Final Major Project Research

What is the purpose of the project? The purpose of this product is to bring awareness to the lack of representation of a variety of races, ages, sexualities and disabilities in the media. My project will show a series of people different people with a variety of ages, disabilities and more next to a young woman who I will Photoshop to fit the perfect beauty standards set by the media. I will try to show how we are all the same and how we are perceived to buy products more when they are advertised by a person who fits the perfect beauty standards. To achieve this I will make the older or disabled person model a piece of jewellery and stand in the exact position as the young “perfect” and photoshopped girl. This will hopefully bring awareness to the lack of representation that we see in advertisement in the media.

Who is the Target audience? The target audience will be everyone from a teen age and up. It is important to get as many people as possible to see this and understand the message. Children would not see the meaning behind this so it is not directed to them. Teens and adults will enjoy the photographs plus the purpose of the project.

What are the key requirements of the audience? What will they expect? The audience can expect good quality pictures that look aesthetically pleasing They can also expect a project with an informative meaning behind it that will hopefully be an eye opener to many viewers

What is going to be featured in your project? For my final major project I will produce a series of photographs that will bring awareness to the lack of representation of a variety of races, ages and disabilities in the media. The project will focus on the meaning behind it. To bring awareness to this issue, I will take some photos of a young girl who I will Photoshop to make her fit in the ideal beauty standards set by the media. After taking the photos of the “perfect girl” I will take pictures of older or disabled people in the exact same pose as the girl. This will hopefully show that we are all the same and we all deserve to be represented in the media.

What are the constraints of the project? There are some things that may constrain this project such as lack of models or even a lack of Photoshop skills from me. I will find the young model easily but it may be a bit more difficult to find the older or disabled model. As for my photoshop skills, I believe I have enough experience to do a brilliant job but it may not go exactly as I vision it.

Questionnaire results Do you like photography? Do you look at photography works online? Have you got a favorite style of photography? If so, what is your favorite style of photography? Do you know any famous photographer? If so, who is your favourite photographer? Do you like fashion photography? Do you think fashion photography can give people an realistic image of what a perfect body looks like? Does fashion photography convince you to buy products? Can you name any brands that do fashion photography that you enjoy looking at?

Do you like photography? This question got a higher number of replies with a “yes” and that shows me that it is a good idea to work with photography on this project since a large amount of people enjoy it

Do you look at photography works online? This question got a higher amount of “No” replies which shows me that the average person isn’t too interested in actually researching photographers and photography in general  

Have you got a favorite style of photography? Most people replied “No” to this question which did not help me with deciding with the type of photography that I want to do for my project

If so, what is your favorite style of photography? Most people’s favorite type of photography is portrait photography which means most viewers will enjoy my project

Do you know any famous photographer? I got more “No” replies than “Yes” which tells me that most people don’t know famous photographers

If so, who is your favourite photographer? I got five different answers for this question but the most replied answer was Andy Warhol

Do you like fashion photography? Most people replied with a “yes” which lets me know that my project will be appreciated by most people  

Do you think fashion photography can give people a realistic image of what a perfect body looks like? This was the most important question on my questionnaire because it is the one that relates to the theme of my project the most. Most people replied with a “No” and that helped me make sure my theme is relevant and appropriate

Does fashion photography convince you to buy products? Most people replied to this question with a yes which shows me that fashion photography fulfills its purpose

Can you name any brands that do fashion photography that you enjoy looking at? Only 9 people could name a brand and most of them said they like vogue’s photography

Is it what you expected? The results of my research are exactly what I expected them to be Most of the questions got the replies that I was hoping for and that helped me decide on a lot of things about my project

Are the results reliable? These results are not 100% reliable because they come from 20 random people that I found on the street so not many people re involved in these results

How has this prepared you for your project? The research that I did for this project helped me plan my project and know exactly what I am doing with it. Before finishing this research I did not know exactly where I was going with my project but now that I have people’s opinions on it I know exactly what I am doing.

What went well and what didn’t go well? What went well in my research is the amount of results with a huge variety of answers that I go from asking people their opinions on my project. It helped me develop my idea and come up with a concept. What I believe could have went better in my research is the questions that I asked. I could have asked questions that gave me a better perspective of people’s views in my idea and not as much on fashion photography.

5 ways to present my final major project Present it in an exhibition where every student can see my work Presenting it to the class with a PowerPoint presentation Show it to the general public with a stand in the street Post it on a public website Make a portfolio and distribute it to the general public