Drafting and planning (preliminary task)

This is my school magazine, which uses the codes and conventions of a magazine which includes things such as bar codes, masthead, main image etc.  i tried to keep the magazine as realistic as i could and tried to stick to the colors white, red and black which color co-ordinate with the school.

Research into similar products

The billboard magazine above is quite simplistic, there is little text which don't stand out much as the magazine have not tried to make these the main focus, however the image is the centre of attention, this is because they have positioned it over the masthead and the coverlines, by doing this they have made Lily Allen the main focus of the billboards edition and it also makes her look dominant. The artist is given direct eye contact which addresses the audience she is being talked about within this edition of this magazine. Analysing this magazines will help me construct my image to make my artist look dominant and helps me gain knowledge on how to make a specific feature of the magazine the main focus.

Drafting and planning

i used this image of Trent Reznor and the masthead taken from NME magazine to create a front page. Firstly i inserted the masthead into a software called Paint.net to crop and resize the masthead to the size i preferred and thought was an appropriate size. I then imported the image of Reznor into a new layer and to edit this image i used a tool called the magic want which allowed me to remove parts of the image which i didn't want to have present on the magazine front. To then move the image to the position i wanted, i used the deselect tool. i placed the image over the masthead because this masthead is a well known brand and its typical of magazines such as this one to have the coverstar over the masthead. Having done this it indicates to the readers that he is the main focus. The mid close up makes us see his facial expression in more detail, this specific shot makes him look very dominant. once i was happy with the masthead and image of Reznor i saved the document as a JPEG file and imported onto another software called Microsoft Publisher. Before adding in cover lines i did some research into similar cover lines used within this type of magazine, which my cover lines were inspired by. This task has given me an insight into how to construct the generic conventions into my own magazine, the idea of the left third rule appeals to me, which will be used in my final magazine cover.

Drafting and planning

When choosing a font for the magazine you are producing, you need to have a variety of different sizes, large fonts for main things such as the masthead to make the brand of your magazine recognisable and large font for the cover star credit and the main cover line. Medium sized font for the cover lines as these are a main feature of the front page and need to stand out to the reader to make them want to buy it. Lastly small font for not important things for the company such as price and date. Colour is another essential part to make a magazine look good and attractive, by having a colour scheme is one thing but to have it match the style and ethos of the magazine is another, this makes the magazine consistent and professional. Photography needs to be effective to make people more attracted to the magazine, this stands out the most compared to other magazines on the shelf. Having the cover star looking directly at the camera gives direct address to the audience and makes them more engaged.  Having research key things in what i should do to aim to make my magazine effective, i will ensure these things are present in my work to make my magazine look realistic and interesting.

Drafting and Planning

A music magazine follows a rule with codes and conventions, this usually consist of masthead, cover lines, cover star credit, date and price, barcode, main cover line and a cover star image. The masthead usually appears over the very top of the front page of the magazine, this is usually in capitals or non capitals but in a very bold large font, to make it stand out and evident to the reader the brand of the magazine. The cover lines are then placed around the edges of the front page, and are usually in a smaller sized font to the cover line, although they are important and need to stand out, they don't need to be as big. The cover lines are then wrapped by the cover star image which usually appears in the centre of the page covering almost the whole of the front page. This is because if its a popular artist, the focus of the magazine needs to be drawn to them, this grasps the readers attention more, as the person may be a fan of this artist. The date and price is placed differently in most magazines, some magazines have it along the top right of the page or the bottom right or maybe above the barcode. The date and price of the magazine is usually a very small font, this is because if the magazine is quite pricey, they don't want to draw attention to the price as this might put customers off buying the magazine. The barcode of the magazine depends also and changes each time and lastly the main cover line and cover star credit usually appears below the image of the cover star or at the side of them. By researching generic conventions of music magazines, has developed my knowledge and understanding of how to apply these in my own work, and how to attract my target audience.

