photoshoot

PHOTOGRAPHS

Below are the photos I took. I asked a group of four female friends if they would model in my photoshoot and after accepting I told them to dress in a particular way. I asked three of them to dress in all black, such as a black dress, but with red accessories, and the fourth to wear white too as I would use her as the lead artist in the 'band'. I told them all to have their hair down straight and wear heavy black eye makeup with red lipstick. This linked to my original magazine genre of indie/rock.

The mise-en-scene I decided to use was the photography studio at college. This meant I could use professional lighting, a decent camera, and a black backdrop. We brought in props like a pair of drum sticks and a guitar which helped to set the scene. I positioned the 'actors' in a diagonal row, and told them to have a serious facial expression. This would create the right representation for my genre, and made them look serious about their music. It also reflected the appropriate attitude. I stood on a chair to take this picture which meant it was a high angle shot. This meant the band looked vulnerable and put the audience in a position were they feel more powerful.

Another position I chose to use was the one I intended to use as my main image for my cover. The model dressed in white, red and black posed on her knees, holding a guitar as though playing a guitar solo, and skidding forward on her knees. The expression on her face needed to be very specific, and so I told her to look as though she was screaming. This created the impression that she enjoys music and again takes it seriously. When taking this picture I needed to take into consider what angle I would take it from. I decided to use a low angle shot for this photograph, in order for the audience to feel intimation, in contrast to the previous picture. Also, the artist then comes across with more power.

The images i took:

After taking various images for my magazine, to use on my cover, contents page and double page spread. I then decided that the images I had gathered were not working out. I didn't like these pictures as I didn't think the balloons fitted in with the genre. Taking new ones would be a perfect solution. I then asked some male and female friends to dress up in black and white (contrasting colours) as well as another bold colour like blue or red. I took to the youth centre in Withernsea and took the photographs. The setting inside the centre was red walls with chairs, vending machines and a pool table. In order to get the right setting we moved some things around and used three of the brightly coloured chairs. We used these as props for the 'band' to jump off and sit on as poses for the pictures. Other props we used consisted of a microphone, a guitar and a pair of drum sticks. These made the band look more involved with my genre. These images concentrated more on the Indie music rather than Rock. One friendposed as the main singer in my band, acting as the model on the cover of my magazine and they held a microphone to identify this. I planned on using medium close ups, high angle and low angle shots in order to create different impressions. The medium close up was for my main image as was specified on the brief, and the low angle shot was to make the artist seem dominant and intimidating. The high angle shot would give the audience a sence of power. I decided to take most of the photos with all band members included instead of individual ones so that the audience can see which band is been featured. I told the actors to look at the camera on most of the pictures so that they could connect to the audience. When researching existing products, I did not come across any magazine that had a model on the front cover who was not looking at the camera.

The way in which I asked them to pose makes them come across as fun but still serious about their music. In order to communicate this messgae I made sure that there was a mixture of facial expressions and positions.

I took these images during the christmas holidays 2009.

the basics

MAGAZINE TITLES
Rock It!
Smash!
Bass.
Beat
Stomp
Pulse!
MTR- Music That Rocks!
AMP- A Music Prodigy! <--- The one I will use!
Anthem
LIVE
Reverb
GIG

STORIES...
Chik! - new rock band on the block
Sex Patrol special
Horoscopes
Quiz
Gig Calender
Singer Jodie Michell hits the booze!
Interview with Tom Brankley
Poster of Jack from 'Sex Brigade'
Jazz loose record deal
Party with Jonny Haggar
Gaga V's Little Boots
Pixie Lott's dream gig
Win! Kings of leon tickets!- competition
posters
fashion page

price: £2.10- cheap for my intended audience
print paper
issued monthly- again to make it affordable

BAND NAMES...
Sex Brigade! -boy band- 3 members
Tom Brankley- single male artist
Jazz- girl band- 3 members
Chik- girl band- 4 members

MUSIC GENRE...

my magazine...

