LO3 (P4:U3, M3:U3) - Create Production Material

LO3 (U3) - Be able to create production materials for an original media product to a client brief

Photoshop template of front cover

Photoshop template of double page spread

Codes and conventions

1) The genre rock is renowned to be dark, heavy and quite intimidating. In nearly all the magazines I have seen, such as 'Classic Rock', the magazine has a black theme running through it. For my magazine, I have decided to stick with the social conventions of a darker theme, which is why my background is a dark black brick wall. However I have added a red effect into the magazine to make the colour stand out.

2) Instruments are presented in many rock genre magazines, as they are of massive importance. Rock genres main instruments are guitar, bass and drums. This is a theme that is placed in many rock magazines. Therefore, I have kept with the codes and conventions of these magazines by giving my rock artist a guitar to be held while the photo is being taken. In fact, it is the centre of the image as he is holding it up like it is something very special, which it is to the genre rock. In addition to holding it up, I have ,Ade are it stands out even more by keeping it at its bright red colour which is complimented by the dark background. This means it is the centre of attention, as it is a key value to rock.

3) A key convention and aspect of rock magazines are the serious look of the model. In my magazine, the model had put on a serious face too, as this makes it seem more heavy and intimidating, which is what rock magazines usually look like. This means I have followed the codes of a rock magazine with the model used. The model I used is a real upcoming rock artist in a band that performs in North London music venues, which makes it easier as he knows how to pose and the gestures/stances a conventional rock magazine model uses.

4) Another main code and convention of a rock magazine is the extremely bold font used as a masthead and sometimes on headings too. My magazine has this through the font of 'Primetime' as the title on the word 'SOLO'. This makes my magazine stand out and look important. Nearly all rock magazines have this because it is very bold, loud and powerful, which is exactly what this genre of music is like musically. By following this it makes my magazine seem very authoritative and stand out just as much as the other rock magazines who also follow this code.
In addition to this, I have contrasted this bold masthead and bold headings with a scrappy hand writing looking font for the name of the rock artist on the front cover. This is also a regular convention for a rock magazine, as it adds personality to the artist, and acts as the rhythms of the guitar. It also reinforces the masthead 'SOLO', as solos are usually quite quick and sometimes messy, which is what this font emphasises.

How I took the photographs

I was able to report on a real rock artist for my magazine front cover and double page spread. This includes taking photographs of him and interviewing him.

For the photographs, I took them in my own house, when the artist came round. This was done on a white background to make sure it would be easy to put a different background behind him. I have limited time with my artist, as he has a very busy schedule, meaning I had to be quick and efficient when taking photos of him. This is why I wasn't able to take him to a specific location with a background.

I was also able to interview my artist, Luke Sutcliffe with a few questions, which was used as my written body copy for the magazine. I have included this information in a double page spread, where customers to the magazine will be able to find out more about him and what he does.

With these photos and relevant information, I was able to set up my software template on Photoshop. There I could use editing tools and graphic design elements to make my front cover and double page spread interesting. I was able to edit the photos of Luke (the artist), and place a background behind him to make him stand out in the front cover. Photoshop was also used to formulate all the titles and subheadings, along with other features a magazine needs such as a barcode and the issue number.

These are two of the photos taken, which prove that I myself took photographs of the rock artist in front of the white wall.
The equipment that I had was a Canon camera for myself to use for the taking of the photos of the rock artist. I also used a guitar which was placed around the guitarist as a prop to add a more real feel to the magazine. A lead and amp were used, however the final submission of the photograph did not include the amplifier, as it was not suitable or look clean enough.









Body copy for double page spread in magazine:

Q+A with Luke Sutcliffe

Luke Sutcliffe is an upcoming rock artist that has strived to get to the top all of his life. From a young age he started, and has been on a long journey with various bands to achieve his goals, in being a successful rock artist. He has always been located in North London, and in his words, “forever will be” too. Here is what happened when we interviewed the rock star face to face: 

1) What inspired you to be a rock artist?

When I was younger my dad used to play me songs in the car on the way to school and it captured me instantly. The guitar sounds made me interested to see how these guitarists were playing it. I started learning at a young age of around 10 years old and haven't looked back since. I started a band in middle school which allowed me to develop my guitar and song writing skills. This set my up perfectly for university, in which I studied a music course. At university, I was asked by someone from Holland to go over and record rock music with them as they needed a guitarist. This is where rock music played a big part of my future, as I formed a connection with it in the Netherlands. I spent 3 months over there every year at university and became part of a band. After I had finished university, I formed my own band which I am still part of to this day, producing rock music, releasing our own songs and playing them in concert globally. 

2) Who writes your music? Are they written separately or together with the lyrics?

I am part of a band called ‘The Grace Notes’, and the drummer and I write the music together. We have always done this since the start, as our music became fairly successful. For around 15 years now we have both agreed on our music and are happy to write it together. The music is written first, as we mess around with different chord sequences and keys, finding out what sounds best. This helps us develop our choruses and verses, and then after we have written all the music, the drummer (Gaz) writes lyrics to accompany them. As he sings, he understand whats appropriate and what will sound best along side the music we have agreed on. This is the way all our songs are produced.

4) There are many rock artists around, did you ever want to give up because you didn't think you could make it?

There were points which made it difficult to carry on, because at first the band couldn't get off the ground. This meant we weren't making money and the songs weren't getting anywhere. I was past university at this stage, and needs to make money to sustain a living for myself, so it was more practical to go into a real job. I started teaching guitar to students which helped, but just furthered myself from the band too. After a while, we saw more and more people interested in our songs, and we were invited to Denmark to do a tour which helped us get out of this difficult situation. Apart from that, I have always loved guitar and being in a band, and never really had or have any intentions to stop. 

5) Where do you intent to be in the next few years?

The band is growing now, and becoming more and more popular. Making it onto magazines, and playing in many concerts across North London has allowed us to receive recognition. I hope that we will keep growing and releasing new singles and albums that our fans enjoy. In a few years I wish to see us keep performing which is what matters most to me, but if possible go to bigger locations for bigger audiences to show people what we are capable of.