The top selling singles of 2013!

I have looked at the music charts for 2013 since I want to know what the most successful genre of 2013 was in the singles chart. Blurred lines, Get Lucky and Wake me up were the top three and two of the three artists are dance music producers (Daft Punk, AVICII) This indicates dance music is still going strong worldwide. The songs are both under the dance genre and give the genre a positive look as they are positive songs and very well known. Most of the songs in the top 15 would be played at parties and dance events which helps me support my genre of dance music and helps me know that when making my music magazine I have a big target audience.

My finished Cover/Contents/Doublepage spread!

This is my finished front cover - 




This is my finished contents page -



This is my finished Double-page spread -

Evaluation.

Doublepage Spread Progress!

Here is the progress i have made with my double-page spread -




The first thing I did was create a new Photoshop document fitted to a double-page spread. I instantly added a pull quote to attract the audience and bring them in. I decided to put a white backing on the quote to make it a focal point of the page. This is similar to what mixmag do with their pull quotes. 

















I then added my main image, this was a medium shot of my artist. I used the background that was shot with the artist since i wanted to use the mise-en-scene of it, The lighting was adjusted so that it would be focused on Jonno and then the light would fade. I also had to resize the image to fit the double-page spread.
















Finally i added my text which was relevant to the image, I kept a consistency of red and black through to show the audience who was talking in the interview section.

Contents page progress

This is my progress of my contents page

My Images

Front Cover Image

I am using this picture as my main image. This is a medium shot of my artist with him staring into the camera, his glasses make you feel like you are you looking at him directly back. I have done this so it seems arrogant and he looks confident. His T-Shirt is colorful to represent summer and energy. I had him go for the cool, confident image to attract the audience with the colour and facial expression. I used a all white background but then decided i wanted the background to be a standout colour like yellow/green. I believe this image is perfect for my genre. I followed the conventions of other magazines were the artist is staring back at the audience making a direct link.








Double-Page Spread Image

This picture will be my main image on my double-page spread. I have made the artist cross his arms to act like he had secrets he doesn't want to reveal but the article inside will 'Reveal all' I have kept the bad boy look on him with this glasses covering his face and him looking away from the camera. I left the right side of the image open and free since i will be using this for my writing and keeping the left side just for the main image. The shadow behind him was used to relate to the article were i will be using things such as 'he has been in the shadow of his brothers fame'. 

Original images

Props/Actors List.

Props I am using:

Ray-ban Sun Glasses 
Laptop
Headphones 
DJ Set

I am using Sun Glasses to give the representation of the summer feel and the party element. I have used a DJ set and Headphones since this is ordinary equipment for a DJ to use for his music. The three combine make the representation easy to see for the audience.

Actors I am using:

John Masters
Jake Larsen
Chelsea Sanderson
Lewis Helim 


Costume's I am using:

Dip-dye Tee
Sun Glasses 
Hair waxed up 
Necklace

I am trying to show my artist as a cool DJ, to do this i have used a very bright coloured shirt to relate to the summer time. I have used Sun glasses to also relate to summer but to cover John's face to show arrogance and confidence. A necklace was a item i added to just add more to the shot.

Mood Board

My magazine will be based on and around dance music. I have created this mood board to relate to this. I have images of famous DJ's and the equipment used to DJ. 

Font Types

Today i will be testing and checking out fonts that i think are suitable for my magazine. I have to relate the fonts to my chosen genre which is dance. Fonts can relate to the genre in many ways eg, Bold chaotic fonts can relate to Metal. 

These are examples of fonts i WOULD use, this is because they are curly fun fonts that represent my genre of dance. I have chosen to go with the second font since the O makes sure the audience knows its related to dance. It is also different and will look nice on the eye once i change the colour and add a background. These fonts are easy to read and look professional and that is why i would use them. 












These are fonts i WOULDN'T use. I would not use these font as most of them are to simple and not effective, Whereas the others are to complex to read and would confuse the audience. 

Typography

What is typography? 

Typography is the set font used by magazines to link in with its own conventions, Eg kerrang use a mast head were it is smashed and bold, this is representing rock music.

In class today we looked at over 10 different magazines and compared and contrasted why they have used their typology. For example Q uses red as their mast head, their initial title is simple but effective since its red and this stands out to your eye instantly. After researching and looking into the magazines Red and Yellow seem to be the most effective since they are the stand out colours.

