6th December 2011

I have now moved on to do the double page spread of my magazine. After looking at examples of double page spreads in existing magazines I found there was two common styles, question and answer interviews and an article on the person being interviewed. I decided I wanted to do an article of when I met Cassidy when she came to do a photo shoot for the magazine, featuring quotes from her in relevant places. I looked at other magazines to get ideas for the layout of my double page spread. I noticed that most of them commonly have a large photo covering the whole of one page and then text on the opposite page. Featuring a quote in bolder bigger font and the speech marks in a colour that corresponds with the photo and colour scheme and complements it, linking the two pages together so it is clear they are both on the same person. It also makes the page look more interesting and the quote gives you an idea of what type of person the interviewee is. When there is more than one photo on the two pages there is usually a variety of different type of shots to make the page more interesting and appeal to different audiences. The background is often the same colour across both pages to again show that the are linked and is also often white so that the text and the photo both stand out.

The first letter of the first word of the article is sometimes in a larger size font, this is so it entices the reader to read it and draws you in. It also makes it clear where the article begins as to avoid confusion. The photo of the artist portrays what type of person the artist is, and in all the double page spreads I have looked at, the artist appears to be having fun and is smiling and happy. This would suggest that this is the type of image the magazine wants to give off of the artist to the reader, so she appears fun loving and likable, and to be having a good time. The text size of the actual article is quite small as it looks more sophisticated and I think if it was larger it would look more like it was aimed at a younger audience as the font in there magazines is usually larger so it looks more fun and readable, there is usually a lot less text on pages aimed at younger audiences too. By using a lot of text in a smaller size I made sure I was catering it for my target audience. On the Rihanna double page spread there is also a quote in big bold font going diagonally across the two pages. I really like this and the effect it gives, making a statement and bringing the two pages together. There is sometimes also smaller photos on the second page of double page spreads, alongside the text to link the pages together even more and keep the reader's interest sustained across both pages. All these codes and conventions have influenced the way I have produced my double page spread and the way I have made it look.

         My double page spread is on my cover star Cassidy Wilde. I have given the page the title 'Go Wilde'. which is a play on words as her name is spelt Wilde but is said the same as wild, as to mean go crazy or mad. This is what I meant by 'Go Wilde'. I have positioned the title across the page as after looking at the Rihanna pages I think it is really effective and it inspired me to do something similar. The font is in a large bold white font to show that it is the title and that it is important. It is in the same font as what I have used previously in the magazine and I have added a white glow around it to make it look brighter and stand out off the page more and so that is definitely noticed. The remainder of the title is done in smaller text as although her name is important I did not want it to steal focus, and there is a large photo of Cassidy on the page anyway so you would still be able to tell who it was even if the font isn't as large. It still stands out on the page never the less as it is in a contrasting colour of black which stand out clearly on the grey background and apposing the white text above it. The main text of the article begins with a larger capital A so it is clear where the article starts. The rest is smaller and goes across both pages although it fills up the majority of the second page of the spread. It is in a small yet readable sized font which an educated reader with a longer attention span an interest for the article would be happy reading. It fits around the smaller photos of Cassidy on the second page, which show different sides of Cassidy. The real Cassidy sitting and playing her music, which matters the most to her, and then smashing her bass guitar and showing the tough rock star image that she gives off to the world. The photos are full length to show her image and what she is wearing, the purple tights again complementing the colour of the font for the quote. The converse and tight short skirt showing that she is not afraid to show herself off and that she doesn't have the perfect body but it is one that others will admire and want to be like. It shows she has confidence and is a good role model despite being a rock star. Her converse are a bit worn and scruffy which shows she is not afraid to get her hands dirty and get messy, this could mean that she is also not afraid to do this when it comes to music and she is quite happy to do things for herself in a non-diva type manner. The main photo on the left hand side page shows another side to her again as she looks coyly away from the camera whilst hugging her guitar, as if she is in a daydream. This is the side of Cassidy that I particularly want to show the reader as it is the one that they have never seen before, and will only see here in the exclusive interview. It shows a softer side, and a more relatable angle as every girl has a dream and she is just following hers like all girls aspire too.

The background of the photo was of a grey colour and this was plain enough that all my text would stand out on it, so I decided to keep that colour instead of making the background white. This also make the double page spread different from the front page and contents pages which is what I want, as often when you open a magazine on a double page it looks quite different from the single pages, and it makes more of an impact. But I still wanted it to be clear that it was part of the same magazine so I branded the page with the little AG -standing for AlternativeGirl- in a purple box in the bottom corners of the pages, as I had done on my contents pages. Before adding page numbers in the same way I had also done on my contents pages and would have done on all pages of the magazine. To get my background the same colour on the second page I made a box and then used the colour picker tool on serif to select a tone of grey that would link the two pages together, it was quite difficult to get a match because of the lighting of the photo and the colour of the background. I then added a gradient so the background looks purposely tonal and fades from left to right.

