18/12/2011
Music Magazine Comparison
I printed off my music magazine cover and placed it in between other popular music magazines of the same genre. From this you can tell that my magazine is suited to the rock genre and fits in well. It does not blend in too much and if it were on a shelf in a shop it would contrast against the other magazines and stand out.
Final version of my magazine
This is the final version of my front cover, contents page and double page spread from my music magazine.
Final version of my magazine
This is the final version of my front cover, contents page and double page spread from my music magazine.
17/12/2011
12/12/2011
Who would be the audience for your media product? and How did you attract/address your audience?
I created a video combining both of my answers to both of these questions.
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
How does your media product represent particular social groups? on PhotoPeach
Evaluation Plan
Question 1. For this question I will probably use something like Blurb because it is a simple way to show how my media product uses, develops an challenges forms and conventions of a real media product. If I do not use Blurb I will use Vuvox or Photopeach. Jing may also be something I could use for this question.
Question 2. For this question I will use Photopeach, Photosnack or another website that you can display images on. I will show how my product represents particular social groups, how it appeals to the target audience with images and language, etc using annotations and captions, etc.
Question 3. For this question I will make a video on iMovie or make a podcast just talking about what kind of institution would distribute my product. I could also use xtranormal instead of making a podcast because it looks more interesting.
Question 4 and 5. For these questions I will do them together because it will be easier. If I make a video I can interview people and ask them the questions at the same time. I could also use social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to ask people questions and include them in the video.
Question 6. For this question I could use prezi to show what I have learnt about technologies from constructing my music magazine. It would be an interesting and interactive way to explain what I've learnt.
Question 7. For this question I could make a powerpoint to show how I think I have progressed from my preliminary task to making my music magazine and upload it to slideshare.
Question 2. For this question I will use Photopeach, Photosnack or another website that you can display images on. I will show how my product represents particular social groups, how it appeals to the target audience with images and language, etc using annotations and captions, etc.
Question 3. For this question I will make a video on iMovie or make a podcast just talking about what kind of institution would distribute my product. I could also use xtranormal instead of making a podcast because it looks more interesting.
Question 4 and 5. For these questions I will do them together because it will be easier. If I make a video I can interview people and ask them the questions at the same time. I could also use social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to ask people questions and include them in the video.
Question 6. For this question I could use prezi to show what I have learnt about technologies from constructing my music magazine. It would be an interesting and interactive way to explain what I've learnt.
Question 7. For this question I could make a powerpoint to show how I think I have progressed from my preliminary task to making my music magazine and upload it to slideshare.
11/12/2011
Music Magazine Construction Progress
Over the past two weeks I have been making my music magazine. I have print screened my progress as I have gone along and this is what I have done so far:
Music Magazine Construction Progress on PhotoPeach
Music Magazine Construction Progress on PhotoPeach
06/12/2011
04/12/2011
Update
As I could not use Penzu on the school computers (I could not upload images, etc.) I decided it would be best to just update on my blog instead.
I have taken my images and uploaded them to Photopeach
I have taken my images and uploaded them to Photopeach
28/11/2011
Music Magazine Photos - Edited
I have made a video to show my photos before and after I edited them. I used Photoshop and a site called BeFunky to edit my photos.
Music Magazine Photos
These are photos that I have taken and used in my music magazine. They are of well-known rock bands.
Music Magazine Photos
Music Magazine Photos on PhotoPeach
These are the photos I have taken for my music magazine. These are the non-edited photos.
These are the photos I have taken for my music magazine. These are the non-edited photos.
24/11/2011
Penzu
This is the link to my Penzu:
https://penzu.com/p/745f5f0d
Penzu is an online journal which will track what I do every lesson and it will track my time management.
https://penzu.com/p/745f5f0d
Penzu is an online journal which will track what I do every lesson and it will track my time management.
Music Magazine Mock Plans
I have created plans of what I want my front cover, contents page and double page spread to look like. I have taken inspiration from Kerrang! Magazine.
20/11/2011
Music Magazine Typography
I have made a presentation about the typography that is used in music magazines. From this I have learnt what kind of typography I should use in my magazine and how I should do it.
17/11/2011
Music Magazine Institution Analysis
I have created a video analysing the institution of Kerrang! (Bauer Media). We discussed what we think and what we have learnt.
