Thursday, 5 January 2012
Tuesday, 3 January 2012
16th December 2011
Evaluation
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
I analysed several existing magazines to make sure that my magazine followed similar codes and conventions, these magazines included Q, Rolling Stone, Billboard and We Love Pop. I made sure that my cover included a masthead, a slogan, relevant plugs, at least one high quality cover shot, a bar code, the magazine cost and the issue number. I ensured that my contents page was branded and included a list of the magazine's articles, a title, several photographs, page numbers and the issue number. These are features which I found are the conventions of real products. My double page spread showed a clear link over the two pages, a photo and an article written in a similar interview style to existing articles in magazines. I chose a price for my product which was close to or the same as existing products which I viewed.
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
I feel that my magazine represents people who are more interested in music than gossip on music stars. It represents people who are willing to listen to music which might not necessarily be of their favourite genre but simply music which they find appealing. For this reason my magazine covers over several genres which stem off the initial pop music genre. It represents people who would willingly buy a product which would also appeal to the opposite gender.
What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
Having looked at magazines with a similar price range, target audience and sophisticated appearance to my own, I feel that Heart Corporation would be a good distributor for my magazine. Hearst Corporation currently distributes 23 magazines in the United Kingdom, 20 in the USA and many others internationally. These range from fashion magazines such as 'Elle', 'Cosmopolitan' and 'Company' to 'Country Living Magazine' and men's magazines such as 'Men's Health' and 'Road & Track'. They do not currently distribute any music magazines which is why I feel that it would fit in well with them as they have no competing products. I feel that the appearance of my magazine is similar to that of the other magazines distributed by Hearst.
Who would be the audience for your media product?
I feel that the target audience for my product is fairly wide and covers both genders. I believe that a variety of age groups would be interested in my product as I have tried to keep the appearance appealing to a wide age group. I feel that it would be older teenagers to middle ages individuals who would buy the magazine. The target audience would be people who are fond of popular, current music, not solely of the pop genre but of a wide variety of genres which feature in the official music chart. I feel that the medium price range would be appealing to a wide variety of people as it is not too expensive.
How did you attract/address your audience?
I attracted my audience by trying to keep a unisex appearance throughout my magazine. Although the cover photo is more often then not the reason somebody buys a magazine I feel that this particular issue would appeal equally to both genders. Despite this future issues may appeal more so to a certain gender due to the cover photo of that issue. To try to avoid this being an issue I have tried to make the other features of the magazine appealing to men and women. I have used a bold blue as my main branding colour along with black and white, all colours which I feel both men and women would approve of. Other font colours are those selected from photos to match outfits etc. and so would compliment the photos. I feel that these would not be too distracting or distasteful to a gender as they would not occur as often so would be less noticeable. I have used a total of four fonts throughout my magazine. I have chosen fonts which are easy to read and not too extravagant and off-putting. I feel that the masthead font stands out but still looks professional. This I feel will enable me to appeal to a wider audience. I have kept the appearance of the magazine clear and sophisticated so that I can also appeal to a wider target audience older than teenagers and young adults. I have ensured that the contents includes something for everyone and each issue will feature articles from different genres of music. These include a variety of different types of articles, such as interviews and reviews, which are based on artists from a variety of ages and from both genders. The articles will mainly consist of information on the artist's music as the magazine is aimed at people who are more interested in music and not gossip.
What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
I feel I have improved my skills in using the software Serif DrawPlus x3 throughout this process. Although I was familiar with the software, which is why I used it initially, I have learnt how to do more with the it. I have enhanced my skills using the cut out studio as this is a difficult tool to use, however, I now feel more confident in using it. I have discovered effects which can make text, pictures and shapes look more interesting which I had previously not known of. I have also uncovered the colour picker which allows you to select colours from photos or text so that the colour can be used elsewhere. I found that this was a very useful tool for selecting colours to make them compliment throughout the pages. Despite the software having many tools which were excellent for making my product, the program made the computer crash on many occasions which made it reliable. This made saving work regularly an essential part of the process.
Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
I feel that by doing more research for my main task, on a wider variety of existing products, I was able to pick out more key features and conventions of magazines and ensure that these were included in my own. I realise now that my masthead should have stood out more in preliminary task as it was not a large enough size for the thin font which I selected. I believe that my layout on my main task was much more appropriate and specific to the target audience than that of my school magazine. I feel that I had a much clearer view of who my target audience was on my main task and how to appeal to them. I made the plugs on my main task stand out more after feeling that those on my preliminary were a little drowned out by the photo.
