Contact Sheets – how to make one

8th November 20218th November 2021Music Magazine, Year 12 Coursework

KEY TERMS:  BRAND, GENRE, STAR IMAGE, BODY LANGUAGE, MES, LIGHTING

Use the SD card and transfer the images to your D Drive folder labelled Front Cover Shoot.

Open Adobe Bridge and Photoshop

Bridge

Select the photos from the pictures folder
Tools – select Photoshop – select Contact Sheet

Photoshop

Contact Sheet should be displayed
Export as Quick Export PNG

Embed the Contact Sheet Full Size in your blog.

PHOTOSHOP

FILE – AUTOMATE – CONTACT SHEET II – SELECT FILE AND WAIT

THEN SAVE AS A PNG OR A JPEG AND EMBED

Front cover designs

8th November 20218th November 2021Music Magazine, Year 12 Coursework

KEY TERMS:  GRAPHICS, FONT, LAYOUT, PHOTO MANIPULATION, COLOUR PALETTE, COVER MODEL, COVERLINES.

Search the net to see if there are about 10 different front pages of magazines that you like the look of. They have exciting fonts, layout, graphics and photo manipulation.

They do not need to be music magazines but there may be something about their layout, font, graphics, colours that appeals to you and can act as a source of reference for your own layout.

Then reflect on what it is that stands out on a couple of them and how you might be inspired to recreate a similar vibe in your own magazine.

Masthead Design

8th November 2021Music Magazine

KEY TERMS: brand, masthead, conventions, genre, AIDA, audience.

MASTHEAD DESIGN

Now you know what your magazine is going to be called (you should have decided this for your Mission Statement), you need to have some fun designing some mastheads.

Don’t forget your planning and research into the competition!

Use the inspiration from the fonts you have included in your moodboard and design about 5 on one InDesign A4 template – make a note of the fonts, size that you use alongside it.

Design at least 4 from InDesign fonts (remember to download and install dafont if you find one there that you like)
- Link to DaFont
Focus on weight, size, height, boldness etc and apply some effects – the FX button.
- Useful video on font effects
Remember, bold and conventional font for the genre of the music and one that is also eye catching.
Choose one final design and include it on its own A4 template in InDesign and position and size it accordingly.

You Blog Post pm Mastheads

Include:

Introduction to brand and importance of mastheads.
4 InDesign examples.
1 final design & why you’ve selected it

Preparing for your 1st Cover Shoot – Production Meeting Agenda

21st October 20218th November 2021Music Magazine, Year 12 Coursework

In order to plan your studio shoot of your main cover star, you will need to be REALLY ORGANISED.

Use a Production Meeting Agenda to plan out exactly when and where you are doing the shoot. Who is responsible for bringing various props, MES and who will be doing hair and make-up.

You will need to think carefully about who your model is and plan with them when they are available for the shoot. Plan to have a free before so that you can get them ready and maximise time in the studio or use breaktime or lunchtime to get everything ready. Use your Media lessons too.

Task 1 – plan your shoot

PRODUCTION MEETING AGENDA (make a copy) – and include photos of the costumes/make up/props from your star image slide to remind yourself and the models what they need to bring etc.

Task 2 – book and do your shoot

The link to the Photography Studio booking chart is in linked in here.

You will need to liaise with your model to ensure that you are all free and available.
You should aim to do your shoot anytime from MONDAY 8 NOVEMBER TO FRIDAY 12 NOVEMBER.
You can use Media lessons.
Do not book more than 1 lesson.
YOU CAN USE THE SAME MODEL AT THE SAME TIME AS A FRIEND IF THE GENRE IS THE SAME but you have to take your own photos.
Use breaktime, lunchtime, free periods before to get your star ready – if you leave it until the actual allotted time, you won’t have enough time. Use Props.

