To get feed back on my magazine i created a Facebook group because it was a quick way to access my target audience. This is the link to the group:

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=328720652801&ref=ts

The feedback is the comments on the wall and the photos.

Evaluation

Above is the finished four pages of my magazine.

http://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B3aASaxvwH4JMTc5YzVhMWItYzk4MS00N2ZhLTkyMTUtYzVkZjJhMjdkYWE4&hl=en_GB

this is a link to the evaluation of my magazine.

Photo Editing

I used this picture on my front cover. I wanted the front cover to be all white and i wanted a profile shot like this, so i cut out the background using the the magic wand tool on photoshop, to give it that effect. I also brought the band members closer together to make them look like a close knit group.

In this picture i cut one of the models out and moved them closer to the rest of the band. I also stretched the picture to make the models look taller an thinner. I did this to make them more appealing to my target audience. Unfortunately i lost the un-edited version of this photo.

I edited the colours on this photo by putting a filter from photoshop on it. I also cropped and stretched it to make the models look taller and thinner. I changed the colour to make this look more ruff and interesting.

On this photo i put a 'coloured window' filter from photoshop on this photo. I did this to make the model look special and to look interesting.

Photos

For this photo i tried to use a backdrop that would appeal to my target audience, it looks like an urban backdrop but with out being overly stereotypical, and it also doesn't look like some kind of 'ghetto' which would not appeal to my target audience. The costumes i chose for them were chosen to represent what the readers of my magazine would wear. That being skinny jeans, retro jackets and checkered shirts. I chose to shoot them further apart in the two pictures above to get their full body's in the shot so i could get all their outfits in, outfits which my target audience will identify with.

In the picture above i brought the models closer together, and did a came in closer with the shot, to show their unity as a band and to get a closer look at their faces. I chose in this photo to have the two males smoking, this is because i thought it would appeal to my target audience and it would also take innocence away from the band which is what i wanted their image to be. I chose for my female model not to be smoking because it means that a non smoker can still relate to someone in the band.

In the photo above i took a medium close-up of one of the models. This was to try and get closer look at the main person of my interview, and really get a good look at his features. The clothes he is wearing is clothing that my target audience can relate too. The color of his clothes also fits in with the color scheme of my magazine.

Fonts

I will be using the font Harabara which i downloaded from http://www.dafont.com/.

I chose this font beacuse i like the way it looks, it bold and clear but also quite classy. I think this font will fit in well with the theme i'm trying to create for my magazine. It also looks a bit like the the font of Q magazine which has the same target audience as mine and so would fit my magazine well. I will use this font for my main sells, for my masthead and for my article

I will also be using the font Neon Lights which i downloaded from http://www.dafont.com/.

I will use this font for my main flash and for the title on my doublt page spread. The font suits my fictional band well and i think will appeal to my target audience. It also is quite futreistc which fits in with the bands image well. It is also quit interesting so is quite eye catching.

This font is New Roman Times From word.

I will use this font for the date. It looks officail and will go well.

Flat Plans

Above is the Flat plan for one of the front covers of my magazine. I modeled the design a lot on that of the Q magazine front cover i analysed earlier in the blog. I liked the idea o

f keeping the design simple and letting the images speak and not crowd the page. The main sells conform to my target audience, with the main themas of them all are music but with a comedian like 'Ricky Gervais' showing my target audience has other interests as well as music. My masthead i have chosen is G.B.M which stands for 'God Bless Music'. I liked this name as it looked good and i think the name would appeal to my target audience. I also think it's a good name because it could be made into a recognised brand quite easily.

This is my second cover. I didn't go with this design in the end in the end because i thought that my first design was better. The reasons I think this, is because the layout of my previous front cover is better because it is clearer and the main flash and the main sells are more obvious and displayed better.

Above is the flat plan of my contents page. I modelled the lay-out on a Q magazine contents , whilst still trying to keep some originality in the design. The title of the page is G.B.Contents, this is a continuation of my magazines name, it would mean 'god bless contents'. I added a small editorial not at the bottom left of the page. This i think made the magazine more informal which i think is better and a downfall of Q magazine in my opinion is that it is too formal.

Above is the flat plan for the double page spread in my magazine. The first page will be a big group shot of the band with a quote from them underneath. This is to catch the readers attention and to introduce them to the band and establish the band in their mind.

