Final Products

FRONT COVER




CONTENTS PAGE
  
DPS

   

Evaluation Question 7

Looking back at your preliminary task (school magazine) what do you feel you have learnt in the progression of it to the full product?

Looking back at your preliminary task (school magazine) what do you feel you have learnt in the progression of it to the full product?

Firstly, when creating my school magazine I was alien to everything. We initially started with research, looking back at my preliminary task it is evident that my research and planning was not very focussed, this was because I was clueless, and all of my magazine analyses were not very detailed. This made it hard when actually creating my school magazine as I had nothing to base it on and it did not link well to my research. This is something that I had to improve when making my music magazine as I wanted my magazine to copy the look of a real music magazine and therefore to do this I needed to make sure that my research was much more specific. However this was an error that I made when creating my contents page as I did lots of in depth research into a photo I wanted to copy yet when actually taking it I realised that it was near impossible with the lack of photography technology this made me realise that I needed to go into depth when doing my photo research. For example with my preliminary task I found one or two photos that I was going to copy however I did not consider the shot of the photo or take the lighting into consideration, whereas when I was creating my music magazine I realised that all of these things needed to be thought about in order to take a good focussed photo shoot. Taking all of this into account it made constructing my music magazine much quicker and simpler as I had templates and ideas that I could follow.

When using the technologies such as Photoshop I realised that I had a lot to learn, as although they have pretty basic tools, some were very complex to use. This is why when editing my school magazine Photoshop I only used the easy tools such as the clone stamp, this was to smooth out the skin and get rid of any blemishes and I also used the magic wand tool to select parts of my images and change their colour in the background so that they were not as obvious. When editing my photos for my music magazine, I had learnt more about how to use the tools on Photoshop from YouTube tutorials, this was crucial as when I did my research into my music magazines I saw that every image was drastically photo shopped and therefore if I wanted it to look as real as possible it was vital that I copied their style. So when editing my front cover I used tools such as liquefy, this was to enlarge her lips, I also used levels to change the colour of my models eyes and I used the basic tools such as clone stamp again. I feel that doing the preliminary task definitely helped me to progress when making my music magazine as the first tools that I learnt to use were the most commonly used ones therefore it was useful for me. When actually constructing my magazine I used InDesign, this programme was simple to use when making my preliminary task and my music magazine but I initially learnt how to use the tools such as the crop tool and how to insert text and change font colour however there was nothing really to improve on when making my music magazine.

When looking at my final school magazine I noticed that layout was very important, it was not something I had focused on heavily as I did not realise that it would have a big impact on my final product, however I soon realised that my layout followed no set structure and all of the text was effortlessly placed around the page with not much thought into what it would look like or why it is placed there. This meant that when making my music magazine I carefully thought about the layout of my magazine and I designed them very specifically to my research. I also did some research into what the certain ‘rules’ are when creating a front cover, from this I learnt about the rule of thirds and how one piece of writing on the page has an impact on another piece. I feel that I have massively progressed from the start with layout as comparing my two magazines together my music magazine final piece is much better in my opinion.

When taking the pictures of my magazine I improved vastly, firstly I used the schools camera to take pictures for my school magazine, although they were adequate, I felt that I could have done better yet did not have the skill to know how to. When creating my music magazine I used a much better camera, I feel that this drastically changed my images as they were much better quality. I also learnt a lot about the lighting from the start. In my school magazine I simply lit them near a window as I thought this would be the best source of light. However I soon learnt that different light positions changed the expressions on the face. This was something I then took into account when making my music magazine as I wanted to create a fierce dramatic look and therefore I knew how to do it. If this was my task set at the start of the year I would not have been able to do it as I was not able to.

I learnt not to be reliant on my models and that my friends may not be ‘right’ for my images as they may not portray the look I want. In my school magazine I was clueless and thought that I could portray any look on anyone as long as I had the right props and makeup, however when taking my photos I soon learned that this was near impossible. Not all of my models were simply able to sit still for a picture and not all of them were as photogenic as I had originally thought, therefore when it came to choosing my model for my music magazine I knew that I had to be very specific. If I wanted to show a certain look for a certain style of magazine I needed to know what I wanted my model to be clothed in and who my target audience was. When I selected my model which was my friend Lucia I soon learnt I had made the right choice as she has a very defined jaw line and good facial features that showed up nicely on the camera, however she was not as reliable as I thought, therefore when photographing for my contents page I used photos from festivals as opposed to more of my friend as I did not want them to let me down.

