My Chosen Colour Scheme

At the start i had four colour schemes in mind that i thought would look good for a music magazine. These were as followed:

Black, yellow and green.
Red, white and blue.
Black and white.
Black, red and yellow.

The two that had the top votes were red,white and blue but also black and white. I went on to choose Red, white and blue because i thought it would look best for the music genre i am going to make my magazine. I did this because i was going to make it an RnB magazine and most magazines in this genre are colourful and not dull.

My Preliminary Coursework

This is my preliminary coursework. You can see my front cover and my contents page.

My Preliminary Work Analysis

For my preliminary coursework, we had to create a front page and a contents page for a school magazine. We started off by brainstorming for titles and ideas for stories within the magazine. We then drew sketches of what out front page and contents page could look like. This enabled us to gain ideas of what our magazine could look like and give us ideas for when it come to creating the front page and contents page. The last part of our preparing stage was to go out and take our photos. I went out and took multiple photos of lots of different things that I could put into my preliminary task. I also took a medium close up of one of my classmates to go on my front cover as my main story.
The sketching consisted of drawing two front pages and two contents pages I finished this for homework and then came up with a shot list for my photos. I then went around the school and took many pictures for my preliminary task. All of this gave me ideas of what my coursework would look like. I then uploaded the pictures I took onto Photoshop and started creating my front cover. We created our front cover first and then started creating our contents page.
I had a few problems when creating my preliminary coursework the biggest problem I had was that I wasn’t used to using Photoshop. I didn’t know what the icons meant or how to create my coursework. I overcome this by asking my teacher and he provided me with all the help I needed. Another problem I had was taking my front cover picture. I was taking the picture and the colour of the girls top was clashing with the background colour, this made it hard for me to cut her out using the lasso tool. I had to take this picture again but put my model on a darker background.
Overall, eventhough i had a few problems, i learnt alot and now have a wider understanding of taking photos, using photoshop and understanding music magazines. This was a poor atempt at my preliminary coursework but i understand what i have to do in the future for my main coursework peice.

My Sixth Picture

This photo was take by mistake but actually turned out to be quite effective for me. i intended it to be a double page photo but the image came out too small. This is the picture i am going to use for my front cover but i am going to crop it from her waist upwards. I am doing this because i like the pose and the facial expression of the model. Her necklace is also clearly on show and also her stomach creating my R&B mise-en-scene.

My Fifth Picture

This picture was intended for my double page spread. I believe this is a good picture due to the pose created and the eye contact with the model and the camera. This is one of my chosen pictures i am going to work on when producing my front cover.

My Fourth Picture

This picture was taken to try and create my front cover. I decided against this because the model was not making eye contact with the camera. This is important because with music magazine front covers, the model is always making eye contact. Another reason i didnt use this was because i didnt wat a long shot for my front cover.

My Third Picture

with this picture, my idea was to create the Lily Allen effect again but with a different background. The same clothing is used but this picture came out a tad blury and will not be included in my magazine. But again, i tried to create the sexy pose that you may see people such as Rihanna or Beyonce sreating.

My Second Picture

With this image, i tried to create the effect that Lily Allen createt in the NME magazine. My idea was to have my model on one side with the title accross her. Then the other side would have contained small images and the main body of text. But unfortunately, this come out blury as the camera used had'nt focused properly on the taking of the photo. This is why i have decided not to include this image within my magazine.

My First Picture

This was one of the pictures i have decides to use within my magazine. With this image i tried to create a low angle shot giving my model high authority. I also tried to produce a sexy sort of photo as used in many R & B magazines. I decides to make her wear clothing which matches my colour scheme and hi top trainers. I got this idea from the front cover i analysed with Dizzee Rascal wering the same sort of trainers. I also used the rugged jeans to fit my genre of music.

Audience Demographics

Demographics refer to the charactersitics of the human population and population segements, especially when used to identify consumer markets. Demographics regard socio-economic factors such as age, income, sex, occupation, education, etc. Audience demographics are a very important aspect of media planning in matching the media with the market as industries/companies often define their target market in terms of demographics. For companies, identifying the demographic groups that will be most interested in their product, can mean the difference between success and failure.

My Questionnaire Results

From looking at my poll/questionnaire i have based my magazine design on these answers. The first stage of my design is that its going to be aimed at the female audience as most people were female that took my poll.
My second question was on the age of the public. This came back to me as most people being the age of 16-25. For this reason, i will be aiming my magazine at this audience.
My next question was what is your favorite genre of music. This come back to me as R n B. For this reason, my magazine will be based around an R n B genre. It will be similar to Vibe Magazine.
The fourth question was how do you listen to your music. This come back as most people listen to their music on an mp3 player (ipod). This is why there is going to be a competition to win an ipod on the front cover and the contents page. This also links with the last question as the public said they would be more likely to buy a magazine if it had a competition within it.
My magazine colour scheme will be red, white and blue. This is due to my fifth question being what colour scheme do you think will look best. The public replied to this and let me know that this would be their favourite colour scheme.
I had four titles that i was going to call the magazine but the public have voted that the one they think sounds best is 'chart busters.' This is the reason why my magazine is going to be called this.
My voters also thought that images attracts them most to a music magazine. This is why im putting a large image on my front cover (one that stands out) and several in my contents and double page spread. My magazine will also be priced between £2.01-£3 because this is what most voters didnt mind paying for a music magazine. This will also be released monthly as the poll shows this is when most people buy their music magazines.
The above choices have been made from the results of my questionnaire. I am making these decisions because i beleive it will attract a large percentage of potential buyers.

