Doing this photo project was a learning experience. I always go at these types of things not really knowing what to do but end up having a lot of fun. As a group we worked very well together. Obviously the snow hindered our ability to meet and take photos together but we decided to take advantage of the snow and use it as the topic of our project. One thing I would do differently would have been knowing earlier that I was going to take pictures of snow covered objects, because I would have went outside immediately after the snow fell and probably could have taken pictures of more interesting things covered in snow, or bigger objects. But, because we had to meet when everyone could get out of there house it was 2 days later and I was left taking pictures of whatever was still covered, which was still a lot because it's DC.

In regards to our finished project I liked that we made the decision to do black and white photos and then invert the black and white. This worked well with the snow, making it almost glow giving the pictures a mysterious feel. I also liked that we all took pictures of different objects yet they all have the same look and give off similar messages, which proved to be successful considering we couldn't meet as often as we had hoped. I did learn one important thing while doing this assignment and that is to take advantage of random events like blizzards because I think the weather really inspired me to get the images I desired and explore my neighborhood further than what I would have in normal weather.

The image that I have selected is actually a picture of a snow-covered wall that had ivory running over it. I thought the ivory had good texture next to the untouched snow. The ivory is behind the snow and is in focus but the main reason I chose this picture was because of the lines. The snow made three perfect sections and finding this perfection in mother nature is rare. The snow worked as a frame for the ivory and I made the decision to turn my camera sideways to make the lines vertical instead of horizontal. The color is the most interesting part and that is because in order to create the mysterious theme I made it black and white. Not only are you not exactly sure what the image is but the color is glowing which creates depth. Overall, this image is a mystery.

Benetton Advertisements

The clothing company, United Colors of Benetton, used the power of images to create ad campaigns which sparked public controversy. Benetton used pictures of death row inmates as well as a photo of a man dying of AIDS in order to draw attention to their clothing line and boost sales. Some would argue that this is unethical I argue that this is pragmatic. The use of powerful images does increase profits and is the practical thing for a company to do, even if the images don't have anything to do with the direct interests of the company. Benetton did a good job of creating a buzz which put their name into the public eye. According to the reading, the target audience of Benetton was 18-24 year-olds and none of the emotionally appealing images were negative towards that age group. This is a prime example of finding a target audience and not offending them. Actually, the photo of the dying man would also bring attention to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, benefitting society as well as the clothing company. Bringing forth emotion, even if it is negative emotion, is the goal of any ad campaign and as long as a photographer legally obtains the photos for the use of the campaign, they should not be regarded as wrong or unethical. It is the job of photos to persuade, and as long as the public is aware that companies like Benetton are creating the images, paying for them, and advocating for their product than the use of powerful images is acceptable. Images that result from decisive moment photography are often controvercial and that is what makes them interesting and it is acceptable for companies to take advantage of dramatic images.