front cover coursework

Brief Two Research

‘Men’s Health’ magazine is a fitness magazine for men. Their target audience is males who like to workout and are interested in living a healthy lifestyle. However the magazine can also gain attention from young adults up to middle aged men who take pride in appearance. The font used is bold, easily read but still has a hint of class. The colour red used highlights the message the magazine is trying to get across. The red logo shows passion, masculinity and strength.

The women and mens logo is almost the same apart from the change in colour. You can see that the women’s health is pink on the other hand the male logo is red. Pink is known to be a feminine colour. The colour pink is associated with barbie dolls. This could mean that the magazine logo is trying to hint to the audience that reading this magazine could possibly lead to a ‘barbie doll’ figure.

The GQ magazine focuses on fashion, style, and culture for men. The magazine articles also have sections on food, movies, fitness, music, travel, sports and technology. The magazine could appeal to some women but the majority of the readers are men. The magazine appeals to a mass 18-35 year old men. The bold and bright colours attract attention from audiences. The logo is simple and can easily be recognised. The two big letters overlap creating a fading effect, this is simple and unique. I would like to maybe include a similar look when creating my logo. Although the GQ logo is simple, it stands out which is something I want to incorporate in my final logo design. 

Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly. The font used is sharp and sophisticated. The logo has a feminine feel to it. The logo is transparent and is highly recognisable.. I like how the logo is simple. The colour scheme of black and white indicates the type of audience they want to attract - upmarket. However the colour changes depending on the magazine cover art.

 The Cosmopolitan magazine originally started off as a family magazine. The magazine has now emerged into several categories including beauty, fashion, lifestyle and celebrity. Pink is the colour of the logo which is a feminine colour. From this the target audience is identified varying from young adults to middle aged women.

This magazine is aimed at middle aged women. An unusual font is used and isn't normally used. Pink is regularly used for magazines that are aimed towards the female audience. I wouldn't use this font because although it can capture the audience it looks slightly immature. I would use a font like the Vogue font because it looks more elegant and sophisticated.

Vanity Fair is a pop culture, fashion magazine. They have their own font which always match the front cover. It is bold and the main colours they use are usually red, black or white depending on the cover. 

SELF Magazine, the preeminent healthy lifestyle magazine for women, incorporating health and beauty, fitness and nutrition, and happiness and personal style all in one package. The logo is very simple. I find the logo boring and it doesn't stand out in comparison to other magazine logos.

Conclusion:

From the research that I have gathered I have decided I want to do work based on fashion because it is something that is popular in todays society. In particular I want focus on women’s fashion and focus on aiming my target audience to be ages 18-25. However, I don't think I will be using feminine colours such as pink because it can be seen as ‘conventional’ and I want my product to stand out. I want to use similar ideas from the GQ magazine for the logo because it is simple but effective. Doing this research has given me more of a clear image and has made me want to research more on Print and e-Media.

My Company Logo Design

 This is my logo that will be placed next to the images of my magazine to promote and raise interest to synopticity productions. The logo is simple, can easily be recognised and remembered. The colour can be changed to fit the theme of the magazine. I played with  the companies name and emphasised the synoptiCITY. The blocks in the “S” indicate cities.

This is another logo I like that can be placed on the front of the magazine as the title:

I made the title so that text can be included underneath depending on the subject e.g. food, travel etc. 

The text looks sophisticated and sharp which would also attract the upmarket as well as 18-25 because it looks more intriguing to the wider public. The text doesn't need to stay this colour and can change depending on the theme and to make the magazine stand out. 

Looking at fashion magazines

There are different types of fashion such as casual, street, punk, tomboy, glamorous etc. In addition, there are key elements that make a magazine successful such as lighting, body language, cover lines, themes, clothing and colour scheme. 

Lighting: The lighting and brightness of an image brings freshness to an image.

Body language: The angles and shots taken in images are normally full or mid shots to show different body gestures. The majority of the time the model is looking directly as the camera and posing in a way which the clothes can be promoted. 

Cover lines: The mastheads are usually bold and have bright colours. Cover lines are used to capture audiences and work with the magazines colour scheme.

Themes: They show trendiness and the look of the generation.

Analysing GQ magazine cover.

GQ magazine has a simple masthead it stands for ‘Gentlemen’s Quarterly’. The two letters work because it stands out. The magazine uses white, grey and red which is eye-catching. Kendall Jenner is used in the front cover as the model. She attracts male attention and is sexy which may be a reason why she was chosen to be in the magazine. What she is wearing and her pose is showing her to be an object of sex and these factors attract male customers. Although it attracts male attention this isn't something i’d want to do in my magazine. I want my magazine to attract teenagers and young adults. In my magazine I don't want women to be objectified as a sex symbol. I want them to have a softer look in my magazine.

