Working on PhotoShop

This is an image of me working on the front cover of my magazine on Photo shop. This shows that I am the one using this software.

Updated Contents and Front Cover

 

This is the updated version of my front cover. I feel like I need to change the top line of the cover as it cannot be read from a distance and the colour isn't really appealing. I feel I need to use the stroke option on this aspect.

 

This is the updated version of the contents page. I feel that it is more effective, however as the front cover has now changed in its design I need to add the updated image of the cover onto my contents page to replace this last version.

 

Adjustments to my Magazine?

My music magazine is in the latter stages of production and the making process. I like my magazine and feel that all the different elements of the magazine target my audience and also I feel that they follow the house style and that you would know that they all belong together. However I know that the different bits of my magazine can still be improved to make them even more effective.

 

 

This is a print screen of the front cover of my magazine. There is a lot that can be improved to make it more effective. The constructive criticism that I have received from my teacher is that I need to:

 

- Make the "LeniBros feature bigger and further up on the front cover to make it be viewed in greater prominance as it is the main feature.

 

- Move the "Free Glowing Rubber" further up the page.

 

- Move the text boxes underneath of the main story.

 

- Make the text boxes bigger and also change the way that they are.

How will I attract my Audience?

In my music magazine pitch I said that I will try to target my audience through the use of "15 Greatest Poses/Dance Moves". These poses were in my original plan going to be performed by a a member of my target audience, but I didn't have a reason why I wanted this to be so.

These different poses were to be performed by someone that is representative of my audience and I have used this to make my audience wish to buy the magazine and also feel connected with the magazine through first seeing this on the left hand side of the magazine as it is clearly aimed at them.

I have also in my contents page included a bigger picture of the girl on the front and explained next to this in a caption that she is a contest winner and this meant that she was able to be on the front cover and on the contents page. This I also believe could inspire other members of the audience to want to apply for these contests to have their chance to be on the front cover of an actual magazine.

 

This is, I also believe, a way in which my magazine is different from others as it feels inclusive to them as they are getting opportunities to become on of those people.

DPS - Improvements

I have been improving my double page spread too both from criticism from my teacher and myself.

 

This is a print screen of all the improvements I have made on my DPS. I have added some random facts over the the pictures of both Roan and Austen and I have also quoted Roan's joke about the snow over the pictures of both of them. This was to make sure that the double page spread didn't look boring and also to keep my target audience interested on the page.

 

I also feel that I should change the colour of of the page numbers to keep consistent with the housestyle I created on the contents page.

Contents Page - More Improvements

The contents page for my magazine was improved a lot yesterday. However  I do feel that it can be improved more to become more effective and look more astetically pleasing to the eye.

I also have recieved feedback on my contents page from various different sources such as my teacher and my parents who told me that with a few teaks to my contents page it can become more effective. I was told to create more space under the headings of each of the sections of the contents page and I was also told that I could align all of the different lists of contents with the headings too.

In this printscreen. In this  I am aligning all my contents pages and the text boxes together to make sure that they are in a straight line, I am using the grid option on photo shop to help me to do this. This was an idea raised by my teacher.

This is my contents page with everything adjusted on it.

Using Stroke

As I want my front page to stand out I have been using the stroke tool on most of the words on the front cover to make sure that the front can be read and stand out.

Before:

 

 

Using Stroke:

 

 

After:

I have learnt from this that the stroke option is good to use especially on the front cover of my magazine to make things stand out to my audience and also make it even more readable through adding contrast to their background. This especially applies to the yellow colouring of my name.

Removing Background - Cover

I wanted to fade out the background of the image on the front cover of my music magazine to blend in to the actual background of the cover. I used the removing background tool to do this.

I also accompanied this with the use of cutting down the picture and adding feathering to the outside to get the blended and faded look.

Using the Magnetic Lasso Tool

I have used the magnetic lasso tool throughout my magazine especially on the contents page for the clothes pictures.

This is a before picture of the jumper with the glasses and moustache. I wanted to cut the background away from the picture as the background isn't very interesting. The magnetic lasso tool can be used for this and can take away the background of the picture.

This is a print screen of me performing the magnetic lasso tool at the beginning.

This is a print screen of the finished version of the picture. After I finished using the magnetic lasso tool and used a layer via cut tool. I also made sure that when I choose the layer via cut option I also make sure that the cut picture is feathered through 5 pixels.

This is the print screen of the finished version of the picture after the effects of the magnetic lasso tool and the layer via cut. This is the picture that will be being used in my music magazine and on my contents page.

Improved Contents Page

I have spent most of today improving my contents page as this needed the most work done to it. I believe that all the changes that I have made makes the magazine look better and more professional I believe it will also attract my potential audience as I believe it gives them what they need.

