Evaluation

• In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
My media product uses forms and conventions of real media products in the sense that I have kept to the codes and conventions normally found within a magazine. I have used my research into similar media texts to my advantage, seeing how each magazine makes up for the dead space, how their imagery is used, how to attract their reader etc. and therefore I feel that I was able to keep to a strict criteria when making my magazine. I feel that my front cover will attract the reader becuase of the way the image stands out, and how the text has the outer glow effect which will stand out from other magazines. The colour scheme of the front cover is very summery, with bright colours everywhere. This colour contrast to other magazines on the shelf will also make the magazine stick out, whereas had I gone for a bland and dull scheme then my magazine would be left on the shelf as it would get no attention. The whole of the page has been used, which was part of the criteria in my questionnaire. I have adhered to my questionnaire earlier on in the task as I responded to the calls of the general public by using the whole space, used a male musician, a rock category and also made the colour stand out from other magazines.

My contents page was kept simple as this was something that I found when doing my initial research. I feel that I used a good balance between text and imagery, which again was something in my research. The imagery was all relevant (relating to the questionnaire) and also had the page number and a brief heading for that image. This meant that I kept to the various codes and conventions required for a contents page. Underneath the headings of the contents pages I wrote 1-3 lines on what to expect from the article which would express an interest to the reader. This meant that I needed to use the correct phrases and terminology so that I would entice the reader to turn to that particular page. The contents page was meant to be simple as it was meant to be easy to navigate around, as this page is the base of the magazine which ultimately makes the magazine easy to access or difficult.

My double page spread I used a main image which ran across the two pages. I found this to be the case in most of my research and therefore I decided to do the same. The image was a fairly simple image and therefore may not necessarily attract the reader just by the image, and so I included a quote from the article which was oversized (such as the NME dps) and written in a different font. This would draw the reader into reading the article as the quote was quite an interesting one and therefore the reader would want to know more. I included a fact file which was not in any of the research that I had conducted. I feel that this was a good addition as it would get the reader to be on a more personal term with the artist and it would also give people who may not know the artist more information. The font I used was simple and clear to read, and it was a decent size also. The text wrapping which was also used towards the bottom right of the double page spread was another thing which would attract the reader, as it seems that the text is being pushed out and this would stick out from the page.

• How does your media product represent particular social groups?

My media product is aimed at males, aged 14-30 who like rock music (as shown by my questionnaire results). Because of this, my main feature (Dom Norman, male aged 16 who plays rock music) fits particularly well with my target audience and therefore it represents particular social groups by interacting with the group and expanding their knowledge of music. The fact that my main feature fits in with the social group may encourage people from this group to buy the magazine and therefore mean that my magazine has a better effect on my target audience.

• What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

I believe that my music magazine would be distributed by IPC Media, a leading consumer magazine and digital publisher. IPC Media are responsible for the distribution of magazine such as NME, Nuts and Woman & Home. I think that IPC would distribute my product because they already distribute NME, another music magazine, and I believe that my media product has the same codes and conventions as this magazine and therefore I feel that it is a perfect candidate to be distributed by IPC Media.

• Who would be the audience for your media product?

As shown by my questionnaire, my audience would be males between the age of 14 and 30. Although I have stated males, there is no reason as to why females cannot purchase my magazine. I believe that the main feature of my magazine will attract my audience well as Dom Nroman fits into this target group. There is space for more people to be in my target audience, perhaps people who like softer music as not only this age group can enjoy this sort of music. If this were to happen and I noticed and increased number in older customers, I would probably change some of the contents of the magazine to fit in with this age range by possibly adding older bands which have been around for a while instead of the newer bands.

• How did you attract/address your audience?

I attracted my audience by using a bold and differently coloured mast head. This straight away distinguished my magazine from others as the mast head was different to most and therefore would be an attraction. I also used the black outline of Dom to make him stand out more from the background, and this would therefore make him seem to jump from the page. This would, again, draw the reader's eye to the page. The green background is another change from original magazines and therefore it would stand out from the ordinary black / grey backgrounds. As with the NME front cover where there were different colours flying around the page, I tried to use different colours, with black, green, orange, yellow and white predominantly featuring on the front cover. I feel that these colour changes are attractive. Finally, the outer glow around the straplines of the front cover will also attract the reader as it makes the words look bolder and more important, therefore pushing them to the front of the page.
I addressed my audience by using the correct terminology associated with my target audience. I used simple words which cannot be confused and therefore this made my magazine easier to understand and read.

