AS Media Studies.

Evaluation of my music magazine.

2010-03-25T11:12:00.001-07:00

This is an evaluation of my music magazine. Before I created my music magazine I had to complete a preliminary task which was to create a college magazine using DTP (desktop publisher) and Photoshop. A medium close up shot was compulsory for the college magazine as was a masthead accompanied by text about the magazine. After I had completed my college magazine I was then given a new task which was to create a music magazine front cover, contents page and double page spread. The product had to come from my own ideas as original images and text had to be original. Using the skills I had achieved from completing my college magazine I began to produce my music magazine.

However, before starting my music magazine I had to research some music magazine such as Kerrang, Q and Smash hits. Whilst researching music magazines, I began to post front covers, contents pages and double page spreads throughout my blog and detonated them in order to discover the conventions of these parts of music magazines. When I had completed all my research I began to use the ideas collected from detonating music magazine and use them in my own magazine.

For my front cover I chose to use a large masthead which is compulsory in all magazines as the masthead states to the reader what the magazine is called. In some cases the magazines masthead refers to something within the music industry. For example my music magazine is called 'Backstage'. The reason I chose to call my music magazine Backstage was because it refers to the music industry and offers a "backstage" pass into the lives of modern day music artists. As all mastheads are placed in the top section of the front cover of music magazines, I decided not to break that convention and placed my masthead above my main image. When creating my masthead I replaced the 'A's in the word backstage and replaced them with stereos as the stereos refer to the music industry. Features like this are not common within music magazines however I decided to use this feature as it is different and edgy. I chose to have my logo within my name of my magazine. I transformed my A's in Backstage into stereos as they are iconography of music. My masthead is large and bold which is eye catching which all mastheads on front covers are in order to grab the readers attention and inform them about the magazine. I decided to have the masthead the biggest text on the front cover as the masthead needs to stand out in order to grab the readers attention. Having a large, bold masthead is another convention of music magazines. Whilst researching music magazines I also discovered that most of them included tag lines such as Q magazine. Q magazines tag line is "A different take on music". However, some magazines do not use taglines. I decided not to use a tag line on my front cover as the tagline offers added information towards to music magazine which I believe my does not need as 'Backstage' is straight to the point of the magazine, offering a backstage pass to fans of rock/metal music.

My music magazine headline refers to my main image, Tom Kay. The headline of my music magazine is "An exclusive interview with Tom Kay". Besides from the masthead, the headline is the dominant text on front covers are they are the main focus of the magazine. All music magazine headlines refer to the main image featured on the front cover, as does mine, which is a convention of music magazines. I used a website called dafont.com in order to change my writing into different styles. I used this website to edit my main story text, 'An exclusive interview with Tom Kay'. I chose to do this to make the text look different and edgy.

Another convention of music magazines I discovered was the use of a main image used on the front cover. The main image usually links with the headline featured on the front cover. My main image is a medium shot of Tom Kay with his Ibanez Jem guitar. Most main images used on music magazine front covers include the subject facing the front of the magazine to make it look as if the musician/band are looking out to the reader which makes them feel engaged. However, I chose to have Tom pose as if he's playing his guitar with him looking down at it in order to give the impression that he is concentrating on playing which makes him seem professional to the reader. I also used a fan in order to spread out his hair so that the image doesn't seem ordinary or boring. The use of the fan machine was intended to spread Tom's hair out which makes the main image of him seem like it is taking up most of the front cover, which traditional music magazine main images do. However, when taking the photo which would later be my main image, the background to the photo was blue as I took the photo in the blue room of the facilities provided for me during the time given to us to create my music magazine. Blue is not a convention of rock/metal music. All rock/metal music magazines I researched had red or black colours within them. After learning this, I used Photoshop in order to delete the background to my photo. Instead of leaving my background white, I created a gradient red and black page on Photoshop which I then inserted onto desktop publisher, stretched it out to fit the A4 page and made it my background to my magazine. I chose to use the colours red and black because they are a convention of the rock/metal genre.