The second Page will consist of another group shot and my article on the band.. I have modelled the lay-out for my double page spread on a Mojo interview with Gene simmons. The interview will consist of a background bio on the band, and a question and answer section.

Analyasis of 2 magazines

The image to the left is one of the magazines i will be analysing. The masthead 'Q' gives a very sophisticated feel.

The colour scheme also fits the sophisticated feel as the are only 4 colours used. The lack of bright and wild colours sets the tone of the magazine as well.

The items in the magazine are clearly separated by font and colour. The main flash in red and the most eye catching text on the page. It also

links well to the photo. The other items are all lined up adding to the neat look.

There is not a great deal of text on the front cover just names and phrases that catch your attention, but don't give too much away.

The image conveys the power of the band and the crack coming towards the reader suggests the band coming into their face which is one of the aims of the band 'The Prodigy'.

Information such as the date bar code and price is displayed ate the bottom right of the page.

This would seem to appeal males who generally like rock music. You can also assume its aimed at older males as its clean cut and quite sophisticated looking, the price could be another indication that the magazine is aimed at older people as young people could not afford to spend £4 on a magazine.

The image to the left is of the contents page of 'Q' i chose to analyse. The first impression is of every thing being neat and organised, i think this would be a good thing to carry through to my magazine as it suggests a well thought through design.

The tone of the contents is w

written in quite a formal tone with just general information on each article. There are a few puns and informal language thrown in too. Such as "tried to cut down

n on its pork life" and "bottoms up!".

All the items are presented in a column and down the bottom. The features items are listed in red, then below that the 'Oasis special!' is in a separate box and the title is in a different

colour.

There is a picture of the band The Courteeners, they are on the top of a hill withe a fantastic view behind them. It is quite an artistic photo making the band look quite cool. The caption under the picture says ""he's just showing off". Liam Fray's mum hits the nail on head." this contrasts to the picture and makes the band seem more accessible.

The date of the issue is intended again and the

magazines web-site and myspace page is also displayed .

The the image on the right is the second front cove

r i have chosen to analyse. It is the magazine 'mojo'. The mast head is covered by the image. This is a reflection on the main aim of 'mojo' to make the music the most

important thing of the magazine.

The type face is bold and with a few blending colours and the use of the colour red to highlight big articles. No bright

colours are used adding to the tone. This cover seems less sophisticated than Q due to the use of colour and the way the words are presented. In Q all the items are in different fonts and presented differently. In Mojo only one font is used and all the items blend. There is not something immediately eye catching about the text,.

The main flash would be "Pink Floyd" where as in Q the main flash was obvious, in 'Mojo' it is only slightly bigger than the other sections and and not centralised at all. This again is to probably show that to 'Mojo' the music is the most important thing in the magazine.

The image is very simple with not much expression. He looks very much like a power symbol which is probably what they were going for. With his arms crossed and eyes looking straight at the reader creates a connection with the reader and gives him an element of class and style. He's not wearing any costume just normal clothes which gives him a more powerful persona still, as it shows he has chosen what to wear and so he has authority. The black of his t-shirt also fits the colour scheme of the cover.

This magazine would appeal to a slightly older audience than Q as many of the reference are to older bands and actually no new bands are mentioned at all on this front cover. Also the main image is of a middle aged man, most young people c

could not identify with him.

Above is the double page spread i decided to analyse, they are 2 pages taken from 'Mojo'. The pages are separate images because i can only scan A4. The top page is a portrait photo of the legendary Gene Simmons of Kiss. It is an iconic photo with the make-up and the trade mark tongue out. It links to the next page which is the first halves of an interview with Simmons.

The font in the top half is very big with certain quotes picked out and highlighted. The bottom half is the main interview, The first letter 'E' is big and bold, i like this effect as it makes the piece look classy. The font of the interview is just normal, with the size being approximately 11 or 12. This i think so the words can speak for themselves and that you're not distracted by abstract things around you. This again could be a reference to 'Mojo' putting the artist and what they have to say first.

The tone of the interview is one of sheer worship, there is a box with a comment on kiss by Trent Reznor. The Title of the box is "we're not WORTHY" the word worthy is in capitals to emphases kiss' greatness.

The language in the interview is quite informal, the writer takes you on the journey he went through when meeting Simmons and describes it excellently. He really brings the reader with him and describes it immaculately.