Research and Planning

Front covers

The main band title is in capital letters as it is the dominant subheading of the cover and the central image is of this band. The text is in capitals to signify loudness, this creates an attention grabbing effect for the audience. The font style is sans serif and is less formal as the magazine is mainly aimed at teenagers. The layout of this magazine is cluttered to signify mess and anarchy as this is the typical stereotype of rockers. Also, the layout follows the route of the eye as the bands faces are at the top, the band’s name in the middle and the ‘free poster special’ written at the bottom.  It also follows the principle of thirds as there are interesting things all over the cover. There are more images than text which shows it is more creative and less formal. Colours used include black, yellow, white and red. These colours are associated with rock music as they give impressions of death, blood and danger. A mid shot is used to show the characters faces, and also the costume and props they are using to represent the rock genre. For instance, here they are holding crowbars and chains, and their costume is black tops/jackets with jeans. The props give an impression of violence and danger, as do the colours used. Words such as ‘sex, drugs, violence’ are used to signify to the audience that the rock genre is quite rebellious and angry. The language used is quite loud and aggressive as capital letters are used. The style of writing is informal as well which shows it is aimed at teenagers. 

The font style used is sans-serif which is informal, showing the typical target audience of the magazine to be youths. This makes the audience relaxed as it is not a serious magazine. The layout is cluttered as the Headline is at an angle. This makes a sense of creativity which is often associated to the indie genre. The route of the eye is followed as the central image is seen at the top of the cover, the Headline is in the middle and more cover stories are at the bottom. There is mainly an equal image to text ratio which shows the intelligence of the magazine, not childish but not overly formal (which is a trait a classical magazine would have). Colours used include red, yellow, black and white. These have been chosen to show energy and loudness, which is the personality of many Indie bands. The shot type used is a Mid-shot which again means that as well as the bands faces being seen, any additional props and costume can also be seen clearly. The costume used is stereotypical indie clothing. Swearing is used such as ‘dicks from Big brother’ as quotes from the cover band. This shows they are very outgoing and perhaps angry. The colours look cartoon like as well which also shows creativity.

For this pop magazine, sans serif font is again used for informality as pop is aimed at teens and in this case many girls. Capitals are again used to make the words louder and clearer. The layout is cluttered which connotes the magazine is less formal and aimed at young people. It also follows the route of the eye as the Magazine title is at the top, next is the celebrity photo of lady gaga and at the bottom more photos of lady gaga, clearly showing who the magazine is about for this edition. The text is large and seems to cover most of the magazine, however there is also a very large central image and many smaller images at the bottom of the cover. White is used for the background and text is in black, red and sometimes yellow. Red and yellow relate to romance and sunshine, these are quite happy, bright things. The shot type used is a mid-shot which shows most of her body and the angle is the side of her body. This gives a provocative effect to the image, making people more interested in the magazine. An image of lady gaga standing normally wouldn’t be as exciting. Her clothing also adds to this aspect, as it is a tight leather outfit. Her hair colour also matches the background of the magazine. The magazine speaks to the audience with an exciting personality, cover lines are used such as ‘THE CRAZY CLOTHES’ and ‘INSIDE THE MAD WORLD OF LADY G’ slang is used to shorten her name and sound cool. 


Double page spreads




For this double page spread, sans serif fonts are used which connote informality again. As this is a rock magazine, rock is stereotypically seen as loud and angry. Capital letters for pull quotes and headlines are used to give the effect of shouting as you read it to yourself. The layout here is quite ordered as the articles need to be readable. Equal image to text ratio balances out information given so it isn’t too overpowering. Colours used include black background, white text and some reds. Black connotes death and darkness whereas red and black show anger and rock. The white outline on the photos makes them stand out more, so does the red around the ‘celebrity quotes’ at the bottom right of the page spread. A high angle shot is used in the central image to show that all the fans are reaching up to the band member, showing fame and power. The location used is in the concert to relate the image to the article. The large red capital ‘H’ is used as a kicker to attract readers to the article. In one of the pictures a prop used is a guitar and microphone which connotes they are musicians on stage together and in other photos the bands fans are shown. The red font used creates a difference between the numbers and the words at the top of the page spread. Language is also used such as ‘awesome’ and ‘crazy’ which is typically related to words spoken by rock fans/artists.





