Main Task - Production Schedule

Mapping Out the Future!

This production schedule will give me deadlines in which I will need to finish each part of this magazine. For each of the points, there is a date, and a description of what I will need to do. Also, for the creating of my magazine I have given myself 4 hours of lesson time to make each page, and lots of time at home. Each page is done within two weeks. After that I have given myself time to go over what I've done.

 

Main Task - Original Copy of Double Page Spread Article

The Main Article

Below is a screenshot of my articles that will be on my double page spread. The first one will be about the main artist the magazine is covering, which according to my research, it is best to be an interview, which I've managed to write. The next one is the section at the bottom of the double page spread called WeeklySnap! This section of the magazine engages with the readers making them want to get involved with the magazine.

 

Main Task - Shot Plans

Pictures

According to my research, pictures are the main aspect of a music magazine as it draws people in to look at it. To do this my shot plans will give me an idea of what and how to take a picture to get the best final product. There is a shot plan for each of the pictures that you see on my draft page.

Shot plans from reidyluc

Main Task - Drafts of Page Layouts

What It'll Look Like

With all the research done, the drafting starts. This will help me when I'm creating my final product because this gives me a clue of what my music magazine will look like, and also I can change things on it when making it. Here I have a preliminary draft for each of the three pages and then a final draft.

Front Page

Contents Page

Double Page Spread

 

Main Task - Title Block Analysis

Analysis of Pop Magazine Titles

To make sure I get a title that stands out the public I will go through existing pop magazine titles and analyse them which will show me how to get the best possible title design as possible. I will focus on types of font, colour, size and other properties.

Main Task - Costume/Props Planning

Starting to Come Together!!

I have to now think about what my front cover is going to look like, with all of the images that I will photograph. Already due to my audience research survey I know that the main focus on the front cover will be a single artist.

The next question is male or female? To answer this question I will now look at real pop magazines, at least 10, and take the most popular gender to get my answer. The 10 were picked at random and the final ratio was 7 females to 3 males.

So as you can see I will focus my magazine front cover on a female, which will also now help me with the costuming of this single artist. The female will be the main artist in which my magazine will focus the most on but there will be a little article on a male artist, which I will need to do some costuming as well. To conform to a pop music magazine my artist will look stylish, maybe with a medium shot which will show the top half of the body and the face.

This is a possible shot for the front cover of my pop music magazine. It  shows from the waist up, which is a medium shot.

Female Artist

As you can see from the drawings below, the character will be positioned in front of a wall, or another prop such as a tree, surrounded by grass which gives the magazine a fresh feel, and will also link in with the colour scheme of light blue, dark blue, light green and dark green. The costume has to represent a new artist, who is fashionable and looks good. To represent this in the costuming I will put the female in a knee length dress. This can give a feel of a pop music magazine as it shows them as fun, but not to classy. If I were to put them in an ankle length dress it would feel more like a classical music magazine. She will wear a white dress which will contrast with the colour scheme making the magazine stand out.



This will be the type of dress I will use for my main female artist

The artist is against the wall. The picture shows a general feel of how the character will be positioned and where about it will be taken

This is the dress that the character will wear, but not in red. The red is to outline the dress, making it easier for the costuming to be done. 

 

Male Artist

This character will be part of the sub story which will be found on the double page spread of my magazine. He will wearing plain clothes, maybe a random t-shirt and a pair of chinos, giving him a casual but smart look. I will position him indoors, maybe pretending to record music, which means I will need to use a microphone as a prop, or might have an action shot of him walking, which I can make a section in my magazine about celebrities in public. Here are some illustrations;

This shot can show the character walking in the streets, in front of some shops which is where I may take this picture. This can show a section in the magazine where some celebrities are out and think there is no paparazzi about. It can be called 'Reality'

This is the smart/casual dress code for the male

Main Task - Designing a Title

How Can I Make This?

