My final magazine after comments

After having a few comments on my final piece i launched on here some people spotted slight spelling mistakes and other errors. I then went through and changed these to make sure the magazine was up to scratch, like proof reading. Heres the final Document.

Evaluation

Please view on slideshare so the writing isn't too small.

Mediaeval

View more presentations from guest7058351.

Audience Feedback

Here are some of the comments i received from people after showing them my final completed magazine and the comments made after I had made the slight adjustments.

Your magazine is depressingly good. I'll try and find some bad things to say about it though.
You used photoshop really well - in particular on the double page spread, where everything is black and white apart from his shirt. This works really well. Your use of colour is consistent throughout - the blue, white and red theme is very strong and i like the fact that you used a lot of different fonts and sizes on the front cover without making it look like an overload of fonts.
Your main interview was great, and selecting quotes and sizing them up not only made them stand out, but also made the page look like a real magazine. There were spelling and grammar mistakes though.
I think my favourite aspect of the magazine was that you broke the contents down into the different genres of music - this is an original idea and worked very well.
One thing i maybe would have done differently is the masthead which i think could be bigger.
Awesome magazine. You deserve a really good grade.
-Jasmine

Its a very good magazine. I wouldn't have thought that there would be a intro article before the contents but it is a good way of introducing people to the magazine before they get too into it and makes you want to read more. I like the colours and they relate well to the other pieces in the mag. The text is occasionally a bit hard to read with all the lines through the text but i still quite like it and relates well to the rest of the text and magazine.
-Adam

Your magazine front cover is very eye catching and looks like a real cover! I like the choice of colours and the running theme of them throughout the magazine pages you've created. The photo's look very legit and good quality. The stories and sub mastheads have been thought about and chosen effectively to co-inside with the magazine's audience.
My favourite part of the magazine was the double spread page and the large image of the model and the font chosen to headline the page. It is very professional and looks like a lot of hard work has been put into the magazine! Well done :)
-Freya

The final PDF'd Magazine for easy viewing

To see the magazine, click the button with the 4 arrows going in different directions. To view the double page spread as it would be click the little button that looks like lots of little boxes.


FINAL MAGAZINE -

Contents of the magazine

I came up with a list of stories that could be contained in the magazine. I decided for the contents page that it would be split into stories mainly done by genre, so for example i would have 4 boxes all with different genres and stories in. The genre's that will be contained in my mock up issue will be; Metalcore(Bring me the horizon, Killswitch Engage, Bullet for my valentine) Rap(eminem, kanye west, Jay Z), Electronic(Hadouken, The prodigy, Faithless) and finally Indie(MGMT, Vampire Weekend, Franz Ferdinand)
These 4 categories will make up the magazine this time however there are tons of other genres i could have chosen.
The stories that i plan to have on my contents page are so far:
-Exclusive interview with James Dutton(This will be my double page spread that i will write about, it will also be one of the main features on my cover and the artist will also be my cover model)
Metalcore;
-Bullet for my valentine tour review
-Trip to the top interview with Killswitch Engage.
-DropDead clothing sneak preview and interview with Oli Sykes.
-What to look out for in festival season.
-J, Crank live.
Rap:
-Marshal Mathers; a true tale.
-Boom, Kanye and Jay z at this years music awards.
-What 2010 has in store for rap
-Context Mc, Climbing the charts

Electronic:
-Hadouken's favourite boys and girls
-How to start making your own electronic
-interview with the Prodigy's tour manager.
-css, crystal castles tour dates

Indie:
-James Dutton Exclusive
-Vampire Weekend, the latitude low down
-I hate Everything about you
-The kooks review
-Skanks, new album

Finally i decided to add a "news" catagorie for general articles, in this issue there would be:
-In the news
-Download line up confirmation
-The killers and their new album.

Front cover style

After picking the colour scheme for the magazine (purple, red, black and white) it was then time to pick a "look for it". I had looked at many other magazines, particularly music ones, and they all seemed to follow a very similar set of traits, for example Q magazine and kerrang are very similar;


Both have the main heading at the top of the page, they then have a very over powering, dominating image and then just a few sub headings of what is contained. This is like all magazines and the way the industry runs, therefore it is vital i stick to this theme however i don't need to make "mainstream" covers like these two. They are too similar for example they both have blocks at the top and bottom of the page with information, this isn't necessary and makes them too alike. The very capturing main headings positioned slap bang in the middle of the page is very eye catching and something i will consider when making my cover.

In terms of font they both use very similar types, looking through www.dafont.com there are several i have found that would be suitable for my magazine;
-action of the time AL
-Sex Pistols
- Fabianestem
-Bison
-Brad
-Delirium

Brainstorm of names

I decided i needed to come up with a variety of names for the magazine that I liked, I will then get people to vote of the name that they think is the most suitable.
All the initial ideas:
Made
Revolution
Mainstream
Twisted
Enlightened
Rough
The Loop
Gap
Mechanic
Editor
Multiple
Rampage
Etching
Switch
Originality
Chance

My favourites were:
The loop, chance, revolution and Switch
Ill get people to vote on which of these they think is best.
The results were:
The loop got 75% of the votes.
I liked this name because it could have several meanings for example, music runs in loops and cycles and the magazine will be keeping people "in the loop". How ever from looking at all over magazine and things you hardly ever see the word "the" in magazine titles so i will be calling my magazine "loop".

