Photoshop: Positive & Negatives - Individual Post Task 1

Photoshop: Positive & Negatives - Individual Post Task 1

As I am using Photoshop and it's capabilities to edit photo's, there is always the question of 'What are the positives and negatives of a program like Photoshop?'. In this blog post, I will be going through the pro's and con's of the program of Adobe Photoshop, and understanding how effective and not effective it is for creating a magazine. Since I am a proficient user within the program, so I am aware of what is good and what is bad about the program, so I will go through these when explaining about the positives and negatives. Here is the picture displaying some of the positives and negatives I have chosen about Photoshop. 

College Magazine Front Cover Assignment - Task 15

College Magazine Front Cover Assignment - Task 15

'Heenan Record' Magazine mock up

As part of our development towards creating a music magazine, our assignment given to us within our media class was to create a college magazine front cover. I decided to focus on creating a magazine front cover for our school: Cardinal Heenan and it's Sixth form. This gave me an insight of how a magazine is developed and created, as I have not created a magazine before, so it was good for the experience toward creating our own magazine when we can.
To create the magazine, I used Photoshop to help structure the magazine and layout. From learning and understanding the terminolgy and features used within magazines, I wanted to try and implement that into the front cover. I am happy how this mock up came out, but I hope to carry on the knowledge I know into the next.

The house style for the magazine was fairly simple in how it layed out, but used fairly bold type to make it stand out a lot more, and also use the school's colours too which being red, white and yellow. I wanted to link all this together so it appeals to both the younger audience being the pupils of the school and to the staff members and also the parents of the pupils who attend the school.
I also included a banner at the top of the front cover to also help promote the features of what will be in the magazine, also using the school's theme colours to link to the house style.
For the masthead, I made sure it was bold enough so it is noticable to the viewer, and also including the school's slogan 'Respect. Believe. Achieve.' The headline also covers a section of the magazine, followed by the anchorage text beneath it to show that this will be the most important aspect of the magazine, but both are standing out against the main image, which covers all of the magazine's front.
Considering christmas is around the corner, I decided to include a pug dedicated to christmas, also showing the festive and fun side to the school. I decided to make the graphic red as it clears stands out from the background, and extremely noticable. I also used a different font to link into the topic the school is promoting.

Susan Boyle and 50 Cent Photoshop Task - Task 14

Susan Boyle and 50 Cent Photoshop Task - Task 14

A task set out from our media class, we where asked to create something using 50 cent and Susan Boyle, and merge them into one. I did kind of took this a step further by merging the face of Susan Boyle onto 50 Cent. I have used Photoshop before, so I understood in what I could achieve and want within this task set out. I produced a separate picture of 'Susan Cent' and or '50 Boyle' with an album cover also. 

50 Boyle's 'Before I Dream a Dream (Mash up of SB's 'I Dream a Dream' and 50's 'Before I Self Destruct' album covers. 

This took at least 5 - 10 minutes with each piece, as I do know my way around the tools and features used within Photoshop. From doing this, I will now analyse the positives and negatives of the collaboration of these two artists. 

Positives! +

• The positives of this show's the two artists collaborating, in this case both being merged together to create one character. 

• Experimenting with the blending modes and options used within Photoshop to effect of creating an album cover for the collaboration. 

• Understanding of how to manipulate images and creating something entirely different, and in this case, out the ordinary. 

• Also gives me a better understanding within if I uses two images in my magazine to merge it into one. 

Negatives! -

• The negatives would be that you would never see artists like this collaborate, and would give off a negative impact to the viewers and also the artists if they where actually going to collaborate, with it being quite peculiar in it's self, with both musical artists belonging to different genre's.  

• Highly unlikely that they would collaborate. 

• Would also result in a loss of fans, loosing faith within both of the artists, and would possibly put them in decline with future releases, etc. giving them a bad reputation, and putting a bad mark on the genre's they are associated with. 

