Wednesday, 25 March 2009
Skills development
My skills have developed greatly during the course of my project. In the preliminary task I was new to the software meaning I had to learn all Photoshop skills for the project. My college magazine was much more basic in terms for the images used and the font layouts. I am much more confident in using the software now; having learned many of the functions that it can perform. When first introduced to the project I needed help from experienced users compared to now where I feel my skills are at a good level. Over the course of the project I have really discovered the importance of audience research. My preliminary task was done without audience research so the extensive research for the main task definately helped my skills develop. This allowed me to see exactly what the audience would want. I spent much more time looking at and analysing existing magazines for the main task. From this is learned the conventions of music magazines developing my understanding from the beginning of the project. My developing skills were a reason that my original concept for the contents page was not chosen to become the final design. Having completed much more research I learned that my original concept wasn’t what my results displayed that the target audience would want. Due to my advancing skills I managed think of a better idea that would be an improvement on the previous concept. Once confident with the technologies, I was able to play around with potential designs quickly, keeping good changes and deleting the bad ones. Once my products were finished I got the opinions of a small sample of people in the target audience to see how they would respond to it. This was a development from the preliminary task where I did not do such extensive research. Once finishing all my products I performed spell checks to ensure that there were no mistakes anywhere on my finished products. I spent a lot of time making sure the text was laid out nicely. In the preliminary task hyphens were used to continue words onto the following line if they could not fit onto one line. For my main task I made sure this did not happen keeping all words in full on each line. This developed my understanding of how the text should be presented following feedback from a college tutor. If I were to redo the product I think I would be able to come up with an even better design now that my skills for Photoshop have developed considerably. I would be much more willing to take risks since I know the software well enough to sort out any things that did not go as planned. I would also change to contrast of certain images to make sure that they really give off the exact connotations that I intend.
Technologies
My photography skills developed considerably throughout the course of the project. My initial photos did not turn out to be useable. However once I found the beige background I knew that it was a much better fit. The people I photographed listened to who I wanted them to pose and adjusted their posture to fit how I wanted them. The correct framing was vital to the images and was also something that I learned. My Photoshop skills developed considerably from the preliminary task. The adjustment of contrast of my images was a vital skill that I learned to make the photo’s obey the colour scheme. This manipulation of images was one of my favourite things through the project. I learned that a simple design can work better if put together well on Photoshop giving a high class feel. My time management for the project was good meeting the major deadlines however there is room for improvement.I have learned how to really make a magazine to appeal to both niche and mainstream audiences. I’ve discovered that following the set conventions already in place gives a great product. I understand the need to research other texts. As the mass media has many texts it is vital to research that text before trying to create one. Each text follows codes and conventions that must be followed to a certain degree. I have learned how to create a colour scheme that complements the look of the magazine and gives off the correct representations. I have learned how to construct a music magazine by using the conventions already in place to produce a product that would appeal to a target audience. The software was vital to master as much of the project was computer based. Photoshop is what is used by industry and is very important to the media. I know how important it is to pay attention the each detail. Nothing should be placed onto a product without reasons to back up the decision. The journalism side was also something very different having not written an article since I was in school. This developed my understanding of how article tone links in with house style.
Addressing my target audience
My tone for my language house style was formal with chatty moments when needed. This was chosen due to the questionnaire results showing this to be the most popular within the target audience. The target audience want to feel mature when reading the magazine therefore a formal tone is the most suitable to give off these connotations. The text is mostly sans serif to give a modern contemporary look. Some serif text is included on titles and on a pull quote to represent a high class professional part of the magazine. The questionnaire results show that a light colour scheme was better received within the target audience. As such, a light colour scheme has been used throughout the products. This light pastel colour scheme represents that the magazine is casually elegant without trying too hard which links in with the magazine’s theme. No graphics have been used in the produced products as the layout was to be simple and classic and they didn’t really fit in with the products. Graphics would however appear in the magazine on other articles however they would remain simple to not compromise the articles style.The images were taken in front of a beige background to give a professional photo shoot look. The images represented the artists as glamorous and stylish with focus on their clothes. They were all very light and simple to fit in with the casual theme. Cover lines were presented to grab the reader’s attention without appearing to be desperate. The content was chosen through questionnaire research with the target audience so it is popular with them. No advertisements have been featured for products however other pages on the magazine would have adverts that relate to the target audience. Advertisers are to read the media kit to decide if they should advertise. I have provided a media kit that should give potential advertisers an idea as to if they should advertise with Soulful. The magazine would offer the inner front cover and back cover for a higher price. Advertisement on the left pages would cost more as these pages are seen when flicking through a magazine. A very well know music magazine NME charges £6,920 per regular page. This is relatively cheap for a very successful magazine. Soulful magazine would charge a lower rate while the brand is unknown. However as popularity rites so would the cost of advertisements. Product placement and advertisements are a large income for magazines. The advertisements would also be shown in sidebars (which would be cheaper than full page rates) and product placement in the magazine’s images and articles. Artists wearing fashion items are a method of getting certain brands into the magazine.