 

I have learnt from this that making a contents page more effective means being able to place them in an entertaining way for my audience to be able to find their way to the different pages, but also make sure that I know what the priority of the contents page is which is to show the different things that are featured within the magazine.

 

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I need to spell check this as some of the names of the artists are spelt wrong.

 



Things that would be included in my magazine - contents

To attract my audience I decided to use the theory constructed by Blumer and Katz 1974 and Dennis McQuail to help me.

Personal Relation

The interviews in the magazine target this aspect of the theory and especially can be seen through the feature in my double page spread as they had made it to being 'famous' from just loving their music.

The sense of belonging is used throughout the whole of the magazine especially through the message from the editor and

Personal Identity

I have included an element of this through some of the articles that are featured within the music magazine. There are models for behaviour seen through the interviews and also through all of the different pop stars that I have featured.

There is also a sense of personal identity brought into the magazine through the tone and also the way that the editor is talking to them like they are part of a family.

I have also included a feature "fandoms our pop stars belong to" this is a part of my target audiences identity. This is because I was targeting those that like belonging to a type of group and this I feel targets them and would show them that they can still favour that group as their favourite pop star likes this too.

Information - Surveillance

This is appeased through the use of the gossip sections of the magazine and would target my audience as they like to know different and quirky information about their musical stars.

Continuity of Magazine

To help me to create my magazine contents page and place all the different features of my magazine underneath the different headings of "Interviews", "Gossip", "Posters", "Look like a Pop Star" and "Fun Stuff" I decided to create a whole running order of what the magazine would look like.

I put all of the ideas into a word document with all the different page numbers that they would run on for by the side. This helped me to know the different page numbers and be able to place them within my contents page.

 

I have learnt from doing this that it is easier to make sure that I have all of the different things included in my contents on on piece of paper so that I know what is different.

Photo Shoot - "Look Like a POP Star"

I decided I need more photos for my contents page so as to aim to my target audience and also make sure that all the writing on the contents page doesn't really seem a lot. Therefore I have decided to take some more photos and put them under the feature of "look like a POP star". I have gained this idea from the analysis of other magazines contents pages.

 

This is an image of a Hara Juku perfume bottle, I have chosen this perfume bottle as it is a unique perfume and also is more interesting to look at than other perfume bottles. I have also chosen the brand of Hara Juku as it is a very popular brand to have and many people collect the bottles, it also does link with my target audience as is seemingly popular and many girls will know what this is. I have chosen to use this image in my contents page because of the reasons stated above, however I will be cutting the background out of this image with the magnetic lasso tool as I feel that the background does detract from the actual image.

 

This is an image of some shorts from New Look. New Look is a big brand of clothes and these clothes are popular with my target audience. I have also decided to use an image of shorts as they are quite stylish, but also I am anticipating the weather to become warmer when the magazine will actually become published (April). I have chosen to use this image in my contents page because of the reasons that I have stated above,  I will be cropping out the background of this image with the magnetic lasso tool as I think that the background will clash with the colours I am using within the magazine.

 

 

This is an image of a jumper that has glasses and a moustache it is from New Look. This clothing brand is very popular with my target audience and the pattern on the front is used and referenced very often within popular culture recently. I have chosen to use this image within my contents page because of the reasons above and I will, like the other photos, be cropping out the background from the image with the magnetic lasso tool as the background is of a carpet and isn't the right colour for my magazine.

Idea's from Analysis of Content's Pages

As my contents page is the least effective and basic looking of the drafts of my magazine I have chosen to focus on mostly the contents pages of Just POP and The Latest to give me inspiration to help to make my contents page look better and appeal to my target audience much more.

• Both contents pages separate their contents into different sections such as "the latest fun", "the latest style", "posters" and "pop giveaways". I can use this within my magazine to help my target audience be able to navigate their way to the pages they wish to access and read.

• Both contents pages use graphics i.e. Just POP use a splat grapic to highlight pages they think are of most interest. Whereas The Latest just use boxes to highligh to their audience of the different things they want them to draw their attention to. I will use graphics on my contents page to highlight the different sections of the contents to help the reader of the magazine to navigate their way through.
• Both contents pages include a section where they show popular fashion for their readers so that they can dress like their favourite stars. I like this idea and feel that I can use this in my own magazine through showing popular fashion worn casually by pop stars.
• I like the way in which The Latest has some of the features on their contents page slightly slanted to one side. I think I will use this on my contents page to add more interest to my potential readers and make it astetically pleasing to the eye.
• Both contents pages use all available space and makes the magazine full of things to excite their readers. I need to make sure that my magazine contents seems to be full of different articles to appeal to my readers and uses all the space available.
• The Latest magazine uses a message from the editor and it is quite thin and is slanted down the side so that it can fit, it also uses an image at the top. I like this idea and feel that I can use this idea on my contents page with my message from the editor.
• Both magazines use a kind of foot note for the address of the magazine and who the different people in the magazine are (in The Latest they have nicknames for each one of them and adds to their inclusiveness). I feel that I can possibly use this idea within my contents page to make it look more professional.