Photoshop Introduction - Task 13

Photoshop Introduction - Task 13

As part of our development and creation of our music magazine, we must be able to immerse ourselves with the software which is used to create magazines, and how they are structured. One of the most known and well established pieces of software for the creation of magazines is Adobe Photoshop. Adobe Photoshop is an photo/graphics editing software, which is primarily used for the creation of magazines, posters, forms of digital art, graphic design, etc.

Photoshop is used by various amounts of designers and digital based artists for the aesthetic and conventional aspect. Photoshop is really easy to understand and comprehend, and having a good workflow within Photoshop can help with better creations of a magazine and in other forms, better compositions, artworks, etc.

I am a proficient user with Photoshop as I have had experience of using the program before, and have a vast but ever learning knowledge of the software. I will need to use the techniques and the tools within Photoshop to create the structure and basis of my magazine, especially toward creating the front cover, double page spread and contents of my magazine. It is essentially to understand the tools and features to help create the features of the magazine, so we know how to put our thought processes within our own magazine. I will create a blog entry which will include a video narration of my self talking about the basic tools used within the program and why and how they are used.

Here is a video I created last year on YouTube of a creation of a photo montage / manipulation. A lot has changed since though with my own work, but hopefully it gives a sense of perspective of how the tools of Photoshop are used and combined to create pieces of art work. Enjoy!

Music Magazine Comparisons & Differences - Task 12

Music Magazine Comparisons & Differences - Task 12

From analysing the magazines I had done, it has given me a better understanding of the terminology and features used within a magazine, for a magazine company to appeal to their selected demographic and target audience. From the previous tasks also, it has given me an idea of how to use the features properly when I come around to create my own magazine and then implement these features within my magazine to link into to what I want to connect to, and how I want my magazine to be portrayed as. So the task set out in this is two analyse both of the magazines I had previously analysed but looking at the similarities and differences, and see how both of them use the techniques they use to appeal to their selected target audience. 

To look at the previous tasks I had created on my blog which I analyse two different magazines of different genres, please follow the links:

'ATM(OSPHERE) Magazine '& 'Alternative Press Magazine'


Comparisons

• Both have bold mastheads which stand out from the magazine so it makes the magazine easily noticeable to the viewer. Both cover the top parts of the magazine. 

• Both magazines have puff's on their front covers, which help show what contents the magazine will have featured. This is a way to appeal more so to the target audience to the genre's chosen. 

• Both of the magazines have a main image which covers the whole magazine front cover. This is a message to the audience that the main people focused on the front cover as the main image will be the main talk and topic of what will be going on in the magazine.

• Both of the magazines have anchorage text to support the main image on the front, but also linking to what the main image will be basing of also, which will appeal to the fans of each genre individually. 

• Both magazines have a headline, which also link to support the main image of the front, but more specifically primarily to the main image. Show's the target audience who the people on the main image are, and that again they are the primary focus point of the magazine.

• Both magazines don't have any slogans placed on the magazine front cover.

Now for the...

Differences

• ATM Magazine provides a cover mount which is a free mix CD, where as AP Magazine does not provide a cover mount on it's front cover. 

• AP Magazine features a banner on it's magazine also promoting the other features within the magazine on top of the magazine, where as ATM Magazine does not feature or show a banner on it's magazine front cover. 

• ATM magazine whilst providing a cover mount, it is also linked with a sell line which is 'Free mix CD Every Issue' where as AP magazine does not have a sell line. 

• AP Magazine also uses buzz words within the magazine front cover, which the buzz words used are 'exclusive'. ATM magazine doesn't have a buzz word used on front of the magazine. 

• The house styles of the magazines are also very different, with the colour scheme of ATM magazine is primarily white, blue, turquoise and black, where as AP magazine uses red, yellow, white, and blue. This also show's that the house style of ATM magazine is much more simplified and balanced, but with urbanised colouring with it linking to the genre of Drum & bass, breakbeat, etc. and AP is more upbeat but 'in your face' with it being a rock / metalcore magazine especially in both magazines using different font styles also to relate to the genre of music they are associated with. 