• What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

During this project, I have been using Adobe PhotoShop and, of course, Blogger. These were two new experiences to me as I had never used either, however I have become accustomed to both and I feel I can use both to a high standard now. With PhotoShop, I have understood the use of layers which, before this project, confused me. I have also learnt how to use the various tools which come with PhotoShop, for example the clone stamp tool and the magnetic lassoo. I used various adjustments to the fonts, and I used a variation of a brush to create the outline of Dom on the front cover. I feel that I can now use PhotoShop to a decent quality now. With Blogger, I thought it would be a simple concept where you write and it automatically saves, however throughout this project I have learnt how to add imagery and video clips, and also how to change the layout of your blog. I also included a mini questionnaire in the top right of my blog which was a new experience for me.

• Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Throughout this task I feel that I have progressed a lot since the preliminary task. I have learnt how to use the tools and features in PhotoShop better, and I feel that is evident from the work I have produced. I have learnt how to use PhotoSop to a much higher standard. I have also found out what makes a good magazine, and I often find myself thinking about how a certain advert, whether on television or in a magazine, can be progressed to be a better advert, what works well and what doesn't. Overall I feel that I have learnt how to use PhotoShop better as I now have a much better understanding of the principals of it. I have enjoyed this task and I feel that it has been a valuable experience which I will be able to replicate in later life.

Audience Feedback

I asked fellow class mates to evaluate my project, pointing out the good and bad aspects of the front cover, contents page and double page spread in turn. The results I got were fairly pleasing, as most were complimentary of my work, however there were some points which were raised and there were parts which could have been improved.

Front Cover

The general feedback from my front cover was that it was average to good, with people pointing out the black outline around Dom as the particular highlight of the page. Parts that they didn't like about the page was the writing down the side; they said it could have been a better font, colour and size. Also some of the straplines were not attractive enough to draw in readers. Another criticism, not necessarily about the front cover, was the name I chose for my magazine. People criticised the name, MAN, as being easily misinterpreted and they said that it should have been a different acronym. Overall, the feedback I got for the front cover was good, however the criticisms could easily have been avoided if I had consulted before going through with the procedure.

Contents

The feedback for my contents page was average at best, with some people praising the use of imagery, and some criticising it. I got mixed reviews for this specific page, as class mates had differences in opinion with some liking the layout and imagery, and some disliking how it was set out. From this, there is not a lot I could change about it as altering one part would lead for the other group to start disliking the page. I had to settle with about a 60-40% split, with the majority liking the page as it was, however this is too close for a contents page, as the majority of all pages should be 80%+ in favour.

Double Page Spread

This is the page where most of my praise came from. It seems that the majority of my class liked my double page spread, which was a good thing to hear for my work. It seems that they liked the layout and the article which was written. The only criticism was that the image of Dom when he was 6 was too tight a fit and therefore looked out of place, however this was only a minor flaw. I am pleased with the way people responded to my double page spread as it seemed that it was about an 80% split, which is how I think every page should be.

Overall

Overall it seemed that the majority of my class liked my project and how each individual page turned out. I am pleased with the work I put in and how each page turned out, and therefore I believe that this project has been a useful task for me as it has made me realise the potential of PhotoShop.

Outer Glow

This video clip will show you how I made the outer glow effect which surrounded my front cover straplines.

Magnetic Lassoo Tool

This short video clip will take you through how I worked round Dom's body to get a solo image on my front cover.

Gradient Tool - How To Use

This short video clip explains how to use the gradient tool which turned an ordinary font colour into a colour which would certainly attract the reader's eye.

Double Page Spread Final

Contents Final

Front Cover Final

Front Cover - The Making Of

During this blog post I am going to take you through the process of production for the front cover of my magazine.

Draft

Here is the original draft for my front cover :

From first sight at this draft, it seems that it has been well laid out and well designed, however when it came to production of this design it did not look worthy of my front cover, and so the layout was moved to the contents page where, as you can see, it looked better. The rest of the magazine layout was kept the same, although there were some minor adjustments to the text and positioning of smaller things.

Background

My magazine has been produced for the month of April, where the Spring traditionally starts. This gave me the base of my background, as with the new season brought vibrant colours. I decided to use the grass as my background. I used grass because of the new season, and also because green is an intresting colour to use on a front cover. With this choice of colour, I believe that my magazine would stand out from the rest of the magazines on the shelf and therefore become more likely to be chosen.

I took an image of my lawn on a bright, sunny day so as to emphasise the green colours associated with grass, and also the make the image look more spring-like and colourful :

My next task after this image was to cut the shadows out of the image, as I feared that these may lure the attention of the reader away from the main focus of the page. To take these images out of the equation, I simply expanded the image so that it was larger than the A4 size specified, and then repositioned it so that none of the shadows were showing. This is how I came to the background image for my front cover.

