Photoreception: ’92 US sales brochure appreciation

Sales brochure is always the best inspiration for photographing. If you obsessed photography like me and desire to create photos as artistic as brochure, then savor every brochure with me. Literally, I’ve watched it dozens of times, but I always learn something new the last time.

David Connolly served as Design Director for McCaffery & McCall Partners from 1990-1992, at which time McCaffery & McCall Partners were the advertising agency for Mercedes-Benz of North America. David led the full range of MY1992 brochures and he provided many contributions to this article, let’s appreciate his work together.

I have a enough time today, so in no rush to jump right into the page, I want to put the entire ’92 set on the table, the heaviest I’ve ever seen. Mercedes-Benz of North America has designed brochures as set since ’84, they could mail you entire set if you are interested. The series was discontinued after ’93 and only individual model copies have been available since then.

First of all, it is a long-established fact that the North American market enjoys independent brochure, initially independent writing, which appeared in the early 1950s. Then came independent product photography, which emerged in the 60s. There is no doubt that the United States was once the largest buyer of Mercedes, especially the largest buyer of the S-Class. The first stand-alone S-Class brochure appeared in 85’, and as sales became more popular, it became thicker and thicker. ’92 has 66 pages.

It is worth mentioning that before ’92, the SL was marketed as part of the S-class till ’91. The R 129 became independant only after 140 launched, so you could say that the 140 was the S-class without the SL.

In addition to the four individual model brochures, there is also a thick “Support” folder containing countless brochures. The pictures of the 140 in it are all covered by the separate brochure. Since this article only discusses the photos in the brochure, the content in these brochures will not be repeated.

The sizes of US brochures are non-standard and change every year, with ’92 being a taller version. Since I don’t have a big enough scanner, I borrowed photos from oudemercedesbrochures.nl, thanks to him and his website. On the front and back covers you can see black and white images of the car, which isn’t really informative to a brand new model. It tempts you to open the brochure as soon as possible to see what the new S-Class looks like.

Let’s get into brochure. Before the S-level content begins, there are 8 pages that are not included in the page numbers. They are some PR language and insignificant black and white illustrations. Therefore, including the contents page, the first page is actually page 10, and this brochure uses a total of 80 pages.

The real new S-class can be seen starting from page 2. I assume Americans could all see the 600 SEL from the 1991 Chicago Auto Show on TV, but that didn’t have enough resolution. So in those pre-internet days, if you were a potential buyer who couldn’t go to a car show in person, you could receive a brochure in the mail from MBNA, which was the most important way to learn about the new S-class, so the brochure photo was the most important sales materials, it will directly affect your first impression of the car. I think many people saw it clearly here for the first time.

Black and white photos are not my cup of tea, but in David’s words, “The black and white photos were an attempt at treating this car as a piece of art”. He was right in 1991 when everyone including MBNA was treating the car When it comes to photographing the vivid afterglow of a sunset, black and white photography was indeed a new style that became popular within a few years. The disadvantage of this is that there is not enough color to identify the car. As of page 41, all photos are in black and white.

The ’92 S-class was released in August 1991, David began preparing the brochure in September 1990 and ordered the car in December. All plans are drafted by McCaffery & McCall Partners and then reviewed and approved by MBNA. The color of the 600 SEL is difficult to identify in these black and white photos. David flew to Stuttgart to inspect and shoot the car, but he cannot remember the color of it.

One of the exciting things about the earliest brochures is that you can always find something special about these vehicles, as they are often specially prepared early vehicles with some parts not yet up to production spec. What is certain is that the 600 SEL in the black and white photo is completely built according to the North American version. It has a trunk lid with a narrow license plate frame and a third brake light. The opened trunk does not have a warning triangle. The only difference is that it is different from the production car. What is unique is that its water tank frame retains the VIN nameplate, which is moved to the B-pillar on North American production models.

There are still doubts as to whether it is a V12. Although the photo containing the engine compartment has the 120.980 engine, there is no V12 badge on the C-pillar in some pictures, so it is not certain whether the photo of the engine is from the same car. It also has UNIROYAL tires. It may be a Pearl Gray Metallic 600 SEL produced in October 1990, but I can’t be sure.

The interior appears for the first time on page 15 and my attention was mainly drawn to the configuration as I really wanted to figure out what this car was and if it was from the same car as the exterior photo. Being a V12 it has a lot of oddities, first of all the wood trim is Zebravo rather than the V12-standard walnut. The lack of wood trim and leather on the shift lever and shift gate also supports doubts. Its C-pillar trim is significantly lighter in color than the seats, which is also a sign of non-V12 models. Only V12 models are equipped with the same color roof. Perhaps this was for shooting a specially converted 500 SEL, but it’s unknown.

