DVB102 Assessment 1: Portfolio of Images

Semester 2, 2023

By Vivi-Anna Leman | N10254510

Week 4: Persuasion – 'Justice for Pigeons'

This week revolved around the concept of using images for persuasion. Students were required to choose an environmental problem, a target audience, and from there, create a persuasive poster. As such, the environmental concern I chose, was 'more-than-human lives in the city', targeted at young adults aged between 20-25yrs. More specifically, I focused on the generally negative perceptions society hold towards pigeons, as they are often referred to as 'sewer rats', 'pests', and are mistreated. I have always had a soft spot for pigeons, and therefore would like to encourage people to treat them with respect. 

The three images above were drafted as initial poster concepts. One thing I struggled with was ensuring that the poster was appealing to the target audience, while being just as impactful. While the third poster concept was extremely relevant to the target audience, I felt as though the level of relatability would negatively impact the desire to take action (i.e., people would see it, laugh it off, and that's it). Therefore, I decided to go with the second concept, as I felt it reflected the AIDA framework best. The bold acronym style text attracts attention and interest, and the double meaning behind the word creates desire and action (in this context, the desired action was for people to reframe their perspective when it comes to pigeons and start a conversation).

Pictured above, is the first final poster. To overcome my struggle with balancing impact and relatability, I decided to rely on trendy graphic design styles that would be relatable to the target audience. Currently, the combination of different fonts and colours has been popular amongst 20-25 year olds. The letters 'S' and 'T' are italicised to create visual interest, as well as being a reference to the noise people make when they make a bid for attention: 'pssstttt'.

Pictured above is the second final poster for this series, which is a collage version of the first poster. This poster was difficult to make, as I am generally unfamiliar with collage and did not have the resources at home to fully collage all of the text. The background images and the 'PEST' lettering were all gathered from the singular magazine I had access to at home. Using photoshop, I created 'New Adjustment Layers' to alter the colour of the lettering and background images. From there, the background images were strategically placed around the canvas and the blend mode 'Hard Light' was applied. Overall, I feel as though the collage version of the poster looks significantly more grungy, cluttered, and overwhelming to look at. As such, I believe the collage version of the poster would be less successful at persuading the target audience to take action.