Target audience

 Media target demographic:

I am aiming my music magazine for 16 – 21 year olds. The magazine genre is pop culture and the subgenres will be more targeted at females making teenage girls the target demographic. The class the magazine will be aimed at is working class to middle class so that it is affordable yet of high quality publishing. Therefore, not focused on a niche audience. They can expect the magazine to contain lots of information on the artists at the top of the charts and what songs are making hits internationally. Whilst, including a glimpse into the artist’s thoughts through interviews and updates on what’s going on in the music industry. The target audience should have a wide interest in music and enjoy keeping up with what’s going on.

My target demographic will have values of having a good time whilst looking great on a night out. Sassy without losing class which is similiar to most of the pop idols featured on the music magazine. The readers are likely to have job if they are over the age of 16 so will be able to spend, however they will have less spending power than an adult so the cost of the magazine will be around £3.00 as it is of high production but afforadable.

I will use my sister as the model as she is a young adult who is a similar age to most of the pop idols I am focusing my ideas on. My sister Regana is 19 and will look a certain way to attract a specific target demographic. The way she looks will portray a certain message and this will be relevant to the audience.

Model - For the music magazine I will approach three styles:

The first style will be the European approach where she will wear rich materials that are of vibrant colours. This would be appealing to a European audience, but will not highlight her beauty through her ethnic background. I will use this medium shot for the front cover so it also shows parts of the background.

The next style will be a cooperation of both European and Indian where the model will be wearing European clothing but have luxurious and extravagant Jewellery to highlight her Indian features. By incorporating lots of jewellery and colourful make up it will make her features look more attractive. This can be useful for the contents page as I can use medium close up to showcase her costume.

Finally, the final style will be of the model fully clothed in an Indian outfit where she will wear a full set of jewellery along with a saree which is rich in material. This image of the model would work well for the double page spread as the models outfit can flow out across the page.

By using images of all three styles across the magazine it will attract a larger target audience as more people will aspire to look like one all of the three styles. This would make the magazine for a mass target audience.

Target audience samples:

I have chosen three people to evaluate my music magazine after it is produced. I will make sure that these people do not take media, and therefore will give more if an unbiased opinion.

First I will use my friend Connor who is 17 years old and listens to a range of music including Pop. I will see if the magazine is appealing to him and how it could be improved to intrest a wider target audience.
Next, I will use my cousin who is also within the age of the target demographic. By getting feedback from a female I can see from her evaluation what looks professional and what can be improved. Finally, I will use my friend Jasmin who is 16, and ask her if the model on the front cover is appopriate to the genre, and the model makes her want to inspire to look like her. She is also indian and listens to pop music so she will be the ideal person to evaluate my product as she is interested in similiar magazines.

music magazine front cover

Font research: 

Tools used for fonts:

Below are images and explanations of all the different tools I used within my font research to create an appropriate font.

Stroke - I was able to increase and decrease the weight and style of the strokes by using this tool as the stroke tool controls the stroke of text and boxes. Also, the stroke is the line which outlines each shape. 

Swatches:Swatches tool allows me to pick up colours from the image and replicate them. It uses a colour mixer and creates a range of colours from different shades on a scale. 

Character:

I used the character text box to create different styles as it enabled me to change the font, width, length and positioning, With altered the overall style. 

Colour:

 The colour tool is useful for controlling the fill of a component and the stroke of all text and shapes. The small box in the left hand conner at the bottom with the red line across it, allows you to remove colour from the stroke and fill. 

Sketches:

Final front cover:

Production process:

To create my front cover I used a software called "InDesign". Once I opened up a new A4 document I placed my edited image to fit the guidelines. 

Rule of thirds: 
I then used the rulers on the top and the side of my page to divide my page into thirds. I will use this as a guideline as I will place my components equally within the grid.

After I finished my title research and finalised my design I placed my Title "Wireless" into the document. I then aligned it with my guidelines so it goes across the page equally. 

Once I got my basic layout sorted I started to add in my other components, whilst using my front cover research as guidance.  First I wanted to add some text down the right hand side in one third of the page. I added subheadings which I made bold to stand out more. Then I changed the colour of the font so that it was more visible. I tried to use vibrant colours to match the theme and to compliment the model. 

I used the character text box to adjust the style of the font by the size, height and boldness. I then used the swatches box to change the colour of my font, both the outline and the fill. Also, the stroke box was useful for adjusting the weight of the component to make the words thicker.

Effects added to the components:
Once selecting my component which was my text box I used a drop shadow under the objects tool. I altered the opacity and it allowed a back shadow to come behind my object this made it stand out more from the rest of the page. I mainly used this for my title and 
sub - headings.