Main Image

After I had decided to change the image on my front cover, it was then up to me to choose an image which was original, eye-catching and relevant to my target audience / magazine. I decided to stick with the original concept of Dom Norman being the prominent image. I set off around the school grounds and areas around the island, taking photos of Dom against various backgrounds and scenaries, ending up with a vast array of him in different places. I liked the look of a select few of these, and after deliberation, I chose this image to take forward to be edited :

In one of my forthcoming posts, I will take you through how I managed to cut out the image of Dom from the background, thus making him look more appealing to audience without the horrific background he is currently standing in.

Mast Head

My mast head was positioned in the top left hand corner of the page, much like they were with NME and Q. I decided upon the title 'MAN' (Music of an Alternative Nature) because it was short (much like NME and Q), was an acronym and it was easy to say. Granted, the name may lead some readers to think that it was a magazine for male homosexuals or a rival to FHM, however I believe that with the right mixture of advertising and marketing, then my magazine's name will be recognised instantly as a music magazine. I decided upon bright colours for the text colour, and by using the gradient tool within PhotoShop I was able to come up with vibrant colours which would catch the eye of any passer-by :

After the mast head was in place, I wrote the full name of the magazine underneath in white lettering, which is seen on the final version at the end of this post.

Picture

Seen as though my double page spread focuses on Dom Norman, I decided to make my front cover also about Dom, and so the image could only really be one person. This picture was taken from a high-angle, looking down on Dom. I directed Dom to look at the camera, as this would give eye contact between himself and the readers of my magazine. This was a constant recognition in my research into similar media texts. I decided to place Dom to the right hand side of the page, much as he is in my draft; only in a different pose :

The text that went with this image was fairly self-explanatory. The main heading was simply his name, with the subtext introducing who Dom is and why he is on the front cover of my magazine. For the heading's font, I used a stylish yet playful font, which fits in perfectly with Dom's persona :

Text

The text for my front cover is aligned to the left of the page, as it is in my draft. My first heading explains the bright background image, stating 'Spring is here!' and then a relevant article about Spring. The rest of the headings are also relevant to the magazine, with all headings being featured in the contents page. Because the headings as they were looked bland and out of place, I decided to use the 'Blend Options' on PhotoShop, which enabled me to spruce up the text. I added an 'Outer Glow' to each heading, which made it jump out of the page and therefore be more eye-catching :

The bottom of the page looked bland and needed to be filled, and so I looked back to the similar media texts research I conducted earlier and discovered that all magazines had an insight bar running along the bottom of the magazine. This gave me the initiative to include this item, which made my front cover look more interesting and fuller of information, which my target research also stated :

Dead Space

With all of this in place, I was still not satisfied with my front cover. I felt that it needed more to add emphasis to it, and also to fill up the blank spaces which were a feature of my design. Firstly, I looked to the gaps between the text on the left of the page. Moving the text closer together would only make the cover look more cluttered and make it harder to understand where one part ends and another begins. Thinking about it, it became obvious that all was needed were thick lines running between each article heading. Again, I went onto 'Blend Options' and selected the 'Outer Glow' feature which worked so well for my text :

Now I looked to the space between Dom and the rest of the page above him. I included the date, price and issue number as stated in my draft, and found a Barcode text on the Internet which lead me to creating my own barcode. This accounted for some of the space, however there was still too much emptiness. I decided to click on the brush options given on PhotoShop and browsed through these, looking at possible patterned stamps, or simple brushed which would give me the desired effect. Eventually, I came to a splattered effect, which I enlarged and proceeded to loosely trace around Dom's image, giving this effect :

I believe that this effect brings the image out of the page, as this simple outline boldens the image and makes it stand out from the background.

During the process of my front cover, I have learnt how to use a gradient tool, I have reused the magnetic lassoo which has become a feature of this project, and I have also used the research into similar media texts to further my design and make it look more professional. Overall, I am pleased with the way that my front cover has turned out, and I think that it is better than my original draft :

Contents Page - The Making Of

In this blog post, I am going to take you through how I made my contents page.

Draft

Here is the original draft for my contents page :

From this evidence, my contents page would be quite busy and full of information. As you will see later on in this blog, my contents page changed drastically, with the inclusion of what was meant to the main image on my front cover.

Background

I decided that my contents page would be based on a black background with the text and images jumping out of the page. On this black background would be an image from the draft above, however when I made the front cover, it seemed that it was lacking something, and this meant that the image and general layout of the initial front cover looked more like a contents page, so I incorporated the main image from my draft front cover into the contents page, positioned it on the right wall of the page and this formed the basis for my background :

As you can see, this is the exact mirror image of the front cover draft, and I believe that this was a wise idea to make this my contents page. As with the front cover draft, I decided to write the contents of the magazine on the left hand side.

Text

With these in place, I needed to write the name of my magazine and the word 'Contents' somewhere on the page. This is where I positioned them :

As you will see, the masthead font has changed since the front cover. This is because I re-made my front cover with a different background image which required a different font to that of the contents page. I decided to keep the change of font because I believe that the font works well with the colour design and layout of the contents page.