Music Magazine Analysis #2 - Task 11

Music Magazine Analysis #2 - Task 11

To further my understanding of magazines and what features they used, the task set out as to analyse a music magazine which is a different to the genre of magazine of what i'll be creating. By this, i'll be able to notice the differences and similarities used in the magazines, and see what makes them popular in their own genre, and also what makes them stand out to the target audience they apply to. 

I chose to analyse the magazine 'Alternative Press' or simply 'AP'. Instead of creating a prezi or a powerpoint, I wanted to create my presentation in photoshop. I feel it's a different approach and a different way to get and display my research as creatively and differently as I can. I can be as creative as I want into photoshop, so I wanted to create a presentation which links into the magazine it's self, by using the similar fonts and colour scheme to help keep the flow and style of the magazine, but making that impact on the presentation. To see the text, click on the image for a full scale zoom. 

Cardinal Bulletin Analysis - Task 10

Cardinal Bulletin Analysis - Task 10

The task set out was to analyse Cardinal Heenan's termly newsletter 'The Cardinal bulletin'. From this analysis, I want to see what works within the newsletter for e.g. What qualities it has to attract its selected target audience, and vice versa (what it doesn't do to attract). From this analysis, it will give me a broad knowledge of what to include and not to include in the creation of my music magazine.

The Analysis

From analysing the front of the school's newsletter, the pro's of the front cover is that it is presented in a formal way in which the target audience of the newsletter overall is for the adults, specifically the student's parents, and also teachers and staff if so. The house style of the magazine itself is in a formal presentation, also with the use of the colours as white is a very formalised, with white being very simplistic. Also, the green denotes calmness and is generally a vibrant colour to use, and easy on the eye to the audience. Also the use of the black text/font makes it easy for the target audience to read as it stands out and doesn't clash with the colour scheme. 

The structure and the layout of the magazine is very simple and easy to the eye, which makes it very balanced and easy to understand for the target audience. It jumps straight in to the main article, which covers up most of the newsletter itself, making it go straight to the point and so the reader can be aware of what the article is about. The headline 'THANK YOU' is used in a bold font. This sum's up the article which goes into detail about the fundraising which took place in the school, with the successful donations made to help a fellow staff member and the staff members family. Linking in to the colour and to the headline text of the article, it show's that this is a feel good newsletter with the accomplishments which have been made, and a lot of positivity has come out of what is being explained in the article. This as explained, denotes a feel good attitude in the newsletter, making the audience and reader become at ease, and understand the endeavours and help the school has offered to help a staff member and the staff members family. The image and headline also with the article link in also. 

To another part of the newsletter, their is an article which has a part for the head teacher. We are introduced by this with the mini headline of 'Heads message'. This states and shows the audience that the head teacher of the school is very active in terms of being apart of the school, and has a positive role towards the school and the new's coming out of it. Not many head teachers have a lot to say when apart of school, although contributing to the school a lot, it show's that the head teacher of Cardinal Heenan tries to be apart of the school as much as possible, which show's a lot of leadership and good management of the school. Also through the personal article of the head teacher, there are mini parts of the article which discuss about different things which happen through out the school, which the head teacher wants to make the audience aware of. This show's that the head teacher is concerned with the school's on going activities and education, which show's a lot of commitment to the management of the school. 

What could of been improved? 

From analysing the newsletter, I feel like that the newsletter itself has a lot of text, and covers a lot of the article itself. I also feel that the newsletter could make more of its space by including different sub sections and mini articles on the front, instead of two main articles as I think this will cover a spectrum of other news in the school's going's on, and get straight to the point of it all. I also feel that the design of the newsletter is bland, and doesn't look appealing, as it looks fairly dated and un-modern. I'd consider to change how the design looks, and so it looks more modern and not dated.