Final draft for contents page

Here is my final draft for my contents page I am really happy as compared to my last draft it is very different and in a good way. It does look a lot more professional and looks like something you would actually see inside a magazine. As you might be able to see I did use NME's contents page as inspiration and this allowed me to create a more detailed contents page that I believe is more engaging to the reader. It did take me longer to create as it was more complicated however it was worth it as I am pleased with the result. I did use pixlr again as it is the best website in my opinion to allow me to create a well developed contents page. I also used google images as I only managed to take pictures of my model Noel rather than live bands and other people, therefore I did have to use famous bands and people to make my contents page more varied. When I decided to use the NME contents page as my inspiration I did think that I would need to take more pictures however I did want various images and I knew that I was not going to a live gig in the time that I needed to create the contents page. 
Firstly I changed the title of the page to 'Inside this week' which makes it more personal as I think using the word 'contents' reminds me of a book and doesn't really scream magazine to me therefore I looked for other ways of creating a less obvious way of putting it. I did like 'inside EN(ORE' however I thought that using the title of the magazine again could get very repetitive and with it already being on the page for the subscription I tried to steer away from that. I do think that the title is a bit vague and I could add a little more punctuation for example I could have 'Inside this week!' or 'Inside this week...' I will ask this to my target audience and see wether they agree with me. Also I could make each of the words begin with a capital letter so it makes it more important as it is the title of the page, I do think that it is the right size to have on the top of the page and it is in the right area. In my last draft I had some of the writing vertical on the page which looked appealing but was harder to read. My target audience did say that I should change this to make it easier to read that is why I changed it. I decided to keep the same font as my masthead for the front cover as then it sticks to the house style also I think if I changed it then it would look messy, in my first draft I overlapped the font to make it look 3D however people said it looked like snow which I thought was not a good thing so I kept to one layer. 
Now on to the images. Firstly you might of noticed I have changed my main image from the long shot to a head shot as I believe that it looks more effective and works well with the other images on the page. I didn't edit the image as I thought it looked good without any thing being done to it, also the shadow connotes hiding something or in this case telling EN(ORE about a secret that she has never told someone before. I needed to make the image bigger than the other ones which was hard as it was an odd shape, if I placed it to the edge of the page then it would lose the effectiveness of the photo as it is not the first thing that the reader would see. Although I placed the image in the middle it made it tricky to make the images fit without them being to small to see. Each of the other images I picked from google and resized them around my main image. I didn't pick each of these for anything in particular but I did some research before and looked which indie groups and people were in at the moment, they were the chosen ones. The purple block of colour was also a picture from google as it was easier to add an image on pixlr than to make one by using the letter l. On each of these images I decided to put the number on the picture as it would be easily seen as if it was me I would rather look at the pictures than the text. To do this I used the letter l and rotated it to fit the image and then applied the number in the same font as my front cover. The only one that I was not sure about was for the album cover of Florence and the machine as it was covering the writing of the album cover. 
For the fonts I used exactly the same as the front cover so the house style is throughout the magazine, they are all quite clear so easy to read and all of them go well with each other. I kept the writing to black and white as it basic and can work with everything. Lastly I kept the + sign as my target audience said that it would work well if I used it throughout my magazine so I have made it work on the contents page. With putting it above the articles that are in the magazine monthly it can work well as it will be a key design feature. Im also glad that they are all in line, I chose to put the numbers underneath so it makes it look less like a book and also putting them there adds more information on the page and fills the page.

