Contents Page Construction

 This is my first screen grab  it was taken about  45 minutes into my first lesson on my contents page. I used the same font called 'Elektrodisiac' as I did for my masthead on my front cover. I wanted to keep my music magazine style running throughout my pieces. This is the reason why I still used purple and white as my main colours because these are the colours I used on my front cover. So far i have fit my picture onto an A4 sized dimension file. I have also included my contents page. I also included my main cover line which links into my only image used on my front cover. 

This is my second screen grab of my contents page.  I have included a banner in the top right corner to fill up the space. I also started testing with the font and colours I am going to use for my contents page text. Personally I am very happy with how the layout looks. Some other cover lines that I am going to use. Here are a few examples : I.D Lounge, Interview with Matt White - Talks about his positives and negatives of his relationship and his past. 

                                                                              This is my third screen grab of my contents page. It shows how far I have developed my contents page. You can see that it is really starting to take place. I have included most of my cover lines and extra text. 

For the numbers I again have used the same font 'Elektrodisiac.' with FX on them to create the white glow. The settings used were:

White glow, Opacity 75, Spread 6, Size 21, Range 50.

For my cover line font I again used the same font for my cover lines that were on my front page called 'Thornburi." I chose this font because its easily readable. 

This is my fourth screen grab for my contents page. I finished off adding my cover lines and added a border at the bottom of my page, this was influenced by Q music magazines layout. I also included my music magazine website at the bottom of the page and my logo from my front cover.
I think I will try and improve my page by moving the banner to under the contents page and putting in its place a screen grab of my music magazine which again is influenced by Q.

Contents Page Image

This is the image I am going to use for my contents page, I have chosen to use this image because it was taken at a concert and links in with the indie genre. I am going to include a relevant pull quote or cover line with this image, with a page number next to it.
The reason I believe this image will work is because of the black background. The black and white image follow my colour theme for my magazine and the writing will also be white and purple to continue the colour theme.
An idea for the cover line is - "YMA6 release new single - Rescue Me"

Diary

What I Did Today ... 21/01/11

Today I finished off my music magazine front cover. I uploaded step by step screen grabs to show my progress  through out creating my front cover. In the final shot I wrote about the improvements I made. To complete my construction of my front cover I finally made a post including only my final front cover.

Final Front Cover

Final Change

After going back to my previous work I decided that I wasn't competely happy with my final front cover. I felt that there was more I could do with the left over space and gaps available. As well as experiment with the font some more. So this is what I did. I moved around the layout of my cover lines. I started off by making my main cover line bigger, which was also the feature artist. I added a box to make the quote stand out. I also added a few more cover lines to make the page look 'busier' hence making it more conventional. I also experimented with different fonts so that the text did not look so similiar. The new and changed front cover will be my final front cover.

Diary

What I have done today 14/01/2011...
Today I started work on my music magazine front cover. I have used Photoshop to do this. I completed my masthead and barcode and have started work on my cover lines. Next week I will continue work on my cover lines and add a puff/plug.

Front Cover Construction

This is my first draft of my front cover this was taken roughly about 45 minutes into the lesson.  I had uploaded my photo into Photoshop and included my barcode, which I dragged from .
I also started work on my magazine logo. The font I used for my masthead was called 'elektrodisiac' because the font was so thin I layered 4 pieces of the same text near each other to 'bulk' up my magazine name and make it bolder.  So far the tools I had used were the text tool and the rounded rectangle tool.






This is my second draft this was taken about 1 hour and 30 minutes into the lesson. I completed my barcode by adding the issue month, price, website and issue number.
I also added my tagline 'Independent Identity' to my masthead. The font I used for this was called Gill Sans.
I also made a start on my cover lines I used a deep purple font colour because purple is part of my colour scheme, however the writing did not stand out very well so I added a white outer glow to make it stand out. I believe this effect has worked.




This is my third print screen of my front cover. This was taken half way into my second lesson on my front cover. I added a pull quote and another cover line. All of them are still in a purple coloured font because i wanted to continue my colour theme. The font I used on all my cover lines was called 'Thornburi'.  I also included a puff/plug in the bottom left hand corner.








For the last half of the lesson i wanted to improve my magazine. I moved the puff/plug too the top right hand side because it covered some of the gap that was there. This meant that I had room on my left third, so I added another tag line "New Found Musical Mysteries" and then spread my cover lines out.

