Photo Shoot Process and Editing

I took 4 photos for my magazine: one for the front cover, one for the contents page and 2 for the article. The first photo I took was a medium full shot of a person staring at the camera shouting looking directly at the audience this was supposed to be the picture that enticed people to pick up the magazine. My target audience of 15-25 wouldve seen the image and picked it up because they were almost involved in the picture. I then edited the picture to make it darker, sharper and add shadows to the background. After this I decided it needed a focus so I added a texture which it look like he was producing flames from his hands, this represents the metal genre its very metal styled imagery. For my second image it represented a bit more of the article the article is an interview conserning one of the band members deaths this picture sets the tone the model stares at the ground in a deep thoughtful manner. I didnt use as darker lighting so it didnt contrast too much with the colour of my contents page. For the third image I used a different model the photo was a wide shot and then cropped at the sides the model is seen jumping in mid air. I experimented with different effects for this picture I made it darker and sharper and then tried to make it look like the model was jumping over a fire but it didnt look right and wasnt appropriate for the article so I kept it with the original effects. For my fourth and final picture I took a wide shot in a snowy field with trees in the background with my model standing to the side facing away this was to symbolise the band walking away from their past and starting a new. The snow represents the cold sad emotions they were feeling at the loss of their friend. I then edited the photo putting a slight blue filter on it and making the photo sharper this created the effect that the article was very reflective and emotional.

Photo Shoot Planning

From my mood board I have seen the fashion associated with the metal genre, they often wear darker clothes, t-shirts, jackets, shirts, ties a whole mix of clothes. Nothing mainstream though all clothes have a twist which make them unique and dark in their own way. I have chosen to have my model wearing a shirt, tie with a coat. This gives the band group a bit more credibility and darker tones. In other metal magazines medium full shots are often used this way you can see what the person is wearing whilst still being able to see their facial expressions I am going to apply this to my own photo shoot. The Photos seen in Metal Hammer are heavily edited and stick with the theme of the main article in the magazine. Here the main articles title is called "Hail to the king" and features a throne made out of guitars. This shows consistency throughout the magazine. I want to follow in these conventions. The focus of this photo is the man sitting in the chair he is the lead singer and represents the rest of the band. I will do something similar and only have one person in my photo shoot. They have used dark colours and a misty texture in the background, this goes with the metal theme and look I aim to follow these conventions. Here he is shown holding a guitar I do not want to have my person holding anything I want them gesturing, almost shouting at the audience in rage.

AHundredWookies' photostream

AHundredWookies' photostream on Flickr.

These are my original Photos and Edited versions for my Magazine.

Research Summary

From my research of music magazines I have learnt many things. Firstly, I have learnt that the front cover of a magazine it is always better to make your subject have eye contact with the camera and therefore the audience. This is so that it will catch the audience’s eyes and they are more likely to pick the issue up. Also, on many music magazines such as Kerrang! And NME, display their main feature image, which is on the front cover, over the logo, giving the impression that the artist, is more important than the brand. I have found that a lot of people in the magazine industry use fun fonts and bright colours to make the pages interesting, however also keeping to a consistent colour scheme and style.

Through looking at all the different music magazines I have decided that I want to make a rock style magazine. For these types of magazines, they usually have a series of rock colours, these are mostly black, white, red and yellow. The props used are normally microphones, guitars, drums, and other instruments as well as props that reflect the text and the rock stereotype. Rock music magazines typically put a lot of posters in each issue to as another selling point for the magazine.

Usually Rock Magazines are targeted at a unisex audience, they use things such as posters, sob stories, fashion, posed pictures and bright colours to attract a female audience, whereas they use dark colours, competitions, easy read articles with pictures and feedback for guys. And then they also have; band alerts, album releases, hot news, live reviews, concert pictures and band merchandise adverts. From this I have realised I want to make a unisex orientated magazine.

In the main features boxes are used on the side for quick reading of the article. These are sometimes filled with  questions to attract the audience and make it more personal, the readers want to know the answer to the question. In the features they use a lot quotes to make the text interesting and the tones of the writing are casual and laid back they usually set the tone of the pictures they go with. The mood can change the whole view on the story which is where the target audience come in, so you have to make sure that you have the right tone and mood for the reader to stay interested. Sometimes, they use different colours to break up the text to make it more noticeable and the fonts always have to be different for the main text used in the articles.

This research has helped me to plan and design my own magazine and to make it appropriate for the right audience as well as making it interesting.

Institution Analysis

Institution Analysis

The BBC is an organisation in the UK. It broadcasts in the United Kingdom and other countries on television, radio and the Internet. The BBC also sells its programmes to other broadcasting companies in the world. The BBC have a magazine which has printed listings of the week's BBC radio and television programmes, it is called the Radio Times. The magazine also prints listings of programmes broadcast by other providers in the United Kingdom, it provides online listings too. It also prints stories about programmes, the people who make them, and the people who appear in them. The Radio Times is one of the best selling magazines in the United Kingdom. BBC has the largest news broadcast gathering operation in the world be that local radio stations or world wide news television networks.

The Finished Magazine

 This is my final finished piece: