32. Third Draft- More changes to my front cover

As you can hopefully notice I have made a few changes to my front cover, mainly neatened it up and made the cover look more professional and sleek. I have moved all the images and features onto the left hand side of the page as I feel this connotes a magazine front cover more. I have also moved the barcode up to underneath the main sub-heading and the price is now clearly stated as I feel it looked too cluttered at the bottom of the page. I have also moved what was originally in a text box about the main cover story "Gee's Secrets, Scandals and Saucy Tips", I thought it would be a nice and personal touch to the magazine to slant the text and put it across her arm. I feel this is slightly breaking the magazine conventions as I have never seen it done before however I like that about my magazine as I want it to have a bit of an attitude as that is the flavour of RnB music. 
Tell me what you think??

31. Second draft- Front cover

As you can see this second draft differs greatly from my first, taking the more modern approach to RnB. I feel the image is very strong with my front cover however I am unsure of the layout of the images I don't know weather they should all be on one side of the page? I feel the main heading is really strong and is eyecatching, and the colour scheme is cool and sophisticated. However i feel the whole thing needs to be more proffesional looking and tighter so I will work on that.

30.Feedback

Talking to some people that fall into my target audience they prefer the second draft as the the text is not so intimidating and is more reader friendly. However they feel i have moved from one extreme to another having too much text to not enough, therefore I am going to try and meet halfway and get the ratio right with my next draft, and tidy up the page also and make the writing easier to understand.

29. Second draft- Double page spread

Less Text

28. My Thoughts of my double page spread. .

I am really pleased with the outcome of my first draft, I feel it follows my design philosophy and i
has a fair minimalistic feel to it. To the once green and black colour scheme I have added another colour to the spectrum which is purple. I feel the colours are unusual and unique to this magazine as I cant think of any other magazines that have used these cool colours. I feel they connote a young, modern cool vibe that is perfect for my target audience aim. 
As I have stated before I wanted the text to not be the main focus and the ratio of text to imagery to be around 40/60. In my first draft I feel there is a lot of text and i do not want to intimidate the reader especially in the first issue. So i am going to move the page around and see if i prefer the page with less text. I also wanted to make some words inside the text bolder and more focussed to add and highlight the theme of "Secrets, Scandals and Saucy tips". At the moment I cant because I have too much text on the page, but i plan to do this. 

27. First Draft- Double page spread.

26. Pictures evalvation

As I stated in my recce post I liked the idea of a brick wall as a background for some of my pictures. As I feel it gives a care free, urban modern vibe to the picture which is all connotations of RnB music. So my favourite pictures are actually those with the brick background, I have tried out a few different camera angles and poses on the model using different levels and focuses. This is to just give me a wider range of choice of picture for my double page spread and possibly to use in my contents page also. 

The pictures with just the plain background will be used for the cover of my magazine, as i stated in my design philosophy I want a fairly minimalistic theme so therefore I do not want any distracting backgrounds for the front cover. As I feel this can look really unprofessional and more like a poster than a magazine cover. I have also taken a few different shots of the model and I am unsure weather I prefer her with or without the glasses but I will draft both to see which looks more professional and suited to my magazine. I feel the clean neutral background will make the main image stand out more as that is my main focus and draw the attention of a passing by customer. 

I am a little unsure of the pictures with the greenery in the background as I feel it is not very RnB and doesn't connote its fiery urban flavour. However I might try using it in one of my drafts and then decide from then if I will use it or not. 

25. The Pictures I Acquired.

After Successfully carrying out my risk assessment these are the photos I came out with. 

24. Risk Assessment

As I have nearly finished my draft I need to start taking pictures for my final piece. However before I do this I need to consider the risks involved whist taking pictures and the safety of myself and the model.


The Risk Assessment


Tripping, falling or slipping- Making sure that there isn't any objects or obstacles that could block a pathway causing someone to trip or fall. That the ground surface is practical and not slippy making sure that the surface is completely safe before proceeding with the photo capturing. 


Injuries from props- I will make sure that all props are acquired safely and are in a sturdy condition, alongside the correct manual handling. Also that the props are stored in a safe place were there is no risk of a fall.


As I am taking my picture against a white background, I shall try a few different ones out to test where the lighting is best for a more professional affect and finish to my picture. I will also be taking pictures outside in the natural light as I feel this can also have a lovely affect on a picture. In between shots I will make sure that my model is wearing a coat and is wrapped up as the conditions may be a little chilly.


I will be taking the photo's on a Cannon Sx 200- this device is digital and does not need plugging into any sockets while in use, There fore there will be no risk of a fire or any hazardous wires to trip over whilst taking the pictures. 

23. My design Philosophy

Whilst making my magazine I have to consider what I actually want it to look like and its ideology has to connote my personal preference and taste. However I have taken on board any negative criticism and information from various questionnaire's as I want my magazine to appeal to a wide ranged target audience and for people to like it as much as I did. I have considered the 4f's when designing my magazine (Function, Format, formula and frame), in particular function and format. 