Front Cover Image

 These 3 images show the stages of my editing. I edited my images on Photoshop CS4.
The smaller image is my original image. My first step of editing was correcting the contrast and colour by using 'Auto Contrast' and 'Auto Colour'. I then needed to get rid of the shadowing so using the 'Spot Healing Tool', 'Healing Brush Tool', 'Eyedropper Tool' and the brush tools with various sizes and hardness.
The next stage was to soften the face I did this by removing blemishes and then using the blur tool to create a smooth looking texture.
The final steps to create my final image were, firstly, I wanted to create dark corners of my image so I copied the layer as a 'curves' layer. Set the curves so the page was black I then used the radial gradient tool and drew a line from the centre of my image to the edge. This created the dark edging effect, however it also darkened my image. So the second final stage was to brighten the image and increase the contrast. Finally I flattened the layers and this was my final image. (the image on the right-hand side of the page.)
Overall to create my final edited image it took around an hour and a half. I am pleased with my final image and am going to use this as my final image for my front cover on my music magazine.

Diary

What I did today 13/10/2011
Today I uploaded my initial ideas brainstorm for my music magazine. I also wrote out and uploaded my proposal as well as creating and making my flat plans for my front cover, contents page and double page spread. I uploaded my plan for my photoshoot after taking a picture with my camera, which I did a few days ago and then wrote about what I had chosen. I also uploaded my images for my front cover for my music magazine.

Photoshoot For Front Cover

Photoshoot Planning

Here is my planning for my photoshoot I listed clothing, and props. I knew I wanted to use a male model and for me there MUST be eye contact between the model and the camera. I showed my set-up for the photoshoot this included the model to be against a background which I narrowed down to using a plain wall background. I listed the type of poses the model could do and my possible lighting techniques when it would come to the shoot. My main inspiration for my photoshoot came from this photograph.

Flat Plans

These flat plans are used to help and aid you to create your music magazine via a simplistic way to show how you would like your magazine layed out. I used a separate word documents to create all 3 flat plans. Then I have print screened them from the word document and saved it as a JPG so I am able to upload it to my blog. My flat plans are only a guidance and after our Preliminery Task of creating a College Magazine I have learnt and adapted to the fact that you may need to tweek a few things during the production stage for some reason or another e.g it may not be visually appealing or all fit correctly on the page.
Front Cover Flat Plan

This first flat plan is for my music magazine front cover. I made the piece look visually appealing by adding colour to it. I chose to do this not only to make it look visually appealing but too show a clear difference where what conventions of a magazine were going where.
Influenced by the MixMag front cover I wanted to keep my magazine front cover 'clutter' free and neat, tidy and clean. Hence why there are only a few cover lines, I also do not want my cover lines to overlap with my front cover image to the point where it will obstruct my model.

Contents Page Flat Plan
This is a flat plan for my contents page. I was influenced by the contents page on the left because i liked the idea of the photo taking up the whole page. It makes the page look full without having to be over crowded by text or lots of pictures.
I want a cover line to link with the image but I want this certain cover line away from the others so it is easily visible.
I also specified a cover line for my feature story which will be on my double page spread. When I come to make my contents page i will have my feature story a different colour, etc so it stands out from the other cover lines. All of my cover lines will contain a page number.

Propsal

Who are you aiming your magazine at?
I have chosen teenagers aged between 15-17 to be my target audience because I believe this is the age group that listen to music more so and are more likely to buy and read music magazines, as well tell their friends about the magazine. However there is a possibility to sell to young adults, I will do this by making the magazine look simple and modern so it appeals to them.

What will your music magazine be about?
My music magazine will be about Indie music specifically, but may include some rock music to widen the audience the magazine could sell too. Making selling figures rise. The typical content included will be all the things I listed in my initial ideas these are:

• Up and coming artists
• Gigs
• News feed
• Letters to the publisher
• Interviews
• Top artists
• Top songs
• Band break ups

What title have you decided on and why?
My chosen title is 'I.D' which stands for Independent Identity which will be my slogan. I chose this because Indie means Independent which can also stand for the I in 'I.D' and then I chose identity at the end because 'I.D' means identity. Overall I think this will work for my music magazine title because Indie kids also like to have their own identity and try not to be like everybody else or listen to the music that everybody listens to.
I didn't want my magazine to have a long name because on the front of my magazine I want the picture to take up the majority of the room and having a shorter and 'snappy' title will stick in peoples minds.
I chose to reject the rest of my ideas because to me their didn't seem to be any reason or thought behind them.

What fonts do you want to use



This is the font that i want to use for my masthead. It can be found on photoshop and is called Elektrodisiac.






This is my second favourite font. I am going to use this font for my cover lines because it is clear. This is a Sans Serif font. I have chosen this style of font because it is modern and I want my magazine to be modern and look fresh and new.




