My genre for my
magazine is rock, which I know quite a bit about and many people I know also
like this genre. So using my knowledge on rock music I generated content that
rock fans would want to see on the magazine. For my magazine I used quite bold
colours like red, black and white as these colours are usually linked to rock
music and are considered loud and expressive colours. By using these colours I
was able to attract the attention of my audience with the choice of my colours
scheme as rock fans usually look for these colours when looking for a rock
magazine. Furthermore I added free content in my magazine like posters that
would come with the magazine when brought and would be exclusive to only my
magazine. This would interest any fans that are interest in the free gift that
comes with the magazine, which may be from a certain artist or band, and would
also peak any fans like that to collect merchandise. I put examples of the
posters that were coming with the magazine on the front cover so readers can
see the artists on the posters and whether they like it or not. This can also
excite certain fans from seeing they favourite artists on the free posters and
can make them buy the magazine on impulse. Fans of rock also like to buy things
that fit in with the aesthetic of rock music. Therefore I made sure to make my
front cover fit into the theme by using a picture of my cover star with a grey
background on the front cover. In the photo I used low key lighting to create
shadows so it looks dark and mysterious, which is what fans look for. By making
my magazine fit into the aesthetics of rock fans will think that my magazine is
genuinely knowledgeable about rock music. I mentioned many artist’s and band’s
names in the cover lines on my front cover so that fans or these artists can
quickly identify whether the magazine has artists they like featured in the
magazine without having to pick it up and flip through the pages of the
magazine. I also added a puff on the front cover of my magazine featuring tour
dates, to advertise the artist and to catch the attention of the audience, to
attract readers who may be interested in the artist.
On my contents page
I added numerous pictures of different artists featured in my magazine so the
readers can get excited about seeing their artists featured I the magazine and
want to buy the magazine. For the photos of my contents page I used photos that
are quite abstract and dark to represent the genre of my magazine. I separated
the contents into different sections so that reader can easily navigate through
the magazine and so they can see the content that is in the magazine and see
whether they’re interest in it or not. I stuck to the same colour scheme and
fonts so that it was consistent throughout the magazine and didn’t look too
messy , which can often put the reader off as they may find it hard to read or
difficult to navigate, as there is too much happening on each page.
For my DPS I used a large image of the artist featured
on both pages to make it stand out so the reader can definitely recognise the
artist and know the article is about them. Furthermore I used consistent text
and colours on this page so there wouldn’t be too many colours clashing as the
photo already has quite a few colours. I also used a pull quote on my DPS so
the reader can read it and become interested in the rest of the article. I made
the article slightly casual so that it wasn’t all questions about the artist’s
music, which makes it more interesting for the user to read as it is not a
formal interview but an informal one like they’re reading a fun conversation. I
also included an introduction to the artist so that reader’s that may not be a
current fan of the artists may become interested in them.
Question 6:
From making my magazine I have learnt how to use
various software and technology. I have been able to take pictures in a
photography studio and learn how to set up lights and adjust them to my liking
to create the effect I want in the photo I take. I learnt that there were 3
types of lights used, also known as 3 point lighting. These lights were the
key/main light, the fill light and the back light. Furthermore there were soft
boxes, which helps diffuse the light to soften the lighting. There were also different
flash settings that you could adjust to control how much light you want in your
photographs, as my magazine was based on rock I didn’t want too much light in
my photos. Therefore I used low-key lighting in my shots to create a mysterious
and dramatic atmosphere in my photos. Furthermore I have learnt how to use the
DLSR camera and the different modes there are on the camera so I can take a
picture to my liking. I was shown how to change the shutter speed on the camera
so I could take continuous pictures if I wanted to capture movement, or for
example my DPS picture where I took the picture of the model throwing the
jacket mid-air. I have been able to use professional software, like Adobe
Photoshop, InDesign, and Illustrator to help create my magazine. Through these
programs I have been able to design my own fonts and make the front cover, and
DPS of my magazine using these programs. I used Illustrator to help design my
own fonts for my magazine. I wanted to create a rough brush effect for my
masthead, and through the use of Illustrator I was able to produce this result
by selecting a brush effect stroke for my text. I was also able to change the
letter spacing to how I wanted it to look so the letters did not look too close
or far apart from each other. I made two copies of the text and placed one copy
behind the first piece of text to give it some depth so it looks more
three-dimensional and stands out more. I used Photoshop to create my front
cover and my contents page. I used multiple layers for the different elements
on my magazine. To make the masthead look like it is behind the model I put the
layer in front of the picture of the model and erased the part that went over
her head. I used the brush tool and selected a brush with texture and drew
rough lines for the background of my cover lines. I used the shape tool to
create the skyline and the puff on the magazine. I selected the puff and added
a strokes to it to make it stand out more. For my contents page I used the
shape tool to draw out a background for my contents. I also gave one of the
photos a stroke to make it stand out more. I made my double page spread on InDesign.
I learnt how to use guidelines to make my layout more organised and neater. I
found out how to do a drop cap and separating my text into columns, using the
text options available on InDesign. InDesign and Photoshop were quite similar
so I was able to use the skills I learnt from Photoshop on InDesign too.
