Q. Looking back at your preliminary task and previous AS coursework, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

After thinking about the cover shoot In did for the preliminary task (school magazine) I have been much more aware and considerate of the kind of shot that would be suitable for the music magazine.
For the school cover shoot it took roughly 10-15 minutes to get a decent shot, whereas the music cover shoot took much longer so from the time it took to get the shot alone shows how much effort and thoughour thinking it took. Finding the right images proved to be the most difficult out of the project and by doing so I've learnt that it is not as easy to create cover shots. Even after taking the shot it takes more time to edit and adjust it so the image will be suitable for both cover and feature article page.

Since the preliminary task I haven't used any other different piece of technology or software as the process was similar however by doing the music task, I proved to use these technologies and software more effectively to produce better results.
In terms of layout, I made sure I followed the magazine convention better and I included more puffs and text than I did for the school task.

Compared to the school article I feel that the music article was much more interactive. It gave a sense that I was with the artist and getting to know her whereas the other article was more about advice and the only interaction I included was an image of a volunteer. I've also learnt how to structure and present a feature article better and how to arrange images which would look suitable. I've also learnt to write more entertainingly and learnt to use puns to engage the reader/audience which is something I definatly did not do in the preliminary and which I believe has been a progression

What i've learnt from the previous AS is to establish a clean, clear and structured house style and theme. I realised that I did not have enough content and my layout was weak. This time I chose a certain magazine (NME special edition) and followed that ayout closely whilst also putting my own ideas in. Overall I do find that my second attempt was far better but by doing the first magazine, it enabled me to review my mistakes and learn through this progression.

Q. What have you learnt about technologies?

The main software I used to construct the magazine was Microsoft Powerpoint which seems to be unusual for some but I found it to be very easy as I was comfortable with the software and it seemed to have more useful features and options.

However, I did also make use of Fireworks for my images as I had to crop around them. Before doing this project I had never used or even knew of the magic wand tool which is used to crop around an object. By doing this project I was introduced to that feature.

Q. How did you attract/address your audiences?

ColoursI used a very subtle red, while and black colour scheme and used the red to make the cover eye catching. The black and white helps make the cover stylish and in some way classy. Very appropriate for a special edition issue.


Fonts
The font is fairly basic.The main concern was whether it was readable and worked with various sizes and colours. Certain peices of text such as the artist's name was noticably different to add intrest and edge. For the title I used a basic shape font but the effect on the font interested me. It had a decay, crumbly style effect which could emphasis the artists 'break-though' into the music industry. I also used the 'impact' font for the puffs to keep it from being too basic whilst keeping it readable.

Images/mise-en-scene
The image is not too different form what a real magazine would do and works well with the genre of the magazine and can relate to the readers in terms of style.

Language
The language I used was quite informal but not so much that I used slang which would help relate to my audience and show the type of audience I want to attract.  
In the contents page, rather than simply stating the topic of each page I tried to make it sound more interesting such as 'Picnic with Ellie Goulding' which shows quirky-ness and fun.
Now with the feature article I tried a pun, to incoopriate asian into sensation to add to the humour. I am pleased to say that it did work as I got much positive feedback. From this the artice title was the second most difficult task I faced but I am happy I got there in the end.
 I also upt a sort of pun with the anchoring text (SHHpecial), linking it with my image

Q. Who would be your media audiences and why?

AgeIdeally the age range for my magazine would be between 15-25 max. The reason I have 15 as my minimum age is because younger ages are exposed to more mainstream music and at this age they would be exploring other options.
Gender
I find that this magazine is pointing towards a more female audience and some of the things i've included in my contents such as 'fashion' does not relate to boys, however this does not restrict them from reading the articles but the majority of audiences would be female.

Race/ethnicityAfter looking at magazines such as NME and Kerrang, I have found that they do not feature much multicultural bands/artists and by having my main feature revolving around the ethnicity of the upcoming artist, I would like my readers to be multicultural. As well as indie music, the magazine will also focus on incorporating world music.

