Main Task - Producing a Music Magazine

For the main task i will have to plan and produce the front page and a double page spread of a music magazine. I have to decide on a specific genre for the magazine and i have to aim this for my target audience. The genre i have decided to base my magazine on is present rock music.

Analysis of a music magazine front cover

This music that is featured in this magazine is classic and contemporary rock. Other magazines that are similar to this is Q, Rolling Stones and NME. Mojo also has a DAB radio station, which also broadcasts on sky television. The music genre's that are represented in this magazine are rock and pop, as the main image is of a pop rock singer but she can also be grouped as having a jazz influence. The stylistic features used on this front cover is the white background with the black text this is used because these are contrasting colours also the white represents a clean canvas and the black text conveys the idea of being dark and having a sort of rock effect as this is the colour that is most associated with rock stars. the gold text that is used may be to break up the black and white colours as these are quite bold, gold is associated with wealth, so therefore all the featured artists names are in gold text on the front cover, this may be to show their wealth and importance. The use of the centre image shows that she is the main feature of the magazine, this is shown by using a full page image and also by having her name in large text across the middle of the magazine, the image is in black and white to also fit in with the colour scheme. The content that is typical of the genre is classic and contemporary rock music, on previous covers of Mojo magazine, they have featured artists such as Oasis, The Beatles and Queen, these all fit into the genre of classic and contemporary rock music. Elements that have been chosen are, there are a range of fonts that are used, but mainly the ones that are used are serif fonts hich connotates a classic/traditional image, examples of this is the main text Amy Whinehouse, this shows the importance she has to that edition of the magazine, and also tries to give an image of the sort of music she produces as being quite classic, as she is a 60's soul singer. The elemens of the page are laid out in three sections there is the cenral image and at both sides of this is the sell lines. By the absense of colour, the black and white colour scheme gives the appeal of being classic and tadititional. Te eye navigates around the page starting from the central image as this is the main feature then the eye travels around each of the sell lines.

coventions of a school/college magazine.

To make a magazine successful, you need to have some conventions which are the same as rules or guidelines, conventions are what need to be included, the main convention of a magazine is a mast head, as this will be the title or company name. this is the part that will stay the same throughout every issue and will make it recognisable. Another convention used on a front cover is features that will be included in the magazines, this is usually in put across in a small amount of text so that not too much information is given, so therefore people buy the magazine to find out more. The magazine will need an aim so that it can attract their target audience. Firstly, there is the idea of gender - if the magazine is directed at females then the colours are often soft and stereotypical to girls (e.g. - pink) whereas if a magazine is aimed at boys, the colours are often darker and stereotypical to boys (e.g. - blue). Along with the target gender the magazine will also have to target a specific age group that the magazine will be aimed for. It wil also need relevant articles for those age groups such as teenage boys will be interested in cars or football, this will then be the main focus of the front cover. Females will be interested in clothes and make-up stereotypicaly, so this would be the main the main focus for a girls magazine.

image anlysis

Every magazine has a main focus point. this is usually an image which is related to the main story line. On this magazine the main focus is an image of Britney spears as she is the largest image on the page. All of the images are mid shots, of just the bikini area as this is what the main article is about. The magazine is targeted to young women, we know this as the story lines are about young celebrities, and this is what young women are interested in. There are many story lines featured on the front page, this attracts buyers as it shows that the magazine is full of interesting gossip. The front cover has a lot of text, which is in different fonts, this could be to represent that they are different articles. The Masthead is recognisable to regular buyers of the magazine, this is one of the main conventions that remain the same, On this front cover the masthead is behind the images, this gives the font cover a sense of depth, and the images are what are needed to be focused on. However this is not a problem as the masthead is still readable so therefore it does not affect it being half covered. The text 'Surprise Beach Bodies' is in a yellow font colour this could be to represent the colour of sand and sunshine as the article is referring to topics to do with the beach.

