Shoot Production + Target Audience Feedback

 = Seeing the models interact with the clothing and patches was a great way to see how my target audience felt towards the brand and products as a whole

= They all felt very comfortable and confident in the clothing, which were two very important factors when choosing and wearing clothes for the target audience (as found in the initial research stage of questionnaires) 

= The fact that a lot of them were taking pictures and posting them on social media means that this brand and the clothing appealed strongly to them, to the point they wanted to show it off to other people 

= Allowing each model to choose which look they wanted to draw inspiration from in the make up look book by Noreen also meant they kept control over how they looked in the shoot alongside picking prints and clothes to wear with the ones they brought from home

= This means their true individual style and direction was present throughout the shoot and photos, a really important aspect within the brand and from the initial research, to ensure it is about being unique, individual and comfortable

= The way different models adapted the prints to their own personal use was also really interesting and fun to see, as it showed how adaptable they are as pieces of fabric for accessorising or making into clothing 

= eg. Snake print used as both a wrap around skirt and as a head wrap 

= Adapting the story boards and studio set up at home was successful with the use of a sheet and lighting equipment from photography students 

= The use of the sheet worked well in presenting this soft, genuine home filmed aesthetic that is present in the photography direction in a lot of the gender inclusive brands looked at, eg. FLUIDE 

= Pictures were taken with lighting equipment in the shots to reinforce this home photography aesthetic, a direction which appears a lot in photographs made for a young creative target audience

= It also coincides with what was planned in the story boards for a raw, honest, minimal direction to reflect the brand as a one with a customising, personal and individualism ethos 

MODEL/TARGET AUDIENCE FEEDBACK 

= While we waited for other models and photography assistants, we all discussed the clothes, prints, patches available and the brand as a whole 

Me: Are the clothes up to your expectations when you think of a gender inclusive brand? 

Alice: So I'm non-binary, and I always find that when people talk about things being a gender or whatever, it always ends up being really gray of beige, like Kanye's collection. It always ends up looking like that, because people always link colour to gender which really annoys me. So I really like that On the Loose is still really colourful.

Joely: That's a good point I feel like these brands are shying away from colour to avoid gender stereotyping, they only see the neutrals, but actually you can still be loud, versatile and bold. All of which go back to a childlike, cartoon vibe. In cartoons like adventure time it's not made for one gender like who is that meant for boys or girls. 

Josh: And I think when we're kids it's before we've got a lot of our ideas of gender drilled into us. Going back to a more childish time people are more open with that stuff, if you were lucky to have a family who would be okay with you putting on a dress as a boy you could just do it. The childish aesthetic is really cool for On the Loose and I love the colour palette. 

Joely: Yeah! It looks good on everyone. We're all wearing different garments and yet all the prints and customised clothes are patterned the same and so it works. 

Leon: It's very cohesive and it's very functional too. It's working on multiple different types of clothing, textures and silhouettes. It's not like it just works on jeans or jackets. 

Joely: It's versatile too, you pick up a fabric and it could be this or that, a top or a bandeau or a cape (laughs). You make it how you want it.

Me: If you were to improve anything what would you improve, in terms of the patches and overall aesthetic? 

Alice: I really like it, customising our own clothes with designs we like and can pick from is so much more interesting and unique. 

Joely: So this skirt isn't part of the collection, it's just a showcase of your patches and how they can be used?

Me: Yeah they're using charity shop clothes.

Josh: I really like how you've used charity shops clothes because although they tend to separate the clothes into women's and men's like most retailers, the divide is much more blurred. You end up flicking through everything. 

Me: How do you perceive the logo would you change anything? 

Joely: Yeah I like it, it reminds me of Disney but cool. I feel like it's tongue-in-cheek Disney. 

Josh: Is it the curls on the 'O's'? 

Joely: Yeah. 

Josh: It reminds me of graffiti as well with the bubble writing. 

Joely: It makes me feel vintage I like it. 

Me: If you were to change it to make it more appealing to you as a customer how would you change it? 

Alice: I wouldn't change it too much because I like it because it's quite bold but its not something that defines the whole outfit. It is something that's there as part of the design. There are a lot of clothing brands that have logos that swallow up the whole outfit. Even though we are all wearing the same thing it feels like we're all wearing our own things because the logo is so adaptable itself. Whereas if you see a Nike shoot you can tell they're all wearing Nike. 

Joely: I think the logo is stronger in just white.

Josh: Yeah I agree.

Alice: Yeah same. 

Joely: With the jeans Alice is wearing where the 'ON THE' is above in a different orientation to 'LOOSE' I couldn't read it at first, I thought it said on the reem. 

Alice: I think when it's in one colour it's nicer. 

Josh: I personally like brands that are less typographic in their branding but because the rest of your brand is all art based, it makes sense to have a type based logo.

Me: What about the smaller visual symbol logo?

Josh: Yeah I love that.

Joely: I feel like they nicely tie together. 

Me: It's fun because it looks like an 'm' for my initial but also of course has OTL for the brand name.

Alice: Oh yeah that's sick! 

REFLECTION 

> The overall feedback and comments are very positive and show the success of the brand in line with being firstly, gender inclusive, and secondly, aligned with the values given in the questionnaires by target audience participants

> The branding also works well, despite the application of the logo being noted as illegible on some clothing. This could be improved if they were to be done again, but as half of the target audience appreciate abstract illegible logos this is not particularly unsuccessful. Joely's comment on the logo feeling like a tongue-in-cheek Disney aesthetic is also interesting, as this works with the rebellious and nostalgic ethos of the brand. 

> The fact that the models picked up on the childish, nostalgic cartoon was also great, as it shows the foundation for the designs is being communicated.