LifestyleAs the age range of my target audience is still quite young they would still be in some form of education whether it is secondary, college/sixth form or university. Being socially active would be important and also image. Music would be a huge part of my target audiences lifestyle which could include money spent on audio devices, CDs/downloads, merchandise and gigs/music events.

Q. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

As the genre of my magazine is indie I feel that it would be best if it was also an independent publishing. Indie music represents ambition and success without the need of major companies who take most control in that artists work and so I would like my magazine to be successful in it's own terms without having a big publishing house to sell it for me.

In order to do this i'll need to thouroughly research my target market more than I did for this project. I'll also need to gain better knowledge of the topic/genre of the magazine if i'm to truly relate to my readers. To enable to get this to my potential readers I would firstly advertise it via the internet as it proves to be more effective. Promote through sites such as social networking (facebook fan pages), chat rooms, blogs and of course producing a website. Then I would distribute my magazine I would mail copies around, local newstands, shops and supermarkets.
To encourage the repretation of the magazine I would hand out promotion/sample copies and also organise a magazine launch party.


I'd also seek out new musicians or artists and organise free gigs which will appease my target audience and also help promote new talent as well as my publication.

Q. How does your media product represent social groups?

The social groups that are represented within my magazines are young people making their way through the music industry.
The particular social group that this magazine is aimed at are those who have an apprecation for inependent artists.

The indie representation in my magazine are represented as highy ambitious, independent individuals. The physical image is similar in terms of styling and choice of clothing whcih I have incoopriated with my cover model after researching indie style. I noticed that indie artists wore bright, block colours, skinnies, dresses and boyish, lace-up shoes and this is exactly what I did in my magazine. On the cover she is wearing a dress to show feminity but also opts for skinny trousers and a shirt to represent that she can go out into the world and do what she loves.
This is also an inspirational peice especially for young females and to encourage them to follow their ambitions.

Q. in what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Layout

I feel as though my magazine is quite conventional as I followed the special edition issue closely and although some of the layout is different, it does follow the basic convention rules such as the anchoring text, linking colours on text and props. Another thing I did was to ensure that I had the Z shaped layout which is conventional in most magazines to help lead the readers eyes across the whole page.

 

Colours

With all magazines such as NME, their house colour scheme is red, white, black and yellow. This type of colour scheme is common within indie and rock magazines. I felt it was necessary to follow this cheme as well but the way I carried it off was different.

Also within actual magazines, the publishers tend to match parts of the model to the text (colour of lips, eye makeup, certain peices of clothing, etc) and as my cover was purely black and white, I would have had to pick out a colour to work with and so I picked out the red in the lips and bracelet and made that my on-going colour scheme. This is similar to what was done on the NME cover. They used pink this time and obtained the colour from her lips and tips of her nails. Blue is also incoorpriated but not seen in text.

Editing contents

For the contents, I swapped the subscribe section and enlarged it to fill the page a bit more. I understand that this is not my strongest page but I worked on my feedback and ensured that it was better than my previous attempts.
I made sure I used a variety of fonts to break up the continuity and presented more colours as the cover lacked a range.



More puffs

I've added a few more puffs on the right hand side, leaving the left side clean as I dont want to clutter the cover.
I've also changed the font of the quote to 'Gills Sans Ultra Bold Condensed' in order to make it more readable.



IMPROVEMENTS

After receiving various feedback, I went onto improving the negative aspects of all three pages:


Cover

Here I changed the puffs style to the 'Impact' font as the previous one was too dull. I also left the puffs plain black as no other colours were necessary but in order to make them readable against all the grey/black, I used the 'glow' text effect which is found in Microsoft PowerPoint. This glow effect created a hazy border around the text, illuminating it against the background and made it much more readable than the previous cover where the text was half black and white. 
Another thing I added was a quote made by model. The reason I did this was because I had been following the NME special edition cover styles and producing my magazine around that and one thing I noticed was that these special edition covers featured a quote from the artists and so I thought it would be an interesting idea to include in mine. I kept the quote short and sweet as I feared that although the glow on the text may have helped it become more readable, I did not want to over do it.




