College Magazine front cover progress

This is a screenshot of the front cover of my college magazine and I will post all of my progress onto my blog. I am using what I have learnt like rulers, text boxes, and image editing to make sure my magazine is of good quality.

College Magazine contents page progress

This is a screenshot of my contents page in InDesign to update you on my progress, I have used what i have learned like gutters and how to resize pictures in order to make this contents page and make it good quality.

Photoshop Practise

In class we had a Photoshop tutorial that will help us make our own college magazine front cover. We practised using various tools that we will use to make our own college magazine for Task 2.

We learnt to use rulers, in order to create margins around our page so we know where to place images and text, we used rulers because Photoshop does not have the gutter tool, which InDesign has to do the same thing. 

To place images like the bar code and the cover star, we saved them and used 'place', instead of copy and paste. We changed the size without stretching the image by holding down shift, which will be useful in the future.

We used the text tool to write our mastheads and cover lines and we also learnt how to change the font, the colour, and the size of the text.

Overall it was a basic tutorial which will allow us to make our own college magazines and I learnt very useful tools which will make my college magazine a good quality one. 

College magazine flat plan

This was a flat plan of all of our college magazine pages that we did in class, it shows the adverts and editorials that we would include in our magazine.

LSC Magazine Planning

In class we had to plan out what our college magazine will look like, the image above is my plan for my college magazine front cover. 

College Magazine Analysis

In Class we had to analyse college magazines to help us make our own one for the preliminary task, (Task 3). We had to find out what is similar and what is different to music magazines.

   Similarities: 
- The cover star slightly covers the masthead. 
 - 3 colour scheme (Blue Yellow and black) not too much too look at because it's simple. The cover star is wearing black and catches the reader's eye because it contrasts the  other lighter colours. 
 - Issue and date line 
 - Bar code 
 - Cover lines 
 - Consistent font looks more professional less 'messy'. No bolds or italics used 

  Differences: 
- Cover star is smiling which is not used in most music magazines and most college magazines show the cover star smiling directly to the camera to show their college in a positive light. 
 - No puffs or advertisements 
 - Font is not stylised like other music magazines to show that the college is a professional place 
 - Cover star is posed in a different way e.g. arms crossed or raised, laying down, turned to the side.

Ideas from my case studies

From Kerrang! case study:

• Stylised masthead and cover line fonts because they look interesting and attract reader's attention. I can use Photoshop to make the fonts in the magazine more stylised like the Kerrang cover.
• The mise-en-scene of the cover, the lighting of the cover is good and it connotes feelings of rebelliousness which relate to the genre of rock. I can apply this to my magazine and make the mise-en-scene of the image relate to my genre which is rap and hip hop
• Minimalist contents page that is organised neatly and contains one large image rather than a lot of smaller ones

From Vibe case study:

• Using props in the front cover
• more formal contents page layout which looks professional
• Using blurbs for the DPS 

I can incorporate all these ideas into my music magazine and this will ensure that my magazine is the best it can be. 

Kerrang Magazine Textual Analysis (Final redraft)

*Improvements will be coloured in blue.

Kerrang! is published by Bauer Media Group which is a european based media company and their main Hamburg headquarters manage a portfolio of more than 600 magazines, over 400 digital products and 50 radio and TV stations around the world. It also publishes Q magazine from its UK headquarters (H Bauer UK)

For my analysis of the second magazine I chose Kerrang even though it is not the same genre that my own music magazine will be, I can compare both genres and write about the similarities of both magazines.

Page 1: Front cover

There is a midshot of the cover star which is a typical convention as well as having the cover star directly look into the camera (direct address). There is a 3 colour scheme of black yellow and red which keeps the cover simple and matches the cover star who has red hair. It has a 'rough look' as the main cover line text is off centre and the other cover lines are tilted to match the genre. 

