Location/Setting (White background)

                                                             

                                                                                          I wanted to take some practice photos with just a plain white background. I wanted to see the effect of shadowing and lighting meaning that I needed to focus on the positioning of my model.
I like the way it looks however for my genre of magazine I feel it may be too laid back and relaxed where as I was looking at having more of a busy main image with something in the background to make it less plain not showing anything about the artists story.
With this image, I've found that the postitioning of where the model is stood would be better if he was central as there is a lot of space on the left hand side which could be used as article space.
I feel that maybe a rougher background such as a brick wall or a street would give the image more depth and a story behind it. I want it to show the readers that the artist has a story that they will discover when reading the article therefore encouraging them to read it.

Photo Shoot

 

Masthead Designs

Appearance of my Artist

 

Artist Planning

• Band or solo artist?

For my main article, I have decided to create a solo artist. I have chosen this because I feel that not many people will choose to do this but also, it is more common to find solo artists in a dubstep/trap magazine.

• Who are they?

Dallas (real name Mason James) is 28 years old, born in Australia. He has recently moved to London to promote his new album.
His mother passed away when he was 16 and focused on music ever since.
Is currently making a comeback after having left the music industry when having a daughter 3 years ago. He wants everyone to be reminded of his music therefore incorporated some of his old stuff with new.

• Why are they doing the interview?

The artist will be doing the interview to promote his new album. It will be one of his first albums for a long time which the magazine will make a big deal of. The magazine will describe the artist as having a big come back etc.

• Appearance:

The artist will be well known for always wearing a flat peak cap. Their face won’t be shown too much to make them look slightly mysterious/unknown which links well with the idea of him making a comeback, to see if he is still widely recognised.
He will be wearing fairly plain clothes e.g. skinny jeans and a plain top with a pair of high tops. I want him to look flashy, rich. Like he’s done well for himself and he wants everyone to know about it.

• What location will bring out my artists personality?

My artist is a show off therefore, I want to show this through the photos I take. For example I want the reader to see that he thinks he is above everyone else. I could show this by taking a photo of him standing over the camera, making him look big, strong.
As a background I am temped to have just a plain white back drop to make him stand out. I don’t want something that will take the attention away from the artist himself.

• Photograph ideas:

For the photographs of my artists I would like it to show the artisits flashy side. Show his wealth so that the audience can see that he has made something of himself and even though he has been out of the industry for 3 years, he is as strong as ever.
Therefore, I want him to be wearing up to date clothes e.g. skinny jeans, tight top, flat peak cap, high tops as well as jewellery e.g. a big gold watch, a necklace etc.
I will have more than one photo of him in the article therefore I'd like to have him wearing different outfits e.g in one image have him wearing dark skinny jeans and a tight top and in another image have him wearing a shirt and light jeans. This is to give the article some variety.

• Contents page artists:

For my contents page I will need to create new artists and events however in less depth than my main article.

E.g.

1. Upcoming artisits - Dom Knight
                                 - Hanns
                                 - Thrones
2. Upcoming events  - Festivals
                                 - Gigs
                                 - Tours
3. New music            - Recommended music
                                 - Whats hot
   ETC.

Readership Profile

Jamie is 18 years old and lives in Leeds. He is doing A-Levels at sixth form
studying Business, Media, Spanish and Maths.
His hobbies include playing rugby, going out, partying and seeing friends.

He has a part time job as a sports coach at a local secondary school working
3 days a week after school and attends any sporting events/matches.
He loves going to the gym, going on runs and riding bikes with friends.

A lot of Jamie's money is spent on clothes and tickets to concerts/gigs to
see some of his favourite bands and artists.

He thinks it is important to balance his social life with his school and work life
and handles this well.
Music is important to him and a lot of his free time is spent listening to
his favourite artists.
He likes a variety of music including rock, dubstep and trap.

Jamie met the majority of his closest friends through attending concerts and festivals,
a lot of them he has now known for a few years.
When he has finished sixth form he hopes to go travelling with friends. This
is something he has wanted to do since he was young.

General Readership Profile

Initial Name Ideas For My Music Magazine

1. Karma- The name Karma is one of my favourites as its different like the magazine. It will stand out to the audience and is simple but not too harsh.
2. Distortion- Distortion is also one of my favourite names as again it is different and I also feel that it matches the magazines genre.
3. Notion- Im not sure if I like this name as it doesnt really suit the magazine's genre. It sounds like it would suit a lighter music genre, maybe more pop as opposed to a dubstep/trap magazine.
4. Bolt- I like this name as it is quick and easy to remember. I like the idea of having a simple name however I would like it to mean something and have more of a link to the genre.
5. Trapped- This again, is one of my favourite names as it links to the genre of trap music. However, I feel it may be slightly obvious.
6. Notice- The name Notice makes me think more of a local newspaper name, not suiting the genre of my magazine.
7. Strobe- Strobe links in well to the genre of the magazine as lights (strobe lighting) are commonly linked with dubstep/trap music.
8. Theory- I don't feel that this name would suit my magazine as it sounds very formal where as I want something more laid back.
9. Joker- I like this idea form a magazine name however I'm unsure whether it suits a music magazine.
10. Throne- I like the name Throne as I feel it would make the magazine sound above others, more dominant and intimidating but not too harsh to put off the reader.
11. Released- Again, I feel the name released would suit a more relaxed magazine. I wanted a name that sounded slightly more harsh.

