Drafting and planning

When creating this double paged spread I tried to go for a very minimalist approach as this was the style of magazine which inspired me the most. I featured a quote at the very top of the page which I thought looked very effective positioned at the top as it almost gave the page a headline. This photograph in the background is in black and white which meant this is the colour scheme I stuck to throughout. This colour of the text box alternated with the background which gave the whole double page spread a monochrome feel and the type of 'attitude' I wanted to achieve.

Drafting and planning and potential target audience

I created a cover which featured a black and white photograph as the background and I then chose to use pink and white fonts which were going to stand out. I feel that my choice of colour scheme worked well however when creating my magazine I may not use such a bright colours pink as I am aiming for more of a monochrome feel. I used the Olsen twins as the cover stars as I felt that they really embodied the look I am going for when photgraphing my model. I like the styling and the hair and makeup as it gives the pop rock edge I am trying to achieve.

Secondly I created a contents page which tried to continue the theme from the cover however I used brighter colours so that the readers would be drawn in to the inside of the magazine. The Olsen twins which I renamed 'The Larson Girls' also featured as they are the main story of the magazine so obviously play a big part. I chose to use reading festival and the band the 1975 as I felt that the target audience I am aiming to create my magazine for would be interested in these things.

Drafting and planning

Listening to artists such as avril lavigne I have seen a variety of different track names and taken some inspiration from her albums seeing as she is an artists alike to what I want to create.

Potential target audience

After doing a survey on what people think are the most important aspects of a magazine I have come up with an analysis. This shows all of the things females who are interested in rock music would contain in an interview. This will be helpful to me as it will give me a brief idea of what my target audience is looking for in a magazine which they would buy. 

Drafting and planning

I have created a sample double page spread which has two photographs as the background and the name of the artiste in the foreground. I have tried to find a photo which closely matches the look I would like to go for. I liked the photo because the girl is wearing doc martens which give it that kind of rock edge. Personality is shown through this photo which is something I want to have as a part of mine. 

Research into similar products and drafting and planning

The colour scheme of this magazine is four colours and has been kept very simple and there is a very clear house style.

Drafting and planning

I have been looking on different font websites and seeing which look most effective and which ones suit my artist's name the most. I have come to the conclusion that simpler fonts look best rather than futuristic or extremely decorative fonts as I want my final product to look minimalist.

Drafting and planning

I did some research into flower names as I thought that it would be ironic that I'm doing a rock orientated magazine however the artists has the name of a flower. I also feel that this is very impressionable.

Drafting and planning

I have done some research into potential fonts. There are a range of different fonts which I tried out with the word 'Connect' as I really like this as a name for my magazine following my research into names. I think I prefer the simple serif fonts rather than the more 'techno' looking ones. 

Drafting and planning

Using visual thesaurus I have found alternatives for the words 'link' and 'connect' as I feel that these words would be appropriate for the type of magazine I am looking into creating.  This has given me some ideas as to what my final magazine name will be. 

Research into similar products

These covers of Q magazine are looking very busy and researching into others I can see that Q magazine tends to keep their covers quite busy and full of headlines without any negative space at all. Whereas when I create mine I want it to be less busy and maybe has a specific plan for a set out. On these two covers, where there is no headline there is photograph and vice versa. They have made sure there is always something to draw in the eye.

Research into similar products and drafting and planning

This is the photograph which I feel has made the biggest impact on me in my decision making. I love the use of three simple colours green white and black and the use of this photo on the cover has a monochrome feel as a whole. The cover that this is featured on is not a music magazine so I did some research ont the pop/rock genre to discover that Q magazine covers pop/rock music and this is the genre I want to focus on when creating my cover. 

Research into similar products

The cover of NOTION magazine with Miley Cyrus has strongly influenced me and given me a lot of ideas for my own cover. I feel like the photograph on the cover is really strong and there is a very strong pose which stands out and looks effective. Miley is winking in the photo which lead me into looking at other photographs which have been taken of celebrities winking. I came across i-D magazine which i then realised have branded themselves with the matching masthead and cover star showing only one eye or winking. This has made me want to contain a strong correlation between the masthead and the cover star. I am going to do some work on creating some potential mastheads and see if there is anything which could then be projected onto my photography.

Another i-D magazine cover which I really like and have found influential is this one. I really like the use of black and a contrasting pink. On my magazine cover I don't want to use a lot of colour and really want to use a simple colour scheme. I feel like this as an example of a cover with simple colours. Both of the stars on this cover are still fulfilling i-D's idea of using one eye. Looking at covers of this magazine is making me realise how effective it is and it creates a very strong branding for the magazine as a whole.

Research into similar products

I really like the photography here and the style of the magazine. After seeing this I am going to try and incorporate some of these ideas into my magazine and try and simulate some of the style this product has. There is a very clear house style here and the photography suits the style of the magazine well. 

Research into similar products

Looking at magazine double page spreads I come across this one. I feel like the colour scheme is effective as it is a continuous theme as the fonts match the outfit the star is wearing. However I feel like the layout of this double page spread it quite plain and boring and I wouldn't take inspiration from the layout. I want my double page spread to be a lot more exciting and have different angles and shapes. Things that I will take from this double page spread is the running theme used between outfits and fonts. 

