ACTION PLAN so far.....

Date	Task	Completed? Any notes?
17th December	To have completed all of my research, planning, questionnaires, mood board, font ideas, decided on name, image editing, layout plans and colour schemes	most completed, except the image editing, layout plans and colour schemes. For next time I need to work quicker. I will complete any leftover tasks over the Christmas holidays
21ST December	To have completed mock photo-shoot, draft ideas on blog
24th February	To have completed my draft magazine along with real photo-shoot, feedback and how I will change my draft to the real magazine
24TH March	To have edited all photos and nearly finished magazine cover, contents and double page spread
10th April	To have completed my magazine and all 7 evaluation questions, check blog if any changes are needed

Survey says.........What is your favourite band?

For question number 6 I asked 'What is your favourite band?', this is because I wanted to
 see what people liked and to see what kind of artist/s I could replicate in my magazine.
The responses were

• Paramore
• MUSE
• All Time Low
• Coldplay
• Delamitri
• JLS
• Lorde
• MS MR
• Marina and the diamonds

The majority of these Bands/ artists fit into my genre of rock/alternative/indie except perhaps JLS, So I will try to base my made up on artists on the style of music these bands/ artists do.

Survey says........What would you expect to pay for a music magazine?

For question 5 I asked ' What would you expect to pay for a music magazine?' this is so I can get the correct price for my target audience, the cost of a magazine is crucial as something too expensive can put people off. For many readers, the cost is the most important part because you want to keep the price down yet still get value for money. 



From my results I can gather that most people want a magazine of around the £2+ mark, this is because they want a good price while still retaining quality. So I might price my magazine at around £2.50. 

Survey says.......Which music magazine are you most likely to buy?

For question 4 I asked 'Which music magazine are you most likely to buy?', this question allowed respondents to choose more than one response and to add suggestions to the 'other/comments' box, this was because some people might buy more than one type of magazine as their are so many on the market of all different genres.

Overall most people are most likely to buy 'Q' magazine which is an alternative/rock magazine. 6 people said they were most likely to purchase it. The second most popular answer was 'Top of the Pops' with 4 people saying they are most likely to buy it, this is probably because it is the most well known magazine in the UK because it is from the BBC and it used to be  a television series depicting popular music live acts.  The third most popular answer was KERRANG and billboard magazines, with 3 responses each, it is obvious that most people prefer rock or pop. In the comment box one respondent added the suggestion of 'rolling stone' magazine, which is a rock magazine I'm really glad they mentioned this because it is valid to my prefered genre. The least popular answers with only one response  each were for NME and VIBE magazine, this is probably because NME isnt as well known in the  UK as other brands and VIBE is an R'&'B magazine which, by my previous question, isnt the most popular genre. Overall I think I will look to magazines like 'Q' and 'KERRANG' as they fit in with my chosen genre of rock/alternative/indie and the public seem to like them.

Survey says.......What is your favourite genre of music?

For question 3 I asked 'what is your favourite genre of music?', this is because I want to see what the public want the most and which genre I should stick to.

As you can see the most popular genres were Rock, Pop and alternative/indie. This means that I will stick to the genre of rock/alternative/indie as together it made 54% of the results. This genre means I can include both old and current music to yet again broaden my audience. Overall I am not surprised with my results as the majority of the people I asked were teenageers, and most teenagers prefer pop, rock or alternative/indie.

Survey says......What is your gender?

In question 2 I simply asked 'what is your gender?', again I used survey monkey for the data, but made my own chart on Microsoft word.

From my results I can gather that the majority of my respondents were female, although most of the people I asked were female. Out of the 13 respondents only 3 were male (23%). Overall I think I might make a magazine suitable for both sexes, this would be easier as I can broaden my target audience, also their isn't really a unisex magazine of this genre for this age group on the market.

Survey says ..........How old are you?

