Christopher6083: March 2012

Tuesday, 20 March 2012

Evaluation of the project

These two links below are to my evaluation videos. They explain my projuct as a whole and what I did through the making of my magazine.
Part 1

http://youtu.be/XkJF0ZiJjfU

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Part 2

http://youtu.be/7CydyI0aNqo

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The whole class made a prezi about institutions of magazines. My input to the prezi was the information about Bauer. In total there were four companies we had to research, these were Bauer, Hearst, IPC Media and Conde Nast. Some piece of key information I inputed are what genres of magazine they do, how many employees they have and its sister company, plus more. Here is the prezi

The NME magazine was made by IPC MEdia. There is numerous sections of information on the prezi. One of the key fact I found from the IPC Media was that in 2011 IPC Media had to shed their circulation year on year because of decline sales of music magazines NME and Uncut. Also recently Uncut published old NME interviews.

I believe my magazine is mostly mainstream. I believe this because it sticks to all of the common conventions. If a company had to make my magazine it would most likely to be Bauer or even IPC Media as they make mostly mainstream magazines, for example Q and Kerrang.

There are many advantages of using new technology whilst companies make there magazines, for example using the ipad to sell their magazines. This can save paper and trees which most of their audience will support. As if they only had it online they would only have to make one copy instead of hundreds. Also having a magazine on a piece of technology makes it easier to carry, as you can carry numerous magazines without it being really heavy or them getting crushed by luggage. However with that plus there are also negatives, for example K-Composite sell their magazines online only for free. This makes more people buy there magazine instead of others, making companies that make magazines with a price have less sell sales. Running another company out of a business or making a company sell their magazine for less money. Another disadvantage is that a magazine can't run out of battery where as media technology can.

Friday, 9 March 2012

Double page construction

Here is my construction of my double page spread. I stuck to common conventions and also listened to my target audience, however sometimes didn't follow what my target audeince wanted.

Here is my background of the Photoshop double page spread. I got this image to play on the fact that the star is called George England.

Next I made the flag look faded which I thought would make my writing stand out easier from the background.

After this I added page numbers to the bottom right and left this stuck to common conventions because every magazine tells the audience what page they are on. I also made sure that these numbers were the same as the ones on the images of the contents page. This makes the font stand out to the reader.

I then got an image of star and cut the black background out from around him to make him stand out next to the flag. This wasn't my plan at the start as I had planned to have the star out and about, not in the studieo however this didn't work out and I had to use an image that I had taken before hand.

After that I added text around the star telling the audience what the interview was about. Again I had to outline the text to make it easier to read off of the background. I made the text go around the star because as the audience read the text they can also see the image.

Next I added a title which I made blue. This colour again is unisex, however could be seen as a boys colour. I put this at the top of the page so it is the first thing that the audience will read.

Finally I added my interview with George onto a back of a guitar. I thought this was a really good idea to show what instruments George can play, giving the audience more information about the star. Taking the photo of the guitar was hard however as I had to edit the background of the image and it toke along time as it is a hard shape to work with.

Drafts of feature article

Here is my first draft of my feature page

Welcome the new kid on the block, George England. George has just released his first single, ‘Yes to running’, and in its first week after being released has already got the number one spot from under the noses of some majorly well-known celebrities. He is only 17 and is going strong already we think that he could be huge for years to come. A week after the song had got to number one we caught up with him at his first photo shot. After his photos were taken he had time to give us a quick chat on what he has planned for the future and about his first single. Here is what we asked him.

Hey George, what has life bee like after you got your first number one?

It has been amazing! Just the amount of people that walk up to me in the street now and know my name. Last week I was a nobody just a normal average Joe now people are always calling my name. To be honest its nice being at this photo shot as I can have time to think about stuff which I haven’t been able to the last week as its been manic.

So what do you prefer being a nobody or the star that you are now?

Ahh I love being the star that I am I have only been well known for a couple of weeks now and can’t wait for the rest of my career, however I don’t want to always be known for my first single I want to have bigger and better songs that get worldwide.

So does that mean that you are already thinking about your next single?

Of course I am. Being a celebrity you have to be thinking what you are going to do next or else people will start to forget about you and move on to other number one artists. Being in the music business is sort of like a football club, you always have to keep freshening yourself up or else you will become old and frustrating to watch, that’s what I have learnt from watching other music artists on the T.V before I released my hit.

Do you like watching sport then?

Yeah I do! That’s what I love behind all of the music. I never want to leave my sport behind it’s what I also love. People always think of music artists like music is their life and for some it is, however they have a life outside of the music industry.

You also said that you like other artists, what else do you listen too?