The strap line grabs the reader's attention and one of the puffs mentions posters which is a convention of many music magazines. The font is consistent so the magazine is more professional looking and there are a lot words in bold to emphasise certain articles and catch the reader's eye. The main cover line is in the centre and covers the chest of the cover star and the font makes it look like a tattoo, which is a good stylistic choice.

There is direct address in the cover lines and puffs to make engage the reader, the tone is very rebellious and aggressive, which is emphasised by a lot of exclamation marks in the cover lines and in the mast head.

The cover also promotes famous artists from the genre like green day, fallout boy and guns n roses. The main cover star is shirtless and in tattoos which is common in the genre of rock and the font also matches the genre.

Page 2: Contents Page

The contents page is similar to the Vibe contents page, as it contains a midshot of a celebrity next to the contents. It contains the same 3 colour scheme as the front cover. There are still some images in the contents to make it more visually busy. It also contains an advert in the contents page but it doesn't list adverts, only editorials in chronological order. 

The page contains a consistent font also but is not tilted or off centre as the front cover. There are words highlighted in bold to make it easier to read. This shows some of the similarities between the different genres of music. The midshot of the celebrity is used to show an editorial, by showing it this way it emphasises the importance of that editorial piece. The photo of the artist is more civilised and posh, which contrasts the messages and style of rock which is usually a more rebellious feeling. We can see this because of the mise-en-scene of the image as the clothes the artist is wearing is more formal and doesn't fit with the typical style of the genre, thus making it more interesting for the reader

The magazine offers posters which can be seen on the contents page, this is a typical convention of a music magazine that offers the reader more incentive to buy it as the posters are new and cant be bought elsewhere. This is what most music magazines give away but others give out a free CD or other gifts, but this is not common practise among music magazines.

Page 3: Double page spread

The DPS has a medium close up of the cover star making a wild expression which catches the reader's eye and appears to be underwater which is visually interesting. The lighting is bright on the cover star and makes him more pale to contrast the black background. The colour scheme is black and white with small hints of red to pop out at the reader. The visuals of the dps relate to the article as the interview is about the artist opening up about something personal and 'coming clean' which is why the water is used and the lack of clothes seem connote how this is a pure look at the artist, without anything covering them up, this type of article is interesting and gives a new perspective for the reader which makes them want to check it out.

The writing is in columns so it is easier to read and contains a drop cap which is a convention of all magazines. The article is coloured white to match the colour scheme and contrasts the background. The page contains a small blurb which sets up the tone of the magazine and what its going to be about, this is also done in other music magazines and mainly in interviews which is a good way to get the reader interested and to make it easier for them to read.

The language used is informal but still professional and the tone is not serious and represents the genre well. The genre is shown by the use of the cover star, the blurb at the beginning, and part of the title shows 'rock essentials' which makes it more obvious.

Overall, despite the differences of the genres, I will use some of the imagery and style of this genre in my music magazine, and some of the similarities are interesting to note, because they show how being aesthetically pleasing or looking more professional can transcend genres of music as these elements should be included in all big music magazines and I will try to create my music magazine in the same way.

Vibe magazine media kit

Vibe magazine is published by Spin Media a U.S publisher which owns a number of pop culture websites, including Spin, Buzznet, Idolator, Stereogum, Vibe and The Frisky it also published Spin Magazine and shut down the print version of the magazine in 2013.

I am conducting audience research of Vibe magazine which is my case study and I will do this by annotating their media kit.

This opening statement shows that the target demographic for Vibe is 18 to 34 year olds and has expanded further than just music in order to reach a wider audience, it also multicultural so more people will be attracted to the magazine.

This audience profile shows how successful Vibe have been with their audience as the median age is 34 years old and 91% of their audience is 21+ which is their target demographic, however it does show that while they are hitting their target demographic, it is on the older side and less young people are reading Vibe magazine. Also mainly black and white people read Vibe more than other ethnicities which is less multicultural than it was intended by their opening statement.

