Getting copyright permission.

 

Above I have shown that I have written an email to Facebook as I have used their logo on the front cover of my magazine and I can only do this if I gain permission from them as it could be copyright. I will also send this email to Twitter and V festival, this is shown below:

 

 

Evaluation Question 7

Looking back at your preliminary task what have you learnt from the progression from it to the main task?

Looking back at my preliminary task there is obvious progression and improvement from my first product to my music magazine In my construction of the magazine including my use and knowledge of the range of fonts, how to edit and manipulate pictures as well as taking them and the use of colours.

My Preliminary task:

Looking at my preliminary pieces I feel they are not as professional as my music magazine as I had not done much research and did not spend enough time on it, with the lack of research I did not know what elements to add and what made the magazine look professional. The clear lack of information on the front cover reflects this. I also did not pair the colours of my front cover with the colours on my contents page making the two pages look like they are from completely different magazines. I was also unfamiliar with the programmes that I was using, Photoshop,Indesign and the Cannon DSLR which restricted how far I could take my product as I did not try to challenge myself which led to the boring contents page as I feel I played it safe and did not try to take risks which could have made it better. Not only was it due to just coming to terms with the programmes but I did not time keep well with my preliminary task and therefore slightly rushed it. This was also due to not having and following a plan, which was available for my music magazine.

My Music Magazine:

As you can see my music magazine is much more professional looking, I took a lot more time to research and analyse already established magazines in my genre that I was focusing on to really understand my market and my task that in hand, with a much better understanding of this I then also found myself with much more time so I could concentrate on getting the look that I really wanted and I feel that my magazine shows a clear social group. I also feel that my developed understand of Photoshop and InDesign also led to better constructed pieces as I knew how to use tools such as the clone tool to remove any blemishes or unwanted shadows. I also learnt how to lighten my models skin for the contents page which allowed her to stand out from the background.You can also see the difference in my choice of fonts, I managed to develop my understanding in new fonts which allowed my magazine to have a stronger look and I developed my understanding of these through research. I feel for my music magazine I took a lot more pride, time and care in creating this and with that extra attention paid to it I managed to achieve much better pieces. Not only through research of magazines but through research of my social group that I wanted to target my product towards helped me understand what I was aiming for and what photo's I would like to take and use, by researching this and not just making fast decisions like I did on the school magazine I managed to find a lot more information for my pages as I knew what my audience would be attracted to. This extra knowledge allowed me to fill up my pages with features that are appropriate and I was not left with almost blank pages like in my preliminary, not only are the pieces less plain but my product is colour co-ordinated with the scheme of red white and black, this allows the pages to fit together and look like one collective magazine.

Overall, both tasks had completely different approaches as one is a school magazine, and the other a music magazine so the direction was completely different with everything from setting to costume to what to feature on the magazine. The demands for the music magazine were a lot higher for example for my music magazine I shot over 300 pictures and took over 4 shoots, however with my preliminary task I took one photo shoot with around 60 pictures. With a higher level of understanding of the programmes that I had struggled with in my preliminary task I managed to plan for my music magazine which allowed me to use time effectively and use the programmes a lot more successfully and therefore made an overall better product. My music magazine allowed me to make creative problem solving decisions, for example when creating my title for my magazine I referred to research and created surveys within people from my target audience to see what they would feel is most appropriate in order to get the perfect magazine name.

There are obviously a lot of differences between my preliminary task and my final product and comparing the two has allowed me to realise how much progression I have made and how I have learnt to use new programmes that were completely alien to me before.

Evaluation question 6

Created with Padlet

Evaluation question 5

Evaluation question 4

Below i have created a short video to answer my evaluation number 4. I have shown what artists of music my audience like to listen to, what clothes they wear and what television programmes and films they like to watch.

Evaluation question 3

During resarch I have continuously compared my magazine to Vibe which is a self publishing company after being purchased in 2009 by a private investor. Therefore, between two major distributors of magazine IPC and Bauer I have now gone on to compare my magazine to Q and NME.

