Isobel Hewitt NEA 2025
Thursday, October 24, 2024
Production Task Two: Log of Contents Pages
Sunday, October 6, 2024
Production Task Two: Production Log
The screenshot below shows the initial progress for cover 1. I have created a new file, uploaded my main image on the male model, added the masthead and strapline. I have chosen the blue colour for the masthead because it anchors with the denim jacket of the male model and is aesthetically pleasing to the audience.
Next, I focused on adding the content plugs. In my original design, the content plugs were to be at the top of the page but I have moved them to the bottom because with the layout of the main image and masthead positioning, text would have been blocking the model's eyes from the audience. I have coloured the plugs red because blue blended in too much and I colour matched the red of the letters to the red of the patch on the denim jacket. I have changed the font of the strapline to Gabriola because Vallite was easily missed on the page. Gabriola has the same hand-written feel to it but is bolder and you can see it better on the page.
After that, I focused on the main coverline 'Finn Johnson / Student Turned Rockstar'.
The image below shows the stage further along the production process where I have added the coverlines, the barcode and the date. I have also made alterations since the last log: I have added a rectangular box over the content plugs and changed the font to white to make them stand out. I made the masthead smaller and widened it to make room for more content on the page, without making it looked cramped. I lowered the main coverline to make room for the other coverlines.
The image below is the finish point for cover one of my Apollo Music Magazine. I finished by adding the puff to alert the reader of the discount of the first publication.
Thursday, September 19, 2024
Production Task One: Photography
The process I went through when taking my photographs is positioning my models in multiple poses and taking many pictures so that I can later choose from a wide selection in order to get the best photo. I experimented with lots of different backgrounds like the brown of the fence and grass or the white wall.
These are the pictures I am going to pick from for my first front cover:
Monday, September 2, 2024
Planning Task 8: Photography Planning
For my photos I intend to use for my independent music magazine, Apollo, I will use a boy and girl as my models in the two front covers. The boy will be the model for the first front cover and the girl will be the model for the second.
For the first front cover, I plan to take to photo in an indoor setting with the background of a white wall. This will give me the plain background that makes superimposing content plugs and mastheads onto the photo easier to read and less cluttered; I can also change and manipulate the background colour if I want to in editing. The male model will wear casual clothes like a regular, solid colour t-shirt and jeans so that the magazine is instantly relatable to the 16-25 year old target audience. I have ideas of poses for the male model that can be seen in Task 5. The facial expression of the male model will be neutral/smodering at the camera to make the photo look more professional but I will also have a few photos where he is smiling or fixing his appearance to put inside the magazine and website to emphasize the casual feeling of the artist and magazine.
For the second front cover, I plan to take the photo in an outdoor setting with a female model; this would meet the requirements of both editions representing two distinct social groups and using different mise-en-scene. The female model would also be dressed in casual clothing to continue the casual feeling of the magazine, relatability to the audience and consistency through both editions. The photo will be taken in the garden of "Emily Campbell's childhood house"; this correlates with the audio visual element of the website which is based around an interview with Emily in her childhood bedroom. The background will have solid colours to make the superimposition of the content of the front cover stand out. The weather will be sunny to reinforce the feeling of summer music and the pathetic fallacy of the photo will communicate happiness and upbeat pop music.
Both models will have a relaxed stance in the photos giving off a care-free and confident feeling to the reader of the magazine. They will both give direct gaze to the camera. No props will be needed in the first photo but in the second photo, I will use a summer item for my model to pose with like a sun lounger or a sun umbrella and I will use my mobile phone to take the pictures for the magazine.
In terms of the other photographs for the magazine and website, I have taken a photo of CDs arranged in a way that shows off a variety of them and fills the camera space. This photo is to accompany the how-to article on upcycling and recycling CDs so there is anchorage given there. I have taken a range of photos from past concerts and music/record shops in the area to accompany articles and content plugs. For the 'Feminism in Music' article, I will take a picture with my female model surrounded by vinyl covers of other female artists like Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo and Adele. This anchors the topic of the article with other popular, well-known female artists and Apollo.
For the video on the website, I will also use my phone to record the video of Emily speaking in the style of an interview. I will use alternating shots of me (the interviewer) asking the questions and Emily answetring said questions. Finally, I will superimpose name tags and the website and unique code onto the video in the editing stage.