Function: obviously the main purpose of a magazine is to entertain and inform. For my magazine alongside promoting the latest music trends, gigs and gossip, I am also including other things like fashion, health, horor-scopes, gossip, interviews, quizes and competitions which makes my magazine so much more diverse than if was just being focused purely on R&B music. I have tried to base my magazine on a combination of "LOOK" magazine and "Smash Hits", taking a light hearted approach to music and fashion unlike a magazine like "Vogue", as that is aimed at a more mature reading age. However i have tried to recreate the professionalism of a high end magazine like "Vogue". Although I have based my ideas on these magazines I have not copied them just taken parts Iike and interpreted them into my style that associates well with my magazine. 


Format: I want my magazine to be mainly made up of images and interviews, but i feel too much text on a page can be quite intimidating. Especially being the age that my magazine is aimed at, if a magazine has too much text I personally don't read it as I cant be bothered and I think the majority of people my age would agree with me. Therefore I want to get the ratio of images to text right, so I feel it will be more like 60/40, as I feel this will be a successfull combination. 


To conclude i want my magazine to have a fairly minimilistic vibe  as I feel it does not need to be cluttered because the magazine can speak for itself. I want it to have a hint of class without appearing to upperclass as my target audience is young adults and teenagers, and i want them to feel mature and sophisticated to be reading it. The overall look and information will hopefully be modern, current and what people want.

22. Contents page analysis.

As I have been stuck between the two different types of RnB; the urban streetwise sub-genre or the more classy, modern fashionable style of RnB. I decided for my contents page that I would have a go drafting in the more modern glossy magazine style to see which I would prefer to do for my final piece. I personally prefer this style as I feel it would appeal more to my teenage market audience, it looks more professional and sleek, but without loosing the care-free flavour of RnB music.
I have used a minimalistic colour scheme of black white and green as I feel it looks classy and sophisticated and is very "now". I don't know if it is a set colour scheme that will carry on further through out the magazine or is just used for the contents, I imagine if i did do the cover to this contents page I would of used the cool toned green for the cover title o"Fresh n Fly". 
I had a dilemma as to what i should put in my contents page weather or not to write down what is happening on every single page or just Features. I decided just to go with the features as I feel it gets straight to the point and the exclusive stories would appeal to my target audience. So I have highlighted them clearly on the page to stand out and grab attention. Also the cover story I have used a different colour font to show that it is our main exclusive and the colour is the same as the title and various other things which is the cool green. This keeps in tune with the rest of the page, but still stands out from the other stories and interviews.
My headlining title for this page was "LISTEN UP", which I felt was a great play on words and the under the general semantic field of music "listen" is a good association. I feel this grabs the readers attention to let them know what is going on inside the magazine.
As a fun and informal way to appeal to my youthful target audience i felt that the "Lyric of Da week", was a good way to involve my audience by giving them an opportunity to tweet there lyric on twitter making them feel a part of the magazine and music. This would be on the contents page every week and i feel this would be an exclusive thing for "Fresh n Fly" as no other magazines that i am aware of do this. I also feel like this could be a positive talking point of the magazine and immediately brings free advertisement and attention. I again have still kept to the laid back RnB style by swapping the word "the" to "Da" as this is often done in RnB music. 
The editors note I have kept fairly informal being able to communicate with my target audience and not intimidate them on our first issue. 

21. Contents page draft.

20. Front cover draft

As I have mentioned before I have been uncertain as to which type (sub-genre) of RnB that I would like to focus on as there is so many. However I narrowed it down to the street/ urban sub-genre and the very grungy, sexy sub-genre. I thought I would start draphting the more street version however whilst making my front page i actually don't like this aspect of RnB, but let me know what you think? 

There is still loads of bits and bobs missing like the images on the left hand side of the page. I personally do not like this magazine cover I feel the main heading font looks unprofessional as it is not a block font, I feel the font I have used may look better in the contents page as it is less formal and more welcoming to the reader. Also I don't like the black and white picture on the front cover, for my real thing I will use a coloured photo. 

19. Bricolage

Bricolage is the finding of different ways to make music using different devices for example making instruments from Irish spoons. It also combines the collaboration of different types of music that would otherwise not suit if not in the same context but bricolage makes it work. An example of this type of Bricolage is the stereotypical heavy metal band "Aerosmith" recorded the pop/ R&B song "Walk this way" in 1975. Due to its success later on it was covered by the huge "Girls Aloud"and "Sugarbabes"in March 2007 as a fun "Comic Relief" battle of the girl band tribute.

18. Target Audience profile

This is the sort of person I will be aiming my magazine at:

Name: Bronya Siddiqui

Ethnicity: Mixed race Brittish

Age: 17

Socio economic group- middle class

Status: In a relationship

Occupation: Bronya has been working at topshop for almost a year now. She loves working there as she can look at all the new fashion trends and get them first. 