Contents

My contents page received a whole new makeover as I decided to mimic a different NME contents style. In the NME I looked at, all the contents in the magazine was put into listed but not defined into 'features' or 'regulars'. I did this in order to make the page look more fuller and tidy. I also used a red and black colour scheme to separate each feature. 
I was also told to include more pictures rather than my main feature photo.
All the images on here are mine aside from the ones I used for the makeshift magazines at the bottom. The reason for making extra little magazines for the subscription was again from the NME contents and rather than putting the same cover I thought it would be more interesting to add different ones as then it makes my magazines seem like real and ongoing. 
For the caption of the larger photo, I chose to use the Impact font again. I kept the other text plain as I needed it to be clear as the contents are all pushed together and to make them Impact font as well would make it difficult to read and untidy. Although the section concerning the magazine subscription has been changed to the 'Adobe Caslon Pro' font to separate it from the other text.
I also used a orangey fill colour for the 'WIN' section to make it eye-catching.




Double Page

For the quote, I decided to re-colour it using the 'washout' effect which changed the bright red to a pinker/champagne colour that I approved off as it matched the dress in the second image. I chose to colour the middle section of the quote a darker colour as it helped break up the continuity of the colour which I found dull and so by doing this, I though it made the page more interesting.

I was also advised to do something about the second image as the top of the head was a little bit flat from where the image was cut off. So I has to round off the edges 

Overall I didn't need to change the double page as much as personally, everything seemed to work nicely.

Double Page

[Rough draft]
Origonally I had the main image in colour and had it overlapping on to the other side of the page. I also used my origonal article and quotes but I ensured I made the font smaller as it was too large when printed out. I tried to make my second image black and white but picking out the blue shirt and red lips. However I decided that this is not effective.



[Editied from previous]

Here I've decided to apply my house style to the main image by making the background black and white as I though it was too busy. I coloured in my model to establish that she is the main focus. I then used a different second image which is a bit more bolder and different.
Then for my article title I kept my pun 'Sens Asian' and retained the white and red colour scheme with 'Asian' being in red to highlight the pun and focus.
I then included a quote which I made the same font and colour red to ensure it stands out but does not overpower the main article. I made the article text smaller to about a size 8 as it will be made into A3 and so the size will hopefully even out.
The length of the article had to be limited due to space and so I inserted a small triangle after the last line to indicate that the article continues on the next page. This technique is quite conventional in most magazines.

FEEDBACK ON EDIT

#1 " I think the red and the blue clashes too much and leaves the blue out of place. The interviewer and interview-ee are not distinguished clearly and again, the font is too basic. I would rather the main image to be just black and white although I like the second image and the arrow indicator which is quite professional"

#2 " I really like it. I do think that the text is easy to read and has clear focus. I love the pun! The red and white in the title balances out the dramatic effect and I like the use of the black and white. I just think that the quote could be done in a different colour as you've already got red. I would suggest white to go with your house style"



Cover #2 and contents

Cover

After recieveing the feedback from my previous cover, I decided to change the wold thing once again. The image I used was one that my teacher thought was strong and when I asked if I could do a black and white cover, I was advised that I pick up one colour from her bracelet or lips and use it i my colour scheme. I then made my image black and white and then had the bracelet and lips coloured in. From theer I went on to title and anchoring text which I also made red to link it with my main image. Again I've kept the puffs on the side, however in further development I may include some on the other side.

I have established my colour scheme of red, white and black in which I will aim to run  this through my other pages.

I have given my puffs a combination of black and white to estabish my scheme further. Also it helped make the words readable.

