Ideas for Music Magazine

After much deliberation and evaluating , I have made decisions on my magazine. Many of the magazines I have looked at and evaluated are very one-dimensional and only focus a one or two genres. So my front cover will be based around several musical genre’s, but genre’s which only interest me. Each magazine I have looked at (NME, Hip-Hop and ‘Q’) all have quirky, but short names. This will be the same for my magazine. I have decided to have the abbreivated title in the cntre of the page with the actual heading underneath and smaller: basically as a sub-heading. Its one which will appeal to people primarily above the of 16. I also decided that my cover will feature just one person filling the whole page, with the headings, sub-headings, bar code and other things being placed on top of it. Hmmmm thats it at the moment.

Second Music Magazine Front Cover Analysis

The blunt use of a well-known hip-hop star immediately makes the magazine stand out. The use of bold titles (like the one in the middle of the page) blends well with the background and makes it stand out. The title is big and stands out, despite some it being covered by the ‘star’.

The use of several hip-hop stars scaling down the right hand side of the page makes the magazine far more appealing as it mentions some of the biggest and well-respected music artists in the world. The use of ‘a free gift card’ at the top of the page gives the reader an incentive to buy the magazine as they could well be lucky and win £20 and spend it on some ‘classic downloads’.

The logo saying ‘20^th anniversary’ makes it look quite official and like a badge connoting importance, which usually a 20^th anniversary of a magazine is. The use of the barcode denotes that the magazine will be sold at a price and not given away freely.

The magazine use a variety of different colours making each individual convention stand out and be read easier. With all the famous names on the magazine cover people will want to buy it and read it as everyone is interested in what talented people are doing.

Music Magazine Front Cover Evaluation

The magazine uses the logo to distinguish itself amongst other magazines, as well as an iconic and memorable logo.  Each different part of the magazine like the sub-headings, heading and pictures are cleverly disguised and separate to create a well-balanced and easily eye-catching cover.

The use of the picture creates a striking image of two people. If people were interested and knew the faces, the likelihood would be that they would pick it up. The use of the barcode denotes that the magazine will have a price. The different use of colours from black to red, clearly show each heading etc and makes reading the front cover easier.

The use of the quote gives the reader an insight into what the article will say. The use of the circled banner also highlights that section and can be easily seen. The use of text on the ‘black circled banner’ also uses the word shock which suggests something unordinary is happening in the music world.

The use of ’studio news’ exixted the audience as it shows the readers which artists are creating a new album or single for example. Readers will want to read this section to confirm dates for the new album and when their new material will be ready for release.

Final Contents Page

The previous post showed my contents page half done. After completing the contents page I have done the following things; added a picture (cropped slightly), added several texts to the contents and also small black rectangle to highlight the offer which I have created for the magazine.

Update on Contents Page

Using the NME contents page I have evaluated as a template, it’s not going to bad!

Analysis of NME Contents Page

Contents Page

The use of the ‘NME’ logo in big bold red text gives it a center piece in the page. The gives the reader constant reminders of the company leading the magazine and the resource to research the company on the internet,

  The font, colours and house style are all the same type which gives the magazine a bold, but effective way of presenting their pieces. The layout is also very similar which gives the magazine structure and the reader’s a clear understanding of where to find what article or piece.

  The use of sub-headings puts each piece of content into easier and clearer categories, making the magazine make sense and clearer. The images used on the contents page feature two big stars making the magazine an even greater prospect as the audience will feel more engaged and want to read the magazine more with music bands like Oasis on the contents.

  The audience targeted for this magazine is very clear and obviously doesn’t relate to social groups who like gardening or ‘UK garage’ for example. It has specifically targeted people who enjoy rock and indie music through the use of an Oasis member and features on bands, such as, Arctic Monkeys.

  The basic magazine structure consists of a ‘taster article’ on the contents page giving prospective buyers an insight into the content on the magazine. The pronounced use of ‘subscribe today’ is a sly way of persuading and easily showing people how you can get the magazine on a regular occasion. The sub-headings are clear and precise and show you very easily where you can access that content in the magazine. The band index gives the reader and precise showing of what bands will be in the magazine. This may give the readers more purpose to buy the magazine as maybe there could be a feature on their favourite band.