Research into similar products

Another billboard magazine analysis- The body language of Rihanna grabs the attention from the reader as she looks flirtatious and rebellious. She is a massive artists so will instantly make people pick up the magazine straight away. The image has got her giving direct eye contact with the readers which is very effective in a magazine and can determine whether somebody catches attention with the magazine or not. The bright red hair stands out on the front cover and draws attention to her face. The image is widely spread across the page which makes her centre of attention. Majority of music magazines do this to make people want to buy it more. The magazine above uses a colour scheme which matches the house style and ethos of the magazine, this makes the magazine look more effective and eye appealing. This will help me in my work as when i analyse magazines and research what codes and conventions they apply to their magazines, it develops my understanding of the use of generic conventions. This will also help me in my photoshoot of how to present my artist and gives me an insight into more colour schemes which blend well together.

Research into similar products.

This magazine was produced by Billboard which is another major branded music magazine. I analysed this because rather than just sticking to analysing Vibe, i am researching into other magazines and seeing how they all apply codes and conventions, structure their text and images and how they attract their target audience in their own way. Having the model of Lady Gaga in the centre of the magazine makes her the main focus of the magazine. Also having the artist looking directly into the readers and browsers in the shop draws them to look at the magazine. The colour scheme of the magazine is very dull but has used a bright hair colour to draw attention to artists face to emphasise the facial expression and what artist is being featured in the magazine. Again having the text wrapped around the image makes her the main focus and centre of attention. This can help me when designing my magazine because i will want my artist to be the main focus as she is going to be a new signed artist and nobody will know of her, this draws the attention to her and then the reader asks themselves, who is this? which can make them want to buy the magazine to see what the latest gossip is. The structure of the text can also help me when i have to lay my cover lines around the image, i like the idea of the text being pushed behind the artist but making them still noticeable. i find this is very effective and unique.

Research into similar products

Niki Minaj, is another inspiring artist to many teenagers and older young adults. The main audience who are attracted to her music is the same age range as my selected target audience. Niki is very unique in her choice of style, she wears big clothing with crazy patterns and bright colours matching with her hair. She however performs more rap rather than pop music, but she occasionally releases a pop song. This magazine, was chosen because i find that Vibe magazine have artists consisting of my chosen genre. Also Vibe is a magazine with a reputation and is very popular. They normally feature pop artists such as Beyonce, Niki Minaj and Iggy Azalea. I analysed this specific magazine because i thought the colour scheme of the magazine was very effective. This was because it makes it stand out against all the other magazines on the shelves within the shops. Also the codes and conventions of a magazine are evident here, the colour scheme matches the house style and ethos of the magazine, the cover lines fill space and make the magazine look interesting. The artist is typically the main focus of the front page and the masthead is bold and behind the artist, to indicate to the readers what company has distributed the magazine and this gets their brand more recognised. This magazine can inspire me later on when creating my own magazine, because the structure would be influenced and inherited into my own work, and seeing this magazine, will help me ensure i choose a good colour scheme to make my magazine attractive and ensure it matches the house style and ethos of my magazine.

Research into similar products

http://www.beyonce.com/


Beyoncé is one of my favorite pop, r&b artists, every single one of her songs are catchy, enjoyable and maybe sometime relatable. I use this website to watch her music videos, listen to her latest tracks and old time favorites, and view pictures of her on tour or holiday breaks with her family. the layout is fairly simple and easy to use, and find it interesting. This artist is inspiring, a lot of young girls look up to her as their role model, and her style and choice of fashion can be further used in my magazine. i also look at different magazines such as billboard or vibe who feature Beyonce in their magazines, i then look at the images of Beyonce and how she reveals herself.

Beyonce is an artist who sings pop songs which is the genre i have chosen for my magazine. This helps me inherit ideas of her fashion, style and images of her inspire several ideas which i can apply to my magazine such as hairstyles, clothing and how my artist will pose in my front page, double page spread and contents page.