The Photoshoot

I took quite a few pictures of my model as i wanted to have quite a broad choice of pictures to edit and use. For the other little pictures in my magazine i tried to take them in a "natural setting" to make them look good and authentic.

Front cover test shots

View more presentations from guest7058351.

COLOUR RESEARCH

I decided that i needed to have a closer look at colour and what they represented; i felt this would help me make a more informed decision when choosing a colour scheme and everything to do with my magazine.

After reviewing all of the colours i decided a combination of:
Red because of its association with desire and strength
Purple because of its wisdom yet mystery
And finally black and white. black because of its sophistication, style and good technology colour.

I think these colours are all fairly uni-sex, non-specified genre and also eye catching.

Mood Board

What's already out there?

There are no actually "Multi-Genre Music Magazine" However i did find a website called Musique Machine; they are an online "magazine" style website although when i was looking it looked more like a blog as it had information about different types and things like MP3's and forums but there wasn't a great deal of articles and it didn't have the layout of a magazine. They did have a radio transmission from the website which i thought was a very good idea and could potentially be a media that would be most suitable to go with my product. Their magazine seemed a little too intense and serious; i wanted to be showing different genres in a fun way rather than taking it too seriously.
www.musiquemachine.com

I also came across another amateur "online magazine" BeepBoxx which again to me looked just like a blog; it had a variety of interviews and reviews which i liked, especially the reviews the use of album. track and gig reviews really give you an insight into how the bands perform recorded and live, i could use this type of thing in my magazine.

I did find some information on a magazine that apparently had been printed called M Music & Musicians that was planned to be printed 8 times a year; that would be a multi-genre magazine However after searching everywhere for it i couldn't find a copy anywhere and the website link i found for it didn't work.

To conclude there are currently NO printed Multi-genre music magazines.

Focus and Pitch

I wanted to find out who would be most interested in reading my multi-genre magazine, to conduct this research I decided to create a short questionnaire to give to people, I also felt it would be a good opportunity to also find out what would "go down well" in terms of content and general look of the proposed magazine. I asked people the following questions:

Name/Age
1)What would your view be on a multi-genre music magazine containing information of all sorts of different music styles and tastes?
2)Do you think that there is a gap in the market for such a product?
3)Do you think designated sections of the magazine assigned to certain types of genres sound like a good idea?
4)Would you consider buying such a magazine and why?

Initial ideas for my new music magazine

initial ideas -

Main Task Action Plan Recap

Main Task:
"The front page, contents and double page spread of a new music magazine"
-Initial ideas
-Focus and Pitch
-Mood boards
-Analysis of current music magazines
-Polls and quizes; market research and evaluations
-Photography test shots; different styles and moods.
-Research into fonts and colours for cover and contents.
-Create front cover
-Textual analysis of double page spread.
-Photos and manipulation for double page spread
-Double page spread created.
-Audience responses.
-Evaluation.

Feedback On My Mock Up

The mock Up

I changed a lot of the aspects that i had settled on as i found when actually creating the magazine cover things look more aesthetically pleasing that i hadn't originally considered. For instance, i changed the font of the mast head to "varsity" as I found it was a lot more college suitable and seemed to fit with the general theme of the magazine. I decided i would use the logo i had found as a sort of water mark on the front cover- I decided i would try and include it on every page as a sort of trade mark.


I also needed to create a mock up of the contents page; I used the adobe program Indesign as it's perfect for page layouts etc.

The "Quirky" Photoshoot

For the front cover i knew i wanted a picture that was some how related to schools and colleges however i wanted it to be really unique and unusual. It needed to be eye catching and needed to stand out on the shelf. I decided the best way to find and shoot the photo i wanted was to just get in the studio with a variety of unusual props and just get taking the pictures!
I knew a man who had a proffesional studio who had agreed to let me borrow it for a few hours, I chose a model of the right age range(16) and some slightly school like props such as blazers.
I took quite a few pictures which i put into a short presentation so it would be easier to view them.

Photo slideshow

View more presentations from guestc0666bfa.

Initial ideas for the school magazine.

Here are the initial ideas for the school magazine:

Some of the names i was thinking for, for the name of the magazine:
Result, Crowd,Scatter, Mail box, Radical,Frank, First Degree, Mutter, Essential, Update, Advance,Radical,Scholar & Definition.

Mast head Ideas(For the name RADICAL):


The final ideas i settled on was:
Main Image:
A shot set in a studio, female model, around the age of 16 or 17. The image should portray a school look but not to blatant, also she must not be wearing any specific logos.
Mast head:
I have decided to call the magazine Radical, It is something slightly different and also the feel of my magazine is going to be something completely different to what is currently on the market and i therefore think appropriate. I will use either a bright or navy blue colour.
I used the font Harabara which I found on www.dafont.com


Thinking of ideas I decided i wanted to use a logo as a sort of running theme, I could use it lightly behind the mast head on the front cover and like a stamp on the contents page. I found the image through google and thought i was suitable.

