"Reaction [beta]"
Mustang's must see billboards 16 Feb 2007
Ian Hart has reinvented the humble billboard to produce some great advertising for the new Ford Mustang.
When we first saw them, we thought that he'd simply visited the three sites, photographed the backdrop and used Photoshop to add the motion blur back in the studio. But no. According to Hart, the billboards are constructed from GE Lexan EXL semi-transparent resin - a material that creates the blur (and thus the illusion of speed) as you look through it. It also works in all conditions regardless of day / night, weather or season.
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15 comments so far
toma 16 Feb 2007 01:02 PM
my one thought about these is does the illusion work if you're already in a car travelling at speed? They'd be great in a city or somewhere prone to traffic jams, but aren't they a bit pointless out in the middle of the desert where you'll speed past them at 90 anyway?
photogallert 16 Feb 2007 01:36 PM
Very cool!
Ty 16 Feb 2007 03:19 PM
Oh nice, it's the material.
I instantly thought of the Photoshop motion blurring too.
that would only work form the exact point of view and perspective of where the photo would have been taken.
It's hard to judge by the photo, if the blur would really equate to speed for all viewers, maybe.
Andy 16 Feb 2007 04:16 PM
Do you have any real photos of the billboards? Those 3 are all Photoshopped. The base of the billboard is identical in all 3 shots and the one in the desert appears to be floating over the sand.
Peter 16 Feb 2007 11:47 PM
Actually this is pretty cool. Think about it. When you look at a billboard now, even at 90mph the billboard doesn't look blurred because your eyes move along w/ the sign as you drive by it. There would be no point to a billboard if this is how they all look when we drive by them. So the setup above forces the effect of blowing by the sign at a great speed.
David 18 Feb 2007 01:37 AM
I am afraid i have to agree with Andy, after 9 years of graphic design, my designers eye only sees some nice photoshop work. as andy stated the billboard base is exactly identical. not somewhat, but exactly identical in each of the images.
this is quite sad, as now it leads me to mistrus this sites information. how many other things have i read here that are not on the up and up? how would you even possibly try to pass off this as something real to designers? laypeople maybe, but designers? people who are glued to photo manipulation extreme hours of the day anyway?!?
Michael 18 Feb 2007 02:36 AM
Er...I'm confused David. When did etre "try to pass off this as something real to designers"?
Dean Hatton 18 Feb 2007 12:19 PM
After a fair bit of snooping I found this response from Ian Hart where he sets the record straight - not that he's as quick to do so on his own website mind you! ;) The billboards aren't real, but the idea was created by Ian and Annie Williams during Ian's first year at Miami Ad School. I'm sure Ian's enjoying all the attention he's getting from the blogosphere though!
Anyway, thanks Etre for bringing Ian's great work to my attention too. Real or otherwise - it's always great to see real talent recognised!
Simon 18 Feb 2007 01:53 PM
David: It was never my intention to deceive - and I'm truly sorry if you felt that I misled you or indeed anyone else.
In my defence, it was the idea of using a semi-transparent material to construct the billboards that I found interesting. The three images were only interesting to me insofar as they illustrated this idea. As a result, I (rightly or wrongly) didn't inspect the images too closely and didn't notice that they were photoshopped until Andy pointed it out (I'm not a photoshop wizard). Either way, I honestly don't think that it matters whether they are real or not. The concept is brilliant and that's what I wanted to draw attention to when publishing this post.
Simon 18 Feb 2007 01:54 PM
Dean: Thanks for clarifying :-)
Karl 18 Feb 2007 02:52 PM
Sheesh! Wait til he finds out the easter bunny isn't real!
David B. 18 Feb 2007 09:08 PM
When we first saw them, we thought that he'd simply visited the three sites, photographed the backdrop and used Photoshop to add the motion blur back in the studio. But no. According to Hart, the billboards are constructed from GE Lexan EXL semi-transparent resin - a material that creates the blur (and thus the illusion of speed) as you look through it.
the misconception comes in that sentence. let me clearify, i have absolutely no issue with the designer or concept, what i got from this was etre saying that it was indeed 'real' billboards and not 'concept' work.
the sentence "But no" is what set me off when these are obviously photoshop concepts to the trained eye.
No Harm no foul.
David B. 18 Feb 2007 09:18 PM
P.S. I'm glad to see, Simon, that you can take criticism and offer sincere clarification, and not stupe to a certain sarcasm as some of your other guest. You've earned yourself another faithful reader here...
Simon 19 Feb 2007 12:01 PM
David: No worries. Thanks for taking the time to comment. Doubtless there were many others who interpreted the post the same way that you did - so I'm grateful that you gave me the opportunity to clarify.
Paul Phillips 9 May 2007 07:36 PM
You Americans are all so dam literal. The ad conveys a message in a clever simple and effectice way.
Yes I also have a UK based design consultancy.