THE XPLORING BRIEF

The digital revolution has made photography accessible to everyone as the digital camera market is developing faster than other creative media, both technically and creatively. People now have an ever-expanding choice of tools to create their pictures while one product innovation is chasing the next. Everybody is able to document their lives and to explore their creative potential without taking any risks. Not only have people been empowered to create more images of their lives but also to share them and collaborate with others. Photographs have become the new social currency that people are trading on social networking sites to influence others and express their identity. It’s a universal language everyone can understand, but the quantity of images has taken over the quality of photos leading to digital inertia. Digital cameras are becoming commoditized in the megapixel and price battle. Consumers are trying to stay on top of the digital camera swamp as they are stuck in a tyranny of choice. What all camera brands are failing to do is to create an emotional connection with people who may not be passionate about photography as such, but use digital cameras in their everyday lives.

The purpose of this Xploring project is to uncover a strategic insight that will help us lift people’s rational barriers and take us to a powerful organizing idea.

Areas of Curiosity:
- The rise of creativity in people’s everyday lives
- People’s hidden creative talents
- How people reportage their lives in pictures
- How people’s see the world through their camera
- People’s passion to preserve their experiences on pictures
- What makes a good camera for ordinary people


THE XPLORING TASK
Xploring is based on a very simple principle:
If you want to understand how a tiger hunts, don’t go to the zoo...Go to the jungle.

Xploring is much more than gathering information, it means going into unknown territory. Taking risks, perhaps taking a wrong turn. It means following your gut and listening, really listening. It means trusting your instincts, over and beyond the facts given. Knowing that when you do, you'll see more, understand more.

We will spend the next weeks with real people in the real world to understand the things that matter to them when taking pictures. Our Xploring journey will take us to people living in Germany, Poland, Russia, Italy, Spain and the U.K. We will go to their homes, spend a day with their families and friends, share their personal memories, connect with them through social networking sites, go on a night out, play with their cameras, listen to their stories, and observe their creative abilities…etc.


22 July 2009

The difference between good and bad

Kathleen, Tobi and Ian have travelled all the way from Giessen in Germany to spend a weekend at the Lovebox Festival in London. Each of them is equipped with a digital camera. Kathleen and Tobi have brought two. One is a Canon SLR that comes with two lenses and a proper camera bag. The other is a Casio Exilim which Tobi has been using for a long time. He chose it because of its design and affordable price as he does not know anything else about cameras. And so far the Casio Exilim has done a good job at documenting the endless silly drunk actions of him and his mates from uni. One day Kathleen saw the images of a hobby photographer friend on facebook and was so impressed with the intensity of the mood in each picture that she wanted to own an SLR herself. She convinced Tobi to invest into a new camera before going on a roadtrip through the U.S. together. They started researching the digital SLR market and were pretty much lost in sea of options to choose from. So they asked friends who had a better understanding of cameras and ended up choosing a Canon EOS 40D because it was on offer. Kathleen is very happy with their purchase. "Every picture I take looks great. The camera captures the mood of the moment. You wouldn't be able to do that with a compact."
Ian seems to have a better understanding of cameras. He also owns a digital SLR (Canon Powershot 64) and a compact (Fujifilm), but has only brought his compact camera with him as there wasn't much space left in his travel bag. "I often prefer my compact camera for practical reasons although the images don't turn out to be as good as they are with my other camera. Most people don't appreciate good quality images anymore, because our eyes get used to seeing low res images on screen all the time. I only use my good camera for the important things, I wouldn't count being pissed on a festival for two days to one of them."

Insights:
-People use different cameras for different occasions. Good quality images become more important when the occasion is special.
- People only realise the difference a good camera can make when they see a comparison or try it out themselves. Once they have tasted the luxury of a good camera they appreciate it's benefit.
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