Masthead ideas

Photo planning ideas- Costume consideration

Focusing on Selena Gomez as my inspiration for my future music magazine, my models who are yet to be decided will be wearing current, fashionable and modern clothing. These extravagant outfits are used to entice my target audience

October Feedback

From my October feedback, i will take on board the comments that have been said. I will remain consistent in my detail when analyzing and i will improve upon meeting the deadlines. I will dedicate more time into my magazine production, as this is essential in order reach my target grade.

Magazine treatment

Main images from existing music magazines

Main image's from popular music magazines such as Q, Billboard etc.

Things i need to consider:
Shot types
Angle
Lighting
Mode of address- eyes, direct/indirect?
Pose/posture
costume
representation type
artists or bands
colours(monochrome)

I have conducted some research into music magazine imagery and how they have portrayed their main images using photography. In the top left magazine of Taylor Swift, she has a very unnatural pose, and the mode of address for this image is very direct, as her eyes are looking straight into the camera at the audience. There is a monochrome theme to this front cover, and the tone of the image is very light, the camera is focused so it clearly emphasises her facial features, making the photo very dramatic and should hopefully have an impact on the readers. Her facial expressions and the way Taylor has portrayed herself is very direct and does support the stereotype of pop stars and convention. We can also note that some sort of wind machine or special effects or equipment have been used to create a slight breeze in her hair, very dramatic but does follow convention. She is wearing a simple plain white t-shirt with a long necklace, which almost distracts the reader from the famous over-the-top pop star she is portrayed at, and brings the magazine some simplicity which does correspond with the black and white theme. using high key lighting. This challenges the 'pop-star' convention as it shows a more innocent side of Taylor swift, and is shown in a different light to perhaps her usual style. The representation of Taylor shows a different side to her, and can be seen as more vulnerable through the use of her body language, the way she's holding her shoulder suggests that she feels the need to hold herself together, implying a sense of sensitivity showing a more calmer side to Taylor swift, perhaps with some of her acoustic albums.

Speaking more generally, i have noticed that most music magazine images do follow convention, and often consist of a close-up or extreme-close-up of the artist or band featured, or a medium shot. The camera also using high focus to really show the finer details, especially on facial features. Some magazines may follow a colour scheme, this is adaptable depending on the artist and the time of the release of the magazine. For example, in the top middle magazine which features Beyonce, she is known for being the 'queen of music' and is very extravagant in the ways she portrays herself in her music and on stage. In her imagery, she is wearing a red floral dress, and her pose/posture is very 'diva-like' and very dramatic, this is also supported by her facial expressions, using direct mode of address. Her representation is very big and dramatic and sassy and important and powerful, traits of a big pop star and therefore does support convention and supports the representation type of today's big pop stars, very confident and inspiring, conducting themselves to be very influential figures.

hand drawn contents page

Here is a hand drawn contents design, including a main title at the top of the page, three columns to list the contents of the music magazine as well as relevant news updates and reviews. The last column consists of images and anchorage text to support those images and provide some context. At the bottom will be room for advertisements and an online quiz/competition that comsumers will be able to take part in

The electronic contents page layout was constructed on power point, and consists of a main title, the use of columns, sub-headings, imagery and advertisements. I have structured this in a different way to the hand-drawn designs as there will be sub-headings and then the text to go underneath the sub-headings. I will also ensure that Anchorage text will be included to support t he images on the right hand side, these are only drafts and used as a template basis in order to complete my own contents page

Hand drawn designs

Music Magazine Name Ideas

Musical Vibe
Exception
Sensation
Sound wave
Empower
Current
POPular
Change

Double page article layouts

These designs have been based upon music magazines such as 'Billboard' and 'Kerrang' where there are some similarities and differences in the layouts. Each design features a standard components that msuic magazines should have such as: Heading, Sub-heading, Image, Pull Quote etc. From my research into music magazine double page spreads, each page and layout differs depend on the location of the main heading, and the main image. I will consider these layout types and features when creating my own magazine, keeping in mind to still follow traditional convention, but to also make the design unique and appealing to my target audience

Contents page layouts

My content page designs have been influenced by the research i have conducted into music magazines and how they have positioned features of a contents page. This has given me a realistic insight into the current music magazines and can guide me into creating a suitable and relevent conetnts page for my future magazine. I have noticed that the majority of contents pages do folow conventipn and have a lot of similarities, e.g. the contents title will most likey be at the top of the page, however there are also some differences like the location of the 'features' and images.

Prefered template design

Magazine cover templetes

These are just a few magazine cover templates i have designed as a basic outline, so i can start to think about ideas and designs for my own music magazine. Some of these templates are realistic and have been heavily influenced by big mainstream music magazines such as  NME and Billboard. Each design is different and features all the key components of a music magazine, these include:
Masthead
Cover lines
Anchorage text
Main Image
Date
Puff
Barcode

Music magazine research

This colour scheme consists of girly colours that could be relevant to my musical magazine. As i want to produce a teen/young adult pop magazine, which features artists and bands that are currently popular in today's culture, this colour theme may be suitable, however this limits me to reach a mass audience as this colour scheme will only work if my target market is for teen females.