Second draft for contents page

Here is my second draft for my contents page it is much simpler than my first draft which makes it much easier to read however it looks like not a lot of effort has been made into creating my contents page. Again I used the same image as what I did before as I think it goes with the contents page I did not however edit the image like before as I think that it looked good without any editing. As my front cover has been edited I thought that having this as not edited will make the reader see that now all images in the magazine are not all in black and white or sepia effect. The image does not really follow the 'male gaze theory' as she is not in provocative clothing and is not poesy in a sexual way, I like that it is clean as it makes it more about the music than the actual person and how they have come across in an image. I used pixlr again as it is what I have now become used to and also it was easier to use as I know how to use this rather than suddenly change to another editing website. I did make the writing very big so it is really clear however I think it should be a lot smaller and add extra things on the contents page. I did decide to use the same font as my masthead for my front cover as it then makes my magazine have a house style also I kept the + sign. When I asked people their opinions on my first draft of my front cover they said to keep the + as a signature thing throughout therefore I have used it in this contents page. I decided to use the blue for this so it kept to the same colour as my front cover. I also made the think line of purple to separate the picture from the text to do this I used a lowercase l and coloured it in the specific colour that I wanted and positioned it in line with the image. This did take a long time as I did have to use a lot of ls to make the line as thin as possible and to make it to fill the length of the page. When using pixlr the letters or pictures go down in size in both width and length which makes it hard to get it to the exact size that you want it to be this meant that to make the l as thin as possible it was very small. I decided to add a white box at the bottom of the image to allow the website to be placed as it is easy to see and I can add extra information about the email or a subscription etc, this will allow my readers to find out more information about the artists that are inside this issue of the magazine. I did not add the top 10 tracks of that week as I think that it should be more about what is inside the magazine than the tracks and this could be a feature inside every episode of EN(ORE. Although I did say that I was going to look at NME at the contents page with more pictures in I didn't as I thought I would try to create my own one without looking at recent contents pages. However I did use the reviews, features and albums which is on the NME contents page. The page numbers are not all inline which I will change in my next draft along with the size of the font as it does look messy and not well produced. Also I forgot to include a page number on the contents page which some people could leave but as there is not a lot of writing on the contents page I will add it in to my next draft. I did decide to use the same font as the one on the front cover as then it is consistent throughout the magazine I do think that it looks good with the image. I chose to use the colour black as it is clear to read and shows importance which I believe the contents page is rather important I did use the purple from the last draft of my front cover as this is my favourite front cover so if I did use that one it would go well with the font cover. The only dilemma I have is that my magazine was meant to be aimed for males and females however if I used the colour purple people think that it is really girly and this could make people believe that my magazine is only made for females, although I have used the duck egg blue which is a male and female colour I could see when I ask my target audience if they would prefer it to be a different colour. I could even not go with the conventions of using the same colours throughout and could use different colours instead however it could look messy and look like the three different pages are from different magazines. I did not use the typical clean white background for the page as my magazine has a vintage feel I thought instead of editing it to look vintage I could just use an of white colour which I think works well. This is my other photo that I could have used however I think it is looks less professional and also doesn't go with the other image that I have on my front cover. I could also use the full head shot if I changed the size of the image and again try to make it look more like the NME recent contents page. 

This NME contents page looks very detailed and also the pictures on the page show a little bit of information in the article which the reader could easily flick to. Also they have a big section about their magazine to try and get more people to buy their magazine and become subscribed this is what I would like to add in my next draft. They also have the plus like I have however they have written the word 'Plus' whereas I have got the + sign instead which I think looks modern. I also like that they have not called the page 'Contents' this makes it more like a magazine rather than a book, I think I will use this in my next draft. They also only really use black which I said I would use next time as it looks sophisticated, anything that NME has on their pages must work well as people are still buying their magazine, therefore I know that if I use it then it would engage the reader and make them buy every issue. The only other colour that they have is the red which is one of the main colours that NME use also they are saying about christmas therefore they could of used red as you connote the colour red to be christmasy. I could take the idea of the things that I write about having a specific colour for example if I talk about Noel and the issue is in december it is very christmasy so I could use christmasy colours. This could be carried through every issue different things that I talk about could have a different colour, I will ask my target audience what they think about this and I could use it in my next draft. 

