2008-2009 Assignments Analysed - 2
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Photosmudger
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advice,
brief advice
More info about the briefs I set in 2008, along with an analysis of how students handled them
2. A Sunday Supplement – The Day Before Monday Magazine
The Brief
Sam Delaney is starring in a new film coming out next week, and the magazine has arranged the usual “puff piece” as part of the vast promotional material that surrounds films these days. They’re expecting a series of portrait shots.
You should bear in mind that previous people who have shot this feature slot in the magazine include Rankin, Bailey, Andy Earl, Clive Arrowsmith, Lorenzo Agius and Mark Seliger. The art director appreciates it’s a last minute job, but will be expecting a decent level of production – else they won’t be calling you again.
"...Sam Delaney could be Samuel or Samantha, we didn't want to restrict the options"
AnalysisAnother deliberate trap here, as, like the music brief, it would be too easy just to take a mate and knock out some shots of them doing anything, anywhere. By insisting that the production values are of a high standard it was hoped that people would concentrate on producing a polished result that will hold it's own in a glossy Sunday Supplement. As with Pat Armstrong, Sam Delaney could be Samuel or Samantha, we didn't want to restrict the options.
Successful Entries:
People who produced a polished result. Usually this was as a result of them combining technical skill with common sense in using the people, props and location to best advantage.
The handful of people who really knocked our socks off with this one by pulling off a very polished result that really would look good in a Sunday Supplement with no other work done to it. A couple of times this was the result of very good technical execution, sometimes, but not always, in the studio. We also saw a few very good examples of location lighting that really helped to lift a few entries head and shoulders above the others. The other factor that marked the best ones out was clever use of locations - both the more mundane ones such as houses which were simply very carefully cropped, all the way up to the couple of people who found and used simply stunning locations that made the shots leap off the page.
Not So Successful Entries:
"...Direct on-camera flash of one of your mates, in the clothes they're already wearing, sitting in a cafe, slightly out of focus and about 2 stops underexposed doesn't really compare with what Rankin, Bailey and the rest can do!"
People who either ignored the bit about making the shots look top-notch, or weren't capable of doing so. Direct on-camera flash of one of your mates, in the clothes they're already wearing, sitting in a cafe, slightly out of focus and about 2 stops underexposed doesn't really compare with what Rankin, Bailey and the rest can do!People who made assumptions about "Sam Delaney" and proceeded to shoot a very specific set of shots based around these assumptions. It's sounds a bit harsh I know, as it's an imaginary character, but you're asking people to make the same assumptions you have, and that's not always possible in the real world.
Other Briefs: 1. Nearly New Musical Express; 2. The Day Before Monday Magazine; 3. The Economalist; 4. The Timely Educational Supplement; 5. The Draping Journal.
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