All music magazines also contain sub-headings or cover lines which inform the reader what is included within the magazine. Traditional music magazines have their cover lines one side of the splash, however, some have the cover lines either side. I chose to have my cover lines on the left side of the splash so that they do not cross over onto my main image. My cover stories include "upcoming tours 2009, hottest albums 2008, free poster and top 10 bands of 2008". All of these cover stories refer to the music industry and similar stories are usually featured within a music magazine. In order to add more writing on my front cover and make it stand out I decided to use an flag image from clipboard on desktop publisher, filled it in black and wrote my sub-stories featured within the magazine in red and placed them on the flag image in order to make it stand out on the magazine, once again using the rock/metal convention colours of red and black.

My music magazine also contained a price, barcode and a dateline. I placed my date along the left side of my splash so that it is not interfering with my cover stories on the right hand side of my splash. There was an empty space in the right corner of my front cover. In order to fill this blank space I later placed the price for my music magazine there which is £3.50. Most magazines I researched on Google and in shops had many ranges of prices. I chose to have the price of my music magazine as £3.50 as it is not too expensive to put readers off buying the magazine but it also is not cheap to buy as my music magazine offers free give-aways such as posters. The music magazines I researched at home and on the internet were usually around £3. This would effect the audience in a positive way as the magazine isn’t too expensive for my target age group to buy.

After creating my front cover I began to create my contents page. Whilst researching front covers I also began to research contents pages. When researching contents pages I found out they also contain a masthead as does the front cover. When creating my masthead I used dafont.com in order to create the text to make it seem different and edgy instead of just typing the text using font from publisher. I made the text bold and black as black is a convention of rock/metal genre which is the genre my magazine represents. I decided to use a bold text in order to make the word ‘contents’ eye catching and clearly visible to the reader. After completing the masthead for my contents page I decided to create a banner for the text in order to make it stand out more. I did this by creating an A4 page on Photoshop, using the paint can tool to make the background red, save it, then uploaded it onto desktop publisher. I then shrank the background down so it would fit the top of the contents page and then placed the masthead above it. The use of the red banner underneath the masthead makes the masthead stand out more.

Another convention of music magazine contents pages I followed was splitting the articles featured within the music magazine into two sections: ‘Features’ and ‘Regulars’. Dividing the two sections enables to reader to clearly see what are the new features in that particular edition of the magazine and which and the regular features within the magazine. When adding text onto my contents page, I thought about what colour scheme I would use. I chose to keep the colours red and black and them colours are a convention of rock/metal music which is the genre my music magazine is based on. When researching contents pages, I found that most contents pages had the page numbers in bold and in a larger font than the text. I decided not to break this convention and made the page numbers on my contents page in a larger font, in bold and in red which helps grab the readers attention and makes them easy to see.

I also decided to add images to my contents page as all the contents pages I researched included images. I chose to have one image of Tom Kay which I later decided would be the poster featured within the magazine. In order to create the posters I had to upload an image onto Photoshop. I then used the rubber tool in order to get rid of the blue background.

After erasing the background I copied and pasted the Tom's name from dafont.com. The font I used was called 'angelic war'. I then saved the images as JPEG's in order to insert them onto my contents page on Microsoft publisher. The two other images I decided to use on my contents page were two pictures of guitars. I decided to use these pictures in order to fill up more space on my contents page. The images of the guitars also help the reader to relate to the type of music featured in backstage as the guitar is iconographic of rock music.

After finishing my contents page I began work on my double page spread. Double page spreads are based traditionally on the main article of the music magazine. When researching double page spreads I found out that there is a wide range of different types of double page spreads. Some double page spreads contain questions and answers in which an interviewer will ask questions to a musician/band and the musician/band will answer. These questions will relate to the topic that the main article is about e.g. new album. However, some main articles I researched only contained a masthead, main image and some text offering information about what the main article is about which would then lead onto another page which would then go on to give the reader information about the main article. I decided not to break these conventions and instead of using the question and answer double page spread, I decided to create a small article offering information about the main article which would then lead onto another article further on in the magazine about the main headline. I decided to have my masthead as ‘Best of British’. This refers to Tom Kay, one of Britain’s best upcoming stars. I used black text from dafont in order to create my masthead as I believe that it links well to what my article is about. I believe the font I used for my masthead gives the headline an edgy look which is important for magazines. I also followed the convention of double page spreads by adding an image of Tom Kay onto the double page spread. When adding my image onto my double page spread I decided to edit an image into the photo of Tom Kay. The image I chose was of a British flag. I uploaded the image of Tom Kay onto photo shop, made the image transparent and then placed the image of the British flag within the image. The use of the British flag within the image of Tom Kay helps link the image to the headline ‘Best of British’ and what the main article is based on, Tom Kay’s success in the music industry and his potential to be on of Britain’s brightest stars.