Wow, I actually got a fair few results, even if most of them were my friends or parents, but still...
Sorry if anyone answers the survey after 16/12/2013 as your results wont be counted. I published my survey online at surveymonkey.com as it could be shared via email or my blog, rather than just handing a bit of paper around and getting extremely confused.
 I decided to make my pie charts and graphs by transferring the data to Microsoft Excel than to Microsoft word so I could construct a graph/ pie chart, I did this as it shows that bit of extra effort rather than just print screening the graph of survey monkey.
How old are you?
My first question was 'how old are you?', this is because I wanted to see the age range of my respondees (is that even a word?) so I could tailor my magazine to the average.

 As you can see over half the people were 16 (56%), perhaps this was a little biased as most of my friends are 16. The average age is around 26, so this will be my older end my target audience. My target audience will be from around 16-26, this is because most of them will be in higher education, and their is not really a magazine out their of this genre for this specific target group.

Genre Research

Here I have researched my chosen genre of rock/alternative/indie magazines, I have displayed it on prezi as it is relatively easy to navigate and makes a change from just a boring word document.

KERRANG magazine analysis

Since I am sticking roughly to the rock genre I need to analyse a rock magazine. Kerrang is a good example because it portrays specific conventions of that genre.

Masthead
The masthead is in a bold red font and in capitols, this links with the bold rock genre of the magazine as it stands out. The smashed effect adds to the font by making it appear more unusual and alternative.
Central image
The central image covers most of the page as it highlights the main article, hence it's important, our eyes notice it straight away as the mode of address very direct, in the sense that they are all looking at the camera and one band member is pointing directly at the camera. The image is anchored to the headline
Headline
The headline is portrayed in the centre of the page as its anchored to the most important article, The font is in capitals to enhance importance and the white colour contrasts with the bands clothes.
Puffs
This cover has lots of puffs on it (yes I am trying not to laugh), they draw attention to certain areas of promotion and in this case, are placed on different shaped box outs so they stand alone and don't blend in , they use tag words like 'download' and 'amazing' to draw attention to it.
Cover lines
The cover lines are located around the edge of the magazine to allow the main image to shine through, they focus on other articles and use different presentational devices such as promotional language to make them stand out
Secondary images
These images are anchored to the cover lines to give them purpose, they are alot smaller than the main image as they are less important but they are edited into different shaped such as circles to keep them apart from the main article
Pugs
The pugs are located at the bottom of the magazine and display the price and bar code, they keep out of the way and are relatively hidden to allow the other articled to shine through. Perhaps this is because they want you to read the 'amazing' magazine and go to purchase it before you even acknowledge the price.

Magazine Font testing

Here I have analysed and tested fonts for my masthead, I have tested them with the title 'BASSLINE', I probably wont go for this name as it suits the R&B genre more. I have sourced my fonts from dafonts.com which is a great resource for collecting fonts of different styles and genres. I have first created a moodboard which shows an example masthead title is the fonts I like.

I have chosen fonts that fit in with the theme of alternative/ indie/ rock as they are quite bold but still quirky and unusual.

I like this font because it has a vintage, rocky edge to it, it's bold, fun and unusual. However it is quite 'busy', therefore it will be hard to edit by adding colour.

This font is very similar to 'cast iron' in terms of the style, exept it looks more natural and handwritten, giving it an almost tattoo like feel (hence the name), yet again it will be hard to edit or enlarge it .

This font is very clear and bold, so the masthead will be easily visable, it is a little too formal as I want my magazine to be friendly and more relaxed.

This font is really unusual as the 'break' in it adds another unusual dimension, its nicely rounded in shap so it dosen't look too formal.

I really like his font because its clear, bold and easy to edit, its also quite modern thus it will link to the modern images my magazine will include.

 

Music magazine hair and make-up ideas

Hi,
 Here I have created a moodboard on polyvore to show my make-up and hair styling ideas for mu music magazine, I am going for the dark, grungey, rock look which will have much more impact than colours like baby pink. The colours of the makeup are very important as they need to tie in with the colour scheme of the magazine.

 

Music magazine questionaire

Here I have made a questionaire on survey monkey to research audiences responses to music magazines, I would be really gratefull if you could spare a minute to answer it :)

Click here to take survey

Magazine photo poses

Here I have made a small slideshow that portrays some examples of the three most used shots in magazines, facial close-up, torso mid-shot and full body long shot.

Double page spread analysis.

