When it comes to advertising products or services, entrepreneurs are always ready to go to great lengths in order for their goods to stand out of the herd, to attract more and more customers and consequently to bring in substantial revenues. For these purposes companies do their utmost trying to hire photography professionals from the list of the best advertising and commercial photographers, for instance, as well as collaborating with the most creative and distinguished advertising agencies and best creative directors. 

Commercial companies depend greatly on their inventiveness and originality since these people can pave the way for further success and high returns. Nevertheless, not everything goes as smooth as we would like, it’s a pity to admit. Sometimes things may hit the skids when one oversteps boundaries in pursuit of making ads eye-catching, though some lucky companies may only profit from it. That is how controversial product ads appear and what outcomes they may impose on overly audacious companies.

Humongous power of advertising - or just a professional Hish End retouching?

You still naively suppose that advertisements are supposed to promote only some certain products or ranges of services? In our contemporary society ads also have the power of implanting in our minds some particular lifestyles or moral values. The thing is that models in commercial advertising are perceived as transformed-to-better kinds of individuals by the public at large just thanks to the objects they advertised. Subsequently, they turn out to be enviable and the goods they promote seem to be even more desirable. 

That’s the reason why eminent or just extremely attractive people are featured in advertising campaigns. They must appeal to the masses. A vivid example is Esquire magazine. And since these people somehow subconsciously become objects of envy and role models for the majority of the potential consumers, those lifestyles they project to the public are also attempted to be followed without us even realizing it properly. 

As far as controversial print ads and digital promotion campaigns are concerned, they contradict generally adopted moral values, as a rule, or overstep various kinds of boundaries. They may be professionally shot and retouched, as well as have excellent qualities and all that stuff. Nevertheless, the targeted audience of consumers remains exposed to the ideas and lifestyles projected in controversial advertisements. 

Thus, they may adopt those erroneous views and that is the reason why controversial ads fan the fire of public conflicts and indignation. Counting on these reasons, some ads just end up being distinguished as controversial and as a result are banned, no matter how outstanding and impeccable the photography work may have been.

Most controversial ads of all time

To make ads eye-catching advertising companies, as well as creative directors and photographers try to go against the stream and do something opposite to what everyone is doing and of course they ALWAYS use Photoshop retouching service. It’s not the tendency of this century only. People have been trying to change how the public at large thinks since long ago. Just have a look at these controversial print ads that have already become the stuff of  legend. 

Everyone knows the “We can do it!” poster created in the 40s in the last century. Virtually, Rosie the Riveter was supposed to make the employees of a certain company do their best at their workplace. And since it was war time, the female part of the working force prevailed. Thus, a woman was depicted. With time it started to be perceived as one of the earliest illustrations of women’s empowerment and the problem of gender inequality. Therefore, it was considered to be a controversial print ad.

Mr. Leggs’ advertisement displays the same gender issue as the previous poster, as well as understates the role of women in society. For those times, that was quite an impactful and aggravating illustration. Not a single girl has ever dreamed about being walked over.

The British “Pregnant man” poster was a kind of an advertising breakthrough for the 70s. A pharmaceutical company, trying to promote their contraceptives, pushed the boundaries of cultural norms by simply making women and men switch their places. It was a definite success since this controversial print ad broadened the target audience of consumers. 

This shampoo advertisement just illustrated a ridiculous attitude towards the usual trifles women care about. No one has died from a bad hair day. But this ad suggests the opposite: why commit  suicide when you can’t make your hair look exactly the way you want? Why not, indeed?

In order to stop the British fur industry and to change the public’s attitude on it, this controversial print ad was created. The targeted emotion is shame in this case, one of the strongest human emotions. Who would like to be called dumb? No one, surely. The poster was supposed to shame the people who used to pressure those who wore fur as well. That’s a great plus.   

Recent controversial ads

Times change, new ideas pop up, as well as new technologies are getting improved, but photographers together with advertising companies don’t even presume to stop shocking people with new controversial product ads. Many fashion companies gravitate towards extreme means of advertising their goods my means of unusual controversial advertising campaigns and professional model photo retouching. Everything will be done in our contemporary cut throat world, no matter what. The main thing is to get more and more revenues, and professional photographers should give a helping hand with this, since they can create striking shots for alluring new surges of customers. Read about the last news in our retouching blog.

Versace’s fall advertising campaign is considered to have displayed one of the most controversial ads 2016. One of the pictures represented the well-known model, Gigi Hadid, as a mother of two small children and a stylish wife. The reason why this very ad has sparked the public outrage is that Gigi is only 21 years old. This basically means that she must have been a teen mom for quite a time. For the public at large, this ad represents the glamorizing of teen pregnancy and therefore utterly approves of it. Some have even spotted the chain on the stroller and called the ad racist. 

Tom Ford’s advertising campaign for his first ever men’s fragrance provoked a huge wave of public aggravation. Both the photographer and the creative director decided to use aggressive sexual methods of advertising and availed themselves of the notion “sex sells” to the full extend. Apparently, this controversial advertising campaign suggested that the new fragrance can simply get men more sex. Bold move.    

If you want to find your name in the List of the Best Advertising and Commercial Photographers, ask our further photographer. One of the recent controversial ads is this picture from Calvin Klein’s spring advertising campaign 2016. That pretty natural that model posed half naked to demonstrate their new underwear. But this picture futures a young model in a controversial pose. The camera looks directly up her skirt, which is perceived as sexist and draws pedophiles, according to the public’s opinion.

American Apparel is also shamed for make quite racy and sexual ads. This company is always in pursuit of shocking its target audience with pseudo-pornographic controversial advertising campaigns. They obviously think that such aggressive methods can and should be used to their business advantage. The masters of boudoir and beautiful nude photo art is Playboy Style Retouching - High End beauty retouching, these guys know how to show the naked beauty of women’s body.

Sisley decided to use some extreme means of grabbing public attention in its 2007 campaign as well. The models are depicted in the photo sniffing something off some clothes on the table, like cocaine. The caption “Fashion junkie” only fanned the fire of public aggravation caused by such a racy advertising campaign. 

 Any advertising photo needs a high end beauty retouching  since everyone wants to present their products and services in the best light possible. For commercial photo images to look impeccable and even more alluring, photographers may spend hours in front of their laptops editing and retouching the images they did their utmost to create during the photo session. Why not make use of online photo editing services then? It saves a great deal of time, thus giving more opportunities to make more advertising photo sessions, possessing the combo of cheap photo retouching rates and professional high end retouching before after provided by qualified retouchers, who know the drill and can make any commercial photo stand out!