Final magazine pages

Final Front Cover

Final Contents page

Final Double Page Spread

Final Music Magazine Evaluation

Final Music Magazine Evaluation

Who is the audience for your media project and how does it attract/address your audience?

Target audience: Music producers, Electronic/Drum & Base music listeners, 16 – 25, male

The demographic of my target audience that I have chosen for my Electro/Drum and Base music magazine is listeners of this type of music, preferably aged 16-25 and male. The ages of my target audience are 16 – 25 as these are statistically the age group that listen to this type of music the most. 

My type of audience are stereotypically seen as young and social party goers that would be interested in upbeat and energetic types of music such as the fast paced rhythm of drum and base music. They could also be seen as of the age where they might have a disposable income and be willing to spend more on entertainment such as music than other demographics.

My magazine has very unique features that I think would appeal to my audience. I am confident in saying this as I am a member of the type of audience that I have chosen for this magazine, this greatly helped me along with looking at other magazines aimed at a similar audience that also focus on this type of music to decide what design my magazine should include.

The colour schemes, graphics and fonts included in the magazine suit the stereotypical mind-set of a person aged 16-25 and according to reviewers of the magazine suit the style of the music very well. The way the articles are written and information displayed also suit the target audience very well taking a slightly informal approach and including colloquial language such as slang to make the reader feel relaxed whilst reading.

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge the forms & conventions of real media products such as other magazines and how they present information?

My music magazine tries to redefine many aspects of what the reader would expect from a music magazine. It does this with the similar looking, yet still separating and different layouts, colours and graphics. In many ways Electro House/ Drum n Base music is usually paired with loud and in your face graphics that try and present the music as energetic and fast as possible. However my magazine takes a more subtle approach making the type of seem classier.

It uses gentle graphics like the blue cosmos space background and the serious and sane looking model that is just enjoying the flow of the music in his pictures instead of acting crazy and jumping about everywhere like it is stereotyped. 

There is also a lot of free space used, I feel this can help the reader by making them feel as though they are not being overwhelmed with information.

A lot of other features of the magazine do resemble other media items such as the placement of text, the word warp on the double page spread, the titles and how the text speaks to the reader often using the slang that is stereotyped for the type of audience in other media products such as “The new artist gives us the lowdown on his experiences”

How does your media product represent social groups?

The magazine is very representative of the stereotypical attitudes of those who would be seen to listen to Electronic/Drum & Base types of music. It takes advantage of the slang and colloquial language often used by this stereotypical listener such as adding ing to the end of words to shorten the sentence “DJ-ing” when asking questions on the double page spread.

The colours and graphics such as the cosmos space like background and dark and purple fading colour scheme described as techno by some observers also suit the stereotypical social group as not so much being energetic but calm, cool and curious like the listeners and producers of this type of music would prefer themselves to be described as.

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

A media institution that distributes magazines would be responsible for the content inside of the magazines that they distribute. They are responsible for marketing and producing the magazines as well, some popular examples of media institutions could include the BBC, Sky, The Bauer Media Group and BBFC

My magazine, Trance is very electric musically orientated magazine for a very specific demographic and not everyone in general like pop music would be for. The Bauer Media Group only has 3 music magazines in its collection, MOJO a pop music magazine, Kerrang!, very popular rock magazine and Q which focuses on rock and roll. There is space within their music magazine collection for a magazine that focuses on electronic styles of music like in Trance. The Bauer media group seem to focus their music magazines towards the young and trendy demographic like with Kerrang and MOJO using very bright colours and focusing on music that is preferred by the younger generation around the age of 14-25.

This also happens to be very similar to the type of demographic that I have chosen for Trance. As a result I think that the Bauer media group would be an excellent media institution to distribute and produce Trance as they seem to specialize in magazines focused on a younger audience and seem to have a gap in their music magazine portfolio for a magazine just like Trance as opposed other institutions such as the BBC which tend to focus on an older demographic and are seen to represent traditional British values, especially in examples such as their magazine titled “Music”. This is aimed at a very high audience basing its design elegance and sophistication.