Dead Space

After the writing was positioned, there was a lot of dead and empty space floating around my contents page. I needed to fill this with something, and from my research into similar media texts, it became clear that other contents pages use pictures from articles featured on their contents page. This gave me an idea, and so I started to take relevant pictures of articles which I came up with for the contents page. Firstly, the competition which advertised the chance to win a guitar. Of course, a guitar was needed, and so I took a photo of a guitar, used the magnetic lassoo tool to cut around it and, with a feathering effect of 10px, placed it on my contents page, with additional text to direct the reader to that page :

Even after this addition, I needed to fill up more blank spaces. There was still area around the picture of Dom leaning on the right wall of the page. This needed to change, and therefore I decided to write information, much like with the guitar, which would direct the reader to the double page spread on Dom Norman :

Another area which needed filling was in the top right hand corner of the page. I decided to fill this up with a picture referring to the festival article, and so I again used the magnetic lassoo tool of a band which I took when at a festival. I moved the image to fill the vacant corner of the contents page :

There was still open space between the picture of Dom and the text, so I needed to fill this up with another image. I noticed with the Kerrang front cover that they had previews of the posters which they were giving away free with the magazine. Because of this, I decided to put in a picture of a poster which would be given away free with my magazine :

It was slightly slanted to a) give it a better fit and b) to make it look more appealing. The white box around it again adds emphasis to the image and therefore more likely to draw the reader's eye towards it.

Overall in my contents page I have created a nice looking layout to the page and have used relevant images and text to add extra information to the page. Without the small details that have occured in the process of my contents page, I think that my contents page would have turned out badly, however I feel that it looks reasonably good and I am pleased with my effort :

Double Page Spread - The Making Of

With this post I am going to take you through how I made my double page spread.

Draft

I created a draft drawing of what I wanted my double page spread to turn out like. This is my initial drawing :

Unfortunately, as you will see later on, my double page spread turned out slightly differently to my drawn draft. The layout changes, and I hadn't taken into account the size of the background image or the contents of the room which I took the picture in. Apart from this, the contents of the page and the layout are fairly similar to how I planned for them to be.

Background

Firstly, I needed to take the background of the page. During my double page spread research and analysis of similar media texts, it was apparent that the majority of magazines use one main image which spreads across the two pages. I decided to mirror this method and also use one main image which will be viewable across both pages. This was my main image :

This image then needed some modification to it. The central picture (portrait) was in the way of where I wanted to write some of my article. In hindsight, it would have been easier to take this image off the wall before I took the photo, however with the use of Photoshop I was able to hide the image using the clone stamp tool. This tool allows the user to manipulate areas of the photo by copying the colours of other areas of the image. I needed to cover the picture by using this tool, and after getting the colours from the edges surrounding the picture it looked like this:

and then this :

Because of the colour changing due to the shading of the wall, I then needed to get the gradient of the colours to flow smoothly into one another. After I had done this, my background image was complete and looked like this :

Because the border around the top of the room was slanted, this made the page and image look disorientated and so I was required to enlarge the image so that it would still fit 2 A4 pages, and then placed it so that the border and the right wall were not showing. My background image was the finished and I needed to layer the text on top :

Text

I then needed to write the text for my page. This text would form the article about Dom Norman, who featured on my front cover and contents page. From my research into similar media texts, it was apparent that most articles started off with a large first letter, and the rest of the text wrapping around this letter. I decided to also use this method as it makes the article look more sophisticated and much neater as well.

Because the two pages would be split down the middle, this would affect my text and where it went. My paragraph was next to the remaining picture on the wall, and as you can see below, it forced the paragraph to become much slimmer and longer, however it still looked neat and it is still easy to read :

This was the introduction the article. The main feature of the article was a question and answer to simple questions, answered accordingly by Dom. Because of the position of the sofa, this meant the text had to be wrapped around the chair so as not to be written over the sofa :

This is a blessing in disguise, as the wrapping makes the article look neater and more professional. This was the text which was written on my double page spread, so all that was needed was the heading and the subtitle. After these, my double page spread would be finished. Because I had written the artice, I was able to choose from the text written what would stand out as an important quote which would entice the readers :

After I decided the main heading, I then needed to write an introduction into the article. This would be 2-3 lines as seen in the research into similar media texts, and it would tell the reader what to expect within this article :

This was all the text written and everything laid out in an appropriate position. I reviewed my page, however I noticed that there was a lot of dead space surrounding my picture. From the research I conducted earlier in this task, it was clear that the better magazines did not leave much empty space on their pages, and therefore I had to make amends to this. The main area where there was dead space was around the guitar :

I needed to think of what would be relevant that could fit in the positions to the left and to the right of the guitar neck. I thought that I would be able to squeeze in a picture of something to the right of the guitar neck, and so I managed to find, shape and fit a picture in with text underneath explaining to the reader what it is :

This is a picture of Dom when he was holding a guitar, aged 6. I thought that this was extremely relevant to the article and so I fitted it in quickly. Now I needed to think about the left of the guitar, and what would be relevant to go in. I decided to put a mini factfile in about Dom Norman, with facts that his adoring fans may be interested to know about :

I believe that this was a good addition to the page, as it gives the reader something more to have a look at, and it also fills up space to make the page look less empty.