Target Audience
The target audience for my products includes females age 16-26. In the social group of BC they have a large disposable income to spend on the magazine and the advertisements included inside. This is important for the magazine’s media kit. Their psychographic profile includes following the mainstream and what is popular. They are interested in fashion which links in with the fashion theme. The magazine targets this audience through its codes and conventions. The magazine is very stylish which aspirers would like. The simple and well constructed designs appeal to the target audience. To gain knowledge on my target audience during the planning stages, I conducted a questionnaire as well as an interview with members of the target audience. This really allowed me to discover exactly what they were looking for. Fashion is a large part of the target audience’s life; the magazine shares many conventions with fashion magazines. The artists inside the magazine are likely to be those that the target audience aspire to be like. Style wise they can replicate the stars image with pages of the magazine giving ideas of how to duplicate their style in more high street type stores.
Institutions
I decided that a media institution such as Bauer should publish and distribute my media text. This is the largest publisher in the UK owning publishing companies across Europe, Germany, Spain, France, the United States and Mexico. I feel this would be the best choice due to the magazine’s mainstream wide appeal. Being with a company such as Bauer brings respect to the magazine allowing it to appear in such shops as WHSmith, a very profitable organisation to be aligned with. While being with a large institution may limit creative rights, the company is the largest and most successful die to their work, so they would therefore be able to suggest ways in which Soulful could become a more successful magazine. NME is a magazine that went with a large publisher. They are part of IPC which is part of the Time Warner conglomerate. Their readership is according to their media kit 369,000 with a circulation of 56,284. The large distribution has been a benefit here. Being owned by Time Warner the magazine does give up some rights to full creative control as the company is a much respected corporation. While full editorial independence would be a good creative decision, NME benefits from the large distribution as would my magazine.
Representation
My double page spread and contents page represent two females both of whom are English and “white.” They are represented as being glamorous and fashionable with the pictures being taken from a photo shoot and not a regular photo. Both artists are over the age of 18 and while coming from an B/C social status background now have a considerable amount of money due to their professions. Their style is very mainstream as is their sub-culture identities. The artists are not shown to be rebelling. On the front cover a male with an African-Caribbean race is presented. Being male the artist is presented in a less glamorous fashion shoot way. The women in the magazine are wearing fashionable clothes that can be replication by their fans from less expensive high street stores. The subjects are not smiling and have a more casual pose similar to those used by models. This connotes that they are glamorous, posing in ways similar to models. The male is wearing a casual look stylised by an expensive leather jacket. The artists address the camera and also look in other directions where appropriate.
Forms and conventions
My music magazine is for the genre of music that it soul. The conventions for this type of genre of magazine include having a well know artist on the front cover. Simple and elegant designs are expected as well as a formal but slightly chatty writing tone. The magazine follows the mainstream music types not the more radical anti-establishment genres and magazines. Blender is an existing music magazine that covers the genre slightly. My magazine also covers R&B and hip-hop to a lesser degree. Blender covers these genres. Much of my style was based upon this magazine however I challenged these conventions by targeting the magazine at female’s instead of men like Blender does. This was because blender features soul in a small way however my magazine is mainly based on soul. The magazine is a hybrid between music and fashion. I chose to give the magazine a fashion magazine feel to appeal to the female target audience. Similar genres to soul are featured as stated above, to appeal to a wider audience. As seen in my flickr.com analysis Blender uses a colour scheme of white, black and red. My colour scheme uses an equally simple design. The main images on both covers are of an artist that is being used to endorse the magazine. The built in fan base of artists helps boost sales. The cover lines take a similar structure on both, being positioned on the left third of the page. Both magazines give off similar connotations that are given from fashion magazines.