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
I analysed several existing magazines to make sure that my magazine followed similar codes and conventions, these magazines included Q, Rolling Stone, Billboard and We Love Pop. I made sure that my cover included a masthead, a slogan, relevant plugs, at least one high quality cover shot, a bar code, the magazine cost and the issue number. I ensured that my contents page was branded and included a list of the magazine's articles, a title, several photographs, page numbers and the issue number. These are features which I found are the conventions of real products. My double page spread showed a clear link over the two pages, a photo and an article written in a similar interview style to existing articles in magazines. I chose a price for my product which was close to or the same as existing products which I viewed.
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
I feel that my magazine represents people who are more interested in music than gossip on music stars. It represents people who are willing to listen to music which might not necessarily be of their favourite genre but simply music which they find appealing. For this reason my magazine covers over several genres which stem off the initial pop music genre. It represents people who would willingly buy a product which would also appeal to the opposite gender.
What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
Having looked at magazines with a similar price range, target audience and sophisticated appearance to my own, I feel that Heart Corporation would be a good distributor for my magazine. Hearst Corporation currently distributes 23 magazines in the United Kingdom, 20 in the USA and many others internationally. These range from fashion magazines such as 'Elle', 'Cosmopolitan' and 'Company' to 'Country Living Magazine' and men's magazines such as 'Men's Health' and 'Road & Track'. They do not currently distribute any music magazines which is why I feel that it would fit in well with them as they have no competing products. I feel that the appearance of my magazine is similar to that of the other magazines distributed by Hearst.
Who would be the audience for your media product?
I feel that the target audience for my product is fairly wide and covers both genders. I believe that a variety of age groups would be interested in my product as I have tried to keep the appearance appealing to a wide age group. I feel that it would be older teenagers to middle ages individuals who would buy the magazine. The target audience would be people who are fond of popular, current music, not solely of the pop genre but of a wide variety of genres which feature in the official music chart. I feel that the medium price range would be appealing to a wide variety of people as it is not too expensive.
How did you attract/address your audience?
I attracted my audience by trying to keep a unisex appearance throughout my magazine. Although the cover photo is more often then not the reason somebody buys a magazine I feel that this particular issue would appeal equally to both genders. Despite this future issues may appeal more so to a certain gender due to the cover photo of that issue. To try to avoid this being an issue I have tried to make the other features of the magazine appealing to men and women. I have used a bold blue as my main branding colour along with black and white, all colours which I feel both men and women would approve of. Other font colours are those selected from photos to match outfits etc. and so would compliment the photos. I feel that these would not be too distracting or distasteful to a gender as they would not occur as often so would be less noticeable. I have used a total of four fonts throughout my magazine. I have chosen fonts which are easy to read and not too extravagant and off-putting. I feel that the masthead font stands out but still looks professional. This I feel will enable me to appeal to a wider audience. I have kept the appearance of the magazine clear and sophisticated so that I can also appeal to a wider target audience older than teenagers and young adults. I have ensured that the contents includes something for everyone and each issue will feature articles from different genres of music. These include a variety of different types of articles, such as interviews and reviews, which are based on artists from a variety of ages and from both genders. The articles will mainly consist of information on the artist's music as the magazine is aimed at people who are more interested in music and not gossip.
What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
I feel I have improved my skills in using the software Serif DrawPlus x3 throughout this process. Although I was familiar with the software, which is why I used it initially, I have learnt how to do more with the it. I have enhanced my skills using the cut out studio as this is a difficult tool to use, however, I now feel more confident in using it. I have discovered effects which can make text, pictures and shapes look more interesting which I had previously not known of. I have also uncovered the colour picker which allows you to select colours from photos or text so that the colour can be used elsewhere. I found that this was a very useful tool for selecting colours to make them compliment throughout the pages. Despite the software having many tools which were excellent for making my product, the program made the computer crash on many occasions which made it reliable. This made saving work regularly an essential part of the process.
Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
I feel that by doing more research for my main task, on a wider variety of existing products, I was able to pick out more key features and conventions of magazines and ensure that these were included in my own. I realise now that my masthead should have stood out more in preliminary task as it was not a large enough size for the thin font which I selected. I believe that my layout on my main task was much more appropriate and specific to the target audience than that of my school magazine. I feel that I had a much clearer view of who my target audience was on my main task and how to appeal to them. I made the plugs on my main task stand out more after feeling that those on my preliminary were a little drowned out by the photo.