Indie/ Rock music

existing magazines with a similar genre...

Kerrang! - Q - NME

features...

-reviews: New releases, concerts, radio, television

-tour dates

-latest news and updates

-new bands/artists

-profiles

-interviews

-CD release dates

-advertisements

...These are all things I found an audience would expect of a music magazine, and what they would be interested in. To make mine original I will use features like:

-posters

-quizzes

-original layout

research- what people expect

After talking to people of the age I intend of aiming my music magazine at, I found that the following is what they would expect to find in a music magazine...

-Review section...

featuring new releases, film and live concert reviews, radio and television reviews

- Tour dates

- Latest news on various artists

- New bands or music

- Artist profile

- Interviews

- CD release dates

- Advertisements

- Horoscope

how my magazine should be layed out

After researching the conventions of both a magazine and a music magazine I will now be able to produce mine a lot easier. I feel I know what my magazine needs, and I will apply everything I discovered to the making of my music magazine cover, contents page and double-page spread.

MY DECISIONS

WHO TO FEATURE: I found it difficult to decide who I wanted my magazine to feature. With many choices available I decided to photograph different 'artists' and 'bands' to see which I prefered.

COVER

MAIN IMAGE:
For my magazine cover I will use a large image of my chosen artist. They must be looking into the camera, so that it is as though they are addressing the audience. I did not come accross any magazine were the artist on the cover is not looking at the audience. Also the artist is hardly ever smiling, which I also need to take into consideration whilst shooting my photos, I need to be sure that the facial expressions are the right ones. My magazine will feature a band rather than a single artist and i have chosen to do this as I feel it is most likely to appeal to my intended audience; teenagers to young adults. The image will also be a medium close up, as it says in the brief. It is a very popular shot for a cover of a magazine and I will therefore use it to make my magazine look realistic.

MASTHEAD:
My masthead will be placed at the top of the page, in the left and corner. It will be located here as when magazines are put on a shelf it is the left hand side that the audience can see, and the top is the first place they look. I will put the writing in red, outlined in black, then outlined again in white to be sure it is deffinatley eye catching. It will need to be perhaps the most distinct feature on the page and I intend to make this happen. I will experiment with fonts to ensure I have the one that looks the best and make it appeal to the target audience as much as possible.

COVERLINES:
I will use snippets and coverlines on my magazine cover to inform the audience on what is inside. It will give the viewer clues as to what the magazine contains information on and tells them the aim of the magazine. I will also need to use a main cover line, telling the reader what the main story is and what band or artist the magazine features. The main coverline will be presented in a larger, bolder and brighter font to make it obvious which the main story is, compared to the rest.
LOGO AND DETAILS:
I will put the logo, along with the details at the very bottom of the page. This is to let the reader know that it is possible for them to find out extra information that has not been included within the magazine. They can also contact the magazine institution in case of any problems or questions that need to be answered. The website will also be put on the cover, simply to advertise other magazines etc. that the institution creates. The logo will allow the audience to identify the maker of the magazine or the magazine itself.
DATE: I will make the date has been included in order to let the audience know how relevant the magazine is. Because my magazine will be issued monthly, the audience can see which month the magazine is from and which issue it is. They will then know that the information it contains is relevant to the time period they want.

COLOUR SCHEME:
I will use the colours red, white and black as after researching the colour scheme, these are the colours that a music magazine with a genre of pop/rock, tend to use. After looking at existing magazines, I now know that these colours are suitable and the correct ones to use. The useage of red shows alertness, and the theme I have chosen to use is supposed to be in your face, which is what these colours do. They each contrast against one another which makes everything on the cover stand out and appear more attractive.

