Evaluation

Looking back at my practice magazine cover and my final magazine cover i have learnt as much as i could in the period of time I had develop my knowledge and understanding of photoshop. I had never used photoshope before taking up Media as a subject, so i am very happy with the final outcome of the final project as a whole. I understand that my proliminary task for my magazine was a lot less professional looking, due to lack of knowledge of photoshop and me being unable to use photoshop to a high standard. Learning more about photoshop enabled me to make my final project more professional and lot more realistic compared to my practice magazine cover. I have learnt a lot about technologies during my time constructing my final magazine which mainly includes a MAC computer, the amount of applications available to use on the mac is unbelievable. I had never used a MAC before and had to adapt to the difference of it to a normal computer. Photoshop has influenced my project very heavily and i have now developed a huge understanding of the software.

this is the camera i used to produce the images for my whole project, it's an 14 megapixel camera so i was able to get a good quality image to use which increased the quality of my magazine. As if i were to use a low pixel camera i wouldnt have much to work with on photoshop and the images would be blurred.

Evaluation

NME magazine is a similar magazine to the final project I have produced. The famous NME magazine is publised by a woman called Tracy Cheesman, she not only publishes NME magazine and NME website she also publishes Uncut magazine and Uncut website which are very much like NME and my magazine IMW. NME sits alongside other magazines suchas Q and Kerrang! which all deal with similar music genres and audiences, these are those interested in the alternative, rock and independent music genres. Although NME focuses mainly on the independent music genre it also caters for those audiences into pop and rap music as it includes artists such as Nicki Minaj on an occasional basis. My magazine is very similar to the NME magazine in this sense also as it will not only cater for that one audience.

Distributions of NME is very wide set as it not only offers a paper copy which is sold within local newsagents, supermarkets and book shops. You can also access it through the internet on http://www.nme.com/ as well as this you can also subscribe to the magazine ensuring you to be able to get the magazine and save a total of 40%. You are also able to access the magazine via apps on tablets such as iPads and Kindles making it easier for the product to reach a wider audience. Finally, you can not like the NME pages on social networking sites such as Facebook, Myspace and Twitter, this is making sure the magazine can reach its target audience of the age range around 14-40.   Due to the success of NME magazine, I would follow the same route to the distribution of my product, IMW. Allow the product to be easily accessible online, through tablet apps and also to be sold within shops which would finally ensure me to reach a wider audience for those unable to connect to the internet. With my target audience being between the age of 14-40 I think it would be wise to advertise on social networking sites due to young people spending most of their time on these types of sites nowadays.  

Evaluation

there are many similarities and a few differences between both of the magazines when representing a particular social group. firstly he body language of both people are similar, using a straight forward look inviting the audience in. Jake Bugg however, one main difference is sitting down whereas in my magazine i have positioned Jack as standing. This gives off the impression that the particular social group represented in both magazines are inviting and friendly, in this case the social group is similar to the MODs/Rockers of the 1960's with the music genre of the independent/alternative sound. Jake Bugg has a very serious expression on his face, whereas Jack has a little half smile helping represent the social group as a the more happy group rather than the serious way in which they were represented back in the 60s. The angle of the shot is straight on with both the people looking directly at the camera, inviting the customer in. Both magazines are very light, even though dark colours have been used for the effect on the NME addition it is still very light and warm by using brighter colours for the writing and headlines. This gives off a positive representation of the type of people featured in the magazine as optimistic people looking on the bright side of everything. Fans may look up to the young artist featured in both of these magazine due to the fact they have brought success on themselves from the hard work and persistence put in to achieve it, many young aspiring musicians can look up to this and feel optimistic that they will one day catch a break. On the NME addition it states "0% alcohol 100% for real" this could show he is T total and shows that his ideology is that you don't need alcohol to have a good time/have the confidence to become successful. This can also link to why readers/fans will look up to Jake Bugg as many young musicians tend to only join in the industry for 'the party' but Jake is well and truly in it for the music. 