Remake/ remodel task

I have produced an NME cover and therefore all of my choices made are based around the ethos of NME. The photograph I have taken is of two people who I think represent what NME is about well. The target audience of NME is primarily teenagers so I have tried to make sure it has a young feel to it. Readers of the magazine are predominantly male so the colour scheme and theme I have tried to portray try and support this. It was apparent that from doing some research into NME that readers liked to attend concerts as on a majority of covers I found insiders about recent gigs and upcoming concerts. Due to this I contained a little feauture on an 'NME music photography awards' which I saw featured on a previous issue. NME's target audience have been described as 'enthusiasts of new entertainment' therefore by using this it will entice the particular target audience. NME fans know all about brand new hot bands and bands that have existed before so I contained a mixture of both old and new on the cover in the same kind of genre I aimed to achieve as 'The Naughtees' such as 'The XX' and 'Haim'. The colour scheme reflects the usual colours of red and black however I used a light blue which tied in with the PUFF I used at the top of the page to create a house style for this particular cover. For the main headline I used red and grey as it stood out and I wanted the band name to be bold against the rest of the magazine. Red has connotations of danger which could portray this new band as being dangerous and exciting to the audience. The clothes which the band are wearing are not very formal which gives out a sense of recklessness and therefore follows the ethos of NME as it does not usually follow conformity. The whole background is white which allows the fonts to stand out more and gives a more authentic feel. The sub headlines are spread around the page in different areas and are not really following any pattern which is alike to the rest of the NME covers I looked at. The main image uses direct address where both characters are looking straight into the camera and allows the cover to include the audience. The band name is the largest font on the cover which will create an excitement for reader as NME readers are interested in new bands so seeing a large name of a band will attract them. The fonts use will create a brand for them as it is a very different font which will relate to them only and will become very recognizable to readers.

Preliminary task

This is my preliminary task and the first attempt at making an actual magazine from scratch. After receiving  class feedback I feel that my actual product will be well improved/

Contents page analysis

This is a contents page for Q magazine follows the house style of red white and black. There are thumbnail images which give an insight as to what is going to be on the pages. This contents page is spread across two pages which is somethimes done in magazine and this is probably due to the amount of pictures used. 

Double page spread analysis

The headline is on the right hand side above all of the text so draws the eye towards it. The whole left side of the page is a long shot of the artist and is the main background for the spread. The drop capital at the start of the article attracts the eye towards in and makes the reader think it is worth reading. The massive 'USA' in the background of the article gives it a theme and the red and white tie in with this. 

Magazine research (double page spread)

This double page spread is for an american hard rock band called The Pretty Reckless hence why the background is black. The main singer Taylor Momsen is dressed in all black an completely fits the expectation of what a rock girl would look like. She had very dark eye makeup which also fulfills expectation. However a bright fuchsia pink has been used which stand out and completely contrasts with the black. This may have been used to give a feminine streak on the magazine article as it is on a female band member. There is a bold headline and it uses both white and bright pink. 'Wild' is written in pink and looks hand written however the 'Child' is in a very bold font in capitals and looks very computerized which provides a comparison. 

Research into target audience

As an example billboard magazine is a pop magazine which is usually targeted at young teens and young adults. The magazine is based around chart music which particularly appeals to those age groups. Billboard sometimes goes away from the "norm" of chart music and have feautured people on the covers such as Lionel Richie and Paul Mccartney. This will openly appeal to a wider range of people creating a wider target audience.

Magazine cover research

This magazine cover uses monochrome colours on everything apart from the magazine name. It doesn't follow the codes and conventions as the masthead is usually at the top and shifted towards the left hand side on the page which draws in the eye. The red stands out against the black and white photograph which takes up the whole of the page. The typography is simple and nothing very complex is used. Cara Delevigne looks very classic in the photo and has a retro feel to it due the the use of colour. 

Research into similar products

I looked at this magazine cover for inspiration. The colour scheme is similar to one which I am going to attempt to achieve. There are three main colours used and I feel like this works well. 

Magazine cover research

When I saw this magazine cover it really inspired me as I particularly like the editing used in the background of the photograph. There is a clear house style on this magazine. The fonts used are futuristic which tie in with the space looking background. I like how billboard have slightly changed the masthead so it doesn't clash completely with the rest of the cover. 'Stars Dance' as a subheadline explains the theme of the cover.

Magazine cover research

I like the way Ke$ha has been photographed here. The picture had the perfect setting which completely  fits with the theme of the cover. It is unusual to see a long shot on the cover of a magazine however I think it looks particularly effective on this one. The main cover line is in black and orange which arent necessarily colours which match the photograph however it still works well with it. The whole background of the magazine cover is just the photo of Ke$ha and I really like the way it has been used. Most covers use close ups and they are what I have mainly been doing my research one however after looking at this cover I am going to do further research into covers which use long shots as I feel that it works well. 

