Analysing Pictures For Front Cover

I took a range of different pictures so as I had a variety to choose from when shooting my front cover, I have taken six to analyse in more detail so as to elinmate the bad pictures and use the more successful ones.

Picture 1

Here is my first picture, I really like the mise en scene in this

photo as the scattered records on the floor and the old fashioned record player connote the idea of the old hollywood jazz and blues music which I was aiming for. As well as this the models makeup also compliments the old hollywood glamour with the sexy red lips that would attract buyers as well as the tightly curled hair to fit in with the theme and suit the mise en scene of the photograph. The pose is also a key element to consider as her smile looks inviting to the reader and would catch the buyers attention as she is giving direct eye contact to the buyer so as to intise them more. I would consider using this for my front cover, however as you can see the top part of her head is missing and so therefore isn't enough room for the title or strapline and would then therefore cover the models face which wouldnt look effective and would ruin the overall look. As well as this seeing as though a magazine cover is on A4 and the picture is on landscape when trying to cut the picture down, it loses the overall look as I would have to cut the records and most of the record player out so therefore wouldn't create the look that I was going for.

Picture 2
This is another image I considered for my front cover. Overall I think that the image is striking as the light on her face makes her eyes stand out and are a very dominant part of the image and so therefore would grab the readers attention straight away which makes a good selling point to the magazine by giving the buyer direct eye contact. I also like the way the record is a main part of the image and stands out as this is the kind of old fashioned, hollywood glamour I am trying to portray. However some negatives to the image are that her head is scapled and so therefore there is little room to add a strapline or title going along the top of the magazine without covering the models face. There is also little space around the model for additonal text and pugs, as well as the wooden floor being on show which is something however that could be edited out using photo shop.

Picture 3

This is my third idea for an image for the front of my magazine.Overall I don't think that this image would be successful to use as a front cover image as the model is not connecting her eyes with the camera and so is therefore not giving the buyer direct eye contact which is a major selling point. As well as this the mise en scene is not exactly how I would want it to be seeing as though there is not enough of the record player in it and there is a piece of brown wooden furniture behind the models legs that I wouldn't like to be there, I could however edit this out using photoshop if I really wanted to use this image. I also think that the model looks slightly uncomfortable as the postioning of her hand around the record player looks clumsy and unattractive and so therefore I wouldn't use this as a front cover image.

Picture 4

Here is the fouth image for my front cover, I really like this image as the mise en scene really helps to connote the old school hollywood glamour style that I want the image of my magazine to be. The background of the image is busy and crowded with the old records but I deliberately put the props there to add to the theme of the front cover. Another reason as to why this is a successful image is because the model is connecting her eyes with the camera and giving direct eye contact with the reader so as to catch the buyers attention. The models hair and make up also create the old fashioned look with the red lips and the curly hair and the pose is non threatening and inviting so as to attract the type of buyers that I am aiming the magazine at.

Picture 5

This is the final image I was considering for my front cover and the one that I think is the most successful, this is because the background is plain and there is space to layer on top of the image without covering too much of the model making it look untidy. As well as this the mise en scene of the image fits the theme of the old hollywood glamour which I am aiming to create as a theme, this is done by the old vinyl records on the floor and the one the model is holding as well as the old fashioned record player, the type of outfit I have my model in also compliments the other colours on the page and the red lips matches the record player and a bit of the colour in the records so as to identify a colour scheme that would catch the buyers attention. The pose of my model is non threatening and inviting and she is giving direct eye contact with the buyer so as to entice the buyer to buy the magazine.

Finalised Ideas

After analysing my questionnaire results I decided on my final ideas, I was going to aim my magazine at females around the age of older teenagers to young adults. For my front cover I was going to use a mid shot of my model connoting a retro inspired theme to my target audience I was going to use a bold colour scheme so as it would attract the buyers eye and have my title as M is or music as this was the most favoured title for my magazine. For the contents page and double page spread I am still going to continue with the retro inspired theme and have my model connoting this through the type of images I will use and the type of fonts I will use to get across my theme of retro old hollywood glamour.