Fourth and fifth draft of front cover

Here is my fourth draft of my front cover I looked at my last draft and thought that i could use the minimalistic look but adding some extra colour. I used the same font, and size and also the same title etc. I looked at some colours which could go with the bluey green and a karcki colour looked quite nice, I added some lines to split the sell lines up and to also make that space look a little more interesting. The only thing that I am not sure about is the font for the 'Exclusive' this is the font that I used for all of the sell lines in the first draft of my front cover however when it is on its own i'm not sure that it works as well with the other fonts I will ask my target audience whether they like this or    not. 

Here is my fifth draft of my front cover, I have used a different colour for the lines in between the sell lines and also used a different font for the 'Exclusive' which I do prefer. In my opinion it is my favourite, I will have to line up the white box for the exclusive as the edges are not perfect. Then I can change the purple to the green I had before to see which works best.                                                                                 

Third draft of front cover

This is my third draft of my front cover, I decided to make it very minimalistic and use just black and white for the sell lines rather than the red as I was unsure about the colour. I have exactly the same writing as before however the font is different, I prefer this font as I think it works well with the image as it is softer than the font I had before, the softer look of the font goes with the soft edit of the picture. The box of writing, the date and price, the title and the free download I have kept the same as before as they worked well, I would prefer to see how the different fonts and colours I use change the things that I will keep the same on the front cover. As I only have one main colour on the front cover it is not conventional as other magazines normally have many colours to catch the readers eye. I believe that if I only have this colour it could either look boring or could be rather catching as it is different to most of the magazines on the shelf. I know that this front cover is not exactly what I want as I would like to find a colour that will go with the blue and also I can play around with fonts although I am considering this one. The size is good although I could add something extra in between the sell lines. Once I have finished with my drafts I will ask my target audience which one they believe is the best and if I could change anything in particular to that one to make it my final piece, or add anything from other drafts.

Double page spread article

En(ore say Coelho to Noel - Exclusive interview with the most talked about 19   year old.

Noel Coelho has been impossible to ignore since Late Night Fairness hit the charts in 2010,  and we've been fans of her music, charisma and savvy songwriting ever since. Her 2011 debut album Tears Exposed reached number one on the UK albums chart and has sold over 900,000 copies in the UK, the 19 year old has since shot to superstardom. After endless amounts of gigs, award ceremonies and tv appearances Noel Coelho has landed back in Liverpool to have a breather before hitting the road again. En(ore had a chance to have a shindig with the well-travelled Liverpudlian before she embarks on her next project. 

You've been very busy recently on tour, most people would take a break but we have heard about a project you are embarking on can you elaborate on this?

Well I have been asked to collaborate with Coldplay. Christ Martin approached my agent and I couldn't resist the opportunity.

What was your motivation to become a singer songwriter?

My dad was in a group and I was his biggest fan, I was brought up in a very musical environment so I don't really know anything different, it was always the route I wanted to pursue.

What do you do when you are not singing?

I like to kick back and watch films, bake and walk the dogs. I'm the most boring 19 year old you'll ever meet.

Thank you for your time we are all looking forward to your collaboration.