REMEMBER THE DEVIL IS IN THE DETAIL:

Check: Nails, friendship bracelets, bad hair, weird hair toggles, school shoes and school shirts, random jewellery and earrings.
Also, avoid clothing with logos or branding.
Do really good mid and close up shots. Long shots won’t work for the cover but take some for the contents and DPS.
DON’T FORGET TO USE THE FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY EQUIPMENT and use the lighting.

THIS IS A COSTUME! Casual clothing – will not cut the mustard! You are making your star ‘extraordinary’ for the cover and ‘ordinary’ in the double page spread article.

Remember the cameras should be on the right settings. Bring your own SD card and then download them asap after the shoot onto your D Drive folder – Front Cover shoot.

The settings Aaron suggests are: 8f, 160ss and 100 ISO.

Star Image – Theirs and Mine

21st October 20213rd November 2021Music Magazine, Representation

KEY TERMS: Star image, ordinary, extraordinary, denotations, connotations, repertoire of elements, conventions.

Task 1

Create a Google Slide called ‘Star Image Research and Planning’.
Choose a famous artist who might appear on the front cover of your magazine.
Complete some research in to how they are represented in the media.
- Look at a range of different media texts (Metanarrative)
- … social media, news items, cover stories, fan pages, headlines about them.
Analyze how these images, headlines represent their star image (think ordinary and yet extraordinary).
Use a rich variety of adjectives which help describe their ‘star image.’

See an example from this previous student

Task 2

On a second slide create a collage of mise-en-scene to represent your star in your first photoshoot – your ‘picture perfect’ design:

Costume
Make up
Body Language & Facial Expression
- Proxemics (if more than one person)
Framing & Angle
Props
Lighting
Setting

Remember to identify the element of mise-en-scene and the impact / representation you hope that will convey.

An example

Audience Profile

20th October 20211st November 2021Audience, Music Magazine

KEY TERMS needed in your reflection

‘Preferred reading, encode, decode, oppositional reading, demographics, psychographics,  uses and gratification, target audience, producer, target audience, entertainment, education, social interaction and personal identity etc.

Media Theory (A Reminder)

In order to create a magazine for a specific audience you should understand what makes them tick

Especially, the reasons they might have for investing their time and money in your magazine.

A pair of theorists who considered this were Blumler & Katz, who suggested that there were four reasons collectively known as Uses and Gratification.

Their theory describes an active audience and suggested four reasons for people to actively seek out and consume media:

USES AND GRATIFICATION

Information	Self education to suit personal needs; advice on practical matters; information on events or issues of personal interest; curiosity or general interest
Personal Identity	Media reinforces personal values; models of behavior; content explored to challenge, adjust or affirm sense of self
Social Interaction	Identify with others to gain a sense of belonging; find basis for real life interactions; substitute for real life relationships
Entertainment	Escape; diversion; emotional release; filling time; aesthetic enjoyment

Audience Theory Extension

Below is a slideshow on Stuart Hall and his ‘Reception Theory’.

He argues that an audience decode a media text through personal filters:

Demographics
Psychographics
Situation
Cultural competence.

Media Theory Booklet

Here is the Theory Booklet with all of Hall’s ideas on Pages 11 and 12.

RECEPTION THEORY

TASK 1 – Researching your… Perfect Audience Member

Do some research for your target audience, and then decide on the following features of your audience:

Which other bands/artists your audience would be into?
What other media they would consume, fashion tastes, musical genre preferences?
What are their values, attitudes and beliefs they hold about what’s important in their lives and the world around them?
What demographics describe your audience?
- Gender
- Age
- Education
- Occupation
- Marital status
- Cultural background
- What ‘communities’ do they belong to?
- Where do they live, work and play?
What psychographics describe your audience?
- Values
- Attitudes
- Beliefs

HELP

Here is a handout we gave you earlier this year which describes different audience groups / communities which is helpful in reaching some conclusions about their values, attitudes and beliefs, and how to describe their communities and social groups.

YOU CAN ALSO USE THIS WEBSITE: (change USA in tik tok to Great Britain, choose entertainment, drop down to music artists and choose)

or yougov.co.uk and search an artist.

