Why Apple should employ me

I seek to provide Apple with creative, innovative and aesthetically pleasing images, which will target their desired target audience. My images will fit in well with existing Apple advertising campaigns; yet bring about a new and interesting feel to my clients advertisements.

 I am studying as a second year photography student at CIT, in which the course continues to develop my skills as a photographer, and provides me with the knowledge needed to undertake this photographic job. I am capable in providing images to an exceptionally high professional standard.

 I have done extensive research into Apple’s existing marketing strategies and believe I will be able to lead the company’s success in a forwards direction. My images will be a new, edgy representation of Apple products and will be provided at a cost effective price.

Requirements for the capture of studio images

Objects/ Props –

To obtain my objects and props, I will need to either use items that I have around the house – for glassware for example, or I will have to buy or borrow items for the studio shoot. I don’t personally own any Apple products, and I haven’t the money to buy any at the moment, so I will have to rely on borrowing items from friends and class mates, and utilising the Apple products that are around CIT. For example; I could use the graphic design lab on campus to photograph my industrial shot, as all the equipment in the lab is Apple based.

I will need to book studio time and ensure that there is enough lighting available. I will also need to book the tiltshift lens for my camera movement shot.

Costs –

 Purchased objects and props, may include glass and chrome items. Make sure to establish a budget and stick to it. Remember that you still need to pay for printing costs, etc. at submission time.

Timeline -

·         Construct a table and identify important checkpoints to ensure the project is keeping on track.

·         Figure out the tasks that are more important than others, considering time etc. Prioritise what must be done first.

·         Identify preparation time – know what you are doing before you go into the studio, to utilise as much time given as possible.

Requirements for the capture of Location images:

For my location images, the most important things I will need to consider are the time of day, and what the weather is going to be like. This means that I must make sure that I identify the location for my shot early enough so that I can be sure that the weather conditions I want to shoot in will be correct, whether it be raining, sunny, cloud, day, or night.

Logistics -

• Make sure that I have the equipment needed for the shoot, or that it is available to borrow from CIT – make sure to book in with plenty of notice.
• Booking into the studio – making sure once again that I get the area and equipment I need for my shots.
• Identify where I will need to gain access to any prohibited areas. Whom I need to contact and any special requirements I will need.

Timeline -

• Construct a table and identify important checkpoints to ensure the project is keeping on track.
• Figure out the tasks that are more important than others, considering time etc. Prioritise what must be done first.

Access -

• Identify who to contact in relation to accessing different areas, make sure this is done with plenty of notice.
• Get after hours phone numbers of contacts just in case.
• Ensure if there is security that they know why you are there and that the person in charge knows that you are coming. Make sure you know exactly where you have to be and the time, it might be a good idea to check out the location before the day of the shoot especially if your meeting time is after dark.

Cost -

• Vehicle and petrol costs - keep receipts for taxes (billing client if working for a client)
• Access fees may be charged if shooting in certain areas.  

Property releases should be obtained for interior shots and in some situations on exterior shots depending on the location the shots are taken from.

Property Release PDF

Techniques and Equipment

In order to achieve a cohesive portfolio in keeping with my client’s style, I will need to use certain techniques and equipment.

After observing their advertising campaigns, to me I feel that the whole look and feel of the way Apple markets itself is very sleek, modern, contemporary and rather simple, which reflects the company’s emphasis on design and user friendliness.

There is a clear consistency in design, operation and function of all the Apple products, which will be important to communicate in my photos.

Apple is all about lifestyle, imagination, creativity, and like I said, it is its own culture.

My thoughts for shooting techniques and working on my photos were to shoot simple, sharp, crisp and clean images and to carefully consider things like lighting, time of day, lens choice and aspect, which will help me to bring about the appeal of Apple.

The apple logo is key to their branding and is the most prominent part of any advertising campaign. For my images however, I’m trying to think of them as stock photos that my client could use in an advertisement, so it may not always be necessary to include Apple’s logo in each image.

In order to reflect the clean edgy appeal of Apple I need to make sure that my images are clean and crisp, therefore my lens needs to be able to produce sharp images.