The masthead on my front cover is positioned in front of the image. This is to get the brand seen as the audience will not be familiar with it. As the magazine becomes more successful part of images can cover the masthead, as the audience will know what it says. The coverlines are 
mostly positioned on the left third of the cover. This is because magazines are often stacked in shops with only that part on show, so the audience need to be able to read it. The main image features a fictional famous musician/artist. Such artist would have a fan base that you automatically purchase the magazine to read about their favourite artists. Polaroid photos are present to give the audience more information into what is featured inside. The main image has a fashion magazine feel connoting that the magazine is stylised and involves fashion trends. This was done due to a high number of the target audience saying that they would want fashion to be incorporated. The cover uses a very light colour scheme, using beige, light grey and black. This gives the magazine a high class feel something that the audience in social groups AB want to feel when they read the magazine.
The contents page features a large image with the artist featured on the cover. The artist has a hand on their hip connoting that they are poised and sophisticated. The main articles featured in the magazine are listed. These are supposed to gain the audiences attention by listing the best parts of the magazine. The reader can the easily navigate to articles that they want without getting frustrated. “Oral History” is used as a sexual innuendo to create a gossipy feel (as decided by the questionnaire results). The term is however talking about singing keeping to the house style. This is designed to draw the audience’s attention as they are likely to wonder why the term is used. A small photo in a Polaroid effect is used to fit in with how other images are presented on the products. The image is of another artist to represent another important article inside the magazine. The artist is also represented through a photo shoot photo. The colour scheme is once again beige and black creating a sophisticated look.
The do
uble page spread consumes two A4 pages in the magazine. The first page consists of an image of the issue’s main artist. The photo has elements of a fashion and modelling photo. The title “Hurt No More” sums up the article on the artist’s success. The artist’s about is titled Hurt and this therefore shows that they shouldn’t be. A strandfirst is used to give further details about what the article is about, providing a small introduction. Three columns are used to position the text in a simple but effective way. Questions are bolded with the intention to gain readers’ attentions, and if they are interested by a question they would likely read the article. A pull quote is taken out of context to create an enigma that the audience must solve by reading the quote in the article’s context. This pull quote uses serifs to create a look different to the article connoting high class and elegance. The rest of the article is sans serif to create a modern look. A side bar is used to advertise the performer’s upcoming concerts. The audience are likely to be interested in these as they may have an interest in the artist. The box is grey, which keeps to the colour scheme however stands out and sets itself aside from the actual article. An end sign symbol is used to indicate that the article ends at that point. This is a convention that the audience are aware of without having to be told the meaning. The colour scheme is once again mostly beige, being light and simple however still looking well composed and stylised.
The masthead on my front cover is positioned in front of the image. This is to get the brand seen as the audience will not be familiar with it. As the magazine becomes more successful part of images can cover the masthead, as the audience will know what it says. The coverlines are 
mostly positioned on the left third of the cover. This is because magazines are often stacked in shops with only that part on show, so the audience need to be able to read it. The main image features a fictional famous musician/artist. Such artist would have a fan base that you automatically purchase the magazine to read about their favourite artists. Polaroid photos are present to give the audience more information into what is featured inside. The main image has a fashion magazine feel connoting that the magazine is stylised and involves fashion trends. This was done due to a high number of the target audience saying that they would want fashion to be incorporated. The cover uses a very light colour scheme, using beige, light grey and black. This gives the magazine a high class feel something that the audience in social groups AB want to feel when they read the magazine. The contents page features a large image with the artist featured on the cover. The artist has a hand on their hip connoting that they are poised and sophisticated. The main articles featured in the magazine are listed. These are supposed to gain the audiences attention by listing the best parts of the magazine. The reader can the easily navigate to articles that they want without getting frustrated. “Oral History” is used as a sexual innuendo to create a gossipy feel (as decided by the questionnaire results). The term is however talking about singing keeping to the house style. This is designed to draw the audience’s attention as they are likely to wonder why the term is used. A small photo in a Polaroid effect is used to fit in with how other images are presented on the products. The image is of another artist to represent another important article inside the magazine. The artist is also represented through a photo shoot photo. The colour scheme is once again beige and black creating a sophisticated look.