Now I've got my reader profile done, I will need to start designing my title in order to do the next task; Title Block and Analysis. To make the magazine I will need to download the most popular font from my questionnaire and then design it on Adobe Photoshop CS5.

The font that I have chosen to use is Harabara instead of Champagne & Limousines due to the fact that Harabara looks more like a pop music magazine font that the other one.

This font is more formal, which is the reason I'm not using it in my final product

This is more of a sans-serif font, which makes the magazine look more fun, and informal which is what a pop music magazine should be

I CANT DO THIS TASK UNTIL I DOWNLOAD THE FONT FILE

Main Task - Reader Profile

Who's Who

This is my reader profile, which will tell you who will be reading my magazine, based on all the answers I got with my research group. I will also use the function on SurveyMonkey to see who answered 'Yes' to the question about reading pop magazines and base my reader profile on those answers. This will give me proper representations for the reader profile as I will know the age, and gender of the person.

Here are the type of questions I will answer when writing this reader profile;

1. What is the typical age and gender of your reader?
2. What do they do for a living?
3. Where do they live (e.g. urban or rural)?
4. What are their hobbies and interests?
5. When do they listen to music? What are they getting out of it?
6. Where do they buy their music, and how often?
7. What are their favourite artists?

SoundBite Reader Profile 1

Emma, 14, reads pop magazines regularly, and always listens to pop music ever since she was introduced to it. She has grown up with all of the contemporary pop music artists, such as Jessie J, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, and loves listening to all of their new tracks as she looks up to them as role models. She is still at school at the moment meaning she doesn't have that much money to spend on her music so she saves up all that she can to buy her favourite artists music. When buying her music she mainly uses iTunes as it is much easier than going to the shops, and also much more effective as she owns all of the latest technology; the iPhone and iPad, which are bought for her at Christmas and her birthdays. She doesn't play any instruments but is keen in her music classes as it interests her. She hasn't been to any music festivals due to her age but is planning to when she's older. Music is a great part in her life as she listens to it everywhere she goes; on the bus to school, long car journeys, when doing homework and in bed.

This picture can possibly represtent Emma, a 14 year old.

SoundBite Reader Profile 2

Mark, 17, occasionally listens to pop music, but still reads pop music magazines. The main artists he listens to are Bruno Mars and David Guetta because he likes the sound of it. He likes the heavy beat and the unique style of music which separates it from other genes such as Rock and RnB. Pop music is somewhat calm and easy for the ears, which he likes. Mark is studying IT, Business, Maths and English in 6th Form, meaning he has plenty time to listen to music when he is studying. It makes it easier for more information to go in, meaning he gets better grades. It is his preferred learning style. Mark also has a part time job as a waiter in a restaurant. This is because he likes the speed of job, keeping him on the ball and making him more alert. This job means he has less time to listen to music, but listens to it on the train home, which calms him down. He is a quite person who likes to keep himself to himself, meaning he can sit by himself and listen to music all day, without worrying about anything. He prefers buying CD's as he likes to have something to touch and look at, instead of buying his music on the computer. The shops that he buys his music is in old record shops that give the music a special feel.

Mark is a 17 year old who is quiet and likes pop music

 

Main Task - Title

What can it be?

My magazine will need a title, which will be the first thing my audience sees. Some ideas for magazine names could be;

• Sound
• Listen
• High
• Popular

To get the best title of a magazine I will make another survey on surveymonkey and see what the public have to say about my recommended names, and maybe they can help me think of the best possible one! Here is my survey;




This consists of one question which is easier for the reader to answer and the survey gets straight to the point

The title that I eventually chose was SoundBite, which wasn't put on my questionnaire. In the end I went around to my friends and asked them what they would prefer, and then came up with the idea SoundBite myself, which they also liked and said I represents a pop music magazine.



This is what I came up with

Main Task - Analysis of my Survey

Completed!

