Product Models and Salesmen in Taiwan

     For one of the lessons in my Advertising and Marketing classes, I took pictures of product models and salesmen.  Photo by photo, I explained why I thought some costumes and other presentations were useful in marketing their products and why they were not.  Here are a few of the photos.
     The one on the left is attempting to associate her style and color with nature, as she's pushing a product associated with nature.  She's somewhat successful in this attempt.
     One on the right is trying to do the same, as she's pushing a product that's supposed to have an aroma associated with nature.  She looks more like a tacky example of cosplay.

     The lady in the two pictures here (left and right) is more successful in her attempt to fit the product she's selling.  She's selling food supplements, and she's costumed as medical personnel.  This costume works for at least two reasons: It looks more like a uniform than a costume; and people tend to think that medical personnel know more than most people what it takes to stay healthy.
     The lady in the next photo (left) is wearing the kind of smock that you might associate with someone who is familiar with cosmetics.  Further, it doesn't look like a costume.  

     Likewise, the gentleman on the right is dressed like someone you might see in a coffee shop.   He's pushing a coffeemaker.   His costume is a good fit and a respectable presentation.  The display counter, however, is too simple.  I've seen display counters that looked more like coffee shops.
    In the next two photos (left and right, below), the salesmen fit the colors of the costumes to the colors of the products, but that's all they succeed in doing.

     The next two photos (below, left and right) present quite a contrast.  Both are simple.
The one at below right is an excellent match in colors. At the same time,  it doesn't look like a costume.  

     The woman on the left is making no attempt to fit her clothing to the product she's pushing.  She's wearing a simple vest identifying herself as someone who is authorized to speak to total strangers and ask them to eat something that she's holding.

     Most of the models/salesmen in these photos are women.  There are two reasons for this: One reason is based on advertising practice; the other is based on psychology.
     In advertising, women are considered a "primary advertising symbol."  Like it or not, people would rather look at women than at men.  Even women would rather look at women.

     In a male-dominated society, men compete for dominance over other males and especially over women.  Both men and women tend to trust women more than they trust men.  Women also tend to smile more than men.  This element of trust is a second reason that, all other things being equal, women are more popularly selected as product models and salesmen.


     

Birds Mooching from Fishermen

     Only a few years ago, birds were quite shy of humans.  Then Shuangshi Creek Park was developed, and birds gradually overcame their fear of people.  As time went on, birds and fishermen developed a sort of relationship.  In the photos below, a black-crowned night heron and a little egret wait for a fisherman to throw them a fish that's too small to take home.

     In the photo below, you can see that there were two birds.  The heron and the egret watched until a fisherman threw a fish to them.  Each raced to get it before the other could.  The night heron got it.  The birds then resumed their patient wait for the next fish to be thrown their way.

     For more photos of black-crowned night herons, click here.  For more photos of little egrets, click here.  For more photos of birds keeping company with fishermen, click here.

Shuangshi Creek Park

     Many of my photos were taken in Shuangshi Park, but I've posted most of them among photos of birds.  Here are a few exceptions.

     I frequently see birds keeping company with fishermen.  Sometimes they're waiting for the fisherman to throw away a catch he considers too small to keep.  In the photos below, however, I saw no indication, that the little egrets and black-crowned night herons were waiting for a meal.

     Below is a single black-crowned night heron keeping company with a fisherman.  Only a few years ago, I found it impossible to get close enough to a night heron to get a clear photograph.  Now it's easy.

     For more photos of black-crowned night herons, click here.  For more photos of little egrets, click here.

Taipei College of Maritime Technology

     My wife teaches at Taipei College of Maritime Technology, which has the most beautiful campus I've seen anywhere.  The first picture shows a view taken from the front gate.

     The next shot, also taken from the front gate, shows the view to the left.

     Now here's what it looks like as I'm standing at the front gate, facing right.  I've take two photos of this scene.

         This photo was taken behind the main building (at left).  You can see other buildings in the background. 

     This is the view heading back toward the main gate.  I really like the loggias.

