Tuesday 28 February 2012

Genre

Genre
The genre of the magazine i hope to complete is mainly current music, hip hop, rap and new releases to the market - closely resembling the Q magazines context. I have choose this style of magazine because it closely links with my personal interest in music as well as me thinking through the possibility of creating a successful magazine that i can get a correct amount of images with relevance to the genre.

Tuesday 21 February 2012

Preparing for photographs

Preparing for Photographs

Mock up of My future magazine
This is the flat plan of the magazine i am soon to create (using terminology).

Front Cover:
This is the front cover I have chosen to create,  the ideas come from style models I have looked at heavily using the idea of the Q magazine layout. Firstly I would like to  state that whilst looking through style models no  matter what magazine they all included some similar features these features are the main image, the masthead (magazine title), headline (main feature), barcode and finally tagline. However there are more features used although the vary throughout magazines depending on the genre of the magazine and whether they want a chaotic house style or not.
So firstly the main image the main image will be the background of the magazine I do not have a complete idea of this image as of yet however there are vague ideas for  it, for example I  know that I can have know text conflicting with the image.
Now I will  talk about the  masthead.  The masthead is also known as  the title of the  magazine for  example "Q", "NME" etc. However I have placed my masthead  in the top  left as like  the Q magazine it makes the magazine neat and not  chaotic  and also this will become a house-style for the magazine as it will remain there for every edition of  the magazine excluding special editions.
The headline also known as the main feature  of the  magazine. This will be something to do with the double page spread and also linking to the main image on the front cover. I have put the headline at the bottom of the  page as in theory the artists face should be higher up therefore this text will  not conflict with the image. I have seen that this position is a common occurance throughout the music magazine industry. 
The barcode is a must however this can be found won the front or the back of the magazine I am having mine on the front  and this will also be placed according to house style.
The tagline is also going to be used as an incentive it also creates a house style throughout the editions of the magazine.
The items that are not used by all magazines I will apply some however they are not house style therefore could vary throughout the magazine. In this edition I have chose to use a puff its basically a small amount of text that will stand out and entice the reader.




Contents Page:

Every music magazine uses a contents page this is because it allows for the reader to easily find where the story they want is in the magazine. Every contents page applies some of the  same features, these features are the headline- this will be simply stating "Contents Page", features (whats in the magazine), pug, images, main image, puff.
So firstly the headline, the headline will be standard to every magazine just stating "Contents Page". I will have the headline in the text that I will use as the house style throughout the magazine therefore same font as on the front cover and the double page spread.
Not all music magazines use these following features however form my research I have seen that they do apply to my target audience therefore I have chosen to use them as well these features are pugs and puffs. These are simply small bits of text that get directly to the point it stands out often using a shape or colour that jumps out from the page, they also link to the sub image I have used as the pug will say "Win a guitar".
The sub image I have chosen to use is a picture of a guitar that is up for grabs to the  readers of the magazine. I have seen this idea of using a competition to entice people to become more connected with the magazine. This now lead me onto the most important thing on the contents page.
The features these state what is too come on the following pages, its in a list formation as i have discovered through the process of researching magazines. The list is  show casing what is coming next in the magazine.
Now for the main image it will be an image of another person in the magazine as I do not want to be to repetitive with the use of the main feature of the magazine.









Double Page Spread:

This is the double page spread I have created, It follows the conventions of a music magazine double page spread through the features I have used that I have seen used in music magazines. These features are  the headline, main image, text (columns) and also the date.
So firstly the headline, this will be the text that is used on the front cover to represent the main features headline, this therefore will have a house style with the rest of the magazine. I have decided too place it on the left side of the double page spread as the main text will be on the right hand side of the page I have seen this done on magazines such as "Q magazine" it also makes the magazine look less chaotic which is my house style as well representing my target audience.
The main part of a magazine double page spread is the main text and how its formatted  this is done using columns which make it easier for the reader to read and also looks neater I know this through personal experiences.
The main image will be on the left hand side of the page and then will fade out going towards the right hand side of the page and the text will not be overlapping the pages as this is a must not to do. The image will apply to the male gaze theory.


Analysis of Music Magazine



Q magazine fits into the description of genre I am looking at making, it focuses on current music from varieties of genres - it also meets the fact I am targeting both females and males as my audience of the magazine. It also focuses on a teenage/young adults market and it does this by using features in magazines.  Now I will speak about the features of this particular magazine that I would like to feature in my own magazine however adding my own style to it.
Features that appear on this magazines are included in most other magazines, I will start by discussing the main image of the magazine in this issue it is Cheryl Cole however this changes each issue and shows the variety of artists and bands that they cover. The magazine also uses a masthead, the masthead of this magazine is positioned in the top left dominating all the texts on the page - however this is the house style of the magazine as the main image always changes however the way "Q" is written never changes. Next is the use of the headline "3 words Cheryl Cole rocks" this is effective as it links to the image informing the readers often teens. I would also like to mention the use of the tagline "the UK's biggest music magazine"  this is important to mention as it is an incentive to buy the magazine -  it is a clever idea of the magazine. There is also a use of puffs - these are the circle objects with text in them on the magazine - often used as an incentive for people to buy the magazine for example on this magazine it about John Lennon. Finally there is the use of the list points on the left of the page that tell the reader what sort of stories are to be mentioned for example " John Mayer".

Friday 10 February 2012

Photoshop - Preliminary Task
Work in progress
This is the stage which I am up to on the prelim task.