 

Here I am going to analyse a double page spread of a magazine, this is usually the main feature and is anchored to the headline and main image on the front cover. This is from the recent edition of the rock magazine KERRANG.

 

Conventions


Headline
The headline is the largest area of text on the page, this is because it needs to catch the audiences attention. Here the text spreads across both pages to highlight it's importance, the font is a rocky/old school style which is anchored to the genre of the magazine and is in capital letters to give it more presence. Usually double page spread headlines are direct quotes from the artist to make the audience feel a personal connection, here a kind of play on words is used that only fans of Fall Out Boy will understand, "sugar, we're coming home" is used in place of their hit song  "sugar we're going down", this makes the reader slightly amused (only if they understand the inside joke though !)

Stand First
A stand first is used to introduce the article and; like here; it's often placed at the beginning of the headline. In this case the stand first is anchored to the headline as they both infer Fall Out Boys comeback tour, also the tag word "Exclusive" is used to make the audience feel important as they are getting something "exclusive"

By-Line
The by-line credits who wrote the article and the photographer, here it is located in the bottom left hand corner of the page to keep it out of the way of the image but to still show respect for the writer/ photographer.

Main Image
The main image is the most important element of the double page spread, this is because he is bigger than all of the text. Here they have decided to keep it simple by using only one image rather than the usual many secondary images. They have placed it on a contrasting box out in a quirky shape to add interest. They have used a direct mode of address in the image as all four band members are looking directly at the camera, this establishes coherence between the article and the reader.

Text box
The text is laid out in columns for clearer reading, also at the start of the columns is an illuminated/ large letter to guide the reader on where to start the article. At the top of the text box a stand is included to introduce the text, this may help readers who have little knowledge about the band as it summarises their success and the article. The artists name is highlighted in red in the stand to show its importance, this directly anchores to the artists name at the top of the page to establish continuity across the pages.

Contents page analysis

As I am making a content page for my magazine, I need to do some research into what the conventions are for my chosen genre. I have analysed KERRANG magazines 2010 contents page.

 

 

Conventions

Colour Scheme
They have stuck to a very specific colour scheme of black and yellow, the black adds tone and depth as a base colour and the yellow is used as a contrasting accent colour to highlight important articles or headings. Red is also used to highloght the page numbers so it's easier for the reader to navigate the page, it's also used

Images
The main image on the contents page is usually anchored to the second most important article, this is the case here because the image takes up half the page therefore the audience recognise it as important. Also all of the secondary images include their corresponding page numbers written on them, this achors them to the written contents for easy navigation of the page.

Editors letter
This is usually placed on the left hand side of the page as it's not the most important area of text. Here the editors letter is obviously reasonably important as is it includes a large secondary image to attract the readers attention, also the editors letter displays what's going on at KERRANG HQ to give the reader an 'exclusive' insight into the behind the scenes elements of the magazine.

Contents layout
the contents is divided into categories rather than in chronological order using headers in yellow font on black box outs for ease of access. The articles are in bold and are often quite ambiguous to intrigue the reader into reading the sub lines below which provide more information on the article.

Puffs
Puffs are used to draw the readers eye to a highlighted article or area of the page, for example the words 'cover story' are placed on box outs shaped like stars and are located next to the star articles which therefore become anchored to the front page.

Fonts
The fonts used represent the genre of the magazine, it is bold, straight edged and powerful, a bit like rock really. The use of a 'smashed' effect really adds to the font by making it less 'mainstream'

ACTION PLAN

Because my preliminary task is finished I need to create an action plan for my music magazine so I stick to a structure. I had feedback from my school magazine that I needed some kind of plan to be on tome for deadlines. By having a plan I will be on time to hand in my work and to get feedback.

Date	Task	Completed? Any notes?
17th December	To have completed all of my research, planning, questionnaires, mood board, font ideas, decided on name, image editing, layout plans and colour schemes
21ST December	To have completed mock photo-shoot, draft ideas on blog
24th February	To have completed my draft magazine along with real photo-shoot, feedback and how I will change my draft to the real magazine
24TH March	To have edited all photos and nearly finished magazine cover, contents and double page spread
10th April	To have completed my magazine and all 7 evaluation questions, check blog if any changes are needed

Music magazine moodboard

Here are a few of my ideas for how my magazine might look like, I might change them, but here is a mood board to showcase my original thoughts. I have used fireworks to create my mood board.