 In looking at my magazine in comparison to these two magazines I feel that it is best suited to be distributed by IPC as it is clear that their focus of music and therefore focus of target market and social group is the same as mine, compared to NME which targets at a more 'rock' style of people. I feel there is a gap in the market for my magazine, as although it is quite like Q it is not necessarily the same and is quite individual and unique. I feel that my magazine will succeed with IPC and compliment their already published magazine Q.

Evaluation question 2

Evaluation Question 2 – How does your media product represent particular social groups?

The use of media and how they portray different social groups is essential within the magazine industry; different styles are used to present different social groups in many different ways, so when creating my media product I needed to ensure I was able to clearly represent my particular target audience and social group. 

The social group I have decided to represent in my media magazine are older teens and young adults whom listen to R&B and hip hop music.I had to do lots of research into my social group in order to make sure I was able to represent them properly and this also made me be able to do specific research as I knew what I was aiming for. The target group that I chose was R&B and hip hop but also strong women, which I feel we find more of within this genre as they are not scared to be dominant. I chose strong, influential females such as Beyonce and Nicki Minaj, these are shown in the images below.

Females are presented a lot differently to how males are presented, especially in magazine and therefore I also used Drake’s edition of Vibe magazine for research.

I then used a collaboration of these to create a magazine that was not going to be afraid of showing women in a different light, what R&B and Hip Hop is about – risk. I feel that in doing this I have managed to chose a social group that is a new generation of females and the R&B and hip hop followers which include sterotypes such as ravers, chavs and casuals also known as ‘townies.’

All photos that I have researched are MEDIUM LONG SHOT. This usually includes from the waist upwards.

From the three magazines I have picked, they all have similar, relaxed mouths. It is unusual to have the model smiling on the front cover. However, the female models in my research have a provocative look and this represents my social group, therefore when creating my contents page and front page I have made my models have a powerful facial expression, looking directly into the camera so that they have fierce eyes and in the contents page I have made her outfit fit with the theme of hip hop and risk which again links to the social group. The posture of all pictures I have chosen has a certain similarity too. The artists/models are all standing up, in a non-slouched position to maintain dominance and authority.

Music magazines that are already published and aim to market themselves to either the pop or R&B/rap genre; usually aim to target an audience of teenagers and young adults, usually between 13-28 years old. Therefore they are aiming to have a model on the front that the target audience may look up to or inspire, and somebody that is current and fresh so they have an air of interest around them. The main picture on the front page can then become very important as this is what the customer will first see and depending on whether it is somebody they recognise or somebody that looks intriguing compared to if they don’t could be the difference between a sale and not selling the product at all.

Within my social group I feel the models must look 'sexy' in order to capture the audience, I feel you can capture this best with the look in somebody’s eyes which I have done with my front cover, I have also dressed her in sophisticated clothes, almost business like to give her a power status which is also very important to my social group. I have again used the ‘sexy’ look in my contents page, but this time to a further extent and stripped with costume I have stripped her down to just a t shirt in order to give that provocative look, which will entice the customer further into the magazine.

In terms of costume my social group is usually attracted to two different looks either 'as little clothes as possible' this makes the female models look 'sexy' and confident acting as role models for teenagers. This is similar throughout all VIBE magazine front covers containing a female model on the front. Particular front covers, however have the ‘business’ woman look which shows a measure of authority and power which can also be seen as slightly ‘sexy’ and attractive, again something that may be used as role model for teenagers, and in this there is barely any flesh showing at all. I have used both of these styles of costume in my media product so that I have varied my product and reached out to the whole social group in more than one way.

