david_thomas___banned_from Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 Three local hotels, here in Wales, have agreed to put up a framed print advertising my wedding photography business. This is my first attempt. I wanted it black, modern looking and cool. Do the images selected make you want to ring me (if you were a prospective bride!) or walk the other way quick! Also, general comments about the composition of the images would be apprecated. Does the 'car' pic in the top corner look a bit squashed? Also comments about the general impression this image would make after it is professionally printed and framed in the hotel. Many thanks.<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_keegin Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 I hope you get a lot of feedback - I don't want to be the only one; it wouldn't be fair to you. I like the car shot, the holding hands shot and the little girl. The bride could be made better by getting the shine off her face and tree shots are, in my opinion, sophomoric - but that's only my opinion. Congrats on roping in the hotels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
h._p. Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 The pictures are really very good, David, but I wonder if it would pay you to contact a graphic designer and get his advice on how to lay this out to achieve the best result. A very long time ago, I designed adverts for local papers and this sort of layout would have seemed primitive even then. The public are now so much more sophisticated visually, just because of all the material they see daily, that you need to play the same game as all the other advertisers, in order to stand a chance of winning. There are some very good designers in small towns all around the country and their charges can be very reasonable, relative to the sales they can put in your pocket. If you do want to do it yourself, consider using a single picture as a background and inserting the others small within it. I'd suggest using the couple with the tree as your main picture. The typeface you've chosen is good and one approach might be to place it over the bottom right corner of the bride's wedding dress. The best piece of advice I can give you, is to make up at least three completely different designs before making any decisions. The second best piece of advice is 'be prepared to murder your darlings'. In other words, don't get attached to any design because you like it. Want you want is something that other people like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie_caswell Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 How big is the print? I like the idea. FWIW... as a consumer and wannabe... I like Hp's advice on the tree shot. Kill off all but the couple posing with the car. Everything thing else should go. When I shoot for my newspaper, I try to tell a story with one image, and it's really tough. You get ten seconds of my time as I'm walking past. Give me ten images over the tree shot that make me stop and tell me a story. On that poster, give me coverage of the whole day. Tell me a story in each image, that is a chapter in the whole day. I would like to see more emotion and life and movement and B+W. I like your work, and have seen better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robbie_caswell Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 I'm sorry I meant the holding hands as the background. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_schilling___chicago_ Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 Seems a little off balance to me..... If you keep your images at less than 511 pixels and give the image a caption, it will appear in the thread rather than a link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyjonesphotography Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 David Leave it as it is mate, looks great. It's obvious what it's selling. Have you thought about putting brochures into the hotel rooms. After a night of wonderful sh*ggin the young lady wakes up with a David Paul brochure stuck to her forehead. Then on the way down stairs to book out of the hotel she sees the David Paul poster.... Bingo! we have a booking. Expat Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Naka Posted August 6, 2006 Share Posted August 6, 2006 Not knowing the culture or styles I don't know about the car shot. It looks like more of the car than of them, because the car is so much more of the image than they are. And the car is positioned to drive OFF the poster. It should be driving into the poster. Personal opinion, because the couple is so small, this shot needs to be bigger or eliminated. Top right. The hot spots on the brides face and arm are not good. You need to find the BEST looking shot of a bride that you have. She needs to absolutely look beautiful and the shot perfect. As you said, she will be looking at herself in that shot. The hands shot is not strong enough for a center of the page shot. His clothes blends into the black of the poster. It bothers me that the largest face is that of the flowergirl. The bottom shot while nice, has that hot spot on the grass behind them. That hot spot pulls my eye away from them. Some times less is more. A single large shot of the wedding couple or of just the bride, to get their attention. A single large image will have more impact than a bunch of smaller ones. Remeber the poster isn't going to get you the sale, it is only the 1st step in the process. With your web site, they can look further. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric v Posted August 7, 2006 Share Posted August 7, 2006 I won't comment on the pics in the layout because only you know your portfolio and which images you want people to see. My advice is with the layout. I think you were going for upscale modern style, but it comes off as flat and unbalanced. I would try punching it up a little, and maybe even suck it up and pay someone who knows what they are doing. Maybe a graphic design student will help out for some beer money. At the very least, try throwing a 10pt white stroke around each image. Also, if you have any pics from a wedding at that hotel that shows the venue, I would try to fit one in. Try a few dynamic designs and post them on here. It does look pretty good now though, and its great that you will be able to hang it up in the hotel. Make sure the hotel's event planner has some of your work on hand also (sample album or similar) Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roxyandkaidotcom Posted August 7, 2006 Share Posted August 7, 2006 Ditto on what the others said about the layout. Here's an idea ...<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_thomas___banned_from Posted August 7, 2006 Author Share Posted August 7, 2006 Thanks for all the ideas and help. In the end, I decided to go with a very simple layout. It's not going to win any awards, but it might just get me the odd booking... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
think27 Posted August 7, 2006 Share Posted August 7, 2006 David - Please 1) 511 pixels or less in width before you upload 2) CAPTION in the caption box 3) Don't forget to assign the thread a Category See my most recent thread on posting in the wedding forum. Thanks ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennifer valencia Posted August 8, 2006 Share Posted August 8, 2006 hi David,congrats on getting the hotel postings! Even with your newest version, I'd recommend a few changes. Take these with a grain of salt, of course! -- it's only my opinion. :) 1. The picture of the bride on the top right should be replaced with something else, IMO. She looks "over-flashed", there is too much glare on her arm, and the background is cluttered. Also, that picture doesn't "go" visually with the greenery and white colors in the other photos. 2. Can you enlarge one photo and make it a focal point, instead of having them all roughly the same size? That way the eye will know where to look first. Apart from those comments, I still think it's a nice poster! Congrat again and I hope you get lots of bookings from it. Jennifer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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