The do
uble page spread consumes two A4 pages in the magazine. The first page consists of an image of the issue’s main artist. The photo has elements of a fashion and modelling photo. The title “Hurt No More” sums up the article on the artist’s success. The artist’s about is titled Hurt and this therefore shows that they shouldn’t be. A strandfirst is used to give further details about what the article is about, providing a small introduction. Three columns are used to position the text in a simple but effective way. Questions are bolded with the intention to gain readers’ attentions, and if they are interested by a question they would likely read the article. A pull quote is taken out of context to create an enigma that the audience must solve by reading the quote in the article’s context. This pull quote uses serifs to create a look different to the article connoting high class and elegance. The rest of the article is sans serif to create a modern look. A side bar is used to advertise the performer’s upcoming concerts. The audience are likely to be interested in these as they may have an interest in the artist. The box is grey, which keeps to the colour scheme however stands out and sets itself aside from the actual article. An end sign symbol is used to indicate that the article ends at that point. This is a convention that the audience are aware of without having to be told the meaning. The colour scheme is once again mostly beige, being light and simple however still looking well composed and stylised.Friday, 13 March 2009
Media Kit
The following is an example of what a media kit for the magazine could look like with research.
The reader’s of Soulful are very interested in fashion and trust the brands that the magazine advertises.
Our readers keep up to date with products and technology.
80% own MP3 players
62% own a stereo system
5% own HDTV’s and Blu-ray players
92% of readers download their music from online sources.
Readers have a large disposable income.
Grooming products are purchased, spending £200 on them yearly.
£250 is spent on wine and other spirits yearly
£100 is spent on cinema tickets yearly.
Favourite channel:
Channel 4
Internet:
98% use the internet, 70%of have broadband.
Female readership: 89%
Male readership: 11%
Married or in a relationship: 56%
Income:35,000
The reader’s of Soulful are very interested in fashion and trust the brands that the magazine advertises.
Our readers keep up to date with products and technology.
80% own MP3 players
62% own a stereo system
5% own HDTV’s and Blu-ray players
92% of readers download their music from online sources.
Readers have a large disposable income.
Grooming products are purchased, spending £200 on them yearly.
£250 is spent on wine and other spirits yearly
£100 is spent on cinema tickets yearly.
Favourite channel:
Channel 4
Internet:
98% use the internet, 70%of have broadband.
Female readership: 89%
Male readership: 11%
Married or in a relationship: 56%
Income:35,000
Finished products: Contents page
This is my finished contents page. The design changes considerably to the rejected version.
Rejected contents page
This was an original version of my contents page. I rejected it as I felt that it was too plain.
Thursday, 12 March 2009
My initial ideas
The working title for my music magazine is soul. This has been chosen as I am expecting the magazine to be in the genre of soul. I feel that this is an appropriate tile as it informs the audience to exactly what the magazine is about. Other possible titles include Soulful and soulfulness.
My target audience are demographically woman aged 16-26. They are in the social group of BC. Their Psychographic profile includes being mainstreamers including their taste in music, following the current chart singles and popular artists. They are Interested in fashion to link in with the magazine’s fashion magazine look. The magazine will feature fashion alongside the music using many conventions expected from a fashion magazine.
I feel a price around £5 is reasonable to keep the magazine’s demand high but circulation income high too. The price is vital as the audience want to feel high class, especially aspirers, however do not want to spend too much money on a magazine.
Content will include reviews of music, interviews with musicians/artists, gossip about them and other information about the music world such as tour dates. Contents will be researched with the audience through a questionnaire to decide upon which are the best topics to cover in the magazine.
A light elegant colour scheme needs to be used to give a high class look. The target audience want to feel that they are stylish by reading the magazine. This would be simple to not look over done however would not look too simple and plain.
The magazine will fit into the market well as it will be aimed at mainstreamers. Many genres that link with soul such as hip-hop and rap are very popular and one aimed at soul listeners would be successful. Publication and distribution will be by more well known companies to get the magazine into the top retail outlets.
My target audience for a soul magazine that incorporates fashion is to be female with a tentative age of 16-25. I am also considering aiming the magazine at men also by using women to gain their attention.