Sans serif fonts are used which suggests informality as this is a rock magazine rather than a classical magazine. The effect on the audience will be fun rather than feeling bored, showing this is mainly aimed at young people. Capital letters are also used to make the article exciting to read and ‘loud’. The layout is cluttered as there are pictures are everywhere and text on either side rather than together. There is much more image than text which connotes that more is happening and people don’t get bored reading  halfway through the article, a downside of this is that you may just glance at the pictures and spend less time on the page, then go onto the next article. Black and white is mainly used to show darkness as it is a rock magazine. It also makes the images stand out more than the text as they have more colours. Lots of low angle shots are used on the band singers and guitarists to show they are on stage performing. Props used are microphones, keyboards, guitars etc. to show they are in a concert playing music to the audience. This also shows that this page is a review of a concert. Costume used includes black t shirts and shorts which shows it is hot on stage. Language used such as ‘how was it for you?’ asks questions to readers of Kerrang! that have been to this concert and written a review.


 

Sans serif font is used all over the double page spread suggesting this magazine is informal and aimed at young people. The layout is cluttered as there are articles all over the spread and in the central image there are things all over the place. This gives an effect of a messy rocker who is doing gigs a lot of the time so doesn’t have much time to stay tidy. There is more image than text as the background is all one big image. Colours used are pink, white and black for fonts/text. There are many colours in the central image, mainly including black and white. Black and white suggest death and the dark pink colour connotes anger, commonly associated with rock stars. A wide shot is used to show the rock star and his room, props included are his dog and all the items on his wall and floor. His costume suggests he feels very casual as he is in his home.  The picture is taken in his room as the articles are about his room. 

Contents pages

Sans serif font is used all over the page which connotes informality. Capital letters and punctuality such as exclamation marks are used to represent loudness. Colours used include black, white and yellow. Yellow and black are commonly associated with danger or caution. The layout here is quite cluttered as there are many images all over the page as well as text and page numbers. There is also an advertisement in the bottom right corner for the magazine, ‘GET K! DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR FOR JUST £6 PER MONTH!’ This is in capitals and partly red to stand out from the rest of the contents and draw attention to the audience. A low angle is used for the image of the band ‘Green day’ at the top to show they are famous and of high authority. The contents page includes text such as ‘HOT SHOTS’ and ‘GET READY TO HIT THE ROAD’ these are also all in capitals to signify loudness and using rock slang words to make it more exciting.

Serif font is used for this magazine, this connotes that the magazine is more formal as it is a higher class rock magazine. The layout is fairly ordered as the contents page numbers are on the left hand side, the main image is used on the right and the mast head is at the top. Colours used include black, white and red. Red connotes anger and black is used for darkness, common conceptions of the rock genre. A mid shot is used to show the main artist of the featured band. His costume includes a fancy suit and sunglasses to show he is a rock star. The page uses quite formal language, no swearing or rude words. This suggests an older generation may be more interested in buying this. Children, teenagers and young adults may prefer Kerrang! Magazine

Sans serif font is used to signify that this magazine is less formal. Modern rock magazines tend to be less formal than classic rock magazines. The layout is ordered as the contents page numbers are in order on the right and the central image is included on the left. 
There is more image than text on this page, as there are no articles the space is filled in to make the contents page more interesting. A disadvantage of this may be that people just skim through the images and turn the page rather than reading the ‘letter’ featured at the top. Colours used include red, black and white, these are typically used in most rock magazines as red and black are quite dark colours and red shows blood/anger. A close up is used for the central image of a band member. The caption for his photo ‘in a strop’ draws readers in as it is short and concise  but doesn’t include much information, making readers want to turn to this page and read the full story. His makeup makes the image more interesting and he is leaning on his hands, this fits into the caption. 