Research

I like this photograph as a close up of Miley Cyrus holding a vintage microphone. As it is a close up I think that it would be a perfect shot to use on a music magazine cover. There is a country kind of feel to this photo which isn't what I'm aiming for however I feel that it would be easy to interpret it into a pop/rock genre which I mainly like the covers of.

Codes and conventions task

I chose to call this band the Uptempo's because I feel like it fits a jazz which is the genre of music I chose for this  band. I used a yellow orange colour for the font as it stood out but did not clash with the background colours. The subheadline is in white which ties in with the white outline of the main headline. In the top right hand corner I featured an interview with Adele in black because it contrasted with the orange and white headlines about the uptempos and I wanted a different colour to make it clear that it was going to be a seperate section of the magazine. The main headline is quite big and does make an impact as it is the first thing you read. I don't think that putting it across the main image hindered the effects at all.

Pitch magazine was designed for a niche market so I tried to keep it focused on mostly Marilyn Manson as he doesn't really appeal to a wide range of people. This would mean that this issue of 'Pitch' wasn't aimed at a mass audience. The red masthead meant that I kept red as the main colour used. Red contrasts with the black and white background so was a good colour to use. An exclusive sample of Marilyn Manson's album was featured as an incentive and I used a bright yellow font to make it eye catching. 

SounD is a rock and roll magazine white provided influence and meant I kept it tied in with this theme. The fire and 'ROCK' plectrums added character to the cover. The main headline is in a faded black and grey which gave a rock look. 

Music_X is a niche market magazine. Bjork is the cover star so the main cover line says that Bjork is going to give the readers an insight. The other cover lines talk about new bands from the specific genre and also features parts from Bjork's interview such as her dream collaboration? I chose to use fonts seeing as the background was black and it totally complemented the masthead and cover picture. 

M magazine is created for a mass market. Alliteration is used in 'Drake Domination'. I think that as a mass market magazine it needed to be quite a typical cover. The colour red is bold and stands out against the contrasting black. I used rihanna as she is also a pop artist who features mostly in top 40 music. The cover line is placed in the middle as I think it was the most "stand out-ish". Featuring readers opinions on top 10 tracks is including the readers so they feel more involved.   

Music magazine research

Rolling Stone magazine has used Miley Cyrus as their cover star. Rolling Stone is a rock magazine and have featured Miley looking rock n' roll. She has dark eye makeup and fits with the codes and conventions.The typography of this magazine fits with the style of the cover star. The contrast between the lightly coloured background and the black fonts etc work really well. 

Music magazine research

I am really liking the pop/rock genre and Miley Cyrus fits in with this. I like this cover because it is simplistic but completely fits in with Miley's look. I think the use of black and white is really good and makes an impact as it is unusual. This is a fashion magazine however I feel like this could be used as influence and easily interpreted into a music magazine. 

Music genre research

When researching music genres I started to look at covers which Avril Lavigne has featured in because I like the pop/rock genre.I found this magazine cover of 'zink'. I like the way Avril Lavigne has punk style clothes and makeup in contrast the the girly pink fonts. This is unusual as it doesn't fit with the codes and conventions as normally the cover stars genre fits with the typography on the magazine. 

Typography exercise

Sample cover

I have created a sample magazine cover. I took a picture of Trent Reznor and deleted the white space around him so I could bring the image to the front of the masthead. I then added a main cover line to the cover.

Conventions of a magazine

I have analysed a music magazine cover which is therefore showing my knowledge of the conventions of a cover.

Questionnaire Results

 Questionnaire results

After asking 10 people whether they would expect to see a colour scheme in a school magazine 100% of people said that they would. As an extension to this question I then asked which colours they would then expect to see. The majority of people asked mentioned red and black with the odd addition of white grey or silver.

When asking people whether there should be weekly features 100% of people said yes. Some people mentioned sports reports and highlighting weekly achievements of pupils.

The cover of the magazine should be reflected around the students and the school community according to the people who answered my questionnaires.

80% of people asked said that they would prefer to see more photo’s with shorter captions than larger sections of writing. The other 20% would prefer more writing.

Photos of students were said to be used by 100% of people.

Teachers were said to be included by 80%. 20% said disagreed and said it wasn’t a good idea. One person gave the idea that a “Get to know our teacher” was a good idea for a feature in the magazine.

The majority of people asked said that comments from students and real life experiences in school  would be the most interesting part of the magazine.

90% of people agree with areas of the school building being contained in the magazine.

Humorous parts would be preferred by 90% of people whereas 10% would prefer a mixture of both humorous and serious.

The magazine is expected to released monthly with a new issue.

Analysis of a magazine cover

Large photo being the focal point of the cover. Draws the audiences attention to the magazine cover.

House style all over the cover mainly bright yellow and pink which contrasting text colour.

 

Brightly coloured sub headings of things featured in the magazine.

Sub headline written in black and bold.

The Main attraction for the magazine is ‘Lana Del Rey’ so the cover features a bright and ‘in your face’ title to present this.

Band Link

http://www.thespicegirls.com/

Cropping skills

I have cropped a picture and added a masthead which makes a magazine cover.

First Post

I'm Caitlin and I am doing AS Media Studies. This is my blog where I will upload all of my work.