What colours do you think you will use?
Out of the colours I listed on my initial ideas the ones that stand out to me the most are the Purple & Black or Purple & White. I have chosen these colours because they will stand out if one was to be on top of the other. I have decided on purple because I think it is a unisex colour and both genders will not be put off by it. They are also colours that are not associated with a certain holiday or stereotype and they can be used all year round.

What are your ideas for tag lines?
As mentioned before my tag line will be 'Independent Indentity'.

When in the year will it be published?
The first issue will be published on the first day of the year which means the date near the barcode will be 1st January 2011. Because it is being published at the this time I will include cover lines that reflect the time of year.

What kind of image do you expect to put on the front cover? How does this relate to my chosen genre?
My chosen image I want on my front cover will be studio like. I want a plain background, I chose this because of the front covers used on the magazine called 'Indie' the majority of their front covers are simple and clean. I will get my model to pose using nothing but their facial expressions this again is influenced by the magazine 'Indie'. I would like my model to be a male because I am going to use a cover line about male clothing sales. I also think it would be easier to show an indie male rather then dress up and do the make up for an indie girl. My main idea is to get my model to be wearing or using headphones because this then relates to music.

How much will your magazine sell for?
After doing my audience research I learnt that people don't buy magazines because they are sometimes too expensive. The average price for a magazine is about £2. Therefore i have chosen my selling price to be £1.50 because i think this is reasonable for both parties.

How frequently will it be published?
It will be published monthly on every first day of the month.

What are the dimensions of the cover?
My chosen dimensions for my music magazine will be A4, I chose it to be A4 because it is the most common size for a magazine and is easy to hold and read.

What are your ideas for cover lines?

• New years discounts
• Top 10 bands of 2010
• Musical Mysteries
• "His attitude is what made the band split" - You Me at Six
• WIN gig tickets
• Whats hot / Whats new

Initial Ideas

Here is a brainstorm of my initial ideas for my own music magazine. I know that my magazine is going to be Indie genre based. I created the brainstorm using a word document.
The next step is to narrow these ideas down which I will do in my proposal next.

Diary

What I did today 12/01/2011

Today I have added information to my post The Representation Of The Indie Genre, this people places in which indie kids hang out. I again included photos from the Internet to back up my thoughts.

What I did today 11/1/2011

Today I researched and wrote up about the representation of the indie genre and included in this pictures of typical/stereotypical clothing that indie kids would wear. I also created and uploaded a slideshow on inspirational photos to help me start on my own music magazine front cover photoshoot.

Indie Front Cover Image Ideas

Check out this SlideShare Presentation: My chosen music magazine genre I have decided to do is the indie genre. Here is a slide show showing photographs of indie people or indie styled photos that will help me with my front cover shoot. I have also annotated as to why I have chosen to include these pictures. I created this slideshow firstly by creating an account on a website called slideshare. I then made my slideshow on microsoft powerpoint on the mac. I then embedded the video by clicking on the 'share to blogger' button which then embedded the slideshow into a new post.

Indie Front Cover Image Ideas

View more presentations from amyscarlettasmedia.

The Representation Of The Indie Genre

What Indie people wear...
Indie people have their own stereotypical way of dressing, or at least if someone dresses in a certain way we class them as Indie. Indie is often referred to as meaning 'individual'. As I have mentioned before being indie often means you follow the independent music scene, however it also means you often follow the indie culture and lifestyle. The lifestyle includes going to many festivals and gigs and listening to music from independent artists. A stereotypical view of indie kids is that they like 'obscure and random' things, they often sing or play acoustic guitar and spend a lot of time on www.myspace.com and are often into art or photography. Here are a few outfits that I have created by using a website called http://www.polyvore.com/ I created the outfits after researching online the correct clothing style, then using the 'Grab' tool on the macs I chose 'selection' then copied the final outfit image. Later uploading it up onto this blog post.
These are the outfit for females...


Indie Outfit Number 1
The first and most probably the common style includes:

• A check shirt also known as a flannel shirt
• Skinny jeans
• A loose baggy top
• A 'festival' styled hat
• Military/vintage boots

Indie people often wear vintage clothing to make themselves look individual and not like everybody else.






Indie Outfit Number 2
The second style I have chosen is the 'oversized' style. This is where they wear clothing that is too big for them. This outfit includes:

• An over sized plain vest
• An over sized 'knitted' style cardigan
• Obscure leggings
• Black high tops
• Headband

This kind of outfit would include a belt that would sit on their waist, to show a part of their figure. The over sized style often comes from hand-me downs or clothing that they borrow from their grandparents or parents.







Indie Outfit Number 3

This is the festival outfit, which an indie kid would often wear to a summery festival. Another stereotypical view is that indie girls like to look after themselves and their body so they are often thin or averagely sized. Hence why this outfit includes...