Adding circle component:

From my research I found that some magazines like the "Billboard" use shapes and other components to draw the reader's attention across the page. I used the circle to add weight to a certain area and to make it look more visually eye catching to the readers. To create the circle I right clicked  on the square box tool which allowed me to change it to a circle shape. I then added a text box inside the the circle to add "10 top tips" and added weight to the outline of the circle to make it stand out more. 

Adding weight:

I also changed the colour of the text using colour picker:

I then added my other components in, using the rule of thirds:

Bar code:

Production process - Photo shop 

Front cover:

 





















Select:

Adjustments:

Levels:

Colour balance:

Spot healing brush:

Opacity:

Stamp tool:

first music photo shoot

How to light:
There are different angles you can use to get the best out of the lighting. There are three main areas:

Side light:

• Depending on the angle of the light source, part of your subject will be in light and part shadows. It helps to bring out the texture and emphasizes contour, creating a more dimensional photograph. 
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• To produce a dramatic effect on your photos, use photography lighting from the side.
• In order to achieve this type of dramatic impact, pose your subject in front of a window, with one of their shoulders facing the camera.
• You can rotate the subject relative to the window, in order to achieve different intensities of light and shadow on their face.
• The other is to use natural lighting without a flash to produce an overall softened effect.
• Using something like a white reflective surface  will reflect light onto the darkened side of the face and produce an added depth to your photographs.

Back lighting:

Back lighting is the process of illuminating the subject from the back. In other words, the lighting instrument and the viewer face each other, with the subject in between. This creates a glowing effect on the edges of the subject, while other areas are darker.

Front lighting: The shadows cast by frontal light are behind the subject, out of sight from the camera’s point of view. Shadows help to give a sense of shape and form to a subject. This produces a shadow behind the person and is often used to bring out the details but wont show the texture or shape of the subject as much.

Evidence of first photo shoot:

Annotations of the best images:

Music magazine research

Music magazine research:

After looking at various music genres I personally felt that pop was the genre which would suit my model the most. First, I researched into other music magazines and examined how they presented the artist and how the design of the cover related to the target demographic. For classical music the colors were mostly focused on dark colors like black and grey whilst pop was more vibrant using a range of shades. I choose pop cause i found that you can experiment with the styles and manipulate the model to present a certain characteristic. For instance, the readers may aspire to be sexy or dominating like her. 

Example front covers:

Rules of alignment: The title make up the exact top third, in the divide between the second and last thirds is more strong white writing to balance the top and the features are consistently within the rules of thirds, which makes the page well balanced.

Rules of alignment:
In this "Blender" Magazine example Taylor Swift's main body goes down the middle of the page and takes a third of the page. Mostly all the features have remained within alignment to comply with the rule of thirds. By having the text go down  one side of the page the overall display is more organised and there is more space on the page to add information. Next, the letters in the title are evenly spaced out in the top of the page to spread equally across the three thirds of the page. What is interesting about the composition of the model is that her elbow moves into another third of the page which adds weight and moves the reader's attention into what is written. 

Model poses:
Then I looked into some pop artists and how they were photographed and positioned to look more appealing to their target demographic. 




























In depth analysis:

Models – All the models have very individual distinctive looks. The main focus is in the eyes where they give direct eye contact to the camera, which is a mode of direct address. Each model appears to come across as strong and dominating, which is an aspect I want to include in my own product.

Props and backdrop: In the example of “Lorde” issue the background compliments the model’s costume.  There is a gold cloth in the background which is relevant with her rich costume.  In my own product, I will use jewellery as a prop and cultural items like bangles and head pieces to make the image more culture related. In two of the example front covers the backdrop is mostly plain and the colours on the page are rich and are dynamic which is relevant to the pop genre. 

Bar-code: Out of the three examples, only two of the front covers feature a bar-code. This is important but should be displayed at the bottom left hand corner. I will take this into consideration with my own media product.

Fonts: Both the title and the subheadings are different, but use sans - serif font. Both the Billboard examples use one type of font, whereas the Blender example uses two types of fonts. This is useful for highlighting some information to show it's importance, but I will not use more then two types of fonts to match the research.

Titles: The titles are located at the top of the page and are bold to stand out from the rest of the page. In addition to this, the letters in most of the magazine examples are long and rounded and in sans - serif font. In the first example, the "Billboard" text is in white and the colours associated with the brand (usually red, blue and yellow) are shaded in the gaps of the letters "b,o,a,d". However, in "Blender" magazine the font type is similar but the colour fill is blue which works well with the rest of the text on the page, which is mostly black and blue. This stands out clearly from the white backdrop. Next, in the second example of the "Billboard" magazine what I find interesting is not only the title at the top but the name of the artist going across the image of the model. In my own work I will use large, long rounded letters with block fill and unless my picture is strong the writing will cover the image.

