Category: Visual Research
News
Fotopedia launches collaborative online photo encyclopedia
Palo Alto, Calif based Fotopedia has launched with hopes of transforming the online photo space with a photo encyclopedia that lets photographers, curators, and visitors contribute, collaborate and enrich images to be useful to the whole community. First launched to private beta in September 2008 as Fotonauts, Fotopedia can be used to organize photos from personal storage, Flickr, Picasa, and other services based on subject or any user-defined index, alongside a mashup of contextual information. Fotopedia is the brainchild of Jean-Marie Hullot, former CTO of NeXT Software and Apple’s Application Division.
News
National Geographic Digital Media unveils “Infinite Photograph” web 2.0 Application
National Geographic Digital Media (NGDM) has launched a cutting-edge Web 2.0 photography mosaic application featuring user-generated content called “Infinite Photograph” featuring mosaics created from user-submitted photos of the natural world as part of National Geographic’s My Shot “As Seen on Earth” hub. Gearing up for Earth Day, the first Infinite Photograph theme debuts at http://www.ngm.com/infinite.
Features
Trends in Stock Licensing: Visual Search
In the midst of an economic downturn that’s clearly having a dramatic impact on our industry, I think it’s an interesting time to think about how a few emerging technologies, combined with the ongoing shift from print advertising to Web-based advertising, might affect stock licensing in the coming months:
News
Google digitizing 10 million images from the LIFE Photo Archive
Time Inc. has teamed up with Google to digitize more than 10 million images from the LIFE’s Photo Archive to be made available online utilizing a hosted image service from Google. According to a recent press release “ninety-seven percent of the photographs have never been seen by the public” and the archive contains some of the most iconic images of the 20th century, including works from great photojournalists Alfred Eisenstaedt, Margaret Bourke-White, Gordon Parks, and W. Eugene Smith. Thius follows an announcement in September where Time Inc. is teaming up with Getty Images to launch a similar photo viewing site at Life.com.
News
Mark Seliger shoots celebrity series to commemorate Macy’s 150th birthday
Macy’s, one of the world’s largest and most respected retailers, is gearing up to celebrate its 150th anniversary. As part of the celebration the company has is working with JWT New York and famed Rolling Stone photographer Mark Seliger to capture images of such celebrities as Christina Aguilera, Martha Stewart, Tommy Hilfiger, Donald Trump and Calvin Klein in an apparent effort to emphasize the brand’s fashion and lifestyle significance. “This is an incredible milestone for Macy’s,” said Peter Sachse, president of Macy’s Corporate Marketing. “There will be big celebrations and moments throughout the remainder of 2008, but what better way to kick off our 150th birthday festivities than with some of today’s most popular stars and designers paying tribute to Macy’s most revered and long-standing icons – all shot through the extraordinary lens of one of America’s most talented photographers.”
Features
Book Review: Mr Classic by Jeremy Hackett and Garda Tang
Mr Classic by Jeremy Hackett, Photographs by Garda Tang
Thames & Hudson, May 2008
200 pages/hardcover/136 photographs/$40.00
Jeremy Hackett is Mr Classic. Having a clothing label for decades plus writing a column for the U.K.’s The Independent on Sunday are excellent platforms for influencing men’s fashion. But what decidedly earns Hackett this moniker is his talented facility for reviving the proper styles once worn by Britain’s aristocracy with modern practicality. For his book, Mr Classic, London-based photographer Garda Tang shoots Hackett’s models with fitting technique. Every bow tie, every just-so lifted chin neatly accentuates Hackett’s vision of gentlemanly chic. The looks are respectable and refreshing, not stuffy or stagnant.