Overall in making my double page spread, I have used the clone stamp tool to cut out a picture, I have used text wrapping, written an article on a musician and realised that dead space needed to be covered up with relevant items. With this being the first double page spread I have produced, I feel that it has been a valuable experience and has not been too tedious. I believe that my first venture into a double page spread has been a success :

Questionnaire

I compiled a questionnaire which, I hoped, would give me some more ideas on what to include in my magazine. Questions asked included music preference and other opinionated views. Here is a copy of the questionnaire :

Music questionnaire
Thank you for taking part in my questionnaire. In this questionnaire I am hoping to find the key criteria when producing a music magazine and any answers I receive will be taken into account. Please circle your choices, and where there are dots after an option please specify.
1. What gender are you? Male Female
2. What age range are do you fit? 0-9 10-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50+
3. What music do you prefer? Rock Pop Jazz Classical Other............
4. Are you more interested in male or female musicians? Male Female
5. What 3 things do you look for in a magazine?

a. ......................................................................

b. ......................................................................

c. ......................................................................

6. Do you believe that colour is important in a magazine? Yes No
7. Do you think that it is important for the information to be relevant? Yes No
8. Does the brand of magazine influence you, or is it the context? Brand Context Both
9. Do you prefer it to be plain and simple or full of information? Plain Full
10. Any other comments:




Thank you for taking part in my questionnaire.

I gave this questionnaire out to 50 random people and these were the responses :

Gender (34 male, 16 female) : This shows that I attempted to include people regardless of gender, however I felt that my magazine was going to be mainly for the male population. This does not mean that females cannot purchase this magazine, as there will be some things that will be appropriate for women.

Age range : This shows that my target audience is kept to (teenagers to 30 year olds, red and green) however I have also included view-points from other members of the public to see whether this has an influence on how I think about making my project.

Musical Preference : This is what I thought the response would be to this question. I believe that in this modern day more people are listening to rock music than pop and this backs up my theory. The other category included metal, dance and R’n’B.

Musician gender (38 male, 12 female): This was an interesting question as I had no idea what the outcome would be. As you can see, more people choose male musicians, maybe because people are attracted to their personality, or maybe because they write better music.

Three things people look for : The three things that people look for were, in no particular order, a famous musician they like, freebies and controversial topics. I agree with this response as these are the things that I would look for, and so I will attempt to make my magazine have all of these things.

Is colour important? (45 yes, 5 no): I thought that this would be the case; however I did not expect it to be such a landslide margin. I believe that colour is important when making a magazine because it is what primarily attracts the reader into buying the magazine, and so this question was to see whether other members of the public agreed.

Is relevance important? (50 yes, 0 no): Of course it is. An article must be relevant otherwise the reader will skip ahead onto another article, which is not what an article is there for. I think that this question was to see whether it was as important as I thought it was, and it quite clearly is.

Brand or context? (16 Brand, 11 Context, 23 both): I would have expected more people to focus on the brand than on the context, as I believe that people care more about what other people are buying. It was no surprise to me that more people chose brand than context, however the smaller margin was something that did surprise me. With the majority of people choosing both, I feel that this was possibly the better response.

Plain or full? (21 Plain, 29 full): It would appear that the majority of people prefer their article to be full of information and text. This does not necessarily mean cluttered. I think that people will want to get their money’s worth out of their magazine and therefore the more information the better.

There were no relevant responses for 10. Any other comments.

From this questionnaire I have been able to deduce things that I may not have realised earlier. I now know that my target audience feel roughly the same as me, in the sense that rock is on the increase (I categorise alternative into this section). They also agree that male musicians are better, that both colour and relevance are required and that it is better for a magazine to be full of information. Unfortunately they also decided that it was better to have a branded magazine rather than a magazine with context and so this will work against me as my magazine will be new. Hopefully with the right mixture of marketing and distribution I will be able to get my new magazine up to a recognisable brand of magazine.

Target Audience

I am going to create a music magazine that is going to be distributed to the world. Seen as though this is a new idea, I will need to create a target audience, based on who I think would buy this magazine and why. Once I have found my audience, I will then need to make my magazine worthy of being distributed to this market.

