800 and 1/1000 depending on whether natural or artificial lighting was used. A shallow depth of field has been used in image 5 and 6, whilst the rest have a large depth of field. The rule of thirds has been applied to the Images- the products being advertised are within the focal point, therefore drawing our attention to them.

Strengths & Weaknesses

A key strength in Jonathan Knowles images is his ability to make the product being advertised so crisp and clear whilst the rest of the image is blurred- it allows the object to be the centre of attention. However, I personally believe that his images are very simplistic and lack creativity.