With my anchoring text, I have played it with the image. The model has her finger on her lips and I wanted to create a pun form it by using 'SHH' in to 'SPECIAL'. The reason why I made the words 'special edition' was to show it was like the NME covers where they had the simple grey background and the main colour.

FEEDBACK 

#1 "I like the use of one colour and red is very eye-catching and bold. However, I think the font is too boring and the puffs are slightly difficult to read."

#2 " This has an interesting layout and seems to target a female audience. I like the use of 'SHH' in the text because I find it interesting and provokes mystery" 

Contents

I keep with the house style I made the background grey also and used the red to highlight different sections of the contents. I used another magazine as a template and they had two images only, one main image and the other for subscriptions whcih I have done here.

I used the colour scheme of red and black in my text. I used red to highlight 'NW' for new wave and made 'this Week' in black to break up the similarity and make it stand out more.

FEEDBACK

#1 "Again text is too basic and I dont think the blue goes well with the red and black colour scheme"

#2 "It would be preferable if the only colour in the image was the blue shirt so the style would match the one shown on the cover. I also think the colour scheme is very neutral. I like it"

Researching for house styles

I had a look at a selection of NME special edition covers to see what they've done and how they altered their house style.

Here they have used a grey background and used a pink colour scheme which is highlighted from her pink lips. Blue is used in her outfit as a contrasting colour.

 This cover is more edgy. The blue in her jacket is faded into the background however they have estabished their usual colour scheme of red from picking it off her lips and t-shirt. The other text is a combination of white and black
 This is a very interesting idea. The have an extreame close up which fills the entire page. The colour scheme in here is again, red, white and black however, the house style colour on the title is replaced to white suggesting her red hair has taken the rest of the colour away from the text. The white could also match the paleness in her face and the plain, white t-shirt.
 Finally we have another similar cover in terms of how they establish a house style. Again the grey background is very popular for special edition covers and use of black and white text. The main text (title and anchoring) is coloured to match the blue cup. This is a very effective use of props. Her clothes are also grey and seem to fade into background so the main focus is on the strong blue colours.

What I've learnt from here is that NME heavily relies on the use of mis-en-scene/props to establish their house style. In thier special edition covers they have only the one main colour and then black and white for puffs.



Cover #1

I used one of my old photoshoot images for this one as I thought that the pose and mis-en-scene was appropriate for the theme I had going. I still wanted to keep the blue colour scheme and also decided to add red to clash the colour and make it more eye catching. I also kept my magazine slogan 'your splash of music news'.

I used one of my own magazines as a template for puffs and ideas. I also took the idea of the yellow price sticker on the top corner as from personal experience, the large display of pricing encourages me to buy the magazine and so I hope that my magazine would have the same effect.

I decided to keep the puffs on one side of the page and a banner at the bottom as banners are conventional in most magazines.

I've kept the blue colour scheme in the puffs but added the odd red colour to relate to the main image. The reason I have used red in my anchoring text is because I have picked the colour from my models lips and design from her jacket. I then made her name in red as i have placed it away from the anchoring text but I wanted to keep that connection between the two texts.

FEEDBACK

"I like the images however, I don't quite get the house style of your magazine yet. It needs to be clearer. Also the colours and style must run through in both contents and double page spread. The yellow price sticker is also un necessary. The puffs also need to be better and go around the image rather than sticking to just one side.But main focus of improvement must be the house style."

PHOTOSHOOT IMAGES

Here I've taken new images where I can experiment photographing different positions and scenery. I've mainly taken these images around our sixth form area and the playground area near by. I tried various sitting positions whist thinking about what I can put in my double page spread as I think it looks more indie, thoughtful and innocent looking.

I have also looked at how the lighting can be used to highing certain features such as hair, face and her clothes. As well as these images, I will be using the images from my old photoshoot so my model looks different in terms of mis-en-scene and poses that I didn't achieve in this one.

