Preliminary Activity

The two pictures above are pieces of work that I have done using Photoshop to make a school magazine. I took the images myself and selected these three from 24 different photos. I chose the cover page image because ‘Cam’ had eye contact with the camera and also the way he is standing made it easier to layout my text and headings.

I chose the font because I thought it was easy to read and also bold for the audience to see. I drew the colour of the heading font out from the badge on ‘Cam’s football shirt to keep within the colour scheme of my page. The colour scheme that I chose to do for this preliminary activity is white, navy and blue. This stereotypically makes the magazine look more male directed however my target audience would be anyone between the age of 16 and 18.

Magazine Covers

Here are a few examples of magazine covers that helped influence me into using a brighter colour scheme.

The use of the colour pink on this magazine cover will stand out to the audience. As well as this it also looks good layering on top of the models pink dress.

This ELLE magazine cover has used the colour and pattern from the models outfit in the title. The use of yellow adds something different to this cover. 

This cover page is full of bright colours that engage the audience into different areas of the magazine. I especially like the use of the pink that has been used for the title and also the surrounding shapes and some of the text. You can clearly see that this colour scheme is similar to mine of blue, pink and black. 

Mini Survey

Question 1: How many days of the week do you sit down and read a music magazine?

Person 1:  5 days at the most

Person 2:  3 days

Person 3:  most days in the evening so 6 or 7

Person 4: 2 days

Person 5:  Like once every 2 weeks

Question 2:  What draws your attention to make you buy a music magazine?

Person 1: The Artists that I like

Person 2: Good theme

Person 3: If it looks good

Person 4: If I like the cover people

Person 5: Sometimes layout and what’s inside

Question 3: What do you like most about the theme pop/chart?

Person 1: The colours on it

Person 2: How its varied so more people will like it

Person 3: How different all the artists are

Person 4: The way it could be basic or really different from other magazines

Person 5:  The surprise of who’s in it

Question 4: Do you like the name CONFIDE for a title?

Person 1: Yeah

Person 2: I like it

Person 3: Yes

Person 4: Yes

Person 5: Its good yeah


Question 5: Which of the following music genres do you like? Pop, rock, indie, alternative, other

Person 1: All of them really

Person 2: Pop

Person 3: Chart so all of them

Person 4: Rock

Person 5: Indie and other

 

Question 6: Would you read/buy this style of magazine if you saw it in a shop?

Person 1: Yeah

Person 2: Depending on the price

Person 3: Yes

 

Person 4: Maybe

Person 5: Yeah I like what it looks like at the minute

Draft Magazine Cover 2

Test Shots Analysis

 

Basic long shot of Eleanor that could potentially be used on the cover of my magazine. She is central in the frame and is smiling therefore would create the impact that the magazine is inviting to all of the target audience and a nice and engaging magazine to read.

These two shots of Charlotte would show two different styles of magazine. The image on the left is quite close up and her hair fills the frame (magazine is full of image and music style) and the image on the right is a lot more subtle. Both of these images could be used on the cover of the magazine however the image on the right could also be used in a double page spread as the main image.

 

This close up image of Lucy is Landscape therefore would be best suited for a double page spread.

I really liked this text shot of Eleanor and Charlotte as they are positioned like a real band. (Perhaps the lead singer slightly furthers forward and the harmony singer in the back). I think this image would work for a cover, however it would be hard to find space around the image to put certain text needed for the magazine. A question of where would I put the magazine title etc.




I have used the image for my contents page as I feel it has plenty of room down the left hand side for the text and information.

 The following three images are the images that I also used on my contents page, to give the audience and market an indication of what would be in my magazine.
  

 

This is the picture that I have used on my double page spread as I feel it looks very professional and it shows the band members clearly for the audience to see almost as if it was a profile picture.

 

 

This is my magazine cover photo as it is an instant profile of my band as a long shot image. For my cover I did however zoom in on the image to crop out the corners as there was a slight error with the framing.

Draft Double Page Spread

Draft Contents Page

Draft Cover Page

Inital Design Idea:Confide

This is my design idea for the cover page of the Confide magazine of which I would like to make. I have labelled what each feature is significant to for my magazine and have evaluated what relation it would have to music. 

60 Minute Magazine In Steps

These are the 7 different steps that I went through to make my magazine cover in just one hour. I started with just a basic image of Paloma Faith and for the image there was a slight gap at the top between the picture and the top of the page. 

In this step I put a coloured box at the top so that there wasn’t a white area. I made the colour the same by drawing out the colour from the background of the image of Paloma Faith.