16/11/2011
Fashion and Location Moodboard
I have created mood boards for the styles of fashion I want to use in my magazine and for where I want to shoot the photos I will use in my magazine.
From this I have chosen what style of clothes I want to use in my photos and I can refer back to this when I take them to make sure I've got clothes in a similar style to my mood board.
Music Magazine Shotlist
I have created a shotlist for when I take my photos for my music magazine. This will help me because I will have all the details of what I have planned to do.
15/11/2011
Music Magazine My Flatplan
I have created a flatplan for my own music magazine. Making a flatplan for Kerrang! magazine helped me to plan mine out.
Music Magazine Kerrang! Flatplan
I have created a flatplan for Kerrang! magazine. From this I have learnt what is put in a music magazine and where it is usually put, e.g. adverts are usually on the right page as it is what the reader sees first.
Music Magazine Article Draft
This is a draft of my article for my double page spread.
I had my draft marked and corrected. I have edited what I can change to make it better.
Music Magazine Mood Board Analysis
I have created a mood board full of cuttings out from music magazines. I have put things on it that I like and things that I would like to use when I make my music magazine. Some things I put on my mood board are images, colours, fonts, etc. I will use this research when making my magazine.
This is a photo of my mood board:
13/11/2011
Music Magazine Target Audience Research
I have made a Prezi showing all of my research for the target audience of a rock music magazine.
Music Magazine Research - NME Interview
What would you say about using black and white images in a music magazine?
Generally, don't do it. Black and white shots are associated with old shots of the band or artist. Unless your main feature is about an old band and you're using photos from many years ago, colour photos are used. The majority of the time features are about recent bands and the shoots are done especially for that feature.
What advice can you give when making a front cover of a music magazine?
Think about the front cover as an advert; it is what sells the magazine in the end as it is what the audience sees first. The headline on the cover is what you as a magazine want to say, and the photo sells the magazine. Frame the photo on the cover with text but don't clutter it. As for the logo, I'd keep it simple, but bold. Stick to simple and classic fonts on the cover and for your logo but use the fancy fonts inside the magazine. Also, don't cover up too much of the logo on the first issue; until you become a more well known magazine and people begin to recognise your magazine you can cover it. In your first few issues, no-one is going to know who you are if you cover up too much of the logo. Another thing you can do when you become more known is change the colours around to make it more interesting and stand out. At NME we have a logo which is known for being red and white but recently we have started to change to colours around a bit to make it more exciting.
What would you say about the photos on the cover?
A good tip for photos on the cover is to have one where the artist or band are making eye contact with the camera. It creates contact with the audience and draws them in to buy the magazine. Another tip is we usually make the artists' head quite big which also draws in the reader.
What else should be included on the cover apart from the obvious things like a logo, headline and photo?
There are other big stories other than the main story obviously, and these sell the magazine a lot too, so we often put them at the top of the magazine. By putting them at the top of the magazine, people are more likely to see it because you usually look at something from top to bottom. It's also good to have things that will attract the reader to buy the magazine like posters or perhaps a competition or two. We don't tend to give out free posters because our target audience aren't the kind of people who want them, whereas magazines like Kerrang! give out posters every week as their audience like and want that sort of thing. It all depends on your target audience. However, if we do have posters there is usually only one or two and they are more tasteful.
What would you say about the photos inside the magazine, like the ones for the main story?
Think of what you are trying to say. When shooting artists and bands at photo shoots, you must have a concept before you start. You can't just go in there and be like "Right, I've got this idea, and that idea but I'm not sure they're going to work". You have to go in prepared and also make sure the artist or band know what they are going to do and are fine with it. For example with the concept, we recently featured Noel Gallagher and we wanted to say how he was under the spotlight and in the media, we didn't want to write negatively about him so we made it positive. He was under the spotlight that week, and to show that we photographed him as if he was under an actual spotlight. this created a circular illusion in the photo so to make the writing part of the article look more interesting we put it in a circle rather than the usual, 'boring' columns. We didn't use many props for that shoot, it was all an idea and a concept we put together.
What if you don't have the money for things like props?