Age Range

This magazine will have a set age range which will be advertised to. The articles and bands covered will need to be thought about so they fit in with the desired target age.
The age range for my music magazine, I have decided, is going to be 14-30. I have chosen this range because I believe that between this age range are the people who still go to music festivals and are still heavily involved in music. Because of this I will need to include modern day language and nothing too over-complicated otherwise I may lose the interest of the readers. I believe that my target audience will be looking for information on bands, however I also feel that they would require light-hearted things and therefore I would need to include a few comic questions or light-hearted pages.

Gender

Gender is an important thing to think about when deciding a target audience. Males and females respond to different things and therefore they may react differently to photos used or to the wording in articles. I feel that I would be able to create a magazine for both males and females, and this is by including articles that would appeal to both. There would be bands or artists that would be listened to by both genders and therefore this is how I would overcome this possible problem.

Musical Influence

In this modern day, there are new genres of music being created. I will need to think of the vast assortment of different genres and hopefully stick to one or two of them and make the focus of my magazine mainly on these specified genres. I have decided that my main article (double page spread) is going to be about a young soloist who plays guitar. I feel that there is plenty of room for this particular genre as I feel that there are plenty of successful soloists out there at the moment. I believe that both male and female people can listen to and enjoy this type of music and therefore this genre will broaden my target audience. I also think that with the sharp rise of alternative music being produced and listened to, then I should also be focusing on the alternative genre.

Having thought about different aspects required in a magazine, I have come out with a basic target audience; this being:

• Age : 14-30 year olds
• Gender : Both male and female
• Genre : Focus mainly on indie soloists and alternative music

Analysis of Double Page Spreads

Another part of this AS Coursework Print task is to create a double-page spread. Usually, this spread is linked towards the front cover, by using the prominent feature of the front cover and expanding it into an article. The codes and conventions of a double page spread are similar to those of the front pages which I looked at earlier, for example the imagery used will need to be relevant and so will the article, however the colours used do not need to be as vibrant as the vibrant colours used on the front page will have already made the audience purchase the magazine; the use of the double page spread is not to entice the public to buy this magazine.



The main purpose of the double page spread is for entertainment purposes, as it adds another article to the magazine. As I said earlier, this is normally linked to the front cover, and so chances are that the reader purchased the magazine in order to read this double page spread. Usually, a double page spread will include a main image with text surrounding it, with the main image more predominant than the text. This main image will also make up the background of the two pages.




This time I am going to look at 4 double page spreads, the same 4 magazines analysed in the front covers section, however I have not included Brew magazine. I have decided to omit Brew because it was the worst of the front covers and therefore I believe that the other magazines would give me a better insight into what I should include in my double page spread. I also envisaged it as having a poor double page spread.


NME














This double page spread focuses on Pete Doherty, the controversial and highly criticised singer/songwriter. I would expect NME to have a double page spread of an indie soloist, even one as controversial as this. The image is on the left of the page, with the text on the right. The main heading is ridiculously oversized, however this adds emphasis to the article and also attracts the reader, who may be flipping from page to page.

• The main image of Pete Doherty is very prominent in the double page spread. He is on the left in an unconvetional pose. This would go with his slightly unconventional lifestyle, as people generally do not pose in such a manner. The red paint could symbolise passion or heart for life, or the topic of his interview; music. This is a powerul image which would attract the reader's attention as he fills up one third of the page and therefore he this image is the main focus of the page.


• The main heading of the article 'Down and out in Paris & Albion' is ridiculously oversized. It is this big mainly to draw attention to the fact that there is an article on the page, in case the reader may skip past it. It will certainly catch the eye of the reader, mainly because it is much bigger than a normal heading. The 'D' and '&' from the heading are in a different font. They are much more sophisticated and curly than the rest of the heading, possibly because it is implying that the article and main figure (Pete Doherty) are both sophisticated yet bold, as the rest of the heading is in bolded, standard font.
  
• This image would be split down the middle, making it into two pages. The image of Pete Doherty being on the left and the text on the right. This ensures that the page isn't too cluttered and therefore there are less distractions for the reader. It is a very simple double page spread which will attract the reader as it is about a famous person who has recently been in the news. The colour scheme is fairly bland, however the red paint on his chest is certainly an eye-drawing feature, as it is set apart from the otherwise dull colours.


• There is the heading with a subtext underneath, and below is the body of the text. This is a standard layout, as the heading will try to entice the reader towards the article. The purpose of the subtext will expand on what the article will include which will ultimately attract or push away the reader. Finally, the body of the text is the interview and main article, which will include all the necessary information which will, hopefully, bring enjoyment to the reader. This method is widely used in most articles, whether they are double page spreads or single pages.

