Planning For My Photography

Analysis of Three Images

Front Cover Mock Ups - Other Images

These are five different front covers I've created with other peoples images of famous pop artists. With each variation I've tried to experiment with the various conventions typically found on a normal front cover. Through this, I was able to familiarise myself with the conventions and layout of front covers which, in turn, will help me prepare for my own front cover and the mock ups I will create. All of these were made on Adobes Fireworks.

Music Magazine Visual Syntax

These are six visual designs for my front cover. I've tried to create six unique designs which all follow the typical conventions found on a typical front cover. I've tried to incorporate a variety of conventions such as pugs, banners, lures and smaller images. This, I feel, has allowed me to broaden my thoughts about what I want to include in my own front cover. Its also helped me to familiarise myself with what makes an effective front cover.

Questionnaire Analysis

From my results we can see an almost equal demographic of males (55%) and females (45%). This information is beneficial due to the genre of "Pop" being appealing to both genders. These results have shown me that my magazine should have appealing aspects to both genders if I am to fully take advantage of the demographic shown to me through this questionnaire.

From these results we can see that the majority of the people who took my questionnaire are between the ages of 21 and 35. This amounts to 84% of the total whilst the ages of 10-15 and 36+ both equate to 8% each. These results help consolidate my chosen age range of 20-35 due to the majority of the participants falling into that age range. With the genre of Pop being widely popular with younger people it seems reasonable to target my media product at people within this age bracket.

From these results we can see that students make up the majority of the people who took part in my questionnaire. This, I feel, helps consolidate my chosen age range due to students being relatively young. Whilst students make up 66.6% of my participants, the remaining 1/3 (Or 33.3%) consists of hairdressers, people in retail, people in customer services and people who are unemployed. This, again, helps to justify my chosen age range due to the people in these professions generally being quite young.

From these results we can see that the majority (77%) of the participants said that they listen to music everyday. This piece of information is critical due to the fact that people who don't listen to music wont purchase a music magazine. None of the participants chose the category "Rarely" or "Never" which is reassuring to know that the people I'm targeting my media product at are somewhat interested in music.

From these results we can see that the majority of the participants said that their preferred music genre was Pop (45%). This is reassuring to know due to the fact that my chosen genre is Pop. However, the remaining 55% of the participants chose a different genre to pop such as rap, rock and indie music. This, I feel, is not too much of a problem as the genre of "Pop" encompasses a variety of different genres which in turn can appeal to a much wider demographic. For example, if there is a rapper who is widely mainstream then it is classed as "Pop" due to it being widely popular. This, I feel, is a huge benefit when targeting fans of the pop genre for my media product.

From these results we can see that the majority of the participants (63%) listen to music on their phones. This piece of information is useful for a variety of different reasons. It can help me to think about what kind of promotional freebies I could include in my magazine. For example, with the majority of the participants listening to music on their phones a good promotional freebie could be a competition to win an ITunes voucher or a premium subscription to Spotify. The remaining 37% of the participants said that they listen to music on a radio. This, again, is a useful piece of information due to the theme of my magazine being heavily influenced on radio and its synonyms. All my masthead ideas relate to radio in someway, which in turn could help to attract people who listen to their music on the radio.

From these results we can see that the majority of the participants (54%) admitted to very rarely purchasing music magazines. The remaining 46% said that they never purchase music magazines or purchase one monthly. This piece of information is useful for a variety of reasons. It tells me that there is a big market for people who do not purchase music magazines. It could show that with the right brand and marketing people could be enticed into purchasing a music magazine.

This is a table showcasing how the participants in my questionnaire rated the importance of various conventions found on a magazine. 84% rated the Masthead and Main Image as the most important feature on a magazine. 53% rated the Headline as the most important whilst 38% said that a good variety of articles was the most important. 38% however said that the inclusion of freebies was not that important as well as 23% saying the same about price. This has shown me what the consumer thinks about what makes a successful magazine. From this I am able to have a much clear focus on the construction of my media product. From now knowing what people consider to be important conventions I'll be able to put more effort in to meet the demographics opinions.

These results show how often the participants of my questionnaire attend gigs. 30% said that they sometimes go to gigs whilst the remaining 60% said equally that they either never, hardly or occasionally go to gigs. This piece of information is useful in understanding what my demographic is willing to spend money on. If my audience is paying money to see their artists live then it's likely that they'll pay a sum of money for a music magazine featuring their artists.

From these results we can see an overwhelming majority of the participants (90%) preferred my first "FREQUENCY" masthead. This is reassuring due to the fact that this is the masthead I have chosen to feature on my final product. The remaining 10% of the participants said that my"AIRWAVE" masthead was more preferable. In terms of what people liked about my "FREQUENCY" masthead was the boldness and sharpness of the design. People also praised the colour scheme and the "good play on words". Others also complimented its simplicity and its ability to stand out.