If you have no money for props for interesting shoots, think about the colours and the clothes they're wearing. Shooting on brighter colours makes the artist or band stand out. Never shoot on black. Black is boring and it hardly ever works in the photo shoot. You don't always need props, make them wear interesting and colourful clothes to express them and your concept rather than throwing in random objects.
What should be included in the feature article?
Music magazines aren't like newspapers. The audience don't like block text, they aren't the kind of people who just want to read and read. To make it more interesting and to break it up, use entry points in new paragraphs. They break up the blocks of text and draw in the reader making them want to read it. Making the entry points a different colour also helps with this. Always put in box outs and quotes if you can. They break up the text and inform the reader what the article is about and make them want to read it. Use different fonts and sizes of fonts for these to make it more interesting for the reader. Think of the box out as a mini feature. It can be about anything about the band/artist to make it more exciting or it can link to the story. Always keep colours consistent. If you use red and black on the cover for the main feature, use those same colours for the article inside the magazine for the fonts and box outs, etc. It's good to have the same theme from the front cover through to the article. For the headline placement, we always put it either on the page where the image is or on top of the article. When choosing what photos to use, don't go for the best looking ones. You may have a few really brilliant ones but they say nothing about your concept. Go with the ones that relate to your concept. They may not look the best out of the few hundred you may have taken, but they will look better when all of it is put together.
From this interview I have learnt a lot of things that I did not know and it will help me when making my own magazine. I will make sure I use a box out, quotes and drop caps as they will interest the reader and make them want to read the article. I will make the person on the front cover have eye contact with the audience as this will draw the reader in.
Generally, don't do it. Black and white shots are associated with old shots of the band or artist. Unless your main feature is about an old band and you're using photos from many years ago, colour photos are used. The majority of the time features are about recent bands and the shoots are done especially for that feature.
What advice can you give when making a front cover of a music magazine?
Think about the front cover as an advert; it is what sells the magazine in the end as it is what the audience sees first. The headline on the cover is what you as a magazine want to say, and the photo sells the magazine. Frame the photo on the cover with text but don't clutter it. As for the logo, I'd keep it simple, but bold. Stick to simple and classic fonts on the cover and for your logo but use the fancy fonts inside the magazine. Also, don't cover up too much of the logo on the first issue; until you become a more well known magazine and people begin to recognise your magazine you can cover it. In your first few issues, no-one is going to know who you are if you cover up too much of the logo. Another thing you can do when you become more known is change the colours around to make it more interesting and stand out. At NME we have a logo which is known for being red and white but recently we have started to change to colours around a bit to make it more exciting.
What would you say about the photos on the cover?
A good tip for photos on the cover is to have one where the artist or band are making eye contact with the camera. It creates contact with the audience and draws them in to buy the magazine. Another tip is we usually make the artists' head quite big which also draws in the reader.
What else should be included on the cover apart from the obvious things like a logo, headline and photo?
There are other big stories other than the main story obviously, and these sell the magazine a lot too, so we often put them at the top of the magazine. By putting them at the top of the magazine, people are more likely to see it because you usually look at something from top to bottom. It's also good to have things that will attract the reader to buy the magazine like posters or perhaps a competition or two. We don't tend to give out free posters because our target audience aren't the kind of people who want them, whereas magazines like Kerrang! give out posters every week as their audience like and want that sort of thing. It all depends on your target audience. However, if we do have posters there is usually only one or two and they are more tasteful.
What would you say about the photos inside the magazine, like the ones for the main story?
Think of what you are trying to say. When shooting artists and bands at photo shoots, you must have a concept before you start. You can't just go in there and be like "Right, I've got this idea, and that idea but I'm not sure they're going to work". You have to go in prepared and also make sure the artist or band know what they are going to do and are fine with it. For example with the concept, we recently featured Noel Gallagher and we wanted to say how he was under the spotlight and in the media, we didn't want to write negatively about him so we made it positive. He was under the spotlight that week, and to show that we photographed him as if he was under an actual spotlight. this created a circular illusion in the photo so to make the writing part of the article look more interesting we put it in a circle rather than the usual, 'boring' columns. We didn't use many props for that shoot, it was all an idea and a concept we put together.
What if you don't have the money for things like props?
If you have no money for props for interesting shoots, think about the colours and the clothes they're wearing. Shooting on brighter colours makes the artist or band stand out. Never shoot on black. Black is boring and it hardly ever works in the photo shoot. You don't always need props, make them wear interesting and colourful clothes to express them and your concept rather than throwing in random objects.