I believe that the audience for my music magazine would be predominantly males aged between 15 and 30. I believe this is a suitable target audience for my music magazine as my magazine is based on rock and metal music which a lot of teens and young adults listen to.

I have asked a student from Wyke college, Charlie Stathers, to evaluate my work and give his opinion on my music magazine.

“I really like the way he has presented his front cover because it shows a lot of colour which shows the audience that its not boring and dull. If I had to change anything about this I would make the bottom text a bit bigger on the front cover.”

“I like his contents page because it gives important information and the picture of the musician goes well with the guitars. The only thing I’d change about would be that it look a bit too plain and changes I’d make would include more colour.”

“Adam shows on the double page spread good Photoshop skills on the picture of Tom also he has placed the bold text in a very interesting positions”.

“I would buy this magazine because its very appealing towards me and I find it interesting to look at and also it makes me want to find out more about what’s inside.”

The language I used when making my preliminary task included simple language in order to make the text on the magazine easy to read and understand. A music magazine intended for young adults and late teens wouldn’t include complicated language as it may put the target audience off the magazine as it may be too complicated to read.

The aim behind my music magazine is to represent metal and rock music. I have done this by following the conventions behind the rock/metal music magazines I have researched prior to starting my preliminary task.

When creating my music magazine, I used all the skills I gained from when I created my college magazine. These skills including using Photoshop, using http://www.dafont.com/ and using Desktop publisher.

Looking back at my preliminary task, I feel that I have achieved a better understand of how magazines are created, a better understanding of how to use Photoshop and how to use my own skills in order to create a magazine. In order to sharpen up my skills on Photoshop, I would use more of my free time to practise using all the tools on it. I would of also have experimented more with text. Instead of just using http://www.dafont.com/ if I had chance to redo my preliminary task I would of experimented more with my text fonts.

Finished Music magazine.

2010-03-25T03:31:00.000-07:00

Tom Kay posters.

2010-03-22T02:22:00.000-07:00

Here are three posters I have made in order to put on my contents page. In order to create these posters I uploaded an image onto photoshop. I then used the rubber tool in order to get rid of the blue background.

After erasing the background I copied and pasted the Tom's name from http://www.dafont.com/. The font I used 'angelic war'. I then saved the images as JPEG's in order to insert them onto my contents page on Microsoft publisher.

Tom Kay article.

2010-03-17T04:20:00.000-07:00

" I got into playing guitar through my dad. It just came naturally to me he showed me the basic chords i got a few lessons with various guitar teachers after that and then started to pick things up by ear and listening to bands and other guitarists.

When i first started I listened to bands like uriah heep, ozzy osbourne and steve vai. Nowadays i listen to a wide range of music and I am heavily into my prog rock/metal bands such as steve vai, dream theater, karnivool, tool, a perfect circle and porcupine tree.

I started singing about 5 years ago because I wanted to be able to write and sing my own songs because singers are hard to come by and now I wouldn't be able to live without singing.

I have played many venues small and large such as beverley folk festival, hull city hall, the blues bar in harrogate and tons more.

I have a prog rock band called introspective and we are currently writing for a cd and are planning to play lots of shows in the summer and I am currently doing a small run of solo shows completely on my own. "

Music magazine double page spread drafts. Hand drawn & ICT drawn.

2010-03-16T13:48:00.001-07:00

Music magazine contents page drafts. Hand drawn & ICT drawn.

2010-03-16T13:42:00.000-07:00

Music magazine front cover drafts. Hand drawn & ICT drawn.

2010-03-16T13:19:00.000-07:00

Beginning the contents page for my music magazine.

2010-03-15T07:48:00.000-07:00

Beginning the double page spread for my music magazine.

2010-03-15T07:40:00.001-07:00

Mind maps.

2010-03-15T02:21:00.000-07:00

Two page spread mock up.

2010-01-12T02:12:00.000-08:00

This is a draft for the two page spread I will be making using microsoft publisher. My two page spread layout will be based on research I have conducted whilst looking at other music magazine two page spreads.