Features
Book Review: Natural Fashion: Tribal Decoration from Africa by Hans Silvester
Natural Fashion: Tribal Decoration from Africa by Hans Silvester
Thames & Hudson, April 2008
168 pages/hardcover/160 color photographs/$45.00
With photographs enchanting to behold, Natural Fashion: Tribal Decoration from Africa by Hans Silvester is a sure selection for this spring’s required viewing list. Silvester, known for his protracted study of subjects, travels to Ethiopia’s Omo Valley a dozen times over four years for this new release. He infiltrates the fantastic body painting displays of two congenial tribes, the Surma and the Mursi. While this ancient African practice is uniquely noteworthy, the book also packs a universal message.
Features
Visual case study: Fred Perry Subculture
The Fred Perry polo shirt introduced by its namesake, a three-time Wimbledon champion in 1952, has been synonymous with youth and counterculture since the late 50s when the Mods picked up on it. Over the years the Fred Perry polo shirt has surfaced as a fashionable choice for diverse groups of teenagers throughout the 1960s and 70s, ranging from the Mods, Suedeheads, Ska/Two Tone, Punk, New Wave, Casuals/Perry Boys, Britpop, Electronic/Rave and the latest Indie revival. Most recently the brand has continued to cultivate its appeal with the young and hip by launching Subculture, a new music initiative featuring cutting-edge young talent on the music scene. Meg Asaro and Karen D’Silva from Spark Visual Research take a closer look at the imagery used by Fred Perry to continue to connect with the youthful lifestyle that has fueled the brand’s popularity over the years.
News
TopFoto partners with Bamber Gascoigne to create TimeSearch engine
TopFoto, a stock photography library specializing in historical images, has launched a new way to search for images based on the date of actual events in history. The new search method called TimeSearch was devised by author and academic Bamber Gascoigne and designed by Ian Henghes; fellow directors of the educational website HistoryWorld. Bamber Gascoigne, perhaps best known as Chairman of University Challenge before handing the baton to Jeremy Paxman, says: “TimeSearch for picture researchers is an idea originating from discussions between Alan Smith of TopFoto and me at the CEPIC conference in Prague in 2005.”
Features
Visual case study: Cadillac CTS
General Motor’s Cadillac brand has been struggling in recent years to appeal to a new generation of luxury car buyers who seem more interested in status-boosting foreign luxury cars (Mercedes, BMW, Lexus, Etc…) than the same old luxury car their grandparents drove. To counter this perception GM has taken drastic measures by pulling half of Cadillac’s $300 million-plus ad business from Burnett, who has managed Cadillac advertising for more than 75 years, and placed it with Boston-based Modernista!, the agency that recently revitalized the Hummer brand. Meg Asaro and Karen D’Silva from Spark Visual Research take a closer look at the imagery used by Cadillac to help lower the average age of Cadillac drivers, restore the company’s brand image, and convert new luxury automobile owners.
News
Getty Images releases second edition of MAP Report covering visual trends for 2008
Getty Images, The world’s largest stock licensing company has released the second edition of the MAP Report (what Makes A Picture). The Map report, created by Getty Images global creative research team, provides insight into visual trends that will change the look of mass-communication. This year´s report is entitled AspEn, with a strong focus on environmental consciousness, or ideals of “aspirational environmentalism” as it relates to marketers who are attempting to “out-green” each other. The report states that in 2008 brands will have to be more aware of careless uninspiring use of environmental visual clichés. The report is available for purchase as an English-language PDF for (US $750, £400).
News
xcavator.net database approaches 6 million images
The image and video search technology company, CogniSign, has created the portal called xcavator.net to show-case its novel visual search technology. By partnering with several micro-stock companies and two rights-managed agencies, xcavator.net has built an image database of over 5.8 million images. The company hopes to have 10 million images on its site within the next few months.
News
BBC Motion Gallery licenses archival footage for “Charlie Wilson´s War”
The motion picture “Charlie Wilson’s War” was just released to rave reviews on December 21st. What you may not know is that the Archival footage chronicling the covert war in Afghanistan against the former Soviet Empire was stock footage licensed by BBC Motion Gallery, a division of BBC Worldwide. "Charlie Wilson´s War" (starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Philip Seymour Hoffman and directed by Mike Nichols) tells the true story of how a playboy congressman, a renegade CIA agent and a beautiful Houston socialite joined forces to lead the largest and most successful covert operation in history.