I feel that all the codes and conventions used within these two contents pages that use these to be so effective, if used on my contents page will help me to create a successful and effective contents page for my music magazine Lyrical, which will help to engage my target audience and also make sure that its primary use can be easy to use.

The Latest - Magazine Analysis

'The Latest' is not a music magazine, however it does target the same target audience that I am seeking through my pop music magazine 'Lyrical' so in this analysis I will be looking at what they do to target their audience through the front cover, contents page and their double page spread.

This is the front cover of 'the Latest' magazine. It uses a lot of photo's on the front page of the magazine and this attracts their audience as they are making known that they are a magazine targeted at girls who are part of the "Twihard fandom". I can make sure that my selling point is known to my potential customers through the use of the front cover and the different photo's I use. The front cover of this magazine also utilises the use of graphics to highlight to the audience of the different things they are offering them within their magazine. I can use this more on my front cover to make sure that all my offers can be seen by my potential audience.

This is the contents page of 'the Latest' and it looks quite packed of all different stories that will interest their audience members. It includes fun and quizzes such as "is he the one?" and "cringey stories". I can use these ideas in my magazine although link them to pop music. The contents page also sorts it's contents page into different sections to help their audience navigate their way through the magazine to find what they want to look at. The contents page continues it's use of graphics onto the contents page too and this targets their audience as they don't want to scan through different information to find the things that were shown on the front page. I can use this in my contents page as a way to help my audience will know where to go.

This is the double page spread included within this magazine. It makes the readers of the magazine have no doubt that this magazine includes different things from a movie through the use of the graphic at the top of this, I can use a graphic on my double page spread to make sure that my readers are in no doubt after they have read my magazine that it is a pop music magazine. This double page spread also makes sure that it basically uses only pictures and little words as possible, I can use this within my music magazine and try to add more photo's where possible.

The Interview Pages - these are not in a double page spread however the language which is used is almost quite unique and adds to the fact that the audience reading this magazine feel like a community. This is what I will try to emanate throughout my whole magazine.

Just POP - Magazine Analysis

This front cover uses minimal text on the front cover of the magazine, due to their target audience which is the same as mine. I can learn from this and apply it to my music magazine and make sure that the writing on the front doesn't detract from the images used. The magazine makes use of the bottom and the top line of the magazine, I may think of using this on my front cover as it is a general convention of Pop music magazines. The price of the magazine is shown in a graphic and also makes it stand out from the page, I can use this for my magazine. I notice that all the different features noted on the front cover are each made clear through being put into a graphic, I can learn from this and apply it to my magazine so as to make the features clear and stand out to my prospective audience.

This magazine utilises all of the space on the page which makes it seem quite packed with information. This is a good trait to the magazine and would make the audience eager to read it. The contents page is actually quite filled with pictures which is yet again aimed at their audience as this audience don't really wish to read much. This can help me develop my contents page as it doesn't use that many images and doesn't really look exciting and appealing especially for my target audience. The actual contents is put into different categories and is easy for readers of the magazine to use and help them find the different features. There is a lot of different graphics and colours used on this contents page to make it appealing and different, I will try to use this within my contents to make my target audience engaged with the product.

This is the double page spread that is inside Just POP. It uses mainly just two colours blue and yellow, I like this as it doesn't detract from what the artists are saying in the interview and also makes the page seemingly appealing to read. It uses graphics and text boxes for the interview to be held in, this is a feature which I have already used within my double page spread, but maybe I need to use a bit more graphics other than boxes. 

My Audience Profile

My Evaluation of my Front Cover

Good Points

• I feel like I have established a house style on the front cover in terms of the use of the different fonts and colours.

• I feel like the left hand side of the front cover is good and effective in being able to attract customers.

• I like the way that the front cover is set out.

Bad Points

• There are quite a few things that I can improve upon to make my front cover more appealing and effective.

• It could be improved through making the left hand side of the front cover thinner so that the picture can be seen more.

• The different articles down the right hand side can be changed and made bigger so that people looking at the magazine can read them.

• I feel that the bubble including “with free glowing rubber” needs to be moved up a bit.

• With the logo of LeniBros I feel that it needs to look a bit bigger.

• I think that the picture at the back needs to enhanced through possibly changing the back ground however I do feel like the back picture does look good.

My Evaluation of my Contents Page

 

Good Points

• I feel that my contents utilises the house style of blue, pink and yellow.

• I also feel that my header for my contents page.