Now I've got over 40 responses on my survey I will have to analyse it so I can make the best possible final product. These results will tell me what to focus on and what to avoid. Here is a presentation below with an analysis of each of my questions.

 

Main Task - Writing the Questionnaire

Analysis done, need to do research now!

Now that I have looked at different pop music magazines, I have to make a questionnaire to do some research, just like on the Apprentice, with a research group. I have made a questionnaire on a Word document and then input it onto SurveyMonkey. I have thought up 10 unique questions which are specific to my magazine and given the link of my questionnaire to people through Facebook, and even asked teachers to give the link to their class to fill out in lesson. Sadly, tomorrow is the deadline to get 40 responses and I only have 33 so hopefully I can get it done. This is the link;

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/B9LGJMP

Here are a couple of screen shots of my questionnaire that I wrote, which is visible to the public.

Before putting the survey on surveymonkey.com, I had to plan it do I would get the best possible questions

This is the screen the public can see when filling in the questionnaire

This is the view you get when you complete the questionnaire. this screen makes sure you don't put another response, which makes the survey fair and unbiased

Main Task - Double Page Spread

Main Task - Contents Page Analysis

And Here's Another One......

The contents page is the page where the readers are shown what all of the pages in a magazine are.

Contents Page 1

The top of the contents page has the mast head of 'We Love This.' The 'O' is shaded in giving it a uniqueness and also the font is in sans serif that conforms to the rest of the magazine. From the top of the page the readers are unaware that this is the contents page as there is no clear heading showing it but regular readers of this magazine will know this from the mast head at the top. The colour of this font is black which stands out as there is a obvious contrast against the white background.

Behind this white background there is a blue box behind which also contrasts against the white background. The colour scheme of each of the magazines change in every issue but they stay the same in that particular issue. In this issue, the colour scheme is blue, white, black and yellow which are all bright and vibrant colours which contrast against each other making a magazine that stands out.

In the top right corner of the page, we see the magazine name which is large, but doesn't cover the whole page. This conforms to other music magazines as they like the readers to know what they are looking at which helps them.

Next, we see a small body of text along the left hand side of the page. This gives a small brief of what the magazine is about, which informs the readers of what the magazine is. There are many pictures on the page which illustrate what is going to be inside the magazine along with writing explaining what each of the pictures is about making it easy for the reader to see. Also, the page numbers are all in the same font and are larger that the text making it easier to see what page the information is on. The font also stays the same in the bottom right of the page.

The pictures for each of these pages are different sizes, which illustrate the importance of each of the pages. The large image in the centre of the page shows the main article and the others around it just show the general pieces of working in this magazine.

Contents Page 2

This is a Billboard music magazine contents page. The masthead on the page clearly shows what the page is with its sans serif font type and the black contrasts against the white background. Next along the left side of the page there is a music charts section which songs have hit the charts for that week. It is clearly laid out into different sections, with Albums, Songs and This Week on .biz.

There are limited pictures on this contents page, with three at the top which show the different music artists and on what page they are on. This is a bit limites as there arent any descriptions below meaning the reader doesn't know what these pages are on. Below this there is a larger picture which is the same as above where there is a picture and a page number, clearly not showing what this specific page is about.

The actual contents page descriptions shows in full the page naumber with a little description of what each page is about which is what normal pop music magazines show, maing that it is conforming to a layout. The colour scheme on this page is the same with blue, white and black, which are the main colors that stand out to the reader.

Main Task - Front Cover Analysis

Analysis Starts....

Before I start to create my music magazine I will need to look at different magazines within my chosen genre and analyse them, which will help me in the final product.

Front Page 1

The font for the masthead is plain and simple but the colour added in to it makes it look more appealing for the younger people. This attracts people in due to the bright colours which also conforms to what a pop magazine should look like. Also the font is in sans serif which gives it a younger feel, which is what its target audience is.