In the process of constructing this product what have you learned about the technologies employed?

To construct my media magazine I used such programs as Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft word, InDesign and google chrome.  I have learned how to use many new features in these programs as a result of my time with them and have improved in both skill and creativity with the programs since I started the music magazine project.

I have learned many skills when using Photoshop to edit the images that will be implemented in the final design for the magazine. This includes using different methods to select and edit areas.

This is me selecting an area using the Polygon select too to select areas when editing the model pictures. This tool is the best fro accuracy and quality when selecting specific areas.

This method of selection selects large areas of colour instead of inside a polygonal shape like with the polygon tool. This makes it very quick to select large areas.

This method of selection is the last one i used when editing the pictures used in the magazine. It is used to accurately and quickly select borders of objects inside of images using anchor points lite magnets. It is called the magnetic selection tool.

Example of the finished selection

Here i am editing the balance of the colours of the model. I did so to make the model fit in with the rest of the colour scheme used on the front cover design.

This is a comparison between the original design for the music magazine Masthead. I changed the name from Vibe to Trance as i felt that Trance suited my target demographic more and that Vibe was also the name of another successful music magazine that I was not aware of. I changed the design after some experimentation and research and I am happy with the end result. I think it fits in with the design of the magazine and calls out to potential customers clearly letting them know what the magazine is called. The design lacked something so I added spaced out letters in the center to give it some character and make viewers try and come closer to see what they say. 

I have learned the basics with InDesign such as learning how to move objects and images, format and edit text and import external images into the program. I only used InDesign to finish assembling the different images that the magazine consists of which I produced in Photoshop.

I wrote all the text that would go into the magazine in word and copy and pasted it over to InDesign after completion. This helped as word has spell check to tell me if there were any punctuation or spelling errors in my work.

Are there any possible improvements that could be made on the magazine design or the way it delivers information to the reader?’

There are always developments to be made to improve the magazine and make it appeal more towards its audience and convey information more efficiently.  Some important suggestions for improvements have been mentioned in my peer assessment of the magazine.

Some good points brought up could include the fact that on the double page spread the column on the right page is split into three and the text is wrapped around the title in the middle of the page. This according to two of the people that reviewed my magazine made it difficult to navigate the page for useful information and over complicated the layout. I could improve by possibly moving the title to a place that would not wrap so much of the text. I could also decrease the number of columns as that would prevent the text from being so separated.

I would not need to change the font or colours of the text as I feel I am already 

using a very simple and easy fonts and the colour contrasts the background colour making it already easily readable. On the other hand if I move to a 3 column layout this might not be as exciting or dramatic a layout and may appear boring. As this is a magazine for a younger audience I would like to retain the more interesting layout.

The background colours could also be said to be dull and not attention grabbing, livening them up a bit by intensifying colours could make the magazine more eye-catching. However I believe that the colour scheme represents the style of music very well and changing it might pull the magazine away from the target audience. Also the colours I am using for text and imagery are bright, vibrant and contrasting against the dark background.

One last major improvement that could be made to the magazine are the pictures of the model and how he is conveyed through the magazine. On the front page the model is wearing very plain clothes that don’t entice the viewer to make them want to read the magazine. The model is supposed to be “DJ-One Volts” who is a DJ I created especially for this magazine. To improve, better photography using a high resolution picture would enhance the quality of the shot and editing techniques could be used to liven up the model and make him look more attractive. He could also be wearing more interesting clothes or pose in a different more exiting way. The images could be further enhanced in Photoshop or a similar editing software to intensify colour and liven up the overall appearance of the design which would make the magazine more attractive for viewers to buy as they associate the reader with the model on the front.

I am sure that there are many other minor improvements that could be made to the magazine however these are the main three that I have come up with.

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product? 