15th December 2011
I have added another plug which relates to the artist in my double page spread. I have used part of the article as the brief information given by the plug, 'Broadway lead to pop superstar', as well as the artist's name. I have changed the artist's names in the right plugs into the same blue as the masthead to give the page a more complimenting appearance and make the names stand out more. Both the artist's names and the information which goes with them have a bold font to make them stand out against the picture.
I have added a slogan to the magazine, situated below the masthead. This reads 'MY MUSIC. MY SOUND. MYTUNES'. I have chosen to include a slogan as I found that it is something which the majority of magazines have. I have used repetition with 'my' in the slogan to make it sound catchier and emphasise that it is the magazine for you. I have decided to use three short sentences as I feel that this makes it sound more dramatic and to the point.
14th December 2011
I have now used the cut out studio on Serif to cut out part of the glow around Amy as I found that it was too much having it all the way around. Instead the glow is now just around the upper half of her body and her left shoe. I have decided to rearrange the buildings as I was not completely happy with how they looked. I have made the buildings smaller as I found they were too dominating over the page. I have copied and pasted some of the buildings so that they still fill the width of the page at their smaller size. I found that the layout looked a little odd with Amy's shoe appearing straight over the buildings in the background and looked unrealistic. To improve this I have placed an auto shape rectangle across the bottom of the page. I have made this rectangle black and have faded it into the buildings. I feel that this makes the scene look more professional and sleek. I have decided to leave out page numbers on my double page spread, something which I found that existing products do when they do not fit in or look appropriate on the pages. As this article would be over several pages, some of the other pages would have numbers so that readers can easily find articles. I believe that my double page spread is now finished.
13th December 2011
Now that I have all of the necessary features on my double page spread I have now enhanced the appearance of it. I have used the colour select tool on Serif to pick out the red of the dress in the photo. I have then changed the font colour of the questions asked in the interview into the selected red. I have chosen to do this as I feel that it makes the questions look much clearer and more distinguishable from the answers.
I changed the font colour of the title 'Scarlet Hudson' to black and have added a red glow around it to make it look more like the 'Chicago' title. In contrast to this the 'S' and the 'H' have a white font colour with a red glow to make each word stand out more similarly to the 'C' in the centre of 'Chicago'. I have also used the white font with the red glow for both quotes to make them clearer to see and to enhance the theme throughout the page.
I have placed an arrow at the end of the text on the page as the whole article does not fit on the two pages. This is something which I found articles in existing magazines do when the article continues onto another page. I have used an arrow from the auto shapes, however, I have cropped off the tail so that it is just the triangle part. I have made the arrow a similar height to the font and have line it up with the text. The arrow is also white with a red glow around it. I have faded the buildings slightly to make the article clearer to read as I thought it would be more difficult with the heavy contrast of the buildings. Similarly to my contents page, I have drawn around the photo of Amy again in white using picnik. I have done this as I found that you could still see green around certain areas of the photo. I have gone around where the green was still present and then cut the photo out again using the cut out studio on Serif.
I have decided to place a glow around the photo to make it look like the light is shining off her. I have done this by copying and pasting the image and placing it on top of the original photo. I have then taken the transparency of the fill down to 0% to make it completely transparent, allowing you to see the original photo below. I have then edited the line by giving it a red glow. 12th December 2011
I have introduced my article with a quote from the interview which reads 'Sometimes I just want to wear my fishnets and strut my stuff as Roxie!'. I have chosen to start the article with this as it gives a brief snippet of information as to what the article is about which grabs the reader's attention. I have chosen a quote which I feel is interesting and goes with the Chicago theme of the double page spread. The quote is written in first person and as it is about being the lead role in a Broadway musical, readers will know that it is Scarlet speaking, which again will make them want to read the article more so if they are a fan. The quote features the use of the alliteration, 'strut my stuff', which makes it sound more appealing to the ears and so makes the sentence stand out. I have chosen to write the sentence in bold and have used larger font size to the rest of the article to make it stand out more.
Below the quote I have written a brief introduction to the article. The use of the phrase, 'From a lead role on Broadway to pop superstardom', informs the reader what th artist is famous for if they do not already know and if they do this emphasises the point. I have then written that Scarlet is going to be 'Sharing the secrets to her success', again the use of alliteration makes the sentence sound more interesting, and 'shedding light on her new album'. I have given the reader an idea as to what topics will be covered in the article so that the reader will know if they want to read it or not by what topics are told. However, I have kept the brief quite vague so that not too much has been given away and I have chosen general topics related to music so that most people would find this interesting to read. This paragraph has been written in a font size in between the main article and the introductory quote.