AUDIENCE:
The audience I will be aiming at will be a female one. I will target females that are teenagers to young adult as I feel I can relate to this audience well, being a teenage girl myself. I need to make sure I am using the right fonts and colours in order to attract them, which I discovered during researching. I also need to consider occupation. As my magazine will be aimed at teenagers to young adults the majority of this audience are going to be college and university students. Therefore I need to consider the price of the magazine. Putting an expensive price on it would mean my target audience would struggle to purchase it. Keeping this in mind, I have decided to make my magazine monthly, so my audience can afford it. It will also be reasonably priced so that they are able to purchase it.

CONTENTS

IMAGES:
I will use six images on my contents page. One main image and five smaller ones. The five smaller ones will give the reader an insight on what else the magazine covers, and the bigger image will again inform then on the artist/artist the magazine mainly features. I may put an effect on the main image, as many magazines do this, for example a magazine called "DRUMMER" has used an image of a drummer and presented it in black and white. Two smaller images will be placed at the bottom of the page, in the right corner. The other three smaller images will be at the top of the page, two in the top right corner, and another underneath. The main image for this page will be placed in the centre, but at the right hand side.

TITLE:
The headline of page will be placed at the top of the page, big and bold. Although not as distinctive as the magazines masthead. This is will simply read "contents", to inform the reader further on what the page is. I will make it uniformly colured to the full colour scheme of the magazine; red, black and white.

COLOUR SCHEME:
I will make everything within the contents page match everything both on that page and on the music magazine cover. I will make everything red, black and white, and follow these guidelines throughout. I researched how the colours should be on a contents page, and on most music magazines, the colours on the contents page are uniform to those on the front.

HEADLINES AND STORIES:
I have not yet decided on what stories to use, these can be found in an individual post. I will list them down the left hand side, as shown in my drafts, and put them in a colour such as red to match my colour scheme. The ones presented as coverlines on the front of my magazine, I will present in a different colour on the contents page to make it clear on which these stories are.

LOGO AND DETAILS:
Similarly to the magazine cover, I will place the logo and details at the bottom of the page.

research- institution and representation

INSTITUTION

Q is an example of a music magazine institution. I decided to research into the background of an insitution in order to get a full understanding of what an institution is.
Q, the institution of Q magazine has it's own website; http://www.qthemusic.com/. Most magazine institutions have a website. I considered this and decided to inclide a website on my magazine cover.
It is very popular throughout the United Kingdom, the only country it is published to, and has a circulation of 130,179. The magazine is published monthly by Bauer Media Group, mine will also be issued monthly because of my target audience.
The first issue was brought out in 1986, when it was originally sub-titled "The modern guide to music and more".
Current editor: Paul Rees, former editor of Kerrang!
There is also a "Q" television channel and radio station for the public.

REPRESENTATION

The usual representation of an artist on the cover of a music magazine is powerful, and serious. The artist presented I noticed is never smiling. This makes them look intimidating to the reader. A low angle shot is used a lot which also makes the artist seem intimidating. Also a high angle shot is used which can make the audience feel inferior. Both these techniques persuade the audience to purchase the magazine. I must take this into consideration when taking my photographs.

My model will be a young adult, appealing to my target audience. She will be female, and I will make sure the audience can see she is a rock chick. In order to do this my model needs to be in a costume that represents this. She will be wearing black, red and white, the colours of my chosen colour scheme. I feel this will both make my model stand out and fit in with my theme. In order for the audience to identify who the magazine features mainly, I chose to put my main model in three different colours rather than just black like the other band members. This will make it obvious who the main memeber of the girlband is.

Props I will use will also put this message across. I have chosen to use a guitar to make it seem more as though she belongs to a rock band.

Skidding on her knees, having her mouth open and having big hair will present hair as been confident, out-going, and a rock chick.

research- main image

The main image, either of a band or single music artist, dominates almost the full layout of the cover. I should use a shot like a medium close up in order to make my music magazine look like any other, as this is the kind of shot used on many existing music magazines.

I also found that the group or artist is never smiling, which brings me to language, how the image communicates to the audience. I also need to consider this so that my magazine will look realistic.

