Experimenting with editing

I picked a picture from the photoshoot and started experimenting with editing to see what technique were available to use to change the photo. This is just an immediate and simple experimentation. 

My Front Cover Will...

My Front Cover Will Be...

My front cover of my music magazine is going to have a simple yet effective look. The reason it will be minimalistic is so that the readers can focus on the important parts (images, important content) instead of being overwhelmed by a lot of information. The colours included on my music magazine covers will be light colours as my questionaire showed they were more popular however the colours maybe used quite in transparent effect as it add to the effect.

Best examples of photos so far

These pictures are the best selection of my first photo shoot, as the above show there is a varied range of shot types, angles, styles...

I have tried out all these as I want to have a lot of options so I could chose the best and most suitable photos for my music magazine.

Flickr Account

http://www.flickr.com/photos/111050886@N06/

This is my Flickr Account where I will put my range of photos from the photo shoots for my music magazine.

What I've Considered in photos

Photo Planning Table

Rule of Thirds research

Mood Board Representation of Magazine

Photo Planning

Photo Planning

Front Cover Layouts

Question Charts

Masthead Ideas

These are a few mastheads I experimented with using fireworks with different techniques and tools. The idea was to create simple but clear and bold mastheads. I used a few free font websites to create the effects I wanted, some of the were created by editing and carefully selecting piece and removing them using magic wand and so on.

Magazine Name Ideas

Magazine Names

1.       I.M

2.       M&M

3.       Defeat

4.       Generation

5.       Made

6.       100

7.       M.f

8.       Selection
  These names are one I decided were appropriate for a music magazine however so of the idea I decided I didn't like.

2 Magazines - Analysis of Brand Identity and Brand Values

 Brand Identity of NME

NME’s brand identity is more of a serious, modern style as it focuses on Indie rock bands for example Arctic Monkeys who are current and are big in the music industry right now. The magazine has a clear identity as it has big, bold writing such as the masthead which is always at the in the top left hand corner. The front covers are usually simple yet informative of the content and style of the magazine.

Brand Values of NME

The brand values of NME - The genre indie rock as it is a style of music that is getting bigger and bigger, this also makes more current music a brand value of the magazine. The music events people go to such as festivals, gigs and concerts are an important part of the content in NME.

 Brand Identity of Q Magazine

The brand identity for Q Magazine would be sophisticated, modern and tasteful this would be because of the current and big in the music industry artist they use in the magazine. The masthead is always at the top and is clear and red which catches attention of the readers. The images on the front cover are of popular artist therefore catches the reader as it is what interests them and is a recognisable also.

Brand Values of Q Magazine

Q magazine values current music for its popular readership which also shows the magazine values modernity as the reader will be interested in new music and new genre as times change and new music is introduced.

Questionnaire

Media Questionnaire

1. What gender are you?

Female

Male

2. What socio-economics is appropriate for your family?

Group A (Professionals) -Upper middle class, e.g. Barristers, Doctors, Executives
Group B (Managerial) -Middle class, e.g. Bank Managers, Teachers
Group C1 (Non-Manual)-Lower middle class, white collar workers, e.g. Office Workers
Group C2 (Manual)-Skilled working class, Blue collar workers, e.g. Car Mechanic, Machine operators, Construction workers
Group D (Partly Skilled) - Semi or unskilled manual workers, e.g. Assembly line worker
Group E (Unskilled)-Casual workers, dependent on state benefits, students

3. What ages range are you?

 16-18

 18-20

 20+

4. How much would you be prepared to spend on buying the magazine?

£1

£2

£2.50

£2.50+

5. What kind of style would you prefer to see in the magazine?

 Girly

 Urban

 Gothic

 Light colours

 Dark colours

 Grey scale

 Neon Patterned

6. When reading articles do you prefer to see …

A lot of text? - 1

Mostly/ a lot of images? - 2

Sections of text and images? - 3

7. What part of the magazine interests you the most?

Front Cover

Back Cover

Main Article/Feature

Double page interview

Adverts

Contents page

Upcoming Music/Events

Reviews

8. Depending on your answer to question 7. Why?

Detailed Analysis and Textual Reading of NME magazine

http://prezi.com/udxa6-woear5/detailed-analysis-and-textual-reading-of-nme-magazine/#

Brand Identity and Brand Values

Brand Identity and Brand Values

Brand Identity

My magazine is going to be very simple/minimal so it is clear and bold yet it is going to be done in an effective way. The use of colour will be bold, bright but not  too much colour, I think this will give an strong look and help it stand out from others. The imagery style on the front cover will be simple background with possibly a mid/long shot of the model, this can then give the reader more information on style and content of the magazine. I think these elements will appeal to my target audience as I think the minimal effect will make it stand and attract audience to find out more from the limited content they can see.