I think that the magazine should give of connotations of classiness and good style. The magazine is to represent soul artists in a glamorous way that mainstreamers would want to replicate. The artists will be key to the magazines success with well known performers having existing bases that will want to purchase the magazine.
My target audience are demographically woman aged 16-26. They are in the social group of BC. Their Psychographic profile includes being mainstreamers including their taste in music, following the current chart singles and popular artists. They are Interested in fashion to link in with the magazine’s fashion magazine look. The magazine will feature fashion alongside the music using many conventions expected from a fashion magazine.
I feel a price around £5 is reasonable to keep the magazine’s demand high but circulation income high too. The price is vital as the audience want to feel high class, especially aspirers, however do not want to spend too much money on a magazine.
Content will include reviews of music, interviews with musicians/artists, gossip about them and other information about the music world such as tour dates. Contents will be researched with the audience through a questionnaire to decide upon which are the best topics to cover in the magazine.
A light elegant colour scheme needs to be used to give a high class look. The target audience want to feel that they are stylish by reading the magazine. This would be simple to not look over done however would not look too simple and plain.
The magazine will fit into the market well as it will be aimed at mainstreamers. Many genres that link with soul such as hip-hop and rap are very popular and one aimed at soul listeners would be successful. Publication and distribution will be by more well known companies to get the magazine into the top retail outlets.
My target audience for a soul magazine that incorporates fashion is to be female with a tentative age of 16-25. I am also considering aiming the magazine at men also by using women to gain their attention.
I think that the magazine should give of connotations of classiness and good style. The magazine is to represent soul artists in a glamorous way that mainstreamers would want to replicate. The artists will be key to the magazines success with well known performers having existing bases that will want to purchase the magazine.
Audience research
Questionnaire
1. What existing magazines do you read?
2. Do you read any music magazines?
Yes/No
If yes, please state which.
3. Would you be willing to purchase a new music magazine?
Yes/No
4. How much would you be willing to pay?
Under £1, £1.00-£2.00, £2.01-£3.00, £3.01-£4.00, £4.01-£5.00, £5.01-£6.00, over £6
5. How often should a music magazine be released?
Never, daily, weekly, every fortnight, monthly, every two months, yearly
6. What is your favourite music genre?
R&B, Rock, Soul, Hip-Hop, Rap, Indie, other
7. What should a music magazine include? Select any that you feel should be included.
Interviews, music reviews, film reviews, gossip about musicians, fashion
8. What is your preferred colour scheme?
Bright colours, black and white, light colours, florescent
9. Do you mostly purchase your own magazines, or read them from other sources such as friends/colleagues or at a salon etc.?
Purchase own, provided by other sources
10. Which type of advertisements should be included in the magazine? Select as many as wanted.
CDs, concerts, fashion, beauty products and cosmetics, electrical goods, food
11. Do you feel that there is a gap in the market for a new music magazine?
Yes/no
12. How should the magazine be written tone wise?
Formal, informal, jokey, slang terms, chatty.
Questionnaire results
Magazines such as Blender, Hip-Hop Connection, Billboard and Trace were listed as music magazines that are currently read.
Interview
An interview with Gina Vettese, someone in the target audience for the magazine, has been conducted.
Do you read any music magazines?
No, I have in the past however I stopped a few years ago.
Why did you stop reading this magazine?
It began to venture away from the genre of music that I prefer.
Which genre is this?
I like R&B, Soul and Hip-Hop.
Would you be willing to purchase a magazine if it met your genre perforations?
Yes, defiantly! I’m really into music and love reading about it. If a magazine that I liked was published then I would buy it.
So you think it is best for a music magazine to focus of specific genres than to be general music?
Of course, people know which genres they like. So they know what they want to read about.
What specifically would you want to find in a music magazine?
Interviews with artists and bands that I like. Music reviews, information on their concerts and tours, gossip, and I’d love it to tie in with the fashion associated with the genre.
Do you think that fashion is a big part of music?
Sure, what the artists were influences people who like their music to take elements of their style for themselves.