Here is an example:

research- double page spread

LAYOUT
I found that there are many different layouts of a double-page spread. Before researching it, I was unaware of these layouts. I figured that a double-page spread was an article that filled up both pages, with an odd image here and there, like this one...

Having done my research I found out that there is not a set layout for a double-page spread. The image above shows the typical layout of one, but after researching various different ones I found that it can also be set out with the writing almost half way down the page going right across both pages, and an image spread right across the top, like this one...

Another possible layout, is one side of the double-page spread filled with the information or article etc. and the other with a big image, almost like a poster. Here is an example...

After researching the layouts of these double page spread I now know that I have many options.

research- contents page

IT SHOULD INCLUDE:

HEADING: I will include a title at the top again stating the name of the magazine but this time slightly smaller. I will also put 1 or 2 sub-headings on to give insights on what the magazine is about.

IMAGE: I will use an image of the band that the main story features, and perhaps 2 or 3 others to show the reader what else the magazine covers

COLOUR: I will use the same colour scheme as used on the cover, which will make it uniform. I found that many existing contents pages use various colours for the number of the page, and the title of the page, making it look a lot more interesting. I will also use this technique.
Also, the headlines used on the front cover will be put in a different colour to inform the reader that they are the most important stories.

DETAILS: On lots of magazines, the layout is kept the same throughout, this includes the details at either the top or bottom of the page, others do not, which gives me the option. These details include the web address, fax and telephone, and sometimes the address. I now know that I can use any, or all of these details on my either both my cover and contents, just one of the pages, or neither.

LOGO: The logo isn't too important. I do not have to invent a seperate logo, I can just use the magazine masthead. Many existing magazines such as 'Q' do this, but others do create a totally seperate one. This tells me that again I do have the option of whether I wish to do this or not.

colour schemes

ROCK
If I decide to base my music magazine on Rock music, I need to consider what colours are regularly used. I discovered that black, red and white are the colours usually used throughout and on the magazine cover. I think these colours have been used as these colours resemble the rock theme. The use of red could be a symbol of danger, or stop, which goes with the theme rock, and hardcore. Rock music is supposed to be in your face, and therefore uses colours like red and black, red also shows alertness, and black shows darkness and the unknown.
POP
I also found that pop music magazines use the same colour scheme; red, black and white. The reason for using these colours could be that red can symbolise passion, and perhaps romance. Red contrasts against black which makes everything stand out. These colours draw in attention, which is what a magazine is meant to do.
COUNTRY
For country music, these colours have not been used. Blues and greens are often used for this sort of magazine which gives it that country feeling as the colours are earthy. Blue can be used to symbolise either water, or the sky, and green again can be used for the sea, or the obvious one, grass and nature.
CLASSICAL
Brown and white are regularly used on the cover of a classical music magazine. I think this could be to resemble the instruments, the colour of the wood. Also these colours together as a theme look sophisticated and mature, and relate well to the target audience.
INDIE
In this case, like in many others, the main colours scheme is red, black and white. These colours all contrast against eachother which makes everything within the page appear more eye catching.

After looking into what colour schemes are used for what sort of magazine, I now know what it takes to make my magazine appear more realistic and professional.

FEEDBACK FROM COLLEGE MAGAZINE

FEEDBACK

After recieving feedback from my college magazine front cover, I decided to make some minor changes to my work.

I was told that having a main image where the student is looking at the audience would act as an improvement to my magazine.

Also, the fact that i had put black writing on a dark background meant that the writing was unable to be read. This needed to be changed too.

As I was unable to find my copy of the magazine cover I had made, I was forced to use a previous draft I used before I developed it.