Thursday, August 22, 2024
Planning Task 7: Website Homepage and Linked Page
The header for my homepage will be one of the first thing the visitor to the website will see so the font of the masthead will be in the same font that is on the magazine's front cover. This creates consistency and familiarity throughout my music magazine branding. The positioning of the masthead in the middle of header, in larger font, makes it very visible and makes it clear to the visitor what magazine website they are on. The simplicity of the header allows it to be navigable to visitors which would increase their enjoyment on the website because they aren't being confused or frustrated into not finding what they want to see.
Emily: Hi, my name is Emily Campbell and I am a singer/songwriter from London.
Interviewer: Hi Emily, so where are we today for this interview?
E: We are in my childhood bedroom right now, this is where I wrote most of my early songs and where I first fell in love with music.
I: And how did you fall in love with music and decide that this is what you want to pursue?
E: Well, I was in primary school when I heard about guitar lessons being offered to us from an external company. That night, I went home and begged my parents to let me try and pay for the lessons. I really liked my teacher and I picked up the basics of guitar pretty quickly and I just got better and better on the guitar, then in secondary school I learnt how to play the piano for music GCSE. That’s why my songs have a mixture of both guitar and piano in them.
I: So that explains the initial attraction to playing instruments, but how did you discover you could sing?
E: I used to sing along to songs in the car and on the radio and my parents always said I had a good voice but I never believed them. Then I watched some Youtube videos of people playing instruments and singing at the same time so I gave it a try, recorded myself, watched it back and thought to myself, ‘maybe my voice isn’t so bad after all’. I just kept practising after that and then my songs started getting noticed and it’s been a whirlwind ever since.
I: For those watching that don’t know, how did you get noticed for your music?
E: Easy, Tiktok. I just posted a video one day of me singing my original song and it blew up. Next thing I know is that I have agents calling me left, right and centre and all my songs on Spotify have hundreds of thousands of streams. I think it was purely luck on my part that my video was the one that went viral over thousands of other artists.
I: So you signed for a label and agent… What's next?
E: I am so excited to announce that I will be going on tour in the UK and in Europe over the summer. Tour dates and venues will be announced tomorrow.
I: Sounds wonderful! How do you feel about that? Must be such a whirlwind of emotions.
E: Oh yes, I am really looking forward to travelling and meeting all the people who love my music as much as me but sometimes I wake up and I still can’t believe that this is my life now.
I: And finally, how can people find out the important information on the concerts and where to buy tickets?
E: All the information will be on my website emilycampbell.com/2025tours and the tickets will be available on Ticketmaster. But if people go to my website and enter the unique code EMILY2025 then they are automatically entered into a competition for two free tickets and a chance to meet me at any show that they want.
I: Amazing, what a great idea. Emily, thank you for your time and letting us into your home and good luck on your tour next summer.
Wednesday, July 31, 2024
Planning Task 6: Contents Page
To come up with the topics to include on my contents pages, I brainstormed ideas and words which turned into sentences that I reworded multiple times to make the best sounding version.
By looking at already existing contents pages of magazines, I determined that my pages should have around 8 different topics on them to follow the generic conventions of a magazine contents page. Across my two magazine editions, I will need 16 topics so to create variety in my magazine that ensures that the reader isn't bored.- Lana Del Rey / On her upcoming 24/25 tour
- Naseer Aziz / From back-up singer to front and centre
- Daisy Wilson / It's just the start for this Bristol-based singer
- Turning Old into New / How to recycle and upcycle your old CDs
- Summer Music Previews / A look into pop's future this summer
- Gigs Galore / Most student-friendly gigs this summer!
- Solve! / Find the starred artist in our crossword to win 2 tickets to Reading and Leeds Festival
- Change / Evolution of Pop Music
- Sam Fender / On his brand new collab with Noah Kahan
- Elise Benoît / How she is turning her tour net-zero
- Tom Walters / Talking about the inspiration of his new album
- Madness behind the beauty / Emily's music journey to writing her next song
- Resurgence / How oldies like Kate Bush became top of the charts through TV
- Top 5 Festival Must-Haves this year
- Solve! / Find the starred artist in our crossword to win 2 tickets to Reading and Leeds Festival
- Give it a go / How to the next big hit
- Have your say / Reader reviews of the latest music
Monday, July 22, 2024
Planning Task 5: Mock Up of Cover 1 and 2
Production Task Two: Log of Contents Pages
The first image of the log is of the first check in for my contents page for cover 1. It shows the plain white background, the masthead and ...
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INSTRUCTIONS I have been given a set brief for my NEA. My NEA must not reproduce an existing media product. I must work individually on my...
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The header for my homepage will be one of the first thing the visitor to the website will see so the font of the masthead will be in the sam...