Image analysing

The focal point of this image is the Boy as he is making a hand gesture. the eye then wanders to the girl on the opposite side. Boy is gazing directly at us, inviting our complicity into the scene. On the other hand the girl is gazing at the boy in the image. the reason for this maybe that she is trying to put across that she is much smarter than the boy as she has quite a smug face. the image has two competitive images. Two students of different genders. Both are represented as students and are wearing a uniform, and are also doing work. they also have the appearance that they have been asked a question. which could have come from a teacher. The boy has his hand up in order to answer this question. Both students are set on a neutral white background. White is associated with being clean and pure and could also represent a blank canvas. which the students are starting to fill with their learning. The white background gives the images a sharp impact. The two students invoke a sense of rivalry between genders. This could be to show that one gender more intelligent than the other. In this case the boy is trying to portray that he is the smarter of the two. By being eager to answer questions. However the girl is just watching him which could mean that she knows the answer and is being smug by keeping it to herself. The text that is related to the images are "Do boys and Girls learn differently". Next to the image of a girl the text is in pink, as the is a colour that is associated with females. The colour represents gentle emotions. The text next to the image of boy is blue, this colour represents males. Blue is calming. But it can also be strong and steadfast just like young males are. Above both images is the same mast head in the same text and colour this could be to make the magazine easily recognisable. It is also continuous as all the 'Secondary Teachers' magazines have this masthead.

This magazine is for college teachers, this magazine is used to improve the way in which teachers educate students, and to make secondary teaching more fun. To do this by using a main image of a child. which is dressed in a uniform.This advertises what the magazine is about. It shows that the main interest of the magazine is students. In the image the girl is smiling which gives the impression that the girl is enjoying learning. Another significant feature of the magazine is that the girl is half dressed in a school uniform and half dressed in a nurse uniform. This is an important feature as it makes the reader believe that secondary education can help to gain a student a good job. The background is white which shows the connotations of being pure and clean, it also is a blank canvas, which could then give the student something to work on. It could also be that before secondary learning the student will have no qualifications, and the white background represents this. So once the student have been through secondary learning the canvas will no longer be blank. Which will set them up for future life.The colour of the text is used to stand out from the white background. The blue coloured font is used to match what the girl is wearing this is to create balance and continuity.

The 5 main areas that will structure my magazine page are :



Language: In the media, are technical terms that these include an appropriate headline that is specific to he medium. Such as Mastheads, Bylines, pull quotes ans strap lines etc.

Photos and text which i will have created and manipulated if needed.

Denotation and Connotation are another main factor for language.

Institution:This factor is the promotional and advertising element, such as advertising companies or colleges etc. This is were i can urn a usually boring typical college magazine into something that actually appeals to students. To do this in my magazine i will have to use formal and informal structure to the magazine.

Ideology: Is a shared system of beliefs and values. These are split into two main points.
Explicit - something that is expressed. Eg. Wyke offers learning.
Implicity- how things are represented Eg. Wyke offers a range of courses

Audience This is the part where the magazine has to find which population of people the magazine is targeted/aimed for. so for the college magazine i will make it appeal to college students, i also need it to help them in either picking the correct choices or too answer some of the questions that they do not understand.

Representation this is how social groups/ individuals are represented in a media text. This could be age, gender and social class. These groupings could be represented in a stereotypical way. Such as the tv programme Shameless. This is represented as a underclass society. Using stereotyped people to appear downgraded.

Research and planning

to help complete this excercise i will research similar products, this will help to give a clear idea of what i need to include and how i should present my magazine. i will also questionnaire a sample of my target audience, this wil help me to understand what the audience will be interested in.

Starting point

My preliminary exercise is to use desktop publisher and an image manipulation program to create the front page of a new school/college magazine. My target audience for this magazine is 16-18 year olds.

Features of the magazine

• I will create:
• A front page
• A mock up contents page
• Appropriately laid out text
• Image of a student.
• Masthead.
• Attractive for the target audience.