I have placed a white line above where the main article begins so that there is a clear divide for the reader to see. I have begun the main article using direct speech used by the interviewee to again draw the reader's attention. I have then continued by describing Scarlet's entrance to the interview and how busy she is. I have then asked an array of questions and shown her responses. The majority of the questions asked relate to Scarlet's music as this is part of the IPC of my magazine to be mainly about the music and not gossip. The questions and answers have the same font size, however, the questions are written in bold so that they can be distinguished easily. I have left a line after each answer before the next question so that it is clearer to see different questions with their answers. I have laid the main part of the article out into four columns across both pages. I have arranged the text so that it curves around the shape of the photo of Amy as this makes the layout look more professional.
I have placed another quote from the article in the centre of the right page in a larger, bold font. This is something which I found magazine articles often features as they grab the reader's attention. I have chosen a quote which I again feel is interesting and I believe will entice the buyer to read the article. I have placed speech marks above and below the sentence, using a much larger font. These immediately indicate that someone is speaking which again draws in the reader as they want to find out what the artist has said.
8th December 2011
I have now started to enhance my double page spread now that I have the basic layout and photo which I want to use. I have looked at a poster from the movie of the musical 'Chicago' to get ideas for the double page spread. I have decided to try and mimic the idea of having the cityscape in the background with the figure stood in the foreground in the centre of the page. I have found some photos of skyscrapers which I had from a trip to New York and have cut them out using the cut-out studio on Serif DrawPlusx3. I have changed the colour of the buildings to black and white so that the figure stands out more and have arranged the buildings in a sweeping arc along the bottom of the page. 
I have copied and pasted some of the buildings and placed them elsewhere so that the buildings take up all of the bottom of the page. I have arranged them with some higher than others so that the buildings dip where my photo of Amy is to make her stand out more and give the page a more interesting appearance. Thursday, 15 December 2011
5th December 2011
I have now drawn out a rough layout of my magazine on paper. I know that I want to use a long shot of Amy, however, I have not decided which picture to use. I have started creating my double page spread on Serif DrawPlusx3. By having a play around with photos on the layout I can see what works and decide which pictures to use. Once I decide on a concept I will be able to write my article to go with it. 
I have decided that I am only going to use one photo in my double page of Amy. I have chosen to use the photo shown on the right as I particularly like the over-the-shoulder pose and by having one leg raised shows off the shoes more. I think that the pose will appeal to both genders as it is slightly alluring, however not overly provocative. With the outfit she is wearing, I have decided to go for a Chicago theme with the double page spread as I feel that the clothing and pose would go well with this concept. I have so far given the pages a black background and written the artist, Scarlet Hudson's name across the top of the page in red. I have chosen the font 'Beatnik SF', a font which was used on my cover and for my contents page. Monday, 12 December 2011
2nd December 2011
I have now looked at two double page spreads from Q Magazine. The first is an article on Amy Winehouse, after passing away. This article features over 14 in pages in the magazine due to its great importance. It contains an unseen interview and comments on the star made by other artists. This double page spread is taken from the third and fourth pages of the article. Similarly to the Rihanna article in Company, a picture has been used which takes up an entire page. However, this picture is on the right page and overlaps onto the left. The left page has a small version of the magazine logo in the left corner alongside the page number and issue date. The right page does not have these features due to the picture, however, it does have a sentence of information as to where the photo was from and who it was taken by.
This next article appears in the same issue of Q Magazine and features an article on the cover stars Kasabian. This double page spread appears half way through the article and so has the text continuing from another page. The left side of the page consists entirely of the article. The text has been arranged into three neat columns which give it a mature and educated appearance. As the article is an interview it shows what the interviewer is saying as well as the artist's response. The questions by the interviewer are written in a bold font, to distinguish a difference between who is talking for which part of the article. The start of each response by the artist begins with 'TM:' which is the artists name (Tom Meighan) and is written in red. This is done to emphasise the difference between who is talking. The same red is used as the magazine logo which makes the word stand out and seem more important. In the centre of the page a quotation from the article is used. This is written in upper case, and has a bold red font to gain the readers attention. This is something which appears to be common in magazines where an interesting statement is picked out. The right page features a small sub article about the same artist titled 'TOM MEIGHAN'S WORLD OF MONSTERS'. This page features the only photo of the artist on the double page spread, a full shot of Tom Meighan gripping the back of his head with his hand. This page has more of an informal layout with playful fonts which compliment the theme of the topic. There are several illustrations which appear around the page, which have a child like appearance, again to go with the theme. I particularly like the full shot being used in the centre of the page with text laid out around it. However I think I want my page to look more sophisticated like the left hand page.
