Final Copies

My Evaluation

Contents Page- Drafts & Final

Draft 1;

Draft 2;

• Added a coloured box beneath main images
• Added circle with page numbers of the article with the model on (Kerrang! did this with their Slash article)

Draft 3;

• Changed image on cover as the model smoking doesn't make him look like a rolemodel
• Added a coloured box under the 'main article' subheading to make it the most obvious sub-heading section so the reader doesn't have to search through all the text to find it

Final draft;

• Added an image of myself by the editor's letter to make it more personal
• Added 2 images from another photoshoot by the side of the subheadings to make it look more professional (Kerrang! had multiple images from seperate shoots to relate to the articles)

Contents Page- Inital Planning

Contents Page- Images

As well as my photos from my shoot with my front cover model I took a shoot of models Nathan, Helena, Sam and Jordan and made them look as if they were part of a band. These are my edits that I may use:

Since I plan to include an editors' letter, here are some images of me I may use to go with it:

Contents Page- Research Into Similar Media Texts

Kerrang! contents analysis:

NME contents analysis:

Common conventions:

• Highlighted page numbers in a different colour
• Included brief descriptions of some articles
• Used sub-headings
• Used a symbol to indicate the articles on the front cover
• Used a masculine colourscheme
• Similar fonts for article titles
• A subscription feature was used
• Banner-style title

DPS Feedback

Do the pages engage the reader’s interest immediately- if ‘yes’, why do you think this is. If ‘no’ wire some suggestions to improve this quality

•          Yes- smiling model and bright colours
•          Bright yellow stands out
•          Similar photo to front cover
•          Good, large images
•          Yes, bright colours

What does the heading reveal about the potential reader?

•          They want to know more about rockstars and details about their life
•         Someone who likes to hear about success
•          They like the following celebs news

Who do you think this magazine is targeting and how can you tell?

•          Teenagers- girls and boys, gossip about girlfriends but male artist may appeal to guys
•          Female- love object, gossip about the new girlfriend. Male- hard hitting introduction
•         Girls- about his girlfriend

Offer one comment about the use of images. It can either be positive or constructive.

•          Good image- eye contact
•          Good image, clear, but heading covering too much of his head
•          Like the fact there are 2 images from separate photoshoots

Offer one comment about the use of language. It can either be positive or constructive.

•          Chatty and casual, really appeals to target audience
•          Good story
•          Simple and clear, easy to read

Rate out of 10:

•          10- looks very professional
•          10
•          9

Double Page Spread Drafts

Inital draft:

• Experimented with image & text placement but decided against these changes from my plans as they didn't fit convention or look professional.

2nd draft:

• This draft was also slight experimentation and develops to draft 3 where I add images
• On the right-hand side the black box is where text was going to go before I changed my mind
• I used a quote as the title. I liked this but it is more appropriate for a standfirst rather than the headline as it doesn't give an insight to the article

 3rd draft:

• Here I have added my main images. The images have eye-contact with the audience which makes the article personal
• I made the beginning of the article slightly larger and in bold to create a standfirst/introduction
• I also used a dropcap which both NME & Kerrang! used
• I have included 3 articles in this draft: the main article; the Q&A; and 'The Girlfriend' article.

Here is the text from the main article:

Growing up with my 5 brothers and 2 sisters was tough, especially since both my parents were unemployed and we lived in the rough East End. I was the oldest out of all my siblings so it was my responsibility to look after them and provide for our family. My parents found it hard to keep jobs as my Mum has M.E and my dad had some time in prison on his record. From the age of 14, I started to busk with my acoustic guitar I won in a school raffle. I had always been interested in music ever since I was a toddler but busking was a whole new story. I wrote songs (some were pretty terrible) and tried to play some by ear since I couldn't afford sheet music. I didn’t get much money at first, maybe a tenner everyday for 8-10 hours if I was lucky, but after about 6 months of busking in the underground I had some sort of fanbase. I had regulars who would stop to hear me play; I finally felt appreciated. After about a year of busking, when I was 15, I was approached by a short man wearing a suit and tie- he looked like one of those busy London business men who had somewhere to be. He said to me “you’re brilliant! I’ve been looking for a guy like you. You’re different and I like your style”. He grabbed the sleeve of my camouflage jacks and lightly kicked my 3-inch rise creepers with his smart brogue.  “I need someone like you. I’m Ted Smith, owner of Let’s Rock Records- let’s talk”. I grabbed my guitar and hat full of coppers and we headed for the nearest café. After a long talk and an exchange of details we agreed to meet again in his office in the heart of London to write up a contract and produce some tracks for an EP.

On the 23^rd May 2000 we signed a contract and he hooked me up with top song writer Sam Stone to write a real song that my audience could relate to- ‘Cry’, The song is about my childhood and growing up on benefits with 10 hungry mouths to feed. It really pulled on the heartstrings to record but after a month it was done and it was released as a single on 30^th June after some heavy advertising in magazines, newspapers and posters around London. After 2 weeks my single had sold over 100,000 copies and it went to number 5 on the charts. I had finally made my parents proud.

12 years down the line I’m now a Rock sensation with a perfect life. My life is sweet. I have a perfect girlfriend (Mollie), a flash Mercedes, houses in 3 countries and my proud family who see me at every concert. Not only are they proud of me, but I’m proud to be me. If it wasn’t for my determination I wouldn’t be where I am today.

