UST-AB Photography in Advertisement Exercise in Photography in Advertisement

Dr Abe V Rotor
Living with Nature - School on Blog
Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid (People's School-on-Air) with Ms Melly C Tenorio
738 DZRB AM Band, 8 to 9 evening class, Monday to Friday [www.pbs.gov.ph]

Example of a good advertisement.

One of the worst ads.

The relationship of photography and advertisement is like horse and carriage. Photography is the medium and advertisement is the message (to patronize a product, service, idea, etc.)

Advertisements in print and broadcast create demand of many products and services. There are brand names that are well known, they are imprimatur themselves to many people. They build personalities, fashion, institutions, relationships, and even loyalty.

There is more than visual and audio parts; advertisements dig deep into logic, psychology and emotion, and spiritually, too. For this reason, the effects are both positive and negative.

The purpose of this exercise is to evaluate present advertisements: printed, billboard, radio, TV and the Internet. The main guideline is values.List down the best (5) and the worst (5) local advertisements and give the basis of your decision. How did photography help bring about such effects?

Present the advertisements as they are originally presented. If not feasible, briefly describe the advertisement and critique on it. (Use two ordinary bond.) ~

Part 2: Photo and graphic ads. Here are some examples. Study them and relate each one to current issues. Prepare similar ads for class presentation and discussion.

Part 3: All about smoking - good and bad. More and more young people develop the habit of smoking. On TV there is this chain smoker kid who would demand cigarette with tantrums. Doctors unanimously agree smoking is bad to health, yet cigarette is one of the most in demand commodities in the world. What's the role of advertising?Whatever this is, it is devoid of good taste and decency. Many products lose their market this way. 
There's a local brandy advertised this way, "Nakatikim ka na ba ng kinse?" (Literally, "Have you tasted a 15-year old?") Sales plummeted. The company lost its good public image.