Whilst researching I found that many Heavy Metal tour posters have similar layouts and tend to use similar typography. There is a specific colour pallet that is used when it comes to heavy metal music, mostly Black, Purples, Reds and Blues. These colours add to the connotations of aggression and anger within the genre as a way of attracting the correct target audience. All the posters also include some sort of Image whether it’s a photograph of a drawing of a Skull as well as the tour names, dates and venues.

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This is my recreation of a Heavy Metal tour poster. When looking for inspiration and ideas on how I could produce my own, I looked at other heavy metal artists and bands to see how their tour posters look. A key part that I had to focus on when making my poster was AIDA (attract, interest, desire and call to action), who do I need to attract and interest with my poster, what needs and desires do I need to fulfil in order to grab the attention of  the correct audience. Then using an image from my Mise en Scene photoshoot, I was able to begin creating my poster using Adobe Photoshop and Indesign. During my research I looked at the fonts, colours, typography and layouts that are typical of this genre, this allowed me to create a tour poster using the main design techniques and conventions of heavy metal.

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This is the magazine cover that I was allocated to recreate using Adobe In-Design. It has allowed me to understand the all of the features and tools of In-Design that I can use when I come to make my own cover page. Throughout the process of recreating the magazine cover, I then identified the main conventional design features such as the Masthead, the Coverlines, the insets and the captions that would need to be correct. Whilst focusing on the design features, I was also thinking about layouts, proportions, the fonts and typefaces I would need to use as well as colours and where I would be placing images.

Aspects of In-Design I found easy:

• Placing and Sizing Images.
• Adding in text.
• Changing the Colour of Text.

Aspects of In-Design I found difficult:

• How to change the thickness of the font.
• Getting the proportions of some of my text right.
• Changing the border weight of my boxes.

Youtube videos that can help with this:

Now when I come to making my own Music Magazine , I will be able to use many aspects within In-Design to create my desired outcome which best suits the genre of music I will be focusing on.

The original magazine cover.

The camera talks, every image tells a story depending on how it is composed. When using a camera angles are important as they can convey a narrative. During this task I focused on framing, distance and composition so that I was able to present certain ideas. In a media text angles and framing are used to portray emotion. For each image I added their denotations as well as their connotations in order to highlight the narrative I wanted, I then added the type of camera angle or framing we used as the composition of an image is very important when creating a media text.

In order for my music magazine to be successful I will focus on the composition and positioning of the camera to make sure that I convey the correct narrative. I will look at the possible connotations and denotations of each image and remember to use the elements of Mise en Scene to create a powerful collaboration. Every image tells a story, so when I make my music magazine I will remember to think of what narrative I want to create before I take my images.

Mood-board:

After being allocated the music style of Heavy Metal, we had to design a padlet mood board as a way to display images and feeling associated with that genre. By creating this mood board it has allowed me to understand the connotations of Heavy Metal music. It has enabled me to gather an idea of what feelings and emotions are created through this genre and how the use of Mise En Scene is essential to create the best image possible. Through focusing on Heavy Metal I now understand the conventions that are portrayed to the audience and how they invoke certain emotions. When we come to take our images I would like to focus on the aggressive, intense and rebellious feeling within the images on our mood-board as well as focusing on the idea of colour and how that is used to portray emotions.

Our Photos :

After creating our mood-board it put us in a better position of understanding the genre of Heavy Metal music. This allowed us to use the elements of Mise En Scene to put together an outfit before our photoshoot which tied in with our theme, focusing in on the main connotations, the dark colours, chunky boots, leather jackets and the use of electric guitars. Once we did this we had an outfit that fit well with our theme and worked well for our photoshoot.

After taking our images, our peers were asked to write down the connotations of the outfit we had created onto a post-it note and stick it to the model. By doing this we would be able to understand if we had represented the genre of Heavy Metal in the correct way. The connotations we were given were: Cool and Rebel, these fit in very well with the theme we had chosen and worked well with the focus of our mood board.

Final Images :

I chose these images to be my final photos as I believe they fit best with the genre we were given and then connotations we were trying to reference. When I come to make my magazine I will focus on the specific feelings and ideas I want to deliver to my audience through the use of Mise en scene. I will focus on the conventions of the genre I choose and I will remember to consider that everything in media has a purpose that will create a story.

All media has a meaning and if I can deconstruct and decode media, I will be in a better position to make media. Every poster needs to be able to convey a story. In order to do this you need and Idea of what narrative you want to create and what you want your poster to signify, to create your poster it needs an image that portrays an idea, as well as using media text to portray a certain idea.

Media will always have a deeper meaning that many will look for  and that is something I will consider when it comes to making my music magazine. I want to think about the connotations and denotations of my poster and what message I am conveying to my audience. I want to think about possible hidden messages as well as providing a media text well suited to my audience.