Masthead Design

Here are a few designs which I intend to use for my masthead. I originally had the name Vision for my masthead name. However, I believe the name Vision didn't fit the pop genre effectively. I beleive the name Amplify instantly signals the music industry and you would instantly percieve this name for a music magazine.

For the first masthead design, I like the simple but modern feel to it. My music genre is all about the youth and new artists, so I feel this masthead fits the style of my magazine very effectively.

For the second masthead, it has a funkier style with the use of the lines which create each letter. I'm not sure if I would use this for my final masthead design. However, I like the style and feel it brings and I belive it is more appealing than the other two masthead designs.

For the final masthead design I have chosen, it is very similar to the first one. However, I like this design a lot. I believe the modern and simplistic feel it brings is exactely what you would expect from a pop music magazine masthead. It relates to Billboards masthead by the simple but appealing style it brings. I also like the 'p' on this design. It differs from the other letters in design which was initially what I was looking for.

Here is an image of a few masthead designs from currant music magazines. I like simplicity of Billboards and NME. I want to adapt my masthead based on the  simplicities of these mastheads.
I also like how Billboard have used a simple, but modern font which allows their magazine to have that professional feel.

Photoshoot

This image I was initially intending to use  for my contents page. However, I feel this image would be better suited for my front cover. I like the modern and professional feel that this image brings and I believe it fits the pop genre of this magazine more effectively.

From this image, I learnt about the positioning of the model is key in getting that modern and professional feel.  I also believe the lighting was extremely important in getting this image to the quality that I was expecting. I am also intending to use this image in black and white like the original image of Taylor Swift.

When taking this photo, I used the same shot-type as the image of Taylor Swift which was also a long-shot image. I will probably crop this image to make it a mid-shot image to follow the common conventions of using a mid-shot image on a magazines front cover.






This image is replicating the one of Drake which I will use for my main contents page image. I only took one picture of this model and I felt it was the right one.
The lighting in this image is the same as my image for my front cover. I have kept the lighting the same for this image because I am intending to cut the background out using Photoshop. I want the image to blend into the white background of my contents which is an idea I took from one of Billboards contents pages.

I had to think predominantly about my models pose and the shot-type more than anything else. The mise en scene wasn't necessarily important in this image because of my idea of cropping out the background. However, I wanted to have my model wearing the correct clothing. In the original image, Drake is wearing a shirt in contrast to what my model is wearing. Even though I initially wanted my model to wear a shirt for this image, I believe my models black t-shirt works effectively with the white background I'm intending to use. As you can see from this image, the model stands-out very effectively in front of the white background.


This image is inspired by the image of Shawn Mendes. For this image, I had to think specifically about the lighting. In the image with Shawn Mendes, the background is completely black. This gave his image a professional feel which I wanted to recreate with my model.

 My models position is different to the image of Shawn Mendes. He is looking straight at the camera, whereas in the original he was looking to one side. However, even though he's looking at the camera instead of to the side, I like my models facial expression. It almost allows the audience to connect to this image because of the way my models looking at the reader.




I was originally intending to use this image for the front cover. However, now that I've decided to use my female model's image for the front cover, I now have to use this image on another page.
The fact that my model is on one side of the page and I have a large black space on the other side, ultimately made me decide that this image would be best suited to a double page spread.

Again, the lighting on this image has made the background black. Even though I was originally going to have this image in black and white, I believe it will be better suited in colour. I like the natural colours coming form this image.

My models pose in this image is slightly different to the original image featuring Nick Jonas. However, now that I have decided to use it in my DPS, I believe it looks better with my model looking to the side, creating that mysterious effect. I am ultimately very happy with this image and believe it will effective for my DPS.


This is an image I took which was initially for the front cover of my magazine. I ultimately decided not to use this image on my magazine because of my models facial expression. My models facial expression makes him seem un-natural and not focused.

The lighting for this image is exactly what I wanted. Apart from his facial expression, I like the natural colours coming form this image.

This attempt of replicating the image of Nick Jonas allowed me to learn about how to give your model specific ideas so that they know what I am wanting to create in this image.





I have now decided to use this black and white image as the main image for my double-page spread. I will be using a very dark colour palette for the backgorund of my double-page spread. I have ultimatetly chosen to use this image instead of the initial one I took in the photoshoot because I like the natural black and white effect this image posseses. I beleive it will fit well with the dark secondary colours I am intending to use for my backgorund.
Also, I decided I wanted to have more of a close-up camera shot. I was taking inspiration from Rolling Stones' double page spread featuring Adele. They had a close-up shot of Adele which I felt really suited the sophisticated style of their double page spread.

I chose to have this image in a black and white effect becuase I wanted one of my images to have some sort of filter of colour on it, ultimately creating a intriguing effect which my target audience could appeal to. In conclusion, I am very happy with this image and I am glad I took initial development ideas into consideration because I thoroughly like this image more than the one from the photoshoot and belive it will contrast nicely in my sophisticated double page spread style.

