Advertising is a huge business worth millions of pounds. It manipulates the way we think about certain products by placing them in the most attractive light. They have the power to change how we feel about a particular product in a single picture. Using television, radio and magazines along with celebrity endorsements, advertisers try and influence our buying. The Advertisements I have chosen are all from magazines. These are usually the first place to find advertisements, as there are hundreds of different types of magazine, read by many more. The advertisements in the magazine tend to be aimed at certain people.

The advertisements I have are mainly aimed for middle-aged readers, who have money to spend. All the advertisements found in the magazine would be aimed at similar people who would be interested in buying such things as cars, beer or even pyjamas. My first advertisement is of and MG roadster cabriolet car. It is being driven by a man, which suggest that this is more of a mans car or that they are aiming at men as it has more of a reputation of being a woman’s car to drive. The car itself is being driven on a sunny day through a forest road most probably in a foreign country.

This would suggest ideal driving conditions, with no speed limit. The roof is down, which could also show it is a warm day, but it may only be down to show the car looking its best, as it looks more attractive. The advertisement is framed, but as there is nothing other than the car to look at, it is almost certain that there would only be the rest of the background forest. This is also evident as there are dark, long shadows cast along the road and the car. Because of this, I think that the picture has been taken either early in the morning or in the evening.

The picture has been blurred in certain places to show the car is moving quickly as been captured in the split second before it passes the camera shot. The trees are blurred to show the speed, but the road barriers at the side do not appear top be. This may be intentional or it may well be a mistake. Also the wheels are blurred and semi-transparent which shows that the car is going at a fast pace. The colour of the car also helps the picture as it stands out and is more prominent against the colours of the backdrop. The man has a very definite facial expression.

He seems to be enjoying to the ride of the MG, while looking very focused and concentrated. Each angle you look at the advertisement the man is looking the same way. He is probably looking ahead at the corner he is taking, which you can tell by the angle at which the car is. The advertisement is a picture, not a drawing or animation. This is because the facial expression of the man is evident and would most likely be exaggerated if it was and animation. Also there are very few car advertisements that are animations and the ones that are rarely show the actual car itself.

There is no large or bold text other than the slogan, so that the car is the absolute focus of the reader and there is nothing else to distract the reader. The slogan is not on the right side of the picture, so you look at that before you see the car. The logo of the company however, is at the bottom-right of the advertisement so it is the last thing you see before you turn the page. This technique is used in many advertisements. This type would be aimed at middle aged people certainly more than any other age group mainly as they have the money to buy such a car and it is the type of car that age group own.

These types of MG advertisements would be mainly seen in magazines or on billboards and would be very similar or the same in each other place they are advertised. My second advertisement is of a Cartier watch. It shows a single picture of the watch in the middle of the page, using a deep red and white background. It is the only item on the entire page, to symbolise its importance and to also show the prominence of the product itself. The advertisement is in colour, as to show the contrast between the watch and the background and to make the watch stand out. A black and white picture would therefore not work in the situation.

The photograph is a clear, close-up of the item. I can tell this as the watch appears much larger than it would do in reality. This is to also immediately draw your attention to the watch and nothing else. The image has been treated to show the light glimmering off the diamonds on the watch. This is to make it appear more expensive and sophisticated and to go with the deep red background to make it appear more glamorous. It shows the watch face very clearly, so that the design and skill in producing it is a focus point. That along with the clear ‘Swiss made’ symbol at the bottom of the watch face.

This is intended to show the class of the particular brand, as it is a well known fact that many of the best and most expensive watches in the world are Swiss made. There is only one line of text in the advertisement, which could be a slogan or the name of the watch, which reads ‘Tank Divan’. This is left of the brand name, placed in the right-hand bottom corner, so that the reader will take note of that last as they turn the page. It is in elegant writing, to yet again reaffirm the quality of the brand and its status. This sort of advertisement is certainly aimed at middle-aged people, due to the amount the watch would cost.

It also appears to be a woman’s watch. It would be mainly be found in the type of magazine I obtained it from, which was a newspaper supplement, or in other magazines aimed at wealthy, middle aged women. It would be part of a campaign which would see the advertisement in magazines, but only ones that are either exactly the same as the one featured or very similar examples. It would also be almost identical to other watch advertisements, as they are advertising the same product, mainly aimed at the same sort of market. My third and final advertisement is of Bell’s whisky.

It shows the product itself to the right of the page unlike the middle, which is how most advertisements are laid out. This is because there is another picture in the top left corner of the page. It shows a glass reading ‘reserved’. This is due to the product being Bell’s Special Reserve. This acts as the slogan for the advertisement, as there is no official one in it. At the bottom of the page, there is the information about the product, which is clear, but not to obvious as the reader may not be interested in that and so not to take away from the main picture in the advertisement.

The picture has not been treated in any way. I can tell this, as there are no abnormal or exaggerated effects in the image. The image is a clear picture of the product, and is not a close up. The image stands out because it is against a plain background. The colours are more powerful to look at than the white of the backdrop. The advertisement itself is very simple and needs no explanation. It only shows the product, along with a glass to go with the type of whisky. It works very well as it is immediately eye catching and is not complicated in any way. There is no brand name or slogan at the bottom of the page.

The is due to the fact the brand name is obvious without any text or slogans. It is in the centre of the main focus point, making sure the reader pays most of their attention to this. The name has already been read an recited many times before the page has been turned, so there is no need for a brand name to be seen just before the reader moves on. This type of advertisement would be seen in magazines, on television and in pubs. These are the main places where this product would be accessed by the advertisers market. These would be mass-produced, being mainly the same in all the places they are featured.

This type of advertisement would be aimed at anyone who is old enough to drink in a pub, and older people who prefer to have these sorts of drinks at home. The advertisements I have chosen in my essay are all very different, aimed at many types of people. They advertise for the very rich and high in social status, to every person, no matter how much money they earn or what their social status is. However, the power of advertising ensures that all of these people are affected due to the images they see. There are very few methods that have this manipulative factor. Advertising reaches everybody and so can change anything that it wants to.