Overall Review of my Pages

I have had to change my pages throughout the planning and production process. This could be down to the colours not looking right together, the images not fitting with a page or the layout doesn’t look aesthetically pleasing.


With all my pages I have changed my background colour from green to grey because the images didn’t look right on a green background. But I still used green in the text along with white and black. This ensured that the pages looked right and still went with the rock/indie genre of music.


I have also had to change some images because they were either too dark for the page or they didn’t go with the layout I had planned. For example the picture of ‘Amy Newell’ on the contents page was supposed to be a casually posed mid-shot but the close up of her looked a lot better on the page and was more suited for my magazine.Another picture I decided to change was the on of the band looking around from a wall because it was too dark for the page. So I changed this to the one of them standing in front of the wall.  (As seen below).

The layout was changed on all pages because I found when bring the page together it didn’t look right or suit the style. For example my contents page didn’t look right so instead of having 5 boxes (including the large picture), I now only have 1 main box with the main story underneath. This is far easier to read and goes better then with the rock/indie music genre of magazine I was trying to create. Although I still have all the information I wanted on my contents page. With my front cover I didn’t change too much, the main cover line is still in the middle of the page, the other cover lines are at the bottom, the barcode is in the same place and the ‘7 Free Posters’ are still in the top right corner. I had to move my cover lines about so that they could be seen on the left third as this is important when creating a front cover. My double page spread has also changed but very slightly the story is still on the left, but the large band picture has been moved to the far left and the individual pictures have been moved to the right because it makes the page look better and is far easier to understand.

Overall I am very pleased with how my pages turned out. I feel the represent the rock/indie genre of music well and come together well. I would make a few changes to the pages like adding more cover lines and pictures to the front cover and add more detail to the story on the double page spread. I think that all my pages complement each other and look like they come from the same magazine.

My Photo Analysis

These are some of my pictures. I have chosen to use a variation of rock and indie styled clothing to show the mix of the genres. With the pictures of the ‘Revolving Doors’ they have 2 outfits each to show that they were taken on different days. The individual ones and the one of the band by the wall are taken on one day and the picture I used for the front cover on another day. This was because I wanted to think about my pictures and how they would look on the different pages of my magazine. The two styles of clothing are also used because the colours look better on the different pages.

‘Amy Newell’ is wearing dark clothing with some colour to put an emphasis on her ‘rock’ style.

‘Craig’ in the individual picture is again wearing dark clothes to emphasise the rock theme but with the checked shirt it also shows the indie aspect.

‘Evan’ has also got dark clothes with a checked shirt to show the blend of rock and indie style.

‘Matt’ has got the dark clothing with a scarf and hat, showing the more indie style. However his pose and eye liner and mascara show the rock as well.

‘Tym’ in the individual picture has got more casual rock clothing, again a shirt with dark trousers. He also has fingerless gloves on, a definite ‘rock’ accessory.

‘Harrison’ is wearing dark clothes, although you can’ see his whole outfit in the close up, he is wearing eye liner so that it is known he is more rock then indie.

These outfits are similar to those on the front cover although the ones on the front cover are smarter and more indie to represent there mixed genre of music.

My Double Page Spread Analysis

This is my finished music magazine, double page spread. I have again chosen to use a grey background and the colours black, white and green to keep the house style. The different shades of green go well together and brings the pages together, they also match the colours in the pictures used on my double page spread.

The story is set out in three parts, the article, the tour dates and the fact files. I have done this so the reader gets more information but the parts still link. Each fact file has the band members name and then an image to go with it. This is good because it gets the reader to feel closer to the band and consequently they may buy their music  The language is natural, casual and very easy to understand so that the young audience can easily relate to the story and get into it.  I have also added some interactivity to the page, again to draw people in ‘Think you know the Revolving Doors?  Then take our ultimate fan quiz’.

The pictures have been taken so that they also represent the rock/indie music genre, all use posed pictures and the include rock/indie style clothing.  They go with the story, the picture matches with what the story is saying, the album cover ‘Horizions’ goes with the section of the article. Having the bigger picture in the middle of the page draws in the readers attention and gets them thinking what the story is about. Therefore I had to use an interesting picture. Some of the band members have their instruments in the picture with them so that it is very clear what they do in the band and so it shows the rock/indie genre. The effectiveness of using the sign with 'Drums' written on it is great because a drum kit would not fit in the picture and it adds some humour to the page.

I have used 2 different techniques for cutting out the individual band member pictures. One is cutting them out with no background so that the focus is on there expression. The second is roughly cutting them out with the background so that the reader can see to some extent the blue shed in the background, this shows that the band are as ‘normal’ as the average person and so the fans can relate to them. Also by doing this it shows the different personalities within the group and it looks effective.

To improve I would add more to the story and give more detail, but overall I feel my double page spread has gone extremely well.

My Contents Page Analysis

This is my finished music magazine contents page. I have again chosen to use a grey background and the colours black, white and green to keep the house style. The different shades of green go well together and brings the page together.

 The main stories have pictures to give the reader a small taste of what the story will be like.  The pictures have been taken so that they also represent the rock/indie music genre.  This relates to the front page as the pictures are similar and the stories are the same, just with more information about them. The layout for the contents page is more organised, so it is easier to understand. This is important as contents page contains lots of information.

The text I have used is natural and casual, this again shows the genre of music I have chosen because the audience is fairly young and they can relate to stories easier.  Exciting language has to be used to ensure the audience are drawn in and read the stories.  I have also chosen to include contact information, such as the website and Facebook page so that there is some interactivity. Also there is a small advertisement on cheaper subscription, so the reader is more likely to buy more of the magazines.

The pictures have been taken so that they also represent the rock/indie music genre, both used posed pictures and the include rock/indie style clothing.  They go with the stories, the picture matches with what the story will contain, the Revolving Doors exclusive picture goes with the band interview.

To improve I would again include more images but overall I feel my contents page has gone very well.

 

My Front Cover Analysis

This is my finished music magazine cover. As I have chosen the rock/indie genre I have decided to have a ‘messy’ layout. Instead of a white background I decided to use grey because the images standout more and it fits with the genre of music I have chosen for my magazine.  Green is not usually used on magazines but I fell the green works well with grey, white and black, the pictures and the name of my magazine.

The cover lines match that of the stories mentioned on the cover page, and the main ones have pictures to give the reader a small taste of what the story will be like.  The pictures have been taken so that they also represent the rock/indie music genre, both used posed pictures and the include rock/indie style clothing.

The text used on the front of the magazine is very important, I found this out when researching and analysing other similar styled magazines (Kerrang and NME). Therefore I had to use exciting language  that would draw people in, for example the use of works like ‘EXCLUSIVE’. The use of ‘free bees’ is another selling technique that magazine companies use, so I have decided to include ‘7 Free Posters’.All magazines have a selling line, date line and bar-code so I have included this on my front cover.

To improve on my magazine I would include a few more images and cover lines, also I would change the font and design of my masthead. Overall I think my cover has been made well.