My Proposal

Topshop is an established British, multinational retail brand, that offers affordable fast fashion. Majoring in up-to-the-minute affordable style, Topshop's brave and irreverent approach has endeared the brand to fashion conscious shoppers and industry insiders alike. They create a relationship and collaboration between high fashion/industry associations e.g. Kate Moss, Karlie Kloss and Cara Delevingne with everyday women, 16-25 shoppers. 

Topshop's generic target market:

• Females aged 16-25
• Fashion and style conscious people on a budget
• Savvy shoppers
• Young audience who want to look mature
• Independent women
• Loves fashion but is not dictated to, aims for a unique look. They're individual with their own personal sense of style.

Topshop appeals to a variety of demographics due to the fact it attracts women at various points in their life e.g. student, professionals or A-List stars. The variety of brands that they stock, supports the diversity of people they're reaching under their target market. They offer a variety of products and services in order to accommodate the diverse audience they draw in. They have their 'mainline' line, 'boutique' and 'unique' each reaching a different market and therefore at different price ranges.

I am shooting a campaign for Topshop's Boutique range.

The Boutique Woman Customer Profile:

• 21+
• Independent working woman, who is self sufficient
• Lives in London, in an organised minimalist apartment
• Interested in art and graphic design
• Up to date with technology and tech savvy
• Smart, sophisticated appearance
• Disposable income of £2000+ per month
• Enjoys keeping up to date with fashion publications
• Spend their free time in cocktail bars and events mixing with knowledgeable and educated individuals
• Perhaps works high up within a fashion publication such as Vogue or Bazaar

Please click the below links to see my further research on Topshop's 'Brand Ethos' and 'Customer Profile' as well as their competitors.

http://elliedigitalpublishing.blogspot.co.uk/2016/02/topshop-brand-analysis.html

http://elliedigitalpublishing.blogspot.co.uk/2016/02/topshop-customer-profile.html
http://elliedigitalpublishing.blogspot.co.uk/2016/02/analysis-of-their-shoots-location-model.html

My Editorial

I have chosen to shoot for 'Boutique', which will be my main editorial feature. Topshop are highly driven by seasonal trends and so I am adopting the avaunt garde tailoring trend so to stay in keeping with Boutique's target market. 


Phillip Lim and Stella McCartney

A few other Autumn/Winter 15' trends I noted:

• Fluffy love - from gilets to snow jackets, a warm and fuzzy coat is an AW15 essential
• Eighties revival
• Cuffs
• Boho
• Red - AW15 stand our colour trend
• Bold/Vivid graphics and pattern
• Gothic romance
• Velvet

The ‘boutique’ items are often navy, black, white or cream and so I’m going to adopt this when sourcing the garments for my shoot. I’m going to use cropped wide leg trousers, high neck tops, shirts and structured coats. I am shooting 5 different looks for my editorial, one of which will be used twice since it will feature on my landing page. For this image I shall ensure to allow some negative space one side of the model so that text can be placed in post-production.

Garment Colour Palette for Topshop 'Boutique' Editorial



  

Above are a few garments I've sourced already in Topshop and am intending to use in my shoot. I am yet to fully decide on my finalized 5 looks however from the imagery throughout my proposal and the garments showed below, I feel the theme I am going for is well demonstrated. 
Below are a few 'Boutique' promotion/editorial images that I will be using for inspiration with my shoot and demonstrate the overall look and style of clothing I am going for.

Location 

I'm going to shoot some on location and some in the studio, so to vary the editorial a little. I noted from my research that 'Boutique' combine location shots with the studio in their editorials and on their website, consequently with this in mind I'm going to do the same. In both the studio and location shots they keep the tones muted so not to distract from the model and the clothing they're trying to sell. I have thought about shooting on location outside the Guildhall in Southampton since the grey brick work is exactly what I am after.

Model

I have sourced my model who i'm going to use for my images shot in the studio and on location. The models on their site look like high fashion models, and are photographed in a manner reflecting this (pose & facial expressions), however they also appear to be relatable and fit their desired target market. I am going to try my best to recreate this.

• Models look aged 18-mid 20s which is their target market
• Each model portrays a confidence and a certainty of who they are
• Sometimes edgy depending on the desired image
• Always have direct eye contact with the camera

I am yet to decide on my model for my single Calvin Klein shot. (more information on this further through my proposal)

Hair & Make-up

I'm keeping the hair and make-up simple and minimalistic after noting in my research that their models are often natural looking and aren't heavily made up. I believe this makes them relate-able, and once again it's an image the consumer wants to buy into. Topshop use women of varied ethnicity's and from various cultures, however their 'Boutique' line seems to only feature British white women since many items are marketed as 'Made in England'. 

Hair is often left to appear natural. It's soft and flowy and always looks freshly washed and blow-dried. Colour of hair various from brunette, blonde and ginger and is always mid-length or longer. Sometimes however with Boutique they go for a more sophisticated look and scrape the hair back or tuck it into the coat/jacket the model is wearing.

Make-up is natural looking however fresh with a flawless complexion. Brows are left untouched and only a layer of mascara is applied to the eye. Models always have a natural or nude lip. They often ooze a sophisticated, chic look, and can be photographed in a sultry manner.