Features
Visual case study: Walmart
Walmart, the world’s largest public corporation, moved to the Martin Agency at the beginning of the year. This is the same creative house that brought us the Geico Gecko, the Geico Caveman and the tagline “Virginia is for Lovers”. They have been repositioning Walmart under a new tagline “Save Money. Live Better.” In their on-air spots, they illustrate what a family can accomplish with the extra $2,500 they save by shopping at Walmart and in the process, have done a great job softening the retailer’s tarnished reputation. Meg Asaro and Karen D’Silva from Spark Visual Research take a closer look at the images used by Walmart to reach middle-class America.
News
A totally new search experience at BrightQube
The stock photo industry is rife with claims of “new” technological advances designed to make the process of finding images much more intuitive and easier for the picture researcher. In essence, however, these features involve minor improvements to an on-line search method that, over all, has changed very little for the last several years. Recently, BrightQube, a relatively new company on the stock photo scene has launched a new search technology that can truly back up the claims to being “new” and different from all the others.
Features
Visual case study: American Express ‘Are You a Cardmember?’ Campaign
In recent years American Express has struggled to find the right message to reach customers in the ever-evolving marketplace of charge cards. The company has employed such memorable campaigns as “Do you know me?” (1974 to 1987), “Membership has its privileges” (1987 to 1996), and “Do more” (1996 to 2004). In its latest attempt the company has once again tapped Ogilvy & Mather to launch a new campaign entitled "Are you a Cardmember?" featuring celebrities in real-life situations while extolling the benefits of being a Cardmember (note the company uses the term Cardmember rather than Cardholder). The campaign which was launched in April 2007 with an estimated budget of $400 million to $500 million has featured tennis great John McEnroe, professional snowboarder Shaun White, and comedians Larry David and Tina Fey. Meg Asaro and Karen D’Silva from Spark Visual Research take a closer look at the images used by American Express to ask the question "Are you a Cardmember?".
Features
Masters of Photography video presentation
This presentation entitlted 'Masters of Photography' was posted to on youtube by ilayrock. The presentation does a nice job of comparing older photography from such legends as Ansel Adams, Walker Evans, Yousuf Karsh, Etc... with a new generation of photography featuring popular pieces from deviantart.
Features
Visual case study: McDonald’s
The quintessential fast food company McDonald's is a household name in nearly every country of the world. The 52 year old company describes its advertising strategy as “part of our lives and culture. McDonald's commercials have focused not only on product, but rather on the overall McDonald's experience, portraying warmth and a real slice of every day life”. Meg Asaro and Karen D’Silva from Spark Visual Research take a closer look at the images used by McDonald's to continue reaching new and old customer alike.
Features
Visual case study: Ariel Sensitive laundry detergent
Procter & Gamble’s Ariel line of laundry detergents offer several varieties including Ariel Biological, Ariel Colour & Style, and Ariel Sensitive, each targeted at a specific segment of the market. Nearly everyone uses laundry detergent so the message is not focused on selling a need but rather on how the product identifies with your lifestyle. Ariel Sensitive is one of many specialized detergents for people with sensitive skin and allergies and rather logically the branding is focused on touch as part of what makes families close. The ads feature idealistic moments where the viewer is drawn in by their own need for family love and intimacy. Meg Asaro and Karen D’Silva from Spark Visual Research take a closer look at the images used by Ariel to reach customers in a crowded marketplace.
News
Xcavator pushes visual search technology with new image portal
The visual search company, Xcavator, has taken a bold step to promote its technology to the stock photo industry. Rather than seek on-line archives to license their visual search product it has launched its own image portal that employs visual search as the primary method for finding images. Having launched the beta version of the portal with 300,000 image form Photovault, the company recently added 1.8MM images from the iStockphoto, Getty’s micro-stock division.