I listen to everything really there’s no type of music that I don’t enjoy. I mostly just sit down and watch the music channels to learn about whats hot and whats not, however in the past few weeks I haven’t been able to do that as I can’t watch myself on T.V I hate seeing myself singing.

So does that mean you won’t be watching it for a while then?

Well it depends if people want to listen to it and enjoy the song. If people do then I suppose I’ll just have to turn it off when it gets to me. But that’s what I want to happen; I want people to enjoy my songs just so that I know that they enjoy listening to me.

We had to leave the interview there as we ran out of time with George, although he did say that he would love to catch up with ‘The Incrowd’ readers again soon. He also asked us that if any of the readers had any questions they would like to ask him to email us at http://www.theincrowd.co.uk/ and next time we meet him we will ask him some of your questions.

Here is my second version of my feature page writing

Welcome the new kid on the block, George England. George has just released his first single, ‘Yes to running’, and in its first week after being released has already got the number one spot from under the noses of some majorly well-known music heavy weights. He is only 17 and is going strong already; he is defiantly one to watch. A week after the song had got to number one we caught up with him at his first photo shoot. After flirting shamelessly with our photographer Laura, he found time to answer our questions…

Hey George, what has life been like after you got your first number one?

I can’t explain it… Last week I was a nobody, average Joe, now people are shouting my name in the street. It is unreal! There are some major pluses, girls like Katie wouldn’t have looked at me last week now they are asking me to pose for them BLINDING!

So what do you prefer being a nobody or the star that you are now?

Ahh I love being the star that I am now! I have only been well known for a couple of weeks now and can’t wait for the rest of my career, however I don’t want to always be known for my first single I want to have bigger and better songs that get worldwide.

So does that mean that you are already thinking about your next single?

Do you like watching sport then?

You also said that you like other artists, what else do you listen too?

So does that mean you won’t be watching it for a while then?

Content page construction

Here is my creation of my contents page for my magazine. I found out what my target audience wanted through survey monkey and I also have stuck to common conventions to make the magazine more realistic if I was going to sell it.

I started a Photoshop blank page and made it black to suit my front cover and my target audience tomake it more unisex.

Firstly I added the masthead to the top left ccorner so it is the first thing the reader would see. I didnt make it as big as it was last time so I could addmore information on the page. This sticks to common conventions by having the masthead on the contents page.

I then added some text down the bottom of the page offering the audience wo win some prizes which stands out for the audience. As everybody likes to win prizes especially the target audience age range I have chosen and they are more likely to enter thus giving the magazine more publicity.

Next I added the word contents in big yellow writing. These colours are unisex as well which suits the target audience. This also helps the audience identify the page.

I then did another photoshot to get more images of my model. I made sure he was holding and instrument this time to show the audience what his musical talent is. I like the lighting in this photo as it makes the photo look part of the page.

I also went out and toke photos of other people to add another image to my contents page and offer the audience more than just George England. Showing what else there is in the magazine.

I added the date to the top right of the page again to remind the audience when the issue was published. It again stuck to common conventions by being in the top right corner.

I added the final image to the contents page of an actual group performing on stage to add a more realistic style to the magazine.

Next I added page numbers to the images so that the audience can find information about the images and learn new content. This also sticks to common conventions having page numbers on the images. If I were to do this bit again I would add information on the photo telling them who the model was.

After that I added titles down the left side of the page with page numbers. This tells the reader what is in the magazine by just stating different pages. If I were to this section again I would add more titles to tell thereader more stuff about whats inside the magazine.

Finally I added small piece of texts underneath each title. This helps the reader know about the sections. It doesn't give key information away. Which sticks to common conventions just having little pieces of text just telling the audience what they can find out in the sections.

Front cover construction

Here is my creation of my front cover of my music magazine. I made sure that I listened to my target audience which I gave me information through survey monkey. I also made sure that I stuck to common conventions to make it more realistic.

Here is my model for my front cover. I firstly did a photoshot to get images for my magazine. I believe this photo sticks to common conventions as its a medium shot with the model looking directly at the audience. I added the image to Photoshop and unlocked the background so I could edit it if I wanted to.

I then did research into the masthead, looking at the different styles I could have had it in. I decided to get the same font but have the written up the side and have the incrowd written along which I believe suits my target audience in being rebelious. I made sure that it toke up 1/8 of the page to stick to common conventions.

I then found another font to have written across the page to tell the audience who the model is. I made it black and white so it stands out from the page and they are both unisex colours.

I added a 'Welcome' font which looks more bubbly to add a more casual effect on the reader to welcome the star into their lives, to learn information about the new model.

I then added a slogan underneath the masthead so the audience could remember the magazine through the slogan. The slogan also gives away whta the magazine is also about by saying 'Never miss a beat!', this is the only major give a way that it is a music magazine.