Trying out different fonts and styles

My main source for fonts comes from myfonts.com in which I enter a key word such as 'indie' or 'pop' and the fonts that match those descriptions will be listed. I have tried various fonts to see if they suited my magazine style and genre well. I was looking for a style that was not too basic but at the same time wont look too out of place. 

 This font is called 'Candy Script'. When I first saw it I thought it was creative and looked very casual however I though it was too bubble-gum pop style for my genre.

 Now this seemed interesting and unique however it seemed to 'comic book' to me and did not fir in with the images I had taken.

 I liked this as it was not the standard Ariel or Times New Roman font but stays quite simplistic although as I would be laying my image over the title, I would need a font that is a bit more thicker in order to stay visible. It is a 'handwritten' style font and I though it would look more individual and give the cover a personal touch to it. 

 This appealed to me more than the other three even though the font is standard but I liked the worn, vein effect going through it. It would be suitable sitting behind my image and I believe reflects my genre well. To me it can suggest the flow of sound waves in the letters or the  'careless' look which I think has a bit more attitude to it and seem more indie. 

Flat Plan: Cover, contents and double page

I have produced a rough sketch of what the layout of my magazine will look like using a current magazine as a template...

Here I have decided that I shall have my model in the center of the page with the anchoring text at the bottom in a larger text than the puffs will be. I will be aiming to place puffs on both sides of the page, ideally 7 at least with a second image at the bottom. 

I intend to have a slogan above the title on the far left hand side with the issue date on the far right. Rather than including the price near the bar code or the date, I want to put it as a label so it's eye catching and clear to see.

I have also decided to keep my original magazine name 'New Wave' as it is still relevant to the genre.  I think this is the perfect name choice for my magazine. The 'New' relates to my upcoming artist for the feature article, and the 'wave' suggests music/sound waves indicating new singers and their new music styles.

Contents page analysis

Here I have an example of NME's contents page. They've kept to their colour scheme of red, white and black with the odd use of yellow as a high-lighter. They've also used at least three different images with two portrait images on the top side by side and a smaller landscape image at the bottom to illustrate the subscription box.

There is also a caption about the size of  a paragraph underneath the two main images giving the reader a snipet of this event.

The actual contents is straight down the right hand side with multiple headings ie. Features, Reviews, News, etc.

The words 'This Week' have been made large and bold which suggests that this is a weekly distribution

Double page analysis

I've taken a look at the NME Jimi Hendrix edition double page spread. I've noticed that in double pages that the images are the main concern and the text is focused more in a lower corner with a photo of Jimi Hendrix taking up the majority of the double pages with a large mid shot. A quote of his is also splashed across the top to fill in the blank spaces. Due to the large image and the position of the article, the text is therefore published in a very small font. By looking through other issue of NME I notice that is common as the images are the main priority. Every page of the magazine has a photo of some sort whether it's an album cover or gig pictures

Here I have another example of a double page spread from NME magazine featuring artist, Florence and the machine. Unlike the Jimi Hendrix page, this one is very basic in terms of colour  and text font, however I feel this is also a strong page as the red pops out against the black and grey and also helps to bring attention to her hair as well.

This is also a full body shoot and conventional in a way that the image is on the left hand side whist the text is placed on the right.

Just like the Jimi Hendrix page, the image does not stick to the left side of the page as the drapes of cloth seep to the other side. 

Models on Magazine covers

For this type of research, I wanted to see the style and poses that have been expressed on magazines. 

I like this cover brought to us by NME. It's quite imposing and confident which is the kind of image I'd like to have representing my magazine.

This is quite a nice cover as a head and shoulder shot is quite different in my opinion as usually covers consist of mid shots just like the Rihanna shot above. For this picture to work however, volume of hair is needed to help fill the space as there is not body to focus on. 

This is another head/shoulder cover but involves props this time. Again hair is used as a main interest for the shoot. 