Questionnaire

Masthead Developments For Chosen Name

This was my fifth and final development for my masthead. I chose to keep the bold, Sans Serif font that was used in my fourth development. This was due to its striking appearance and ability to draw the reader to it. When observing my first development to my final development, it is clear to see that I've retained some ideas that were present in the first development. The heart-montior frequency graph has now been merged with the text itself, instead of it being overlapped by the text like it was  in the first development. This, I feel, makes my Masthead look more professional due to all the elements being merged and locked together. 

In my fourth development I tried to incorporate images into my masthead. For the font, I chose to use a standard capitalised Sans serif font. Below this, I included a small image of a pylon. This links in well with the name of my masthead due to a pylons ability to send out signals. I've also coloured the the airwaves in three different colours coming out of the pylon. These colours consist of red, blue and green and are carried on through the lines underneath the masthead. This in turn helped give this masthead a colour scheme. It is through the use of a colour scheme that makes this masthead stand out visually. However, upon reflection, I feel that this Masthead is too busy and draws too much to much attention to itself.

In my third stage of development I chose to return to the red and black colour scheme/house style. I used a standard Sans Serif font and duplicated it to create the drop shadow. I did this to give my masthead a greater sense of depth. Although visually appealing, I felt that this development lacked any originality and was missing a vital flair to its design.

In my second development I decided to try a new font along with a brand new colour scheme. The font is, again, sans serif with slight distortions taking place throughout. This in turn gives off a very technological vibe to the masthead which, I felt, was appropriate when considering the name of my masthead. I chose to use yellow as the main colour and slowly fade it throughout the masthead to give the impression of transition. Upon reflection, I feel that the usage of the colour yellow is far to drawing and bright for it to be a masthead. I chose for the text to be capitalised to, again, give it a greater sense of presence and more eye-catching due to its bold nature. 

This was the first development I made for my Masthead. Early on in the development I knew I wanted to experiment and play with the idea of including a heart-monitor in my masthead. This was because of the relevance it had to my masthead name. I chose a Sans Serif font and placed the monitor behind the text. Although unique, I felt the masthead looked too "empty" and lacked any depth. I also experimented with the positioning and size of the letters by capitalising the letter "F" as well as the letter "Y". I felt like this helped broaden the Masthead in terms of size and give it a greater sense of presence. I chose to colour the text black due to its bold contrast with the red present in the heart monitor.

Masthead Ideas

This is my first Masthead idea, which encompasses the name "Airwave" for my magazine. For this, I have chosen to use a Sans Serif font with an image of a wave behind it. This was strategically placed behind the "Wave" part of my Masthead, to really play with the imagery. A smaller font was used to create the "Magazine" title situated directly underneath the masthead.

My second Masthead also uses Sans Serif font and is titled "Transmission". I have also spaced out the letters to give a more elongated effect. An image of a pylon also replaces the second "I" in the word. This again really plays on the connotations of the word "Transmission". I have also capitalised the entire name to give it a more bold and enticing effect.

My third Masthead uses the name of "Frequency" and has a Sans Serif font. The entire Masthead is capitalised with the letters closely spaced together to give it a more vibrant and bold effect. I have also used an image of a pylon underneath the letter "U" with three distinctly coloured lines emanating from the image. The lines are coloured red, blue and green which match that of the pylons sound waves. This, I felt, made the masthead look more visually appealing and professional.

My fourth masthead uses the name "RAW". As it only contains three letters, I tried to really emphasise the size and sharp colours that are present on the Masthead. All the letters are capitalised whilst also being in a Sans Serif from. I have also included a drop shadow behind the masthead to create a sense of depth. I also decided to colour the Masthead in various shades of red so it instantly stands out to the reader.

My final masthead again uses the name of "Frequency". This time however I decided to experiment with images and how they could be encompassed within my Masthead. I used an image of a heart-monitor frequency graph and placed it within the word itself. This, I feel, really has a clear and strong link with the Masthead name itself whilst also looking sharp and enticing.

Five Masthead Desgins

                

List Of Possible Magazine Names

Listed below are some potential names for my music magazine:

• Transmission 
• Frequency 
• Airwave 
• RAW
• POPular
• Broadcast
• Wireless
• Radius 
• The Station

As you can see, all these names are within the semantic field of radio. This is due to "Pop" music being frequently played on various radio stations. This, I feel, is a good way of producing different names for my magazine.

Music Magazine "Artists" Moodboard

This is a mood-board consisting of various artists that could feature in my media product. There is a mixture of both male and female artists, due to the genre of pop being popular with both genders. Artists such as Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Sam Smith and Adele are all examples of artists most commonly associated with the genre of pop. By using a variety of these artists, I will be able to attract a wider demographic due to the relevance these artists have with my genre.