Research conclusion
My questionnaire has proven to be very helpful. I learned that 60% of my target audience are interested in music magazines. 80% would be willing to purchase a new music magazine which is good as my magazine will need to have members of the target audience willing to purchase it. The most popular price was £4.01-£5, upon learning this I have decided that my magazine will be priced at £4.99. The most popular chose for how often an issue should be released was monthly and I have therefore decided that I should have my magazine released on a monthly basis. The most popular choice of music genre with the target audience is soul with R&B coming second. The magazine is to be one that specifies in the genre of soul, with R&B and other similar genres present but to a lesser degree. All of the audience who participated in the questionnaire thought that the magazine should include interviews and music reviews; gossip was then the next most popular choice with fashion closely following. Film reviews were also a popular choice. With this information I know what to include inside the magazine. The most popular choices will be the most prominent. Light colours were the most popular colour scheme; the colour scheme for my magazine will be light pastel type colours. 70% of readers buy their own magazine copies, improving sales. The other 30% gain theirs from other sources giving a high circulation improving readership. When asked about which advertisements would be most effective in the magazine, CDs and concerts were the most popular choice. Other popular choices were fashion and beauty products. Food was not a well received choice, neither were electrical goods (except those which also fall under beauty products such as hair straighteners). 95% of those who fulfilled the questionnaire felt that there was a gap in the market for a new music magazine. This leads me to believe that my new magazine will be well received with the target audience. My questionnaire has also highlighted that the writing format should be formal however incorporating a chatty style when suitable. My interview has highlighted that the magazine must stick to the genre that it is created for otherwise readership will fall. The person that I interviewed also commented that she feels fashion to be a large part of music. Therefore my magazine will incorporate fashion into it.
1. What existing magazines do you read?
2. Do you read any music magazines?
Yes/No
If yes, please state which.
3. Would you be willing to purchase a new music magazine?
Yes/No
4. How much would you be willing to pay?
Under £1, £1.00-£2.00, £2.01-£3.00, £3.01-£4.00, £4.01-£5.00, £5.01-£6.00, over £6
5. How often should a music magazine be released?
Never, daily, weekly, every fortnight, monthly, every two months, yearly
6. What is your favourite music genre?
R&B, Rock, Soul, Hip-Hop, Rap, Indie, other
7. What should a music magazine include? Select any that you feel should be included.
Interviews, music reviews, film reviews, gossip about musicians, fashion
8. What is your preferred colour scheme?
Bright colours, black and white, light colours, florescent
9. Do you mostly purchase your own magazines, or read them from other sources such as friends/colleagues or at a salon etc.?
Purchase own, provided by other sources
10. Which type of advertisements should be included in the magazine? Select as many as wanted.
CDs, concerts, fashion, beauty products and cosmetics, electrical goods, food
11. Do you feel that there is a gap in the market for a new music magazine?
Yes/no
12. How should the magazine be written tone wise?
Formal, informal, jokey, slang terms, chatty.
Questionnaire results
Magazines such as Blender, Hip-Hop Connection, Billboard and Trace were listed as music magazines that are currently read.
Interview
An interview with Gina Vettese, someone in the target audience for the magazine, has been conducted.
Do you read any music magazines?
No, I have in the past however I stopped a few years ago.
Why did you stop reading this magazine?
It began to venture away from the genre of music that I prefer.
Which genre is this?
I like R&B, Soul and Hip-Hop.
Would you be willing to purchase a magazine if it met your genre perforations?
Yes, defiantly! I’m really into music and love reading about it. If a magazine that I liked was published then I would buy it.
So you think it is best for a music magazine to focus of specific genres than to be general music?
Of course, people know which genres they like. So they know what they want to read about.
What specifically would you want to find in a music magazine?
Interviews with artists and bands that I like. Music reviews, information on their concerts and tours, gossip, and I’d love it to tie in with the fashion associated with the genre.
Do you think that fashion is a big part of music?
Sure, what the artists were influences people who like their music to take elements of their style for themselves.