Mao Kong Gondola, South of Taipei

     Mao Kong Gondola is probably the most overrated tourist attraction in Taiwan.  A couple of months ago, my wife cajoled me into going for a ride on it.  We took our sixteen-year-old dog Lai An, a part poodle. Any other comments would be a waste of words.  Here are some of the photos:

     Lai An has traveled to numerous other places in the Taipei area.  For more photos of Lai An's travels, click here.

Canine Traveler

     Lai-an, whose name means, "Come, peace," is a sixteen-year-old part poodle.  After his buddy of fourteen years, Dog, died a year ago, Lai-an has traveled a bit more.  Here we have Lai-an traveling to several places in New Taipei City (formerly known as Taipei County).
     In the first two photos (below left and right), we see Lai-an posing in front of Guandu Temple.  In the next two, Lai-an is posing in front of the Guandu Wharf.  In the background is the ferry, which is a popular tourist attraction.   Far in the background, to the west, you can see Guandu Bridge.

     About a mile farther along the biking trail, Lai-an is posing at a rest area.  In the background, you can see Guandu Bridge, about a mile east of the rest area.

     Below are a few shots of Lai-an enjoying the Mao Kong Gondola in the area not far from the Taipei Zoo.

Shau Luan Beach at Low Tide

     Shau Luan Beach, just beyond Fisherman's Wharf, which is just beyond Danshui, is a play area for some folks and a work area for others.  At low tide, it's a little of both.  Adults forage for edible mollusks and crustaceans, and their children enjoy their games of purposeful play.

     The yellow "ball" you see in the photo below is a balloon.  Some folks didn't pick up after themselves.  The rock causeway has been there for longer than I've been in Taiwan.  I don't know who built it or why.

Common Sandpiper

     As near as I can figure, this little feller is called a common sandpiper.  If anyone out there can identify it as something else (don't tell me that it's a giraffe, because I'll know it isn't), please let me know.

    I saw it walking across rocks and along the grass near the park next to Shuang Shi Creek.  At low tide, I see a lot of smaller, but otherwise similar, birds tramping about the mudflats nearby.

     In case you're wondering about the green net material, it was placed there to keep the rocks from being washed away.  The rocks were placed there to keep the soil from being washed away.

     For more information on the common sandpiper, click here.

Multiple Landmarks in Individual Photos

      On this page, I indulge my passion for getting two or more landmarks into one photo.  

     For the photo above, I waited about ten minutes to get just the right shot.  I took this photo from the MRT platform at Yuan Shan Station.  In the foreground is the Taipei baseball stadium at which the Taipei Flora Expo was taking place.  The plane is landing at the Sung Shan Airport.

     I had to wait ten minutes or more for this shot.  Several times, an MRT train rolled into the station and obscured my view just as a plane was flying overhead.  Since the day was slightly overcast, you're unable to see the Taipei 101 Building in the distance.  That would have been the icing on the cake.

     The next two photos were taken from a tour bus entering Taipei.  You can see five landmarks in the second photo.  From left to right, they are Taipei Main Station, Taipei 101 (in the distance), the South Gate, the Hsin Guang Building (the nearer of the two skyscrapers), and (enshrouded in green construction material) the Old Post Office Building.  

     It took me a long time to get these shots.  Either the weather was overcast, smoggy, or rainy; or I forgot my camera; or the windshield was dirty or fogged over.  I also had to snap the shutter when no light poles were in the way.

     You can see several other examples of multiple landmarks in single photos on the "Landmarks" page.  (Click here.)

Guandu by Night

      I took this picture just beyond the approach to Guandu Temple.  Small fishing boats are docked just opposite Guandu Temple.  At some point, I'll have to take some photos of Guandu Temple by night.

       Just beyond Guandu Temple, we see the Danshui Ferry at its berth, all lighted up for casual tourists.  To the left is the Guandu Wharf.  Looking across the river, you can see the lights of Ba-li.

     Below, you can see the Guandu Bridge, about a mile or so to the west of the Guandu Wharf.  The Guandu Bridge is the first bridge of its kind in East Asia.

     

     I took the photos below not far from the place I stood when I took the photo of the Guandu Bridge.