"School Moodboard"

Here are just a few initial ideas i thought of when I think of schools and colleges.

Textual Analysis of Magazines

A typical female teen Magazine:More! magazine is aimed at 16 to 24 year olds, slightly higher than my target audience but still relevant.

Magforum.com says "Most readers are single and at university or working and living at home."

Mast Head: The mast head is incredibly bold; it's a very bright pink which is obviously women applicable, the change in colour helps it to really stand out, the white "M" is a very much an attention grabber, the font used is sleek as is recurrent in all the issues of more, themes are very important in magazines for example the colour scheme used in more! is very bright colours but still feminine(the pinks etc).

Selling lines: The box to the top left is very useful as it gives an insight

Cover lines: The cover line of this issue is very much evident that it shall be focused on stacey solomon, it's not quite as bold as the title but the use of different fonts i think is really effective, its slightly more right on the page which seems to be obvious in a lot of high end magazines. The use of a celebrity as the cover story is also quite important as "celebrities sell".

Main Image: The main image is of a well known celebrity; it's relevant to the main story and it's very striking, it's in your face and its bright and bold. It would stand out on a shelf because of how she stands out on her blue-y background. It is true that all cover models are completely "perfect" and airbrushed

Other images: The images that relate to the fashion pages are also quite bold and eye catching, the small pictures of the women at the top are particularly attractive; they are showcasing what shall be inside of the magazine. The other little images of clothes and shoes give you an idea of

General thoughts: The overall layout of the front page is quite cluttered and very busy; this is a reflection of the contents of the magazine so it is a good cover. I personally wouldn't have used so many colours and it is slightly over powering but at least it would catch your eye on a magazine stack.

What makes a good magazine

What the internet has to offer on the subject:

-An image that sparks interest

-A guys mags need scantily clad gals on there, or guns or cars, or tools.

Women need weight loss tips, relationship suggestions, or some other topics that will assure them that help is on the way. They like to be taken care of, and if a magazine can promise that on its cover by well written informative articles, then they are likely to buy.

(Taken from www.askville.amazon.com)

-Never promise what you can’t deliver

-Never ask a question on the cover
-Cover lines can never be too big
-Cover words need to make sense
(Taken from onlinejournalismblog.wordpress.com)

What I think:

I would say a magazine needs an eye catching picture, however it should be relevant to the content of the magazine, the cover should have interesting cover-lines and mast head, it also must have an amazing selling line that would draw in customers.

I will be conducting a short poll on my blog to see what others think is the most important part of a "good" magazine. I shall post the results here when i have had sufficient responses.

Poll results:
From the question asked "what makes a good magazine" the answer that came back with the majority of votes((two thirds of all votes) was the cover image. I thought this would be the case as it is the image that catches your eye and makes you further investigate the magazine.

Initial Research into school and college magazines

School and College Magazines:

Most schools and colleges have magazines, they come in all different sorts. There are parents specified magazines or general magazines for both pupils and parents. They tend to have names that are somehow related to the school for example my school currently has a magazine called wyhigh, other magazine names include: highProfile, The review, Cool school.
There are currently no "all rounder" school magazines on the market, as in there isn't a a published magazine that apply to school children in general. This could be a potential gap in the market.This was just one example of a school magazine I found.

Target Audience:

There are a variety of different types of school system; 1st school, middle school and high school, alternatively there is prep school, prima
ry school and high school. After high school pupils have the opportunity to go onto further education 16+ such as 6th form and college.
This translates to ages from 4-18, such a wide audience would be impossible to cater for so I shall be focusing mainly on high school 11years-18years as they are the immediate market available to me, this will help with thoughts and feedback.


With such a vast amount of types of magazines and audiences i felt it would be appropriate to do some research into teen magazines aimed at 11-18 year olds. I felt it would be a good idea to research into female, male and unisex magazines.

ACTION PLAN

What needs to be done:

-Preliminary exercise:

"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"

-Initial Research into current school/college magazines:

-Are there any specific gaps in the market?

-Who the target audience are going to be?

-What makes a good magazine?

-Traits of successful magazines

-Textual analysis of at least 3 current magazines & contents pages

-Initial ideas of what's to be included in the magazine and on the front cover.

-Mood boards about content

-Test shots for the front cover

-Questionnaires/Polls (including results and analysis)

-Research into fonts and colours etc.

-Create a mock up of the front page.

-Audience feedback of my mock up.

TO BE COMPLETE BY AROUND 25th FEBRUARY

-Main Task:

"The front page, contents and double page spread of a new music magazine"

-Initial ideas

-Focus and Pitch

-Mood boards

-Analysis of current music magazines

-Polls and quizes; market research and evaluations

-Photography test shots; different styles and moods.

-Research into fonts and colours for cover and contents.

-Create front cover

-Textual analysis of double page spread.

-Photos and manipulation for double page spread

-Double page spread created.

-Audience responses.

-Evaluation.

Research into magazines and target audiences must be continued through-out.

EVERYTHING TO BE COMPLETE BY MARCH 30th