Possible photos for music magazine cover

These are some earlier photos I took, exploring different ways of taking and arranging my photo. I used the same subject as I have for my photo shoot. In these photos however, I used a fish-eye lens, which I concluded after these pictures was not particularly successful. Nonetheless, here are the first photos I took with the fish-eye lens, on a very dreary day.

The Photo Shoot

When arranging my photoshoot, I asked my subject to dress in red and black, as the colour scheme for my magazine is red, black and gold. I also asked him to bring an electric guitar, connoting the genre of alternative rock music that my music magazine is. I also chose a white canvas background, as I felt this would enable my copy to stand out, and catch the eye of the reader. It would also be useful when moving onto the second stage of adding text.

Factors involved in this photo shoot:

- As shown in previous photos, fish-eye lens was not successful or appropriate, therefore I did not chose to use in this photoshoot

- Spotlight was used in some photos

- Weather outside was terrible and raining, therefore could try out my second sketch which would have been scattering instruments and paper on the grass. I do not feel this mattered entirely though, as I didn't feel it would have been my final idea of the two sketches.

- Public opinion was used to help me determine which photo was the most successful.

This is one of the first photos I took for my music magazine cover. Whilst performing the photo shoot, I asked my subject to hold the guitar in many different ways, so I was able to see which ways were the most successful in displaying the instrument. This was one way I tried, which I feel is quite successful. I like the way the neck of the guitar cuts through the centre of the page, however with the majority of the not in shot, I feel it detracts from the overall appeal of the guitar. The gaze in this photo also works well, as it catches the gaze of the reader, and enables the magazine to feel more personal to the reader. On the other hand, I am not entirely satisfied with the expression on my copy's face, as it is quite a bored expression, which is not reflective of the genre of music I have chosen for my magazine, Alternative Rock. When considering the next step in my project, of adding the fundamental text such as the masthead and sell-lines, I feel the composition of my copy is well displayed on the page, and the text could work effectively, appropriately and attractively on the cover.

Overall, I am very pleased with this photo, and feel it was one of the best I took in the photo shoot. Personally, I feel the guitar plays a large part in it's success, as the neck of the guitar creates a perfect thirds rule, by covering two-thirds of the page, and leaving the space available for text such as sell-lines, puffs and also the images. I like the fact all of the guitar is shown, as the guitar represents the genre of music, and is a clear visual code for an audience looking for this style and genre of music magazine. I feel the tilt of the copy's head works, as it adds attitude to the rock magazine, and this is also supported by the expression on his face, which also has attitude which is appropriate for the genre.

This is the image I have chosen to use for my front cover. In this, I used a spotlight, as I wanted it to create a professional look, which I feel is successfully achieved. I directed the spotlight so it cast light down the right hand side of this photo, from high on a stand. I feel the shadow creates works really well, adding a nice touch, and giving the image more perspective and character. I like the medium close-up I used, despite it not being part of my original idea, and I feel the text I am later to add will work well with the layout of the copy on the cover. I also like the amount of guitar shown, as it does not dominate the page, however is just a clear connotation to the genre of music for my magazine. Despite my copy not looking directly at the camera, resulting in no gaze, I still feel the expression and direction of the eyes works really well. Admittedly, in a lot of the research I did into front covers for music magazines, it did involve a gaze from the copy. Although, I feel the direction of the eyes adds to the attitude shown, and represents the 'alternative' aspect of my alternative rock genre. When considering how this photo would work with the text I added to it, I deliberated over it. It could work extremely well, however, be slightly less room than the other photos for the text. But after looking through my research again, and looking at the 'NME' magazine cover which is of a similar genre to my magazine, the sell-lines in particular cover a majority of the image. This helped the 'NME' cover connote a busy and energetic feeling, which is what I would also like to connote in my front cover; therefore, I have concluded that this would hopefully enhance the appearance of my magazine cover.

N.b: Despite not including many ideas I planned in my sketches, I am very pleased with my final decision for my front cover image.