The Maslow's Hierarchy

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is a psychological theory proposed by Abraham Maslow in 1943. The hierarchy illustrates what humans need in order to survive but also be happy. It develops in stages from basic necessities that are essential to things that complete us as people. these stages are; Psychological, Safety, Love/Belonging, Esteem, Self-Actualization. Using this heiracrchy i will analyse how media products are mareted in order to make the consumer feel like they are essential needs rather than luxurious wants.

This is a double page spread from an NME magazine. Stragight away, we see that the magazine has continued their colour scheme throughout the magazine and onto this double page spread. The design here creates a messy mise-en-scene. we get this feel from the shirt undone and the title made from seperate letters stuck together. i believe that this is promoting the story as Lily Allen is a singer that is always found messing around by the press.
We get one image here and this is of Lily Allen taking up half of the page. this immediately shows us who is the status character is of the story. Lily also has a jokey pose and black hair and make up to fit the colour scheme. The language also fits Lily as its is a title with humour about it and her telling her thoughts.
Overall, this double page spread is very effective. The colour scheme is professional and the mise-en-scene created fits Lily Allen very well.

This double page spread is from metal hammer magazine (a rock magazine). Instantly we get the rock image from the colour scheme of black and white. these are the sterotypical rock colours. But unlike the front page, we have no yellow colour as the front page colour scheme has.
We get a gothic design as we distinguish it by the patters and shapes used within the double page spread. this design also gives out a scary feel to the spread. The image is of a man dressed in dark clothing giving off a suspicious/evil look to the readers giving them direct eye contact. his pose and his hair also give off a rock feeling from the dark clothing and yet again, the evil look.
The words on this cover are used in a way that promotes the rock genre by the fonts and they are placed in a way where no important information is covered. The language has also got the rock/violent feel to it by some of the words being impact and explode.
Overall, this is a good example of a rock magazine spread. the colour, text and images all combine to make a dark and very sterotypical rock story.

This is a double page spread from Q magazine. The colour scheme is the same as the fromt cover (red, white and black). So by the colour scheme, we can tell that they are sticking to the professional look creating this spead in a tidy way. On the left side, we have a big picture with the title over the top. then we get another picture at the bottom of a mans head. The pictures and words fit together in a tidy way also showing the professionalism.
The band that this spread is based on have dark clothing and two of them have long hair. this creates a feeling of rock or a slightly indie form of band.
The words used on this spread are used in an effictive and tidy way. they dont cover and important parts of the magazine and they clearly state their purpose. there is also red text used within black text to section out important parts of information. The language used is also simple and professional. "born to run" is the title of this double page spread, this shows the simplicity of three short words. Overall i believe that this is a good double page spread created by Q magazine. They stick with their colour scheme and make it simple for their audience to understand what is going on.

The colour scheme used on this contents page is black, white and red. It has the same colour scheme as the Q magazine I analyzed. The red used is associated with anger, love and embarrassment. The red used may be linked to Oasis's anger and embarrassment of being thrown off their world tour.

The design used for this contents page has good and bad points. We get good colour contrast as the white stands out on the black banner heading but down the left hand side, the band index looks messy. The images are also fitted on the page well and dont look messy. The professional look of this magazine is due to the company aiming their editions at serious music lovers.

There are three images used on this contents page, two of Oasis and one on a subscription offer of the business. The Oasis pictures clearly show the readers that they are the main story within the magazine. The pictures show them playing music and the story is them being kicked off their world tour. I believe these are good images to use for this story as this is what they wont be doing. Whereas, the subscription image shows what products are on offer giving the reader good information.

The poses and hair styles in the images have something behind them. The poses of the Oasis brothers show that the story is related to their music. This is true as the story is of them is about them being banned from their tour. The poses are of them playing their instruments and singing which they wont be doing at their tour. Their hair styles also show their target audience. Their hair is quite long and the guitar shows they are rock/indie performers.

The words used on this contents page are clear and are in a professional font. It shows that the stories inside are serious and have no joke sense about them. The words used and the bold titles make it easy to figure its the contents page. Some of the text can also be read from a distance as the important parts are in a large font.

Overall i believe this is a good contents page but it can be improved. I think most of the information is clear and easy to understand but the strip on the left hand side is messy and lets the contents page down.

The main colors used on this contents page are black, yellow and white. Due to the black it shows a boyish magazine it also puts across an image of anger. This shows us the target audience they are aiming for are young men in their teens.

     The words and images fit together in a tidy way. This makes it clear for the readers to distinguish what stories go with the designated images. Bold fonts have been used in this contents page and this also suggests anger as it is a rock magazine. 