Next I just simply added the title. I chose to use this font as I felt it was bold and would stand out to the market. I made it to size 140 as it was what fitted best without it looking at all squashed. 

For this step all I did was put Paloma’ hair over the top of the heading, this in my opinion makes the cover look much less block laid out and slightly more professional. 

 Now I added the barcode to my cover. I decided to put in the bottom left hand corner so that it wouldn’t stand out to much over the other features of the magazine. A barcode is only going to be used on purchase so it therefore didn’t need to be too big or prominent.

In this step I just added the text of the issue number, the month of the issue and also the price. I feel this is important to have on the cover however it doesn't need to be too big.

Finally I added the text about the cover girl, Pamola Faith, and I wrote her name and something related to her. Having her name on the front would to begin with attract any of her fans but also anyone who likes that style of music.

25 Word Pitch

Pitch preparation

'Confide' is a female, on-trend magazine for 14-20 year olds that reveals the secrets of the music charts in a unique way through visual content…

Words:

·        Female

·        Young

·        Unique

·        Music

·        Charts

·        Style

·        Secrets

·        Creative

·        £3.75

·        Fancy

·        Modern

·        On-trend

·        Visual

·        Imagination

·        Glamorous

Development of My Magazine Title

For the name of my magazine I have been researching different magazines and how they have been styled. I would like my magazine to be quite feminine and for now I think I want my target market to be females between the ages of 16-20. I want to look unique and to have a memorable title.

Initially I was thinking of aiming my magazine at younger teenagers and was going to call it ‘Winx’ however when thinking about this title in more details it could be connected to sexual connotations. I would have done this title in quite a bright tone that would stand out to an audience.

The next area I started looking at was the idea of using a latin word. I thought this would be a good way of making my music magazine look and sound unique when compared to magazines like ‘Bliss’ or ‘POP!’. The words below are the ones I have been looking at.

English                       Latin                          

Dove                           Columba

Girls                            Puellae

Flower                        Flos

Overall, my preferred choice is ‘Puellae’ which means girls in Latin. I think this is good because it sounds unique and catchy therefore people are more likely to remember the title or develop an interest. With it meaning girls, it could potentially make the readers feel special as it would be a music magazine just for them so it would have more of their musical interests. The word ‘Puellae’ also sounds quite pretty and when I think of the word I think of the colour blue. This could be used within my colour scheme for the cover.

The next idea that I came up with is 'Confide'. This would be like a behind the scenes music magazine, talking about the charts and what the artists are really like. The definition of confide is all about secrets and what is being hidden therefore this would give my magazine something interesting about it.  Another reason why I like this magazine title idea is because it could again make the audience think they have their own personal magazine that only tells them 'secrets' because it would be confiding its secrets with the audience.

Analysis of existing Magazine Titles

For this area I will be looking at and analysing different magazine titles, there fonts, colour decision and style.

This is the first title I will be looking at, it has been taken from the Cosmopolitan magazine which is a magazine about a variety of things including fashion. This magazine doesn't have a set colour scheme for every magazine and they mix it up making every one different. The font for this magazine title, I like, because it is easy to read and is quite bold so would be eye catching to the market. Having all the letters level with each other rather than being slightly scattered is a benefit because it prevents the magazine from looking untidy and unprofessional. If the cover was to have a lot of writing and images, the title wouldn't want to be all over the place as it would need to keep some sense of layout and precision.
The name Cosmopolitan defined means something that is familiar with and at ease in many different countries and cultures. This is good to have as a name of a magazine as it would look involving to many different countries and cultures which could therefore improve sales.

This is another title example and this is the KERRANG! magazine which is a music magazine for a specific genre of music that is much more defined. This magazine title is a lot less formal and looks more scruffy to me. From simply looking at it I could define who this magazine is aimed towards and I'm sure many other people could develop an opinion of this magazine title quickly. Having the white lines going over the work adds an extra effect to the writing.
When researching this magazine name I gained two results, one of which was about the magazine itself. It said that the magazine was a long running rock and metal/punk magazine which runs an awards ceremony and in recent years has expanded into a TV station and radio station. As well as this it also spoke about how 'Kerrang' is the sound that a guitar makes and this relates to the music of which the magazine talks about.
Overall I think the name of this magazine is clever in the way that it is named after the noise a guitar makes and I can now relate the lines on the name to the strings of a guitar and the way they are long and thin.