Bad Points

• There are quite a few things that I need to improve, for my contents page to look professional and as if it is from a proper magazine.
• The picture of the front cover of the magazine used on the contents is too big, this means that there is very little space for anything else to be used on the contents page. This needs to be altered so as to make sure that I can add more things onto my contents page and also make it look more professional.
• The message from the editor bit of the front cover needs to be altered as it is too big and includes too much. I feel it needs to be in a text box so as to make sure that it is smaller.
• The actual contents are too small to be seen as actually from a real magazine so it needs to be changed I will be linking the features of the magazine to the theory of Uses and Gratifications produced by Blumer and Katz in 1974 and improved again by Dennis McQuail.

My Evaluation of my DPS

Good Points

• I feel that the layout of the pages are good and look as if they belong together.
• I feel that I have followed the house style.
• I have added a concise description of the band.

Bad Points

• There are a few grammatical errors and missing words included within my DPS at this point. This will be changed so that it is professional and will make it better.
• I can also make sure that my magazine follows the house style through changing the colour of the page numbers to that seen on the contents page. I also feel that I need to put a pink under box across the bottom informing my readers of where they can buy their album.
• I also feel due to feedback I will add a pull quote from one of the interviews to make sure that the space is filled.

Lyrical Magazine: First Draft

These are the drafts of my pop music magazine 'Lyrical' at this stage, they are fairly complete however the contents page looks a little bit less complete and different from the standards of the front cover and double page spread. These include the front cover, contents page and the double page spread. I believe that they all look like they are from the same magazine through the use of the house style and do also link to the pop music genre.

I have also made sure that I have been linking the different designs and features to my intended audience through the use of talk as though I am communicating with them.

Work in Progress DPS

This is a print screen of the work in process double page spread. This is the layout in which I will want my double page spread to look like. However I do feel that I need to change the background colour to the blue colour used on the contents page, this will link in with the house style. I need to add text boxes for the interviews to be put in; these will be situated next to the picture of the corresponding model for the band LeniBros. I also feel like I need to change the left hand side of the page as I don’t feel that it is aesthetically pleasing to the eye, I will place an interview next to these pictures. I also need to add a caption to the varied pictures of the models which will be on the left hand side of the interview to both of the brothers of the band. I believe that once these are addressed my double page spread will look good.

Updated Front Cover

This is a print screen of the front cover of the updated version of my music magazine. I have added the picture of 'LeniBros' and used it as the front covers main picture.

Photo Shoot for LeniBros

Today I did my photo shoot for the pictures of the boy band LeniBros and will be included in the double page spread and also the front cover of my music magazine. These feature both posing and random images of of the two models.

I needed to have different photo's of them in different clothes and different backgrounds. I also made sure that they wore something resemblant of many pop bands, I also made sure that they changed their clothing at least twice so as to make sure that they looked different like they do within all magazines. Especially when they went out in the snow I made sure that they wore coats.

This photo is of the two boys posing in the snow. This is a good photo however I will not use this photo as it is quite similar to others and looks very posed.

This is a picture of one of the boys posing for an image. This looks casual and he has got his eyes open a bit more. I will be using this image in my double page spread for an image to accompany the interview.

This is an image of the boys posing for another image. This is a good image, however I have decided not to use this image within my magazine as it looks too much the same as other pictures.

This is a picture of one of the boys posing for a shot, this doesn't look natural and he was mucking around. This will not be used in my music magazine.

This is an image of to two models having fun and is a natural image with actual expression. This would make the audience relate to them as they are doing what people generally do even though they are pop stars.

This is an image of the boys in the snow having fun. I will be using this image in my double page spread to show the band having fun.

This is a picture of one of the boys posing questioningly. This picture doesn't really fit with what I wanted for the double page spread and I will not be using this image in my music magazine.

This photo is of one of the boys and he is posing. This looks like a natural pose and he is smiling. I will therefore use this image within my double page spread.

This image is of one of the boys and he is standing with his band behind his back. This picture is good, however with his hands behind his back it does look like that he is constricting himself and not wanting to talk. This photo also looks very formal and this isn't what I want in my music magazine so I will not be using this image.

This is a photo of the two boys together. It looks really informal makes them seem that they are at home with the situation. This photo also utilises the use of intimate space proxemics which means that the audience will know straight away that they are either brothers or very close friends and this will make them more likable. For these reasons I have decided to use this image as my main image on the front cover. However I will cut out the fact that they are wearing socks which makes the image seem unprofessional.

This is an image of one of the boys posing casually against a wall. This is a good photo, however although he isn't blinking his eyes are definitely not open as wide as they were in the other photo above of the same pose. This is the reason why I have not chosen this photo to be in my magazine.

This is a photo of both of the boys posing, however this doesn't look like a natural pose and possibly uncomfortable. This is the reason why I have chosen not to use this image in my music magazine.

This is an image of both of the boys together and posing. This photo will not be used within my music magazine as one of the boys is making a face and the other is blinking so this will not be used.