Questionnaire Analysis

After both creating a poll on my blog and gathering a group of people around the similar age group to my target audience to carry out a survey as it was clear not enough people took my poll. I done this so as to see what ideas I should include in my magazine so as I could aim it towards my target audience. 

Results from Questionnaire and Poll 

In total 9 people took my poll and 11 took my questionnaire, although I would have prefered more votes than this I still had some data to analyse to help to decided what ideas to use to target my audience. 

What is your gender?

Out of the 20 people I surveyed 15 were females and 5 were males showing that I should clearly aim my product at a female audience. 

How old are you ?

From the 20 people I asked, 9 people were at the age of 17, 3 were 18, 7 were 18 and over and 1 person was 16. From this information it is clear to see that most of the people answering my questionnaire were around the age of older teenager, young adult. This helped me to determine what type of age group I was aiming my magazine at and so what designs and layout I should use to help to appeal to my target audience. 

What is your current occupation? 

19 people out of the 20 I surveyed were currently students, this helped me to know how much to price my magazine at, as students are on a budget and would be able to afford an over priced magazine. 

Do you read magazines often?

Out of everyone I surveyed, only 1 person answered No and the rest answered yes. This helps me to determine that the majority of my target audience are interested in reading music magazines , as a result I would need to make a magazines that was interesting so as to keep my readers interest in the magazines as it would probably be sold weekly so it would be a vital issue that they wouldn't lose interest too quickly. 

Do you prefer to have a magazine based on on genre of music or mixed genres? 

13 people answered a select genre and 7 people answered mixed genres. This enabled me to no that I needed to chose a select theme and connote that theme throughout the whole magazine so as it would appeal to the majority of the people I surveyed as they prefer a select music genre of magazine.

Which parts of a magazine don't you prefer? 

2 people answered news features, 14 people answered adverts and 6 people voted posters. From this information I could see what features would help attract my target audience to my magazine and what would turn my readers away, this is essential as to create a successful magazine I need to keep the readers interest throughout. 

What is your favourite type of magazine? 

10 people answered pop and 10 people answered retro style, this enabled me to select a style of magazine and connote that style of look towards the readers. These results show that I am going to aim my magazine towards a retro audience but could also include a pop artist as well so as to appeal to a larger audience. 

What Price would you pay for a magazine? 

The majority of the people that took my questionnaire stated that they would pay between £2-£3 for a magazine, this is because as from previous questions it is clear to see that I am aiming my magazine at a student based audience so they are on a budget and cant afford expensive magazines. 

What first attracts you to buy magazines? 

8 people answered the celebrities in it, 3 people answered articles/stories, 2 answered headlines, 4 people answered front page and 1 person voted words used on the cover. From this information is is clear to see that I will need to include a variety of these conventions so as to appeal to my target market. 

What title do you prefer? 

14 people voted M is for music, 3 people voted for In tune and 6 people voted for Newest noise. After taking into account the results of this question it is clear to see that the most popular choice of title is M is for music and so therefore I will use this as my title. 

What colour scheme do you prefer? 

The majority of voters, selected that they preferred a bold colour scheme, I will therefore use a bold colour scheme so as to catch the readers attention and attract my target audience. The type of bold colours I will therefore use will be reds,blues, oranges. 

What kind of photo do you prefer on the front cover of a magazine? 

Overall after analysing my results I can see that the main image style that is preferred is a mid shot of a body, I will therefore take a variety of mid shots so as I have a range to choose from. 

Photo Inspirations

These are my photo inspirations that I used to take my pictures, my main image for my magazine is old Hollywood glamour. These represent this by the use of props, hair makeup and choice of clothing. 

Photo Shoot Plans

Photo Shoot Requirements 

Front cover- 3 images, secondary images(optional) 

Double Page spread- Main image 3 ideas secondary images(min 3)

Contents Page- Main image- has a flow/ link to front cover. Other secondary images. 

Other Requirements...