Second draft of my front cover

This is my second draft of my front cover I have looked at specific things that people liked and disliked about my first draft. Creating a second draft allowed me to change some of the things that my target audience picked out, although it is not my favourite I have changed the main points that my target audience said about. Firstly I changed the size of the masthead, when I looked at main magazines that have been published their masthead is rather large and with my first draft it was to small for people to pick out in a shop. I do prefer my masthead to be bigger as it is eye catching, however as I am only using pixlr to create my font cover I can not make it too big as it will go over my models head which is not very flattering. The problem with pixlr is that it is hard to try to create something that looks like a well known magazine as they have all of the best programs and tools to use which I do not have access to, although this is a downside I have created something which I do like, also with my magazine I do not want to follow all of the conventions of a typical magazine therefore it is nice not to have the masthead behind my models head as we can actually read the name of the magazine, in addition because this will be the first edition of the magazine it will be nice to make it stand out as people will not of heard of the magazine before so it is best for them to read it so they can take note of the name of hopefully their favourite magazine on the shelf. I removed one of the sell lines so I could make those bigger as well this makes the front cover look less cluttered and makes it is easier for my audience to read. I did keep the + and the box as this was one of the things that my target audience liked however I did remove the - signs so it was less like a list, I thought that if it looked like a list that it was more formal and it didn't want my front cover to look like that. The 'December 2013, issue 1 £2.20' was moved to the bottom right hand corner I will defiantly keep it there as it makes the magazine look professional as a lot of magazines have the price in that area. Also because I am not having a barcode on the front of the magazine I thought that it would be perfect to be put in its place otherwise there would be nothing in that area. The font is different which makes it clearer to read and also goes better with the other fonts rather than the one I used before. I did choose to use a different colour as the black was difficult to read in this font however it is not my favourite. I asked people for their opinion on the two drafts of the front cover and they said that they liked everything on this one apart from the colour so I will defiantly change the colour to something that will appeal to my target audience. I don't think that I will change anything with the free download as I have made 'The XX' bigger and also in a different font so it stands out, also I moved it down from the boarder and used again a different font to create the circle. In my last draft it was more of an oval shape which was not what I wanted, this is more circular which makes it look more like a stamp therefore I will not change anything with this one and use it in my next draft.  

Things to change in my next draft

• The colour of the font
• The edges of the box to make them level
• The white blocks inside the box
• Maybe add an extra sell line or competition

Break down of first draft of front cover

Here is my first draft of my music magazine front cover.
Firstly I used the front cover image that most of my target audience liked, I asked them to look at a recent blog post and to pick which front cover appealed to them and this was the chosen one. This was one of my favourites as it fits the theme that I wanted to use and also it looks relaxed and not to poesy. I confirmed with my model noel and she also liked this image, I think it is good to use for a front cover image as it is a full body shot however is unusual as it is not showing every part of her body. I have looked at recent NME magazines and there are no front cover images like this therefore it is not following the conventions, I did a recent blog post with images that I liked which looked rather indie so I took that inspiration rather than any of the images on any magazines, the images that I found did not look like any of the images that would go with my specific theme therefore I think this one works well. When I edited it I used pixlr which is the website that I normally use I did find this easier as I have used it a lot of times before firstly I used an overlay of vingette and then added the ink boarder. I will defiantly use this effect for my front cover and will always use the same edit of the photograph. I looked at some popular NME front covers and looked at what they included in that issue of the magazine, this allowed me to look at some of their sell lines and then change them slightly for my magazine. As my magazine is at the end of the year I thought it was ideal to have 'Meet the stars of 2013' also I looked at some interesting words to use for the ticket scandal and found on the thesaurus website Ritzy which was the word that I used. Also as my genre of music is soft indie I thought that the main sell line 'Noel's Addiction to music' worked well. A lot of musicians are known for their addiction to drugs and alcohol however as my image is soft and clean I thought it would be good to use addiction to music instead. Also this will allow me to make the interview interesting and could attract my target audience as it is an intriguing sell line. All of my fonts that I used are sans which makes it less formal and makes it more engaging to my audience as they are quite young they do not want to read something that looks rather boring.
So on to the good and bad points of the draft for my front cover.

Good Points

The + and the box that adds extra information. People say that it stands out and is a good way to make things less cluttered on the front page. Also this could be used on every front cover for the magazine so it is consistent. For some added ideas they said to use the + throughout the magazine in articles, contents page ect. The font of the masthead is good and they like the two colours, they also like the extra turquoise colour for some text. They like the fonts that I used and the position that they are on the page.

Bad Points

The masthead could be bigger so that it can be seen easier by the target audience, also the 'December 2013 and Issue 1 £2.20' could be placed on the bottom right hand corner to allow the masthead to be bigger. 'The XX' could be in bold and the circles need to be lower so that it doesn't overlap the border. I will change the sell lines font as I think it doesn't really go with the image however if I do not find anything else that I like I will still keep this one. If I don't change the fonts then I will have to make the main sell line bigger or a different colour as it doesn't stand out from the others.