Like most traditional two page spreads mine will contain a conbination of both photos and text about the article.

Double page spread analysis 3.

2009-12-20T03:22:00.002-08:00

The main focus of this double page spread is on a band called 'The Black eyed peas'. The 'B.E.P' are a hip-hop group which tells the reader about the type of music presented within this music magazine. The magazine would be intended for people who enjoy this genre of music.

Double page spread analysis 2.

2009-12-20T03:22:00.001-08:00

Photos are the main feature of this double page spread. These pictures appear to have been taken during live performancs, concerts, to give the reader a sense of the atmosphere.

The ideology behind this double page spread is to give the reader infomation about punk and rock music presented within Kerrang magazine. This particular issues focus is on Avenged sevenfold, a heavy metal band formed in 1999. This band is a typical example of what the music in Kerrang represents, rebelliousness.

The layout of this double page spread is mainly focused on the photos of the band Avenged sevenfold. There are numerous photos along the bottom of the double page spread and the righ hand side of the page. There is a small section specifically for the text on the double page spread. The text is upon a white background to make the text easily visable for the reader amongst the photos.

Double page spread analysis 1.

2009-12-20T03:21:00.000-08:00

The main focus to this double page spread is of a concert that took place at Wembly stadium. The bands that played at this concert were HIIM, Machine Head, Mastodon and the main band featured at the concert, Metallica.

The text on this double page spread is on a black background which is a convention of metal/rock music which is the type of music these bands are based on. The text is white in colour as it stands out on the black background. The main text is based on the events of the concert. However, there is a second section dedicated to main singer and guitarist of Metallica, James Hetfield. This small section asks what James Hetfield thought about the event. The red colouring is also a convention of rock and metal music as it is seen as edgy.

The photos on this double page spread were taken from the concert. Having photos within a magazine from a live event gives the reader a sense of the atmosphere from the concert. The double page spread includes photos of James Hetfield from Metallica and numerous other singers and guitarists from other bands who performed at the concert. The photos show then insensity of the concert as we can see cleary from some of the photos the passion and effort these musicians are putting in.

The text in the middle of the page talks about the concert. This text is larger than the other text on the pages in order to catch the readers eye so that their attention is drawn to the story within the magazine. Machine head is written in bold in order to make the name of the band easy to read for the reader and to grab their attention. This is so fans of the particular band maybe more influence to read the story.

Contents page analysis 3.

2009-12-20T03:12:00.000-08:00

This contents page gives the reader infomation about the magazine.

The colour scheme tells us about the genre this music magazine represents. The colour of the text on this particular contents page is red and black which is a convention of rock music, so this tells us that this contents page is most likely from a rock magazine.

From the text we also learn that this magazine is probably aimed for people aged over 15 as it includes swear words such as 'fucked up'.

This conents page also includes a selection of bands included within the magazine such as Good Charlotte, Fall Out Boy and My Chemical Romance. The photos also include page numbers placed within the photo instead of having just text relating to each story and page number.

Contents page analysis 2.

2009-12-19T14:59:00.001-08:00

This contents page is from Kerrang magzine. The contents page is neat as all the text is in line and sectioned off. The contents page is simple and easy to read which is how contents pages are suposed to be so it does not confuse the reader.

This contents page, like most others, has used various photos. These photos show the reader some of the bands and musicians featured within this particular issue in this magazine. These photos grab the readers attention and make the reader want to know about these musicians within the magazine. These photos also represent the musicians attitudes and their type of music. The picture of the musician swearing tells the reader that his music is 'in your face', edgy and rebellious as this is what swearing symbolises.

The colours of the contents page is a convention of the type of music which Kerrang magazine represents which is various types of metal music. Theses colours are black, yellow and grey. These colours are edgy and grab the readers attention. The text on the contents page is bold and the colours are seperated into sections. We can tell that the main headings are in yellow and the page numbers and storiesare written in black.

Contents page analysis 1.

2009-12-19T14:00:00.000-08:00

I chose this contents page as it is from a rock magazine which is a similar genre to my type of magazine.

On the top of the contents page, the masthead is easily visable with a red background which is a convention of rock which draws the attention of the reader.

The writing on the contents page is red and black which is a convention of rock. The colours also allow the text to stand out. The text is small and vague as contents pages should not include large amounts of infomation as they should be simple, easy to read and straight to the point.