My social group are interested in singers and artists such as Lil Wayne, Trey Songz, Rihanna and Chris Brown. In knowing this I have made sure I have featured these artists on my front page in order to attract my targeted social group to my product. Another way I have incorporated the artists that I know my social groups are interested in is by using competitions such as ‘win tickets to Trey Songz’ which will again attract my social group. I know that these are my target groups interests through research into magazines and the artists often featured. I know that these are my target market and that these are the artists they associate with as at their concerts through album sales and through research on social networking sites such as twitter where you can research ‘fandoms’ such as ‘barbz’ which are Nicki Minaj’s followers and ‘Young Money Cash Money Billionaires’ Lil Wayne’s clothing line you can see that it is the older generation of teens that are purchasing these goods and following these celebrities. I spent time researching blogs dedicated to these artists in order to really understand my target audience.

Here is one blog that I have researched made by a fan of ‘YMCB.’ You can tell through the picture of the artists with the green background that they are of R&B genre through clothing and make up of males and females. I then went through the blog and went one step further by going through the followers and who had visited; I then searched some of them blogs. Through this I have found out that my target market are between the ages of 15-28. 

Evaluation question 1

Evaluation 1 – In What Ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

In creating my media product, magazine. I made sure that I developed my work around already made real products in order to maintain a professional look and so that I could get an idea of what sells in the outside world and with this I would know how my magazine would be able to be successful. I also challenged some ideas of real magazines and made my magazine in different ways in order to keep it unique and make sure that it was the best It could possibly be. To be able to do this I carried out lots of research to get an idea of popular layouts and ideas for colour schemes and fonts in order to make my magazine stand out but also so I could show I have used successful elements from other magazines so that I know it would look as professional as possible and be successful.

For my Front Cover I gained many ideas from Vibe magazine. These ideas included the type of picture, who I used as my model, what poses they would do and most importantly how the text would be layed out around it, eventually deciding on black and red from a Beyoncé Vibe cover going around the image as I felt this gave the strongest look and was most eye catchy. I also adapted the way the main text is displayed large across the front page; however, in all but one of my magazines that I have researched the model is situated behind the name of the magazine. I decided to challenge this idea and use a border around the edge of my magazine name and place this in front of the model, I feel this has given the title a stronger image and makes it not only stand out from other magazines but it is more effective in grabbing peoples attention as it is bolder and would be easier to see for a customer, if buying the magazine and therefore I could potentially get more magazine sales.

In creating my Contents page I adapted ideas from looking at Glamour and Vibe magazine. It gave me lots of ideas about the way to layout my contents page and what to include in each section. As I knew that these were magazines from the target audience that I was looking at I also gained ideas of what the target audience of these types of magazines would want to read. I used the idea from Vibe magazine of the issue with Nicki Minaj to set out page with one large picture of my model to the side dressed within the theme of my magazine – e.g. risky and slightly provocative. I have also taken an idea from a different issue of the same magazine in which I used to layout my text as I fell the Nicki Minaj contents page text was not sufficiently layed out and I decided to set it out so I based it along the Ciara issue where they used headings and separated it so that it was easier to understand.

My double page spread was quite hard to create because I found it difficult to find general research before moving on to focused research, therefore I have limited research for this . However, one of the double page spreads that I found gave me some good ideas of how to layout my double page spread and what features to include on it. I found a very unique layout as I felt that a lot of my class mates were all focusing around the same area and many magazines also focused around the same ideas and layouts, I felt there was quite a generic look to magazines within society. After searching for ages I finally found a double page spread that suited my target audience and was individual. I used a double page spread featuring Solange Knowles and based my double paged spread around this. This is where I got the idea of the black and white border effect, the way in which the text is layed out and the magazine name in the corner. I also used the idea of having a brief introduction to the double page and introducing the artist before I move into my interview.

Comparing my double page spread to my research

When creating my double page spread I made sure I kept my research in mind. Below I have shown both my double page spread and my chosen researched double page spread. When looking at them both together I feel they are quite similar in many ways, but I have obviously changed some things and made it my own. However, overall I feel that I have linked my double page spread to my research well.

construction of my double page spread

One tool that I made particular use of was on Photoshop changing the levels and brightness and contrast in order to make my colours stand out more, making the white brighter and the dark black colours darker in order to create an overall stronger product. I used this for all of my pictures featured in the border of my double page spread and I feel you can see it is evident in the double page spread as many of the pictures have successfully transformed and stand out from the page.