• Lighting 
• Props, clothing, hair and make up
• Models 
• Background 
• Location 

For my main images to connote an Old Hollywood, retro style to the magazine I will take several different photos in 3 different outfits with different props and location so as I had a variety of looks to choose from. 

Location 1

For the first location and my first shoot for my front cover, I had my model laying on a floor that was scattered with old vinyl records so as to connote the old Hollywood style theme and looks artistic , the look is inspired by the Christina Aguleria photos in my initial ideas. I feel that the old vinyl records and record player create a good mise en scene for the old fashioned style I was aiming to connote. The red lipstick and the tightly curled hair also helps to create this image and attract the buyer as the red lips connote a sexy look to the male audience and could be seen as an aspirational figure to a female audience. For this shoot I will take a variety of different shots at different angles, mostly  mid shots as this is a conventional type shot for a magazine cover. I will also direct my model in different poses such as laying down on the records then leaning up against them with her elbows on them as well as others so as I had a few images to choose from and test to see what image would work best for the cover. 

Location 2 

I also will create another set, with my model laying on a sofa with a white beige rug with old vinyl records scattered over the sofa so as to connote the Old Hollywood glamour. The beige rug adds the glamour and a vintage feel to the image and the records make the image old fashioned and retro. I will also take inspirations from the Christina Aguleria shoot in my inital designs by styling my model to match the old hollywood glamour theme, she will be wearing a sequined playsuit with a matching sequined hat with red lips and tightly curled hair. The playsuit will stand out against the beige rug and look glamourous to connote my theme and address my audience. I will mainly take long shots in a landscape format so as I could consider to use these for my double page spread, also to get the whole mise en scene of the records and the the models outfit in as I thought that the set helped to create my old hollywood glamour theme. 

Location 3 

The third location is going to be set up like an old fashioned dressing room, I had my model sit on a stall and look into a mirror with spotlights around it  this helped to create a mise en scene of old hollywood glamour and portray a vintage image to the photo. To create a unique look to the image I took the photo over the shoulder in the mirror so as the camera couldn't be seen but the model back and front could. I also created another look by having my model lay on a biege rug on the floor with a hand held beauty mirror in a black lace one shouldered dress so as to create a old hollywood glamour look and continue the theme throughout all three pieces. 

Initial Idea Three

Initial Idea Three-Front Cover

This is what I am basing my third image around for the front cover of my magazine. It also continues with the old hollywood style image, this is connoted to the buyer by the use of the old fashioned props of the gramophone, the old vinyl records and the old fashioned big headphones. In my front cover I have acess to the use of an old record player and vinyl records so therefore I am able to recreate an image similar to this. For my models hair and makeup I would link it to the basic colour scheme of the whole of the front cover of my magazine, that would also continue through to the contents page and double page spread so as to create an identity for the magazine. My models hair is going to be tight curls so as to keep in theme with the old 1950's hollywood theme of my magazine. The makeup is going to be dark eyes and red lips so as to connote a sex appeal to the male readers. As well as this as you can see in this photo the models legs are on show as it is a full body shot, I like the way that the whole of the models outfit is on show so as the female audience would see what the model is wearing and then if she looked nice, they would maybe aspire to dress like her, which would help to sell the magazine as they would want to see the other outfits that the model wears later on in the magazine. A negative to this magazine cover is that the model is not giving direct eye contact with the buyer which usually helps to sell the magazine. For my magazine cover I would use a plain background such as having my model pose against a blank wall and a non cluttered floor apart from the props that would help to create the hollywood theme of my magazine, so as the main focus is on the model and not the background. Also to make my model stand out more to the background is by putting her in a bright/bold coloured outfit so as to make sure that she is in contrast to the background. I would direct my model to pose similar to this model in this photo with a curve to the body so as the model doesn't look uncomfortable but looks appealing and attractive to the buyer. The way in which I would use the words on the cover would be to thee name of the magazine along the top of the page with a block coloured strip like background similar to the one in the picture, what ever colour I put as the background to the title of the magazine I would ensure that I used a colour of text that stood out against it.  The rest of the text will go down the left hand side and could possibly overlap part of the image but I will have to try and test it to see what looks better.