.. I took these comments into consideration and applied the changes to the draft I found. This is shown below:

target audience

WHO? ... My intended audience will be teenagers of both male and female. There are also certain social groups that find various music and themes appealing. For example chav/emo.
WHY? ... Being a teenager myself, I feel I have an insight into what this audience would like and find appealing.
HOW? ... In order to do this i need to research and really look into what attracts this audience. Once I have found out this information, I will use the colours, fonts, styles and layout that would appeal to this age range.
INTERESTS ...The interests of my intended audience are very important, I should relate my magazine to those interests in order to reach my target audience. I need to closely look into what the audience I decide on find appealing, and what they enjoy so that my product is successful as possible.
AGE ... The age of the audience I choose is going to be extremily important simply because of the danger of attracting the wrong age group. I should research what my chosen age range likes and what existing magazines have used to attract their audience. I need to know what colours and styles would attract this audience and how to make my magazine appealing.
GENDER ... Again, the gender is another important factor when it comes to attracting the intended audience. Like 'age', the colours, styles and fonts are what attracts the audience you want.
CLASS/OCCUPATION ... This matters as the price of the magazine is a feature that will make the audience purchase it or not. If the price is too much, the audience you are intending to attract may not actually buy the magazine. To become successful, the magazine needs to be sold, and in order to do this it needs to be priced suitabley.

WHAT I HAVE FOUND SO FAR...

COLOUR... The colour is a main contribute to attracting the intended audience. Different age ranges and sex's find verious colour sceme appealing and therefor I should deffinatley consider this. I have found that:

- Females are attracted to pinks and purples, girly colours

- Males find colours like blue, red, green, masculine colours appealing

- Teenagers in general are attracted to those colours that are bold, exotic, eye-catching and bright

- Teenage males like colours that are masculine, bold and manly, they are attracted to colours that are dominant

- Teenage females are attracted to those that glamerous, those that are feminine and pretty. Colours like pink.

FONT... The font is another aspect of the magazine that attracts the intended audience. The wrong font could give out the wrong message and would therefore attract the wrong people. The font must be suitable, or the magazine will be unsuccessful. I should look at existing magazines to see what is used in the industry. I found that:

- Females are attracted to fonts that are elegant. Ones that look pretty on the page, perhaps curley or flowing, and usually these fonts are in italics.

- A lot of females also find thin fonts attractive, those that are not bold and dominant, but feminine and suitable for the female audience.

- Males find bold fonts appealing, fonts that are dominant on the page

- Males also like fonts that are big and in your face, masculine ones

PRICE... In order to aim at a teenage to young adult audience I need to be aware of the fact that a majority of them will be in education like at university or college, therefore my magazine needs to cheap. It will also be issued monthly so that the 'students' do not have to pay for it weekly. I figured doing this would mean my intended audience are able to purchase it.

Textual Analysis- EXAMPLE3

Here is a third example of how a typical music magazine should look.

MASTHEAD ...
This is a different but just as effective masthead compared to many others simply because it is just a letter. Also because it is simply put on the page, it is just red and white, plain and simple. It is positioned in the top left hand corner, this is because of the way magazines are placed on a shelf. The left side is the side that is revealed as the right side has been overlapped. The colours of the masthead establish the audience, so in this case we can see that 'Q' is a unisex magazine, for both males and females. I can see this because it does not use colours that appeal to only males or only females, the colours used; black, red and white appeal to both genders. The red square used as a background to the masthead highlight the white 'Q' and make it stand out. It really catches our eyes as it is the brightest feature on the page and is presented as the main focus.

HEADLINES ...
The headlines on this magazine cover are all white; a uniform colour. It contrasts immensely compared to the black background which makes them attractive for the audience. The cover looks professional with the way the headlines are presented, they are all in the same font and colour, this gives it it's uniform. We can automatically identify the main headline because of how it is put across. It is in a bigger, bolder and brighter colour; red. It has purposely been put in capital letters which makes it even bolder, and because it is in red it stands out compared to the rest.

MAIN IMAGE ...
The main image on the cover of this magazine really dominates the layout. In this case Madonna is the main focus but rather then being dead in the middle she is slightly to the right, making the magazine a little more original. By using Madonna the producer knows that the intended audience of both sex's will be attracted. She is an artist that both males and females find appealing which is why she has been used.