     There are many images used on this contents page. This shows that there are many inside stories. The images show us tattoos and dark clothing to promote the rock image of the magazine. 

     The poses shown and the hair styles promote the rock image even further due to long hair, with a medium shot of a rock artist performing on stage, this gives an indication once again of what's going to be inside.

     There is a banner heading show on the top with a clear and bold title,  this makes it stand out to readers and to clearly state that it is the contents page. This clear heading makes it easier for readers to identify. The colours of the font make it stand out and attract readers from a distance. All the points i have explained above are all made to attract the rock music target audience.

     The language used on this contents page is short and snappy.  This shows that it is not a serious magazine, and it wants the readers to get straight to the point of what is going to be inside the magazine.  

     The overall impression shown on the contents page of this magazine, indicates the main type of music being rock, with bold fonts and bright colours which stand out to appeal to the target audience all together. This magazine is aimed at young adults who are interested in rock music. The types of readers that are not addressed by this contents page and magazine are young girls or young teenagers who are interested in pop music for example. 

The colors used on this contents page are the same as the front cover. It uses the same black, red and white color scheme which makes it look professional and tidy.

     The words and images are kept to themselves in this contents page. this proves the magazine has a serious design. It also has a serious font within the contents page and throughout the magazine which also shows a positive representation to their target audience (older, more serious people).

     There are two images used in this contents page. There is one of a boy group and one of a male on his own. The image of the band is serious and draws us away from the color scheme due to the green grass. The other image also shows us a purple suit, again taking us away from the color scheme. This technique is used to draw us away from the contents page and towards the images. The band also have a cool pose with long hair representing a trendy band such as (the kooks).

     Two banner headings are used on this contents page with the title of the magazine and the heading appropriate. One banner heading clearly shows that its the contents page, while the other says 'review.' This shows an inside story. The banner heading makes it obvious for readers that they are looking at the contents page.

     The language used on this contents page is very 'up front' and addresses the reader of the main parts straight away. All headings are on a different color background to make words stand out. An example of this is in the top banner heading where contents is written in a white font on a black background. The language used on this contents page is short, in depth but still has enough information on the inside story.

     My overall impression on this contents page is a positive one. It gives a good indication of what is inside and clearly shows that it is an up market magazine with serious wording and images. The younger audience will not be addressed by this due to the language used and the bands featured. 

     

The three main colours used on this front page are red, black and white. By sticking to a few colours, the magazine looks professional and tidy. There are also some bright colours involved which may relate to teenagers. The masthead is in a bold red colour. This magazine creates a positive mood with the vibrant colour.

The design of this magazine consists of one image and lots of writing. The image take up a lot of the page and is of Dizzee Rascal. Whereas, the fonts are bold and stick to the colour scheme of the front page. The clothing of the celebrity also fits with the colours which make the mise-en-scene of the magazine, positive.

The only image used on this magazive is of Dizzee Rascal. It takes up most of the page and he looks crazy. This was the time when he was promoting his single 'Bonkers.' this is why NME may have chose this pose for the front cover. By looking at the image, we understand that the magazine is aimed at teenage boys and men. The reason for this is that Dizzee Rascal is a rapper and mainly boys are into this genre of music.

The pose used in this image is of a black rapper with his arms out wide looking like he is going to give someone a hug. He is wearing jeans, a vest and hi top trainers. this promotes his image as a rapper. He also has short crew cut hairstyle.

The words on the front cover are big and bold. This immediately draws the potential buyers attention to the magazine. The cover lines also provide information towards the reader about what is inside the magazine. Some of the writing is large to stand out, whereas the other bits are smaller and are made so the reader can read them when he/she is up close.

The language used on this front cover is short and simple. It is made this way so the readers can understand about what's inside and get straight into the action. There is few words on the front cover but they fully describe the content of the magazine.

My overall impression of this magazine is a positive one. It gave me a good indication to what would have been inside. It also gave a clear understanding of who its main audience were. The company also used celebrity endorsement to appeal even more to its main audience. The female audience was not particularly reached with this magazine but this is not a matter.

The colors chosen for this front cover gives it an angry attraction for people into the rock genre. There is fire, it is dark and almost looks like a war scene.

     The front cover is designed with bold capital letters that goes with the loud genre of the music. The image is strong which represents anger and the same sort of stuff we would link to this magazine followers.

     The images on this front cover instantly shows that it is a rock magazine. This is done by the use of the electric guitar and the fire. A band is also present with dark clothing, again representing a rock group.

     The pose, hair and make up on this front cover gives us a strong rock mise-en-scene. The hair styles are long and their poses show that they have high authority. 

     The wording on this front cover is used in a weird way. This front cover dose not look like a music magazine. Capital letters are used and these letters are linked with anger and aimed at boys. This lettering also makes the magazine stand out to buyers. 

     There is not mush language used on this magazine front cover. We get a few words of bands that are featured within the magazine and a block of writing across the bottom which says "alice in chains." 

     My overall impression of this front cover is that it is a positive attempt of attracting their male rocker audience. There is a downside to this because they are not appealing to the female audience at all.