I also used the cloning tool in my pictures used in the double page spread for my background:

I used the cloning tool for my background colour in the areas that are slightly different. I have done this by using the lasso and clone tool. When using the lasso I went to edit and then fill with the appropriate colour. With the areas that this missed I then used the clone tool.

Final double page spread

double page photoshoot

Planning my double page spread

Here I have used my double page spread research to plan my double page spread. I have explained how I will use the elements in this double page spread that I like and have constructed a plan so that I am picking out pieces I would like to use. My DPS will be made like this design.

Double page spread hand drawn designs

 

This was my first hand drawn designs for my double page spread. I had used inspiration from my research and sketched out the ideas. The top image was set out in the same way as the magazine in my specific research and the bottom one was set out in the style of the Lady Gaga magazine from my general research. I felt that I had not decided which to do through these so decided to go further and create more designs using my picture to see which would be best fitted.

 

These are the two designs that I previously sketched implemented around the photograph I have decided to use as my main photo. I have decided to carry forward the top drawing as I feel it will stand out more and look more unique. This also compliments my specific research, and I will analyse further into this magazine double page spread to know exactly how to design my page.

specfic research double page spread

I found it very difficult to research a double page spread that i actually wanted to use and focus on. As magazines in the hip hop and R&B genre are hard to find with there only being a couple such as Vibe and Volume. I also found that many magazines are part of the 'pop' genre and all have the same type of layout. I decided to focus on this double page as i feel it is perfect for my style of magazine and will reach out to my social group. I will base my double spread around this using the layout with many small pictures along the top and one large in the centre, drawing attention to the model leaving no question of who the double page is about. I also like how there has been a quote pulled out and used next to the model which is where the focus is, as it is an interesting quote it then entices people to read. I also like the lay out of the text and the lines underneath the border of pictures which again makes it stand out and make it an overall strong double page spread, which is why i will use it in the creation of mine.

general double page spread research

In order to view more clearly ( without the text hidden behind the powtoon symbol) please click on the full screen button on the bottom right hand side.

Organising becky

This lesson i have decided to plan ahead and make a time schedule in order to organise myself as i am currently behind on tasks. My time schedule includes when i will do my photoshoots, when i will blog and when i will print screen what i am doing. This is what i will be doing in my spare time and lesson time is not included in this schedule.

Wednesday the 23rd February - After school i will be doing a new photoshoot for my final front cover design. I will take the camera home from school and will reshoot with my model.

Thursday 24 February - I am going to come in for the full day and work on my media work making sure that my front cover is in order, using my new pictures that i have taken and editingand manipulating them in order to create the pictures to be the best possible.

Friday 25 February - During my free lessons i will blog all of my current progress up until this point. Print screening and annotating what i have done and explaining my reasoning behind these decisions.

(28th front cover due in)

Wednesday 30th - I will take my first contents page photoshoot.
Monday 4th - I will take my second photoshoot for the contents page in order to improve the images.
Thursday 7th and Friday 8th - during my free lessons i will edit my photos from my photoshoot and create the contents page. While doing this i will print screen my stages of editing the photo's and post this onto blogger.

(feb 14th - 23rd i am in Thailand)

Monday 25th - Finalize details of my contents page and finish it off, making sure that everything has been blogged.
Tuesday 26th - First Photoshoot for doublepage spread
(28th contents page due)
Saturday 2nd - 2nd photoshoot for double page spread
Monday 4th - I will implement my pictures into my double page spread, the text will already be there and the double page spread would be in order and the layout set as i would have done this in a previous lesson.
(4th first draft double page spread due in)
7th and 8th - during my free lessons i will finalise the double page spread and make sure that i blog, as blogging is taking much more time than expected so i will want to make sure i am on track with this.
13th,14th,15th - BLOG EVERYTHING
(15th double page spread due)
15th - 28th - time will be spent on evaluations.

