Contents Photos

From researching my prominent style model, 'Q' magazine, I discovered that the most popular photograph on the contents page of the magazine presents a close-up or mid-shot of a model as they are looking directly into the camera and it is often predominantly text led. However, it is often image led and presents a model in a long shot to present the full character.

Although the majority are text led, I decided to follow the convention of making my contents page image led. I chose to do this as I felt it would fill in any excess blank space and make this page appear more interesting. I also felt that it would appeal to my target audience of teenage girls as, stereotypically, they are more attracted to images rather than text. Furthermore, it would enable the reader to understand the subject of the main article within the magazine in order to eliminate confusion and entice them in.

Therefore, this is my final photograph on the contents of my magazine...

Cover Photos

From researching my prominent style model, 'Q' magazine, I discovered that the most popular photograph on the front cover of the magazine presents a close-up or mid-shot of a model as they are looking directly into the camera.

The fact that they are looking directly at the camera acts as a personal pronoun as it appears as though they are looking directly at the audience and enticing them personally to purchase the magazine. Furthermore, the close-up or mid-shot allows many aspects of mise en scene to be represented. For instance, it allows their clothing, facial expressions and pose to be shown clearly. Therefore, I decided to incorporate this convention for the cover of my music magazine.

Therefore, this is my final photograph on the cover of my magazine...

Taking Photographs

I was required to learn about technologies throughout the course of this project. Therefore, I had to learn how to use an SLR camera will full success.

  I firstly learnt about exposure. In photography, this refers to the quantity of light reaching a photographic film.  An image can be ‘over exposed’ creating an image which is too light or it can be ‘under exposed’ creating an image which is too dark.

 

I was also required to learn about shutter speed. This refers to the length of time which the camera’s shutter is open as a photograph is taken. This can affect the exposure of an image. It can also detect movement. Selecting a slow shutter speed allows more data to be captured in the image before the shutter closes allowing movement to be presented in a  photograph. However, selecting a high shutter speed mean less data can be captured and the resulting image will present a moving object appear unnaturally frozen.

 

I generally used a high shutter speed to make my images appear still which was a common convention on all of my chosen style models. I was also able to alter the aperture to ensure the image was of a suitable brightness and to make it appear higher quality.

Photographs

For the back drop for some of my photos, I used a small studio situated in my media class room at school. This gave the final photographs a more professional appearance due to the white cloth used for a plain background and the lighting equipment surrounding the shooting location. I also used an SLR camera to take the photos as it presented them in high quality. It also allowed me to adjust various settings such as focus, aperture and shutter speed to improve the appearance of my photographs.

 

Group Discussion Video

I carried out a group discussion amongst members of my target audience and recorded the results. This allowed me to understand what would appeal to them as they are representing the focus group. Therefore, I will take into account their responses and ideas and incorporate them in my magazine in attempt to attract members of my target market to buy it.

Photo Planning Timetable

I will use a camera borrowed from school to allow for high quality photographs. I there must record the times in which I wish to borrow a camera and schedule the time to ensure I can use it.

	Period 1	Period 2	Period 3	Period 4	Period 5	After School
Monday	During period 1 and 2 on Mondays, both me and Laura have no lessons meaning I could take some photographs of Laura during this time.		English Language lesson	Textiles lesson	Media Lesson
Tuesday	Textiles lesson	English Language lesson	Media lesson	Me an Laura both also have free lessons on Tuesday afternoons and during this time we can focus on taking more photographs.
Wednesday	General Studies lesson		Media Lesson	English Language lesson	Textiles lesson	Photographs of my brother and sister must be taken at home so I chose Wednesday to do this as I have free time on this day.
Thursday	Textiles lesson	Enrichment Course		Media lesson	English Language lesson
Friday	Media lesson	English Language lesson	Textiles lesson
Saturday			On Saturday I will take photos of Laura on the beach as it will leave us with plenty of time to do this.

Photo Planning Double Page Spread

Double Page Spread

On my double page spread, there will be one main image taking up one A4 side of the page of my friend, Laura. This will be taken on the beach to add to the mise en scene and make the artist appear more down to earth. Also in terms of mise en scene she will be presented in younger, more modern clothes to allow her style to appeal to the younger target market. I will also include a smaller image to split up the large blocks of text of the same artist. This photograph will present her doing something productive such as playing a instrument or working in the studio.