Mock Ups - Double Page Spread Contents Page and Front cover

Double Page Spread: This Mock up page was created on IN design. The focal point of the double page is a photograph of the band holding a guitar. I edited this picture on Photoshop. Originally the picture was taken on a sofa in front of a white background but I experimented with a darker background to draw attention to the band.  I thought, however, that the background would be too dark and lack an element of interest if it was black so I made it a dark navy blue which compliments the picture nicely. It was difficult to remove the background on Photoshop because the picture looked to sharp against the background, so I blurred the edge of the photograph to be more subtle and more pleasing to the eye, overall creating a more professional look. I added an additional three photographs to the edge of the double page spread to show more shot from the bands photoshoot, however I'm not too keen on that feature because it doesn’t coincide with the article and main picture nicely. I tried to fade them to make them tie in with the background more but it lacks a professional touch.  The font used for the title is called ‘Indie Summer’ which is not a generic font creating a unique edge to the magazine. I put the line through the title because it is different and the whole concept of ‘indie’ is to be independent and not mainstream- it’s about creating something new, captivating and inspiring. The body font is sophisticated but I feel as if it may be too sophisticated for the genre of music. 




Contents Page:  This contents page was created on Pages, this is because pages allows you to create layouts and also use templates. I think the red theme works well on this page as it compliments the images from our photoshoot and also was one of our the favoured colour chosen in my survey. I think the amount of images on this page is good because it isn't too crowded, it creates a good composition. A con of this contents page would be the amount of information on the page. This is because people would generally scan the contents page rather than in-depth reading. However I like the feature of the articles being split into sections. I like how the Masthead's typography is stylish and artistic, this fits the genre of our magazine. We used as font called Indie Summer as well as Arial as this was a popular font chosen in our survey. I like the idea of the page numbers being in bold because this draws attention to the references and benefits the audiences by making the magazine articles easy to find. The Background is off-grey which is a good feature because it compliments the large image. 


Front Cover: 

This draft of the front page was done on pages also. As a group, we agreed we liked the idea of one strong image as the front cover of one single individual rather than the whole band, this makes the overall look of the magazine minimalistic and artistic. We took inspiration from another magazine called indie, the aesthetic of that magazine was effective. This image was hard to work with, due to the background. We found trouble making sure the Masthead stood out from the background. Therefore our solution was to create a box around the text, we adjusted the box so that the opacity was slightly lower which allowed the image in the background to come through. I think the box works well overall as it compliments the colours of the models clothing and sunglasses. A con of the box could be that it may come across as unprofessional. To improve with this cover we will try to experiment with Mastheads and maybe add some coverlines. This could be another con to the front cover as it be seen as too simple.

Double-Page Spread: 
This double-page spread was created on Pages. I like the layout of this double-page spread as there is a variation of images and text of each page. There is a good composition for the article. I like how the main image is spread across the pages, rule of thirds is used. I also think a positive of the double page spread is the colour scheme, the dark red compliments one of the models shirts and the red sofa. Whereas the blue compliments the other models shirt and the other images placed around the main image. I think by having the article written in white also compliments the background and ties in with Masthead. The typography of the masthead is Indie Summer, whereas the article is written in Arial due to being a popular font chosen in our survey. A con of this double page could be that the fonts used are different. We will try to experiment with the fonts when redrafting. Another con of this double page could be the captions are too bold compared to the Indie Summer font.

Contents page: This contents page was created on Pages. I am conflicted as to whetherthe audience would be drawn to a contents page with such minimal colour. Our survey said that the audience would prefer bright, bold colours, however the Indiw rock genre frequently uses dark colours, especially in the bands artwork so i think the audience would make a quick association between the dark colours of the magazine and the genre. Having said that i think that there should be more colour on the page to 'bring it to life.' I think the layout is good, i like the fact that there are different sections for different articles but i think there may be too much information the contents page to what one would normally expect. I like the font called 'Indie summer'- it is artistic and stylish and would attract our target audience to the magazine.

Front Cover
I personally think that the closeup image of the band suits the magazine because they look young, trendy and appeal to our target audience. However, i think that as a front cover the image should be more intriguing and artistic with flair. I think the colours in this photograph contrast well together creating a more visually appealing look. I like the Mathead in the corner because it is simple yet contempory and trendy. The font used on the front cover would also appeal to those who listen to indie rock attracting an auideince suited to the genre. 






Front Cover 
This front cover is similar to the one pictured above, however the colours are lighter. I think that for a front page the colours should be more bold and striking, attracting a wider audience. The barcode is on the right hand side so does not obstruct any important features or props of the image. There are no cover lines on this front page which ultimately lacks proffesionalism but allows the audience to see the full image 
 without it being obstructed. 



                                                                   Contents Page

I think that the layout of thecontents page works really well- there is room for a lot of information but the page is not crowded with information, it is short and simplistic. I think the images however should show variation from different shoots allowing more diversity. I think that the use of capatalising important words and putting them into a different colour is a good idea because it grabs the auidences' attention and makes the magazine appear to be full of entertainment and information.