After this research i have decided that i will be using 4 colours throughout my magazine cover, which will be red, white, yellow and black. I have now also looked into fonts that i will use for my cover, since my genre will be dance music i am going for a funky relaxed font. This is the mock up i have done this lesson as a draft and to see how my colours collide.  

My Concept!

The concept of my main artist is about a new and upcoming DJ called Jonno who has recently rose to fame with his brand new single 'underwater'. He is from Liverpool and has just reached the age of 18. My double page spread will be a interview with him and a short introduction about how he rose to stardom. My main image on my front cover is Jonno wearing a very colorful t-shirt looking cool and relaxed. This is get across his genre and the fact he is confident even though he is so young. My double page spread image is also Jonno looking relaxed and almost arrogant, again expressing his confidence and his clothing showing his energy. I have tried to be realistic with my images of Jonno and took ideas from how other DJ's pose and act for magazines. They all are looking into the camera with no expression. I have brought this into my own concept.

My page layouts!

I have placed the masthead at the top in the center since it is conventional and needs to been shown off since the masthead is important to attract the audience. I have covered some of the masthead with the main image since my idea is that the main image will be my source of attracting the audience due to the bright colours. My main image will be my unique selling point so why is why i want it to cover most of my front cover. I will be putting information about what is inside and sell lines across as once the audience notice these it will make them want to buy the magazine even more. I will have a bright coloured background and pink text to stand out. In the middle of the image I will their name/title, it will overlap my main image. In the bottom right hand corner I will put my barcode since this is necessary for magazines, Another idea i have took from my research is to use sell lines, i will use at least 3 in my front cover, one of these being a free CD i will incorporate into the magazine. I have decided to name my magazine 'Strobe'. 











The main image that I will use will be on the left page since this is conventional and leaves alot of space for my article. I will have the main headline/Quote on the top of the right side to introduce my artist,  The other image i have will be placed under my text and will be relevant to what the text is talking about. My double page spread will be simplistic, i took this idea from analyzing other magazines. The text will be in columns and go across the bottom half of the pages in three separate columns.The reason i used a pull quote is to engage the audience with a interesting fact relevant to the artist. The text will be simple and black reflecting on a white background. I will also have advert for my artists new single.











The title of the contents will be in the top left hand corner, since its conventional and it is were most people begin to read from.The biggest image will be under the listing of page information and will be relevant to it, i have made it so the text is more important than my main image, the image is just to help give the page some life. I will be keeping my contents page very simple with it just getting straight to the point, i will have a simple design on the right-hand side. There will also be a competition advertisement in the top left hand corner of the page, this is to attract the audience in more since people like to look at the contents page before buying the magazine. I have chosen a simple design since i believe they are more attractive to the eye and people don't want to be bombarded with information and pictures while looking at the contents page since it is for information alone.

 

Magazine covers!

Magazine Covers

Kerrang has a very busy layout and has alot going on. You are instantly attracted to the main headline 'Bring me the horizon' This is because the white makes it eye catching while the text is bold and in capitals. This is done in a way that the headline is shouting at you, this relates to the band since there genre is 'Screamo'. The main image covers the title and the top half of the cover, it shows they are significant enough to take over the cover. The main band member Oli Sykes stands out in the front of the magazine showing dominance while his band-mates are faded into the background. Black, Red and White are the main colours used since they all stand out well, the main image also follows this consistency. The masthead is covered by the main image, this does not matter since the magazine is so well known they don't need it to be shown. There are images of 3 other bands below the main image and attract the audience to them and not just the main image, this makes all of the bands significant. The aim of this front cover was to draw our attention to the bands and this is done well. Kerrang offers a 'poster special week' which is a sell line to increase peoples interest in buying this magazine. 