Research conclusion
My questionnaire has proven to be very helpful. I learned that 60% of my target audience are interested in music magazines. 80% would be willing to purchase a new music magazine which is good as my magazine will need to have members of the target audience willing to purchase it. The most popular price was £4.01-£5, upon learning this I have decided that my magazine will be priced at £4.99. The most popular chose for how often an issue should be released was monthly and I have therefore decided that I should have my magazine released on a monthly basis. The most popular choice of music genre with the target audience is soul with R&B coming second. The magazine is to be one that specifies in the genre of soul, with R&B and other similar genres present but to a lesser degree. All of the audience who participated in the questionnaire thought that the magazine should include interviews and music reviews; gossip was then the next most popular choice with fashion closely following. Film reviews were also a popular choice. With this information I know what to include inside the magazine. The most popular choices will be the most prominent. Light colours were the most popular colour scheme; the colour scheme for my magazine will be light pastel type colours. 70% of readers buy their own magazine copies, improving sales. The other 30% gain theirs from other sources giving a high circulation improving readership. When asked about which advertisements would be most effective in the magazine, CDs and concerts were the most popular choice. Other popular choices were fashion and beauty products. Food was not a well received choice, neither were electrical goods (except those which also fall under beauty products such as hair straighteners). 95% of those who fulfilled the questionnaire felt that there was a gap in the market for a new music magazine. This leads me to believe that my new magazine will be well received with the target audience. My questionnaire has also highlighted that the writing format should be formal however incorporating a chatty style when suitable. My interview has highlighted that the magazine must stick to the genre that it is created for otherwise readership will fall. The person that I interviewed also commented that she feels fashion to be a large part of music. Therefore my magazine will incorporate fashion into it.
Hip-Hop Connection double page spread - click for flickr analysis
Double page spread for the music magazine Hip-Hop connection. The magazine focuses on the hip-hop genre with a much higher male readership to female. The magazine is successful being in print for over 20 years.
Drummer Magazine: Contents Page flickr analysis
This is the contents page for Drummer Magazine. Drummer is a magazine that specifies in the music genres of drumming and metal. The magazine receives a higher male readership and circulation to female. The magazine is a special-interest one not targeted at a mainstream audience.
Friday, 16 January 2009
hiphop connection music magazine analysis
Hip Hop Connection
is a musc magazine that specifies in the music genre hip-hop. Each issue comes with a free CD. The magazine has a much higher male readership and they are therefore the target audience. The magazine has high readership and circulation and is published by Future Publishing a special-interest media publising company. The magazine has been published for over 20 years.
is a musc magazine that specifies in the music genre hip-hop. Each issue comes with a free CD. The magazine has a much higher male readership and they are therefore the target audience. The magazine has high readership and circulation and is published by Future Publishing a special-interest media publising company. The magazine has been published for over 20 years.
Click on the image to see my analysis of the cover.
"mixmag" music magazine analysis
Mixmag is a dance and clubbing music magazine. The magazine has a circulation of 37,139 and a readership of 276,000 and is released with a free CD each issue. The average reader is aged 26, with 72% male readership and 28% female.
Click on the picture to see my analysis of the cover.
Thursday, 8 January 2009
Analysis of Blender music magazine
Blender is an existing music magazine created by a company who produce several male magazines. The audience is mainly males aged 16-35 and the magazine also receives many female viewers.
Click on the magazine cover to view an analysis.
Sunday, 2 November 2008
Planning my College Magazine
Before beginning to design my college magazine cover I had to conduct primary research on my target audience. The target audience for an East Norfolk Sixth Form College magazine is the students of the college. The questionnaire features questions that are important in deciding on what should be included in the magazine, the style, price and other information that needs to be addressed before making that magazine. The results from this questionnaire gave me the ideas needed for the magazine. The first question proved that the majority of students would buy a college magazine. From the second question I learnt that gossip is the most popular item to be included in the magazine. Therefore I decided that the cover lines to the magazine should feature gossip to gain the target audiences attention. The other popular choices were also made clear and gave ideas on what should be included in the magazine. From the third question, £1 was proven to be the most popular choice on price of the magazine. Therefore my magazine will be this price. The fourth question proved that a magazine that comes out every fortnight would be most popular amongst the target audience. The magazine will be printed onto paper as this choice was more popular that the magazine being a downloadable e-magazine. Listening to music and shopping are the most popular past times of the target audience. Therefore I conclude from this that music should play a large role in the magazine as should shopping related topics. The tone of the magazine will be chatty as this was the most popular amongst the target audience.
Before creating my own cover I analysed an existing college magazines and then analysed The National Student Magazine to a further extent. This gave me an insight into how a college magazine can be presented. I analysed the colours, masthead style, image size, image placement, background, text, fonts, promises, tone and how this related to the target audience. This research allowed me to be able to produce an appropriate magazine for the target audience. My contents page mimicked that of an existing magazine Men’s Health. Using my research into existing magazines I was able to produce a sketch of my magazine including appropriate colours, masthead style, image size, image placement, background, text, fonts, promises, and tone for the target audience.