Music Magazine "Contents" Moodboard

This is a mood-board consisting of various items that enforce the ideology of my magazine. This is done via the inclusion of a variety of aspects that reflect a fun and vibrant "Pop"atmosphere. Artists, musical equipment, streaming services and social media sites are just some of the items that are included in this mood-board. I hope to use several of these items for them to feature in my magazine. This in turn will help flesh out my brand identity and ideology.  

Collection of magazine covers

These are a collection of magazine covers taken from Billboard, NME and Q respectively. This collage of covers are all different, but follow the same conventions found in other magazines. Billboard, NME and Q are pop magazines, which is the genre I'm focused on. Through studying and observing a wide array of covers form different magazines, it has enabled me to have a greater insight into what is effective on a front cover. I hope to take inspiration form these covers and use what I've learnt in my final media products.

Analysis of different genre

Through analysing a different magazine genre, I have learnt about the importance of conventions and brand identity. I chose to analyse a front cover from “Kerrang Magazine" who are well known in the heavy metal industry. This, I felt, was a good genre to focus on as my chosen genre is Pop. These two genres of music are extremely different which in turn would allow me to identify features that would be inappropriate for a magazine of my chosen genre. For example, this Kerrang magazine has an extremely striking main image which adheres to a theme of horror. This would be inappropriate to feature in a pop magazine as it doesn’t follow the vibrant and bright conventions typically found in a pop magazine. Other features such as the headline and straplines also had features such as a splatter of blood. This, combined with the low key lighting really enforce this dark atmosphere that many heavy metal magazines have. Overall, through observing a different genre of magazine I have been able to identify why different features and conventions are used to portray their genre and how some are more appropriate to feature in different genres than others.

Q Magazine Front Cover + Contents Page + DPS Analysis

LIIAR Analysis + Front Cover + Contents Page + DPS of Billboard

Target Audience & Brand Identity for my Music Magazine

Target Audience

My chosen genre for my Music Magazine is Pop. This is due to its mainstream appeal and the wide scope that is its audience. The genre “pop” also encompasses a variety of other genres, due to it being the popular music of today. This, I feel, is the ideal genre for me as my musical taste spans a variety of genres, and isn’t just specific to one. In terms of target audience, I feel that the ideal age range to target would be young adults aged 20-35. I have decided to target this age group because of the appeal pop music has to these people. In terms of gender, my magazine will be targeted at both due to pop music being liked by both sexes.

I aim to appeal to my audience’s interests in a variety of ways. For example, things like clothing, beliefs and the lifestyle of pop will be presented in my magazine. This way, I will appeal to my audience in not only the contents of my magazine, but the identity and the brand behind it. Common conventions such as interviews, reviews and news will all be present in my magazine along with a variety of pop artists. Some artists I could include are Lorde, Coldplay, Katy Perry, Drake, Adele, Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith. These artists are well known among the age group I’ve chosen, thus making the magazine relatable and able to attract the right people.

Brand Identity & Values

I want my magazine to have an identifiable brand that really relates to the audience I’m trying to entice. I want it to be instantly recognisable and trusted among the readers. Other magazines such as Billboard and Q all share qualities I hope my final product will have. For example, Billboard is a vibrant, enticing magazine, and very much adheres to the pop genre. This is a quality I hope my magazine will follow to ensure it represents the type of music I’m targeted at. These magazines, I feel, are a good influence when considering the construction of my own magazine. This is due to the experience these brands have and the massive following that is their audience. I want my Brand to be trusted among the readers and have a deep insight into the pop industry. In terms of conventions, I feel it is important my magazine follows the main conventions of a typical magazine. This is because I want my Brand to be recognised as a magazine as soon as people look at it.

I want my magazine to be social, and thus have conversational aspects to it. To achieve this, I hope to include articles that appeal to my target audience which will make them think about the world around them. I feel a more informal tone will be best for the magazine I’m trying to create. This is due to my target audience being fairly young and sociable. This in turn will make the magazine more engaging and relatable to my audience which, I hope, will make it an enjoyable read. Artists such as Taylor Swift, Eminem, Beyoncé and Jay-Z are all prominent pop artists that frequently appear in most pop magazines. These artists are mainstream and very much adhere to the audience I’m targeting my magazine at. These artists are also big fashion icons – an area I hope to explore in my magazine. People often want to dress like their music idols, so by including clothes from various retailers (i.e. Top man, River Island, Urban Outfitters) will hopefully create a strong relationship between my magazine and the audience.

Evaluation

Q: Who would be the audience for your media product?