I feel that I have made many improvements over my last attempt at a magazine. I shall show a comparison between the old school magazine and the new music magazine:

I feel the music magazine looks more visually pleasing as it includes eye catching and detailed graphics when compared to the school magazine which has a very plain and solid style. I understand that they are both aimed at different audiences however I think that Trance does a better job of appealing to its chosen audience thought the graphics, colour scheme, language used such as slang  and the way that the information is laid out.

The Misbourne Messenger displays information In an almost naïve way as the font used is curvy and the colour scheme is very bright. The topics chosen are in my opinion very boring and would not interest me as a student at the misbourne. One thing that the Misbourne Messenger has over trance is it’s the main strapline on the page “Shocking Results” that does a good job of incentivising the viewer to find out what is so shocking and important inside the magazine.

Trance does not show off hugely on its front cover which is a downside, it does include a variety of small yet still enticing straplines to the left and does mention DJ-Voltz, the main artist that the magazine focuses on repeatedly. I intend to rectify this problem and strengthen the font of the sub headlines to make them clear and give them gravity.I have learned many new skills and have honed existing ones in creating the music magazine.

I have discovered many new tools in programs such as in-design and Photoshop such as how to  gradients and how to manipulate images so that they are more visually appealing such as the main model image on the front cover. I have also improved in researching and learning to address the target audience. The research I have done for this magazine includes looking at different types of editorials that focus on the genre of music I am covering and other types of music. I have also been looking at how and what they do to appeal towards their chosen audience.

I have learned to respectively identify what my chosen target audience would like by interviewing those who I feel fit the required categories and asking what they feel the magazine should include or look like.

One last major thing that I have learned is trial and improvement. I originally named the magazine Vibe and had a completely different cover and design. I decided that It needed to be hugely improved upon as it looked  visually weak in my opinion and I was getting a lot of negative feedback on the design, graphics and layout of the old version of the music magazine.

The colours were too bright, the background was a solid colour which left lots of gaps in-between the features of the page, the articled were uninteresting including a featured article about headphones and the main imaged was of poor quality and unrelated to anything within the magazine and not given any reference or explanation. The Masthead was good but I later discovered that there was already a magazine titled vibe so I needed a new name for the magazine. I feel that restarting my design was the best choice as I had the chance of learning from my mistakes instead of improving upon them.

Page Annotations

Front Cover annotations

I am really happy with the final result of the Trance music magazine. The Purple colour scheme makes it fit in with the music type and the mysterious space theme make viewers seem curious and want to find out more. The model for DJ One Voltz is an accurate representation of the type of audience that would listen to this magazine however does not look that good-looking and is wearing quite generic clothes. He could be enhanced on an editing software like Photoshop and the picture could have been taken with better equipment, this would improve the shot and make him look more attractive. The bar code and QR code in the bottom right corner are placed effectively and readers will want to scan the QR code to visit the website of the magazine, which helps promote the magazine and encourages synergy. The Masthead of the magazine is big and clear to read, it almost grabs the reader and pulls them in. The small blue letters spelling out Trance within the masthead give it flavor and prevent it from being boring and white. The purple header bar at the top makes the cover instantly recognizable as a magazine cover and helps give the page character. There are some negatives about the magazine front cover however,  the skylines are small, this makes them difficult to read if the reader is far away from the magazine which decreases their efficiency at persuading viewers to buy the magazine.

Contents Page Annotation

Contents Page Annotation

The contents page tries to continue the same rough design shown on the front cover. The Title of the page is especially effective as it is obvious that it says “contents page” however it is split up into different tiers making it seem unique and make the reader stop and try and decipher it. This makes them involved with the page quickly. The contents are listed out in a very simple design taking up the right column of the page, this is because the information should be easy to read so that the reader can find a page within the magazine that interests them before they lose interest. There is another background picture of space similar to that on the front cover in the bottom left corner. This, like the front cover adds a mysterious feel to the page and makes it fit in with the type of music. I have included some page advertisements such as the DJ One Voltz one. This tries to make the reader visit popular pages that the author thinks that they are most likely to read, making them chose a article that they will find interesting instead of reading one that will lose their interest.

