Micro Message
Let’s face it, a lot of commercial photography functions as a medium for a message. A graphic or image lodges in the mind far longer than the words wrapped around it. To those looking to propagate a singular way of life, belief system, or idea, making a clean presentation colors the way the message is experienced.
The “got milk?” campaign broke new ground in advertising because of its informal appeal, casual directness, celebrity endorsements, and enthusiasm for the product. Soon, witty persons were making t-shirts and buttons and bumper stickers with the ‘Got ______?” motif. No longer was a mouth full of peanut butter enough.
The importance of delivering a signage shot is in the composition, because a block inclusion will just square with the borders. Viewers won’t be very entertained. But images of signs layered against text make a statement by combining the two media. The above image, for example, next to a story on violence in the middle East has a whole new context.
Sometimes directional signs like “one-way” signs can signal a change in position or uniform view, which can be mounted next to editorial type articles. The use of a stylistic trope like an image that conveys active text can quickly capture the eye of a viewer, browser, or reader.
When the point of the story is to persuade, arrows and directional signs can symbolize a shift in conventional wisdom. Stop signs can signal caution to the reader, and other traffic type of even geographical place names can reflect what is going on in the story. These can be convenient choices and tagged accordingly, making it easy for micro stock clients to find those images.
Get some memory and batteries together and go on a photo foray with specific objectives for signage. Clever compositions and angles can make dull images into attention getting pictures. Make sure you have signage options in your online micro stock portfolio, so your clients will get the messages, and you’ll get the money.
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