Time Management

At the start of the course I found it difficult to divide my time equally between my tasks for media and my other subjects. I started to set aside some time each night to try and do some media work, which was mainly research on music magazines. I did this as I didn't want to fall behind on my work as I know if you fall behind it is very difficult to catch up. However I didn't always stick to this plan and I sometimes didn't get the tasks that I wanted finished by a certain time finished.

As I have progressed through the course I now have a more solid time management plan and I don't worry as much as I did before about getting tasks finished in time as I know that I will get the finished if I stick to my plan. Since I have stuck to this plan I have caught up on the work that I fell behind on when I didn't stick to my time management plan.

Front Cover Flatplan

This is the final flat plan that I have created for the front cover of my music magazine. I have looked at a lot of other music magazines and I decided which of the conventions and features I would like to try and incorporate, but change to make my own, into my magazine. 

The main magazine that I took inspiration from for my front cover is NME. I really like the style of NME magazines, but I don't want to make a copy of NME so I will only take inspiration from some conventions and work them into the magazine.

I am going to be sticking to a three color, color scheme on my front cover and I will try to incorporate this throughout the magazine

Generic Conventions

• The masthead is to the top left of the page, I will do this on my magazine because when the magazine is on the shelf readers will recognize it and be more likely to buy it. As the masthead is the most recognizable thing about a magazine front cover I will want it to be seen on the shelf.
• The essential information is very small on the page, it doesn't take up too much room. I will put the barcode in the bottom right hand corner of my contents page as it isn't too important to the cover, I will also put the date and the price in a small font under the masthead because, like the barcode, they aren't too important to the cover.
• This issue of NME hasn't  used boxes behind the sell lines etc. but they have done in the past. I will be using boxes on my front cover as it will make it easier to read my sell lines. 
• on this front cover they have a main image of the Arctic Monkeys, as they are a band they have a group shot as the main image, not just the front man. For my magazine i will be using a solo image.

• This contents page has made the contents section of the page quite small and made the images more of the feature on the page, whereas I will be making my contents bigger, but I will be using a similar style to this.
• This magazine has used a 'band index' but for my magazine I will be using the UK top ten at that time. 
• I will be using more than one image on my contents page instead of one as I think it makes the page look too plain.

• This double page spread has used a red letter behind the text, I will be doing this on my double page spread but I will change the opacity so it isn't as bold and so you can read the article better.
• This double page spread has used an image in black and white to fill the left side of the double page spread. the black and white of the image contrasts against the red used on the right side of the page. I will try to do something similar in my magazines double page spread as I like the look that it has and I think that it will fit with they style of my magazine.
• This double page spread has used drop caps within the article, I will do the same on my magazine as it is quite a generic convention.

Survey Analysis

These are the results that I received on my survey that I previously posted a link to (https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SX9BCTN).

The results that I got will help me when I am making my magazine as I can look at the responses that my target age group gave me and cater the magazine to their likes, but still in keeping with the theme that I have decided to go for.

The first question that I asked was 'What is your gender?'. I thought that this would be a useful question for  me to ask so I can see what people of certain genders prefer from music magazines, and so I can cater my magazine to their likes.

I asked the people what age group they belonged in so I know what, out of the people I have asked which are in my target age group, prefer out of a music magazine.

After asking about gender and age I thought that it was crucial to ask about what genre of music the people I asked preferred. I found out that the two most popular genres were Pop and Acoustic. I now know that if I want my magazine to be as popular as possible with my target age group then I will need to have Pop and Acoustic as my feature genres.

One of the features that I want to have in my magazine is a section which reviews and talks about gigs and converts. So I asked this question to find out if my target group actually like going to concerts and gigs themselves; I did this so I would know whether or not this section would appeal to them. I got mixed responses from this question, but overall I found that people do enjoy going to concerts and gigs, so I now know that it is a good idea to keep this section in my magazine.

I also want to have a section in my magazine which is on the UK music charts. So I asked this question so I could see whether or not my target group like listening to the music charts. I found that everyone that answered my survey either listens to the music charts, so I now know that I should include this feature.

I asked this question so I knew whether or not to make my magazine weekly or monthly, also I thought if I asked this question it would help me to decide on an appropriate price for the magazine.

I asked this question because I wanted to know how much my target group would be willing to pay for my magazine.

I asked this question so I know when I am talking about the UK music charts whether or not I should talk about things like the iTunes charts or not. I now know when I include my music chart feature I should look at the weekly charts on iTunes as the majority of the people who answered preferred to download music.

I asked this question because I wanted to know whether or to my target group liked to buy magazines and whether or not they would want to buy my music magazine. 

The 'Recce'

1.    Are there any potential hazards that could pose a health and safety risk where your photo shoot will take place (trailing cables/traffic/other objects )?

When I take my photos I will be taking them in a photography studio so there may be cables from lights ect. that may cause hazards as people may trip over them and either hurt themselves or break the lights. Also if I decide to use any props in my photos they will be in the studio so people may also do the same with them and trip over them and potentially break them or hurt themselves.