LOGO ...
The logo for this magazine, similarly to other existing magazines, is the actually title itself. It acts as both the masthead and the logo which makes it even easier for the audience to identify and recognise. This is used alot in magazine producing simply because of the effect it creates.

DATE ...
On this magazine the date has been placed in a white box along with the bar code. This is very common in the magazine industry, it is not used as a main feature on the cover but is still there for the audience to see how relevant the magazine is. It is in a small, plain black font but is still noticeable.

DETAILS ...
On most magazines, details such as the website is on the cover, which tells people that you can find out extra information, and you can contact the magazine. Because it is popular to use the details, but is not totally essential, to reach high standards I should use these when it comes to producing my own.

COLOUR SCHEME ... This is what attracts the magazine's audience. On the cover of this magazine, black, red and white are the main colours been used. This would attract both males and females, because the colours used are not neccessarily aimed at just one sex. The colour scheme can vary with different issues as long as the layout is still uniform to that magazine.

Textual Analysis- EXAMPLE2

Here is another example of a typical music magazine.

MASTHEAD ...
The title of this magazine is 'Smash hits!', but is without a slogan. Magazines don't neccessarily have to have a logo, but many do. This one doesn't, but uses a big, bold, eye-catching title. It has been placed at the top of the page, like in every existing magazine. Because it is in two different shades of pink it seperates the words and makes it easier to identify what the title is saying. Also because of the colour, we can immediatly see who it is aimed at; females. It is presented in a pale pink and a contrasting hot pink, outlined in a thick white line. This highlights the title, makes it stand out. In this case, the producer has used a lot of pinks, which establishes the audience, also because it uses yellow to outline images on the cover we can see how it is aiming at it's female audience. The masthead is partly covered by an image, but because of how popular the magazine it, people can instantly recognise what magazine it is simply by looking at it, because of it's uniform layout.

HEADLINES ...
The headlines on this cover are all in the same colour; white- one of it's uniform colours. The white stands out amongst the pink background which makes it easy to read. Because the headline fonts and colours match everything else on the page, it makes it look effective, and professionally produced. There is a main story that has been purposely made bigger and has been presented in a more outstanding and dramatic way. This has been done so that the audience is aware of what the main story is.

MAIN IMAGE ...
The main image, usually, is projected as a big image in the centre of the page that dominates the layout of the magazine cover. In this case, which is unusual, the main image is a lot smaller then in most magazines, it is obvious that it is supposed to be the main image, but it has strangley been placed in the top right corner. This is why 'Smash hits!' is popular, because it has it's original aspects. Magazines always use an image of an artist they know their intended audience is going to like and admire, in this issue, Preston from Big Brother has been used. The producer of this magazine knows that using a famous male as the main image is going to attract females, and therefore has used this artist.

LOGO ...
For this magazine, the title is the logo itself, and is therefore projected largely at the very top of the page. Existing magazines tend to do this too, making it easy for people aiming to purchase it to identify the magazine. This is effective.

DATE ....
The date is always put on the cover of the magazine. This is to be sure that the purchaser knows how relevant it is and they can see that the information within the magazine is recent. On this magazine, the date is written on it's side, next to the bar code. This shows that the producer has chosen not to use it as a main feature and has therefore made it small, plain and simple.

DETAILS ...
On most magazines, details of the institution, website, address etc. are placed at the bottom of the page, but in this case, there are no signs of these details. This tells me that because such a successful magazine has chosen not to use this, it is not essential that i use this.

COLOUR SCHEME ...
The colour scheme is what makes the magazine attractive to it's intended audience. On the cover of this magazine, a lot of girly colours have been used such as pink, yellow and white. This makes it obvious that it is aiming at females. Some magazines such as this one, use a different colour scheme for different issues, which means i do not have to use a set uniform colour.

Textual Analysis- EXAMPLE1

Here is the first example of a typical music magazine.