For my studio shots my studio set up will need to be very sleek and simple, so that all the emphasis is put on what I will be photographing. I can use things such as mirrors, glass and other reflective surfaces. Graduated lighting, would also help to produce a sleek, techy feel.

For my location shots I want to emphasise a minimalist feeling with lots lines and direction. Choosing the time of day for these images will also be important. Shooting in ‘the golden hour’ will be ideal.

Clients Target Audience:

My clients target audience is everyone. Previous marketing campaigns show that Apple wants everyone to buy, use, and own their products. Apple is its own kind of culture in a way.

The audience I would like to target mainly is, teen to young adults, as this is the main age group that I understand that like to keep up with upcoming technologies, and are very into social networking.

With my images I want to demonstrate a sense that apple is different than any other products on the market. If you use apple, your cooler than ‘cool’ and edgier than ‘the cutting edge’! It’s “Apple Culture”.
My images will show that Apple is a revolution that can take you anywhere; they will reflect aesthetic qualities that will capture and intrigue my audience.

Past and Current Advertising Campaigns:

In the past two decades, Apple Inc. has become well known for its advertisements. Its most significant ad campaigns include the 1984 super bowl commercial <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYecfV3ubP8>. , the 1990s Think different campaign < http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGhuj3jIAKw&list=UUe6iKt4hr1J0UpDkMOp3q0w&index=19&feature=plpp_video>. and the iPod people of the 2000s.
The Super Bowl Commercial involved mimicked imagery from George Orwell's 1984. This campaign was to show how its actually Apple Inc. that was going to change 1984.
The Think Different campaign has linked Apple to famous social figures—including artist John Lennon and Albert Einstein. This campaign is used to demonstrate how Apple is smarter, and different to any other products out there, similar to the people featured in the advertisement. The advertisement pushes that apple will change things for the human race and the world. I like this campaign, I find it to be a very effective way of advertising.
One of the most recent advertising campaigns though, is the iPod people. IPod people feature in the more notable commercials and print advertising which feature dark silhouetted characters against bright-colored backgrounds (this is often seen on iTunes cards). The silhouettes are usually dancing, and in television commercials are backed by up-beat music. The silhouettes are also usually holding iPods and listening to them with Apple's supplied earphones. These appear in white, so that they stand out against the colored background and black silhouettes. The use of the earphones is so well known, most people simply register this one simple imagery back to the advertisement being for an Apple product, like as if it has become the next Apple logo.



http://admissions.gallaudet.edu/bloggers/robyn/archives/000267.html



References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Inc._advertising

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPod_advertising

Brief History of Apple:

Apple Inc.

Apple inc, is an American multinational corporation that was founded by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak who effectively created the first Apple computer on April 1, 1976, with the release of the Apple I, and incorporated the company Apple Inc. (formerly Apple Computer, Inc.) on January 3, 1977, in Cupertino, California.

Apple Inc. creates consumer electronics, computer software, and commercial servers. Apple’s main product lines are the iPad, iPhone, iPod, and Macintosh computers.

The Apple I, Apple's first product sold as an assembled circuit board, it lacked basic features such as a keyboard, monitor, and case. The Apple I went on sale in July 1976 and was market-priced at $666.66 ($2.55 thousand in 2010 dollars.

Jobs, who had been overthrown from the company in 1985, returned to become Apple's CEO in 1996 after his company Next was bought by Apple Inc. With him he brought innovative and aesthetic designs and introduced the successful iPod music player in 2001. Apple established itself as a leader in the consumer electronics industry, and dropped "Computer" from its name. The return of Jobs changed the company and I often wonder where we would be today if he hadn’t re-joined with apple.

On February 6, 2007, Apple indicated that it would sell music on the iTunes Store without DRM (which would allow tracks to be played on third-party players) if record labels would agree to drop the technology.

As of 2011, Apple is the largest technology firm in the world, with annual revenues of more than $60 billion.

References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Apple_Inc.

http://www.xtimeline.com/timeline/History-of-Apple--Inc-