Production Plan

Image	Date	People involved/props
Mid shot for front cover	20th January	Me, Becky, rock style clothing
Long shot for contents	25th January	Becky, background wall
Wide shot for double page spread	28th January	Becky, background wall, skinny jeans

Font styles

Example

Example

Example

Example

Example

Example

Colour schemes

Black Silver White

Black White Red

Black Blue White

Black Yellow Red

Black Yellow White

My survey:

<a href="http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/J22VDQC">Click here to take survey</a>

Questionnaire results summary

From the first question, I can see that most of the people who took the questionnaire are teenagers aged 14 – 17. This will mean the other ‘most popular’ answers will be based around this age group. The music genre that appeals to people the most is ‘Rock/metal’ so I have decided to make a rock magazine for my main task. The main reasons that people buy magazines according to my questionnaire were a tie between Celebrity gossip, posters and concert dates/reviews. These are some of the main features my magazine will include. Lots of people also want exclusive information included in their magazines according to the question after. As for the prices question, there were no votes for ‘under £1’ or ‘£4+’ suggesting I should keep my magazines price range between £1 and £3.99. The main colours people had suggested for a rock magazine were black, white and red. This was the most commonly suggested answer. A lot of people wanted a male band/singer but people also wanted a mixed gender band or female singer. Only 1 person voted for musical instruments/items to be displayed on the cover. For camera angles, most people wanted a mid-shot to be used on the cover (9/15 people). 9 people out of 15 also voted for informal language to be used rather than formal. 

Draft text 

Interview with Becky Coulson – Lead singer of The Locust

Question 1 – How do you feel about becoming popular so quickly?
Well, it came as a bit of a shock at first, but you sort of adjust to it. We had just uploaded our first few songs onto youtube and overnight the views had increased dramatically. We decided to get our album officially published and within a couple of months we were starting our first tour. I never thought our band would become such a big hit.

Question 2 – What inspired you to become a musician?
Bottom line is, I've always loved music and I've been trying out various instruments since I was young. In the end I tried singing and loads of my friends at school said I was really good, I started a band with Claire and we've been working on playing for about 3 years now. 

Question 3 - What is your favourite band?
Favourite? Well I don't really have just one - there's a lot of bands I tend to listen to. Don't think I'm the type to stick to one genre, though. You'd be suprised by some of the stuff on my iPod. 

Question 4 – When is your next tour?

Question 5 – Do you prefer to be relaxing at home or out on a tour rocking out with your fans?

Question 6  - What’s your favourite colour?

Draft magazine cover

Draft contents page






Draft double page spread

Preliminary task

Front cover analysis

The font used is sans serif which makes it more formal which fits in with a school magazine. It is ordered in such a way that makes the cover interesting and follows the line of sight. The headline is included at the top of the cover. The colour scheme is red, black and white. This is followed throughout the cover of the magazine and makes the font stand out. These are also typical, formal school colours which again gives the effect of a school magazine. Some of the clothing the boy is wearing is black and white, and a lot of the shadow is black which matches the colour scheme and makes the words stand out. Mid shot was used for the main image of a student in the sixth form. The effect given is the student is sitting down in class listening to the teacher. the style of writing is very youthful but formal at the same time. For example; ‘Can ‘YOU’ live up to ‘EM??’ is deliberately misspelled which creates an effect that the magazine speaks to the audience.

The cover is well structured as the headline and coverline are not in random places. Words are not scattered all over the cover which gives an organised impression of the school itself..The style of font used is sans serif which creates a bolder, clearer use of typography. It is also less formal than another magazine, as it is only aimed at students. For the central image a two shot has been used of the students in the library which is relevant to the central image. One of the people in the shot are smiling as they read the book suggesting school enjoyment. The typography is very formal yet uses punctuation to speak to the audience, which are school students. Blue and white are used which are quite cold colours, suggesting this is a winter edition magazine. The tag line is relevant to the central image. Correct grammar is used and it gives an insight to the contents of the magazine.  the students are holding books and standing in the school library. The clothing they are wearing, blue, black and white fit in with the colour 
scheme nicely instead of clashing and making the cover look horrible.


 
The punctuation and use of capital letters stands out to a young age group, in this case school students. The letters are canted as well. ‘Strictly for students!’ this informs people the magazine is only for school students which are of a youthful age. There is lots of punctuation and words in capital letters which again stands out to the audience. The girl is looking directly at the camera and the shot type is a mid-shot. The colour scheme doesn’t match as there is only black and purple for the font, then grey, white, brown etc. for the background and main image. The girl is wearing glasses and a lab coat which shows it is in a science lab, she has a name tag round her neck which shows she is a student in school. The background isn’t very good as it is only grey which is not very interesting. Things are all over the place which makes the magazine cover look less formal than it perhaps should be as it is for a school.