Analysing a double page spread

In this double page spread the main focus is the heading and the main model on the page. The black and white effect has been used which enhances the focus onto her. I think the black and white effect looks sharp and professional. It gives more importance and a dramatic look. Although I like this idea I wouldn't use it for my magazine because it could bore my target audience. The article is introduced with the conventional large letter. This is something I will use in my magazine because it is something that majority of magazines have and it draws the reader into reading the article.

Analysing Vogue Magazine cover

The Vogue magazine audience is majority female and the ages that read the magazine range from 16-35. Vogue constantly use colours that are similar on the front cover which gives a professional finish. The magazine has a clear vision. The cover lines on the magazine match the Vogue logo. In my magazine I intend to use this technique because I want the magazine pages to look as professional as possible. In my magazine when I do my few pages I want to take the reader on a journey and not have pages that do not fit in.

Analysing Vogue contents page

The image used on the contents of this particular Vogue issue the colour is red. It fits perfectly with the rest of the page as the colour red is used in the headers. The colour would grab the audiences attention because its a colour that is seen as important. The women wearing red creates passion and intimacy. In the image the posture is very important because the model is shown to be holding her dress up and looking in the distance. She looks confident which entices the reader to pay attention and maybe dress similar to her. I would like to make the model in my magazine show confidence and power because it makes the reader feel more comfortable. 

The headers on the page stand out because the rest of the text and background are black and white and the colours ties in well. The font that is used is important because it is elegant which is easily understood. In the bottom right hand section the font size increases telling the reader to subscribe to the magazine. This isn't done in a forceful way but the reader is drawn into that section of the page. This is something that I would include in my magazine because it is a clever way to promote something e.g. synopticity productions.

Conclusion:

From the magazine research I have found out what aspects make a magazine look professional and successful. I know some of the conventions of a magazine such as having a large letter at the start of an article. From looking at magazines I also know what content audiences find interesting. I have gathered how much space and image should take on the magazine and how much text should be included on each of the pages. The research has also provided me knowledge of what is eye capturing and draws the attention e.g. the use of colour and font.

Websites

Key aspects of websites:

Usability: It must be easy to use and access different parts of the website

Background and Font colours: Separate colours used for different information.

Images: Adds a visual interest to the website and should be related to the topic. 

Logo: Must be included - it is conventional to have it at the top of the page. It should have  hyperlink to link it back to the home page.

Hyperlinks: They should link to the correct area of the website and all work.

GQ website

The GQ logo is at the top left hand side of the logo. It stands out from the background. Although it is small the logo is significant. The website includes different sections such as Fashion, Entertainment etc. In the header it also included a blue button to subscribe. It stands out because its a different colour from everything else.

This shows the variety of topics that can be accessed through the website. Theres one image that specifically stands out on the homepage. There is key information and there is not much empty space this is good because the viewer can look at multiple thing and has a selection.

When I clicked on the ‘fashion’ there was lots of promotions and fashion features. The different parts of the website all have a similar approach to the homepage and match. It also includes aspects from the recent magazine. Theres lots of images that are sharp. The text used all works together. The parts that are bold show they have more significance.

Overall, I like the magazine website. I really like the images that are taken and the layout. I would like to use a similar layout to this website because I think it works well and is easy to  access all the website. 

Vogue website

This has a more sophisticated look rather than the GQ website. The main colours are black and white. I like the idea of using white because it looks clean and professional. The layout and structure of the website is good. However, I don't like the grey bar in the left had corner. It looks out of place and separate from the rest of the website. I like the the image on the home page and would use it in my website but instead would use different words such as “coming soon” or “get a taste of the summer range” this would entice the audience to look at what clothing will be coming out in the future. This also would encourage the viewers to visit the website again to see what new things are on the website.

The vogue website has better features than the GQ website because it allows you to view the magazine issue online. It also has important information such as the model, what they are wearing, where it is from and how much the clothing costs. I would like to try and add this feature into my website because its a unique feature and works well.

Self website

Out of all the website this one covers a wider range of lifestyle topics.

From the homepage the audience is established as women who like to work out or want to get in shape. This ranges from young adults to middle aged women.

On the fashion link the website draws in the reader because celebrity endorsement is used. Beyoncé is a worldwide superstar which would attract people to read her thoughts and opinions on fashion wear. Above the top there are headlines that would encourage the reader to stay on the website for instance “12 commandments for a successful, lasting and happy relationship.” People often use the internet to find out tips on different things. This website uses this cleverly, although it is fashion/fitness based it still has other tips that would interest the public.

Nylon Website

This is the Nylon homepage. The majority of the page is taken up by a singer called ‘Tinashe’ from this we find the website is aimed at fans of this artist which most likely is females that are teenagers and young adults. The model looks directly at the camera which shows empowerment and confidence. Unusually in this come page a close up of the model is shown. It is normally conventional to have the models full body length or a mid shot. Most websites have models looking directly at the camera. The glance tells a lot about this model because she seems self assured. Eye contact is one of the most intimate forms of communication because it can easily be read what people convey.