For now this is the final title that I will be looking at and it is from the Bliss magazine that is directed and marketed towards young girls.
For all of their magazine issues the title is a different colour and that could be to go with the person on the cover but it is also related to the colour scheme that they have chosen for that particular magazine. The definition of bliss is actually perfect happiness and great joy so having this as the title for young girls to see is very appropriate. It is appropriate because it is positive and will portray a happy style of living from reading the magazine.
On a magazine I think that this bold title that is easy to read is very good because it means that in a shop or online it could get anyone's attention for them to then read the articles and be interested in what it’s about. This then makes the magazine develop and gain more readers.
Overall I really like this title because I think that it is very suitable for the target audience but also because it is clear and easy to read. Sometimes on magazines titles can be difficult read. 

Initial Research On Chart Magazine/Styles

The Billboard Magazine and what they do?

 

This magazine is a chart music magazine that talks about upcoming artists and ones that are hot that week or month. They aim to suit a variety of audiences and they make their magazines and online articles as up to date as they can. The Billboard charts magazine finalises and defines the popularity of songs or albums in the United States of America. The results that are made by the public’s choice are published in the Billboard Magazine. These chart results are known as the Billboard biz charts and are basically online charts that are extended from the magazine. They do provide chart music results weekly and they have regular magazines also.

I like what Billboard magazine have done to this cover page on the left hand side as they have used the colours from the logo of the magazine and have sectioned off all of the text so it can be easily read and grouped together when reading. I also like the image for this cover as it is very simple and isn't too outgoing. Another reason why I like this cover is the fact that they have stuck to a particular layout. I think for this they have related the cover to the F layout quite well. They have the heading across the top, writing all down the left hand side and then the girl's (Carly Rae Jepson) top has fallen off her shoulder and if you follow the line of her sleeve this would make the centre of the F letter. Another way it could be the F layout would be following the line of the blue boxed text as it goes slightly further out than the other texts. Having a layout for a cover is important and looks better as it appears more professional and better laid out to the market.

 

In this picture are the charts of the week starting from the 12^th of January. All of these songs are a variety of genres and would be suitable for many different audiences. This would be good for my magazine as it means I can supply all target markets that are interested in the charts with something interesting and relatable to read. If I was to do a chart magazine, I wouldn't only do information and news about the latest artists etc, but I would also include the latest charts and how they have come out and this would include the market more as it would be there choice. I would also do a section about their opinions on the new music that is out and whether they think that it deserved to be in the top four of five songs.

 

This is an image of a chart topper, Ed Sheeran. As a chart member I am looking at his style of dress to see if I could use this for inspiration when doing my own magazine. He is wearing very basic clothing, of a black polo shirt and black trousers. On top of this he has black accessories, including a guitar band and a watch. The guitar he is holding is also a dark colour and the most predominant colour in the image would be the orange/ginger of his hair. You can see shades of this tone as well in his tattoos. This image may be suitable for a cover of a magazine because of its limited colours and how it could fit quite easily into a colour scheme associated with the colour black.

 

To the right is another picture of someone from the charts called Mark Ronson. In this picture, the man is wearing again, very basic colours of black and white and the image has a very predominant red colour in the background. The way Mark is standing wouldn't make it easy to use this picture for a magazine cover because he is slightly slanted therefore any writing placed on it wouldn't be as level as it should be. As well as this he is also not making eye contact with the camera which would also make the image less suitable.  Overall I do like the style of what he is wearing however I personally would find it a bit boring for the cover of a magazine.

‘The UK Music Charts are a collection of charts that reflect the music buying habits of people within the United Kingdom. The majority of them are produced by The Official Charts Company’. – Wikipedia definition of the UK Music Charts.



Double Page Spread Analysis

Cosmopolitan

This is a double page spread from the Cosmopolitan magazine. I feel that this magazine has a target audience of females aged between 15+. I think this because it is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that has a lot of pictures and text within it rather than interactive quizzes and games.

As you can see on this double page spread the layout is quite uneven as there is a lot of text on the left and very few images and the page on the right is only images with a heading. The font however used on these pages is very bold and eye catching therefore it takes your sight away from the mass of writing and helps you focus on the point of the text that is there.

The colours on this page are a lot more varied compared to what is seen on a cover page or a contents page as there is silver, grey, pink and black. This is four colours compared to the other pages that have just three usually.

 There is a big pink circle in the center of the text that has a quote from the writing in it. This means that the reader will read this first and wonder where that quote has come from, encouraging them to read the whole text. 

MAYHEM!