Photo Planning

Front Cover:

For my front cover I will be replicating this image of Nick Jonas. I like the way he is positioned, very calm and mysterious. The simplicity of this image os what makes it professional, a vital attribute which I hope will reflect through my magazine.

The background setting is also very simple and not to 'over the top'. I would also be able to shoot a photo like this with the environment I have available.
Nick Jonas's smouldering and mysterious could potentially appeal more to female audience more than the males. However I believe the way is presented and dressed in this photo is appropriate for both genders.

Another thing I will consider is the black and white effect on this photo. I like how it allows his back jeans and jacket to stand-out more effectively to the audience, also the white t-shirt  stands-out with this black and white effect.



Contents:

For the main image on my contents page, I have chosen this image of Drake. I have chosen to use this image primarily based on the way Drake is positioned. I like how his posture his sideways looking towards the camera, as if he was looking at the reader.
I also feel a sense of calmness in how Drake is standing with his hands in his pockets. I believe it creates a professional feel to my contents page which is an ultimate goal for my magazine.

Another thing that I like about this photo is the lighting shown behind him. Its very bright and differs from the black and white picture of Nick Jonas which I intend to use for my front cover. It allows Drake to stand-out very effectively to the viewer which will be important as I intend to use a dark background for my contents page.

His clothing is also very simple which is what I'm looking for with my main contents page image.







This next image I intend to use for my contents page, is an image of the highly popular artist Taylor Swift. Because I will this style of image in a small print on my contents page, I'm not bothered about the lower part of her body. I will most likely take a mid-shot which will enable me to clearly show my models upper body and face more clearly. I initially chose this image because I like her facial expression and how her arms are positioned. This image feels very modern and I love the black and white effect which has been added to this image, something which I hope to replicate.







Finally, I will be using this image of Shawn Mendes as a guide when doing my photo shoot. The reason I chose this image was mainly because of his facial expression. His happy facial expression differs to the other photo's in my contents page which are more serious. I believe this happy expression adds another tone to this magazine, whereas before it was very serious.

Also, the way he is looking away from the camera is different to the two other images I have on my contents page. I believe this allows my images in my magazine to be more dynamic adding different aspects to each one.

Double Page Spread:   

I will only be using one main image for my DPS. I have done this to follow Billboards typical convention of only using one main image on their DPS. I have ultimately chosen this image of The Weeknd because of the way he is positioned. I want my image on my DPS to fill both sides of the pages and I believe this photo best describes what I want to achieve when doing my photo shoot.

The colour palette used on the background is also something I want to add to my DPS. My main colour palette of my magazine will be mainly dark primary colours to make my magazine look more professional in terms of colour. I like how the dark blue fades into a slightly lighter blue to create a gradient effect.

Another aspect I like about this image is The Weeknd's facial expression. He's looking up creating a mysterious effect. I believe this facial expression is also very professional in terms of what images you'd expect on a DPS of a high-quality magazine.
                           

Main Artist Profile

The main artists I will be using for my DPS and front cover will be a currant and trending artist in which the majority of my primary target audience can relate to. The artists will most likely be a young artists based on the models I have to work with. However, I believe having young artists on my front page and DPS will be beneficial based on my magazines primary target audience who are aged 16 to 25. Using older artists would ultimately not appeal to a large majority of my target audience. The representation of having young artists through-out my magazine will suggest to the reader that this is a currant and youthful style of a pop magazine, mainly targeted towards the younger audience.
I will consider clothing for both the front cover and DPS which will be significant in identifying the artists class-grade. The ethnicity of my artist will be American based on my Survey Monkey results. I will show the artist on my front covers American ethnicity by potentially adding a symbol which connects to America on a piece of their clothing.
For instance, this front cover featuring American artist Lana Del Rey has the American flag as their background.
I could also have a main cover line which implies to the reader that this artist is of an American ethnicity.

This is an image of The Weeknd. I have chosen this image mainly because of how he is positioned and the colour palette on this page. This colour palette is what I'm ultimately aiming to get from my front cover. The Weekend is also a very popular artist in America which is also an important aspect of  my magazines front cover. 

Title and Font Notes

Title Notes:

The name of my magazine, based on my Survey Monkey results will be Vision. Out of the three I put forward in my survey, I liked this one the most. I believe the name is very professional, which is a extremely important aspect of my magazine based on my primary target audience. I will use this title in a sans-serif style of font to keep to Billboards common convention of using this classic style of font.