Sketches for Music magazine front cover

These are the two sketches I have drawn up for my music magazine front cover. I went for a simple idea, by which I would have a male playing guitar (stereotypical of rock music) and looking at the camera. In the first image, I chose a medium close-up for my subject, and to create a thirds rule, taking up two-thirds of my page. This is created by the "coloured lines" and the angle of the guitar. The "coloured lines" is what I hope to produce from using a slow shutter on the camera, and I feel this will give the front cover energy and connote the powerful and hectic feel of rock music. Another effect I will be using is fish-eye, which will give the front cover more perspective, and make it appear more dynamic. As well as this, I feel that the perspective, emphasising the head and subsequently the eyes, will create more of a gaze for the reader, and will give the magazine more attitude, again, reflective of the genre. In the second front cover sketch, I would like to include the same effect of using a fish-eye. However, the background of this will be very different. Weather permitting, I hope to have my copy on grass on a bright day with the sun in the background, and rock instruments such as a guitar and drum sticks and torn lyrics on the floor. The copy would again be in the same position, although I would like this to be a medium long shot opposed to a medium close-up, as I feel this will be better when capturing the ground in the shot. (Excuse the poor drawing, I did not show the difference in distance too well.)

When considering the results I recieved from my questionnaire, I would like my subject to be dressed in dark and vibrant colours as this is what was proven most popular from my results. I would like to follow a colour scheme of general colour scheme of black, red and gold, therefore I will ask my copy to dress in red and black specifically, so he is fitting and representative of my magazine. My masthead, reading 'Alt-wave' will be positioned top left of my page, as from my research, I found this was typically the area used most. It would also be in the perfect position with my image. The tagline will be located bottom-right of my masthead, as it is the second most important piece of text to the masthead, when defining and distinguishing the magazine from others.

Research into Magazine contents pages

I have done some further research, now looking into magazine contents pages in preparation for creating my music magazine. Below, I have analysed two different music magazine contents pages.


The colour scheme of black, white and red result in the contents page looking very striking. The red in particular stands out, emphasising the word 'contents' and the date '01/07'. The colour scheme is also well used, as in the images the colours black and red are shown, which is appropriate for the colour palette. I feel the page division works well, with the 'features' column separate from the images. I feel this makes the page easier to read, which is useful as this is where the reader goes to find out more about the magazine's contents. The focal image of the page, being a member of a band playing drums, works well as it summarises what this particular magazine is about - drums. On my music magazine I will consider using this idea, and use a large image of a band member playing a rock music instrument, such as a guitar or drums, which connotes the genre of magazine.

This is another music magazine contents page, however this is an r'n'b cover, therefore not focusing on my genre; but I can still study this cover and learn and encorporate their ideas into my magazine. The reason this stood out for me whilst researching, was the very striking layout. The copy is lying down, with her legs in the air, which is the focal point of the magazine. This creates a third rule, which is visually attractive, interesting and eye-catching. There is also a slight gaze from the subject, which catches the gaze of the reader. I also really like the tilt used on the writing, as for this magazine, it creates a sense of style, and makes it look fancy which is fitting to the female aspect of r'n'b, whereas if I were to incorporate this into my magazine, it could be used to create a haphazard and wreckless effect, which is appropriate for the rock genre. The masthead 'contents' also works well, drawing the readers attention by splitting the word into 3 lines.

From this research into magazine contents pages, I have decided to reconsider my ideas. I am very sure that I would like to use the format used for the wording of 'contents', as I feel this is effective and appropriate with my genre of magazine. I will also use the idea of incorporating the colour scheme in the images I use, which is shown through 'Drummer' magazine. From both pages, I feel the large image works well, and I will most likely use this when designing the contents page.

Research into Music Magazine Covers

I have researched into different genres of music magazine front covers. My aim was to see how each genre of music was displayed differently through the use of colour scheme, layout, image, sell-lines, and overall look of the magazine. I chose three very different genres, these were: Rock, Classical, Indian Culture and R'n'B.


