assignment 1

Chapter 1: The ad that stood out to me was the Penguin Books ad "Girls." Compositionally I think it's beautiful. The subtle text "be here" is at first strange because a party is pictured, and it's for a publishing company; however, the idea of a great novel transporting you anywhere is really effective.

I'm comparing this ad to the Ketel One Vodka ad. The ad shows a group of friends sitting around a table toasting. I think the photography in both ads really helps transport the viewer to the scene.

Chapter 2: The "Eat Mor Chikin" ad stood out to me, specifically because of the catch phrase. I think a really great catch phrase can be timeless and used in a variety of ad campaigns in different ways.

Similar to this is the "Where's the Beef?" campaign for Wendy's. The catch phrase is something that's been around for years, now revisited. It's so simple, but I feel as though one understands immediately what the restaurant wants to say from this phrase.

Chapter 3: The Lynx ad is similar to the US Axe ads. They talk about sex in a way that's humorous and bold, but one isn't put off when seeing them. I don't want to say they're done tastefully, but they are well done, and their humor overshadows the more straight forward message.

The ad for the Axe Detailer is similar to the Lynx ad. It is a very simple composition, featuring the product in the center. The product has to sides, one softer and one that exfoliates. Instead of describing how the product works through straight forward directions, Axe sells their message and brand and explains how the product works through humor.

Chapter 4: I chose the Columbia "Shirt" ad because it is funny and its message is conveyed very simply. I also think the composition is very well done. I believe these types of products don't always get great branding or advertisement. I think Columbia is thinking of their target market without taking themselves too seriously.

I chose the Levis ad to compare this to thinking about a similar target audience. It utilizes the same Americana hard work idea as the Columbia ad, but I feel like it doesn't sell its product as well. While I really like this ad, I feel that for its demographic, it takes itself a little too seriously.