This colour scheme consist of a really cool 'chill' colours such as light-dark blues and greens and purples. This is a more generalization in terms of colours that could potentially be used for my music magazine, as it is more of a broad colour range and i can reach both teenage boys and girls.

This purple colour scheme is something i will consider when thinking about the presentation of my music magazine. Purple is a very female colour but can also be associated as being quite 'posh' and professional. The colours range from a light lilac/violet colour, to a deep dark purple colour, which can be used as contrasting colours in my magazine. 

Housestyle top of the pops magazine

This is a magazine collage for 'Top of the Pops' music magazine, produced by the BBC. House style is linked to the branding of the magazine. This helps the audience to recognize and identify this magazine brand instantly. The positioning of the masthead, the picture layout and the colour scheme are all key aspects in identifying the house-style for a magazine. I have noticed that 'top of the pops' all use bright, feminine colours for the front covers. Colours such as pinks, oranges, yellows, purples all indicate that this magazine audience is tended for the female market, especially young teenagers. The main image of this magazine for each issue normally focuses on just one music artist or one band that is currently popular in culture and society in that time, instead of featuring multiple bands and artists

Magazine analysis of 'Top of the Pops'

I

I have used the software 'Prezi' to complete my musical magazine analysis into pop and charted music. This has allowed me to explore the different aspects of 'Top of the pops' magazine, and clearly identify the audience, and institutions of this magazine.

Research into my music genre

Music genres

I used Mindmeister.com as a new type of technology to create this music genre mind map. This software allowed me to explore different ways of creating mind maps, i chose to follow convention and use a simple bubble and used arrows to attach the different music dramas to the central title.

Thinglink analysis of music magazine

Final magazine front cover

Plantsbrook magazine improvements from first draft- Evaluation

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of school magazines? 

It challenges conventions of school magazines as the majority of magazines are in colour, however my approach was to create a black and white school magazine to express the professionalism and simplicity of the school magazine. The black and white approach was to be creative as there are not many school magazines out there that follow this style and may draw attention because it is completely different and innovative. It is a form of media product as it's purpose is to deliver and provide information about the school, containing up coming events, general information and a student friendly atmosphere and raise awareness for Plantsbrook school.

1. Who would be the audience for your media product?

My audience for my school magazine would be targeted at upper school, Year 11's to Year 13, as the addition of my magazine aims to support and give information about what to do after GCSE's, university and apprenticeships and is student friendly

1. How did you attract/address your audience?

I used a bright red masthead to attract readers attention, my cover lines contains the contents of this issues magazine that are relevant and relatable to students of this age category in everyday life

1. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

I have learnt different functions on Fireworks, e.g. the magic wand feature that can eliminate unwanted area. The use of importing images and changing it by using the filters provided to add shadow effects and used different websites e.g. cool text to use to create my masthead, this also allowed me to use bold outlining to make the masthead title more strong and powerful.

peer feedback

Survey Monkey Evaluation

From this feedback received by the people who completed this survey, results showed that when asked 'Which factor affects you the most when deciding on buying the magazine?' 57.14% of people said that the appearance of the magazine was the most important factor. This tells me that the visual element of the magazine is vital in order to influence my target market to buy my magazine. Closely followed by 42.86% of people saying that price was another element that affected their decision. therefore i will need to think carefully about pricing strategies in order to find a suitable price. Finally 14. 29% of people said that the magazine content affected their decision.Results showed that the most preferred magazine design was design B, followed by design C as the next preferred design and finally the least preferred design A. In other results, i found out that the main image was the most popular feature when grabbing someone's attention, gaining a total of 57.14% of the votes. The puff was the least popular feature with 14.29%. This tells me that my main image is a key feature and needs to be relevant and eye-catching in order to grab the attention of my target audience.

Plantsbrook magazine first draft

This is my first draft of my school magazine, due to limited time this is not a complete draft, due to very limited time, however i have included a black and white main image as the background basis for my magazine, i chose to use a black and white theme as it is a simple and sophisticated theme that i would also like to get across to my target market which would be aimed at the upper school (Year 11 and sixth form). I used a bright red bold masthead using 'Cool text' software, in order to draw attention and to make it stand out, is software also allowed me to create a black outlining around the text, representing the plantsbrook colours and making it familiar with the students who are currently at the school. The cover lines are in white text and is simply on the right hand side of the magazine, which is very basic. Things that still need to be included is a 'Puff' and 'Anchourage Text'.

September feedback

I have read through this feedback and will aim to ensure all if not, most of my deadlines are met. I will improve upon my analysis skills and try to complete all work to the best of my ability so i can maximise my chances of reaching my target grade.

Survey Monkey

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GV92JBS - This online survey is used as a part of Market research

Plantsbrook magazine cover design 3 !

Plantsbrook magazine cover design 2

This is my second design for a school magazine cover. The layout is altered as the main image is now located on the left of the cover, and the contents on the right. The masthead is in thin capital lettering, writing 'Over the Brook' with two red waves below it. This gives the impression that as a school we do have a 'brook' and it just emphasises this particular theme that i have chosen. The logo is in the top right hand corner in black and white. The main image is of the front of the school building, and below is the anchourage text which is connected to the main image.Next to this, is the 'puff' which is in a bubble in rainbow colours, lack of proffesionalism but very child friendly.