Plan for front page and contents page

Below is the plan for my front page. It is a rough guide for when i start designing my magazine.




















Below is my guidelines for the contents page.

Questionnaire results in pie charts

Below are pie charts showing the results of my questionnaire.

1. student magazine title

2. content of the magazine

3. what image should i use for my magazine

4. how often would you like to see the magazine

5. would you like free gifts

what gifts should be included(only if 'yes' answered for Q. 5)

would you like more text or more images

how much would you pay

should the magazine contain adverts for local businesses

what color scheme should i use

Questionnaire to find people's preferences for magazines

1. What title would you prefer for a student magazine?

Student Stop

Common Room News

Break

2. What would you like to see in the magazine? (Circle as many as you’d like)

College Stories

Local News

Movies Reviews

College-wide Achievements

Other – Please specify in the space below

3. What central image would be best to use for my magazine?

A group of students

A social area

A single student on a blank background

Other – please specify

4. How often would you like to see the magazine?

Every week

Every 2 weeks

Every month

5. Would you like free gifts in the magazine?

Yes

No

6. What gifts should be included?

Money Off Coupons

Posters

Stickers and Badges

Other – Specify

7. Would you like to see more text or more images in the magazine?

More images

More text

Equal mix of both

8. How much would you pay for a student magazine?

Nothing

50p

£1

£2

Other – specify

9. Should the magazine contain adverts for local businesses?

Yes

No

10. Finally, what colours should the magazine be(please specify below)?

Orange and Red

Green and Blue

Grey and Purple

Other - Specify

Sixth Sense magazine analysis

The central image shows a girl smiling, this connotes that she is cheerful and approachable. Shows the students are happy and approachable. The masthead is in an informal font and is in neutral colours. This means it doesn’t seem over the top but more restrained yet still appealing. The cover lines link to the audience, such as ‘Goodbye Upper Sixth!’, which connotes that articles are relevant to student life. The text is in grey and blue, which gives the magazine a calm look and feel. The puffs are relevant to students, the 'Creative Corner' tag is colourful and connotes that area of the magazine is bright and cheery. The cheerful connotations are reinforced by the happy smile on the girl's face in the central image. This defeats the stereotype that teenagers are uncouth youths that should be avoided.

THe contents is light blue and white, which makes it look calm too, along with the front cover. The images all depict happy smiling students, further reinforcing that they are not stereotypical youths, or that the stereotypes are wrong. The contents page text is simple and informal, but looks suited to the page's design and the headers for each page are kept short and simple. Each picture has a small paragraph beside it to act as an explanation or editor's thoughts. 

Research and Planning - 247 Student Magazine

The central image shows a man doing tricks on a snowboard. This is appealing to the target audience because it appeals to their adventurous side and shows they are happy to try new things. THe central image also connotes to people that the magazine is fun and the audience is like-minded. The masthead is very informal text and is white with a light blue shadow. This draws the audience to the magazine’s cover image by fitting in well with the colours in the central image. The cover lines are in light blue and placed to the side of the magazine. This ensures they don’t get in the way of the central image and they fit in well with the action in the picture. The puff(in the green circle) reaches out to the audience by advertising gigs and special nights that students would be interested in going to. This also applies a stereotype that they are relaxed and time to unwind. This is enforced by the central image. This also suggests the age of the target audience being around 18-21 because at these ages you are more likely to be interested in going to gigs and night clubs. The colour scheme is white and shades of blue, making it eye-catching and informal while looking neat and well presented. The font used to advertise the main article is bold and stands out on the front page, making it instantly easy to see what is this issue’s interesting story. The cover lines for the other articles are in the same bold font but are smaller so don’t stand out as much unless you are already contemplating buying the magazine.

The contents page of 247 uses the same colour scheme, blue and white, as the front cover. This continuation suggests to the reader that it is a relaxed issue and that the magazine is well produced and uses continuity. The article headlines are spread out across the 2 pages; some are listed under ‘Regulars’ that suggests they run some similar articles each issue. Others are under ‘Features’, which suggests the articles are one of a kind to this issue, and therefore shouldn’t be misses. The central art on the double-page spread is cartoony and suggests the target audience have a grasp of modernised art styles, or immaturity. 

research and planning: Textual Analysis Of a Magazine Front Cover - Kerrang!, Issue 1302

I have chosen this issue of Kerrang! to analyze because it shows many traits used in magazines to hook their target audience, and shows how unique these traits can look depending on the genre of magazine. Below is my analysis.

   The masthead letters have rough edges, appear ‘broken’ through the use of lines the font and is white which makes it stand out. This connotes that the audience are teenagers because it is informal and because of it's rough edges it shows the audience and magazine are not mainstream(Mainstream referring to pop, Indie etc).

   The cover image depicts the band who are the main article in the magazine. Their facial expressions are blank, which may hint that the article is serious or out of the ordinary as far as the fans are concerned. The shot type is a medium shot because it shows the entire band.  

   The font is large, informal and either white, black or yellow. This makes it stand out more against the grey background and the cover image and looks edgy, linking to the audience's rebellious nature. It also draws the target audience to the main features of the magazine while also connoting that the target audience are bold and informal, teenagers rather than adults, because of the font and colours used. 

   The free posters are advertised on the front cover to draw the audience into buying it because they will be more likely buy it if they think they are getting more for the price. They also act as links to audience to the target audience along with the advertising of band names and concerts that are featured inside which will draw their fans into buying the magazine.

   The 'exclusive' tag used before the main article shows that the story hasn't been covered by any other magazine of similar audience. This will also appeal to the audience because it connotes to them that it is not only an important article, but is only being covered by this magazine so the audience will want to buy it rather than risk missing important news concerning their favorite band. 

Preliminary Task and Action Plan

For my Preliminary task i will use DTP and an image manipulation program to produce a front page and contents page for a new college magazine. It will feature a photograph of a student(I will take the picture myself) in medium close-up, a masthead and appropriate text headings for articles that will be featured in the magazine. This will allow me to get a grasp for using DTP and image manipulation programs.

Coursework Brief

As part of my AS Media coursework, i have the task of creating the front page, contents page and double page spread for a new music magazine. I have made this blog to record my progress in both researching existing magazine traits and producing my own successful magazine.