1st December 2011
I have now looked at several double page spreads in existing magazines to get an idea of the layout and codes and conventions. The first I have looked at is from Company Magazine.
This double page spread is an article about the pop superstar, Rihanna. The first two things which catch your eye are the main image of Rihanna, which takes up the whole of the left page, and a sentence which crosses over the two pages in quotation marks. The quotation marks immediately indicate that this is something which has been said by whom the article is featured on. This entices the audience into wanting to read more by giving just a short quote. The text is all in upper case to make it stand out more and has a bold pink and black font colour. The pink stands out well as the rest of the page is black and white. The black has been used against a white background so that it contrasts and again makes it bolder. The black font colour has been used only for the word 'MY', perhaps to emphasise that this is her life she is talking about. As this feature has a fairly long article, it has been spread out over four pages instead of cramming it into two. Therefore, the whole article does not feature on this double page spread. Having read the article it seems that the quote 'I LOVE MY CRAZY LIFE' fits well with it as Rihanna's interview begun with them going on a wild goose chase to find props and costumes for one of Rihanna's concerts as one of her tour buses had been involved in an accident.
There are several pictures of Rihanna over the two pages. The main photo is a medium close-up shot of Rihanna looking down and smiling. The image takes up the whole of the left side of the page and is in black and white. On the second page there are various different shots of Rihanna having make-up applied. These feature in rows, similarly to a film strip. These photos are again in black and white and trail off the page, cropping some of the photos. These goes with the 'crazy' and perhaps even disorganised feel of the article to match the interview. It also show a more behind-the-scenes view of the artist and indicate that the interview is more in-depth and involved. These images appear on an angle which aligns with the quote and the first part of the article.
The article is introduced with a small amount of information indicating what topics are going to be covered in the article. This is positioned away from the article, between the photos and the quote. Despite this, the reader will know to look at this first as it appears higher on the page and the larger font will attract the attention first. The actual article then begins in the bottom right corner. The article begins with a large speech mark which is the same colour pink as the quote. This follows by the article which uses a smaller, plain black font. The text finishes on mid sentence as it reaches the end of the page and so a small arrow is used to indicate that the article continues over the page.
The left page does not feature a page number ad there is a picture which covers where it would appear. However the right page does have a page number in the bottom right corner. The issue month and the magazine website appear alongside. In the top left hand corner the word 'celeb' has been written. This is to indicate what type of article the feature is. This article would appear under the 'celeb' sub-heading in the contents page.
This double page spread is an article about the pop superstar, Rihanna. The first two things which catch your eye are the main image of Rihanna, which takes up the whole of the left page, and a sentence which crosses over the two pages in quotation marks. The quotation marks immediately indicate that this is something which has been said by whom the article is featured on. This entices the audience into wanting to read more by giving just a short quote. The text is all in upper case to make it stand out more and has a bold pink and black font colour. The pink stands out well as the rest of the page is black and white. The black has been used against a white background so that it contrasts and again makes it bolder. The black font colour has been used only for the word 'MY', perhaps to emphasise that this is her life she is talking about. As this feature has a fairly long article, it has been spread out over four pages instead of cramming it into two. Therefore, the whole article does not feature on this double page spread. Having read the article it seems that the quote 'I LOVE MY CRAZY LIFE' fits well with it as Rihanna's interview begun with them going on a wild goose chase to find props and costumes for one of Rihanna's concerts as one of her tour buses had been involved in an accident.
There are several pictures of Rihanna over the two pages. The main photo is a medium close-up shot of Rihanna looking down and smiling. The image takes up the whole of the left side of the page and is in black and white. On the second page there are various different shots of Rihanna having make-up applied. These feature in rows, similarly to a film strip. These photos are again in black and white and trail off the page, cropping some of the photos. These goes with the 'crazy' and perhaps even disorganised feel of the article to match the interview. It also show a more behind-the-scenes view of the artist and indicate that the interview is more in-depth and involved. These images appear on an angle which aligns with the quote and the first part of the article.