This double page spread is something that I would expect from NME magazine. Pete Doherty is one of their more widely covered artists, and even though he has been in and out of prison, battled with drugs and alcohol it seems that NME have stuck with him enough to give him at least 2 pages in their magazine. This will please the NME faithful who buy the magazine because they want to know more about bands and artists such as Pete Doherty. This spread covers most of the codes and conventions, being that there is a main image with a main heading, subtext and the all-important article featuring somewhere on the page.


Kerrang













This article comes from Kerrang magazine who seem to specialise mainly in the heavier genre of music. This double page spread focuses on the famous band Nirvana, even though their frontman, Kurt Cobain, has died. I believe that Kerrang have decided to do an article on this particular band because of the nostalgic feel that it will bring the audience. As with NME, the image is on the left with the text on the right, however the heading is not ridiculously oversized.

• The image takes up more than half of the double page spread. This causes it to be a prominent feature and therefore more eye-catching as well. The main focus of the picture is somewhat understandably Kurt Cobain, the front man of the influential band Nirvana. He is sitting down pulling a silly face, showing a sense of immaturity and craziness that made the band famous. The image is in the scenario of a family portrait, with all four leaning in. It looks like a cosy backdrop, as though it were in the lounge of a 1970s house.


• The heading, unlike the NME double page spread, is an average size. Even though the size is much smaller than that of NME, it is still distinguishable as being the main headline as it is in a less conventional font and it is also much bigger than the subtitles and text body. The text is is written in the style of the words they are written in, for example 'The calm before the' is written in curled writing, much more sophisticated and classy. Then the word 'Storm' is written in capital letters, much larger than the other words and the font gives the impression of something breaking up or a disaster area, with chunks missing from the word. This adds further emphasis onto the heading and will catch the reader's eye. In relation to the image, it is apparent that the heading is not the main attraction of the page, unlike with the NME pages. I think that this is a good decision as people will be more attracted to the band than they are to the heading.


• This image would be split down the middle and therefore the member of Nirvana on the far right would have half his face obscured by the fold in the page. This is bad positioning as this would make him somewhat unrecognisable, however they have kept to the same format as NME have, with the main image on the left and text on the right. All of the text is on the right hand side, with no overlapping. The colours used are fairly basic, however the background gradient will make it easier for the reader to read the article. The red text box draws attention towards itself as red is not a prominent colour used in this article. The red text box is different to others, as normally text boxes have transparent backgrounds. The font colour is still white, it is this subtle change that makes the difference.


• The format is very similar to the NME double page spread, in the sense that it has the heading with the subtext underneath, whilst beneath the subtext is the main article; however the article is written in columns, and is also divided into two. This is the standard layout of a double page spread and it is also something that does not necessarily need to be altered as it is as advanced as it could be. I believe that most other magazines follow these codes and conventions and therefore they are giving themselves the best possible chance of success.

I feel that this double page spread captures the audience's attention, however I believe that the main benefactor to this is the image of Nirvana, a rock group who many people hold close to their hearts. The use of imagery is the main reason why this double page spread will be so popular and therefore I believe that Kerrang readers will be pleased. I feel that the Kerrang faithful will be happy that they have decided to write a report on Nirvana, even though they have been out of the spotlight for so long.

Q













This double page spread comes from Q magazine, who focus mainly on the older generation of bands from the past. These two pages focus on the band Elbow, who have been around for a while, however have only recently found fame and fans from their latest album which won some awards. The older generation may be aware of Elbow, mainly because they have been around for a while and so this article goes with their target audience.

• The image of Guy Garvey, lead singer of Elbow, is in black and white. This may well go with the 'older' feel that Q produce, and therefore the effect on the imagery is well-thought out. The image is a close-up of his face, and along with the black and white effect it makes him look wise. This links in with the quote '...look wiser', which stands out from the other text on the left. Unlike the double page spreads from NME and Kerrang magazines, the layout is reversed, with the image on the right and the text on the left. The image will take up exactly half of the page, with the text occupying the other half.


• There is no real heading to this article, other than 'The Q Interview : Guy Garvey'. The thing that Q have made more obvious is the quote from the interview and as a result of this the reader may not know what they are getting from this interview. "When I was young, I shaved a receding hairline into my head. I thought it made me look wiser..." is the quote. This is a strange thing to admit to, and this quote may be one that will bring the reader's in as it is quite a weird thing to do. The font and size of the quote varies with each line. Every other line is larger, with the lines inbetween being smaller and therefore less effective. 'When I was young' brings in a nostalgic feel, something that Q magazine try to do weekly. It will entice fans who want to know what Guy Garvey did when he was young. 'Into my head' is not normally something that someone would say, and therefore this strange line would make the reader wonder what he put 'into his head'. Finally, 'look wiser' is something that comes with age, and therefore this word installs belief into the article, with people wanting to know how to look wiser.


