Changes made based on rough cut feedback

After gathering the feedback for my rough cut magazine, it occurred to me that there was a lot more to change than I thought.

1 Firstly, the colour scheme: my target audience said that the colours were too plain and boring, and if the magazine was going to catch the reader's attention, they would have to be brighter. In light of this feedback, I did some further research into Q magazine and some of the colours they have used in some of the issues. In this issue with the Foo Fighters, there is a fourth colour in the colour scheme - gold. I decided to try this in my magazine because it wasn't too bright, and I didn't think it would clash with the paler background as much as a bolder colour (such as red) would. Not only did this change make my magazine stand out a lot more, but the gold-yellow is a contrasting colour with the purple colours which are already on the page, which makes the page very pleasing to look at.

2 My target audience also highlighted that I needed more photos on my contents page, which I was planning on doing. The feedback helped me to decide what type of photos I would use, for example I wanted a mix of angles and numbers of models. So, I took two more pictures to fit below the large existing one. One of these photos was a picture of a female, inquisitively looking into the distance; the other was a two-shot of a duo who are looking straight into the camera.

3 As featured in my rough cut feedback video, my double page spread used to look very plain. It was with the aid of my feedback that I changed the colours and fonts of some of the text - such as the artists name - to make the page look individual, instead of blending in with the rest of the magazine. Although, I did ensure that I followed Mojo's double page spreads closely so that I didn't crowd the page.

Contents page photos

The photos below are 3 from a selection that I took for my contents page. I wanted them to be incredibly simple, and that is why the girl in the mise-en-scene is minimal. I asked my model to wear a plain top with a plain skirt, and to have to her hair down. My model was good for this photo because her hair is dark and it stands out from the lighter colours of the sky and the grass. I took my pictures outside on a field so that it looked natural, and fitted with the picture which I had already taken of Reece; also outside. I began with long shots, but soon learned that they made the model look really young and innocent, which was not the look I was going for. The second picture, though the tree outlined it well, looked too busy with the background and didn't really grasp the look I was aiming for. For this reason I zoomed in on the subject when it came to taking the third photo, and it worked quite well. Being closer to the artist means that the reader is more inclined to look at their facial expression - as I found out in my questionnaire - and I found this when I looked back at the photo. My model is almost scowling, her face being blasted by the wind; and her is free flowing nicely over her left shoulder, displaying her face fully to the reader. I like her pose because she is looking out into the distance, almost inquisitively, intrigued by something in the distance. After taking a few more in this pose, I chose one of them to put on to my contents page.

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The picture below is the final image after being photoshopped. The floodlight on the left which can be seen against the trees was not shown as the box for the photo wasn't as wide as the original photo.

New colour scheme

After receiving my rough cut analysis, I realised how plain my magazine is. Not just the front cover, but the colours on my contents page and double page spread were all quite similar and nothing really stood out. This led to me trying out numerous colours, but nothing looked good. I tried changing the background to green, but this completely subverted the conventions of my style model, Q. I changed the background back to how it was, and began altering the colours of the text, however, none of the colours went with the purple background. I tried reds, both bright and pale; blue and yellow, but even the primary colours looked odd. After looking through a number of Q magazine issues, I found this one, from 2012.

The colour scheme on this page is black, white, red and gold, and because I vowed to myself not to use red, gold appeared to be the only colour that I could try. After changing the colours of the lines in between the text, and the headline, my front page looked a lot brighter. I used gold on my contents page for continuity, changing the colour bar across the top of the page, page number boxes. This slight change in colour made a big difference to my magazine, making it lighter and immediately more appealing. On my double page spread, however, I realised that I actually needed to change the main title to a different font in a different colour in order for it to stand out. I experimented with some of the colours and decided on a turquoise-blue because it features nowhere else on my magazine. Next, I changed a couple of other features on the page to the same colour so it all tied in, these were: the box for the caption, the quote and the line across the bottom of the article. 

Rough cut feedback

After handing in my rough cut magazine, I gathered 4 members of my target audience to sit down and analyse my front page, contents and double page spread. I know these people well so I asked them to be as critical and specific as they could with their feedback.

Album covers

The album covers below are hand drawn, and they feature on my double page spread in a column down the right hand side.

My aim in drawing these album covers was to give my magazine an element of explicit content, without being too blatant. The red album is based on Sex, an album by The 1975. Firstly, I drew out the outline of the woman, then I used the bands original logo as a censor across the chest. On photoshop, I used to paint tool to colour the background red, varying the size of the brush so I was able to get as close to the outline as possible. The significance of the red is to be sensuous and alluring. I think the black, white and red contrast well against each other because there is a clean break between where one colour ends and another starts, so it is striking to the viewer.

The second album cover I created was meant to be simple so I could get my message across firmly with no distractions. The name of the album by Andreas Moe is 'Long Time' and I thought a tree would be a good way to present this. The tree is the main focus of the picture, placed in the centre, holding the text up with its branches. In the process of making this cover I printed out the artist's name on a speckly cream background, then began to work the picture around it to ensure that it would be large in comparison to the other things on the page. I placed the 'Long Time' on the cover once I'd scanned in the sketch of the tree.

The final album cover is my favourite because it allowed me to be creative and bring art into my coursework. The album title 'Mistaken' does not actually exist, but I thought it was a typical Indie album name, and it also mean that I could create a cover which was simple, yet makes the point. The way in which the girl's hair is free flowing over her face gives the impression that the artist, or whoever she is singing about, is hiding away from something. I think this is something that my target audience will relate to because they are at an age when there is a lot of pressure on them. For example, school and university. The aim of this cover was for my target audience to be able to escape from reality and become intertwined with Hannah Grace's music.

Aims

By the week ending Sunday 21st April, I would like to:

• have designed and scanned in my new album covers for my double page spread
• have taken at least 2 new photos for my contents page
• decided on a new colour scheme

Rough Cut

[There are still photos to upload onto my contents page]

[There are three album covers still to be uploaded onto the right hand side of the double page spread, and an album cover for the artist to be placed in the bottom right hand corner of the left page]