I have taken this double page spread from the magazine MAYHEM! This magazines target audience is very varied and many different age groups could read this between I would say 10 on wards. The magazine involves articles about a variety of different icons such as Rita Ora who is on the double page above and this will relate to the audiences interests.

The colour scheme in this double page spread is red white and black and I think it makes the page look very attention seeking and modern. This especially with the specific font used for the title name. The font used is very bold and covers both sides of the spread making it really stand out from everything else. It is layered over the top of the image of Rita Ora which again makes the text more prominent to her.

There is two text boxes on either side of the image and title and they are white with red sub headings and black main text. This relates to the colour scheme across the rest of the page.

Overall I do like the layout of this double page spread as it hasn’t been overdone with too much colour or too much text. This is good because it means the audience isn’t overwhelmed by too much on one page and also they can focus on the point of the text and article on the page.

Computer Arte

This magazine double page spread is from the Computer Arte magazine and the whole thing is usually all done in black and white. This magazine in my opinion is aimed and targeted at people around university age as it is a very informative and laid back magazine that many different people can read with different interests.

The title on this double page spread is very bold and plays on the words of Amy Winehouses name, ‘Amy Ink House’.  This is a very clever way to title a spread as it relates to person involved in the article and also what the article is based on and written about. The image on the right hand side takes up the full screen and almost acts as a poster page that people can take out without it ruining the article on the left hand side.

In terms of the colour scheme it is basic, black, white and grey. This keeps the page simple and stops certain features standing out more than others. Overall I do like this layout because it isn’t over done and they haven’t loaded the page with too much text yet it still looks informative and professional in some ways. 

Contents Page Analysis

POP!

This contents page is from the summer issue of the POP magazine. This magazine I feel is targeted at again young girls/teenagers.

The contents page seems to be very neatly laid out and the bold heading at the top stands out to the audience as it is in a very vibrant pink colour. This goes along with the colour scheme of the magazine that is pink, yellow and slightly blue. These colours are all very bright and compliment each other and the image of the girl on the right hand side.

There are only two images on this contents page, a small one that encourages the audience to subscribe to the magazine and then a large image of a girl on the right that is a mid-shot. Having this image fills the blank space and will also make the magazine relate slightly to the audience.

The layout of this contents page is very basic however it portrays to the audience the image it needs through, through the picture of the girl and the text down the left hand side. All of the text has a heading above them, to categorise them into separate sections. This makes the page more understandable to follow.

Overall I do like this contents page however I think that image is slightly week and the text is a little too small to read. A positive about this contents page is that is has a bright colour scheme and would be suitable for its target audience. 

Unknown

 

This magazine contents page appears to be a lot manlier than the previous one I have analysed and the target audience isn’t so clear.

On this contents page there is a bold black heading and has a large image of a man. An arm is wrapped around his body and there is a predominant red heart that stands out over the top of some of the other features of the page. The main three colours in this colour scheme I would say is red, black and grey. These three colours work well together as they don’t clash and appear much more formalised than bright colours that stand out from the page over the images and text.

The text on this page is very small which makes your eye focus on the image. The image will most likely play an important part in the main magazine and is probably also included in one of the main articles of the magazine. Having the text so small will make the audience look closer into the text which could potentially interest them more because generally people just skip by this page of a magazine however if there is something to see they may not.

Overall I think this magazine contents page is very effective as it gives the reader something and draws their attention into the magazine straight away. What I really do like about this is the colour scheme because of how basic it is even with the slight red hidden in it. This almost makes it look like there is a mystery behind the image or a reason that you will find out during the magazine. 

Unknown

Again with this contents page I am unsure of what magazine it is from however from the appearance of it the target audience is most likely women around the ages of 16-30. I think this because of the font style. The font style appears very classy and formalised which makes the magazine appear more feminine and posh. I say it looks posh as it almost looks hand written.

I would also categorise this magazine as feminine also by the colour scheme of pink, white and black. The pink is very subtle and plain in the background and it doesn’t take the attention away from the image of Demi Lovato or the text on the right of her.

Having an image of Demi Lovato, a pop icon would attract the reader’s attention as she is well known and also well liked. This would make people want to read the potential article about her, encouraging them to buy the whole magazine.

In the bottom left hand corner of this magazine there is a small page number, this is a good addition to have to contents page even though the whole page is about where everything is. Again this makes the page look a lot more professional to me as a female audience member but also it gets the italic styled font on the page again.

Having the text on the right hand side is good as it makes it look neat and well grouped together. It isn’t however all put in as one block but it is again categorised into different sections for the audience to easily read and see when they open to this page.