This magazine cover is very simple and works well. A reason why this cover works well is since only 4 colours are used in total, the colours used stand out and complement each other well. Adele is the main image and the only image, it is a close up shot of her face. This is a good main image since Adele is a great role model and inspiration for others and will attract people due to her being on the front cover and improving the reputation of the magazine. The headline contains a quote of Adele this is usually used on a double page spread not a front cover but is common on both. The rest of the front cover is short and simple, it alerts the reader of what else they can find inside with large bold text, but they have obviously focused on Adele. The masthead is sat in the left hand corner away from text. The masthead is important for the audience to see since Q is a well known music magazine and once the audience sees this they will be engaged on the magazine. It is a very simple design and at the bottom of the page it is highlighting the fact that it's based on Adele
     




Our attention is instantly on the main image since it takes up the front cover, we know this is important at it covers most of the masthead but this is a common house style by rolling stone magazine. The main image is also captioned by the artist's name which is in the same colour as the mast head to show which part of the front cover it the most important and significant. The layout is simple and looks nice on the eye, Things overlap but we don't really notice it since the colours stand out. The other text is in a column, it is out of the way and does not stand out. The text promoting the other artists inside is organized and positioned in its own space, it is maturely laid out, the difference between this and Kerrang is the fact that rolling stone uses its space well while Kerrang crowds you with alot of information at once which is not appealing at all.

I will be taking alot of ideas from rolling stone as it is very well made and is what i would like my magazine to look like.







                               
 Lastly i have chosen to analyze and take ideas from this mixmag cover since it shares my chosen genre of dance music. This cover follows mixmag's usual house style, the main image is a shot of one artist and they have their common strap line above the masthead. They also keep the consistent colour scheme of pink and white. They use the pink, white and yellow since they are proven to be the most eye catching colours, this will stand out against other competitors. The main image is very dominant and the cover uses mode-of-address too attract and appeal to the reader. The fonts around the cover are all different this shows variation but the masthead and headline have a curly and funky font, this is very youthful and shows their target audience will be younger adults and even teenagers. The simplistic feature of the cover draws in the audience and even reflects the audience, the readers don't want to be bombarded with information but want to be took straight to the point. Mixmag contains at least 3 sell lines, they offer alot if you buy the magazine. It seems desperate but it works. A good convention that i will be using is the rule of three since it sticks in the audience's mind, mixmag have used this a few times such as 'Berlin to Brazil'

Out of all four of the covers i have analysed this is my favorite. This is what i will be taking inspiration from the most. 































                                                           

Double page spread analysis

A double page spread should contain a consistent pattern but also a original house style. A quote from a interview or new album is usually presented as the headline, they are controversial to grip the attention of the reader. Another code and convention is that the celebrities or group name is in bold. Text on a double page spread has to be size 11pt  it is set into columns to keep it tidy and neat. The main picture is always on the left, but some magazine go against this codes and conventions and do not.

This is my analysis of a double-page spread

What expect on a double page spread!

Topics -

• Interviews
• Upcoming events
• Reunions
• Q&A's
• Reviews
• Latest News

Style -

• House style, Suited to that magazine
• Style co-ordinates to the artist
• Colour Schemes 
• Typical codes and conventions eg, Large image on the left/Quote

Layout -

• Design fitted to that magazine's house style
• Easy to read
• Pictures that relate
• Different fonts and sizes
• Large main image covering one side of the double page spread
• Quotes and headlines

Content page analysis

Content page analysis

The content page i am analyzing is from mixmag  it spreads across both pages, its a double spread contents. The contents page following a black and white coloured theme with the text all white and the background being black, this is due to a black background making white writing stand out, it also makes it look professional. The contents page follows a conventional style that other magazines do, it has the pages listed to the sides with images in the middle promoting some of the articles inside. Everything in the page is spread out nicely following mixmag's house style of a relaxed and simple layout and colours. 

Although their are other images that welcome to reader to carry on reading the magazine the main image is the most attractive and eye catching, it is of two young attractive girls having fun, this is for young people to interact with and relate to since they want to be doing the same, this will want the younger audience to check were this is is and how they can be doing the same. Mixmag use a double-page spread for their contents, this is their own house style since not many other big magazine's use this feature. This contents page keeps a consistent balance of pictures and text.


I am now comparing this to a college magazine -  



This college magazine draws your attention instantly to the 'Contents' title since it has a white background with black text, this is quite unprofessional as it's not creative and could use better colors. The white text on the black background makes it really easy to read but hurts the eyes after a while of reading which is a bad trait and not good for the reader,the pictures used are pictures of the college and two people sitting around, the pictures are simple but not effective they do not give you the feel that you want to be there. They have used 4 pictures in total which takes up nearly three quarters of the contents page. I find this annoying as the contents page is for information not for the college to be shown off. Furthermore, the text on the contents page looks like bullet points and a list which is not what i would like my magazine to look like, This contents page lacks allot of creativity and 
effort to look good. I will not take insperation from this but i now know how to make my contents page appeal to others.