MASTHEAD ...
The title of this magazine is 'NME', followed by the slogan 'New musical Experience'. It is in a bold, outstanding, bright, attractive font and colour and almost immediatley catches your attention because of how it is presented. Because it is in red it gives out various messages, perhaps warning, or blood, or danger, or stop. The fact that this colour is used to resemble 'Stop', it makes you stop and look at it. It is outlined in thin white lines which brings it out compared to the black background on the text. The font is important for the masthead as it establishes who the intended audience is and is one of the main aspects when it comes to selling the magazine to that audience. In this case- which usually occurs to other magazines, the masthead is the most bold and eye-catching on the page. The main image of the magazine cover partly conceals the bottom right corner of the title, but because the magazine is so popular, the audience can still identify what magazine it is because of it's logo being so recognisable.

HEADLINES ...
The headlines on this magazine cover are in two different colours; red and white. These colours stand out in comparison to the yellow background which makes them easy to read and understand, it also makes them noticeable and make the audience want to read them. They are in uniform colour with the rest of the elements of the magazine and are all in line down the right hand side of the page. This both looks good yet professional too. There is a main story headline on the front that is presented further into the centre, in a bolder and more eye catching colour and font, this is the same case for all magazines. It lets the audience know what the main story is.

MAIN IMAGE ...
A popular music artist is always used on the cover of a magazine, in this case Beth Ditto has been used, posing naked with a kiss mark on her bottom. This kiss mark matches the colours used on the magazine cover which makes it relevant. It also relates to the main headline which really highlights it's relevance. The image itself almost fills the full space of the cover, which is purposely done to simply make the magazine more attractive to the audience it is aimed at. The reader is more likely to purchase the magazine if they recognise the figure on the front, and therefore the producer uses an artist they think their intended audience will know.

LOGO ...
The logo, similarly to every magazine out on sale, is placed at the bottom right hand corner underneath the barcode. This makes it visible on the page but isn't used as a main feature on the cover. Again, like other existing magazines, it is presented in the uniform colours, red, black, yellow and white. It gives the audience the opportunity to fully identify the magazine and in this case the logo is presented within the details at the bottom. It is shown in the middle of the website which gives it an original effect.

DATE ...
The date on this magazine cover is also shown within the barcode. It is simply written, in a small black font, plain and simple. The date is put on a magazine cover so that the audience can see when the information inside is from, and they can see whether the stories in it are relevant or not.

DETAILS ...
The details on NME magazine, like on others, are placed in a small, less descrete font and colour at the bottom. There is a white block that contains both the details and the barcode, placed in the right hand corner. Because the text has a white background it makes the writing more visible to the audience. It is written in black and red writing, again, uniform colours, but are not used as a main feature on the page. The details allow us as an audience to see were to find extra information and how to contact the makers of the magazine.

COLOUR SCHEME ...
For this magazine, the colour scheme is yellow, red, black and white; simple colours, mainly primary colours. Even though it uses very simple colours, the magazine looks very effective because of the way the colours have been used. All existing magazines use a colour scheme, although sometimes, magazine producers use different colour schemes for various issues. The colour scheme is what gives the magazine it's originality and is always used to create different effects.

conventions

MAGAZINE

MASTHEAD ... The title at the top of the page, usually on the left hand side which is the first place the purchaser looks. Always brightly coloured to attract it's intended audience, uses a suitable font, style and colour to make sure the right audience is attracted to the magazine simply through the mast head.

COVERLINES ... Titles and snippets of the stories inside the magazine. Gives the viewer clues as to what the magazine contains and is used on the cover to inform the audience about the aim of the music magazine. There is usually a main headline, that is presented in a bigger, more outstanding font in comparison to the others, to allow the reader to know what the main story in the magazine is.

MAIN IMAGE ... It attracts the audience. A famous music artist on the cover would mean that it is relevant to it's audience.