The colours in the masthead draw the readers to it as it isn't stereotypical for a mast head to have this type of styling. This brings contrast to it as it pulls it away from the main image giving it volume and almost bringing it out of the page.

The main cover line shows in big who the artist is, KE$HA and conforms to the typical size of a main cover line where it is about the same size as the masthead. It also follows the colour scheme of the magazine and is in serif font which makes it stand out from all the other writing to draw the attention of the readers. The little blue box behind this main cover line also makes out stand out.

The other cover lines are on the side and conform to a standard pop music magazine as they don't divert your attention away from the main image. The yellow and white writing follow the main colour scheme of the magazine and also include lots of information of what's inside the magazine. The size of text is right for the page as it is big enough to see but not big enough to cover the main image

The image for the front cover is positioned to take up the whole front page, which is what a normal main image does. This magazine only has one image on the front page which doesn't make it look over crowded which is what some magazines look like. The artist is in high key lighting which shows her in her full light and there is a close up of her face. The main conformity of a pop music magazine main image is to show just the artist which this follows.

Front Page 2

This is a Blender pop music magazine. The main colour scheme of of this magazine is orange, black and white but this colour scheme changes every issue to make the magazine look different each time you read it which draws the readers in. The masthead is bold in orange sans serif font. This stands out from the white background but some of the letters in the masthead are unreadable which can create some difficulty to some of the readers.

The main cover line is bold a well, but doesn't stand out that much due to the size of the font. The main cover line is around the same size as the other cover lines but it also shows the artist that is shown, which can help the readers that don't have that type of knowledge. The other cover lines are in bold and clearly shows what is in the magazine which puts information across the the readers.

Finally, the main image is large, and shows one artist, which conforms to what a pop music magazine looks like. The artist is wearing fashionable clothes which is also what artists in a music magazine look like. The pop artists are always shown looking their best. The main image covers the whole page which is also what most of the main images do but it is covering the masthead which is slighly odd for any other music magazine but normal for the Blender music magazine as they always have the 'nd' covered with an artist.

Main Task - Mood Board

Mood Board

A mood board is;

"Mood boards are often used by graphic designers to enable a person to illustrate visually the direction of style which they are pursuing. However, mood boards can also be used to visually explain a certain style of writing, or an imaginary setting for a storyline. In short, mood boards are not limited to visual subjects, but serve as a visual tool to quickly inform others of the overall 'feel' (or 'flow') that a designer is trying to achieve. Creating mood boards in a digital form may be easier and quicker, but physical objects often tend to have a higher impact on people because of the more complete palette of sensations physical mood boards offer, in contrast with the black & white or colour-prints of a digital mood board. Mood boards can also be painted too."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mood_board

 

This mood board is all about pop music, with quotes, pop artists, album artwork and also a colour board with bright colours on it as well. I can use this board when making a music magazine as I will be able to see what the pop genre is all about, which this will also give me inspiration when doing my work. It will be a reference point.

 

Main Task - My Chosen Genre

What I Have Chosen to Do

When choosing my genre, I have to choose certain aspects which can help me to make the best possible final project. These aspects are;

• Target audience
• Representations of the artists
• Conventions of the magazine

For me, the best possible genre to do is Pop. This is because it is popular in today's society, meaning there is lots more resources for me to look at and get inspiration from, which means there is also a lot more to discuss and analyse.

The other reason behind me choosing this genre is because I already have an idea of how the product will look, including the images of the five original photos i will produce as well. Also, I already have  vision for the models I will use for my magazine and have already had the people say that they would like to model for this music magazine, which means less fuss when it comes to the photography.

The magazine will have many photos of artists. These artists will be represented as classy, but with a young feel about them. They will have new fashionable clothes, which is what most pop icons wear. The artists will be shown in a positive happy light which will be reflected by a high key lighting, which shows the artists of who they really are and also implies they have nothing to hide. The setting of the main cover photo will be outdoors.

