Final version of final pages

This is my final front cover, overall i'm really pleased with the bold colour scheme, the Fonts, the cover article's and my artists persona. I think all the hard work put in paid off and i've ended up with a professional front cover, the bright green headline stands out as well as the intimidating size if the face and makes you sit up and pay attention. I am very pleased with the structure and aesthetics of the contents page, however i still feel that the bottom bit of the page is too empty. The double page spread i like because the picture bleeds across the two pages and makes the picture seem to have a belonging on the page rather than just inserted in, the plain background allows everything on the page to be read easily. Especially the title "Behind the mask" which suggests the insite of the article is looking into the secret life of the artist which is what the audience want.

 

Evaluation

This is an evaluation of my media studies coursework. I had a preliminary task which was to make a college magazine, this was to help me prepare for my main project which was to create a music magazine.  In order to complete this task, I researched existing music magazines to give me inspiration and to learn how a magazine of this genre would be put together. This then enabled me to make my own magazine. I will use various multi media tools in order to explore the successes and setbacks of the project. 

Q1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?



Q2. How does your media product represent particular social groups?


In this audio recording I've talked about the model as there is only one, i spoke about the typography as well with the photo demonstrating a young, white male. The urban culture of hip-hop and how i have demonstrated a particular social group, I have added a slight twist to the ethnicity.

Q4. Who would be the audience of your media product?




Q3. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Q5. How did you attract/address your audience?

Using peer review, I realized that I attracted my audience by making the cover bright and structured with an interesting photo. I also discovered that I adressed the audience in a very structured way and gave them a unique perspective on hip-hop.

Q6. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
 

Q7. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

 

Throughout the project, I feel since I first created the preliminary front cover of the college magazine, until I made the final edition of the music magazine front cover, contents page and double page spread. That the progression of the professional appearance of the cover is vastly improved. The photograph is much better quality; this is due to the higher resolution, better use of lighting and much better pose of the model. All of this I have picked up and understood from not only the errors in the preliminary task but also by comparing the cover to other existing magazines and how the photographs in them are constructed and used.

The typography fits the genre in the music magazine as a pose to the preliminary college magazine. To be honest I didn’t focus as much on the typography in the preliminary task and I really only based my concepts on famous magazines that had no relation to college magazines, in the music magazine used DaFont to find the font that I felt best reflected my genre and so the audience could actually judge this by it’s cover but have a positive effect as well. The structure and layout of the page was also a big thing that I enhanced in the music magazine in comparison to the preliminary task and I feel that the research and planning helped a lot with the construction and made the cover look exceptionally professional.

The colour scheme in “Trax” is a lot more effective than the preliminary front cover, it is bright and bold, and it really stands out which is necessary in attracting audiences, be it online or on the shelf. Another aspect I have learned is the effects on the page, in Photoshop there are a lot of tools that allow bits and bobs to be chopped and changed. Some of these effects are very small or subtle but putting them all together makes for a massive difference. The preliminary task has no effects what so ever. On the other hand, the full product “Trax” has glow on some text; drop shadows, texture and scoring. Also I slightly altered the lighting of the picture using the curves function, giving me the picture I aspired.

Double page spread construction

I decided that my double page spread would be a large single block of colour, i completed one page at a time and then fitted them together, writing the article separately on word, brushing the photo on photos and fitting it all together on indesign.

creating pages & screen grabs

Using my drafts as a base to work from, i decided that they were good designs and so wanted to keep my front cover like this. I began chopping and changing small details which eventually made a large successful difference.

 
 

assessment of photo shoot & contact sheet of photos

I had a photo shoot and the cloudy weather was perfect for lighting as there was no camera glare or uneven lighting so that made my job on photoshop a lot easier, all i had to do was remove the impurities from the photo and the model and add the desired effects. I didn't take as many photos as wanted to but they way i laid out my pages i din't need many photos so the lack of content turned out to be fine.

      

 

Photoshoot plan

Location: Front cover; I'd like the location to be a blank white background so all the focus is on the artist. For the contents page perhaps a street corner, showing them in their natural environment before they hit the big time as my artist supposedly has. Finally the double page spread i'd like there to only be one photo and i'd like it to be a blank or colored background with no real scenery.

Lighting: For the front cover I'd like the lighting to be on one side of the models face, while the other is in darkness, as this may evoke fear or something sinister, for the contents page i'd like a bleak light to cover the entire scene and give the opposite effect of rose tinted glasses.

Props: For the front cover i'd like to have the minimum amount of props as this may distract viewers from the artist and the titles. The contents page again i don't want many props as i feel the type of artist would like to be portrayed on their own. For the double page spread perhaps some props could be used but again the genre doesn't really allow for this.

Model(s): I'd like there to be a small amount of models as the focus is all about the main artist. The front cover like ,most magazines will simply have a bold picture of a single artist. The contents page may be a little more relaxed where the artist is simply going about their work without apparent knowledge of a camera man or women.

Clothing: Clothing must be simple for all the shoots as the focus is all about the artist and their own features as even though the artist may want to be bold they may still want the audience to focus on their achievements rather than their aesthetics.

Body language: For the front cover must be bold and maybe a bit agressive or imposing as the picture is meant to symbolise attitude and strength. For the double page spread i'd like an iconic pose, something that adresses the audience as though on a poster or some kind of

Facial expression: For the front cover i'd like a no nonsense face where the audience will see exactly what they get from the artist. For the double page spread a bold, almost nobel face as this will back up the iconic image of the artist, almost like a statue which will make the artists achievements seem like a landmark in time, showing how influential and talented the artist is.

Front cover drafts

These are the initial drafts for my music magazine front cover, this is a very basic layout and the involved shapes have very little effects, this is simply to show what i want to achieve and i will perfect my design later on.