Finally I feel that I managed to improve on my time management skills and organisation skills. From the school magazine task I was very messy with my work and I did not keep it neatly organised on my blog, this made it hard when I was trying to navigate around it. This was something that I knew I had to take care of when creating my music magazine as it was time consuming trying to sort all of them out into order and I wanted to make sure I had an organised blog. I learnt as well that I needed to take into consideration my time management as I was running over deadlines and I realised that when it came to my music magazine I needed to be more punctual with meeting the teacher’s deadlines in order to receive good feedback.

Evaluation Question 6

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

Evaluation Question 5

How did you attract/address your audience?

Evaluation Question 4

Who would be the audience for your media product?

Evaluation Question 3

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Evaluation Question 2

How does your media product represent particular social groups?


What are my social groups?

Festival goers (young)

Students (party goers)

Party people

Holidays (Ibiza)

Front cover

• Shot/ Photo-I have used a mid shot, this is because it was something that I saw most commonly on mix mag. 
• Lighting- I have used a bright light coming from one specific angle, this is similar to a spotlight that you would find  in a club/ music environment. Having a bright lit picture creates an impact and makes the model have dominance over the page as she is lit up therefore important.
• Clothing- I have clothed her in a small crop top, stereo typical of all holiday goers, partyers or festival attenders. This piece of clothing is universal and would be recognised by a plethora of social groups as it is a possible piece of clothing. It is also commonly warn by famous DJ's.
• Expression- I have made my model have quite a stern expression, this is something again commonly seen on mix mag figures. It also contrasts well with the posters where she has a very fun and quirky expression
• Makeup- I have put my model in a bold colour lipstick, and heavy eye makeup, this is stereotypical of a partying student or festival goer I have also accessorized with eye gems this creates a fun and quirky look for my model
• Jewelry- I have only accessorized my model in small stud earrings, this is because when a DJ is in a clubbing holiday places they do not tend to wear heavy jewelry as it is irritating in the hot climates
• Hair-  I have styled her hair in an up do, this is to keep it out of her face as if she was to DJ an event it would get in her way if it was down.

DPS

• Shot/ Photo-I have used the wide shot,this is to create a better image. I was able to include the iconography of a stereotypical DJ this way by getting the DJ decks and headphones in the picture with the graffiti background
• Lighting- I have lit my picture very brightly this is to draw attention to the picture and it creates a big impact.
• Clothing- I have clothed her in two different outfits, one stereotypical crop top with bright colours, this links in with the theme of summer and holidays. I also clothed her in a clack strappy top, this contrasts well with the grafti background
• Expression- I have made my model have quite a stern expression, this is something again commonly seen on mix mag figures. It also contrasts well with the posters where she has a very fun and quirky expression
• Makeup- I have put my model in a bold colour lipstick, and heavy eye makeup, this is stereotypical of a partying student or festival goer
• Jewelry- I have only accessorized my model in small stud earrings, this is because when a DJ is in a clubbing holiday places they do not tend to wear heavy jewelry as it is irritating in the hot climates
• Hair-.I have styled her hair down to contrast with the front cover where her hair is up

Holiday Attenders?

My magazine represents the holiday culture and the people that are fond of travelling by making the words ‘Ibiza’ in pink and bold- this represents them as it is within their interests to read up about the hottest holiday destinations. It represents them be showing that they have a place of belonging and they can relate to that magazine- by giving them the information that they want it shows that their needs have been thought about

Partying Students

I have articles on ‘how to have a cheap night’ and ‘UK’s best partying UNI’S’. Both of these represent the partying student social group, this is because students are on a tight budget especially those that like a night out listening to my genre of music, therefore telling them how they can have a cheap night is taking into consideration their needs. As well as this if you’re an aspiring student that is conscious about the party scene, having an article about the UK’s biggest partying universities this will represent all of the students in that social group as it is crucial information that they would want to know. Making the price just £1.99 shows that I have represented this social group again, not necessarily the party goers but students in general as they are on a tight budget they may not have a lot of money to spend on luxuries.