So this is the front cover I have created for the preliminary task. I have used Photoshop to do this design you can see that I o not have as many skills as of this time  however I hope to develop them over time ready for the creation of my final product other known as Photoshop. As you can see I have adopted many features conventions that I have spoke about in the examples of newsletters, this includes a masthead, headline, strap line, incentive and images.
Firstly this masthead would be  used throughout every edition of the  newsletter so that the audience can instantly recognize what they are reading. as it will inevitably become its own brand. I have used the official Deyes High school title as well and made it large so it stands out against anything else on the page. I have done this as through research I have seen this done before.
The headline I have used is "Newsletter" I have it in red font as this stands out from the other features on the newsletter cover this follows the conventions of a newsletter as I have seen in previous magazines. However I have gone over the face of one of the photos this would not be done in a real media product. It matches up with the other fonts on the page as I have seen through my research that you should use more than three fonts on a page as it becomes very confusing and messy.
The strap-line I have used is "Remember to become a member" - this will relate to the main story in the newsletter Its a common convention in newsletters, I have placed it so that it doesn't get in the way other features and so that stands out.
I have also used an incentive - this is an item of text that is used to persuade someone to read the newsletter, I have used "specialist science college".
Finally I have taken images on a camera and then uploaded them into Photoshop for editing and then put them onto the newsletter. 




I have also created the flat plans of what the font cover would look like suing the media terminology:




Tuesday 7 February 2012

School Newsletter Analysis

Deyes High School Newsletter


This Deyes High newsletter has used the deyes high recognizable text "specialist science college, its recognizable in two ways firstly it adds to the representation of the school, and it also shows how the school excels in this part of the education simply making the school appear "better" than other local schools. There is also the use of the building on the newsletter, this is important as its recognizable as its the building everybody recognizes as its the front building. The building has a archaic (old fashioned) connotation to it as it is well known for its ivy covered walls. However when you take into consideration the professional look of this newsletter, its simply a fail, the text used is comic sands - traditional with these style newsletters "school".






I think its important to mention how this newsletter also uses comic sans, however this newsletter and font match better as this article is targeted at the student body rather than the students parents like the Deyes high school one was. I know this because of the effects of the color, this newsletter is more colorful therefore making it instantly having a connotation of a more modern newsletter - targeted at a younger generation being the students, however it uses the same effects of representation and effect on the reader by using the schools logo and the schools official title "A specialist sports with ICT college". 










These both create it effectiveness through its use of images for example Deyes High using the atom ball as a representation of the schools "specialist science college" award. They also create the effect on the audience using the font you would never think it but font can be so crucial on the effect of the text to the audience for example the sans comic font shows a more youthful effect therefore "St Ambrose Barlow" can get away with it as this newsletter is targeted at the students.

Thursday 2 February 2012

Photoshop Work



Editing images using photoshop
Using photoshop allows an image to be given the finished touch, some people may consider it a bad thing due to the fact you don't see the real person. Are celebrities really that perfect when seen in the media? in actual fact they usually are not. A perfect example of this is the image of Megan Fox.


Megan Fox edit: The Megan Fox image provides the perfect example of how you can change a person original photographic image. As you can see in the first image of Megan Fox she has spots on her cheek, after i have finished with the editing of the image she will not. This is due to the spot healing tool that i have used to change the image, taking a cut from one part of the picture close to the actual spot i have placed it over the image and therefore covering the spot. 



This is the image before the edit as you can see there is spots on her chin and her cheek.
























This is the after image once i had completed the edit as you can see there is no spots on her chin or her cheek.




























I also learnt how to manipulate a image using a color change, i did this by making 2 exact copies of the image then changing the background image to black and white, then on the foreground image I specifically selected the red lips, and then i changed the foreground image to black and white as well, therefore leaving the lips red and the rest of the image in black and white. If the summary is not clear hear is an example of one i used.


This is an image that i found on google of Beyonce i thought it would be good because of the red lips, I knew that these would stand out.




 This is the image once i had edited it as you can see i have left the red lips to stand out whilst changing the rest of the image to black and white.






























Another example is the edit of Rhianna that i have done using the techniques i have been taught on photoshop. I have inverted the colors to create this image of Rhianna in black and white with the red lips.











Wednesday 1 February 2012

Cohen's Moral Panic

What is Moral Panic?
Moral Panic - A condition, episode, person or group of people is portrayed as a threat to society values and interests. This is often a stereotyped representation brought around by the mass media.

Historical perspectives: 
  • Football, 100 years ago - hooliganism
  • Video games, 1990s - now
  • Video nasties, 1980s
  • Internet (IM, SNS) 2000S - now
Cohen says that:
Concern: Behaviour of a group is represented as a threat
Volatility: Panics that erupt dramatically, but do not sustain (short lived) - This has a negative result for the rest of us.
Hostility: "folk devils" constructed to create a clear division between "them" and "us"
Consensus: Widespread acceptance of the threat. Generally not reflective of the whole nation.  
Disproportionality: Wild exaggeration of evidence. Not only the number of people involved but also the scale of the problem.

Examples of moral panics:


This is an example of moral panics as many people felt it was inappropriate, due to the extreme violence - thinking the public may copy the ideas.











This is another example of a moral panic.
This is another example of a moral panic.




































Adaptation to a music magazine:
I could use this theory to promote interesting dangerous stories. I could use it to create exclusive stories that push the boundaries, making people more interested. Therefore I could portray the audience creating a moral panic, or play on stereotypes. I could portray the celebrity in the negative way.