College Contents magazine - Draft

This is how i would lay it out -

College Magazine

This is my finished college magazine

Images for my college magazine

These are the images i took for a potential college magazine cover.

This image is a low angle shot of a student hard at work, This would be very suitable for my magazine, i have decided to use this as my cover since it represents what the magazine will be showing which is a hard working college. The lighting in this picture is also great.
















This image is of a student contemplating the outside, it is a medium shot showing his uniform and the outside view, i dont think this picture is linked enough with the ideology of my magazine to be used.

Using photoshop

We then replaced our own background with 
another to make sure we understood fully
what we had done and doing. -













Our next job was to remove spots from a
supermodels forehead, We done this by using 
the healing tool, we took skin from a healthy 
place and used to on her spot to clear it 
up, This is the before and after -







Finally we changed celebrity to black
and white while her lips remained red. To do
this we used the box tool to highlight the lips
and put them onto a new layer, then changed the 
original image to black and white and finally 
putting the red lips on top of the original picture
via layers - 

Using photoshop

This lesson we were showed how to remove and replace a background on photoshop, we manipulated the photos. Firstly we opened photoshop -













We went to file and place after making a new canvas, after placing the image we resized it and pressed enter and then rasterized the image -








We now had to remove to background from the 
image, to do this we used the magic wand tool 
clicked the background and deleted and then placed a background onto the image of our chosen photo and replaced it with the background we had deleted -

Magazine front cover analysis

This is my analysis of a mixmag cover, i have done this to research what i will be relating to my magazine, i have learned that my magazine should be simple but effective. 

Analysis of a college magazine.

My analysis of a college magazine.

                                                        

My lesson objective today is to analyse a Ridgewater college this is in preparation for making my own college magazine. I have done this for research and to improve my knowledge and ideology of magazines and to see what makes a good magazine.

Who is the target audience? 

The target audience for this magazine is people in Ridgewater college, it is also targeting people who are looking to go their and parents to check up on the sucess of the college. It is suitable for men or woman as it does not direct it at either gender, this is since the colllege is a mixed one.

How does it engage its target audience?

The audience engages them with bright colours such as red,white and yellow. The cover is simple yet effective as it uses its colours well and engages the main image with the audience. The cover also uses buzz words to interest the reader to look inside.

What is the Ideology of the magazine?

The ideology of this magazine is it is designed to attract students and parents of students to their college by showing how good it is, It also updates its audience on how the college is doing and any changes/news that are happening at that moment. It is also good since it gets the college's community involved more.

What images are used, with what camera angle?

The main image used is a high angle shot of a woman relaxing in a chair facing the camera, with her surroundings seemed to be the college, it is captioned that she is a student. This image seems to be a welcoming image to make any audience members feel like that they are welcomed into the college. In this shot the colours have been chosen well since they stand out and are nice colours to use. 

What text is used and why?

The masthead is simple, is it white and plain. It does not instantly jump out at us but is noticeable. The buzz words are the biggest thing that stands out, this is due to its bright blue colour and works well with the background, it is also in bold to give it more of a impact. The masthead does not need to stand out since the aim of the magazine is not to make itself seem loud but its idea is the create simplicity.

Price 

This magazine is obviously free since its ideology is to attract and bring in new students and give themselves a good reputation. I know this for certain since there is no barcode or price tag on the cover. Since its free this will mean it may only be published every few months since they are getting no intake of money. 

My action plan.

Based on my questionare results i have found out the most liked genre for my age group is rock and 'Other' with people choosing Dance music as the other. I have now decided to choose between dance and rock as my overall music genre. I have stayed with Dance music since i am more aware of the background and people my age also feel the same way towards this genre. My results also show that freebies are a good idea so i will be adding this in my magazine. It will also be bright and attractive as i have found out my age group is more keen on this. 

Questionnaire results.

The following screen shots are the results of my questionare...

