To design a front cover, contents and double page spread of a new music magazine. All images and text used must be original, a minimum of four images must be used.
Hari
Hari
Sunday, 28 September 2014
Friday, 26 September 2014
Evaluation
What have you learnt from completing this task?
I have learnt about common conventions of a lot of college magazines and what different aspects are needed for an effective magazine cover that engages with the reader. For example, any given magazine should only ever include 3 colours in the colour scheme, and the main image should usually be a medium shot. I have also learnt how to use Photoshop; many of my skills learnt on Photoshop have been used in making my front cover. For example, I’ve learnt how to scale things so that I can get everything the size I want to be. I also learnt how to delete backgrounds of photos and make them look a lot more natural by using a range of tools. These skills have been extremely usually when making my front cover. I have also learnt how the media is what controls our perception of the world and just how powerful it really is. They have way too much control because too many people are too impressionable and don't check facts for themselves. They lead people to a conclusion, and only a critical thinker or person who has directly experienced media bias will question them. Here's an example. Ron Paul raised more money in the 4th quarter of 2007 and had more active supporters than generic bandwagon Republican candidates. Yet, the media didn't even invite Ron Paul to multiple debates. They gave him no coverage deliberately in an effort to suppress his message. They almost never mention him, and when they do, they portray him as an extremist, "fringe" candidate. Nothing could be further from the truth. Does the government control the media?
How have you used technology?
I have used technology in many different ways throughout this task. Technology is becoming a bigger and bigger part of media every day, in fact it dominates the media scene and helps expand it and develop it. “The hardware cost of an iPod is insignificant compared to the cost of the media that it holds”, an 80GB iPod will today cost you £259. The music to fill the same iPod (20,000 songs) will cost, via the iTunes Store, £15,800. This shows truly how much revenue the media can make through us. Also, because things change, you must adapt to those changes and that is what I have done in my media task. I tried to capture the way modern media uses technology and implement it into my work. I have used it to make my magazine in Photoshop and to publish my work also. Photoshop is a very powerful technological tool in media that I took full advantage of. I have also used other programs such as Publisher to create my magazine drafts and PowerPoint to arrange some images and diagrams. My whole project has revolved around technology, similarly so do mainstream media projects.
What conventions have you used and why?
I have used many different conventions of a college magazine in mine. One of them being student/students which are very common in college magazines. This convention is used to demonstrate that it’s a college and usually the student is smiling so it usually suggests it’s a good college also. I tried to involve the student holding some books so that it reflects the hard working students, and the great work ethic they have. Another convention I used was casual clothing, this shows the reader that the school gives the students freedom and lets them express themselves even further. The magazine was created to try and reflect the vibe I was trying to emit to the reader and many things helped assist this such as the colour scheme, mise-en-scene etc… I have also included certain features excluding the main image. I have used a secondary image to support a feature story. This adds more variety and gives the reader more information on the story and provides them with imagery which engages the reader. I have also used a skyline which is used mainly as extra information and a filler for the magazine to improve its aesthetics. I included a masthead stating the magazines name and made it fairly large. The masthead is the magazines brand essentially and once it’s got a reputation, it’s the biggest thing that’s persuades the customer to buy it or not. I used a plug on my cover to add variety to the magazine and some excitement at the chance of winning an iPad, it very eye catching and usually adds to the overall look of the cover. The feature stories were used to give the reader an inside look at what they will be buying, this is vital as it is a massive persuasion for people to purchase the magazine. The barcode was intended to provide the customer with key information such as the price of the magazine which crucial. The main story is probably the main reason the person will be buying the magazine, so its needs to be eye catching, big, and very interesting to the reader. Finally there’s the footer which is a common convention in magazines, also used mainly as a filler.
What would you change if you were asked to do this task again?
If I were to do this task again I would try and take better photos, as I am only at the beginning of the course, I am obviously not the best photographer and as a result I would have preferred to take the pictures at a higher level. I would have also liked to improve upon my blog layout. I feel as though it could have been looking more professional and better laid out then it was. Something else that I would have also liked to do differently is the font used on my front cover, I feel as though more time could have been spent on choosing a more suitable font for my cover and as a result would have improved the look of my magazine massively. At this time no other changes come to mind, I feel as though it was a good attempt so early into the course.
I have learnt about common conventions of a lot of college magazines and what different aspects are needed for an effective magazine cover that engages with the reader. For example, any given magazine should only ever include 3 colours in the colour scheme, and the main image should usually be a medium shot. I have also learnt how to use Photoshop; many of my skills learnt on Photoshop have been used in making my front cover. For example, I’ve learnt how to scale things so that I can get everything the size I want to be. I also learnt how to delete backgrounds of photos and make them look a lot more natural by using a range of tools. These skills have been extremely usually when making my front cover. I have also learnt how the media is what controls our perception of the world and just how powerful it really is. They have way too much control because too many people are too impressionable and don't check facts for themselves. They lead people to a conclusion, and only a critical thinker or person who has directly experienced media bias will question them. Here's an example. Ron Paul raised more money in the 4th quarter of 2007 and had more active supporters than generic bandwagon Republican candidates. Yet, the media didn't even invite Ron Paul to multiple debates. They gave him no coverage deliberately in an effort to suppress his message. They almost never mention him, and when they do, they portray him as an extremist, "fringe" candidate. Nothing could be further from the truth. Does the government control the media?