Next I added another piece of bubble writing which tells the reader about what else is inside the magazine. It joins on from the 'Welcome George England' which makes it easier for the audience to read it.

I then added so well known names underneath telling the audience what else is inside the magazine. I had to edit them so that the audience could see them on the page as they were to dark and didnt stand out. However by changing the outline we can now read them.

I then added the main story text, next to the star. I made it different colours to make it stand out from the rest of the text. I put it near the top of the page to make sure it is the second piece of text the audience read behind the masthead. It also gives the 'Welcome George England' a bit of a build up.

After that I added a bar code. I did this so it stuck to common conventions and there was just enough space to fit it next to the other groups names.

I added a date so that the audience can tell when this edition was published. The date is commonly found in the top left hand corner so to stick to common conventions I put it at the top left.

Finally I added a sticker to tell the audience there is a free poster inside. This filled up space and also sells the magazine more to the target audience as they will be getting free stuff.

I made sure that my model was wearing what typically a youth would wear. For example a hoodie and maybe a beanie hat. This represents my audience more as this is what stereotupically my audience would wear.

Masthead construction

Design ideas for my music magazine

Here are some design ideas for my magazine front cover logo. I may not use any off the below depending on what image i use however the fonts below are the ones i like so far.

Here is a font that i think would suit a rapper. I like the fact that it looks graffitied however using this for my masthead wouldn't work as the font isn't for everyone, but using it for the name of the musician maybe an option. I think having it as white writing and putting it on a black background would really work.

I think this one looks like a sports magazine masthead. I don't think it would work for a music magazine, however i do think it stands out with the bold outline. To this font i may add colour to the inside if i use it as i think it may give it that edge and more of my target audience will like it.

This font looks very funky, however I believe that it looks more heavy metal and not the genre of masthead that I want as it wont suit my target audience. I do like the colour of black and white however I wont be using this for my masthead.

Here is another font I like the look of. I like this because of the flames coming up from behind the writing. However I believe this is because I am of the male gender and as I'm trying to make a unisex magazine I think this is too for the male sex.

Here I really like the colours of the font I think that the red definitely suits the black background. It stands out from the background, however I'm not so keen on the flames for this one I much prefer the font above.

This masthead is really cool I like the way that the fonts swerves with the writing. I think the white stands out from the black background, I think I will definitely have white writing on a black background. Although I believe the font is to fin in places especially the letter B and O. I wont be using this font for this reason however I would like to use something along these lines.

I really like this font I believe this is the best font so far just the way that it slants in italics. The writing stands out as it is all roughly the same size for each letter. The colours stand out as well from the background which I think that my target audience will like.

I dont think much of this font as I believe it looks to girly. As I am trying to make a unisex magazine I wont be using this masthead for my front cover.

The masthead I will be using is the one that I have given the name of the Incrowd to. I believe this is the best one out of the ones that I researched. When I use this on the front cover I want to add 'The' so it will be called 'The Incrowd'. I think I may also give the 'The' a slant to read upwards. I believe this will also suit my target audience because of their age group. My target audience age group is around the age of a teenager. Dick Hedbridge once said "Youth as fun, youth as a trouble maker". I believe given the title a slant targets my audience by it being rebellious.

Here I am cropping an image. I had to crop an image to make it easier to edit and to get rid of any background space behind my model.

Here is my image before I cropped it in photoshop.

Here is my image whilst I cropped it to get rid of unwanted background space.

Here is my image after I cropped it. This image will be used on my contents page.

Original images

Here are some of my original images that I took whilst doing my photo shot of my friend. Below I will discuss why I used certain photos and not others.

Here is the photo that I used for my front cover. I used this image because looking at some of the common conventions of a front cover some of them have medium to close up shots. Another reason for me using this image is that the model is looking directly at the readers, this makes the audience feel like he is looking at them. The lighting of the image is mostly around his face which is good as it helps the audience identify the person.

Here is an image that I didnt use for my magazine. This is because it is a long shot and you can barely see the model. This breaks common conventions of a music magazine. The lighting of the background is all wrong as well, as you cant really make his face out from the light reflecting.

Here is an image that I used for my contetnt page.I think this photo really works because again he is looking directly at the camera. You can see the model however most of the lighting is on the guitar which I think is a really cool effect. It is a medium shot which makes the reader be able to identify the star easier.

Here is another image that I didnt use. I didnt use this image because the model isnt looking towards the audience thus not connecting with the reader. This also breaks common conventions. However I do like the way that the light is directed towards the end of the guitar.

Here are some of the photos that my teacher took of me whilst I was doing the photo shot.