Genre: Rock
On this 'NME' music magazine cover, the layout is very busy and cluttered and energetic, which could be reflective of this genre of music. Rock music in general contains quick, heavy beats, with several instruments. Therefore, the use of many sell-lines and and images is representative of this genre. The first word of the main sell-line, reading 'The Wombats', is askew, adding to the hectic feel of the magazine cover. The colour scheme contains many clashing colours, such as the red of 'NME' and and yellow of 'Wombats'. However, the colour of the clothing which covers the majority of the page is dark, connoting the sometimes dark and angry nature of rock music. I feel the contrast between the dark colours and the vibrant colours such as the yellow and red work works well, meaning the magazine stands out and represents the raw nature of rock music. The image shows the band members at different levels, to make the cover more visually interesting. The sell-lines are positioned so the image looks as if it is displayed diagonally across the page. Light blue text boxes are used around some sell-lines, which means they stand out and are more likely to catch the reader's eye.

Genre: Indian Culture
The general composition of this music magazine front cover is simple, with the white background and standard black font. The gaze of the magazine is directed towards the Indian woman named 'Priyanka', who helps the magazine more appealing to the male gaze and for fashion conscious women. The layout is simple, with the image centre-right of the page, with sell-lines boldly around this. With the image obscuring the title, it gives the impression that this is a famous and popular magazine and well known enough to not lose out from not showing the full brand. The masthead is vert strong, with the black font colour standing out against the white. I feel the strike line through the masthead is effective, as it gives it brand identity. The colour used in the image for the woman's material is typical of the Indian culture, with the variety of colours used, and this also contrasts well against the white background. Critically, it is not immediately obvious of the genre of the magazine without reading the sell-lines, and I would hope to make my genre of magazine more apparent.

Genre: Classical
For this 'Music' music magazine, it follows a very simple layout. The image is displayed centrally on the page, infront of the masthead; this enables the image to stand out from the page. From the front cover, it is clear to the reader that the magazine is focuses on classical music. The masthead alone informs the reader this, but using a famous violinist holding the instrument emphasises this, and means the magazine is immediately recognisable as being for classical music. I feel the way the words 'Sarah Chang' are written in the same colour red as the masthead is effective, as it links the two together, showing that Sarah Chang is strongly linked to classical music, and emphasising her, as she may help in the sales of the magazine. The sell-lines are displayed simply on the page, in 'times new roman' black font. The page includes a puff to increase the magazines status by saying, 'The world's best classical music magazine'. I feel the simplistic appearance of the front cover reflects the genre of music. For example, the layout is very structured, similar to that of classical music. It is also a sophisticated genre of music, which is similar to the appearance of this magazine.



Genre: R'n'B
The layout of this 'Vibe' magazine is slightly different to the others I researched. The image is is a medium long shot, directly central of the magazine, emphasising the main subject that is, Chris Brown. However, the sell-lines are positioned neatly down the right of the page, almost in a block of writing. I would not use this technique when creating the front cover of my music magazine, as I feel it does not enable any particular sell-lines to stand out, and catch the readers attention. The one sell-line on the left of the page though is effective, through the use of colours and font styles. The different colours attract the gaze of the audience, as well as italisizing the word 'that', to create a bigger impact on the reader. Direct mode of address is used effectively, by the magazine asking 'Is that Chris Brown?', and this means the reader can feel more connected with the magazine. Again, displaying the image infront of the masthead gives the impression that this is a well known magazine, which gives the magazine extra credibility. The colour of the subject's t-shirt against the background is good, as it gives the magazine more of a colour scheme, adding to it's professional look. The jewellery and accessories helps to connote the R'n'B genre, as many R'n'B artists and bands are seen to be wearing similar. Also, the use of the green and white fonts adds to the appearance of the magazine. I feel the title of the magazine, 'Vibe' is relevant, as it relates to this genre of music and the feeling it gives.

Questionnaire and Findings

Questionnaire and Findings