TO FIND OUT THE DEMOGRAPHICS, PSYCHOGRAPHICS OF TYPICAL FANS FOR FEATURED ARTISTS WHO MIGHT APPEAR IN YOUR MAGAZINE AS THEY BELONG TO THAT GENRE.

Choose 3 well known artists that would appear in your magazine if you had all the money in the world.

Who are their fans – this will give you a really good starting point for your audience member.

Mention ‘YouGov’ in your introduction, take a snipping tool screen shot of the 3 artists and add these to your intro.

TASK 2 – Creating a dating profile for your…

Perfect Audience Member

Use Google slides (or Photoshop/InDesign if you’re feeling snazzy) to design a profile for your target audience which they might upload to a dating site. You may want to use someone you know to model the profile on – although don’t use their name or photo!

Give your ideal audience an image, name, gender, relationship status, groups, status, likes, dislikes…all of this should be through the filter of music and should help describe your audience profile. Make it as detailed as possible – why not consider someone you know (do not actually use them) who likes the music, is a fan of that music/band and use them as inspiration.

Here is a template that you may wish to follow:

An Example

Your post must include:

3 x snipping tools of typical audiences from YouGov for typical bands who could appear in your magazine.
Your dating profile.
Reflection on the process, purpose and focus forward.

So what am I up against? The competition

19th October 202119th October 2021Music Magazine

KEY TERMS: USP, Competition, preferred reading, target audience, information, entertainment, personal identity, social interaction, AIDA.

You need to understand the market for your magazine. This task will require you to do some research into what is available currently as print magazines and also online for your genre of music.

You will then analyse their formats and content to give you some ideas of where and how your magazine will need to be compiled.

Task 1

Use this document to help find examples of the competition and to craft your responses to the questions.
- Take a copy and do your research to answer the questions on the document first.
Structure your answers as bullet points not essays
Include some screenshots from the research

Task 2

Log into Piktochart through google and then you should be able to take a copy of this chart.
If not you will need to just create your own. https://create.piktochart.com/output/50457502-my-visual .
Make it ‘attractive’ – you are media students.
Add pictures / examples of professional magazines like yours – your competition – you should have this from your research screenshots.
Copy in your questions and answers from your google doc..

Suggested Template – Click to open in Piktochart

Branding and Mission Statement

18th October 202119th October 2021Music Magazine, Representation, Year 12 Coursework

KEY TERMS: mission statement, brand, genre, USP (unique selling point), uses and gratification theory (entertainment, information, personal identity, social interaction).

Task 1 – Which genre?

It’s probably best to choose a genre of music you understand, like and can get excited about.

That said, some genres of music have very specific conventions and might be able to provide you with much more scope for design decisions and copy style. If you are undecided perhaps choose a very obvious genre, such as punk or metal

Research various genres – you will be amazed how many sub-genres and sub-cultures there are. These are just a few.

Have a look at the work on the walls of the classroom to help in your decision.

Task 2 – Develop possible names for your magazine.

Use a generator app or a thesaurus for simple, catchy and genre specific names for your magazine. For example:

Bonus, Fault, Exchange, Storm, Louder, Open Mic, Score, Epoch, Placebo, Audio, Stream, Hustle, Phonic, Whisper, N&U (new and unsigned), Orbit, Swipe, Double Tap, Like, Status, Plectrum.

Task 3 – Branding Ideas and Mission Statement

Create a word-cloud that includes all the words that relate to what might be your mission statement for your magazine – its PURPOSE AND CONTENTS. For example will your magazine feature: new talent, unsigned artists, fashion, concerts, festivals, be edgy, anarchic, energetic? Address all 4 of the Uses and Gratification that Blumler and Katz talk about to ensure maximising your sales to ensure that your contents will appeal to their use of the text. Include the name of the magazine in a different colour. Include too, all the necessary generic contents i.e. contents page, interviews, competitions etc.