The images on this particular contents page refer to the name of this music magazine, Drummer. The pictures include some drummers and a band.

Q magazine front cover denotation.

2009-12-18T06:12:00.000-08:00

The photo on this front cover is a medium long shot. This is so the entire band can be seen on the front page. The band members have stood legs apart to represent their dominance on the cover. Stood with legs apart represents dominance and the band members will of stood this way to represent their powerful music.

The main image is of a band called Metallica. The bands name is in large, bold font which captures the readers eye. The text on the front cover of the music magazine is mainly in red which is a conotation of a metal magazine as red is seen to be edgy.

The text above the band name "Madness! Mayhem! Sex addiction !" tells the reader about the band. This text tells us that this particular band is egdy and rebellious. This also gives us an impression of their type of music.

Kerrang magazine front cover denotation.

2009-12-18T06:11:00.000-08:00

The ideology behind this particular magazine is alternative metal.

The audience for this magazine is aimed at people aged between 14 and 25 as it consistes of metal music which is popular with young adults and teens. This magazine would not be suitable for children as Kerrang represents rebelious attitudes within their music within a generation in which adults may not want their young children to be involved in.

The photo on the front cover of this Kerrang magazine shows us a close up on one of the band members of Slipknot. The close up tells us about the band as the mask the band member is wearing looks agressive and emotionless. This tells us that this particular bands attitudes and type of music is bold and agressive.

The language used in the front cover of Kerrang magazine tells us about the band, Slipknot. The words "somebodies gonna get killed" tells us that this band has more of an agressive genre of metal. This quote also tells the reader about the intensity of the bands music.

Finished music magazine front cover and evaluation.

2009-12-18T06:04:00.000-08:00

This is my finished music magazine front cover. I chose to call my music magazine 'Backstage' as it refers to all the backstage gossip and behind the scenes details about famous musicans and upcoming stars. Every music lover would like a backstage pass to their favourite bands/singers and this is why I chose to call my music magazine 'Backstage' as it grants people who love music acess to their favourite bands and musicians.

I chose to have my logo within my name of my magazine. I transformed my A's in Backstage into stereos as they are iconographyof music.

I used a website called dafont.com in order to change my writing into different styles. I used this website to edit my main story text, 'An exclusive interview with Tom Kay'. I chose to do this to make the text look different and edgy.

In order to add more writing on my front cover and make it stand out I decided to use an flag picture from clipboard on desk top publisher, filled it in black and wrote my other stories featured within the magazine upon the flag image in order to make it stand out on the magazine.

I chose to have my background of my music magazine to be Black fading into red as dark colours are a conotation. I began doing this by creating a blank page on photoshop. I then used the paint tool and used the gradient application. I then filled the page with Black and red then copied the page onto desktop publisher.

My main image was a picture of Guitarist and singer Tom Kay. I took a selection of photos during my spare time and I believe the photo I have chosen was the best photo for this particular magazine. My main image features the musician with his guitar, Ibanez gem, which tells the reader about this particular musician. The photo tells the reader that he is a guitarist. When taking the photo I chose to use a fan in order to make Tom's hair windswept and make his face more visable to the reader.

If I had to change my music magazine in anyway I would of changed my main photo. I would of prefered to of had Tom facing the camera as on most music magazine front covers, the musicians are facing the camera, however, on mine this isn't the case. The musicians facing the camera is also a conotation of music magazines.

Backstage magazine front cover draft 2

2009-12-14T01:12:00.000-08:00

I have chosen to change the design of my music magazine. I changed the colour of the background from red to black turning into red by using the gradient tool with paintbucket on photoshop. I then copied the background on the publisher and applied my masthead and main image onto the background.

I used a website in order to create my writing for my main story. I then print screened the text, cropped it to the size I wanted and then copied it to publisher onto my background for the magazine.

How to make a front cover of a magazine in photoshop

2009-12-13T03:48:00.000-08:00

This account on youtube is very helpful as it teaches people how to use photoshop in order to create a magazine front cover. This video is very helpful for people creating magazines on photoshop like myself. The video gives the audience direct instructions on what essentially needs to be included on a magazine front cover. http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=photoshopalpha&annotation_id=annotation_189104&feature=iv

Here is another example of how to create a magazine front cover in photoshop. I plan to use these videos in order to help make my music magazine better as I continue editing it.