2.    What will you do to ensure these risks are minimised?

When taking the photos I wont have too many people in the studio so I will be able to see where everyone is and make sure thet theu dont trip or break anything. I will also be careful when setting up the studio so it is tidy and there wont be anything where there shouldn't be so it minimises the chances of poeple tripping over things.

3.    Will the time of day/weather affect the outcome of the photos? Have you allowed for this?

As I am planning on taking my photos in a studio the time of day or the weather shouldn't really affect the outcome of the photos. However if I dont get the chance to use the studio I will have to take my photos around midday when it is light outside so the photos arent dull and so they have enough light from the natural outdoor light.

4.    Have you considered the background to your photos, particularly if taken outside? How will you ensure you will get the background you want?

For my photos I know that I want to have a plain white background as I think that this will suit the style that I want my magazine to have. I know that if I use the studio the background will be a plain white, but if I don't have the studio I will have to find a substitute area that I can use with a plain whit background, such as a plain white wall.

5.    Have you considered lighting? What about the ‘problems’ of natural lighting, either outside, or streaming through a window? Will you need to use a flash? Have you considered reflective objects that might spoil the effect?

If I use the studio I know that won't have to worry about natural lighting as I know that the lighting used in the is artificial. But if I have to use another location I will have to think carefully about the time of day and the weather when taking my photos as I know that those things will affect the outcome of the photos. If the day when I decide to take my photos is a particularly dull day I will have to use the flash on the camera as I do want my photos to be well lit. Another thing I will have to consider when I choose my location to take my photos is whether there is anything that might shadow or reflect on the model.

6.    Do you need permission to take photos in the place/venue you have in mind?

My original choice of location is in a photography studio at St.Peters university which is next to my college. In order to book the studio I will have to email the lecturer in charge of the studio and see when there are any days when the studio is free.

7.    Do you need to book time in a room (eg the photography studio at Shiney)?

When I email the lecturer I will ask when the studio will be free and I will ask them when it will be possible for me to come and take my photos. I will have to make sure that none of the dates that are free clash with any of my other lessons.

8.    Are other people/crowds likely to be an issue for you? What have you done to ensure that it will not spoil the effect?

If I get a spot in the studio I will make sure that only people that only the people need to be in the room are in the room. Because of the background that I want my pictures to have I won't have to worry abut other people being in the background and disrupting the image. 

9.    Are you reliant on lifts/props/friends’ equipment/models? How have you planned that these things will come together at the appointed time? Plan B?

I have two choices of which camera I will use to take my photos as I have my own good quality camera, but I also know that if something happens to that there will be others which I can borrow from the college which are also of a good quality. I have to try and schedule when I book the studio around my models college timetable as well so I definitely know that they will be available, however if something does happen so this model and they cannot do it then I have another person that I can use. I have also got another studio that I could consider using at the Bede campus if I cannot get a spot at the university.

10.  Finally, have you thought of every eventuality?

I think that I have considered every aspect that could possibly go wrong and I have thought of ways that I could get around it, and still have my photos of a good quality and so they're appropriate for the magazine.

Preliminary Task: Unused Photos

Preliminary Task: Review

This is the front cover and contents page that I created for my preliminary task. For my preliminary task I was asked to make a front cover and contents page for a college magazine. I think all together my preliminary task turned out quite well, I like the layout of the pages however I think there are things that I could do better.

When making the front cover I stuck to most of my flat plan. I like the way that the masthead looks and where it is positioned, so if I were to remake this front cover I would probably do something similar if not the same for the masthead. I think that the main image that I have have used is appropriate for the target audience and purpose, the model in my main image is setting a good example as she is following college rules by wearing her lanyard and she is enjoying her work.
I think that I have chosen good sell lines as I think that they're things that college students would be interested in, however I think I could have made them slightly more interesting and I could have made them stand out on the page more. I also think that I could have made the main sell line stand out more as that is the thing that I want to catch my readers eye, but I think at the minute it blends in with the rest of the sell lines.
I think that I could have made the competition slightly bigger and more prominent on the page, and I could have also made the essential information (barcode and date) a bit smaller.

When I was creating my contents page I also roughly stuck to my flat plan. I like how I placed the masthead from the front cover smaller on this page and where I placed the date as I think that by doing this it helps the magazine tie together more and look better. I like the composition of this page however I think that it does look a bit plain as there is a lot of white space and not a log of color, so if I were to recreate this page I would have less white space and use more color without making the page look too busy.
With the images that I have included on this page I think that I could have used more models and have a bit more versatility within them as they are all vey similar.
I like how I have linked the images to certain articles within the magazine, however I think that I could include more articles as if I only have 19 or 20 articles then the magazine would be very thin and that will then lead for it to look uninteresting. So if I were to do this again then I would decrease the font size and make some more space to include more articles.

Overall I found this useful practice for making front covers and contents pages, as I have analyzed what I think I have and haven't done well. I now know what I need to  do in the future to improve my work.