Final contents page

Construction of my contents page

One tool I decided to use when constructing my contents page was the lasso tool and I then created this particular piece of the picture as a new level. I was then able to change the brightness of my models skin in order to pull her out from the picture and make her stand out. I feel that this has worked well and she stands out from the background as I left the background as quite dark. Below I have shown how I changed the brightness and contrasts. I did this by going to image and adjustments and then selecting brightness and contrast.

Once I had finished editing my photo I opened InDesign and started to create my contents. As my contents page was going to be almost wholly a picture there was not too much in the making of it.

Once I had placed in the picture I decided to add my text. I wanted the picture to the side as my front cover picture was centred. I first had to create the text. The picture below shows the changing of the colour of my text and how I did this. I decided to use the colours of White and Red as it continues with the colour scheme of my magazine and goes with the colours of the picture.

I then added the border which I then arranged to go to the back. Here you can see that I did this by selecting the line too and then changing the 'pt' of it to make it thicker and change it from a single line to a thick background border for the text to go in front of as it gives a greater impact as the text would have sunk into the background of the picture.

Contents page first draft

This was the first draft of my contents page. Although they picture was strong and I like the way I had layed out the contents title there were several things I felt needed to be changed. The picture was centralized just like my front cover and this made it too repetitive, so I have decided to move my model to the side. The pulled out quote will therefore no longer be needed as it was just filling up space and looked rather out of place. Secondly, the text fades into the background so I will need to create a border behind the text along the side to ensure that the text is readable. My final problem with my contents page is that my model could stand out more, if I use Photoshop to manipulate the photo and make her brighter in contrast to the dark background it will make the page a lot stronger. These are the problems with my first draft and what I hope to change.

contents page hand drawn designs

In order to create my contents page, as with my front cover I decided to draw some designs to plan how I will go about it and what will work best. The bottom right hand corner design I feel is really weak and does not look professional as with contents pages that I have researched they do not show text the whole way round the contents page and it is usually just situated to one side. I also feel that the top left hand corner one the pulled out quote is unneccasary as I have already done this with my front cover and I do not want them to look the same, it needs to be easily distinguished as a contents page. This leaves me to decide between the top right and bottom left.

The bottom left is only slightly different to the top right as I have created it so the text is infront of a border and not faded into the background. I feel this is the design that I am going to choose because then it will be easier to understand the text as the picture I am chosing is not a plain background.

contents page title research

These are the contents page titles I have created, using my research I have taken ideas from this and tried to create something of my own. In the end I decided to use the White font contents with the black background. I decided to use this as I felt it fitted with the style of my magazine best and went with my research as it was used in one of my contents page that I had searched. I then took this design and tried different colours and sizes:

After looking at all 3 of these designs I finally decided to use the white contents font with the black background as I felt it was more eye catchy and bold, and therefore would attract my audience. Here is my finished contents page where you can see the title.

specific contents page research

After researching the previous contents pages I decided to look more specifically into my genre and the contents page that I would like to use. Looking at these three contents pages I have decided to create my contents page just like these. I will create the word contents so that it goes across three lines on the top left hand or right hand corner as I feel it stands out more than an average 'contents' I also think that it is very unique and so far has only been used by vibe magazine which these three contents have all come from. As they are from Vibe magazine I know that they will attract my audience and social group as Vibe magazine is the leading magazine of that genre. I also like how the features are layed out along the side. I think that the first contents page uses this really well, having a thin column with headings that separates what is in the magazine making it easy to understand what is where and easier to find what you are looking for. I also like that they have all used one large picture on the whole contents, this gives it a solid look and makes it stand out. The person used on each of these looks intriguing and interesting to read about which will attract the audience.