• The page will be split down the middle, with the image on the right and the text on the left. There will be no overlapping of pages, unlike with the Kerrang magazine. When the reader first turns to this page they will see the face on the right hand page, and this will be a sticking point when they come to read the article. Black and grey are very prominent colours in this article, with the main image being in black and white, and the text being written on a black backdrop. A difference with this article and the previous two from NME and Kerrang is that the image does not carry across onto both pages, it sticks to the one page on the right. This is because grey is a hard colour to write on as no colour is brilliantly distinguishable on it and therefore the editors have thought about how easy their article will be to read.


• The layout of the page is, as I stated earlier, different to the previous two magazines in the sense that it has been reversed, however the main principles are still there. The heading has been replaced by a quote, with a further introduction underneath. Then there is the main article beneath the subtitle. There is still a prominent image taking up a page, as is standard with most double page spreads. The article this time is written in columns as it is easier to read and you can also write more than if it were to be written in one box.

This double page spread is a standard and easy layout, something that is simple but effective. I believe that with this double page spread, Q have kept their target audience in mind, not only with the article itself but also with the colour schemes and the words in the article. This article seems very laid back and therefore I believe that their target audience has been adhered to.

Car

This double page spread comes from Car magazine, and so it is pretty self-explanatory what this double page spread is going to focus on. This is pretty much what I would expect from such a magazine, two pages filled with pictures of cars and little text. This focuses on a new car from Toyota, the Toyota iQ. The purpose of this article is a challenge to see whether this new car is better than others on the market.

• The image spreads across both pages and is the main feature of this article. We see cars moving along a road; with, I assume, the Toyota iQ being the white car at the front. We know that the cars are moving as the background is blurred, thus also giving the impression of speed. The image has pointers coming off each car, giving the reader more information about each car. The article is about the Toyota iQ and so the more prominent car is bound to be this model. This is a very big image which is very obvious and so reader's who are flciking from page to page will stop on this page because of the intensity of the image.


• The heading is a clever play on words, 'iQ Test'. The new car, the Toyota iQ, is being challenged by other cars and it is therefore a test. This, apart from the image, is another prominent point despite it being such a small piece of the two pages. This is the smallest heading I have analysed so far, and therefore it is not the object that is intended to draw the reader's attention. It uses basic colours (black) and is written in a playful font, emphasising that this is not a serious test.


• The image will be split down the middle, with the red car getting cut in half. There was no real way in which they could avoid this and so they managed to only affect 1 car, and this was by no means the most important. There is no definate colour scheme, however it is obvious that this photo has been taken on a road. The cars are white, red and black, again with no real continuity or theme to them. The layout follows the same theme as NME and Kerrang, with the main image (Toyota iQ) being on the left and the text on the right. Granted, the image continues onto both pages, however I believe that the main focus point of the image is intended to be the Toyota iQ, the white car that takes up most of the left page.


• As with the other double page spreads that I have analysed, the layout of the text is the same. The heading (iQ Test) followed by the subtitle (explaining what the article is about and which other cars feature) and then the article itself. The article is written in a white box, as otherwise the font would have to keep changing colours to accomodate the vast colour changes of the backdrop and the road. This is a good move, because if they kept changing the colours it would be tricky to read, and if they didnt even change colours and kep the text on the background then it would be even harder to read.

This double page spread is what I would expect from a magazine of this calibre, this being two pages filled with one big picture of a variety of cars and little text. I feel that this double page spread has kept in touch with the target audience as the most obvious and main focus of the pages is that of the new car and it's surrounding cars. From the image I could imagine the article to be quite clever and witty, and therefore I feel that this is what this particular target audience would want as I believe that this magazine has done enough market research to distinguish what is required in a good article.

So, from these four double page spreads I have a good idea as to what I will need to rope in my audience.

Image

It seems that the most important theme of the double page spread is the main image, with every image taking up at least one of the two pages. With this in mind, I have decided that I will get one image which covers both pages. I believe that this will capture the reader's attention with a big, bold image crossing two pages.

Font

I will need to use a simple font which is easy to read and nothing too complicated or fancy. I believe that the font will have some say in whether the reader reads the article becuase if it appeals, then the reader is more likely to view the two pages.

Page layout

There should be anything halfway down the page, therefore my page should have no text or any important part of the image running halfway down the two pages.

Content

The content is all relevant. This is important as if the article waffles on and on about irrelevant things then chances are that the reader will move on to a different article.

Drop Down

I noticed that all (bar the Car magazine) have a drop letter at the start of the article. This is to attract the reader and therefore I will include one of these also as I feel that it also makes the article look more attractive.

With all these points in mind, I believe that if I adhere to them then my double page spread will be worthwhile reading and will therefore cover most, if not all, of the key criteria and codes and conventions when creating a double page spread.