In a month (1^st January) I’m releasing my new album ‘Don’t Give Up’ featuring Metro Station and Paramore and going on tour with these guys and my amazing girlfriend- she’s even supporting me on 2 of my tour dates! The tickets will be out 10^th January and I have dates in Dublin, Glasgow, Birmingham, Manchester and 2 in London. Tickets start from £20 and I’m even selling backstage passes to meet me, Hayley Williams and Trace Cyrus.

Final draft:

• In my final draft I added an image to 'The Girlfriend' mini-article
• I moved the main headline up to stop covering as much of the artist's face as possible
• I added 'exclusive interview' which was in my plan

Double Page Spread Planning

Initial computer plan:

Initial paper plan:

Main design features:

• Image takes up all of left page (convention of music magazines)
• "Exclusive interview!"- exclamative, makes the audience want to read the article as it is exclusive to my magazine
• Title split into two and tilted at different angles- angled title similar to Kerrang!
• Main article split into two sections by a pull-quote and an image- breaks up the large quantity of text
• Large amount of text- my audience is passionate about music so they are interested about the artist and want to find out more about him
• Second article- a Q&A, gives multiple perspectives about the artist

Double Page Spread Research

Kerrang! analysis:

 NME analysis:

Conventions in both Kerrang! and NME:

• Used an obvious colourscheme
• Main cover image took up the whole of the left-hand image (K!- had no puffs due to studio shoot, NME- used 3 puffs on image to break up from busy backdrop)
• K! broke up text using highlighted questions in Q&A whilst NME used images and pull-quotes to break up text
• NME used a side-article to make page look busy whilst K! filled the right-hand page with one article
• Main headline for both pages was bold and stood out from image and text

Audience Feedback for Front Cover

Does the front cover engage the reader's interest immediately? If 'yes', why do you think this is. If 'no' write 3 suggestions to improve the quality?

1. Yes- lots of colours (good colour scheme), model looks directly into the camera, exciting variation of fonts
2. Yes- use of colours, model staring straight at you
3. Yes- catchy title, recognised artists

What do the sell lines reveal about the potential reader?

1. The bands included e.g. YMAS and The Indigo Girls suggest they like rock music
2. They like rock music
3. The audience are predominantly male but some female interest

Who do you think this magazine is targeting and how can you tell?

1. Male & female, age 16-25 (model could be love object, neutral colour scheme)
2. Rock indie fans because of the artists & rock guitar
3. Male & some female

Offer one comment about the use of image. It can either be positive or constructive.

1. Can't think of any criticism
2. Model engaging with audience
3. Clear engaging image

Offer one comment about the use of language. It can either be positive or constructive.

1. Could put more detail about what's going to be inside e.g. give more hints about articles
2. "TUNE IN!"- engages with audience
3. All artists that interest people

Score out of 10

1. 8
2. 6
3. 9

Front Cover- Evolution From Start to Finish

I have put the model over the top of the magazine logo, making him seem the most important thing on the page. This is a common convention of magazines. I also used a customised barcode (this is a found image) as it reinforces the theme of music by being a tape. Similarly to my school magazine I used a puff in the upper right hand corner with the price in.

Here I have reduced the brightness of the model and increased the contrast to bring out the pattern of his camo jacket and the deep red of the guitar. I did this by making the model a seperate layer to the background of the image so the background would not darken & have an increased contrast. This makes him stand out more. I also included a code in the bottom left hand corner which is similar to Kerrang! Magazine as it is a code to download the magazine onto an iPad/iPod. This keeps the magazine up with current technology and appeals to the younger generation, who is my target audience. In addition, I put in a feature of a free guitar picks which are limited edition to entice the audience into buying my magazine.

On this copy I included a banner at the bottom which is a common convention on music magazines and nearly all have a banner somewhere on the cover. I have also included a description of the main article about 'Will Coleman' to give the reader an idea of what the article will be about, this makes them want to read it and know more. I put the free guitar picks coverline in a banner under the model's head as it uses up white space and looks more professional than a coverline (also makes it stand out).

In this image I further edited the model by airbrushing his face to remove any blemishes. I also included a coverline about Atomic Sound. I made the article about the band splitting up as it is gossip that many people would want to get involved in and can talk about with friends- therefore the magazine is becoming a social event. 

I included a description of the code that allows the reader to download to their phone- however I took the code off the cover in the next draft due to them being seperated by the barcode. I would also include the code in the contents page so there is no point in the code even being on the cover. I also altered the logo I used for the Sex Pistols (found image) as it was pixelated and blurry. This logo is much better and is one we all know. I also added colour to the bottom banner to make it look more professional.

This is my final draft. To make the magazine appeal to females I edited the 'Kings of Leon' sell line to 'The Indigo Girls'- a classic girl band. This band would appeal to my female target audience as it is relatable to them. I also included a coverline 'We Style Paramore!' which both adds an exclamative to the cover to add a variation of linguistic techniques and it adds the feminine element to the cover- fashion and styling. Finally, I slightly altered the puff in the upper right hand corner as it was too prominent and was more noticeable and bigger than the model's face. I made it lighter, no outline and behind the banner.