Time Management Update

Since my last time management post I feel that I have come on quite a long way. I have completed my first draft of my cover and started work on my second and third pages. This quick working has moved me more on target for completing my products by mid December to being analysis of my work compared to existing products and ready to begin evaluating in January. 

Today's Lesson

Today I intended to start some of the other pages that go with my main product and I achieved this. I have also included an image of the completed front cover which I have submitted to my tutor for feedback. The two pages which I started will need work at home as I need to take pictures for my products for my beauty page, the other page was started just before the lesson ended and so I didn't get a change to get much of that done.

Tasks for today

I have completed my front cover outside of class so I will move onto the second page of my magazine today and possibly the third page if I complete the second today but i won't want to rush the second page as this is probably the most intricate page. 

Work So Far

I have so far finished half of my front cover, it'd been finished prior to this but I decided to change the picture I used as the one I used previously was only of the models face and most lifestyle magazines use most of the models body. 

Existing Regional Magazines and Competition

I have created a Go Animate video to present my competition findings unfortunately due to some sort of bug I was unable to embed it in my blog without it saying that the video was unavailable and so I have just had to link it in. 

Time Management Update

Currently I am a bit behind on my time management as I have not yet started any of my products but I have been focusing on the finer points of my work, for example I have been getting the photos for my potential products for my second page which has taken quite a while. However, I do hope to be starting my main product (a regional fashion magazine) within the next week or so. 

Images For My Second Page

Here are some of the pictures I am considering using on my second page which will act as an editors pick for beauty products. Seasonal trends include dark lips and neutral eyes along with a 'bare' face and deep contouring so I've put in products that would allow this look to be created, a lot of which were used on my model during the photo shoot. As well as putting in makeup I've also added in fragrances that I associate with winter along with some skin care and bath products that are seasonally appropriate Soap&Glory's Righteous Butter is a personal favorite over winter as it's deeply moisturizing and the bath products are specifically made by their brands (Philosophy and Lush) for the christmas period.
The products I have included are higher end drug store and mid-range products. All of the products are affordable but as individual products may be seen as relatively expensive. My target audience, I know, owns several of these products, shops at the stores or has other products by the brands featured. That said many people in my target audience that I have interacted with aren't that bothered by beauty but are keen to keep up with trends and often prioritise where they spend money with makeup and beauty products (for example, when talking to one of my audience members she said she has no problem spending more on facial products if they work well but wouldn't spend much on the likes of mascara as she goes through it so much and sees no real difference in products). 

Possible Images

Although I refined down the images on my flickr from what I had originally taken I was still left with 45 images to choose from, which would be too many to be able to use all of them in my main product. Here I have refined down the possible pictures for my main product further.  

Untitled Presentation from Eve Lopez

Products For My Second Page

My second page for my main product (a regional fashion magazine) will be dedicated to top seasonal beauty products, like an editors pick. I will take pictures of products I (or my model) own and think are seasonally appropriate. 

Visual Record of Research and Planning work

As I was working through my research and planning I took screen captures of the work I was doing so as I could keep a visual log of the work I was doing. Here are some of those screen captures, showing my work from getting the information for my artist post to my deconstructions. I have since done quite a bit of work that I have not logged me doing for this diary.Much of the work I have not logged though has been in preparation for my final products (so the planning stage) and much of the work has been done physically and so a visual log would have been harder to do.

Flat Plans - Website

Rationale

The colours on my website will be white (as the background) with seasonal colours that have been reflected on my magazine and billboard, this will keep up continuity. The font will also be the same as what I have used on my magazine and billboard, again maintaining continuity through all of my products. The lighting and colour on images on the website will be the same as they are on all other products as they will have been taken at the same time - high-key, natural lighting and I will likely keep them their original colours.
By keeping the website simple I will attract my target audience, or appeal to them more through having used 'classic' layouts and colours. 

Flat Plans - Billboard

Rationale

I am currently unsure what image I will use for my billboard at the moment but I am leaning towards using a mid shot picture of my model, with foliage to the left of her, this will resemble the Wildfox "take me to paradise" billboard. This sort of image would appeal to my target audience as they would very probably be aware of the previous campaign by Wildfox. However, another possible image would be my model on horseback but I think this may look a bit too 'country' and distract from the fact that it is a fashion magazine.
I will keep the colours the same as the real image, so add no filters or make any adjustments to the colours at all, this will give a more realistic look and hopefully make the image more relatable to my target audience; I think that if I adjusted the colour too much it would make the image too fantastical and so become unrelatable for my audiences. For the same reason the lighting I use for this image will be high-key, natural lighting. 

The font used on my billboard will be the same as that used on my magazine so as to be identifiable as for the same product without having to actually have read what is written. The colour scheme for my magazine will also be bought across to reflect the season. 