Young Festival Goers

Putting a big article on the front about Creamfields instantly represents the festival goers. It shows that this article is important, as it has made the front page. Therefore by showing the consumer that there is information inside about festivals it instantly represents them and what they’re for. By making the festival Creamfields as opposed to reading it is also clear what genre of music my magazine is based on, this is because reading is more of an indie rock festival and Creamfields is a house and dance festival. As well as this the festival is geared around the younger generation. As well as this my model is dressed in a typical festival crochet top.

View my 'Holiday Attenders' Voki here
View my 'Partying Students' Voki here
View my 'Yound Festival Goers' Voki here

Evaluation Question 1

Construction and Final DPS

Construction

When creating my DPS I already had lots of design knowledge from my previous task so I just had to apply it to this page. As the design for my DPS was pretty basic and not too complex it was not hard to create as I only had to insert images and text. 

As you can see here I have inserted text and changed the font and underlined it. This step was easy as I had already learnt how to do this. I made these words star out more as it is something that would attract the audience so if I make it more prominent it will be more eye catching and appealing to them.

Here I am  inserting images into my DPS. I included a fun page furniture design onto the background of my text. This was something that I created in photoshop prior to my project. Inserting an image was one of the most easiest steps in construction as all you had to do was select: File and then Import and choose which image you want to insert. I feel that the page furniture that I used really helped to bring my DPS together and gave it the look of the popular music magazines 

Here I have inserted a rectangular shape into my DPS. This was easy I had to select the drawing tool on the left and then I drew how big I wanted it and selected the colour. I feel this helped to break the page up and it is also seen on a popular music magazine.

Here I am inserting text and changing the colour of it, this again was not complex at all. I had to select the 'T' button to add text and then I could rotate it however I pleased, finally I changed the letters 'A' to pink to keep in with the house style.

Final Double Page Spread

 

   

Page Furniture Research

Here you can see that a large red swirl has been added to the bottom right hand corner of the page. This is a prime example of page furniture that would be commonly used in well known music magazines. Its main purpose is to make a large bit of text look more aesthetically pleasing. If someone was reading the entire article it may become boring but with this simple bit of page furniture
it adds something extra to the page and makes the page look more engaging to the reader.



Here is another example of page furniture, it is evident that the purpose of this speech bubble is to create a comical effect on the picture. Due to it being speech bubble it creates a sense of the words coming directly from Robbie Williams' mouth meaning the reader feels more engaged and closer to the popular music artist.

Layout research DPS

My Designs

When looking into research I made my own designs on what I thought my double page spread should look like. As you can see they are all rather similar to the real music magazines. I made sure to include a large statement image of my model and also her name in bold writing. 

My choice 

This is my choice for my double page spread layout. I decided to copy the layout from the Rihanna feature, this is because she is a strong empowered women that is well known. This is the message I also want to portray for my model. As well as this I liked the page furniture at the top of the page and the three columns as opposed to two. 

Photo research DPS

Photo Research

Initial Magazine Research

As you can see from the photos, there is no main common concept for what type of image is used. There is a variety, from 1 larger photo, or a collage of a few photos. I think that what I am going to do is incorporate 2 larger images. These will be on separate pages, they will link however they will be different shots and my model will look different, this is because I feel that the reader needs to get a feel of the models capability and in most magazines that I have researched if they have 2 larger images in the double page spread the model tends to have changed clothes and look different. I may also include smaller pictures in the page, however these may not be on the model, just things that relate to the story, for example a picture of a festival she has recently played at. I am going to have my model in headphones with her DJ decks, this is because I feel it is something that will make her easily identifiable and this is something that you can see in the bottom left image.