The article is introduced with a small amount of information indicating what topics are going to be covered in the article. This is positioned away from the article, between the photos and the quote. Despite this, the reader will know to look at this first as it appears higher on the page and the larger font will attract the attention first. The actual article then begins in the bottom right corner. The article begins with a large speech mark which is the same colour pink as the quote. This follows by the article which uses a smaller, plain black font. The text finishes on mid sentence as it reaches the end of the page and so a small arrow is used to indicate that the article continues over the page.
The left page does not feature a page number ad there is a picture which covers where it would appear. However the right page does have a page number in the bottom right corner. The issue month and the magazine website appear alongside. In the top left hand corner the word 'celeb' has been written. This is to indicate what type of article the feature is. This article would appear under the 'celeb' sub-heading in the contents page. I very much like the sophisticated layout of the magazine and the use of clear fonts which make the articles easy to read. I think that the pictures work well together along with the text. I don't think that I want to have a whole page taken up by the photo as I wish to show more of my article.
Saturday, 10 December 2011
29th November 2011
I now feel I have finished my contents page. After all of the pictures were inserted I felt that I could improve the pages as I had something to work around. I have changed the title's font to 'Accord Heavy SF', the same font used for 'Tunes' on the masthead. I feel that this font is more sophisticated and looks more professional on the page. Below the page title, I have placed the magazine masthead in a small white circle. I done this so that the page is branded and the identity of the magazine is emphasised. I have also included the issue number below this. I have arranged the codes and conventions of the double page spread into sections, separated by black lines.
The first column on the left hand side, sectioned by the sub-heading 'Features', is where the main articles and interviews with artists are shown. These all give the page number of the article, the name of the artist and a snippet of information about the feature to entice the reader to find the page. These are arranged neatly in a column to give a more mature appearance. The features fit alongside the picture of Amy Winehouse, taking up the same length of the page, again giving a neat layout.The section below this includes a regular feature of the magazine, 'MyReview'. This article is something which will appear in each issue of the magazine and allows a member of the public to write a review on a current music topic such as a new album or concert. For this month a JLS fan has reviewed their new album. This goes along with the photo of JLS which I have put on the page.
The left hand column on the right page features three images and a special offer to subscribe to the magazine at the bottom. I have arranged the photos so that they alternate between colour and black and white to make them stand out more.
The far right column, sectioned off with the subtitle 'Review', consists of different reviews in the magazine. These again give a page number for where to find the review, either the name of the artist of the name of the review and a small amount of information. I have placed the picture of Josh and the album covers below the text and made the picture big enough so that there are no blank spaces. I have placed page numbers at the bottom of the magazine along with the issue date and the logo on the inside corner.
I feel that the contents page is well branded with the logo appearing three times over the two pages. The three fonts used are both used on the front cover to continue the magazine's identity over the pages. Each subheading is written in upper case letter to make them stand out more and have a box around them. These boxes are the same colour blue as used on my cover and in my masthead title. I have used the 'My' feature of the title in several regular features, 'MyReview' and 'MyTop20' to again keep the magazine well branded with regular items. I believe that my contents page looks sophisticated and will appeal to both genders as I wished it to.
28th November 2011
I have now decided to use the cover with Francesca on as my main front cover instead of the picture of Amy as I felt that the photo looked better on the cover and would appeal to both genders more. Also as my contents page and double page spread contain photos of Amy I wanted use more of a variety of different people within the magazine.
I have now used a different picture for the cover of the different issue of the magazine to go in my contents page as a feature to subscribe to the magazine. I have used one of the photos which I took for the cover of my preliminary task of my sister, Hayley. I have decided to use one of these photos as I had a variety of different shots of her and the previous issue is for October. As these photos show her styled as a vampire I feel that they would appropriately fit onto the cover. I have chosen a picture which shows her peering over a fan as I feel that this picture would appeal to both genders, showing a slightly alluring pose.
I have edited the photo using Picnik. I have firstly removed and imperfections in the skin using the 'blemish remove' tool to give the skin the more perfect look of a pop star. I have then used the 'vampire eyes' tool to give her yellow eyes and the 'draculon dermis' tool to give her skin more smoothness like a vampire. I have used the 'black and white' effect to make the fan black instead of blue as I feel this is more appropriate and makes the photo seem darker. I have then increased the contrast and the sharpness of the picture to make it more professional and eye-catching. I have then replaced the picture of Franky with this one, changing the main plug to 'Niomi Hunter "new album, new look, new me"'. I chosen a name which I feel sounds like a pop star and have used a short quote which I feel would entice the reader into buying the magazine. I have then inserted the previous issue into my contents page in the same place where it was previously.