These results show 65% of males read music magazines while 35% are female. It also shows that 70% of people in my survey who read magazines are 14-17 year olds. Rock and Others are the most Favorited genre's. £3.01-£4.00 is what people are willing to buy the magazine for, and they are most oftentimes bought monthly. NME is the most favored magazine while people prefer going to shops to buy their magazines rather than any other way. 

These results have shown me my target audience is the ages of 14-17 so i will be using a genre that fits this age range. I have stuck with dance music since i think it appeals to teenagers the most, even though Rock is the most Favorited genre i believe some of the target audience would be to young for this. These results have helped me understand what kind of people i will be pitching towards.

Cohens Moral Panic

The definition of Moral panic is:

A intense feeling expressed in a population about an issue that appears to threaten the social order



Cohen's Moral panic is when somebody in media is in the spotlight for something they have done, eg Chris brown and Riannah. This is celebrated on not matter how bad it may be which is a bad influence on a younger audience and in my opinion should not be allowed. Folk devil is what the press and public are against and take a frown to for example Gary Glitter. A certain genre is then attacked for influencing a younger audience as Marilyn Manson was accused for a school shooting. Rap was alot targeted alot in the late 90s for influencing a younger black audience.

Questioner results.

Today we have reflected back on our questioners and responded to the errors we have made, we have been opened to more views by others and how we could of improved them. I have added more questions that will give me more information to my own magazine, today i have successfully improved my questions and gained a lot more knowledge of music magazines.

Feminism in music magazines.

Feminism.

There are two types of feminism: liberal and radical. Liberal feminism is seeking equal rights. Radical feminism is seeking to change our society at a much deeper level and eradicate the patriarchy. "Patriarchy" is a vague term that refers to the historical privilege that men have had in most societies, which is so deeply ingrained that most people are completely unaware of its existence. Radical feminists do not want to kill men, don't hate them (many of them are married to men), and don't want to flip things around so dramatically that men are subordinate to women. They want true parity on a deeper level that cannot be legislated. For example, ending the disproportionate objectification of women in advertising. 

In this feminism is stereotypical of a woman as she is being shown as a sex icon and a tease to men. Lady GaGa is one of the most influential and powerful artists in media, doing this will give women confidence and a feel of power. Seeing such a powerful woman on a cover of a magazine showing flesh instantly brings your eyes to it, this is what the magazine intends to do. Alot of her videos show Lady Gaga as a dominant 

NME Institution research.

IN lesson today we watched the history of NME of why and how it became successful. This is a summary of what i have learned today -   

The paper's first issue was published on 7 March 1952 after the “Accordion Times and Musical Express”  was bought by Maurice Kinn, for £1,000. It was relaunched as the New Musical Express (NME). NME created the first UK singles chart.

During the 1960s the paper was the best for new British groups emerging at the time. The NME circulation was peaking under Andy Grey (Editor 1957-1972). The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were featured on the front cover frequently. During the 1960's some sections of pop music began to be designated as Rock. The paper became engaged in a sometimes tense rivalry with its fellow weekly music paper Melody Maker; the paper was selling as many as 200,000 issues per week, making it one of the UK's biggest sellers at the time.

In the 1970s it became the best-selling British music newspaper. It then became closely associated with punk rock through the writing of Tony Parsons and Julie Burchill.By the early 1970s, NME had began to lose sales to Melody Maker, as its coverage of music had failed to keep up to date with the development of rock music, particularly during the early years of psychedelia and progressive rock.

the mid-1980s NME had hit a bad patch in their history and was in danger of closing. During this, they were split between those who wanted to write about hip hop, a genre that was relatively new to the UK, and those who wanted to stick to rock music. Sales were apparently lower when photos of hip hop artists appeared on the front and this led to the paper suffering as the lack of direction became even more apparent to readers.

By the end of the 1990's,

 NME had started to report on new bands coming from the US. These bands would form a new movement called Grunge and by far the most popular bands were Nirvana and Pearl Jam.

In 2002 Conor McNicholas was appointed editor and a high turnover of young writers were brought in. It focused on new British bands such as The Libertines, Franz Ferdinand, Bloc Party and the Kaiser Chiefs who emerged as "indie music" continued to grow in commercial success. Later, Arctic Monkeys became the standard-bearers of the post-Libertines crop of indie bands. in the

2000s the NME also attempted somewhat to broaden its coverage again, running cover stories on hip-hop acts such as Jay-Z and Missy Elliott.