The clothing my model will be wearing in this image will be the same as those that are present in my magazine as the pictures will be taken at the same time. The clothing she will be wearing will likely be high street clothing and so my target audience will be able to see what she is wearing and relate to the image, especially if they own items of clothing that my model is wearing which is entirely possible.
My model's hair and makeup will be done relatively neutrally - with the makeup being slightly more dramatic than would normally be worn day to day for a stand-out effect. By keeping the hair and makeup relatively uncomplicated this will also make the product relatable to my target audience.

As with my magazine my model's facial expression and body language will be relatively neutral so as to not exclude any potential audience members, especially my primary female target audience.

As this is a billboard its purpose is to promote my product in locations where there is only a limited amount of time to do so (for example, on a motorway or on the side of a bus). Due to it only having a short period of time to make an impact the settings and props should make the image stand out, so they shouldn't make the image too 'busy' but they should also aim to generate a certain amount of interest in the billboard so as the public pay attention to the product being advertised. My billboard will either be empty of props and just have the countryside as the setting which will be enough to be interesting to the audience, or there will be a horse present which may grab more peoples attention as it's not something many people see every day.

Flat Plans - Magazine

Here I have produced a more up to date version of how I am planning on doing my magazine pages. In my original flat plans I had intended to do a road mapped with clothes at various points but I have now decided to do more of a focus on your typical fashion magazine style layout. Although my original style was quite fun and my target audience is quite young I thought it best to keep to quite a classic look as it is easier to read and I think it will actually appeal to them more rather than being just a novelty page.

Rationale

The type of shot I'm planning on using for my front cover will be a full body/three-quarter body shot of my model taken from the front or slightly to the side, this is because most fashion magazines tend to use this set up as it allows you to see a majority of an outfit which would pull the audience in more as they can see the sorts of clothes that are going to be featured inside without having to even open it.
As with most of my images the front cover picture will likely be taken outside so the lighting used will be high key, natural lighting. I think for the colours I will black and white the background of the image while leaving the model in colour, this is because while taking the pictures outside will create a beautiful backdrop, it could also make the image appear quite 'busy' and so by muting this by filtering it black and white the focus will remain on my model. This more subtle imagery will also likely appeal to my target audience more as they will likely be more attracted to more simplistic and elegant designs.

I have, in previous posts, explored fonts and colour. I am planning on using two or three of my top 5 selected fonts for the entirety of my magazine, possibly with one neutral font put in in the 'article' and 'trend' sections on my third and fourth page as that would be easiest to read and most like what would be present in a real publication. 

The colours I am planning on using have also been shown in a previous post but I am thinking of only displaying two or three of these colours on my front cover, again to reduce an appearance of 'business' as this, if it were a real product, may put off my target audience.

The costume, hair and makeup that will be on my model will be the same as it will be on the images inside of the magazine, as it would be on many other magazines that are already available. It allows my audience to see what the theme of this month's magazine is without having to open it and will encourage or deter people from buying it depending on their interests. The facial expressions and body language she will display will hopefully be quite neutral and so this will not directly appeal to men but not put them off buying it if they so wish, and it will not isolate women from purchasing the product, again increasing the likelihood it will appeal to my target audiences.
There will be no real 'props' in my work other than my model's horse, who will be bareback for some if not all of the photos, we may also use other locations around her village if we see fit and so the settings and props will all be very realistic. Again, this will appeal to my target audience as they will be able to identify with the lifestyle if not the specific area.

Justification of Ideas

Reader Profile

My Photos

I have used flickr to present a majority of the photos I took for my media work, there are a selection so I have a range of shots and scenes to choose from when producing my final works but it is unlikely that I will use most of them. I already have several favorites I want to use in my work and I will see how I can incorporate them into my tasks.

Location Scout

I chose to take many of my pictures in Ridlington which is in the county of Rutland in central England. Although I live in the North East I have chosen to take my pictures here and aim my regional magazine at the young females who live in Rutland and the surrounding area as I grew up here and know the target audience here on a more personal level. 

Due to my magazine being a regional magazine I thought it would be best to take the images within the region I am targeting - the East Midlands, this means that my product then has a relatable edge to it and my target audience can identify more easily with my product as they may know the area or, in fact, live there. That said, the East Midlands is a relatively big area and so it would be unrealistic to think that everyone would know where Ridlington is, however, much of the countryside within the Midlands does look quite similar and follows a lot of the same formats so it would still be somewhat relatable.
I have also chosen to take pictures in my model's bedroom - this will be deeply relatable for my primary target audience as my model is a female in her late teens from the Midlands. The genre I am aiming for is slightly more sophisticated than some current magazines available and I think that that is because of the area I am targeting, but both locations I have chosen should reflect that well and appeal to my target audiences.

The mise en scene of the setting will not be very carefully thought out as I want the images to have a 'natural' look so as they are more relatable. However, I will look for there to be no cars visible in any of my shots and there to be bright, high-key, natural lighting in all of my images.