Before creating my own cover I analysed an existing college magazines and then analysed The National Student Magazine to a further extent. This gave me an insight into how a college magazine can be presented. I analysed the colours, masthead style, image size, image placement, background, text, fonts, promises, tone and how this related to the target audience. This research allowed me to be able to produce an appropriate magazine for the target audience. My contents page mimicked that of an existing magazine Men’s Health. Using my research into existing magazines I was able to produce a sketch of my magazine including appropriate colours, masthead style, image size, image placement, background, text, fonts, promises, and tone for the target audience.
Friday, 24 October 2008
My college magazine
The red coloured masthead connotes the juiciness of the magazine. This represents the gossip and fun of the magazine. It also connotes romance representing the relationship gossip. Red is a signifier to stop, and pulls the audience to pay attention.
The cover lines all connote the gossip inside the magazine. As gossip was the favoured topic amongst the target audience. "Katie falls off the wagon" is given a shadow effect to stand out. "Scandal" is a different colour to the rest of its statement. This positions the audience to think that the word is very important. This incises the audience to want to read the magazine to find out more.
Gossip plays a large role in the magazine cover due to this being the most popular topic choice on the questionnaire.
A student is featured in a medium shot on the front cover. The lighting appears to be natural connoting that the college is naturally warm nice place to be. The student is smiling connoting that they enjoy college. The clothes are casual and fashionable connoting that the college is laidback and therefore so is the magazine.
Tiles, benches, grass connote a playground setting representing the fun side of college if sitting and talking. The student’s position is leaning on the label. This connotes that she is taking time to relax at college. The font of "life" connotes elegance and sophistication. The ideology of this being that the college is a nice, sophisticated learning place despite the apparent "scandal" that the students get into in their personal lives. This represents the separation between personal lives and the student’s academic studies. The background shows green grass on a sunny day. This connotes that the college is a positive place to be. The windows connote that the reader will gain an insight into college life. The bright colours featured in the cover lines connote that the magazine is fun and not to serious.
The contents page features red boxes saying “cover story” on the articles that appear on the cover. The red grabs the reader’s attention. This represents that these are the most important stories. The font is rounded connoting that the magazine isn’t too serious and is simpler. The articles are on what is featured on the cover lines. College news such as sport and exams are present along with health advice, Halloween tips, university choices and enrichment details. This connotes that the magazine covers all many more issues in the college than just gossip. A list of best and worst dressed article summary is also present. This links in with the want for gossip by the target audience. The section headers such as “college news” are in bold text. This make them stand out so that the audience can quickly find the section that they want. The light green boxes connote life as green is associated with the environment. This makes reference to the magazines title college life. Page numbers are clearly numbered in red so that the audience can quickly locate which story they want to read without having to spend time looking through each page. This prevents them getting annoyed at the magazine as they may lead busy academic lives. A rhetorical question is used to make the reader think about what has been said and want to find out the answers within the magazine.
I feel that the magazine is successful. The magazine uses the information given in the questionnaire to model the entire layout. The target audience gave the information of what they wanted to be included and the most popular which was gossip gained a large role in the magazine cover as these appeals to the majority of the target audience. The less popular, but still largely requested topics by the target audience are featured in the cover lines. This showing all the topics involved and as they were wanted by the target audience they are likely have their attention drawn to the magazine. I do feel that I could improve the magazine cover by giving a larger role to the academic side of college as the magazine features many topics of personal life instead of more topics of the college.
During the course of this preliminary task I feel that I have learnt many new skills. Firstly I feel that my Photoshop skills have improved. Beginning the project I had very little skills with Photoshop. Replicating a contents page style made sure that I could do all skills that the original designer used. I had to ensure that the page was as similar as possible meaning that I had to learn how to use many tools. Despite using more complicated tools on Photoshop for example the magic wand/quick selection tools to remove the student from the background; I decided that the pictures original background suited the image better as it featured a nice part of the college. All images on the cover are my own. This developed my skills further as all of the magazine had to be created by myself, meaning that I had to plan what medium close-up image I wanted and capture it by photograph.
Friday, 10 October 2008
The National Student Magazine
Here is my analysis of an existing student magazine, please click on it
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