I have ultimately decided to go against my Survey Monkey results and change the masthead name of my magazine. Instead of the word Vision, I have chosen to change it to Amplify. I feel the word Amplify signifies more towards the music industry rather than Vision which typically connotes sight rather than sound. I feel this name better suites my genre of magazine to show the target audience that this is a music magazine. Also, I feel the name is very unique which is another good point as to why I should change my initial Survey results.

Font Notes:
I will continue to use san-serif as my chosen font, primarily for titles and text on both my DPS and contents page. I want to keep my magazine looking professional and keeping to the same style of font I believe supports that. The title for my DPS will be very bold and large to allow the audience to clearly see what this page is about. Also, the small text print on this page will also use the san-serif style of font. I think I will show the text in white as the background will be primarily dark, creating an effective contrast of colours.

However, even though I'm primarily using san-serif as my style of font, I will also use elements of serif as well. I have researched Billboards magazine pages and they typically use serif to show artists names. I will also add this to my magazine so I can follow Billboards typical conventions of text. It also allows me to follow a professional style of text, reflecting what I want to achieve for my magazine. 

Initial Ideas and Institution

Initial Ideas:
I initially had the masthead name as Vision. However, I have now changed it to Amplify as I feel this better suites the genre style of my magazine. I will have my masthead in a fairly large font to continue to follow typical conventions of other music magazines. The style of font used for my masthead will be a classic san-serif font, which is also the style Billboard use for their masthead.

The content in my pop magazine was also based on the results I got from my Survey Monkey. The most popular subjects out of the four were music articles, American artists and English artists. I believe this content sticks to the typical codes and conventions of other music magazines, including Billboard who regularly feature both trending English and American artists. I will have relevant and trending artists featured throughout my magazine with relating articles explaining their personal life and life as a pop artists.

My DPS topic will ultimately feature the artist shown on my front page. This is a typical convention of a music magazine where they show their main artist featured on their front cover and use their DPS to write more information about them. The page will feature a Q&A, with questions based on their currant song, personal life and how they came to being the pop artist they are now.
The colour palette of this page will stick to the professional, dark secondary colours I will use on my front cover. However, I will use a more bright, primary colour for the colour of some of the text based on a colour from their clothing. I took this idea from one of Billboards DPS featuring Rita Ora. I liked how the colour of the text matched a certain colour which was featured on her, creating a professional style to this page. Also, having a bright colour in front of a dark background will allow the headline and other small text prints to stand-out more effectively to the reader.

Institution:
The publisher of my magazine will be Prometheus Global Media. I have chosen these publishers based on the magazine I am taking inspiration from, Billboard, who also have PGM as their magazine publishers. This allows me to follow Billboards typical conventions, allowing a more professional style to my magazine.

Font Analysis: Double Page Spread

Style:
As you can see from the title 'Rita Ora', Billboard have decided to use the more traditional style of san-serif style of font. I particularly like the traditional san-serif font compared to the more modern serif font. I believe the san-serif style gives the headline more of a professional style, which is also what I am hoping to aim for in my pop magazines's double page spread.

Font Type:
As I said before, Billboard tend to stick to the more traditional san-serif style of font. This style, I believe gives their magazine a more of a modern and professional feel. This is important because Billboards target audience primarily targets itself to people aged 16 upwards, so having a professional looking font is vital.

Range of Fonts:
Billboards DPS features a total of two different font sizes. The Rita Ora title is in a much bigger font compared to the rest of the text on the page. This is done to get the readers attention which will allow them to judge whether or not they want to read this article about Rita Ora.
The small text which is showing the information related to the headline is typically in a small text print. This is a common convention of any music magazine. I like the small print of text. I believe it makes the information shown make the magazine look more professional. I will follow Billboards conventions regarding their DPS to allow my magazine to have a more professional style to it.

Size:
As I have already illustrated, the text saying Rita Ora stands out effectively to the reader, primarily bases on the size of the headline. This is a typical convention of any magazine because the large, bold text instantly catches the readers eyes more than the small text print.
The small text used on Billboards DPS is a common convention of any magazine. It gives the page that professional and modern feel. This is also important for Billboards primary audience who are of the more older age group.

Colour:
The colour which stands-out the most effectively on Billboards DPS is clearly red. The headline saying 'Rita Ora' differs from the dark background Billboard have used. It allows her name to stand-out more effectively in front of the dark background, complimented with the bold and large text which helps her name stand-out very effectively to the reader.
The red text is also used for the text which is the questions Rita Ora was asked. This allows the questions asked to stand-out more clearly to the reader and allows them to read what questions Rita Ora was asked more easily.
Finally, Billboard have used the traditional colour of black to show the rest of the information to the reader. This is a typical convention magazines use to show the text more clearly on the page. I will take Billboards colour palette into consideration when creating my own pop magazine DPS.

Case:
Rita Ora's name has been shown in capital letters. This allows the reader to see her name more clearly, complimented with the colour of red to allow her name to stand-out from all the other information featured on this page. \