Assignment Four

Write an essay of 1,000 words on an image of your choice. The image can be anything you like, from a famous art photograph to a family snapshot, but please make sure that your choice image has scope for you to make a rigorous and critical analysis. It you choose a well-known photograph, take time to research it's context - the intentions of the photographer, why it was taken, whether it's part of a series, etc. Add all this information into your essay to enable you to draw a conclusion from your own interpretation of the facts. 

Volkswagen Park Assist: Perfectly Precise or a Prickly Problem?

For this assignment, I was required to choose an image and analysis it. The image I choose is an advert for Volkswagen Parking Assist.

Deciphering an image can be challenging but is important for a photographer, there are several techniques to use. Looking at the denotation and connotation of the image is a start. Observing the obvious things in the image is known as denotation, but it doesn’t give the meaning of the things. This is where connotation comes in, as it refers to the associated meaning of the image.

First I will look at the denotation of the image (Appendix 1). There are four subjects in this image; three goldfishes in bags, and one hedgehog. They are arranged in a diagonal line going from the bottom left to the top right. The background is a very light textured grey. The colours are almost clean and clinical but the fish and the hedgehog add colour. The lighting clearly illuminates the subjects; shadows can be seen in front of them. But reflections can be seen in the plastic bags from lights used elsewhere. The fish themselves are all facing different ways giving the image animation. At the bottom right hand corner is the Volkswagen logo, and the tag line for this advert, ‘Precision Parking…Park Assist by Volkswagen’. Then at the top right hand corner is Volkswagens website. These are the facts are the image.

I will now look at the connotation of the image (Appendix 2). The point of this image is to advertise Volkswagen’s new accessory on their cars, the Park Assist. The hedgehog represents a Volkswagen car that has parked in the tight space between the goldfish, which are other makes of car. By showing the hedgehogs spines close to the plastic bags of the goldfish, it reflects the dangers of parking in tight spaces, and how

Georgina Stewart – 515211 1

the park assist can help. If the hedgehog had hit one of the bags then the bag would have burst and the fish would die. With actual cars, damage would have been caused to the cars. The creator of this image is using humour to attract the viewer and make them aware of a real problem that can occur when parking. A Volkswagen car is being represented as a hedgehog, which is different from the other ‘cars’, they are suggesting that Volkswagen cars are unique. The hedgehog is large, and has a deep colour, with a happy ‘cute’ look. Goldfish represent the other cars, they are all the same, and there is nothing to tell them apart. This goes further to reinforce Volkswagen’s uniqueness. The animals are positioned precisely with equal distance between each one. They are all in a straight line, which represents parking at the side of a road. The goldfish bags can be seen as triangles, whereas the hedgehog is a circle. The composition adds depth to the image as well as structure. With them in a straight line, the viewer can imagine the row of parked cars they are trying to represent. The gap between each animal is very small, again emphasizing the whole point of their product and how it can help park in tight spaces.

The photograph was taken in a studio (Appendix 3). The shadows suggest the main lighting is coming from the top left direction. There is obviously lighting coming from the direction of the viewer in order to show the subjects. If you look carefully at the plastic bags, reflection of the lights can be seen. The editors could have removed this using editing software, maybe this was an oversight or this is the effect they wanted.

The accompanying text is short and brief. “Precision Parking…Parks Assist by Volkswagen”. The actual size of the text is very small in relation to the rest of the image, but it is effective, as it doesn’t draw attention away from the image but is informative at the same time. Volkswagen’s logo is clear in the bottom right hand corner; this is a necessary part of this image, as it is a clear recognition of the brand. The website address is very small in the top right hand corner. All of the text is on the right side of the image, for me it slightly unbalances it, maybe if the website address was at the top left or even bottom left it would look more balanced.

The use of animals in images produces an interesting response (Appendix 4); Animals produce varying psychological responses, such as emotional, behavioural and neurological. Animals in adverts are seen as a selling tactic, McCutchen believes this is because ‘consumers are attracted to, and fascinated by animals’. This would then lead to an increase in sales. In 1984, Wilson came up with the biophilia hypothesis, which is the theory ‘that humans are genetically predisposed to attend to, be attracted to, and drawn to other living beings such as animals’. Animals that are deemed to be ‘cute’ grab the viewers’ attention, such as the hedgehog in this image. By using animals, this image is using psychology to promote their product.

DBB Tribal Berlin were responsible for this image. But it is not entirely their own idea, as in January 2009 Skoda released an image to advertise their Park Assist function. Their advert features a bubble trying to park among cacti. This is basically the same principle as Volkswagen’s advert. So by emphasizing Volkswagen’s uniqueness, they fail when it comes to creating an original advert.

Georgina Stewart – 515211 2

According to reviews on the system, the Park Assist does work but has limitations. It only works when it finds a big enough space for the car to park in one manevour. This would require the space to be fairly large, and in a city this could be impossible. The driver is only in control of the brake and accelerator during the manevour, but if the pedals are pressed slightly to hard the manevour stops and you have to physically take over. The system uses points of references in order to park the car; this is a problem when there are low curbs. According to their advert the system allows you to park in tight spaces precisely, but in truth not in spaces as tight as they are portraying.In the real world, if a parking car hit a stationary car, they both would be damaged, but in this image only the fish (other cars) would suffer from the hedgehogs spines, so it is not completely showing the dangers accurately.

Overall I believe this image is very clever in the way they portray the ‘cars’, and the humour is evident and easy to understand what they are trying to do. The composition is precise again emphasising the precision of Volkswagen, but also gives the image a sense of structure and solidity. This image is successful in representing and portraying what it is suppose to. By using humour and using animal it attracts attention and engages the viewer. The image is simple and sharp.

Georgina Stewart – 515211 3

Ads Of The World. VW Precision Parking. [Online]. <http://adsoftheworld.com/media/print/volkswagen_hedgehog_and_fish> [Accessed: 1st July 2016].Auto Express. Self-Parking – Volkswagen. Auto Express Magazine. [Online]. <http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/car-reviews/39301/self-parking-volkswagen> [Accessed: 4th July 2016].Bignell, J. (2002). Media Semiotics. 2nd Revised Edition. Manchester. Manchester University Press.Dictionary. Connotation. [Online]. <www.dictionary.com/browse/connotation> [Accessed: 15th July 2016].Dictionary. Denotation. [Online]. <www.dictionary.com/browse/denotation> [Accessed: 15th July 2016].Dyer, G. (1982). Advertising as Communication (Studies in Culture and Communication). New Edition. Routledge. PinInterest. Skoda Park Assist. [Online]. <https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/135319163773748591/> [Accessed: 3rd July 2016].Stone, S. M. The Psychology of Using Animals in Advertising. [Online]. <www.huichawaii.org/assets/stone_sherril_the_psychology_of_using_animals_in_advertising_ahs2014.pdf> [Accessed: 15th July 2016].Williamson, J. (2010). Decoding Advertisements: Ideology and Meaning in Advertising. ReIssue Edition. Marion Boyars.

Georgina Stewart – 515211 4

Appendix

Appendix 1

Appendix 2

Georgina Stewart – 515211 5

Appendix 3

Appendix 4

Georgina Stewart – 515211 6