Colour The Ad example essay topic

"Provide a close analysis of an extract from a television advertisement" As an audience of many media forms, we come into contact with advertisements a great deal. Advertising is the idea of promoting a product / idea, by making it publicly known to its audience. Advertisements should attract attention or describe its product favourably in a public medium. Advertisements come in many forms and placed in many sources such as posters on billboards, pages in a magazine or even on the internet. The advert I have chosen to analyse, takes the media form of a television advertisement promoting Vaseline Intensive Care Moisturiser.

When analysing the advert there are four main areas to consider: The image, i.e. what is in the picture, the technical codes which explains how the advert has been constructed, the text in the advert and what it suggests and finally genre which also includes the narrative, audience and representation. Starting with reading the image and what is included in the picture, it is important to take notice of the people involved in the advert. The main person in the advert is a young attractive female who appears in white underwear throughout the ad. Instantly we can interpret these signs and suggest what they may signify. The idea of using a young female has positive connotations that signify freshness, energy and vitality. Her clothing is white which looks bright and fresh and also has positive connotations such as purity.

Her body language is relaxed and inviting as she stands and sits applying the moisturiser. This gives an open and informal feeling towards the audience. The idea of using a young attractive female attracts and engages viewers in the ad. This is because other females maybe inspired by her figure and beauty and males maybe attracted purely for the fact that she is attractive and only wearing underwear! The other people in the ad are not the main focus point and are only there for narrative reasons to help tell the story of the ad. There are not any close ups of the other people, they " re mainly placed in the background of a frame and the main female is placed amongst them.

The actual moisturiser is visible in every frame throughout the ad. By including it in every frame the audience are constantly being reminded of what is being promoted and what it looks like. This persuasive technique works because the viewers are engaged with the product during the whole ad and therefore remember what the moisturiser looks like and how the product is used. Whilst reading the image, the setting of the ad is also important as it can give us insight and further knowledge about the product. The setting changes throughout the ad as the female travels and appears in different situations. A female voice over informs viewers "you " ve travelled through four different continents", so we are introduced to these four continents through four different frames.

Each of the frames / continents are fresh and lively, presenting a range of colours and images. The bright colours have a positive effect in that they make the ad eye catching and engage the audience. The continents are all filmed outdoors including birds and nature as well as everyday architecture such as churches and market squares which signifies a natural and fresh environment - like the moisturiser. Considering the technical codes in the ad, the visual techniques play an important role.

After we see the four continents, the voice over quotes "you " ve worked a few seventy hour weeks" and we are introduced to a different style of frame. From colour the ad switches to black and white. This is done because of the negative associations we have of white and black. The idea of a seventy-hour week is hell for anyone and by having a black and white scene it " ll reinforce this idea. In opposition we " re presented with colour, which has been used in the previous scenes when the female is present in the four continents. Being in the four continents has positive connotations therefore bright colours have been used.

The beginning of the ad is naturally lit due to the shot being taken outdoors. There is bright sunshine, which creates a positive, warm effect. Red lighting in the limo scene has been added which initiates an alluring and sensual feeling as she lies down on a rug applying moisturiser. The remainder of the ad doesn't have any specific or different lighting techniques; there is a scene in the kitchen with a basic use of lighting used. It is rather bright lighting which could have been used to enhance the females' presence. The angle of the camera at the beginning of the ad starts from a high angle and swoops down to eye level so that the camera and the subject (the female) are on the same level.

This creates a feeling that the viewer is equal with the subject. The frame then switches to a big close up of the females chest as she pours the lotion into her hands. This close up fills the whole of the frame, which allows the audience to identify the product being advertised. There are a number of close ups on the females face.

This allows the audience to become familiar with the main character and could also appeal to our dreams and fantasies; many of us dream of what we could be or where we could go, for example, as said previously, the women who see the ad maybe inspired by her beauty and think that if they use the product they will look like her. A wipe effect has been used to change from one frame to another. This effect has been used throughout the ad and it gives an entertaining effect. The brand name 'Vaseline Intensive Care Moisturiser's ugg ests that the product actually cares about its customer.

The adjective 'intensive' gives the impression that it is a deep cleansing moisturiser and emphasises the point by using the adjective. The slogan at the end of the ad quotes 'take Vaseline intensive care of yourself' informs the audience directly by using the pronoun 'your'. This makes the ad more personal and as if the advert is directing you personally. The soundtrack throughout the ad is a type of reggae music, which is quite lively. This would probably appeal to the adverts target audience which is probably between females ageing from 20 - 40 years old as the music does have a sense of youthfulness. The liveliness of the music creates a cheerful and enthusiastic mood which will attract the audiences attention.

When analysing the genre of the ad its hard to suggest a particular type, although we can section it into a type of cosmetic product based advertisement. Iconography is evident when studying the genre; this is because there are signs in the ad that we associate with a particular genre, such as moisturising cream and young attractive females. The narrative, which is the way in which the story is told, follows the young girl going to different continents and different social environments such as markets and restaurants. The narrative has no complications in that there is a beginning, middle and end. It has four basic stages; it gets the audiences attention-loud vibrant music, it holds the audiences interest, shows the existence of a problem-having rough skin, and gives a solution to the problem-use Vaseline. Finally, the issue of representation can be discussed.

The female used in the ad, is almost out of touch with reality. The woman is portrayed as young and beautiful but the women who want to use the product may not fit this 'stereotype'. The ad gives the impression or message that all the people who use or want to use the product should and do look the female presented. We call views about how things should be and how people should look an ideology. Real women are very different and more diverse than their representations in the media seem to suggest.

However, without this stereotypical view, our perception of reality would be very limited and we need the artificial texts to mediate our view of the world.