Evaluation

the title of my magazine stands for 'Rated Music Weekly' I have chosen to abbreviate it to 'RMW' for it to take a similar approach to the world famous NME magazine. The colours used are also a similar use of the NME magazine, using a bright red for it to appeal to the target audience and catch the readers attention. Costume and props used in the magazine are sending out the impression of an indie look, matching the genre of my magazine, by using guitars for the double page spread it shows that the music and artists that will feature within the magazine will be alternative/independent. Throughout the whole magazine, i used the same fonts to ensure a more professional look, I made the more important parts of the text on each paragraph bold to make it more eye catching maybe making the reader stop and want to read the whole article. The layout for my front page and double page spread almost duplicates the style of the NME magazines to help suggest that it is in fact a independent music magazine rather than a pop or rock genre. However, the layout of the contents page is different to the NME style as I thought that it would look more out there if i were to put all the featured content of the magazine together rather than be set out about the space of the page. The person I took photos of for my magazine looks more of an individual rather than one who follows mainstream culture, which is the type of people i aimed by magazine at so using this person shows that those are the people i am aiming my magazine at.

Analysis of photoshoot images.

Cover Page image.



Contents page image.

Double page spread image.

 

I have chosen to use these images for my magazine as they match the genre I am aiming for when completing the front cover, contents page and double page spread. I believe that the images will fit perfectly for the layout of my magazine and that they will be quite easy to edit the images to be in contrast with the colours red and black in which i have chosen for the colour scheme. When it comes to making my magazine i will edit the images light balance to ensure that only the person and props are in the image in present, the white screen will not be showing however, within the double page spread image i am going to make the shadow present in the magazine as it gives off a sense of realism. I am aware i will not be able to have a different colour background on the magazine front cover or any of the pages now i have taken the images as it will be very difficult to change the balance of it as i used a white sheet as a screen.  

Proposal Table

Proposal

The type of magazine that will be made is a music magazine in a similar form of the NME, http://www.nme.com/magazine. The reason i chose to use the style of the NME magazine was because this is the type of music genre I am interested in is 'independent music'. 

 I am going to follow similar colour schemes to the NME magazine, as I personally think that the colours used compliment each other and make the magazine look more professional. The colours I use will continue throughout the whole magazine to make it recognisable. The image I will be using will be a band, I will be getting them to pose in a welcoming manner directly facing the camera. My magazine will be available in stores and online with EMAG. For my final project the colours will be very similar to the ones used on both of the NME magazines featured in this post, however, the red used in mine will be a very vibrant red mixed with very bright yellow to attract the eye of the target audiences.             

Practice Magazine Cover..

My magazine is going to resemble the successful music magazine NME, it will be set out in a similar way to it. The colour scheme will be stuck to throughout the whole magazine to make it look more professional. To start off with I took a few photos of my friend as a solo artist, and added them onto the front cover. My final project will feature a solo artist. I know that for my final project I will have to take more photos to feature on my front cover and make it more realistic. I then went on to adding the texts and came up with the main sells lines of the magazine, these will feature inside the magazine as the main articles. For my final project I understand that more sell lines and more colours will be used to ensure that the readers attention has been caught. I've decided once it comes round to starting my final project I will use the dark read i have used for the title however, for the sell lines i will use a more vibrant and bright text to ensure it is an eye catching front cover. The font i have used in this practice cover does not stand out enough due to how the effect of it, i will change it to become more bold and large to ensure the viewer sees it in my final project. The background for my final magazine cover is going to be full dark grey colour making the colours of the headlines/sell lines and also the title of the magazine stand out more to potential readers. My finished magazine will have the name "LOOP".

Kerrang! Contents Page Analysis

Marilyn Mason has always been known for his dark/creepy image, this is how the colour scheme of the top half is the relevant colours to use. The bottom half of the page has used bright colours to match the pictures. The colours are always coordinated with previous issues and future issues to make it recognisable. The layout of the contents page is the same in every issue of Kerrang! magazine, this makes it more recognisable and more professional for each issue. The subheading are wrote in yellow to enhance the possibility of the target audience being attracted as they show what will be featured within the magazine. The issue number is located under the title of the page to show people which issue it is and keep them aware of if this have purchased this issue or not. The main image of Marilyn Manson shows that the main article will be about him as he is the most featured artist in this addition, this will attract audience who are most interested in Marilyn Manson's music more than other artists.

