Connotations And Denotations of a TV Advert

To make sure that we understood how to use connotations and denotation properly, we got set a piece of homework in which we had to choose an advert that we had seen on the TV and then study it and comment on both connotations and denotations to do with the topics; Location/Setting, Costumes/Make-up, Props and Lighting/Colour.

I chose to study the advert for Ninento 3DS's 'Nintendogs and Cats' game that includes the girlband 'The Saturdays'. The reason why I chose to study this particular advert was because I thought it had a lot of potential connotations and denotations that could be studied in all of the given areas.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nm4E4vMCJJw


This is the link to the advert that I chose to study. I noticed many connotations and denotations about it when watching it in detail a few times. 
I firstly noticed that the setting for the advert was in a dressing room/lounge area, so it could be in an apartment, which to me, as the main girl in the advert is placed on the sofa relaxing, is showing that the game is coming across as a relaxing game as the majority of people who play a games console play it whilst lounging around in their homes.

The outfits in which the two main girls as wearing stood out to me, as one of the girls is wearing blue and the other pink, which I feel the advert is pointing out that the game can be played by both girls and boys and not just stereotyped to one gender because of the people in the advert. Also the colors in the advert are very neutral, the white walls in the background and the pale blues and greens that can also be spotted in the background could also link to the thought of the game being for both genders.

The props in the background of the advert are of books, plants, TV's; which all to me come across as homely yet fairly modern so it attracts to both teenagers as they want to be up to date and want everything modern and if the whole feel of the advert is modern, its going to attract to them even more. And the fact that the props are also homely attracts adults as it makes it seem like a family orientated game that everyone in the family could play either together or apart.
The sun and outside is the main source of lighting in the advert which could be promoting the fact that the game does not harm the environment. Also, in the first shot of the advert, i noticed that the lighting around the dressing table is shining down onto the product being sold, just as a spotlight does on the main star in a musical or theater play etc, so this makes the product immediately stand out as soon as the advert begins.

Overall, I really enjoyed evaluating a television advert because it allowed me to come up with my own original ideas about what each detail of the advert could mean and what it could stand for which i found interesting, as it allowed me to think more in depth about the details and what certain things could symbolize even if this didn't seem obvious on the surface of the advert the first time I saw it.