North American car features including an extra knee protection panel under the dash, radio doors that don’t show BECKER models, and dimple door latches are all present on the interior of this car, even though it’s a specially converted European car, all The details are all in place.

Some of these black and white illustrations were highlighted with technical highlights, David said they were early adopter attempts to integrate Adobe Illustrator drawings into the photos. It was perhaps easier to do this on the black and white photos, which adds points to the large number of black and white photos. These illustrations were made specifically for North American brochure, which means they need technical experts to create illustrations exclusively from them, rather than working directly with existing versions. To be frankly they are a bit rough compared to existing European brochure.

I almost forgot to analyze the technique of taking these photos. They’re probably like what Staud Studio did in the past with lots of flashes and softboxes, because this set was actually produced in Stuttgart. Unlike past Staud style, the interior photos for MBNA were taken naturally, without the vehicles being cut up or sculptures built specifically for the shots.

Unable to confirm the identity of the 600 SEL and unable to see any color, I almost became depressed. The first color photo finally appeared on page 42. A faint light in the distance was like my mood, let’s move towards the light! This chapter is used to introduce the model line, each model has its own photos and scenery. Every photo is very informative, let’s start with the 300 SD, it is placed first and is considered the entry model.

The diesel in 441 Impala Metallic was photographed at the historic 1826 Round Stone Barn at Hancock Shaker Village in Hancock, Massachusetts. It emerged in the towns of Hancock, Pittsfield, and Richmond in the 1780s, organized in 1790, and was active until 1960. The village was closed by the Shakers in 1960, and sold to a local group who formed an independent non-profit. This organization now operates the property as an open-air museum. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places and declared a National Historic Landmark District in 1968. Since brochure will add noticeable creases to the photo, I am attaching a fully image from the salesman training booklet.

Comparing two versions above, a clear difference can be seen. The brochure’s bodywork is brighter, somewhat affecting the Impala’s original color shade. Also, the negative appears to have been cut, as the drain under the trunk has been obliterated in the brochure. This directly verifies that the image has been post-processed.

264A light brown leather can be seen on the interior, and the configuration can tell that it was produced in April 1991. On the technical side, a close-up wide-angle shot was used, with flash or reflectors involved, as almost all corners of the interior were illuminated.

User images of 300 SD? After doing well in the past thirty years, you retired and decide treat yourself; you don’t need to drive fast, so you can accept diesel; you don’t need to sit in the back, so you want a short wheelbase; you are a little old, so you want go for a warm color; you choose to find a quiet place in the countryside, like this village. It’s a scene you’d love to repeat everyday in the rest of your life. CARFAX shows the car was sold to a New Jersey buyer in June 1993 with only 133 miles on it. Its last recorded activity was in Massachusetts in 2016.

The second model is the 300 SE, which comes to the open field to shoot the sunset on the car body, which is one of the most common photography techniques in the United States. Unlike the diesel, it came to Newport in Rhode Island, 170 miles away. Newport is a New England summer resort known for its mansions.

Once again, a compelete original image from a salesman training material attached below. You can see the richer colors in the original photos, which were taken at a distance with a 6 x 7 camera using a Kodak Kodachrome. All photos are from the famous Clint Clemens. As for the photo itself it doesn’t complete this almost routine shot in the best way. Because the unprocessed reflections on the side of the car include buildings and a tree, it makes the side look a bit messy. This is the east coast, and the spring sunset is of course on the west side, so you can only shoot towards the sea and keep the complex scenery behind you within the side body. If you go to the west coast to shoot, the car body will leave the afterglow on the flat sea, which is a seamless set of light strips. While other cars in the ’92 brochure went to many parts of the United States, the S-Class was all about the West Coast in a small way.

It has 268A gray leather and according to the configuration information. 040 black instead of 199 Metallic black is particularly good for capturing the bands of light that appear in the sky after sunset, although the brochure photo is also missing the trunk drain, meaning it’s been specially treated, but the imperfect reflections on the sides are real because of the sheet metal not completely flat, they are dented on the edges of the doors due to the stamping. There is also a reflection of the tree on the side of the trunk.

Unlike the 300 SD, this 300 SE is a European car disguised as the North America version. It was produced in April 1991. The data card shows it is not a North America version, does not have a North America-spec VIN, and does not come with imperial gauges. But all the North America details in the interior photos are impeccable, it has been specially modified in Stuttgart. The first North America version of the 300 SE was not produced until July 1991.

