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.