Wednesday, 7 December 2011
25th November 2011
I have taken more photos for my contents page. I have this time asked a friend, Josh, to model for me. I decided that I needed another photo of a male artist to balance the page out and keep the unisex image. I have taken a range of different photos of Josh in two different outfits. In the first photos, I have gone for an old-fashioned meets new trend image. Josh has been styled in red skinny jeans, a British flag T-shirt and a military-style grey jacket. Josh also wore aviator style glasses, an array of wrist bands and a scarf hanging out of his back pocket. I feel that this combination gives off the image of a music star, however, I feel that he does not look like your typical pop star and perhaps more of a pop/rock genre with the skinny jeans and the scarf in the back pocket. The jacket I feel is very Michael Jackson and gives that old fashioned feel. However I feel that it also looks modern due to the recent military fashion trends. The red colours of the jeans, scarf and T-shirt compliment each other and the sunglasses give people an instant connection to a pop star. I have chosen to use the photo shown on the right as I particularly like the angle and the pose in it, giving a laid back image with his hands in his pockets. 
I have then taken more photos of Josh in a different outfit. I have decided I am going to make an album cover for Josh to go with the other image. This album cover will have a photo of Josh on it. For this outfit I have chosen to go for darker styling to give off more of a rock image. Josh has been fashioned in with a black scarf draping over one shoulder and a silver chain over the other shoulder in the opposite direction. This I feel gives almost a Roman or Greek appearance. I have chosen this as I feel that many music stars push the boundaries in there styling and so wanted to go for something different. I have also got Josh to wear eye-liner to emphasise the rock look. I have taken the photographs in the evening whilst it was dark and have set up lamps around the room to make the lighting more dramatic. I have asked photographed Josh from different angles, directing him with a variety of different poses. As I particularly like the two photos shown to the right I have decided to put two album covers on the page, a normal and a deluxe edition. I feel that these will equal out more with the other photo of Josh. 
I have edited the three chosen images using Serif DrawPlusx3, increasing the contrast and the sharpness. To make the album covers I have firstly drawn out two black squares using auto shapes. I have then inserted the pictures and cut them out using the cut out studio. I have then drawn lines around the pictures, some in front of the images and some behind. I have changed the brush effect to 'smoke' and maximised the thickness of the lines. I have then coloured these lines white to make them contrast with the image and the background. I feel that these make the album cover look more dramatic and compliment Josh's styling. I have named the album 'SoundStreet' and have written the album name at the bottom of the covers. I have used a red font with a glass effect on it to make it stand out against the image. I have written 'deluxe edition' on the second cover overlapping the album name to distinguish the difference. I have come up with the name 'Alex Rider' as the artist's name and have placed the name on the album cover also. I have changed the transparency of the black square to a brick textures as I feel that this goes with the album name 'SoundStreet'.
I have now inserted the photo and two album covers into my contents page in the bottom right corner. I have cut out the first photo of Josh and placed it on the right of the space. I have then placed the album covers at contrasting angles on the left of the other photo, one slightly behind it and the other overlapping. I have added a white glow to the three pictures to make them stand out more.
24th November 2011
I have now decided to put a picture of Amy in my contents page. I have looked through all of my full shots and chosen one which I feel will fit well on the page. I have decided the use the photo shown to the right as I want the image to go between the Alexandra Burke and Jessie J pictures. As Amy is not standing up I feel that this photo will fit nicely between without covering the other images to much. I am going to cut the background out of this photo so that it will overlap the other images without having an unnecessary background hiding some of the other photos. I think that it will also look good using a variety of different photos.
I have tried to cut this image out using the cut out studio on Serif DrawPlusx3, however I found that some of the green still remained on some of the edges. Due to this I have firstly edited the photo using Picnik. I have used the black and white effect over the areas of the background which were not cutting out very well. I have then used the boost effect over the black and white to make the colour crisp white. I have done this around the photo so that not green remained around the areas which it was left after the attempted cut out. Whilst on Picnik I increased the contrast and the sharpness of the image. After the edit, I cut the image out again and found that this worked perfectly.
I have now inserted the photo into my contents page. I have decided the position it behind the Jessie J picture but in front of the Alexandra Burke photo. As the photo is cut out it only overlaps the photo slightly and so doesn't take your attention away from it. I have added a white glow around the photo of Amy to make her stand out more so. I have also placed a number on the photo to show where the article will feature. I feel that I am happy with this column now and think that the colour photo of Amy looks good with two black and white photos.