Final conclusion

From all the research I have gathered I have found out what makes a logo, magazine and website successful. This research has allowed me to develop my knowledge on logos, magazines and websites. 

From the knowledge I had before the research I knew logos had an importance because they are the face of a company. However I didn't really know what works well in a logo. From my research about logos I found things that are conventional such as having hot pink for a magazine aimed a females. I also found how different fonts represent different emotions and attract different audiences. For example:

font one: Synopticity productions 

font two: synopticity productions 

The first font is sophisticated, elegant and classy. This font would attract the upmarket because it is more serious in comparison to the second font.

The second font is seen as childish.This font is similar to what magazines aimed at children would have. 

Different fonts are used to convey different meanings and attract different clients.

From my logo research I got a better understanding of what type of font I want to use. Once I established my target audience I found the type of font I wanted to use that I thought would attract my target audience. The font that was used in my final logo for my magazine has a sophisticated look. Even when a logo does not have words, it creates a brand that is associated with the company and the products or services the company offers. This is why I chose to make two individual logos that are similar and can easily be associated. I realised having a logo without words for a magazine would be unconventional and the company would be hard to establish. This caused me to make a logo with words so that the company can easily be recognised and associated with the logo without words. 

From my magazine research I found how font, colour, images and layout are all factors that influence the target audience. I found out what features I would include in my magazine and what things I liked. I found the conventions of a magazine and what things to include when taking images for the magazine. I realised how lighting and location of an image are key to portray different means. Having dark lighting portrays a deeper meaning and creates a dull meaning whereas lightness in an image creates a happier outlook. 

In my research I also analysed the different postures that are used in magazines and how women are portrayed. For magazines aimed at men, women were objectified and were exposed. When looking at these images I quickly found this wasn't something I wanted to use in my magazine images. As my magazine is focusing on lifestyle (in particular fashion) I would want my audience to pay deep attention to the clothing and fashion rather than the model in the clothes and the figure they have. 

The last thing I researched was websites. I don't really use websites for magazines so I didn't know what to expect. I found colour schemes are very important in websites. I also found out that when making my website I must include information and images related to the topic and not having things in the incorrect places. The website must be easy to access otherwise this could cause frustration to the client and may lead to them not revisiting the website again and giving bad feedback.

Roma and Tyans Magazine

Magazine Front Cover

Page 5/6 (interview)

Page 7 (interview cont.)

analysing logos

BRIEF THREE

Logos are a critical aspect of business marketing. They are intended to be the "face" of a company. They are graphical displays of a company's unique identity. Through the use of colours, fonts and images they provide essential information about a company that allows customers to identify with the company's brand.

             

This is MTV's logo. MTV is one of the leading channels on televisions that promote music videos as well as broadcasting up to date music. There are different types of MTV channels such as "MTV hits" and "MTV2" which both have the same logo in different colours. 

Although the logo can be changed in a variety of ways to fit different moods it still has its original identity even when presenting variation. Almost everyone can identify the MTV logo and over time different styles of the logo have been used for merchandise. MTV's audience can be anyone, it is a worldwide channel. The logo stands out because it is bold but simple, therefore it's more memorable. The use of black and white as their main logo highlights the versatility. The 'M' in the logo stands out because it is 3D which overpowers all the other aspects of the logo.

photoshoot images

This is my photoshoot for my brand "focus clothing"

My brand is aimed at female teenagers. 

My brand doesn't have the stereotypical angelic feminine aspect and is more aimed at girls who have a more "tomboy" edgy look. I feel the brand "focus" isn't suitable for older ages because these ages tend to wear more sophisticated clothing. 

My logo for my brand is a target/aim with the word "focus" in capitals and is bold. The concept of the logo is to aim to get people to "focus" on what my audience are wearing. This highlights that if people wear my clothing they will stand out and people will "focus" on them. 

In my photoshoot although I had to create a brand for a campaign I used a variety of different locations because I wanted to emphasise how the clothing can look good anywhere and having the same approach for each image would have made the audience get bored.

When I edited the photos I also wanted to use the word focus lots to draw attention to my brand and make it look more professional.

In the first image it shows the empowerment because of the low angle and although she is looking into the distance the audience still see she is a confident person because of her posture e.g. her hand on her knee.

The second and third image shows confidence because she is directly looking at the camera.

In the forth image the model is looking out in the distance which creates a story. This draws the attention to people because they wonder what she is thinking and what she is looking at.

I believe the final image is powerful because of the text "Focus. Believe. Achieve" which indicates how clothing makes a difference in society and that intelligence isn't the most important thing because other things also contribute to achieving success.

Media Logo

This is my media logo.

Hi I'm Roma and this is my media blog!