Photos That I Want to Copy

As you can see all of these models are doing similar poses. All of them have DJ decks in the picture, I like this as there is no doubting what they are doing. As well as this they all have the headphones on, both of these things are something I am going to make sure I have in at least one of my pictures. I prefer the darker backgrounds, this is because there is more focus on the model than what is going on in the background. Most of them are wearing revealing clothes, this is also something that I want to use in my image, this is because my target market is for 18 and over, therefore it is suitable, as well as this it is evident that sex sells, especially to the age group I am focussing on, I am not going to have her in something too revealing as that is inappropriate, however just something that look suitable to the genre.

Detailed research DPS

Detailed DPS

1) 'NME' MAGAZINE

2) 'Q' MAGAZINE

Initial research for DPS

Generic Research

The page is evenly split. This draws attention to the image first as it is on the left and our eye naturally travels from left to right. The prop in his hand is orange, this matches the same orange in the writing. The clothes he is working make him blend into the brick layer background. There is an insight into the story under the title of the article 'in good health'. It also includes a big 'a' to start off the writing, this colour matches the beer and the writing in the title. Another image is also brought in to change the dynamics of the page. A quote is also used. Their logo also features.

 This page is evenly split. The picture creates a fun effect with the costumes used. The title of the article begins on the second page-this instantly draws attention as we read from left to right, The red on white contrasts well and makes it stand out. Lots of rectangular shapes are used to change the dynamics of the page. A big letter is used to start up the article, it is the same colour as the quotes. More pictures are also used in the page to make the double page spread have more life to it. 3 columns of writing are used. The picture is a group picture, no close ups.

The page is evenly split. The picture is a close up of the rapper, however the glasses make him show no emotion. The red in the background is the same as the letter 'j'. The letter j covering all of the writing adds dynamic to the page. The quote is on the left page with the picture. The magazines logo is also on the page. Bigger letters are used to start off the paragraphs.The page is split into two columns.  The page also has lines at the top this is symmetrical to the columns.

 The picture spreads across both pages. The 'usa' is big enough to draw attention to it yet because the model has bright red hair and red props you instantly are drawn to her first. The model herself only takes up one third of the page. The writing is very small and in 3 columns and it is not the main feature of the page. The big letter that starts off the article is the same font as the slogan 'got the love'. The quote also feature on the page. The image is the model with a flag, this links in with the 'usa'. She has a stern expression.

Final contents page

FINAL CONTENTS PAGE

Editing of my contents page

The Tools I Used To Edit My Contents Page

As you can see here I have inserted a line. This is to break up the page and also make the magazine contents page look 'good' I feel that adding different shapes over the page will make it look like a good design and not so boring. As you can see here I am using the colour tool, the pink that I want to use is already in my swatches as it is something I use often. As well as this I have changed the weight on the line to 5, this is just to make it wider.

As you can see here I am changing the effects on my header. I have chosen 'inner bevel' for my header. (See contents page font research for more information)

As you can see here I am choosing the font for the rest of my contents page. I have chosen to go with the same on as the header as I feel it creates continuity throughout the page, however it is pink as I want to incorporate small bursts of pink throughout the pages as it is part of my house style.

As you can see here I have drawn a rectangle, this is made to be part of the background. I have made it black, this is to contrast with the white background and pink lines over the page. This is where the features for the magazine are going to be listed. I have not put an effect on it as I feel it will make the page look messy and it does not need to stand out massively when it has writing on it.

As you can see here I have added an emboss effect to my square, this gives it the effect of a button and makes it stand out more. The white font contrasts well with the black background and it creates continuity throughout my magazine as they are within my house style.

Feedback and conclusions

Contents page photo shoot

First Set

These are the pictures that I took for my contents page. I chose to do them on a graffiti background and dress my model in neutral colours this is so that the main focus is the background and the iconography as opposed to the models expression. 

   

Second set

The second set of photos I took were from a festival that I attended last year. They were not originally meant for my magazine but I decided to input them as they fitted in with my genre of music and I feel pulled my whole magazine together.

Contents page layout choice

My Designs 

As you can see my 4 designs are specific to my layout research. I have incorporated the larger numbers and the shapes in the page. I have made sure the column is on the left side only taking up roughly 2/3 of the page. All of my writing is sans serif, this is also in bold to draw attention to the title. I have included a competition or image in each design to break up the page.

