Poster Production

Sketches

Below are the sketches I drew out to plan my poster ideas. I did plan some more graphic focused posters, but these didn’t fit with my video campaign. These graphics give additional information about the individual vehicle that I am showing off, which may be more interesting to a viewer and potential customer. The general feel of my project is to avoid any ‘all to action’ techniques and use a more subtle form of gauging the viewer’s interest.

These designs are based on my shot plans, as I want to link my poster to my video to create a campaign that is recognisable. These plans each have their own small description underneath. I added a good amount of colour to my sketches to gain more depth and to either apply a colour theory or better understand what editing will need to be done to my images in post-production.

I will now develop my selected ideas into real posters ready for printing. I have chosen to go for one of my photo ideas rather than a digital graphic design task, as I don’t feel like I have the time to create something with so much detail. Though if I do get the time I would love to be able to develop a few of my ideas in an alternative way,  either through photography or graphics, even during my personal time once this project has finished.

I made some mockups of the graphic posters I planned. Although they didn’t turn out the way I wanted them to, they still illustrated the idea of ‘no half measures’, Toyota’s newest campaign. To do this idea I played with the word ‘measures. but using a tape measure and a measuring jug. The toy I used is a miniature replica of the Toyota C-HR, which fit with my ideas nicely, although this would be a graphics project so I would be able to change it to the RAV4 I was using.

Poster 1

This is the first image I will be working with to create a poster with to accompany my video campaign. I chose this one first as it followed the rule of thirds and a fair amount of negative space that I could use for typography and the logos I need to add extra branding to the poster.

My first job was to edit and correct the image ready for the typography and logos to be overlaid. I did this little job in Adobe Lightroom CC. This included cropping and levelling, and some exposure and contrast adjustments. I also edited out the lens flare/s that came from the car’s lights.

I then put the image into photoshop to further edit a few bits. This included the digital billboard in the top right-hand corner, and the one-way sign,  which both became distractions for the viewer. Although the billboard was hardly visible due to the way I cropped it in photoshop, I still wanted it gone as it was an eyesore and by covering it up it became neutral and was hardly noticeable in the image. I had already edited the sign in my video clips so it would be more fluid through the whole campaign.

I then used a soft large brush to create a very light pink layer to match the colour of the ground. I then turned the opacity of this layer right down to create what you see below. This made the ground look softer and allows any text overlay to be seen more clearly by the viewer. By doing this, it made the person in the scene stand out against the background.

I carried out additional research both on general car posters and Toyota posters. This helped me to take techniques from existing brand characteristics and apply the designs to my own posters.

I also had a look at slogans that Toyota had used in advertisements for the RAV4 and C-HR Hybrids. I may also look at advertisements for Toyota’s other cars, such as the Yaris, Prius and the new Corolla.

I chose the same font as I used in my video, which had a simplistic style that fit the vehicle I am advertising. I also had to choose a ‘slogan’ for my poster that was informative but not too long or wordy. I chose a 3 step slogan, which gave the viewer a better idea of the car I was using, such as the fact it is a ‘self-charging hybrid’.

I am happy with how this turned out, although I feel like I could have done better during planning and research of existing poster advertisements.

After this poster was finished, I decided to mess around with a few other designs so I had a good collection to chose from.

Poster 2

I used a different image this time, which had more negative space than the last one. I ran it through Adobe Lightroom to correct and edit the image before I  began shaping it into a poster using typography.

I decided to take a more minimalist approach to make this poster, as I feel like my first design was far too clunky and messy. This was definitely the favourite of my two designs here, as I kept powering through making the posters and didn’t leave the time to write about how I did it. Like this one due to the anticipation that the negative space and colours create, the purples and blacks in the image completely contrasts the white car in the background. I also made for better use of the bright white digital billboard that was invading the background of my whole shoot, by including a Toyota logo here, although in a later edit I removed this, as it didn’t look quite right from a distance.

This is my final design, that I have chosen to have printed. I am really happy with how this has turned out and love the overall design and feel of the poster. I added the large faded Toyota logo at the bottom of the poster to fill the negative space in the image, which worked really well. It also creates a more visual link to the brand and slogan that just using a small logo in the bottom corner.