Front Cover Analysis (Mojo)

Front Cover Analysis (Q)

 

Analysis Of My Completed Problem Page

Overall, I feel that my problem page was a success.
I found that I didn't stick to my plan as much as I had expected. I kept the colour scheme and the basic plan of it the same it was just the layout that had changed. This is visible from looking at both the design and the finished product together. I found that I had written more than I had expected therefore spacing was a problem, however I managed to get around this problem by varying my font size and positioning.

I found it helpful to create a quick mock up of the design of my page. If I hadn't of done this, I would of been very indecisive with my choices.

My favourite part of my page is the colour scheme. I found that I kept to the original plan when it came to the colours and did not go over board with the brightness of the page. It still stands out the the reader however it isn't quite so 'in your face' as other similar style magazines are.

I feel that my design of the page fitted the target audience well as it was for women, I had stuck to the stereotypical girly pinks, purples and oranges. I found it was a safe option to do however I would of enjoyed making a page for both male and female readers as it would of challeged what designs I use, my wording and colour.

For my main coursework portfolio I feel I could work on the quality of my designs and final product. I feel I could of worked on this slightly more and focused on the design more and would enjoy usuing a different program to create it, pushing myself to create a more attractive product.

This project has been helpful to get the grasp of the time we have to meet our deadline and what we need to put into our work.

Problem Page

My Problem Page Design

Magazine Planning

Preliminary Project

Target Audience

My magazine will be aimed at women within the age range of 16+ girls. It will be good for girls at the age of 16 as it will be moving into a more mature, grown up magazine.
I want it to be good for girls moving on from more childish magazines to women’s magazines, for strong, independent women.
It will include recent news, as well as laid back stories e.g. updates on recent music, films, horoscopes and celebrity gossip.
It will be a variety of music genres, film genres and gossip. It will be made to suit everyone.
There is already a massive market in magazines for this age range including all of these things however I feel that my design will make it stand out from different magazines already published by using bold headings, bright colours and images. I will need to think about what sort of things people of this age will want to hear about and know.
A problem I may come across would be the news section as I worry that it may be too boring for some of the younger readers therefor I will need to make it as interesting as possible and take reviews from the readers themselves telling me what I could improve on, include and exclude in each article.

My Magazine (House Style)

My magazines name will be Karma. It’s a simple and feminine name and easy to remember. It’s also original and needs to stand out in the huge market so I feel the name Karma does so. The magazine is going to be made specifically for strong women, hence the strong, snappy, clear name.
Its slogan will be ‘Talk about Karma’.
I chose this slogan as it is short, snappy and quick to say and remember. In that sense it is just like the name and relates well to the style of the magazine.
The style of my magazine will definitely focus on feminine detail. For example using pastille pinks and purples with curly, bold text. It needs to attract a women’s attention and even though it is a stereotypical thing to say, that type of magazine lets the reader know that this is for women. It will have a calming relaxing affect, taking them away from the stress of work, home and everyday life in general.

I have chosen these fonts for my magazine:
Articles:                           Headlines:
Hiragino Mincho Pro              Didot
Hiragino Mincho Pro     Didot
I chose these fonts as they are soft yet stand out well in each article and headline. I also feel that these fonts will go well with the design and style of my article and do not distract from the colour scheme and style/layout of the magazine.

Preliminary Project - Problem Pages

Coventions and style features that I have noticed within 3 problem pages are:

 - Bold titles: Each page consists of a clear, bold, feminine heading making it clear who this is specifically targeted at. This is a common occurance throughout all types of articles. For example a car magazines will be targeted at men by having darker colours, more excitement in the way it is written with extra punctuation etc.

 

- Photographs: Each article contains at least two photographs incuding a photo of the kind counceller recieving the public's problems. In a way this is made to comfort the reader, letting them know they are in safe hands. It also encourages readers to write in themselves after seeing how well the answers are written and who is writing back to them.

 

- Stories: The pages are packed with text and photos making it look busy and crowded with interesting stories. This makes the articles look busy and popular.

 

- Layout: The layout consists of questions and answers in an interview style making it easy and attractive to read.

 

- Star signs: All articles are based around the people involved star sign. It is heavily based on astrology.

 

- Email address: Email address' of the magazines are written at the bottom of the page.

 

- Colour scheme: All pages include bright, 'girly' colours e.g. pinks and purples. However the colours are not too bright or exciting, the are neutral and calm.

 

- References: Articles give phone numbers/email addresses to the people writing in with helpline numbers e.g. Children Contact Centers.

 

- Captions: Around all photos on each article there are captions either expalining what is in the photo or what the photo is representing.

 

- Exaggeration: The articles all tend to include exaggeration and over use of punctuation to motivate the reader, often giving the article more emotion.