Double Page Spread Annotation

Double Page Spread Annotation

The double page spread uses a similar design to the other two pages, however changes the colours to blue to add some spice in the magazine and make non-constant throughout. I would imagine further pages within the magazine would change the colours and even design slightly to build upon this idea of non-constancy within the magazine. The model integrated with electrifying graphics is “cool” according to some people I interviewed. The only problems with the double page spread is the fact that the text warping around the title in the middle of the page makes it hard to read. Some of the people I interviewed agreed that this was a problem and that it was a but complicated to navigate the columns. One way to solve this without changing the position of the title would be to reduce the amount of columns reducing the amount of gaps between the text.

Magazine Model and Other Photoshoot

Magazine Model and Other Photo-shoot

Here I will showcase all pictures that I took for the music magazine, clone pictures (photos that look identical apart from a small change in time taken) wont be included . I shall explain why the picture was or wasn't included and state time taken.

These shots was a result of my first photo shoot where I called my colleague and fellow student Allister Savin and asked him to be a trial model for my music magazine. The shot was using a low quality camera so the picture resolution is relatively low leading to a pixelated and blurry picture when expanded to the size used on the magazine front cover.

The expression of the model is also not what I imagined and didn't really fit in with the mystic and almost sci-fi sounding electro house music.

(First Photo Shoot - 30/10/2015) 

These shots were a retry of the model on the front page. This time I used a better camera which resulted in a higher resolution picture which I could do more with and looked less pixalated and blurred when expanded or changed shape. Instead of using someone else to take the picture I used the time the timer feature to take pictures of myself as the model. This took a while to take high quality pictures but it resulted in a model that suited the style of music with a t-shirt and blazer.

(Second photo shoot - 10/1/2015) 

These photos included the model playing a keyboard, this creates the illusion that they are playing for the readers of the magazine exclusively and makes the feel more involved with the magazine. I used the flash instead of the yellow tinted room light featured in the other pictures, this created an effective and easy to edit set of pictures picture. I however only used the bottom one in my magazine as it showed the whole model and didn't cut off half way through making the picture easier to display in the magazine.

(Second photo shoot - 10/1/2015) 

These pictures were taken when the room light was on, this made the whole image slightly tinted yellow as a result of the colour of the light. This made them difficult to edit and didn't really go with the black and purple background of the magazine when i cut them out and as a result i didn't use any of these pics. They were also slightly blurred as a result of the camera having trouble focusing in the type of light.

(Second photo shoot - 10/1/2015) 

These pics were taken as filler pictures for the magazine to give some variety in the magazine and avoid from just using pictures of the model (DJ One-Voltz) The close up aspect made for some detailed and interesting pictures that could be used to great effect within the magazine.

(Second photo shoot - 10/1/2015) 

These were pictures of my speakers that I use at home. I thought that they would be a good companion of the electric and base themed music. The yellow tinted back light made them difficult to edit however and the speakers were scratched and as a result ended up in a poor quality image. I avoided using the speakers in the magazine in the end as a result.

(First Photo Shoot - 30/10/2015) 

These pictures of my x12 TurtleBeach headphones were taken alongside my speakers. However they were better quality than the speakers and the pictures were less blurry which ended up in usable images that could be used as some sort of advertisement in my final magazine.

(First Photo Shoot - 30/10/2015) 

Reader/Target Audience Research & Interview

Reader/Target Audience Research & Interview

Name: Bryony

Gender: Girl

Would you buy this magazine if you walked into a shop with the intention of buying a music magazine?

no, the design suits the style of music and impresses the viewer however I feel as though the contents would not be interesting or relevant to what would interest or inform me.

What are your thoughts on the colour scheme of the three pages?

The colour scheme makes it different and mystical, this suits the style of music very well. Purple is a strong and striking base colour and the colour schemes all complement each other as well however they are relatively dull and   would probably not draw my attention when in a shop.

Is the font easy to read?

The font is a bit simple and uninteresting yet easy to read, the masthead smaller lettering is cool and adds flavour to the dull colour of the trance masthead.