    Also in the top right corner of the pages there is a quote from Cassidy in larger font, this is an effective way of giving the reader an insight on what the article will be like before they've read it as it is in quite noticeable purple font and stands out on the page. At the end of the text on the page, it says 'continued over page' with a small arrow pointing over the page, as the article is too long to fit on one page, and in magazine they often span several double pages so by doing this it makes my article seem more realistic as it would continue on the next page.



2nd December 2011

After speaking to my teacher about my front cover he pointed out that the quality of the main photo wasn't as good as it was originally before I cut it out and edited it. I agreed with him, as it did look a bit blury and the colours wern't as sharp as they should be. So after re-evaluating my page, I think perhaps I'd over edited it slightly when brightening it and lost some of the definition in the photo. I decided to amend this to get the best result possible. 
  So I used picnik on picassa to firstly increase the contrast of the photo and then sharpened it to make it clearer as the original was a little blury.

Then I used the black and white tool to make the background black and white, and then used the boost tool before going over the background to make it brighter and a more crisp white, I did this a couple of times to get the brightest white. I then had to go around the edges carefully being sure not to cover parts of the photo I didnt want cuting out. Then I was left with just her and the bass guitar on a white background which is what I wanted. I then positioned her on my magazine front cover, replacing the first version of the photo so that the plugs still fitted around her. I feel by making these adjustments the photo looks a lot better and I have improved the overall look of my magazine. I am glad I have made these changes.

27th November 2011

After producing the front cover for my magazine 'AlternativeGirl' I started straight away on my contents page. I originally wanted to do my contents on just one page, but after looking at a few existing contents pages I decided to do it across two, as this way I could have the photos as big as I liked and still fit in all the information about what's on what page. 

 So I drew out a very rough plan of what type of layout I wanted my magazine to have. This shows that I will have space for the photos of four different artists that are featured in my magazine all the page numbers and their content, a space for a section explaining how to obtain the free download that you get with the magazine, and another section explaining about an offer to subscribe to the magazine. I have found these are common codes and conventions of a contents page, after looking at a few different existing magazine contents pages. I decided images definitely make the page look more interesting rather than just a block of text which would look more like a boring index page than a contents page of a music magazine. They often have everything in blocks with photos in separate blocks alongside them, although this is a good orderly way to set it out I decided I didn't want to follow this exactly and preferred the layout of the contents from the summer 2001 issue of Q as all the page numbers and the description of what is on the pages is not in boxes, and the photos are more creatively spread out with their corresponding page numbers next to them. Although I felt it necessary to use boxes to separate certain parts of the page, for example the 'SUBSCRIBE' section and the 'How to get your FREE download' section, this needed to be put in boxes as otherwise it looked a little messy and wasn't clear which text went with which part. They also have branding on the page so that it links into the theme of the magazine and the front cover. Taking this all into consideration when creating my contents page I decided to take inspiration from both the different style of contents pages above and just make it more relevant to the style of my own magazine.

    On my contents page I have kept to the same colour scheme as on my front cover, and also used the same fonts to show a clear link between the two. 'This Month' is written across the two pages in big bold font so that it is noticeable as the title of the page, then 'Contents' is written slightly smaller but still in a bold font above where the contents starts so that it is obvious that it is the contents if it wasn't clear already.

    The page numbers are in a larger font than the text that tells you what is on each page, this is because the page numbers is the main information that you look for on a contents page. Although what's on the page is also important so that is in bold text and then below in a smaller font is a little teaser giving you a little bit more information about what the page contains, whether it be an interview or an article or review. I have used all my own photos on the page, all in different sizes to add some variety to the page, including a photo of Cassidy my cover star that I have cut out. I did this because this way all my photos are not square, and also on the contents page from Q the photos are cut out and all different shapes and I like the look this gives.

   I have simply put the most important words in alternating blue and purple in the boxes concerning subscription and the free download as this matches the colour scheme and is also the most important information and therefore needs to be eye catching. I have also added page numbers to the bottom corners of both pages, alongside a little icon saying 'AG' which stands for AlternativeGirl. This is presented in a little purple box the same colour as the purple of the masthead font on the front cover. I did this to make it clear that the pages belong to the same magazine and link the whole thing together as I feel it is important that everything follows the same style to make the magazine look more professional.

26th November 2011

 I am now moving on to look at which photos to use on my contents page. I have taken them all myself, some are of my friends and others of Taylor Swift and Katy Perry I have taken when I have been to concerts to see them. There is a variety of different type of shots that I could choose from, including long shots and medium close up shots. I think I will chose the photos that best represent the artists as who they are, give off the image I want for my magazine and that will also look interesting on my contents page. Also I have to consider the quality of the photos as some were taken at concerts and then go for the best quality photos also.