LOGO ... The logo is usually in the corner of the cover and on a lot of magazines it is at the bottom beside the barcode along with the details of the magazine maker and website. It is always small, resembles the magazine and becomes recognisable for the audience and makes it easy to identify.

DATE ... The date usually follows the title, informing the reader that the magazine is relevant. We, as an audience can see that the information is up to date and allows us to know the information is reliable.

DETAILS ... The details are placed either at the bottom or top of the magazine cover in a small font. We can then see how to contact the magazine institution and where to go to find out extra information that is not contained within the magazine itself.

COLOUR SCHEME ... The colour scheme allows the magazine to be original, it makes it different from any other. Many magazines are very uniformly coloured which gives it it's professional look.

Here is an image that exemplifies a typical magazine layout and shows the conventions as they are on the page...

MUSIC MAGAZINE

MASTHEAD ... The masthead is usually positioned at the top of the page, either in the left corner- the only section of the magazine revealed when placed on a shelf ready to be purchased, or spread across the top. Differently to a normal magazine, the masthead of a music magazine can also establish the sort of music magazine features. What makes this easy to identify is as follows:

Colour

Font

Style

Shades

These also contribute to attracting the audience, a female for example is going to find mastheads with an elegant font, maybe pinks or purples within the title, lighter colours rather than dark attractive, where as a male would more than likely going to be attracted to the total opposite.

COVERLINES ... Headlines are a main content of a music magazine. These are what make a music magazine different to any other. They always feature a band, or famous music artist. For example on an issue of 'Q', the main cover line features the famous popstar Kylie Minogue. This applies to every other music magazine. Also the other cover lines on the cover are about a famous band or music artist. On the same issue of 'Q' for example, one cover line states "Sex Pistol Whipped!" This allows us to identify that is a music magazine rather than just a normal one.

MAIN IMAGE ... The main image is very important on a music magazine. I would say it is the main feature that makes it a music magazine. It is always an artist that the main cover line features, and also attracts the audience. If it is someone that the target audience is attracted to, they are more likely to purchase the magazine. If the main image was an unknown person, someone who was not known for their music, it wouldn't make it a music magazine. It is always presented largely on the page, dominating the total layout. The reason for this is so us as an audience can immediatly see who the magazine is aiming at.

LOGO ...The logo is usually placed in a corner, small. It applies to both music and normal magazines. They are usually in form of something that actually represents music, obviously, associating it with a music magazine.

DATE ...The date, has the same purpose as it does on a normal magazine. This is to simply to inform the reader that the information inside is relevant, and from the time period they wish to read about.

DETAILS ... The details at either the bottom or top of the page are there so the purchaser can see how to contact the magazine maker or where to find out extra information. On some magazines, it allows the user to use these details for downloading the music that the magazine features.

COLOUR SCHEME ... The colour scheme establishes the audience. It also establishes the genre of the magazine, what music it features, what artists it covers, and what sort of audience they are targeting at.

Points of LIIAR

Language: ... Everything that is seen visually on a magazine and the proper media terminology. For example, a 'masthead' is a form of language as I have used the correct term.

Institution: ... The maker of the magazine and can often be the title of the magazine. Q is an example of institution. It owns a magazine, a website and a radio station- a major institution.

Ideology: ... Basically, what the idea behind the magazine is, the purpose, what it is for and what the institution is trying to communicate . What the intended audience would expect to see is taken into consideration and conventions that relate to a certain genre are used.

Audience: ... Who the magazine is aimed at, who reads and purchases it, this includes age, gender and social groups. The audience is identified by the media text used. If the colours pink and purple have been used, then it is assumed the females are the target audience of that magazine.
Representation: ... How something is presented and the reason for it being presented that way. Basically, it means the reason behind something being there. If a male dressed in tracksuit bottoms and a t-shirt, kicked around a football, we can automatically identify that person as being sporty.

the brief

MAIN TASK

The front page, contents and double page spread of a new music magazine. All images and text used must be original, produced by you- minimum of four images.