The Timeline for Designs before Christmas Holidays

WEEK BEGINNING	Year 12
07/09	Introduction to Media Studies and the course
14/09	Establishing techniques and expectations for blogs.Introduction to key media concepts and first steps with software etc
21/09	Software training and practice.Students to practise writing analysis of magazine covers (of whatever genre)Detailed preparation for school magazine project.
28/09	Students establish clear sense of target audience for their school magazine and consider (as much as is possible) institutional issues (how will it be distributed/marketed etc). Discussion of these points to be developed on the blog.
05/10	Students establish clear sense of target audience for their school magazine and consider (as much as is possible) institutional issues (how will it be distributed/marketed etc). Discussion of these points to be developed on the blog.BLOG CHECK to establish whether students are making appropriate use of technology etc.
12/10	Students to focus on design work.1. Taking photos and writing commentary on them.2. Sketching ideas and writing commentary. 3. Manipulating images in Photoshop.
19/10	Completing work on designs.BLOG CHECK to assess quality of planning and research for School Magazine.
02/11	SCHOOL MAGAZINE 1 DESIGNS COMPLETEStudents to work on presentation of the school magazine and all research/planning evaluation on blog.
09/11	BLOG CHECK to assess evaluation of School Magazine.Students to work on second School Magazine for a different audience.
16/11	SCHOOL MAGAZINE 2 DESIGNS COMPLETE
23/11	Research existing music magazines and different audience sectors etc. Reflect on this on blog. Establish target audience for Music Magazine 1. Complete some audience research.
30/11	Work on designs for Music Magazine 1
07/12	Work on designs for Music Magazine 1 and evaluation/commentary
14/12	DESIGNS COMPLETE AND PUBLISHED ON BLOGMUSIC MAGAZINE 1BLOG CHECK to cover evaluation of Music Magazine 1

Evaluation of Second Magazine Design!

Evaluation of Second Design

  The second magazine cover I have produced is a much better and thorough design. It uses several conventions of the Media art. I have used several images to make the magazine cover recognisable and easy for the viewers to relate to when reading and when discussing with other people. The use of columned sub-headings also gives the reader a brief, but welcoming snippet on the content of the magazine. The heading is snappy and I have used the school name to slyly give people who may pick the magazine up from a student, an insight and advertisement for the school.

  The magazine cover I have chosen to design features conventions which teenagers and young adults would find appealing. I have almost used slang and abbreviated sentences which wouldn’t use be shortened in a book or upper-class magazine. The use of student photographs emphasises the ‘teenage’ look of the magazine.

  The ‘print’ institution would be the prime distributors of my magazine because as shown by the front cover, its almost ‘cartoon-like’ in its approach to images and text, so distributing it through print would show of the visual effects particular well, compared to the ‘broadcast’ institution for example.

  Due to its teenage twang and basic texts, the magazine would target the people at school, particularly the younger students who are interested to know about the school and to keep gaining knowledge that the older students already know. This magazine would compete with your ‘chatty’ and ‘informal’ magazines because of its basic layout and creative principle.

  The audience which I have chosen to chase (teens) usually like magazines which are chatty and involve lots of gossip whether it ranges from Nuts to Hello or Match. This is how the majority of teens in our society pick up and understand the world around us. The magazine uses informal undertones through the ‘sub-headings’ to the use of students enjoying school life. The magazine would be distributed with a free price to all students at the school, however in making money for production costs the magazine would charge parents, as the magazine would produce lower sales for that category and less interest.

  As I created the second magazine, I have moved on in my development of using a variety of technologies ranging from cameras to Photoshop. As I manipulated different components of magazine, I gained more knowledge of the different tools Photoshop offers: especially the ‘text’ button.

  I have felt much more comfortable making the second magazine, than the 1^st. I felt the 1^st limited my creativity in the sense that the magazine I chose to copy was very bland and particularly boring. I created something completely different and had a free reign to make a magazine that would stand out and become a ‘student-friendly’ cover.

2nd Magazine Design: Finished!

My Second and Final school magazine cover!!!

Update on my Second School Magazine

Not to bad for an hour’s lesson. Ive cropped the logo around the edges to wipe away the green layer around it. However I still have to insert a cover picture and a variety of other things!!!