Does the layout convey the information efficiently?

The information on the front cover is on one side and isn’t scattered around the page, this makes the information easier to interpret. The contents page lists out the information and makes everything very clear and readable by giving it lots of space. The three columns on the double page spread however can be quite confusing to navigate as they are warped around the central title of the page.

What do you think of the main images on each page?

The main picture on the front page could take up more space and importance on the page instead of trying to share the space with the other information on the page. The images represent the serotype of the type of people who listen to this type of music will act like for example when DJ One Voltz does the rock symbol with his hand in the air.

Name: Tom

Gender: Guy

Would you buy this magazine if you walked into a shop with the intention of buying a music magazine?

Yes, it looks good and makes the viewer assume that the content inside is of good quality and what they would like to read. I would want to read the contents and the visuals of the front page appeal to me. The magazine also tries to draw me in with countdowns and other exiting seeming articles.

What are your thoughts on the colour scheme of the three pages?

The colour schemes suits the type of music that the magazine focuses on, it also gives the magazine a very professional and coordinated look as there is no major change in colour.

Is the font easy to read?

Yes, the font stands out well in contrast with the background and looks easily readable for all age groups. This simplicity could make the font become a little bring but it is what the words say not the style of the font that really matter.

Does the layout convey the information efficiently?

On the double page spread the three columns are a little difficult to read as the text has been warped and split into different sections. I think that this might cause some readers trouble navigating the page for the information they want to read, however the centre title “DJ One -Volts” does improve the look of the page and gives It individuality.

What do you think of the main images on each page?

The colours used on the model suit the colour scheme except the colour of “DJ one-voltz’s” shirt, they also match the stereotypes that you would expect a person who listens to Electronic/Drum & Base music listeners

Name: Will

Gender: Guy

Would you buy this magazine if you walked into a shop with the intention of buying a  music magazine?

No, the front cover is a bit bland and doesn’t tell you much/give you much idea of what is included within the magazine despite its several skylines and advertisements. The purple colours and space theme are mysterious and make the cover look unique if not a little bland.

What are your thoughts on the colour scheme of the three pages?

The Title is a bit dull, the colours fit the subject but they could be a little brighter as it would make the features stand out on the magazine shelf. The magazine front cover won’t pull me in to buy the magazine if I see it.

Is the font easy to read?

Yes- very clear and bold titles and simple fonts, this is expected from a magazine to have easy to read fonts that display information most efficiently.

Does the layout convey the information efficiently?

Yes on all pages aside from the front page which has text that would be too small to read to pull an onlooker in to find out more about the magazine as they won’t be able to read it.

What do you think of the main images on each page?

They are definitely subject related, I think that the model looks good and really represents the type of music that the magazine focuses on in the way he poses, his clothes and the graphics and effects surrounding him. Even if he is not the most attractive looking model.

Skeleton Design Ideas

Skeleton Design Ideas

Front cover skeleton 1

This skeleton was derived from the Vive cover that I have used as a guide. This design is similar to how i imagine my final cover to look like as i have researched into what graphics accompany my specific genre of music and it is very similar to the design and layout used in Vive. It displays the cover lines equally on both sides to adverse the contents for the magazine as clearly as possible to persuade onlookers.

This is my favorite design out of the three cover skeletons I have created. I think that I could use this layout in production with great success and fulfill many basic requirements that  magazine covers should have to create a visually pleasing magazine that supports the type of audience that I am aiming for. I shall use a similar dark/gradient colour scheme like used in the Vive front cover as well as using the placement of the cover lines to pull viewers in.

Front cover skeleton 2

I think this is a quieter and less crowded skeleton when compared to skeleton 1. This could be good when coupled with gentle styles of music such as classical however I think as a result of its order and layout i think it would be better suited for classical than electro house and dnb music. I based the design of the FutureMusic magazine featured below however i feel as though I reduced the amount of noise that there would be on the magazine and simplified the layout somewhat. The bottom right corner there is a tag but unfortunately it got cut from the picture.