   

Please click this link to see my further research on Location, Hair&Make-up and model choices.

http://elliedigitalpublishing.blogspot.co.uk/2016/02/my-proposal.html

Lighting

Location - I want to use mainly natural light, however I am going to bring one artificial light to light the background because I don't want the shot to look dull and uninviting. I don't want the grey backdrop to look too drained of colour, I want the texture to be visible still. I also don't want too many shadows, since I'm going to play around in post-production to see how some of the images look monochromatic.

Studio - Topshop 'Boutique' images are evenly lit with minimal shadow. The background is lit softly and consistently. Placement of the light on the model varies slightly, however she is often only lit one side at approximately a 45 degree angle.

Summary of my Topshop 'Boutique' Editorial

The below mood board demonstrates pose, styling, a few garment selections, colours, location, hair and make-up and facial expressions.

E-commerce Design Layout 

Below is my proposed design for the landing page along with the fonts I am intending to use.

Please click this link to see further research for my website analysis and to discover why I'm using certain fonts and layouts.

http://elliedigitalpublishing.blogspot.co.uk/2016/02/topshop-website-design.html

Notice the 'magazine' section of the website which is where my audience (the consumer) will click to navigate through to my editorial, still life & GIFS and my chosen brand shoot for Calvin Klein. It will also feature a few of Topshop's actual stories so to bulk out the page and to show how my work runs alongside theirs. Once you have clicked through to the magazine section it will look like the below image.

Editorial page layout

I particularly liked the layout of the below editorial on their website, consequently this is how I am going to present mine. Each image is framed and placed next to another, with no over lapping and a clean overall look. 'Boutique' is Topshop's higher end line and therefore these images are of a higher quality, and have been presented in a manner that reflects this. 

This is exactly how I intend to display my images: 

• 1 landscape image which will feature on my home page as the 'banner image' as well as the editorial page, and 4 portrait shots. When shooting my landscape image i'm allowing enough negative space to insert text - the shoot title.
• The portrait shots will be placed in pairs next to each other - one studio paired with one location.
• The 2 portrait shots framed in a white rectangle will include a short tag line introducing the collection.

Still life and GIF page layout

I'm going to shoot two still life images and one GIF, which will be an extension of the still life story. I'm taking inspiration from the below images, and shooting jewellery since this will also add variation in my portfolio. I'm going to use varied patterns and textures of paper and thin card to create depth in the shot.

  

Colour Palette and textures showcasing what will be used in my imagery



Furthermore I am combining the style of the above images with the layout of their more recent still life shots demonstrated below, which I have shown in my layout example. 

 


I have demonstrated below a rough idea as to how my GIF will look. The accessory will remain in the same spot throughout, however the various pieces of card will move.

Please click this link to see my further research on  their still life and GIF work
http://elliedigitalpublishing.blogspot.co.uk/2016/02/topshop-still-life-shots.html

Calvin Klein (brand) page layout

I am shooting one Calvin Klein image since it is purely to show the differences in their target market and to showcase one of their most popular current brands. Below is the page layout.

I'm going to play around in post production with the placement of the logo however the below images will be my research source and inspiration. In particular I have noted the opacity of the text across the image.



Below the banner image for Calvin Klein you will then be able to shop the garments exactly the same as you can on their site.



Shoot Schedule

After I have submitted my proposal I have 9 weeks until I need to submit my website. I want to have everything shot in 4-5 weeks so that I can spend the remaining month constructing my website to a high standard and quality. 

Weeks 1&2: Shoot still life images along with GIF
Weeks 3&4: Shoot Boutique editorial images - location and studio
Week 5: Shoot Calvin Klein image in the studio
Weeks 6-9: Place edited work into my website and turn it into a fully functioning site.

Extra Still Life Ideas

I came across these Topshop flat lays from a couple of years back and am keen to try and recreate something like this using various textured pieces of card.

  

Topshop: Models, Hair & Make-up and Location Analysis

Location

They combine their editorial shots with shooting on location and in a studio. The location shots are often quite urban and edgy looking, a little ruff around the edges. In both the studio and location shots they keep the tones muted so not to distract from the model and the clothing they're trying to sell. When shooting on location they often play with the depth of field, leaving the location slightly out of focus.



The only exception to these rules are for their seasonal campaigns such as Christmas, where the model is shot in a far more luxurious environment that showcases glamour and the 'party season'.

  

Models, Hair & Make-up

The models on their site look like high fashion models, and are photographed in a manner reflecting this (pose & facial expressions). 

• They're tall and slim
• Often natural looking, they aren't heavily made up and consequently they're relate-able, and once again it's an image the consumer wants to buy into. - However this isn't the case if they're advertising a 'going out' look where they then indirectly advertise their beauty range to.
• Topshop use women of varied ethnicity's and from various cultures
• Models look aged 18-mid 20s which is their target market
• Each model portrays a confidence and a certainty of who they are
• Sometimes edgy depending on the desired image
• Always have direct eye contact with the camera
• Hair is often soft and flowy and is consistent with the models image
• Sometimes portray a sultry look