State of the Art Blog: Paparazzi Product Placement

I just caught this article over on PopPhoto/American Photo's State of the Art Blog. It appears as though celebrities may be taking advantage of all of the paparazzi shots taken of them. David Schonauer refers to a recent photo of Jennifer Aniston prominently holding a bottle of smarterwater - as she is their new spokeswoman - and since these shots get published all over, it's good advertising for the company.

For years, Los Angeles paparazzi have made a living shooting celebs walking out of Starbucks while slurping down lattes from the chain's signature cups. Talk about free advertising! Now, however, we may be seeing a new degree of confluence between celebrity photojournalism and product promotion. Jennifer Aniston, who recently signed on as a spokeswoman for smarterwater, seems to be traveling with a bottle in view, just in case the paparazzi strike... As much as celebs complain about the paparazzi,they have always known how to make good use of them. Expect to see much more of this kind of unholy marketing.