To help us understand the importance of an detailed article, I’ve analysed an example article by another musician, helping me understand the type of language used and the AIDA. The article I’ve analysed was “What makes a perfect gentleman? Leave big tips, baby!”, by Wyclef Jean.

The magazine article I analysed was called “What makes a perfect gentleman? Leave big tips, baby!”, by Wyclef Jean. Wyclef Jean’s biography is a detailed description of his life based on 10 top tips for life. 

You can tell it is a biography because it’s written in first person, with the occasional quotes. Jean’s biography includes personal life experiences and tips on how to achieve the best in life. The biography is set out into 10 different sections, each section based on a different life tip. Jean’s biography presents him as a down to earth person, keeping it real and sharing his own life experiences. From the type of punctuation used in the article, it automatically gives you an idea of what type of person Jean is. For example, “it don’t have no colour, it don’t have no creed, no nothing.” The lack of formal punctuation (saying “no” instead of “ it doesn’t have any colour” etc) may be Jean’s way of trying to get on a personal level with his targeted audience more through his writing. 

The aim of Jean’s biography I think is to not only give his target audience tips on how to achieve the best in life, but also to demonstrate that he’s also had bad life experiences, making the biography more personal.

In conclusion, Wyclef Jean’s article represents himself and his music as soulful, portraying him as a down to earth person, wanting to let his target audience relate to him on a personal level.

Focusing forward, I will take into consideration the different components of AIDA into my own article that I’ll be putting on my music magazine, ensuring my target audience are interested in the article.

Knowing how to interpret elements of mise-en-scene into your contents page is important .Further more, you need to know how to make it visually appealing to your target audience as well as including the important information, such as page numbers. Peer assessing another students work helped me develop my understanding of what needs to be included in an contents page and how I need to ensure that my contents page attracts my target audience. Peer assessment of first contents page draft

What type of shots have been used to create a variety of shot distances and how has the camera been used to communicate meaning?  

A mid shot is used in order to display the cover star and chosen costume to the audience helping to convey the magazine’s music genre.

What choice of Mise-en-scene is appropriate for the star image and genre?

The costume seen on the cover star is simple yet effective, helping to portray power which is appropriate for the pop genre. The positioning of the models hands and body language portray a relaxed look as well as using direct mode of address to help the audience feel involved.

 How far is the font used readable and reflects the genre

On the contents page bold sans serif fonts are used helping the headlines to stand out.  A variety of fonts and colours are used to make the page more exciting and intriguing for the audience.

What technical conventions of a Contents page are present and used effectively?  

Headlines are used effectively to help show what will be involved in the magazine as well as suitable images. However more could be placed to give extra details as well as page numbers so the audience knows where to find the information.

How has Indesign been used to layout the page to convey a brand

The layout of the contents page leaves a good amount of room for information and headlines. Some headlines cover the star model on the page which could be moved in order to see her face properly. 

 How well have the text and visuals been integrated together?

The colour palette of the text and images are integrated well together in order to make sure both stand out just as well. A dark background is featured with white and lighter writing making it easy to read.

Where has photoshop been used to manipulate the photos to enhance the star image or genre? 

Photoshop has not been used but instead the page features the original background of the photo. The cover star could be cut out and placed on a plain black background so the page blends in with the image.

 How is the language used appropriate for the genre and target audience?

The language used on the contents page is appropriate for the chosen music genre e.g Hot Gossip and Unmissable helping to create a sense of excitement and anticipation for the audience.

 

As this is my first draft, there is a lot of room for improvements. Focusing forward, based off the targets from my peer assessment, I will include;

• Page numbers
• Use photoshop in my final contents page
• Arrange my headlines so they don’t cover the star image’s face
• Add some insets

 

2nd Draft Of Contents Page

What’s New?

• I re-arranged my headlines to avoid covering my models face as much as possible
• I changed the position of my title and added some colour to it to add some excitement
• I’ve included some pugs of my other models to add some correlation between all of my models
• I added some page numbers to my headlines

What’s Next?

• I’m going to re word my headlines so they’re more appealing to my target audience
• I need to add a page number for my content page
• I’m going to cut my the image of my model out and/or add some effects to my background so it’s not as boring

Here are some headlines that I’ll be using in my magazine:

• Multiple unmissable giveaways
• unmissable features including Jorja Smith
• Ana Inder’s road to success
• The uproar of BLM movement
• The latest hot gossip

Having a well thought out contents page is important as it is like an index page for my magazine, giving the reader an idea of what to expect when they read it. I’ve ensured that the cover lines on my contents page are exciting enough to interest my intended target audience and sell my magazine well enough without them reading it yet. I researched different type of layouts for contents pages to give me a rough idea of what looks aesthetically pleasing which will help want my target audience to pursue reading.

Here are all of the contact sheets from my first shoot. I chose to use the black studio room because it made my model stand out more and it fitted my genre better. I feel like I’ve portrayed my star image and genre well through her body language, make up and costume. One mistake I made was using the black room as it it very similar to her hair colour, meaning it will be more difficult when it comes to using InDesign.