Q magazine analysis

Here I have analysed the various codes and conventions of the march 2012 edition of Q magazine. This is an example of a good magazine that I really like the use of colour contrast on.

Masthead

 

The masthead is the name of the magazine, in this case it's placed at the top of the page; directly in the readers eye line to catch their attention. This masthead is very simple but effective in the sense that it uses the contrasting colours of red and white to make the classic font stand out. This masthead also is unique as it's different from any other magazine, it is able to use a single letter on a red box out as people will instantly recognise it due to it's famous reputation.

 

Tagline

 

The tagline is a small area of text that shows what the magazine is about, it's usually located under the masthead as it will be the next thing the audience will see, this is the case for this cover. The tagline is also used to persuade the audience to read the magazine and gives a kind of summary about the magazine or issue, it also reinforces the genre of magazine portrayed.

 

Headline

 

The headline is the usually the text with the biggest font as it informs us about the most important article, in this case the headline is located parallel to the masthead so the audience see it first, its also anchor's to the main image (the headline is about Florence and the machine and so is the image), this reinforces the audience expectations of the article inside and shows them that the article is important.

 

Main cover image

The central image is one of the most important features of a magazine as it needs to reflect its purpose and catch the readers attention, this image is anchored to the headline.

The cover model is of the lead singer of Florence and the Machine, and the image catches our attention because the mise-en-scene that she is portraying is striking, her red hair, pale skin and bright blue eye makeup all contrast. An extreme close up is used to highlight the mode of address (how the model is relating to the audience) because you can see how she is looking directly at the camera to make a bond between her and the reader, the close up shows her emotions and facial details.

 

Cover lines

The cover lines are areas of text that are focused around the other articles, in this case they are displayed around the central image. In this case different sizes relate to the importance of the articles, this links with the font style because this differs thorough the cover lines (some are wider and some are thinner). The colour is also important, here they have used a pure white to contrast with the main image, this means that the main image and cover lines get an equal viewing by the audience. This magazine has cleverly used bright blue (linking to the eye makeup) underlines and bullet points to separate each cover line, thus making it easier to read.

 

Puffs

This cover uses puffs (text that shows a promotion/ exclusive or freebie) to draw attention to a certain area of the cover, in this case it's an access all areas exclusive with Zane Lowe. The text is placed on a contrasting box out to make it stand out from the rest of the cover.

 

Pugs (seriously weird names )

This is the area where the bar code/ price and issue number is located. In this cover they are located together in the bottom left hand corner to keep it discreet from the rest of the cover.

 

 

Music magazine genres

Hi again....

I have finally finished my school magazine with reasonable success, so now it is time for the REAL THING (*gasp). Yes that is right I am starting my music magazine, so first I need to decide what genre I am going to do.
I have done some analysis and reaserch and presented my ideas on slideshare.

music magazine genres from erinlovescake

Music magazine general plan

Date	Action
Week 1	Get production brief, brain storm, gather secondary research on magazines, mood boards, sign up for any necessary accounts such as prezi, pinterest ect…
Week 2	Annotating existing music magazine covers.
Week 3	Production schedule/project.
Week 4	Audience questionnaires/do survey/findings summary.
Week 5	Check locations, actors, equipment, props and costumes. Do photoshoot.
Week 6	Detailed drafts/sketches of front cover, contents page, centre spread. All research tasks completed and submitted
Week 7	Feedback/upgrade research & planning tasks completed.
Week 8	Secondary photo shoot, import to photoshop and edit. Create template and background for front cover on fireworks.
Week 9	Design front cover
Week 10	Construct the contents page
Week 11	Third photo shoot
Week 12	Design double page layout.
Week 13	Refine print work/ final touches.
Week 14	Upgrade production work, a power point evaluation.
Week 15	Evaluation
Week 17	Evaluation
Week 18	DEADLINE FOR PRODUCTION