Vibe Magazine Textual Analysis (Final redraft)

*Improvements will be coloured in blue 

The genre I chose for my music magazine was rap/hip hop, so the first magazine I will be analysing is the Vibe and its front cover, contents page and a double page spread. However the other magazine I will be analysing will be a different genre to compare any similarities and differences, it could also help me with my own music magazine by giving me some ideas.

Page 1: Front cover
The front cover shows 2 cover stars, Dr Dre and Eminem and they do cover some of the masthead which is a convention of many music magazines but it doesn't obscure the masthead which is good for catching the reader's eye. The masthead is big and bold which will also make it stand out. Only one of the cover stars is directly addressing the camera which is different to most music magazines and defies convention. There is a 3 colour scheme of yellow, white and green, which compliment each other and stand out. However, there are some splashes of colour like red which doesn't stand out too much or look too visually busy.

The masthead is large and bold which attracts attention, there is also a strap line which is a common convention in music magazines. The main cover line is the biggest while the others are  smaller and off to the side, which defies conventions of a music magazine. The font is consistent which makes the magazine more professional.

The language used is informal and the use of 'cookin' is representative of the genre of rap. There are rhetorical questions which grabs the reader's attention, this is also done with the use of direct address. The genre is shown by referencing other rap artists like Kanye West.

Page 2: Contents page
The contents page of this Vibe issue has the main cover star which is different from the Kerrang magazine. The Vibe logo is in the top right and is stylised by looking like a bar code, which is not generally done in music magazines. The contents page is only one page just like the Kerrang magazine which shows the similarities between 2 genres. The colours and lighting are dark, which makes the minimal use of colour stand out. The darker colours connote a sense of dangerousness, which is a common convention of the genre. The contents page has no other images and is very minimalist.

The contents list all the editorials in chronological order and not the adverts. There are also no adverts on the contents page. The font is consistent throughout so it looks more professional. There are certain words in bold to emphasise them and make them easier to read. Overall, this contents page defies some conventions of music magazines but also show the similarities between the two genres of rock and rap/hip hop.

Page 3: Double page spread
This DPS has dark colours and lighting match the contents page and there is a midshot of the featured artist, but there is also a long shot of him which is visually interesting to the reader and the lighting is more dynamic. It also defies convention by having the artist look to the side instead of directly addressing the camera. This was done possibly because the article is an interview so there is no need to directly address the reader. The long shot of the artist is coloured blue which stands out from the rest of the page which follows a simple colour scheme. The lighting relates to the text as the text mentions god and the light seems to light the artist up in a mysterious way and is very bright.

The writing is in columns which is typical of a music magazine pull quotes are used to emphasise something from the article. No drop caps are used which defies conventions and is more interesting. The article is in different colours to show differences and make it easier to read.

The language used is informal and the tone is not serious, the genre is shown by using technical terms and the images used also represent the genre of rap. The font is consistent just like the other pages of the magazine.

Class Analysis of Contents Page

In groups we had to analyse the contents page of a random music magazine to help us prepare for our analysis of music magazines from our own genre, we analysed the images, text and layout of the contents page and found out the conventions of a contents page. My groups' contents page wasn't very interesting and we critiqued the fact that it was not very visually busy or interesting, which is helpful in showing us what not to do for our own music magazines. Our magazine 'Blues and Soul' had only one page of contents and listed all the editorials that it had, it wasn't visually interesting compared to the other music magazines we looked at so there is not much to say about it.

Production schedule timeline

Induction Course

 This was my final product for our induction course was to create our own DPS after analysing other music magazines. Our double page spread had to discuss the issue of digital vs physical music magazines and I would appreciate any feedback so please comment. Thank you!

InDesign Practise

This is the InDesign practise that we did in class and we had to recreate a DPS of a magazine, we learnt to use gutters, how to make drop caps, text boxes and how to make columns of text. I found it easy to learn and this helped for future use as I can use InDesign for making a contents page or DPS for my own magazine.

My first post

Welcome to my blog! Where I will be updating you on my media work in the hopes that I get great feedback from you about it that will help me progress.