Now this cover shot is very unconventional as it consists of the model sitting down and still covers quite a large area on the page. This shot could work on a music magazine especially for an indie genre

Indie fashion/style

Here I will be taking a look at the fashion and style of indie. This type of dressing is reflected by an indie artist and most likely their listeners. The audience for my magazine will also relate to this style.

 

Here I've chosen these three images. One is of model, Alexa Chung, who happens to have a very indie yet elegant sort of style. Slim fitting trousers/jeans, baggy top, stripes, blazer and smart looking, lace-up, boyish shoes.

Indie fashion is all about having an individual style and learning how to mix and match. Also wearing bold colours is conventional. I will try to inappropriate this when it comes to dressing my model.

Examples of indie pop music

The reason I wanted to have a look at indie music is so I understand the sound and style of the genre. I also wanted to have a look at the mis-en-scene and the way the indie singer behaves in the video which could reflect upon a photoshoot. 

Moodboard

I have decided to create a moodboard to help me again inspiration for layout, mise-en scene, colours and style. From this I can tell how indie is being defined and the type of people who will count as my target audience.

By looking at my moodboard I can clearly see the attention to colour. Bold, bright, fun and comfortable. However, the style tends to be quite simplistic at the same time. Anyone can re create an indie look as it is so effortless. This will reflect to my readers as most will likely dress like this. By analysing this moodboard I can also see that indie characters strive to be as different as possible not only just with their clothes but with their actions and personalities as well. Slogans and sketchy writing is also very indie and could prove useful for when I create puffs and headlines rather than using basic fonts.

Identifying audience

My audience will most likely be a female one as a lot of magazines seems to target males in terms of layout and images used. I want a magazine that will be able to relate to my audience and to be more than just music but about lifestyle and sharing a common interest.

My age range would vary but ideally mid teen as musical tastes and style will be experimented but also they are more ambitious at that age and hopefully my magazine will encourage those ambitions.

Analysing a magazine for its codes and conventions.

Firstly I must think about 3 key areas which will be:

- Text

- Images
- Layout

Here I will be using a popular Indie magazine, NME. I will be analysing their house style and their codes and conventions.

Text: The font they have used is 'sans-serif'. This is so it is easy to read and also done in block caps so it stands out bold. This is kept throughout their issues so readers are recognise the house font and therefore can afford to overlap the text with the main image.

Colours: NME has 5 didferent colour schemes (red, black, white and gold). In a way they have broken the convention as typicaly, magazines use 3 colours in their scheme. The NME logo is always red with a white outline which is their house style however may change for special edition issues. Gold is also picked up on this cover and it is conventional that other bits of text will carry the same colour. Also, the colour of the anchoring text can be reflected onto what the main image. Here it is not picked up that much however the cover person's skin has been made to look very tanned and almost golden.

The red from the title is also picked up subtly on the top and bottom right hand corners. This can indicate something exciting (competitions) or outrageous ( most overrated bands)  

Layout: It is conventional to have a banner going across the top or bottom (here it is on the top) and to have a full image some what in the centre. Many magazines also follow the Z shaped layout which entices the reader to scan their eyes across the top, diagonally down the image and finishing at the bottom. In this magazine I can clearly see the Z layout as my eyes were drawn from the top banner, on to the face and the bigger text on the left also helps to lure the eyes in a certain direction and then the hand brings our eyes back down to the bottom of the page



Naming the genre

I have decided to produce an indie pop magazine.

Indie pop is a new genre of music of alternative pop music which had originated from the United Kingdom, early 1980's. Although 'Indie' is a term for independent music and record labels, naming the genre came from the release of NME's C86 tape in 1986 which featured new bands licenced from independent labels.

Unlike the indie rock genre, indie pop is more melodic and less chaotic. Current Indie pop artists include:
Florence and the Machine, Hellogoodbye, Kate Nash and The Ting Tings.


The style of the people in this genre is bold, quirky and effortless. The idea behind 'indie' is to be independent and to look different than others although as a whole it is a label and therefore contradicts to idea of being 'independent'.