What should be included in the feature article?
Music magazines aren't like newspapers. The audience don't like block text, they aren't the kind of people who just want to read and read. To make it more interesting and to break it up, use entry points in new paragraphs. They break up the blocks of text and draw in the reader making them want to read it. Making the entry points a different colour also helps with this. Always put in box outs and quotes if you can. They break up the text and inform the reader what the article is about and make them want to read it. Use different fonts and sizes of fonts for these to make it more interesting for the reader. Think of the box out as a mini feature. It can be about anything about the band/artist to make it more exciting or it can link to the story. Always keep colours consistent. If you use red and black on the cover for the main feature, use those same colours for the article inside the magazine for the fonts and box outs, etc. It's good to have the same theme from the front cover through to the article. For the headline placement, we always put it either on the page where the image is or on top of the article. When choosing what photos to use, don't go for the best looking ones. You may have a few really brilliant ones but they say nothing about your concept. Go with the ones that relate to your concept. They may not look the best out of the few hundred you may have taken, but they will look better when all of it is put together.
From this interview I have learnt a lot of things that I did not know and it will help me when making my own magazine. I will make sure I use a box out, quotes and drop caps as they will interest the reader and make them want to read the article. I will make the person on the front cover have eye contact with the audience as this will draw the reader in.
12/11/2011
Music Magazine Photos - First Set
These are some of my photos from my first set of photos. I took these before I had done any planning so they did not turn out how I needed them. I also took them before I had written my article so in the end they did not match the story. I tried them with my magazine anyway but they did not work because the 'fashion' and 'location' does not fit in with my ideas and my magazine genre, and the photos did not have the right feel to them. I am going to take some more photos, which I have planned, got ideas for and done a shotlist for, etc.
This shows that planning is necessary and things will not go to plan if you don't do it. It is an important step, especially in something like creating a music magazine.
28/10/2011
Thinking of a concept
My magazine will include things like gig listings and new rock bands to appeal to the target audience. I think that my magazine will work because it will fit in with other magazines out there already and will be good competition.
I am going to look at similar magazines suited to the same genre and research into them and their audiences.
From my research I have decided to go with the name Unplugged. I feel that it is the best out of the names I came up with and it fits in with the genre of my magazine. My target audience will be mostly females, but it will also appeal to some males too. These males and females will be fans of rock music and subgenres of rock. The features and fonts, etc will coincide with what the audience are interested in and it will appeal to them. The colour scheme will be bright and colourful to attract the target audience, perhaps other colours like red and black will be used. Dark colours are often associated with rock and grunge so it will fit in with the genre but using a few bright colours like blue and yellow with the dark colours will make everything contrast and attract the audience. The fonts will be eroded and grungy to fit in with the style of rock. The fonts will be similar to those seen in magazines like Kerrang! and Rocksound.
22/10/2011
Music Magazine Double Page Spread Research
I looked at double page spreads in magazines like Kerrang! and NME and annotated them. I wrote about what I can see and what effects it has on the reader. I feel that doing this has helped me understand more about double page spreads.
NME
Kerrang!
NME
21/10/2011
Music Magazines Double Page Spread Research
As a class we looked at double page spreads and front covers from music magazines and annotated them.
Music Magazine Double Page Spread Research on PhotoPeach
From this I have learnt about the layouts of double page spreads and front covers and why certain things are done, for example, on front covers the leader singer of the band/the main artists is almost always in the foreground of the cover while the other members are behind them in the background. The text is usually framing the photo too, meaning that person is the focal selling point of the magazine, not the other stories.
14/10/2011
Music Magazine Research
I researched the history of music magazines and made a powerpoint about it
I researched four different music magazines which all feature different styles of music
I annotated four covers of the four magazines I had chosen to research and compared them to each other
07/10/2011
Music Magazine Cover Research
I have used Google Images to research some music magazines covers.
They are all music magazines but they each have different audiences as they each feature a different genre of music. I will take ideas from each magazine and make them my own when creating my magazine cover.
School Magazine Final Product
This is the final product of my school magazine cover and contents page.
