5. Front covers Although the quality of my images are both good I can see that for my preliminary the image is not cut out smoothly. I have also developed a way in which I choose to take pictures, for example in my preliminary task the image shows that the model has a lot of sunlight coming from the right and yet the background is plain black, making the image stand out unnaturally. For my first image I have hardly done any image manipulation as I was still unfamiliar with Photoshop. However, in the main image of my music magazine cover, not only have I adjusted the image to make it darker to suit the Rock genre but I have also airbrushed her face and accentuated certain features such as her eye make up and her lips to bring out some features of her face, the golden in her eye shadow can also highlight other yellow undertones on the page. In terms of additional images I have successfully composed an image reel for my music magazine. On the other hand I have not put any additional images for my school newsletter making the front page seem very empty and slightly uninteresting for the audience. I also think that the mood of each image is quite good, in the newsletter she is slightly smiling, suited to the school environment, but for the music magazine the artist looks quite moody making her well suited to the Rock genre. I think the prop that I have used in my newsletter of the side bag is also quite good as it is a school newsletter and so links in with the subject.
6. I think in terms of subject of the cover lines for the newsletter they are appropriate enough, however the positioning of the red font is unprofessional as it overlaps the image of the model. However the positioning of the cover lines on the music magazine seems better composed. Looking at the colour scheme of the newsletter, it seems to be mainly consisting of black and white, however there is a purple logo and some red font which may confuse the reader and does not create a brand identity. On the music magazine the colour scheme of red, black and white is kept consistent even in the images chosen, although there are other colours such as red and blue, they are very small and in fact stop the magazine from looking to bland and colour coded but it is clear that they are not part of the brand identity of ROCKet. Both magazines have a barcode which is good as this is following the conventional look of a magazine. Although I feel like I have paid closer attention to detail in my music magazine, for example the price, I have also made a rectangle for my masthead and a strip on top about a competition making it seem more appealing. I have also added the information that my magazine is a monthly one and the issue number. As I was making my newsletter I had not researched about other magazines and so was unsure of how to position things. Yet as I began making my music magazine after my research and planning I had some knowledge of how a magazine should be laid out and made to look appealing.
7. Mastheads In terms of the font for my newsletter I think it is quite appropriate for the audience as it is simple, however as I have positioned it in a round manner it may not look as pleasing to the audience especially because of the bright colour contrast against the background. The music magazine masthead is a downloaded font, it has a house effect with light splatters which isn’t too messy and quite appropriate for the genre.
8. Contents page In the newsletter the title is bold and simple to read which is quite suited to my target audience of school students. In my music magazine contents page I have used the same typography for the title as I used for the main cover to keep a consistent theme. This time however I had an image of my main artist lying on top of the title, giving her more attention and giving the magazine a different attitude which the audience may appreciate as my reader profile shows that they are quite individualistic and so may like a magazine that steps out of the convention. I have used two images for my newsletter and although they are images of students it is not clear what they are representing and to which feature they link to. However I do feel that two images is good enough as it is a school newsletter and so it should have a simple layout. In contrast my contents page has seven additional images. I think this is good as through my research I found many rock magazines such as KERRANG had many images on their contents page which not only keeps the reader interested but links in nicely with the rock genre which tends to be associated aggression and attitude. This time I thoroughly thought through how I wanted to position my images, what I wanted them to say and what colour they should be.
9. For example I made sure there were three images of my main artist to make it clear who the main article is about. The main image of her which was previously colourful I decided to make black and white except the fist on the wall which has rock connotations, I though this was more appropriate as the bright colours stood out too much and did not give the right mood that I wanted the artist to portray as they were too primary and vivid. I also manipulated the images around to give them hints of pink or red to weave in with the colour scheme. I also changed the hue and saturation of one image quite drastically to make seem like the artist was under a green spotlight. One image I left in black and white as I felt there was too much colour in the rest of the images. The image of the three male artists looking left was also purposely positioned that way to make them seem as though they are looking at the contents listed. I also added a stroke to all the images to stop them from looking messy and numbered each corresponding image with a square which was also clear and simple. My headings included features, news and gigs. This would help keep my readers interest as there are a variety of things to read. I tried to keep my headings to the point and simple giving away the main story of each article and/or piece. Overall, I also carried the colour scheme from the front cover which you can see in the top right corner. This is a conventional use of the copy of the front cover which many magazines do.
10. Main Article For my preliminary task I only needed a main cover and contents page. Regardless the skills I picked up allowed me to have a professional looking article for my main task of the music magazine. The photography of my main image looks a lot more proficient as I had taken into account the lighting this time and directed it at the side of her face while switching off lights from the other direction. I also used a fan to make it seem like her hair is blowing to the side which is something readers may recognize from other images. The way she is holding the microphone and looking towards the light makes it seem as if she may be at a concert performing. I had also changed the hue and saturation of the background from green to a dark red to suit my colour scheme. Here my extensive Photoshop skills allowed me to airbrush correctly and manipulate the additional images. For example for the image at the bottom right corner I followed the following tutorial (http://ebin.wordpress.com/2007/03/21/how-to-turn-your-photo-into-movie-like-effect-using-photoshop/) to make the image have a ‘Cinematic’ effect. I also edited the picture in the bottom left corner by draining the colour from the wall and making only one hand red to suit not only the colour scheme but give the image some mystery. Adding borders to the images allowed me to keep them from looking too chaotic.
11. Conclusion Looking at my preliminary task and my finished product I can see that firstly my photography skills have developed, I now do not simply just consider the pose of my artist but what message this would put across. I was also careful to consider lighting and angle, having more practice with the camera allowed my images to look more professional as I learnt what settings to use. Another skill that was developed was my use of Photoshop, I learnt how to airbrush all my photos and then began to experiment with different effects and colours which assisted me in creating the theme I wanted for my magazine. I also recognized to pay attention to details, especially when comparing my magazine to real ones to see if it would come across in they same manner they do. The most important thing I have learnt is to practice any skill or idea I have before inserting it into my main product as this gives me a feel for what to expect and allows me to judge if it would be appropriate or not.