How have you used technology?
I have used technology in many different ways throughout this task. Technology is becoming a bigger and bigger part of media every day, in fact it dominates the media scene and helps expand it and develop it. “The hardware cost of an iPod is insignificant compared to the cost of the media that it holds”, an 80GB iPod will today cost you £259. The music to fill the same iPod (20,000 songs) will cost, via the iTunes Store, £15,800. This shows truly how much revenue the media can make through us. Also, because things change, you must adapt to those changes and that is what I have done in my media task. I tried to capture the way modern media uses technology and implement it into my work. I have used it to make my magazine in Photoshop and to publish my work also. Photoshop is a very powerful technological tool in media that I took full advantage of. I have also used other programs such as Publisher to create my magazine drafts and PowerPoint to arrange some images and diagrams. My whole project has revolved around technology, similarly so do mainstream media projects.
What conventions have you used and why?
I have used many different conventions of a college magazine in mine. One of them being student/students which are very common in college magazines. This convention is used to demonstrate that it’s a college and usually the student is smiling so it usually suggests it’s a good college also. I tried to involve the student holding some books so that it reflects the hard working students, and the great work ethic they have. Another convention I used was casual clothing, this shows the reader that the school gives the students freedom and lets them express themselves even further. The magazine was created to try and reflect the vibe I was trying to emit to the reader and many things helped assist this such as the colour scheme, mise-en-scene etc… I have also included certain features excluding the main image. I have used a secondary image to support a feature story. This adds more variety and gives the reader more information on the story and provides them with imagery which engages the reader. I have also used a skyline which is used mainly as extra information and a filler for the magazine to improve its aesthetics. I included a masthead stating the magazines name and made it fairly large. The masthead is the magazines brand essentially and once it’s got a reputation, it’s the biggest thing that’s persuades the customer to buy it or not. I used a plug on my cover to add variety to the magazine and some excitement at the chance of winning an iPad, it very eye catching and usually adds to the overall look of the cover. The feature stories were used to give the reader an inside look at what they will be buying, this is vital as it is a massive persuasion for people to purchase the magazine. The barcode was intended to provide the customer with key information such as the price of the magazine which crucial. The main story is probably the main reason the person will be buying the magazine, so its needs to be eye catching, big, and very interesting to the reader. Finally there’s the footer which is a common convention in magazines, also used mainly as a filler.
What would you change if you were asked to do this task again?
If I were to do this task again I would try and take better photos, as I am only at the beginning of the course, I am obviously not the best photographer and as a result I would have preferred to take the pictures at a higher level. I would have also liked to improve upon my blog layout. I feel as though it could have been looking more professional and better laid out then it was. Something else that I would have also liked to do differently is the font used on my front cover, I feel as though more time could have been spent on choosing a more suitable font for my cover and as a result would have improved the look of my magazine massively. At this time no other changes come to mind, I feel as though it was a good attempt so early into the course.
My college magazine front cover
Hari
Monday, 22 September 2014
Digital DPS
This is a digital draft of the DPS (double page spread) of my future college magazine. I placed labels for the different features and placed them on the page. This will hopefully assist me with my final piece.
Hari
Hari
Friday, 19 September 2014
Digital contents page
Hari
Wednesday, 17 September 2014
Digital draft of my front cover
Hari
Mise-en-scene and location ideas
- Books
- Bags
- Students
- School
- Good lighting
- Medium/close up shot
- Library
- On the balcony
- Outside college
- With another student or teacher
- Bags
- Students
- School
- Good lighting
- Medium/close up shot
- Library
- On the balcony
- Outside college
- With another student or teacher
Possible feature stories
- Record breaking results for Wyke students this summer
- New building implemented into Wyke college
- New headmaster for Wyke college
- New building implemented into Wyke college
- New headmaster for Wyke college
Colour scheme ideas
- Red & black
- Purple & white
- Black, white & yellow
- Dark blue, light blue & black
- Purple & white
- Black, white & yellow
- Dark blue, light blue & black
Tuesday, 16 September 2014
Experimenting with different camera angles (Models are Jake Alexander Wardle & Robyn Margarete Desiree Drew-Powell)
I took 10 separate photos all featuring different angles and approaches, this will help me with the main image when it comes to my final piece.
Hari
Semiotics
Semiotics is the study of meaning-making, the philosophical theory of signs and symbols. This includes the study of signs and sign processes, indication, designation, likeness, analogy, metaphor, symbolism, signification, and communication.
Monday, 15 September 2014
My first photoshop draft...
Hari
Friday, 12 September 2014
Mood Board
This moodboard shows the typical conventions associated with students. I decided to create this as it helps give me perspective as to what should be included in my college magazine.
Hari
Tuesday, 9 September 2014
College magazine cover conventions
To help me gain an understanding of college magazine conventions, I decided to annotate a few. The results were both successful and helpful.
Monday, 8 September 2014
Preliminary task
To produce a front cover for a new school/college magazine and a mock up of the lay out for the contents page and double page spread.
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