Beginning the front cover for my music magazine.

2009-12-07T01:51:00.000-08:00

Here is the beginning of my music magazine cover. I began by changing the colour of the background on my photo from blue to red. This is because Darker colours are a convention of Rock magazines as they give the magazine an edge. I also chose to put my masthead behind the main image so that the image is clear and the masthead isn't blocking any of the image.

Examples of alternative rock/metal music.

2009-12-06T13:00:00.000-08:00

Here is an example of Alternative Rock/Metal music. This is a song called Time by Creed, an American rock band from Florida that became popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s. This is an example of the type of music my magazine will be based on. This music will give people the indication of what my music magazine will represent.

Music magazine contents page mock up

2009-12-04T06:41:00.000-08:00

Music mood board

2009-12-04T06:11:00.000-08:00

Here is a collection of music icons. This mood board consists of many genres from pop to death metal. I have used a collection of images from google from reconised musical icon from the last few years including Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, Alter Bridge and Creed. These images sum up how music has progressed over the years. From the early rock style of 1954 Elvis Presley to the alternative rock band of 2004 Alter Bridge.

My music magazine - LIIAR

2009-11-30T02:04:00.000-08:00

Language

Insitution

Ideaology

Audience - My magazine will be aimed for people aged between 15 and 30. As my magazine is a rock magazine it will be aimed at the younger generation as this type of music is found to be popular with younger people.

Representation

Music Genres

2009-11-16T01:34:00.000-08:00

My music magazine will be based on Alternative Rock music. Rock music is a genre of popular music that entered the mainstream in the 1960s. Rock music progressed from the 1940s when it drew on folk music, jazz, country music and the blues. Rock music is popular in todays modern culture which is the reason I have chose to base my magazine on Rock music.

Examples of genres:

Pop - Michael Jackson, Mcfly, Christina Aguilera
Rap - Snoop Dogg, Eminem, Kanye West
R&B - Usher, Beyonce Knowles, Whitney Houston
Punk - Good Charlotte, Blink 182, Sex Pistols
Metal - Metallica, Cannibal Corpse, Iron Madien
Rock - Elvis Presley, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones
Dance music - Ultrabeat

Conventions of a music magazine.

2009-11-13T06:21:00.000-08:00

Dark background (Red, Black) - Darker colours give the magazine an 'edge' and alternative.
Main photo - Band member ( Singer, guitarist, Bassist, Drummer )

Music magazine photos - Tom Kay

2009-11-11T13:37:00.000-08:00

Here are three photos I have taken intended to be in my music magazine. I took over 20 photos and I believe these are the best three photos. I will choose one of these photos to be my main image on my front cover of the magazine. The other two photos may be placed in my magazine at a later stage.

Music magazine front cover draft

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Music Magazine.

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Quizes
Free stuff (Posters etc)
Pictures
Main story
Sub-stories
E-mails & Texts page
Interviews

My music magazine.

2009-11-08T08:18:00.000-08:00

Name - Backstage
Main Picture - Guitarist (Tom Kay)
Main Headline - Interview with Tom Kay.
Sub-headings - Upcoming tours, Rising Bands, New Albums & singles, Battle of the Bands, interviews
Price - £ 3.50
Barcode
Genre - Alternative Rock music
Age - Between 12 & 25

My college front cover made on DTP.

2009-10-23T06:06:00.001-07:00

My college magazine contents page made on DTP.

2009-10-22T06:14:00.000-07:00

Planning my college magazine - contents page

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Pictures along one side of the page.
Page numbers on the opposite.
Clear bold lettering for stories and their allicated page number.
Issue number at the top (right or left corner).
E-mail address and telephone number at the bottom of the page.

The page numbers on the contents page should be clear and should be easy to read so the reader can find the pages each story is on.

Planning my college magazine - front cover

2009-10-16T12:36:00.000-07:00

Name - Wyke weekly
Main headline - New building for easter 2010
Picture - Medium close up of student. Stood outside main entrance/next to building site.
Secondary stories - First year's exams 2010, Smoking: should it be banned from college?, students: is there too much pressure on them ?

