Progress Update

Here is my first magazine cover, which I got feedback on.

Since my last progress post, I have been given feedback from all of the people in my class on what I should keep and what I can improve on my magazine cover. With this feedback I have changed some things on my magazine, here below are the two magazine covers, the second one being the one I have changed.

Here is my magazine cover now, with development.

The feedback I received was really helpful, I received positive comments and also constructive criticism which has helped me develop my cover. I have changed the button on the top to a banner, this looks more professional as I was told that the button didn't look very good. Looking at both covers I am glad that I have changed this because it looks neater and better with the overall layout. As you can see I have checked out different fonts for my sell-lines and made them different. I like the thinner fonts, although I am aware that as sell-lines they should stand out a bit more. The main sell-line 'Bryony Lily' has been changed in terms of colour, placement and size. To make it stand out more I have also placed a drop shadow on it, the red colour I have chosen also goes with my colour scheme of red, white and blue which I stated in a previous post was going to be the main colours in my magazine.
I have struggled quite a bit with fonts, this is because I had to cut them out on photoshop and fill them in with the fill tool. It has taken a long time to do them, this is because I have screen grabbed them from a font generator, cut them out in Photoshop and had to fill in the pixels with my chosen colour. I have also been trying to find a font for the main sell-line which is quite difficult, as I am trying to make them look as though it all matches and belongs together.
To develop my magazine even further, I need to change the fonts to make them slightly bolder and stand out more on the page, also I need to change the font on the main sell-line, I think I need to think about the colour usage because it blends in too much with the vinyl, but it may look fine if I use more effects (e.g.. Drop Shadow.)

Looking at previous work

In todays class we looked at past magazine designs from previous students and graded them in terms of their weak and strong points. Some of the products were outstanding in terms of fonts and colour schemes and also the strength of the image contributed to make a really good magazine which looked as though it could be on the news-stands. On the other hand some designs used images which werent originally taken by them, which immediately knocked down their mark.
From looking at the different examples of past coursework I have gained ideas for my own product and learned what I need to do to make a good piece of work. I have also learned different ways I could have my layout to make my magazine look really professional.

I will apply this to my work by playing around with various different colours and editing my images in a certain way to make them fit more and make them higher quality. I will also make sure that my images aren't distorted because some of the images on the magazines were out of focus.

Jarvis Cocker Practise Task

As part of my research and planning, my task was to create my own front cover using Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker as a coverstar. I created this front cover on Adobe Photoshop, using sell-lines and colours which applied to the Britpop genre which Jarvis is associated with.

The layout is basic and matches a normal magazine layout, I made the magazine a bit different by making it as though it was a 90's issue. I feel as though I included all of the relevant conventions of a magazine cover; I have a masthead, strap-line, sell-lines and the barcode. I have also included the main image, pull quote and main sell-line.

When I finished this project I handed it in to my lecturer and she gave me feedback which would be useful if I was to do the task again, it has made me aware of what I need to include and what I could leave out. I have also added on this sheet what I would do to improve my grade and how I will do this.

Progress Post

Since my last progress post I have been to the Sunderland University photo studio to take my images. On Monday 4th November myself, my friends Courtnie, Bryony and Michelle all went to the studio to take our images. I was Courtnies model, Bryony was my model and Michelle was Bryonys model. We booked a four hour slot so we could get all of the images done and also help each other if anyone needed anything. Everything went really well on the day and the photographs turned out really high quality and exactly how we wanted them. 

I have now edited the photographs I would like to use for my magazine, I showed my lecturer the selection of shots I had taken and she gave me some guidance on which ones would be effective to use.

Here below is the image I am using for my front cover and how I have edited it.

The image before it was edited, it needed to
be cropped and have a few tweaks done
to it, for example lighting and marks on
the image that were visible. 

The image after it was edited, I used photoshop
to edit blemishes and marks using
the magic wand tool on the photograph.
I also made the photograph lighter using the
brightness and contrast tools.

This image below is of my front cover which I have designed on photoshop. I understand that some things aren't clear, for example the main sell-line needs to be a different colour. I also feel as though I could use a few more fonts to differ the sell lines from the main sell line, also the pull quote could be in a different font. I am happy with my sell lines and feel they are relevant to my genre, I've also used puns and references to bands songs in the sell lines. My lecturer and class have helped me a lot by giving me feedback on how I can improve this front cover. In one lesson, my work was displayed on the board and my class filled in a sheet to say what they liked/disliked and also what I could improve on.

Font ideas - Masthead

I have checked out a website called dafont.com in order to find a range of different fonts for my masthead and sell lines.

This font on the left hand side would be good to use for my masthead, I like the shape of it and it also looks quite retro just like the theme of my magazine. It looks quite sophisticated and also readable. The only thing I do not like about this font is I would prefer a block font for my masthead, this is because it would stand out more because of the shape. This font is quite thin and might not be eye catching on the cover of my magazine.

This font is called Lemondrop and is quite bold, I could imagine it being used for a masthead and might consider using it myself. Although Ideally I would really like a sharp font, this could work as it is different to what I have seen on certain magazines. The whole point of my magazine is to present individual music so using a unusual font for the masthead could perfectly work.

 

This font is exactly what I have been looking for to present my masthead. It's very bold and easy to read, it is the same type of font as the NME logo which is very famous and recognisable. I will definitely consider using this font. The name of the font is Old Sans Black. Yes it is basic but I think it could be very effective as a masthead depending on the colour and layers I use on photoshop.

 

 

This font is called Fundamental Brigade. Just like the font above it is bold and readable, it also looks proffessional. I like the style more on this font because the R's are a different shape which makes it look more and it is also thinner in width, which means it look neater in my opinion.

 

Potential Problems with my coursework

Here below is a table of potential problems which I might find when completing parts of my courseowor and how I will deal with them;

My Proposal Form

This is my proposal for my project:

My idea for the brief: I am going to create a music magazine which will be based on the genre of rock and roll, with a sixties/ mod theme. I will promote the theme through costume and also the music which I include in the magazine.

Genre/ sub genre: Magazines such as NME, MOJO and Q include artists that I would feature in my magazine, such as Oasis, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Stone Roses. I was inspired to do this genre because it is what I listen to so I have a lot of knowledge on it and how to present it.

Target audience: My target audience for my magazine is males and females aged 16-25. They will either be students or working full time. They like to be individual in terms of the music they listen to and the clothes they wear and prefer to be kept away from the mainstream pop music. They enjoy going out and socialising, going to gigs and spending their money on clothes

Major conventions I will use a red white and blue colour scheme to reflect the union jack, giving the indication that the magazine is based on the British rock and roll genre. I will also represent the genre through the clothing, hairstyle, make-up and props. The costume will be 60’s styled; beehives, big eye make-up and a retro style mini dress to reflect the era through image. I have also chosen the red, white and blue colour scheme because it is unisex and will attract both men and women to buy the magazine, instead of choosing a colour such as pink which would specifically attract women. I will use props such as CDs and records which will create a vintage feel and will also tie with the music theme.

Conventions I may decide to add more props, or I may change elements of my outfit if I feel as though it does not look right on the model. Totally depending on the way the images look and turn out I may change my colour scheme to match the contrast of the images.

Original images: I will be taking all of my images at Sunderland University in the photo studio, I feel as though these will be really high quality and would be perfect for the magazine I am creating. I will be able to dress and do my models make-up there to resist any weather problems. I am going to the university on Monday the 4th November and will be taking all costume there. Here I will also be able to get before and after shots of the make-up and hair styles.