 

These are my favourite shots I got which I’m considering using for my front cover page and double spread. In the future, I will make the lighting a little bit brighter so the camera will distinct her hair more. Focusing forward, I will begin to edit these picture and then use them in my music magazine, ensuring I reach my targeted audience’s expectations.

In my opinion, the masthead is just as important as the star image, it helps sell the magazine, giving the target audience a preview of what they’re going to get before they buy it. It gives the magazine a brand, selling it as best as it can through the front cover. With that in mind, having a well thought out masthead is important, ensuring that your masthead and star image mirrors your genre.

To give me some guidance of what specific type font/graphic design would suit my genre the best, I experimented on InDesign with my title, experimenting with different colour palletes,font and font sizes.

In the end, I’ve chosen this one to be my masthead. I’ve chosen this in particular because I feel as if it reflects my genre the best and is compatible with what I want to do with my star image. I really like how I’ve made some of the letters capitals to give my masthead some definition and attract my target audience more.

Focusing forward, after I’ve taken pictures of my star image, I will start to piece together my music magazine, using this specific masthead.

Being prepared and knowing what exactly I’m going to be doing with my model is important. I need to know what outfits ,props ,makeup etc I want my model to have. So in order to prepare me for my shoot, I’ve made a PMA (production meeting agenda) so that I can follow it when it comes to my first shoot, ensuring I include everything that I wanted to.

Having a well planned out outfit will help emphasize the genre I picked and make my model reflect that specific genre better. Furthermore, having props that are related to my genre will again help emphasise my genre and make it easy for my target audience to decode the message I’m trying to portray.

 

Focusing forward, I will be using this PMA as a guide for my first shoot, making sure I include all of the essential aspects of mise-en-scene when it comes to shooting and that I have my camera ready and the studios booked out.

Having some sort of idea of what I want my front cover magazine is important. It’ll give me an idea of what type of props/costumes I need, furthermore it’ll make my model more comfortable when modelling as they’ll have an idea of what I want.

These are just a sample of what I want my magazine front cover to look like/ mimic. I chose these magazine covers for various reasons.

The bottom right- I like this one in particular because of the font of the coverline, it almost jumps out of the page.I feel as if the choice of colour palette matched the genre and made the choice of font stand out more, even though it is mainly black and white, it looks very smart. Furthermore, I like the graphics of the photo, the metaphor of the smoke gives off a chilled vibe.

The middle bottom- this magazine cover is my favourite one. It gives off retro pop vibes, with the choice of the colour palette emphasising the genre. I also like the chosen font as it fits the genre very well.

The top left- This magazine cover is so plain yet full of detail. I really like how there is a shadow of the model in the background yet they’re in a different colour, forcing most of the attention on the middle picture. The layout also emphasises the attention on the middle picture.

The top middle- I like how in this magazine cover, the cover model is wearing a suit, breaking the stereotypes of only men being able to wear a suit. Furthermore, I feel as if the image represents feminism very well, breaking society’s norms.

The type of techniques and graphic tricks used help to bring the image together. These various images have inspired me/given me and idea of what I would ideally include in my music magazine.

Focusing forward, I’m going to take into consideration all of the aspects that i like of these magazine cover into my own magazine cover, giving y model an idea of what I need them to portray in order for my target audience to stay interested.

Knowing that music artists have an ordinary and extra-ordinary side and what message you want your star image to give off is important. Having a well planned out star image and knowing exactly what elements of mise-en-scene my model is going to portray is essential. To expand my knowledge around my specific genre pop, I’ve collected research around an artist in that music genre. I researched things such as:

• Tweets
• paparazzi
• Magazine covers

By doing this researched, it’s given me an idea of the type of characteristics artists have in the genre pop, guiding me to making my music magazine meet my targeted audience’s expectations.

During this researched, I added denotations and connotations to the specific images I picked, portraying that I can decode the message that the artist is giving off.

To further my understand, I’ve collected various images based around my specific music genre and what I will personally be featuring in my music magazine. Focusing forward, now that I have collected the elements of mise-en-scene that I want to include for my music magazine, I will start to collect the needed props and costumes for my model, preparing me for when it comes to the photo shoot.

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In order to make a magazine for a specific music genre, I need to understand their personal identity ( their likes and dislikes, preferences and interests) and what they enjoy, attracting them to the magazine. As a result of my research, my magazine will fit my target audience and give them what they expected.

To develop my understandings of my audiences demographics and psychographics I went on YouGove.com and researched music artists based around my music genre, collecting information about the fans that listen to the genre. I researched information such as:

• Their age
• Where the fans are mainly located
• What their interests are

Taking this researched into consideration, I created a tinder dating profile based around a typical consumer that would be interested in my specific genre of music.

Focusing forward, it is essential that I included the features of the uses and gratification theory, ensuring that my consumer understands my preferred reading and that they’re interested in the magazine, meeting the targeted audiences expectations.

Not only will my magazine will be full of entertainment, social reactions and education, it will also help the consumer build their personal identity.