I found that most pop magazines had a larger colour palette than all the other genres. This is because of the target audience being 6-13 year olds, mainly females, who would be attracted by the bright colours and it would stand out on the shelf to them. The main model is a medium close up shot so we can see the happy expression on the face, she has direct address with the camera. Costume is mainly white and a trendy dress. This is to attract the audience in because fashion is important to the readers. The model would also help attract the audience as she is very famous and young girls are interested in her. The lighting is strong from at least two angles to help make the face look young. These conventions are very common in the pop genre.
With the indie magazines they tend to all stick to the same simple Indie conventions with very little writing on the front and a plain background. This image to font ratio is done because the target audience, 15-25 year olds, are very image conscious and like everything to look simplistic, the magazine becomes a fashion accessory. Having this beautiful and simplistic magazine cover would help attract the target audience. This sort of magazine is left out on tables so other people know you are stylish and trendy. The image is then normally very unusual and staged and most of the time the model looks like they don't care or are pulling a face. I think these conventions are used to show that the Indie types are rebelling and are independent from all other magazines. The colour palette is very two tone with a simple grey background. The contrast is strong and eye catching. The close up shot of the model is artistic and make up is used heavily to make it feel trendy. This is a common convention in the Indie genre. The composition is balanced even though the model is at an angle and she has direct address with the camera. The masthead is white and subtle, this also adds to the style.
This Indie magazine is much like the other in the way that it's very simplistic and has a strong medium close up shot of a strong women. But it differs as well. The colour palette has strong colours, red, white, black and blue. These are all high contrasting colours and make the magazine seem hostile and aggressive. The type font face of the masthead is recognisable and has changed since the beginning of the magazine, which started off as a newspaper. This colour scheme and font mix is an excellent form of branding. This would attract the target audience of 15 to 30 years of both gender. Although the image is a strong expressive pose the image to font ratio is a lot more even, the magazine has not contrasted the font very much to make sure the image is not lost. The target audience is attracted in other ways, for example the model has a low cut top, fashionable clothes and a cigarette in her mouth. This shows that the target audience isn't young like pop as they would not be interested in smoking or alternative fashion but more teens to young adults. This photo is staged to be anti-social and have an alternative message. One of the articles has a swear word in it but it is censored for the front cover. This could be a risk but is well worth the risk. I will create the same sort of vibe on my cover.
The rock magazine has a high contrasting colour palette using a dark colour for the background and the bright colours like yellow and red for the cover lines. This extreme contrast represents the rock genre to the magazine. The main image is very staged, medium close up of a rock band making direct address with camera helps create a moody mise-en scene. The costumes are black leather jackets which fits in to the conventions of this genre. All these aspects help attract the target audience of 16 to 30 year olds of both genders. Unlike the indie and pop magazines I looked at, the masthead doesn't seem to to be a main part of the cover and part of it is covered by the main image. But it is part of branding because of the recognisable font type face.
Target audience and genre: My target audience will be from 16 to 30 year olds and both genders. I wanted it to be this because going to concerts and festivals is a part of the genre and my magazine. The genre of magazine I have chosen is Indie, I have done this because I will have more opportunity to be outrageous in make up and costume as well as vibe.
Location: I wanted to have a basic background for my front cover so the location was very plain.
The model: I picked a model that has long hair so that I could make him look masculine as well as feminine.
Costume: I planned the model's outfit and make up so that it would stand out and also appeal to all of my target audience, like having a boy in a dress represents gender equality which means it will appeal to both boys and girls.
Camera shots: I wanted to use either close up or medium close up because I wanted to focus on the expression on his face.
Position: I wanted him to have quite a masculine pose while dressed in female clothes, this also represent gender equality and shows men can dress the same as women and women can do the same as men. Although having make up on him may be a risk and wouldn't suit a pop magazine who has a younger target audience, I thought my target audience would respond to it well as they like things to be over the top and different to something you'd expect to see in every day life. The make up also represents the type of extreme make up festival fans use.
I did three photo shots for my front cover, each time going back assessing the outcome and seeking and responding to feedback from other students.
Here are a few photos from my shoot that I didn't end up using that show this:
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