The third model is the 400 SE, this was only available in MY1992, it was subsequently replaced by the 400 SEL. This 702 Smoke Silver car was also photographed at Hancock Shaker Village, this time in front of the 1878 Brick Poultry House. During the early years of the museum’s operation, the building was renovated to house the museum shop, gallery area and village offices. Which houses the second-floor office of the museum’s founder, Amy Bess Miller.

It’s a good idea to place a lighter colored body in front of a darker colored building, this will highlight the car. It’s not necessary at sunset because light-colored car paint cannot reflect the colors of the sunset. In fact, it is best not to put light-colored cars under strong light. This is not the only way to photograph light-colored cars, but it will give you the best results.

This car was produced in April 1991, it later appeared in the press photo. One peculiarity was the red leather interior. Like the 300 SE, it’s also a European modification. Since press photos have higher resulotion, I think I saw “DUNLOP” on the tires.

The V8’s range-topping model, the 500 SEL, shows off its elegant profile as it drives along a road off the coast of Rhode Island, the only dynamic photo in this brochure. The sunset illuminates the lower part almost the same color as the upper part. The background of this photo is not that elegant, but the moving light and shadow are refreshing. A considerable part of the text is used to emphasize the wheelbase, because this is the first S-class with a long wheelbase in brochre, but the extended part is cut by two pages of paper, and the body does not seem so long.

There is also a vertical photo looking down. According to David’s recollection, this is a crane shot, the bridge railings were given a fresh coat of white paint by the photo crew. Unusual angles are another technique of photography, in fact all the photos in brochure have different perspectives and distortions than the human eye, which creates a sense of freshness. This one is particularly special because it looks like it could be shot from the roof of your house, but it’s a lot of effort on the coast.

This car was also a European car disguised as North America version, it was also produced in April 1991 and appeared in a later press photo. The number of press photos in North America is limited and the quality is average.

V12 is regarded as the highlight of brochure. First you have a full two page photo, this is called the “hero” view and is taken from a long distance using a telephoto lens. In terms of scene selection, 600 SEL no longer exists in rural life, but has a more civilized atmosphere. This photo was taken in New Bedford, Massachusetts. During the first half of the 19th century, New Bedford was one of the world’s most important whaling ports, home to many historic buildings. Regardless, the background of this photo appears to have been replaced.

On the new page is a photo after sunset, where you can see the historic masonry on the pavement – it didn’t rain, the water on the pavement was watered by members of the photography crew, and in fact if you look closely, some water on large rocks has dried up. As of this point, the car still appears to be black.

After the foldout is opened, there is a complete interior picture, where the B-pillar has been removed through special processing. This car was also modified from the European version. During this period, it seemed that an error occurred: the lid of the rear door ashtray was not made of burl wood, which is standard and exclusive for V12 sedan.

Among the 4 folds that open are the clearest photos ever of a brochure, and our first confirmation of its 172 Anthracite Grey. This photo was taken with a large format camera and includes many details, such as the UNIROYAL tires. This photo appears to have been taken at Hancock Shaker Village, with the car reflecting the full sunset. Of course, Anthracite Gray is a little too light for this job, if this were 904 Midnight Blue or 040 Black it would be very impressive.

Another photo at the end taken in New Bedford. The license plate of this 600 SEL is 316 JQL, which was specially set up by David. Implying that his daughter Jacqueline’s birthday earlier that year. I checked the registration history of all the above models. Except for the 300 SD, the other cars have never been registered in the United States, so these license plates are artistic creations rather than practical uses.

Although Brochure has the largest image size, it is not the clearest and all license plate numbers are difficult to identify. Below is a cleaner version scanned from the salesman training manual, so David’s memorial is actually hidden.

There is no doubt that this car is still a deeply modified European car, which was also produced in April 1991. The detail that does not match the existing photos is that its data card records that it is equipped with a front seat with multiple contour backrest, but the adjustment button for this function does not appear in the interior photos. In the press photo released later, all the license plates except the 300 SD were simply overwritten using image technology, because only the 300 SD license plate is real.

There are 6 pages of further introduction at the end, where there is actually a photo of the 500 SEL that will appear in color in the ’93 brochure.

That’s all for ’92. Overall, the tight time budget meant that the ’92 did not become the most perfect brochure for the 140. Most of the cars were ready after April 1991, leaving only 2-3 months to plan and implement the filming. All ended up being stuck in the same time zone around New Jersey, while other “less important” models, like the 190 E starting at $29,000, were being shot in New York, Texas, California in the US and in Stuttgart and at the Nürburgring in Germany.

In the future, we will enjoy more brochure together, which is definitely exciting.