Mrs. Nada AbiSamra ©
English

COMMENTARY ON A PICTURE

1- IDENTIFY and DESCRIBE the DOCUMENT:
 
1.1- IDENTIFY the DOCUMENT:
A- Its Nature:
     What type of document is this?
   a- An advert, advertisement, ad, TV commercial, poster.
        (What is advertised? Who is the ad aimed at? How do you know?)
   b- A photograph: a passport ph., art ph., fashion ph., still life ph.(*nature morte),
        family album ph., a snapshot (*instantane: quickly taken ph.--usually by an
        amateur)
   c- A painting (art): an oil painting, a watercolor (*aquarelle), a landscape, a
        portrait, a mural (on a wall), a still life, a sketch (*croquis / quickly made
        drawing)
   d- A cartoon: speech balloons, a comic strip (humorous drawing)
   e- A drawing.
.
B- Its Origin:
      Where would you be likely to find it ? (+ who is the Ad aimed at?/
                                                                  what does this Picture aim at?)
   a- In a newspaper
   b- In a magazine (weekly, monthly ..../ American, British ....)
   c- In a book about art
   d- On a hoarding (billboard = *panneau publicitaire)
   e- In a museum
   f - In a gallery
   g- On the front page (the cover)
 
1.2- DESCRIBE THE DOCUMENT: study the explicit
      (Who, what, where, when?)
        [Observe the (central) subject(s), the setting, and see how they have been arranged]
.
A- What is your attention first caught by? What is the focal point of the document?
     (What comes next? why?)
.
B- Is this a :
   a- Close up  = the face (*gros plan)
   b- Close shot = face + upper part (*plan rapproche)
   c- Medium shot = almost all the body
   d- Full shot  = all the body (No setting)
   e- Long shot = all the body + setting (*plan d'ensemble)
.
C- Is the main subject of the document in the foreground or in the background? Justify.
.
D- What / who can we see:
    1- In the middle distance
    2- In the top right / left
    3- In the right / left hand corner (side)
    4- Half way up
    5- In the lower / bottom # upper / top part
.
E- Study the man / woman / people (from front to back) carefully:
    a- Age, face / physical appearance, clothes, social class, occupation ......
    b- Attitude, gestures, expression of  face ....
.
F- Describe the setting (decor):
    a- Where? (country, place, type of house, room, furniture, objects /
                       landscape, scenery, view...)
    b- When? (time of day, year ...... weather ....)
.
G- What is dark and what is well-lit? To what purpose?
     (what has been brought into relief? what has been left in the shade?)
.
2- ANALYZE what is IMPLICIT:
.
2.1- What was the photographer's purpose?
2.2- By what means has he reached his purpose? (his technique)
2.3- What is the relationship between subject and background?
2.4- What does the background represent for you?
2.5- Comment on the use of colors.
2.6- Describe the impression given by the photograph (if not an ad).
2.7- Find a title for the photograph (if not an ad)
2.8- Adverts: Analyze the text: adjectives, tense used mainly, words repeated,
        personal pronouns repeated ........
.
3- ASSESS the DOCUMENT: give your opinion
 
3.1- PHOTOGRAPHS:
    a- Is it a good photograph or not?
    b- Do you like it or not? Give your reasons.
3.2- ADVERTS:
    a- What sort of people might feel attracted by the product?
    b- What is your personal reaction to the whole advert?
    c- Is it successful? Why? / Why not?
(* = in French)
ANYTHING to ADD?
 
Nada AbiSamra

Page created on Nov. 6, 2001 || Last updated on Nov. 6, 2001
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