Progress update 1

Today I began designing the cover of my magazine on Adobe Photoshop. I have used an example image which is close to the type of shot I would like to have on the cover since I do not have my actual photographs ready yet. I have also decided on a rough colour scheme and fonts/overall layout of the cover.

Institutional Research

INSTITUTION	DETAILS	PUBLICATIONS
BBC Worldwide Productions	BBC World wide’s UK Publishing business extends audiences' enjoyment of BBC programmes through its magazines, digital editions, books and live events.	Top Of The Pops Magazine BBC Music Magazine
Bauer Media Group	Bauer Media is a division of the Bauer Media Group; Europe’s largest privately owned publishing Group. The Group is a worldwide media empire offering over 300 magazines in 15 countries, as well as online, TV and radio stations.	Q Magazine Kerrang! Magazine MOJO Magazine
Blaze Publishing	Blaze has grown to become the largest independently-owned publishing company in the shooting sector, and in the last few years has expanded into music magazines and live events, video and women’s lifestyle.	Acoustic Magazine Bass Guitar Magazine
Wenner Media LLC	Wenner Media LLC publishes Periodical and magazines. The company also produces radio and television programs. Additionally, Wenner Media LLC operates web sites for its magazines	US Weekly Men’s Journal Magazine Rolling Stone Magazine

Front Cover Deconstructions

I have researched 3 different music magazine front covers and deconstructed and compared them using Microsoft PowerPoint.

It has gave me a clear idea of what helps a magazine stand out on the shelves and how to organise the image and text on the page to make it look as neat and aesthetically pleasing as possible. It also gave me an indication of what to avoid when creating my own magazine to avoid the cover looking cluttered and unorganised. It is crucial that the main cover of my magazine is unique and stands out from all the others on the shelves therefore I need to ensure they don't resemble these other magazines too much.

Stage 1 Planning

AS Coursework Proposal Table – Stage 1

Type of Magazine (fashion, music, etc)	Pop/alternative music magazine
Name of Magazine	Focus
Audience (male/female)	Both male and female
Audience (attitudes and interests)	For people interested in current music, discovering up and coming artists and reading interviews with artists.
Outlet (where it can be bought from?)	Local newsagents/supermarkets etc.
Necessary Information	Issue number/price/barcode Aesthetically pleasing fonts/images Text kept to a minimum to avoid overcrowded cover
Unique Selling Point	Exclusive information and interviews
Theme (article)	Interview with a 'famous singer', create a backstory for them and interview them about their life and future career plans (e.g. upcoming albums, singles, tour etc)
Images Front Cover	Large main image with a couple of other smaller pictures around the cover to intrigue the reader and make them want to buy/read it. I will make the background dark which will contrast with the bright text and main image.
Images Inside	Relevant images relating to the articles in the magazine 2-3 large images for the main double page spread.

Preliminary Task

I think that I followed magazine conventions well through using key features of a magazine cover and contents page and using detailed and relevant information on the my coverlines and contents. Accurate spelling has been used throughout as well as a clear design, layout and branding.
For my main cover I will be spending much longer on the design, for example including a more prominant masthead, more aesthetically pleasing fonts/colour scheme/images, intergrating coverlines with an image on the cover and using space more effectively. Also, since I will have much more time I can use more software like Photoshop to make my magazine look as good as possible.