Contents page analysis

The first photo is an interior shot and the second is an establishing shot. As this is the contents this is relevant as it shows what the school looks like. In the background of the first two photos the school is included and the last photo is a student next to a piano which could represent a music lesson, as on the contents it says ‘upcoming events’. The colour scheme is light blue, dark blue and white which are quite calm colours and they do not clash. The language is very formal for a school magazine as there is no exciting punctuation and the titles are all straight to the point. Sans serif font has been used which is less formal and makes the magazine more exciting. The layout is ordered as the photos are at the top in a tilted fashion yet without looking messy, and the contents section is below the photos in order of page, with the contents title above the typography.

Serif font is used and the font also looks very childish which makes it harder to read. The colour is also slightly hard on the eyes. The vocabulary is not very broad and the grammar could easily be improved as there are spelling/punctuation mistakes. The layout is slightly cluttered but the photos are in one place and the typography is separate. The titles are in page order which is good. The colour scheme is red, yellow and black. These colours seem quite sporty rather than mainly school related; however there are many sport topics in school. It looks like it is mainly aimed at boys as it has rugby, no photos of girls and the topics are about football and rugby. Mid shot has been used for the first photo which centres the attention to the teacher. The next photo is a wide shot but no people were included. The wide shot shows how much snow there is which grabs readers attention. In the first photo there is a teacher who looks like he is addressing somebody about an event. The next photo is of snow which is one of the titles for the contents page. The third photo is of a rugby match who again fits in with the title and the last photo is of a classroom of students doing revision. 

Serif font has been used which makes it more formal, the font itself looks quite fancy. It also looks ‘fun’ for the audience to read. It is not strictly formal and clearly aimed at students. It has a ‘your say’ bit which shows it is reaching out to the audience. The first picture is a long shot of a girl sitting down, with some work. It is taken at an angle, so it shows the side of her body. The colour scheme used is white, black and yellow. These colours go well together and make the magazine look very informative. Props are used such as the work in the first photo, and the location is on a bench outside showing it may be a spring/summer magazine. In the second photo, goggles and equipment are used to show it is a science lab. This links in with one of the page titles to the right of the photo. The page numbers are in order and the photos are not in random places as they fit in with nearby page titles. The email for the magazine is at the bottom which is very typical of a magazine contents page.  

Summary of school magazines

School magazines mostly use sans-serif font, as it is less formal and looks more exciting for students. The layout is mainly a central image with a masthead, cover lines and a slogan at the bottom. The language is aimed at young people – under 18’s so it is not too formal and the words are quite simple. The colour schemes mainly fit in with school colour schemes, or include black and white as well as another colour. This makes it formal but not over the top as it needs to catch the audience’s attention. Mainly medium close ups and mid shots have been used for the central image. Props are mainly books, pens and other school related items, and the scenery or location is usually in a school classroom or library. The costume is uniform or formal college clothing. 

Sample fonts

Neale wade

Neale wade

Neale wade

Neale wade

Neale wade

Colour scheme

Red, Black, White

Yellow, Black, White

Blue, Black, White

Orange, Black, White

Red, Orange, Yellow,

Finished school magazine cover

Evaluation 

On my magazine cover, different conventions I have used include the layout of the cover. For example, I have put the masthead at the top of the cover and the cover lines aren’t in random places. I used sans serif font as most school magazines seem to use this, it is less formal and more interesting for school students to look at. I included a medium close-up of a sixth form student doing work in the library to add verisimilitude to the fact the magazine is school based. The pen, book and table in the image were used to give the effect of the student doing work, and the location is in the school library. I also included a slogan at the bottom to relate to the school, and a barcode and price tag to make it more realistic. I edited the central image on PhotoScape at home and made it look darker and more yellow to fit in with the colour scheme (yellow, black, white). I increased the contrast and changed the brightness and darkness. The layout I used was intended to follow the line of sight as the masthead is at the top, the student in the central image and then a cover line at the bottom. The mode of address I used is informal as I used lines such as ‘tasty new cafeteria’ to interest my target audience. I have developed skills such as using shot angles, learning new terminology and how different magazines speak to their target audiences.