• Short Shorts
• A floral vest
• Knee high socks 
• Patterned wellies
• Straw hat with ribbon

This outfit would be completed with necklaces and jewellery and statement big sunglasses, possibly aviators.




However polyvore does not include male clothing. The typical indie male would also wear a flannel style top, much like the females and skinny jeans, possibly ripped skinny jeans.
Other tops they would wear include: A vintage tee, a plain v neck, a grandad top, they often wear cardigans instead of hoodies unless they are vintage or blazers. Often only seen in fitted black or blue jeans, however neutral coloured trousers and corduroys are being seen more often. Shoes would often be plimsolls, moccasins, high tops (vintage) or boat/deck shoes. And often wear accessories. Here is a photograph of a 'typical' indie kids.

Indie Kid Places...
A typical indie place would be at a festival for example like Glastonbury.

Graffitied undergrounds or places. Areas like Camden Market in London where there are local gigs, clothing shops, oxygen bars, and especially vinyl market stalls but generally Camden is a place where everybody sits down, relaxes and socialises with everyone.

Music Magazine Sector

This information and figures I got from http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/feb/11/mojo-q-nme-kerrang-abcs 

"Recently in February last year Mojo overtook Q as the UK's top-selling music magazine. Mojo is published by Bauer, Mojo is a classic rock magazine and last February in 2010 the magazine had an average monthly circulation of 98,484 in the second half of last year, down 2% year on year but up 0.8% on the previous six months. Where as Q dropped 8% year on year."

This clearly shows that overall the two top music magazine sellers in February 2010 their figure and selling percentages have dropped year on year, quite dramatically. I think this is due to the reason that everything included in a music magazine, like gossip or gigs can all be found on the internet for free. 

In August 2010 IPC Media and their magazine NME sales also went down quite dramatically, 17.3% in the first half of 2010. The music magazine used to have a weekly circulation of 33,875. However IPC Media as a company their total figures went down 3.3% to 5,738,111.Here are some music magazine percentages showing the year-on year change. I got these figures from here... http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=45844&c=1

The green shows if there was a percentage increase in the sales. Red shows if there was a percentage decrease in sales and blue shows no increase or decrease in sales. the figures show their magazine sales numbers.

The Fly - 108,207 (0.4%)

Mojo - 91,678 (-6.2%)

Q - 89,450 (-10.7%)

RWD -78,867 (1.7%)

Uncut - 74,067 (-3.2%)  

Classic Rock - 70,323 (0.0%)

Metal Hammer - 44,034 (-4.3%)

Kerrang! - 44,013 (1.8%)

New Musical Express - 33,875 (-17.3%)

Diary

What I did today 7/1/2011

I conducted research into the current state of the music magazine sector. This includes selling statistics and titles. I discovered that sales figures are falling more so than growing, I also wrote why I believe that the music magazine industry is failing. As well as adding a new gadget to my blog for audience research, I created a poll and asked "What is your favourite genre of music?"

Audience Research

Views On Music Magazines
Using Facebook I asked people "What are their views on music magazines?" and here are a few answers that I recieved.
"Honestly, they are slightly boring, I guess they're okay to let you know when gigs are and thats it."- Matthew Whitehead, 18.
"To be honest, I have never read one in my life." - Holly Shooter, 17.
"I don't read them, they cost too much." - Sam Tremlett, 17.
"I like them,they're good and inform you about gigs and stuff and you get sexy posters." Emily Fry-Sheehan, 16.
"I am the most shocking person to ask, I read fashion magazines. They're good for hearing about new music and other peoples opinions and also hearing about new concerts and stuff." - Caitlin Martin, 17.
"I do not read them because they don't really interest me that much." - Chris Scarlett, 17.

I focused on asking people in the late teenage group, because this is the age group that I am going to aim my own music magazine at.


Music Poll
I created a poll to conduct some audience research. I used a gadget on blogger to create a modern looking poll with multiple choices. I wanted to use a computerized way to research instead of, for example a questionnaire to show my skills with using computer software. As well as to show my confidence using blogger. My poll was placed on the left hand side sidebar, at the top of my blog. I chose here because it is easy to find and get to.

 Here is a print screened and cropped view of my music poll. After giving the poll two weeks, I received a number of votes. I allowed my voters to pick multiple choices if they wanted, however I could not see whether they had chosen one answer or three. These are my results I was left with after my audience research time was over. It is easily visible that Indie and Rock are the 2 top favourites and Folk music the least favourite receiving zero votes. After looking at my audience research and with Indie being the favourite choice, I decided that this would be my chosen genre of music magazine to do. I have since removed my poll to stop people voting which could possibly make this post null and void if Indie was not to be the top voted.