Detailed contents page research

I have chosen this contents page of Kanye West to look research and analyse in detail. Firstly, the dull colours although usually would not work well as there is a bright red heart brings attention to the heart which then links to the title of his album '808's and heartbreak.' This automatically tells the audience what the feature is going to be about. The consistent grey allows the bold black of the title 'contents' to stand out and give it impact, along with the unusual shape and order of the word. I also feel that this allows it to be clear as to what the page is and stops any confusion as the title does not sink into the background. The two subheadings of 'features' and 'fashion' allows the audience to quickly find what they are looking for as it breaks up the magazine in to sections and this will make it easier for the reader to locate what they are looking for. This I will definitely take into account when creating my magazine as if all features are listed together people may find it difficult to find the specific story they are looking for. The mysterious arm coming from behind Kanye adds a 'sexual' tone to the contents page which goes well with the social group and will intrigue them. By placing Kanye to the side it allows him to have a bigger impact and keeps the text separate, rather than having to put the text around him as this would have just mirrored the front page. This again is something I will definitely consider using in my contents page.

Things from this contents page that I would like to carry forward will be the use of the picture to the side. I would like part of my picture to be dark and then part of the model to be bright to highlight them. I am also going to set out my contents title in the same way this has as I feel it is edgy and different from others. Finally, I am going to position my text and model in the same place as I feel by putting them to either side it is a break from the centralised front cover. I will also break up my contents page into sections such as 'features' 'music' and 'fashion' etc so that it is easier for the reader to find exactly what they are looking for.

general contents page research

This contents page shows singer Ciara dressed in a grey bodysuit lying at a sideways angle with her legs stretched out above her. The body language she uses signals attitude which is also noticeable in her facial expression. She is wearing grey high heels which blend nicely with the dark to light grey background. On the left side there is two subheadings listed, ‘Features' and 'Fashion.' The text is black and is serif in font, keeping it clear and not too complicated. The title 'CONTENTS' is spread in a lined order which is a very different and vintage style to give the page. The original outlook works with the vintage photograph. The title is in sans serif white bold which contrasts the dark page.

This is the contents page to the magazine Vibe. The colour of the background matches the colours of the costume Nicki is wearing and makes her look like a snow queen still in the theme of her being a queen. Vibe have kept their contents page fairly simple, just a page reference a brief into to what the page is about then underneath a little description, it's not ordered into regulars and features but follows the trend of keeping the contents to the side with the picture being the main feature of the magazine. This gives a strong outwards appearance for the magazine and makes the model appear strong. The model used in the contents page for Vibe was also featured on their double page spread, therefore I will think about this when looking into creating my double page spread and keeping the models consistent.

I also chose this magazine contents page to research as it is different from my other researched contents page. Instead it features multiple pictures all creating a statement and showing a broader range of what will be in the magazine. The contents page is still listed to the sides but instead has two columns with the pictures in the middle. It also uses a range of models and is divided into each section with a description of what will be featured on each page. The colour's used in the pictures are also consistent with the text as we see red appear many times throughout each of the pictures and with the word contents and the sub headings, this makes it stand out and draw attention to the pictures and the topics that are featured in this magazine, this is something i would like to bring forward in my magazine contents page as I feel it gives it a professional, consistent look.

This contents page like the first 2 has all the information for the contents page along the side in a neat column with one picture. Again in this picture the woman looks powerful standing in a way so that she draws attention to herself. The colours of the outfit on the model go with the title and the orange titles along the contents page. The titles like the ones before with the colour of the title matching the sub headings. This contents page does not have a specific title that says 'contents' instead it has the title of the magazine in bold letters which gives it a powerful stance, it also has the website of the magazine underneath letting readers know they can also go online. The different shades of orange on the title give it a summery vibe. As my magazine is a winter edition i could think of doing different shades of grey to give it a frosty look etc. The hair up is a strong look which highlights the models cheekbones and dark eyes, I feel this gives a winter look and i will incorporate this onto my model when creating the contents page. This contents again just uses one model, like the Nicki Minaj cover she is standing to the right hand side, Nicki Minaj used the look of a Queen in order to make her look powerful, this woman again looks powerful but in the way she is standing and her clothes as if making a statement so the use of a powerful looking model is essential in creating a good contents page.