29/09/2011
School Magazine Evaluation
The brief for my preliminary task was to make the front cover of a school magazine and a contents page.
My first task was to research different school magazine covers and for this I used Google Images. As a class we produced a poster using all the images we found from our research, listing the good and bad points about the covers. I think I could have interacted more than I did and given more of an input. I made a basic plan of my front cover and contents page using word. This was pretty simple but I could have put in more information in my plans. I used Pages to create my actual cover and contents page. As I have used Pages before I knew the basics and I felt like making my magazine cover would be fairly simple. I used photos I have taken myself as my background images and for stories. I did struggle to think of stories to begin with but I soon overcame this problem as I progressed through making the cover. I followed my plan layout to set out my cover and the two are very similar. However, with my contents page I did not exactly follow my plan and tweaked the layout as I made it. I felt my end product layout was more suitable and I preferred it to my original plan. Overall, I think I completed my brief to a good standard. If I were to change anything I did then I would make my front cover and contents page more creative and interesting. I would also use the time I had to take photos more wisely. I went ahead not knowing what I wanted and I think this set me back slightly, but fortunately I had taken some photos I could use and I managed to think of a story to match.
I asked other people for feedback of my magazine cover and contents page. One said that the I had good use of colours as they complemented each other. They also liked how the colours matched the school logo. Another said they liked my use of different types of font and the layout of my front cover. However, they also said that putting all of this together could be a bit overpowering. I have taken this feedback - both positive and negative - and I will put it to good use it in the future.
My first task was to research different school magazine covers and for this I used Google Images. As a class we produced a poster using all the images we found from our research, listing the good and bad points about the covers. I think I could have interacted more than I did and given more of an input. I made a basic plan of my front cover and contents page using word. This was pretty simple but I could have put in more information in my plans. I used Pages to create my actual cover and contents page. As I have used Pages before I knew the basics and I felt like making my magazine cover would be fairly simple. I used photos I have taken myself as my background images and for stories. I did struggle to think of stories to begin with but I soon overcame this problem as I progressed through making the cover. I followed my plan layout to set out my cover and the two are very similar. However, with my contents page I did not exactly follow my plan and tweaked the layout as I made it. I felt my end product layout was more suitable and I preferred it to my original plan. Overall, I think I completed my brief to a good standard. If I were to change anything I did then I would make my front cover and contents page more creative and interesting. I would also use the time I had to take photos more wisely. I went ahead not knowing what I wanted and I think this set me back slightly, but fortunately I had taken some photos I could use and I managed to think of a story to match.
I asked other people for feedback of my magazine cover and contents page. One said that the I had good use of colours as they complemented each other. They also liked how the colours matched the school logo. Another said they liked my use of different types of font and the layout of my front cover. However, they also said that putting all of this together could be a bit overpowering. I have taken this feedback - both positive and negative - and I will put it to good use it in the future.
22/09/2011
21/09/2011
School Magazine Cover Plan
Here is my plan for my school magazine cover. It is quite basic and just has the main information like the layout and where everything will go.
16/09/2011
Preliminary Task - School Magazine
For my preliminary task I have to make the front page of a magazine for my school and a contents page.
To begin, I searched Google images for examples of other school magazine covers to give me an idea of what I need to do. I found a few good ones, and a few bad ones. Here are some examples:
The images above are ones I thought have room for improvement and the images below are ones I thought were quite good and that I like.
The magazine cover above is one I do not particularly like because it does not really look like a magazine cover and it is one that I would not takes ideas from. This cover has too much blank spaces and not enough information about what is in the magazine. It also does not include anything to do with the school as it is a photo of the person who made it, there are no photos of students and there is no school logo.
In the magazine above, I like the use of bright colours as it attracts your attention and it contrasts against the black backgrounds. I also like the layout and style of this front cover so I may use some ideas from this magazine in my own. This cover is my favourite out of the four photos I have uploaded.
To begin, I searched Google images for examples of other school magazine covers to give me an idea of what I need to do. I found a few good ones, and a few bad ones. Here are some examples:
The magazine cover above is one I do not particularly like because it does not really look like a magazine cover and it is one that I would not takes ideas from. This cover has too much blank spaces and not enough information about what is in the magazine. It also does not include anything to do with the school as it is a photo of the person who made it, there are no photos of students and there is no school logo.
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