Front cover skeleton 3

This design is similar to the front cover skeleton diagram, however there are more article advertisements and skylines on the right hand side.  This would allow viewers to get a larger taste of what would be included within teh magazine and show off a larger range of articles to pull in a larger audience. However this would also clutter up the cover page if not done correctly and could end in a mess of cover lines covering up the main picture of the magazine. This is my second favorite out of all the magazines as i think that my style of music would go well with a little bit of futuristic clutter on the front page.

Contents skeleton 1

I have tried to base this contents skeleton layout on this contents page. I like the minimalistic colour scheme yet gritty design that really shouts out ROCK when I read it which fulfills its purpose as a rock magazine. I feel as though this could be changed to a different genre of music very easily and still be effective which is why I have decided to base this skeleton diagram on this magazine contents design.

The entire right side will be facilitated by an image, most likely of a piece of music equipment like a keyboard. This will take up space and add some character and content to the page making it more than just a load of information on one page. The title will be very plain and easy to identify as there is nothing unusual about the shape, text or formatting. The colours of the page will most likely follow the ones set by the front page, dark, electronic and mystical. I thinks that these colours suit the genre of music (electro & dnb) perfectly.

Contents skeleton 2

The contents skeletons are all very similar but small changes can completely change how the reader reads the page to what they read first to last. This is why i have placed most of the featured articles on the left of the page, this would mean that the reader would see them first over other possibly less interesting articles, reinforcing their attention on the magazine. The list of pages however, is on the top left and should be laid out in a easy to read and clear format clear of any pictures. This should be functional for the reader as they won't get sidetracked whilst reading. The contents page title will be simple yet elegant being an obvious feature of the page, this will promote the contents page and make them stop to read it rather than flicking straight passed it and let the pace suggest popular of enjoyable pages for the reader.

Contents skeleton 3

This contents page design sacrifices article advertisements for a larger more prominent main mage, this in theory should create a larger impact on the viewer making them stop and see what the image is all about rather than flicking through past the contents page. This along with the simple jet elegant title should make the contents page exiting enough to read yet still informative. The contents list of pages is on the top right and would be clear of any article advertisements to make it easy to read and uncluttered.

Double page spread skeleton 1

This double page spread is based off the "interview with Christie Inman-Hall" magazine below. The articles are split in two separated by the main image which will be set across the two pages. This immediately draws the readers attention to the middle of the two pages where the main image will be possibly accompanied by a quote such as in the magazine below. The articles will follow the same subject and be accompanied by pictures to add variety to the article and make them easier to read. The font shall follow the same scheme as the rest of the magazine and shall be easy to read yet stylish. The title however should be unique and big to draw the reader into what the page has to say possibly employing clever wording or puns in the title.

Double page spread skeleton 2

This double page spread includes the main image on the left of the page. This is the first place that readers usually look and will introduce the reader to the topic of the page. The quote at the bottom might, however be to out of the way and  be skipped by readers, i might move it in the final design to draw more attention. The main image quote should say something controversial to motivate readers to go on to read the article. The article will be split up into three columns instead of two. This should make the size of the text look smaller and more manageable to read to readers. The text will wrap around the title which will be in the middle of the right page. 

I based this design of the double page spread "from tags to riches". I felt as though the spacing and colours on this magazine were put to good use but will edit the final design to fit my magazine music genre type.

Double page spread skeleton 3

This magazine splits the main image into two over the two pages. This should make both pages appealing to read but would work better if the articles on each page were covering a different topic for variety in the magazine. However to avoid page cloning the layouts are inverted, making the page look interesting and enticing to readers. The text is at the top of the left page as this is where readers usually start reading however it might be better is the picture was taking the top left position to grab the readers attention when they first flick to the page. The text should follow the design of the rest of the magazine and be clear and stylish, however the title should be unique and intriguing to again pull in the attention of the reader. The columns are split into threes to make the text look more manageable to the readers.