Brand Values 

My magazine will represent exciting social activities as my target audience are readers that love going to festivals/clubs and are into that music type. My magazine will value you current and new music and I think this will interest the core reader as it is relevant to the likings. Also another value my magazine will focus on is style/fashion as there are a range in the target audience and if they see style they like, they are more likely to engage more with the magazine.

Target Audience Research Questionnaire

What genre of music magazine are you going to be constructing? The genre of music magazine I'm going to be constructing will be more focused on house, dance, Rap (chart music) as it is relevant to music industry of the certain age range . I have decided this as I think these genres are popular in the current generation and I believe it will give me a lot of feature and articles to talk about.
Will it be for a mainstream or niche audience? Why? I would say that my magazine will be more of a mainstream magazine as the music genre is relevant to this generation therefore is a shared interest of a wide majority.
 Is it similar to any existing products or is it going to be different? Explain how and why. My magazine will be similar to other product in terms of what features will be in the magazine for example interviews, upcoming singles. However my magazine will be different as the mix of genres I am choosing wouldn’t usually be put together.
Who will the core reader of your magazine be? The core reader of my magazine will be people who enjoy festivals and partying. The age range 16-25 as this I think is a broad age range to get a lot of readers and I also think that the music genre appeals to this age range and suits a lot of people style. Also the core readers might be interested in music festivals as the genre of music would most likely be found there. 
What artists do they like?
 The artists my target audience will be interested in, will be types of artists like Disclosure, Beyonce, AlunaGeorge, Chase and Status, Rihanna and Kanye West. These artists are artists that people can dance and sing to. They are artists that would most likely be seen at popular music festival such as Glastonbury.
How do they dress? Where do they shop? There is no specific way the core readers would dress as there is a range of styles in that area, but the shop people would most likely to shop in would be shops such as Topshop/Topman, American Apparel, River Island, as these shops have a broad range of styles to pick from and clothes for different occasions.
What products do they own or aspire to own?
The products my readers most likely would want to own would be expensive items of clothes, technology and designer wear as this is what the music artists they like would be owning.
 How do they spend their time? They typical core reader would enjoy spending time with their friends being social. They would also likely to be into to the night life, parties and festival scene (drinking) as they would probably be interested in dance and their music. 
Who will be your primary and secondary audience?
The primary audience would more likely be a teenager/early 20’s as they would be the audience that the magazine is targeting and aimed at and it would probably take their interest the most. The secondary audience would be their siblings/parents or friends maybe as they would have the magazine passed to them to read and have a look at.
What will their age ranges be?
The age range would be 16-25 as the magazine would interest a wide range of readers. I also think that 16 is the start of teenagers being more interested in their music and style.
 What will be the gender mix?
The gender mix of my magazine will be mixed, male and female as the genre of music doesn’t just suit one or the other also the music artist aren’t all just one gender. The magazine style will be a unisex magazine.
What will be the socio-economic mix? How do you know this?

Skill and Techniques I have learnt

Skill and Techniques I have learnt

With completing the preliminary activity I have developed knowledge and understanding of different software.

Using blogger.com I have learnt a new way of displaying work and ideas and have developed knowledge on using a blog. 

Also I have learnt about using the software Fireworks and what certain tools are used for, such as: kerning which is bring letters closer together and leding which brings lines closer together. I aswell have learnt how to create graphics and give them a professional on the software.

Contents Pages

These are my completed contents pages which have been developed from the structure. They follow the house style of the magazine so can be easily recognized. My final Contents page will be the larger second page as I think it shows more information and the layout is better.

Contents Structure and Layout

Contents Structure and Layout

These two contents structures are two of my simple layouts which I put together. The

heading is "Contents" for most contents pages to show what page they are on as a contents page is in most magazines. They both have a space for images to show information and relevance to some of the contents in magazine. There is also space for text - which is named text column as the text

on a contents page is used in columns.

This is another contents page layout but more developed as there is a more developed and designed heading more colour is used and the images are put in.

Pug Example

Pug Example

This is an example of a pug (otherwise called a starburst) which is used on the front cover of a magazine to promote something inside the magazine content. It stands out on the front of the magazine as it is in a different shape and has bold colours used in it. This example I made in fireworks using a range of tools they have.

Final Front Cover

I have chosen this cover as a final front cover as I think this one is simple but shows a good amount of information. I think readers will be about to engage well with the image and cover as it has a clear visual syntax. Also the cover have a pug with promotes content within the magazine which will pull the reader in.

Front cover examples

These covers are 3 examples that I could use for my actual front cover. They all include most of the essential features need for a front cover.
Masthead- The biggest font in a bright bold colour to draw the readers attention to it first,(start of visual syntax) it then show the name of the magazine.

    Pug- This promotes something in the contents of the magazine and stands out with the circle.

    Image- Close up image to engage reader and show expression.

    Headline- Showing most significant content (second biggest font)

    Cover lines- giving an insight to the readers of the content of the magazine

    Banner- Significant information about content