In regards to an audience, I feel that my ideal magazine readers would be between the ages of 11 and 18. These are the ages of students who attend the school. Students, I feel, are a much better audience to target my magazine at instead of parents. This is because the pupils of the school are much more affected by the "goings on" around the school, thus making the articles inside my magazine much more relevant to them. I also feel that the design of my magazine helps appeal to my target audience. For example, the front cover uses bold,vibrant colours such as strong shades of blue and yellow. These colours have connotations of fun and excitement, something that a target audience of 11-18 years would relate to. I have also tried to keep text to a minimum on my front cover in hopes of, yet again, appealing to my chosen audience. From verbal research I found that 11-18 year olds do not like excessive amounts of text. This then prompted me to ensure minimal text was evident on my cover.

For my contents page I decided to strive towards simplistic visualisation. This was again due to the various comments I received on how a simple design is much easier on the eyes which also helps the reader to navigate through the page. This was ideal for a target audience of 11-18 years as peopele of this age group prefer to read less text.


Q: What have you learnt about technologies form the process of constructing this product?

During the process of constructing my magazine I have learnt a variety of new skills that, I feel, have allowed me to excel in the technological aspects of this task. During the early stages of the process I was unfamiliar with various editing software such as Adobes Fireworks. However, in time, I came to terms with how the software operates and have thus acquired a variety of new skills. These skills include removing parts of images, creating drop shadows, editing a variety of Mastheads and learning how to professionally edit photos. All these different aspects of technologies has taught me how many different features there are to editing, and has broadened my field of expertise in the subject.


Q: In what ways does you media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of school magazines?

My product has aspects of both conforming to and subverting various conventions typically found in a school magazine. For example, my Masthead is big, bold and takes up most of the space in the top half of my magazine. This is true not only for school magazines, but magazines in general. My main image is of a school student engaging in an everyday school situation. This can be seen in most school magazines and is a common convention they all follow. My strap lines are all placed to the left hand side of my magazine and follow the same house style, yet another common convention my magazine uses. During my research I found that most school magazines were colourful and vibrant. I then tried to follow this convention via my Masthead and house style by incorporating a variety of different colours such as Red, Yellow and Blue. The challenging of conventions however can be seen in my contents page. Within my contents page are two cropped images. These images are cropped at unusual angles, something that was not present in my research of school magazines. Although minor, I feel that by editing the images in this way has given them an extra flair and is a feature that is unique to my magazine.

Final Contents Page & Analysis

Final Magazine Cover & Analysis

Thumbnail Sheet and Images Used

These are a collection of images I have taken to feature in my Magazine Cover and contents page. I have chosen to stick to the theme of lockers, and have thus experimented different ways to incorporate various objects into the theme. I have experimented with things such as lighting, distance and how much a person is in the shot. For example, I first had only had a persons hands and their books in the shot, which was originally going to be my main image. However, after receiving feedback and learning more about the conventions of a good magazine, I realised that having a whole person in the image would show a greater understanding. I also took a variety of other photos consisting of various things around the school. Well known objects such as the school computers, the Apple Macs and the honours board are all things people instantly recognise, making them ideal to feature in my contents page. All of these photographs are of a documentary style. This meant that, through a pose, I was able to create a sense of what typically happens at the school.




IMAGES USED

Main Image

This was the image I decided to use in my final front cover. I feel that this picture instantly symbolises school life and a hard working atmosphere. The inclusion of lockers also sticks to the theme I intended to use, as lockers are common throughout all schools and are easily identifiable. The inclusion of a person, I feel, follows the conventions of a typical magazine cover. By following this convention I feel that my magazine is more likely to entice audiences.

       

Contents Page

These are the two images I used in my contents page. They consist of  a school computer in the LRC, and a school honours board. Both of these images are widely recognisable throughout the school, which is why I felt they were appropriate to feature in my contents page. They are subtle images, but really emphasis the school and a working atmosphere it strives for.

Images Needed for my Magazine

These are just a sample of images that I hope to take inspiration from when constructing my final magazine. The main focus of my main image will be school lockers. I feel that this will really emphasise school and school life. I hope that my final image will have the lockers as the main focus, and a blurred out background of students walking by. Documentary photography is an extremely common convention in school magazines, which is why I feel this form of photography will benefit my magazine.

Contents Page Layout

These are my six layout designs for my contents page. Through these visual syntax's I have stuck to the common conventions of a typical contents page.I feel that all my designs are varied and include all the features a good contents page should have. I've tried to include a good ratio of text and images, to ensure the visual success of this page. The contents title is given the same amount of space on each design. This is because I want it to be clear to the reader what page it is, and by having the title the largest feature on the page it will definitely inform the reader. 

With these visual syntaxes I've tried to experiment with the positioning of various features like the Starbursts, text and images. My text is arranged in columns, a common occurrence when it comes to the layouts of contents pages. Each starburst is placed strategically so it doesn't cover text, but is strong enough to stand out on its own. With regards to images, I've included a range of different sizes. If the image is large, it will be the only one on the page. However, I've also included more smaller images in some of my designs to experiment with the difference a variety of images can make.



Contents Page Analysis