My main story for my magazine should stand out most along with the main image. Ways it could be made to stand out is that it could be written in bold, in colour and underlined.
My magazine should be clear and easy to read. A complicated magazine may put people off reading it.

College magazines VS Lifestyle magazines

2009-10-16T12:26:00.000-07:00

College magazines are aimed for an audience who are involved with education such as students, teachers or even parents.
Lifestyle magazines, music and celebrity magazines often have advertisements on their front covers along with sponsers, however, College magazines do not have this.
Both magazines have pictures on the front covers which relate to the topic the magazine is based on. For example, music magazines may have a picture of a band on the front cover when college magazines would have something related to education as the main image for the magazine.
Lifestyle magazines are aimed for an audience who have an interest in a specific topic. For example, people who have an interest in metal music may buy Kerrang magazine and people who have an interest in the world of celebrities may buy Hello or OK! magazine.
College magazines are often free.

Codes and conventions of a front cover

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Pictures
tag line
price - depending on the magazine
date
magazine name
main image
Footer
Quotes
Other stories

LIIAR

2009-10-14T14:10:00.000-07:00

Language
Institution
Ideology
Audience
Representation

The language of a magazine would include the witten text in the headline of the magazine and the tag-line/slogan. This could be written in slang or in formal text.
The institution of the magazine would be the company that represents the magazine.
The ideology of the magazine would be what the topic of the magazine is. For emaple, there are magazines on music, education, food, celebraties and technology.
The audience would be who the magazine is aimed at. Magazines have to consider the age group it is aimed for, sex and intesests along with other factors too.
The representation of the magazine is how the magazine is presented.

Codes and conventions of a contents page

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Pictures
Sub headings
Date
Phone number
E-mail
Numbers of the pages and related articles
Text
Main story - page referance
Adevertisement
Issue number

Smash hits magazine front cover denotation

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The main heading of the magazine attracts the attention of the reader as it is usually in large lettering and in bold. This particlar magazines main heading is concerning Michael Jackson and stating that his music will 'live on forever'. This is written over the top of a coloured strip which makes the heading stand out.
The target audience for this magazine is people who have an interest in music, in the issue, specifically Michael Jackson.
The main imagine of the magazine stands out the most on the front cover of the magazine as it tends to be a large image which is in the centre of the magazine. The main image stands out most on the front cover along with the magazine name and main heading. The main image also tells the reader about the main story inside the magazine and is used to attract the reader.
The footer of the magazine shows the reader some of the other stories found in the magazine. The footer is usually found at the bottom of the magazine.
This particular magazine also offers a free poster which is used as an added insentive for readers to buy the magazine.

College magazine front cover denotation

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This is an example of a college magazine front cover. The magazine cover includes;

Headlines
Name of the magazine
Picture
Sub Headlines
infomation about the stories within the magazine
Date

The fuction of the headline is to grab the readers attention . The headline tells the reader the main story of the magazine

The picture shows the reader what the magazine is about. For exmaple, this magazine shows a woman conducting an experiment which tells the reader that the magazine contains information about science.

The sub headings tell us about some of the stories in the magazine which are featured.

Research - mood board

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A moodboard can be used to show research. A moodboard contains a collection of pictures based on a topic. For example, My moodboard would contain pictures related to College as it would fit into the topic of college magazines which my project is based on.

Here is an example of a moodboard:

This moodboard is based on travel.

Codes and conventions of a magazine

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title
headings
Main story
Pictures
date
issue number
website
e-mail
advertisement
Beginnings of stories
Context
Quotes

Brief

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Preliminary exercise: using DTP and an image manipulation program, produce the front page of a new school/college magazine, featuring a photograph of a student in medium close-up plus some appropriately laid-out text and a masthead. Additionally you must produce a mock-up of the layout of the contents page to demonstrate their grasp of DTP.

Main task: the front page, contents and double page spread of a new music magazine. All imagines and text used must be original, produced by you - minimum of four images.

Presentation of your work: The presentation of the research, planning and evaluation may take the form of any one, or combination of two or more, of the following;

a presentation using slideshow such as powerpoint
a blog
a podcast

How to make a front cover of a magazine in photoshop

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Features of a College magazine

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Possible main stories:

Building changes
New additions to the college
Bullying

Included features:

Events
Sports page - school sports teams and results
Gossip pages
School related news
New students / Teachers