My final design and why

Contents page font research

Font Research

Primary Research-Existing Magazines

As you can see, the majority of the 'contents' page words are sans serif. This is something that I am going to put into my own magazine. It makes the wording more bold and comes across as a powerful statement, one that needs to be read. As well as this they are all bold colours, this is something I am going to use. It will like in with my house style. Within the words 'contents' it also has the name of the magazine, this is also something that I am going to incorporate.

Original Headers

As you can see, from my earlier research all of the fonts were sans serif, as well as this they were also quite large and bold. When choosing my fonts this is what I focussed heavily on. I chose 18 different fonts, some are similar to each other. With these fonts I then asked my target market which one they most likely thought they would see on this genre of magazine. They chose a variety and I narrowed them down, I did this but looking at which font is most similar to the research that I have done. This font was ______________________

More Developed Fonts

I then took this font further. I decided to play around with the colour, I chose to only incorporate colours that are in my house style, this is to create continuity throughout the magazine. I did put some of the titles in lower case, however as my research did not support this it was not one of my favourite ideas. I also played around with the effects on the font. I liked the 'inner bevel' effect, this is because it is the same thing that my title has and I feel making them similar looking will look good, as well as this it makes the header stand out more.

Questionnaire 

As you can see I devised a tally chart and asked my target market which heading they thought looked the best. As you can see it was number 8 that got the most votes. This is also the one that I chose. I felt that if it was all pink it would be over powering as I have planned to also have pink within my contents page layout. As well as this the 'inner bevel' effect works well to make it come out of the page.

Contents page layout research

Common things found in all of the magazines I have researched

In all of the magazines I have researched I have found that the way the contents of the magazine is displayed is in a strip. This is something that I am going to use in my magazine as my consumer will be able to easily see what is going to be in my magazine in list form. As well as this they are situated on the left side of the page. This is something I am also going to be able to input into my magazine. All of the columns only take up roughly 2/3 of the page, this is to make room for the larger images on the page.

These features in the magazine make it desirable for the consumers. It takes up a small place on the page, yet will attract my target market, this is something that i am going to use in my magazine. I will apply it to my target market. Bold lettering has been used to make it stand out and also an image to draw attention to it.

Many of the magazines have used larger numbers as different features in the page. This is clever because it draws attention to that specific page and also changes the dynamics of the page as it breaks the page up. The circled numbers on the page especially create a friendly fun feel to the magazine. 

Many of the magazines have the issue date on the contents page, this is something I am going to consider however I have put it on the front cover so it is not necessary to put it on the contents page. All of them are small and in the corner of the page. The writing links in with the house style of my magazine.

Contents page photo research

Photo Research 

As you can see the majority of the photos for each contents page are one large focus picture and then smaller pictures for different features. This is something that i want to put into my magazine contents page. I feel that the big photo that I am going to use is going to be a different model on the front. This is because I feel that my model for the front cover has very strong facial features and for my double page spread i want someone with a better suited body to my contents page research. The photo that i am going to create will have to link to the theme like these photos. Therefore i am going to have my model in headphones so the genre of music is easily identified.

For my photo I want to use a long shot like this, i feel that it will get all of my models body in which is something I want. In that contents page the models facial expressions look very connected to the type of musician he is. The props that have been used are very simple, just a chair a guitar and a microphone. This is was represents him and portrays what sort of character he is. Therefore i want to create a more seductive look for my model, this is because DJ/Dance/House music is often related to Ibiza and other club places, in Ibiza bikinis and other skimpy clothing tends to be worn, therefore if this is how I dress my model it will instantly become clearer which genre I have done. 

Photos I want to use

As you can see the photos that i have researched into all of the models are in revealing clothing. This is something that I am going to tone down, however I like the photos with the headphones in. 

This picture is the guideline that i want to use when taking my pictures for my contents page. However i feel this positioning too seductive, therefore I am going to make my model stand up against a wall like this with one foot on the ground. I want my model to wear heels and also wear headphones. 

This position will fill up most of the contents page as it is a larger picture. I am going to use a long shot for this image to make sure I get all of the model in.