School: Bronya attends sixth form and is in her last academic year, she studies Dance, physiology and English Literature. She hopes to attend a university next year to study English literature further. 

Lifestyle: She is a popular girl and therefore loves partying every weekend and seeing her friends and boyfriend. Who she is going to paris with this summer.

Pets- Bronya still lives at home with her parents, and they have a Chiwawa called Coco. 

Interests:  She is very into dance and keeping fit, she addends a gym 3 times a week and see's health and fitness as very important. She also loves motorbikes and attends the motorbike show at the NEC in Birmingham every year. Fashion is hugely important to Bronya and loves to go shopping with her friends and boyfriend. But the most important interest to Bronya is music she loves finding new tracks to listen too and is never seen without headphones in her ear. Her favourite artists in particular are, Jessie J, Rihanna, Drake and Nikki Minaj.

Food- Bronya is not a fussy eater and loves to try new foods from different countries. Her favourite type of meal would be an indian or a home cooked roast dinner. 

Drive?- Bronya has been taking lessons and has her test coming up soon, however she hopes to drive a pink Fiat 500 as she described them as "Cool and stylish".

Hobby- Street dance, reading, partying.

17. Reccy work

Today we went round the school looking for possible backgrounds for our front cover and double page spread. I mainly chose. grungy, earthy and streetwise feel to the genre of RnB. I want the background to feel farely relaxed as the music and lyrics for RnB music seem to connote this atmosphere.


Here are some of the backgrounds I liked, obviously we are really limited during school time to the school grounds only. But in my own time when I come to do my final drapht I may use other backgrounds.

I love the grungy earthy feel to this background and would be perfect for a Rihanna esq double page spread style. However I am still in two minds as to what type of RnB style to do for my magazine weather to do the grungy high fashion side, or the gangster street style. 

Again I like the streetwise and urban feel to this background and feel it would fit well to my theme. On iPhoto I tweaked the lighting a bit to make the picture look less bright and I feel the colouring looks really affective the way it has come out. 

I have always liked the idea of a brick wall for the front cover as the genre is urbanised and I feel this would work nicely with the urban theme, However I would prefer the brick to be not so clean and have graffiti on it to show the lifestyle of an RnB listener. 

For the front cover i feel the background should be more plain than the double page spread as it may look too much once all the headings, subheadings and titles have been added. I feel a blank white washed wall can look very professional and polished. 

16. Uses and Gratifications

Mcquail (1983) classified the following common reasons for media use:


Information

• Finding out about relevant events and conditions in intermediate surroundings, society and the world
• seeking advice on practical matters or opinion and design choices 
• satisfying curiosity and general interest
• gaining a sense of security through knowledge

Personal Identity

• finding reinforcement for personal values
• finding models for behaviour
• identifying with valued others (in the media)
• gaining insight into oneself

Integration and social interaction

• gaining insight into the circumstances of others; social empathy
• identifying with others and gaining a sense of belonging
• finding a basis of conversation and social interaction
• having a substitute for real-life companionship
• helping to carry out social roles
• enabling one to connect with family , friends and society

Entertainment

• escaping or being diverted, from problems
• relaxing
• getting intrinsic cultural, or aesthetic enjoyment
• filling time
• emotional release 
• erotic/ sexual arousal.

KERRANG!

The magazine deconstruction that I did earlier on I will be looking more closely at regarding Mcquail's technique. 

Information:

• This magazine is used for information other than music,for example it has an agony aunt page and information about sex and relationships, which comes hand i hand with the "Sex, drugs and rockn'roll" lifestyle.
• However its sole purpose is to provide information about the music and upcoming gigs.
• Like the tropes of any other music magazine it tells all the gossip about current stars and holds interviews with them
•  There is lots of niche and acquired information for there target audience of rock/ heavy metal listeners appealing to there interests and identity.

Personal identity:

• The readers interested in the magazine will be able to relate with the same fashion trends and taste through the magazine.
• Unlike pop or fashion magazines "KERRANG!" appears to focus on real people and real bands, not models however it is fair to say that most youths like to model themselves on models and want to look like them. 
• However I still believe that young people would model themselves son the people shown in this magazine as they may aspire to look like them, or become heavy metal stars and songwriters.

Integration and social interaction:

• Teenage girls and boys will interact and talk to one another about the latest exclusives
• The poster pages will cause conversation through youths as they may particukary take a fancy to one of the cover models
• It must bring the target audiences together as they both share a passion for the same style and music
• "gaining a sense of belonging"- usually heavy metal and rock music is very niche and frowned upon from non supportive people of the genre- however music does have the power to transport people away from everyday life and this type of music must appeal to those and make them feel a sense of belonging. 

Entertainment:

• This magazine provides lots of entertainment- for example "735 new gigs" list and posters and the latest gossip of stars
• This allows the reader to relax and take time out from there busy lives.
• Although I feel "erotic/ sexual arousal" is more based around lad mags, they do still have attractive people in the magazine making the whole experience of reading it more pleasurable.