Use wordclouds.com or worditout.com

Here is an example word-cloud and mission statement from last year.

“Amigos pulls people together to love and appreciate their heritage through the power of music, we want to encourage the world to embrace Latino culture and the amazing music that follows it. We want to change the way the world thinks about Latino culture and acknowledge that it is here to stay. We will provide you with the latest information about your favorite artists and tours close to and far away from home”

‘We are a brand, and most of all a community, that believe in the power of diversity within the music industry. Millennial’s ethics are to promote our passions; colour, rhythm, fashion and culture. The R&B community to us, is all about being able to express your creative individuality, while being part of something wider.’

‘Express’ is one of the top ten magazines for those that love Pop music. We cover your favourite Pop artists as well as upcoming stars, giving you exclusive interviews, top stories from your most-loved artists, new album releases and new tour dates from artists topping our charts daily. Express magazine inspires young people to fall back in love with Pop as the new-age of Pop drives the magazine forwards, allowing our readers to express themselves and become the best individuals they can be.

Your post will include: (all key terms as listed above).

Introduction to the genre and name for the magazine.
Word Cloud
Mission Statement

Reflection on the research process and focus forward.

How to use a DSLR

15th October 202115th October 2021Music Magazine, Year 12 Coursework

When you come to take your photos for your Music Magazine, you need to take some excellent shots. Many of you will have up to date and advanced smart-phones which will take some great shots, but using a DSLR camera when you can implement depth of field and get excellent images by playing with shutter speed and aperture size, could mean your photos are much, much better.

Neither Mrs Cobb or Mr Gregson are specialist photography teachers so our Artist in Residence, Aaron will be your ‘go to man’! However, this is your chance to play around and experiment with the DSLR cameras after a short introduction to the very basic controls and functions available.

With your partner, experiment with aperture size, (which changes the focal length) and shutter speed in various lighting conditions (inside, outside, natural light etc) and with the flash and automatic and manual settings. Only by playing, making mistakes and learning by them will you be able to use a DSLR for your photo shoot.

Here is a very good video, which talks through and illustrates the three key parts of a DSLR that you need to experiment with:

Shutter Speed
Aperture
ISO

Enjoy the time to play.

Miss Hales’ notes too…use this for reference or to trouble shoot.

Tour Poster

8th October 202119th October 2021Music Magazine, Year 12 Coursework

KEY TERMS:   Brief, genre, conventions, AIDA, fonts, images, colour, layout, typography, AIDA

This is your chance to shine now. This is your chance to put all your technical skills with Indesign/Photoshop and your knowledge and understanding of how font, colour, images and language can help communicate a story.

TASK 1 – The Research

Moodboard reflection:

A client has come to you with an image of themselves as a performer. Their style of music will belong to a particular genre. They want you to design a poster for an A4 page in a magazine, advertising and promoting their forthcoming tour.

Find @ 10 examples of tour posters for your genre. After doing your research, reflect on how the colour palette is used across various examples, reflect on the fonts used and use the terms conventional in your analysis. Where are the examples of AIDA (attract, interest, desire and then call to action). Remember, you want your product to be ‘the same but different’ to be ‘conventional but unique’ so that your audience not disappointed. Summarise some of the common conventions for tour posters of your genre: colours, images, illustrations, graphics, fonts, typefaces etc. This should inform your own design now.

Consider AIDA – attention, interest, desire and action.

Look at this presentation of CD covers that relate to specific genres and you will see how ‘conventional’ the colour palettes are for each individual genre. Make sure you too follow the conventions but create an innovative and eye catching poster.

TASK 2 – The Poster

BRIEF

Using your research on conventional posters for your genre: You must include the following:

Name of artist
Name of the Tour
Dates and Venues
Other information like: where the album can be bought/downloaded, tickets available from and prices etc.

Remember, doodle, muse and research before you open up your Indesign.

TASK 3 – The Reflection