Kerrang! Double Page Spread Analysis

On the first page of the double page spread there is a full length photo of Gerard Way, the main headline starts the first page of the double page spread and continues onto the second page and it is a larger font to the main article to attract the attention of the reader. The colour scheme for this double page spread has been stuck to throughout the whole magazine with near black and white photos. The plain black background helps the text stand out with the text being white and red. the graphic feature on the right hand side incorporates with this using a white background. The headline of the article is sized and coloured differently to the rest of the article to ensure it catches the eye of the reader and whoever could be potentially interested in reading this article. A strap line has been used to introduce the article and introduce the act/band that will feature within the article. The interviewer has written this as more as an article rather than a question and answer layout therefore, it includes background information about the interviewee. The background information is all written in the first column and the second column gives information about the band within the recording studio and how they go about day to day life on tour. Quotes from the band is included in the article which gives us an insight of what emotions they feel while on tour or recording songs. The images used on the second page of the double page spread are images that relate more to the article, showing some of the photos of the band within the recording studio hard at work.

Kerrang! Cover Analysis

Font: the masthead for this magazine is hidden behind the main image, however, it is recognisable as it is a well known magazine. The font used is a black upper case font and it looks as though the words are cracked. Most of the fonts used on this cover is block capitals for simplicity, it is easy to read and a bold to attract the target audiences eyes.

Structure/Layout: the overall appearance of the magazine cover is cluttered with writing and additional pictures. The main image is Hayley Williams the lead sing of Paramore, this shows that there will be an inside article featuring either just her or the whole band. This image is not smoothed out or airbrush giving it a more realistic appearance. 

Colours: the colours used are mainly red, oranges, blacks and whites. These colours compliment each other and add to over all aesthetics. Reds and oranges are both really eye catching so therefore attract the eyes of the target market.

Kerrang Double Page Spread Analysis

The main image of this double page spread is spread across both pages, this only leaves room for minimal text. The masthead proves to be a summary of what the article will involve. The colours used for this double page spread are black and red which suggests a moody/dark side to the article, this also meets the personality of Taylor Momsen herself from the band The Pretty Reckless.
The font used for the masthead is very big, eye catching and noticeable however, it is different to the one used in the article. The word "wild" is put in a different text to show that the article will show that the artist is trying to get away from how she was recently portrayed in her earlier roles of being famous.  The name of the article shows that Taylor Momsen will be telling the truth about her life and show her views about being famous. The article itself only has two columns, this could insinuate that the big picture is what is being relied on to attract audience in to read the article.
The way her hair is positioned over her face on the image gives the impression that she is shy and insecure behind all the dark make up and the song lyrics she comes up with.

Q Magazine Contents Page Analysis

Masthead/Title: the name of the magazine has been put into the corner of the contents page to copy the front page, it helps become aware of which magazine you are looking at. It also ensures that all the content can fit on the page underneath the masthead.
Necessary Information: the date is located next to the masthead and the title of the page, showing the audience whether this is a recent issue or an older issue. In this case it's an older issue. The issue number of this magazine is located at the top of the page just next to the title.
Text: subheadings are located on the left hand side of the page in capital letters to stand out from the rest of the text, the articles that are featured within the magazine are under the appropriate subheadings. The purpose of the text is to inform readers of what will feature inside the magazine. There is no test overlapping the main image.
Fonts: the font used is a non serrif, it all matches to make the magazine look more professional, the font is also colour coordinated with blacks and reds this also makes it look more professional.
Images: in this specific magazine contents page there is only one main image which insinuates that James Blunt will be the main story inside the magazine

Q Magazine Front Cover Analysis

Font: the font used on this specific magazine cover is bold to ensure it pulls target audiences in. The main sell lines are all coloured to ensure that they audience knows that these are the main stories that will feature within this issue. The masthead is positioned in the top left corner where it is usually positioned for this magazine, it is positioned in the same place on every issue of the Q magazine as it is a well known magazine. It is a bright bold colour to ensure it catches the eye of the target audience who are in the age range of 14 and above.
Colour: the colours have been chosen specifically to match each issue of the magazine, they are always the same colours to make the magazine recognisable.
Body Language: the body language used by Jay-Z is inviting the audience in by facing straight ahead to the camera, he also takes up the whole frame.
Framing: the main image takes up the whole frame of this magazine showing that this will be the main story within the issue of Q magazine. The main image overlaps the masthead slightly, however, it does not affect the recognition of the magazine.
Composition: the composition of this magazine cover is well set out and you are able to read all the sell lines that are around the main image, this helps bring in audience fans of all the different artists that will be featured within the specific issue.