Thursday Post 10-2-08

Advertising

"I have discovered the most exciting, the most arduous literary form of all, the most difficult to master, the most pregnant in curious possibilities. I mean the advertisement. It is far easier to write ten passably effective Sonnets, good enough to take in the not too inquiring critic, than one effective advertisement that will take in a few thousand of the uncritical buying public."
Aldous Huxley (1894-1963) British author.

Petley, Julian. Advertising. Smart Apple Media: North Mankato, 2004.

This book covers every subject surrounding advertising including what it is, how to do it, and how to get a job doing it. Julian Petley is the professor of Film and Television Studies at Brunel University in London. He founded the Journal of Popular British Cinema and sat on the editorial board. Now he acts as the primary editor of The Journal of British Cinema and Television, it’s successor. As Chair of the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom he actively involved himself in debates surrounding the 2003 Communications Act. He has written twelve books to date, including Media: The Impact on Our Lives and Newspapers and Magazines.

Advertising is critical to my work in two stages of production. First I must advertise my project well enough to uncover willing models in the community. Secondly, I must present the tattoo in a way that not only advertises my talent as a photographer, but also shows the world the talent of the tattoo artist involved in the tattoo. Problems have been arising when the quality of the tattoo is (admitted by the artist as well as noticed by me) not up to advertising standards. My small pool of willing models with usable tattoos amplifies these problems. I feel that I need to start branching out into abstract design tattoos though I’m not completely sure how to interact subject and background in such cases.