20th November 2011
I have now taken more photographs for my contents page of my friend, Francesca. I have chosen Francesca as she is photogenic and has fairly tanned skin which will compliment the look I am going for with her photos. I have gone for edgy styling with Francesca, almost giving her a warrior queen look. She wore a patterned gold dress with a black high waist belt. She has styled her hair with two chunky plaits on either side of the face, a quiff at the front and the rest hanging in loose curls. For accessories I gave her a black wristband around one wrist and a belt and bangles around the over. I also wrapped a chain around her hand and between her fingers. I believe that combined these give the image of a pop star. I have chosen for Francesca to not wear any make up as I felt that the natural look complimented the warrior image. I have taken several images of Francesca from different angles. I have asked her to pose with her hands on her hips and straight faced to give more of an attitude image. I believe that by doing this the photos will appeal to both genders as the pose is bordering on sultry and so will appeal to men and women may aspire to be like her for her fashion. I have chosen to use the photo shown to the right as I feel that it is the best one. I think that the photo looks better with her eyes looking at the camera and the over the shoulder angle is much more effective.
I have edited this photo using Picnik on Picasa. I have put a faint sepia effect over the image to enhance the warrior-like feel. I have then increased the contrast of the image and sharpened it to make it look more professional and eye-catching. I have used this photo as the previous issue of 'Mytunes' before the one which I am creating. I have decided to this as I wished to show a subscribe feature in my contents page which will show a special offer. This is something which the magazine, 'Q' features in its contents pages. I have decided to show a previous issue as I did not want too many photos of Amy on my contents page and I intend to use another elsewhere on the page. I have used a similar layout to my main front cover, however, I have changed the plugs to feature different artists.
I have now inserted this cover into my contents page at the bottom left column of the right page. I have shown a brief snippet of the offer, 12 issues of 'Mytunes' at half price. However I have given a page number to show where in the magazine to find out more about the offer.Tuesday, 6 December 2011
22nd November 2011
For another of of my images in the contents page I am going to use a photo from a JLS concert which I went to as I feel that some of the pictures came out well. Also I thought it would look good on the page to again use a photo of a real artist. JLS again fit the genre of music for my magazine perfectly and they also have several hits currently in the charts. For this reason I feel that they would go perfectly in my magazine and I did notice them in other magazines when doing my analysis. As they have had a new album released this month, I have decided that there article would be a review of the new album. This feature is something which I found was popular in other magazines.
I have looked through my photos and chosen the best one, shown to the right I have chosen to use the picture at the bottom as it was my favourite shot. This is because it shows a full shot of each member of the group. I also like how they are in action, singing, and all show different poses and are looking in different directions. I particularly like the background also and feel that it makes the group stand out.
I have inserted the photo into my contents page at the bottom left column of the first page. I have placed a number in the corner of the image to indicate where in the magazine the article is located. I have made this article as a review by a fan of the artist, a regular feature which I wish the magazine to have. I have chosen to have this as a feature as I feel it ties in with the USP of the magazine, showcasing information for everyone, 'Mytunes'. Therefore I feel that a review by a reader and a fan of the artist would be something which my target audience would want to read. I have called this feature 'MyReview' and have given a subheading for this section. 19th November 2011
I have now taken more photos for my contents page. As I again wanted pictures of celebrities I have used pictures of my drawings.
I have chosen to use pictures which I feel are the closest I have to looking like black and white photos. I have edited both pictures using picnik on picasa. I have coloured over the copyright on the Amy Winehouse portrait and my signature on the Jessie J portrait using the 'Doodle' tool as they have a block colour behind them so I could simply colour over it. I have removed the signature on the Amy Winehouse portrait using the 'Retouch' tool so that it would not look obvious that something had been removed from this spot.
I have also chosen these artists as they are both currently big topics in the music industry, Amy Winehouse because of her recent sudden passing and Jessie J because of her domination of the charts over the last year. Therefore I feel that these artists would create appropriate features for the month's issue.
I have put both these artist's names on the front cover as they are an important part of this issue. I have inserted the Jessie J portrait into the left hand column on the right page and the Amy Winehouse picture on the left page. I have chosen to make the picture of Amy Winehouse the biggest on the page as I believe it will be the most important article in the magazine after the main cover story.
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