I have also learnt how to use Blogger to keep track of
my progress. As I used different platforms to upload my work I also learnt how
to embed them onto my blog, using HTML, so they can stay in whatever format I
made them in, but still appear on my blog. With the use of blogger I was able
to keep track of my progress and retrace my steps if I ever forgot about
something. I would type up what I wanted on word before I pasted it on to
blogger so I would not any grammatical or spelling mistakes.
Question 7:
For my front cover instead of placing the skyline on the
bottom, like I did for my preliminary, I placed the skyline at the top. I did
this as I realised when magazines are displayed you can only see the top part
of the magazine half the time. So even if my magazine gets placed behind others
people can still see my magazine and the content inside my magazine from the
skyline. Not only can you see pictures on my skyline but also the content
inside the magazine, which may interest in anyone looking for rock magazines. I
used a puff in both of my magazines, however in the preliminary task it did not
stand out and the test inside was quite plan and too close to the edge of the
puff. However in my music magazine I used two outlines on my puff to help make
it stand out. I also made the text inside the puff a lot more interesting and
centred it properly. Before in the preliminary task the masthead was placed to
the left of the model and looked quite plain as it used the same font as the
cover lines. I also placed the date in-between the box that was surrounding the
masthead and this made it look unprofessional as it looked out of place. In my
music magazine I placed the magazine behind the model, as I wanted the model to
be the centre of attention. However I placed it on top of the examples of the
posters as I still wanted the name of my magazine to stand out and not be
completely hidden. Instead of using a default text font I customised and made
my masthead on Illustrator so that it would stand out more and wouldn’t look
like another cover line and be hidden amongst them. I learnt more about the
placement of the cover star and instead of using a photo with the model
standing at the side I used a photo with the model centred instead. From here I
placed cover lines, puffs and other elements around the cover star making the
cover star the centre of attention. I did this so that when you pick up my
magazine the main focus will be on the cover star, which is one of the reason
most people buy magazines, as people like to buy magazines that feature artists
they like. I realised that some of the cover lines in my preliminary task were
quite hidden and blended into the background of the photo. So for I chose a
colour scheme that contrasted with the photo I was using, furthermore I used
the brush tool and drew a few brush strokes and placed this behind the cover
lines to make them stand out more and bring more attention to them. For my
preliminary task I included a main cover line, however I did not include an
anchor for my front cover, so this time I included an anchor to use so the
reader could relate the text with the image that I use for my front cover.
For my contents page I made a similar font to my masthead
for my contents titles to make it stand out from the rest of the text on my
contents. Similar to my preliminary task I placed all my contents inside a box
for it looks more organised and is easy to see where all the contents of my
magazine is. However instead of placing the box on the whole half of the pages
I placed it partially to the right side of the page and used a full sized image
for the background of the page. I also added other images of artists included
in my magazine so the reader can clearly see and located which artists are
featured in this magazine. Although I captioned the imaged I used in my
preliminary task I did not add a page number so they could locate certain
articles in my magazine. So for my music magazine I added a paged number to the
caption in another colour to highlight which page the article the picture was
featured on so it makes it easier for the reader to navigate through the
magazine. For the images I used on the contents page in my preliminary task I
used pictures where the model was facing away from the camera, but for my music
magazine I took pictures where the artists was looking at the camera/reader so
the reader could feel more connected with the magazine and artist. The pictures
placed on my preliminary task looked like they were placed quite randomly and
did not stand out, it made my magazine look messy. Therefore for my music
magazine I used a stroke to highlight my images to make them look neater I also
spaced them from other images so it did not look too close and messy. Unlike my
preliminary magazine, which just listed the entire contents of my magazine, I
separated my contents into different sections on my music magazine to make it
easier for the reader to navigate. I also included social media logos on my
music magazine to let the reader know how to stay connected with the magazine
and feel more connected to the magazine.
For my DPS I decided to stick with the same colour scheme I
used for my front cover and contents to make my magazine more consistent. From
my front cover and contents page I decided to use the same fonts so it would
look more professional and wouldn’t make my magazine look too messy with
multiple fonts. I added a pull quote to my DPS to attract the attention of
reader’s so they can have an insight on part of the article to capture their
attention. I included an introduction to the artist in my article so that
anyone that does not know the artists can discover more about them and maybe
become a fan of them. I also included an outro to promote the artist’s new
album to let any fans know about it and remind them that it is available for
sale. I have learnt different ways to write an article and seeing as my target
audience is mainly teenagers I wrote my article in a casual format so it is not
too formal and serious, therefore teenagers won’t get bored of reading it. I also
included the logo of m magazine at the bottom of the page to highlight the fact
that this article was exclusive to my magazine. Originally I wanted to use two
different pictures on each page as the background, however I discovered that
this made my magazine tacky and unprofessional so I opted for a landscape
picture for both pages. I was able to learn more about photography and have
access to a photography studio so I could take better quality and professional
pictures. Unlike my preliminary task, the photos I used for my music magazine
were much better quality and made my magazine look more professional and
refined.
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