The magazine will also conform to many conventions of a normal pop magazine. It will consist of mainly bright, vibrant colours, which will attract the target audience, which is mostly teenagers. The layout of the magazine will consist of a masthead, which is big and bold, and a couple of cover lines around the outside which will be illustrated by some smaller photos. The artist is going to be the main aspect of the magazine, and the font will be all in sans-serif font, making it look fresh and fun. Here are the types of fonts I will use;

 

Main Task - Genre Analysis

First Research on Genres

Now my preliminary task has been completed, I have to choose a genre to start my music magazine on. I will go through a good handful of genres, and analyse them by looking at their target audience, representation of artists and conventions of the magazine. After looking at this I will choose my genre of the music magazine, which is best suited to me where I feel I will make the best product.

Music Magazine Genres from reidyluc

Preliminary Task - Evaluation/Final Product

Finishing Off.....

As I have finished my preliminary task, creating a front cover and contents page for a school magazine, I will evaluate what I have done, which could help me create a better final task - which is to create a music magazine

Here is my final product;

Q1) In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge conventions of real media   products?

     

Q2) How did you attract/address your audience?

Q3) What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

When making my school magazine I used Photoshop to edit, and a camera to take pictures. When photographing, I learnt to take pictures away from the light otherwise I would get a shadow on the person I was taking a photo of. Also, I learnt different kinds of shots, medium, long etc., which helped with the final product. Photoshop was challenging to start off with but I eventually got the hang of it towards the end of the preliminary task. I learnt how to size the page, creating it to an A4 size. I also learnt how to cut bits of photos off such as the main image in the front cover. Also throughout this preliminary task I have learned how to use internet products such as Prezi.com, which was useful for creating my school magazine analysis. Hopefully for the main task I will be able to use more of the tools in photoshop to make a better final product.

Q4) What are the strengths and weaknesses of your final product?
 

Preliminary Task - Analysis

My Analysis

Before making a school magazine for my preliminary task, I decided to analyse an actual school magazine so i would get influences from it. This would give me an idea for where to place all of my mastheads, coverlines etc.. and also would eventually help me in my evaluation skills so I would be able to do an evaluation for my preliminary task.

      

Preliminary Task - Drafts

The School Magazine Plan

My school magazine has a draft, which I mainly kept in line with when creating it. The pictures below show the front cover and contents page, with annotations added, so it shows why I have these features and the conventions of a school magazine I have used. The draft shows what kind of pictures I should have included, which as you can see in my recent post, I have stuck to these pictures, but I have changed the picture about 'Winter Weather' as I felt it would be difficult to get this picture.

Front Cover

 

Contents Page 

 

In my contents page I have manage to impliment many skills, where it conforms to a professional school magazine contents page. It includes the logo for the magazine, and a specific table layout for the contents.

 

 

Preliminary Task - Photos

Starting Off


The brief for this preliminary task was to include five ORIGINAL photos, which I have include below. So, I went out with a plan of what each of my pictures should have looked like and came back with these. All of these pictures were included meaning I exceeded the photo brief.

These photos show how what are the pros and cons of each which will also help me with the main task - a music magazine.



The white house - this is used for the front cover of the school magazine. This photo may be changed as it portrays the school in a bad way due to the weather. It also makes the front cover look very dull.

I will photo shop this picture and will put it on the bottom left of the front cover. This picture shows a student in school uniform and also shows the school logo which shows the readers what the school uniform is like.

This picture may be used as the front cover. Either this or the top photo. This shows the front of the school and shows the enormity of it as well.

This photo will illustrate the winter weather on the contents page - maybe photo shop it to have some snow on the ground

This is for the contents page, a picture of someone revising, showing that students are hard working,

The picture of the piano will also be used on the contents page of the school magazine. It will illustrate the different school activities there are.



This is going to be used on the contents page showing the new sixth form centre that is being built.



This is also for the contents page which will be the main image in the contents page, as it will be the main focus in the school magazine.