Boxes and circles: In the “Billboard” example featuring M.I.A there is use of boxes and circles which are slightly transparent and over the page. They are useful for adding strength to an area where the information needs to be displayed as important. I will use this in my own work for highlighting text such as “10 Top Tips” this way I can include more information in a more visual format, which would be more attractive to the readers. I will consider using a box or circle when I am constructing my magazine if it fits with the rules of design.

Final school contents page

Contents Page:

 

Contents page photoshoot

 Again for the contents page I used the same model for a second photo shoot. Although, this time I changed the location, costume and her aesthetics to show variety within the magazine. I took a large amount of photos 

From this I chose my best photographs but found that these photos would be difficult to use for a contents page as the angle could be better and she is too close to the background making it difficult to edit out at a later stage. 

So I decided to do a second photo shoot which was more similar to the photos taken for the Front cover page. I used the same kind of setting just took the picture from a different angle and made the model hold a book, so that it was more relevant to the school theme. 

.I took this picture because the angle showcases the model well whilst showing her smiling. The Vibrant costume highlights her face well especially with the natural light which reflects in her hair. Although this image isn't edited yet, I think it would work well on the contents page. 

school contents research

When researching other specific contents pages, I analysed the layout, font and composition of the text. From this I could see what made the image stand out and what effectively gave the overall page a profession look. 

Again the title is displayed in bold near the top of the page. Usually it is large but does not grab attention away from the model. Also, on the contents page the title is used effectively to  direct the reader's focus to the next important subject. This can be done by making the words "Contents" move down the page or use arrows/ symbols to point to the next topic. 

Doing specific research is important to have more detailed idea the contents page’s aesthetics. When there is a specific genre, I can see how the magazine presents its most important topics and uses style to organize the layout.

This contents page uses the layout of having three main columns. In my own contents page I will use one main picture like this which will dominate the page whilst the other information surrounds it. 


Amateur Contents page research:

In this contents page the layout is interesting through the composition of the images. The color scheme works well with the title and the page numbers. Although, in my own work I will focus on having one picture which will dominate the page, as it would seem more professional. 

The positioning in this contents page is very professional as there is a lot of information on the page without making it look unorganized. The numbers are placed on the left of the text with the images located on the right. 

This is a useful example as it shows clearly the type of font used. Here, there is only sans - serif font used whilst using no more then two types of fonts, which makes the overall page look more professional.

This contents page uses one image which dominates the page and clearly sticks to one theme. The color scheme is consistent and makes the overall page look more professional.

Although one thing I would change with this is having the model facing the camera so she has eye contact to the audience. 

The layout is interesting in this example as the text all fits neatly into one third of the page and is organised by two sizes and one type of font.

General contents page research

Contents page research:

Before I started my own contents page I researched some professional magazine pages and examined what made them interesting. From this I could see what features I would want to include and avoid in my own work.

I began my contents page research, similar to my front cover research to get a better understanding of the most ideal layout and design. Which will then be useful when focusing on the codes and conventions. By doing research on other magazines I can see what makes them look professional and use this as a guideline in my own piece. 

This contents page is interesting and slightly different to the expected magazine page as it focuses on one picture which dominates the page. The style is very sleek whilst having a professional edge through the gradient background. I am aiming to have my contents page with a similar layout as I find the presentation of the text intriguing as I will also only include a small list of features. Highlighting the most important topics. I like how the design is consistent making the layout appear organized even though there is a lot of empty space the composition of each component makes the page stand out. 

Not only this but I will go for a same kind of approach with the title as it is eye catching and stands out effectively on the page, without taking attention away from the model. Also, the composition of the title is different as it drops down instead of being displayed on one line. 


The colour scheme is fascinating as the use of only three colours (black, grey and white) make the layout appear more organised and contrast well with the colour on the protagonist. 

Another contents page I looked at was from the Vogue magazine in which the model did not dominate the whole page but was still presented on the page successfully. 


Here the title is more dominant through the size and the boldness of the font. Although red is used to highlight the important headings and grey is used on the background of the model again contrasting her outfit. By this organised layout of the text down the side of the page the display is more professional. 

In both contents pages there is no more then two types of fonts. This I will cooperate into my own work whilst using mostly sans serif font to represent a more specialised page. 

Also, I will make the more important topics significant by making it larger in size or changing the colour of the font to catch the readers attention.