Meeting the Client Brief (U3: M4, D1)

Learning Outcome 4 (U3): Be able to carry out post-production techniques and processes for an original media product to a client brief (M4, D1)

I've exported these two final production pieces as JPEG's so that the client is able to view and open them. They can be printed as part of the hard copy and uploaded online which meets the client brief requirements. 

I have used the eraser tool in my front cover to get rid of all the unwanted and unneeded sections the image took of MB Amba. At the time I used the eraser tool I had already used the magnetic lasso tool so all I had left to do was to get rid of all the white sections and sections that didn’t get cut out previously. This was very difficult as the extra parts were extremely small so I had to zoom in a lot to get to them. It was important for me to get rid of these extra parts especially for a rap genre magazine as the surrounding parts had no link to rap so it would’ve looked completely out of place. Linking back to the brief, this shows vibrancy because it has the suitable clothing that somebody from the North London rap scene would wear as opposed to having some non-related objects around the side of MB Amba’s clothing. After removing the extra parts, I then replaced the background with more suiting colours of blue and purple, which are two vibrant colours and they are neon colours that are frequently used in contemporary rap. These two colours connote the vibrant music scene across North London more than white does as they are warmer colours and white is very plain and basic. 

In my front cover, I used the shape tool to create a puff which holds information about how to win tickets to a concert. The shape tool is very effective when creating a puff as it stands allows a piece of text to show out clearly in front of the other text boxes. Linking this back to the brief, it says that I need to create original content and by putting a shape in there for a puff it reinforces the fact that I am indeed creating my own original content. A puff is a key feature to any magazine as it is there to clearly make something stand out to its surroundings. I made the puff black in this case as the background colours are very vibrant, due to briefs requirements, so the white writing within would show out even more. As well as this, black and white are two colours which are often used to symbolise the urban rap scene in North London. Black and white are two contrasting colours which often connote the rap music scene. 

I used the magnetic lasso in my front cover to cut out the image of MB Amba so I could make it the size and shape I wanted it to be.
This tool is very effective as you have complete control over what you're cutting out and you can choose where you start and stop. The reason I decided to use this tool is so I only had her in the image and there was no background in it. I placed her on a more vibrant background so it would link back to the brief as originally it was a white background which doesn't have many connotations with the genre of rap. Although the background of the magazine isn't directly linked with rap, the clothing of the cut out of MB Amba strongly suggests that it is a rap magazine because the colours of purple and blue are more vibrant than just white. Using the colour white has connotations with innocence which wouldn't fit with the rap genre as this genre is seen to be intimidating. 

I have used the smoother tool to make the skin of MB Amba a little bit smoother. Although this isn't necessarily needed, to have better looking skin is more aesthetically pleasing than to have a few spots. The smooth tool removes any small marks or spots on the skin and can make it blend into better skin. By smoothing things out and by the skin being a bit clearer, it makes the whole front cover more visually attractive which would make it more likely for people to pick up and read the magazine. As well as this, the smoothness of the skin makes the whole magazine look more vibrant as it fits in better than somebody with more spotty skin. This is because people viewing the magazine would expect the models to be perfect looking and with the smoother tool, there is more of a chance of this happening. The smoother tool has to be used because of modern expectations for people to have perfect skin and the perfect body. 

I used the opacity tool to change the transparency of the overlay for the body copy at the bottom of the page for my double page spread. I did this so that you could say what was below the frame of the overlay and you could also see the writing very clearly. The opacity tool changes the transparency of a selected object which means things can been seen through it with a lower transparency. This is very useful in my double page spread as it gives the readers a chance to look through the overlay and see the greenery of North London as well as the sky. This links back to the brief as it gives people the opportunity to recognise the part of London that they are looking at and this would be more of a reason for them to read and buy the magazine. The opacity of an object can make things more or less of a subject of an image, and in this case lowering the opacity makes the overlay less known and takes the centre of attention away from it. Having a lower opacity could connote that you should focus on the writing and the image behind the overlay whereas if there was no transparency, it would seem as if people should only focus on the writing and not take much notice of the background.

I have used the coloured text tool in my double page spread to change the colours of my questions and answers for my Q&A. By changing the colours of my text, it can make it easier for the readers to differentiate between the questions and the answers. I used the colour red for the questions to link back to the brief and make it a vibrant colour. As well as red being a vibrant colour, the background photo is also vibrant. The colour red has connotations with passion and excitement, which also reflects the rap music scene in North London. Changing the colour of a specific piece of writing would make the readers focus their attention on the red piece of writing as opposed to the black piece. Having the white writing of the byline of the double page spread contrasts to every other piece of writing on the page which shows means that readers will look at it straight away. This means that the white writing has connotations with positivity. This is suitable as the whole point of this double page spread is to make make is sound like MB Amba is a good person for the rap scene.

I also used the magnetic lasso tool in my double page spread to cut out the image of MB Amba so you could only see her and not her surroundings. In the original image, there was a fence and a dark background in the way. Having a dark background wouldn't specifically fit the brief as it is meant to show a vibrancy in the genre of rap. So, I used the magnetic lasso and then moved the image of MB Amba onto a brighter background that everybody in North London would recognise and now the whole double page spread looks vibrant. Now that the image is on a brighter background, she now has connotations with vibrancy as she is in a green area of London that people would know.

I used the glow tool on some of my text on the front cover to make it very clear to the readers that their attention should be on that. The glow tool makes writing clearer and easier to read as well as making it stand out from all of its surroundings. Originally, it just said 'MB Amba' without the glow on it and it still worked, but not as well. Now I have added the glow it has connotations with purity and cleanliness which is perfect as the glow is around the artists name. This is useful as MB Amba is a very wholesome artist and this is represented by the glow of her name. Furthermore, the fact that the glow is used on the biggest piece of writing on the page further signifies the importance of the artists name and that people should draw their attention over to it.

Post-Production techniques and processes (U3: P5)

Learning Outcome 4 (U3): Be able to carry out post-production techniques and processes for an original media product to a client brief (P5)

One strength of my front cover is that it catches the eye very easily, which would make people want to look at the magazine more and this means people are more likely to buy it. This is shown in a few ways in the front cover. Firstly, the font is bold and mostly black and a big bold text is going to stand out more to the audience than a small thin text. Furthermore, the black text shows out more than other colours would because there are a lot of bright colours in the background so black is more likely to be seen. Next, MB Amba is staring directly into the camera which instantly gains the readers attention. Once they see her staring directly at them, they are likely to be more intrigued about what the magazine is about and who the MB Amba is. Another point as to how this front cover is attractive on the eye is that the background looks like a galaxy and it looks very mysterious. This could be interesting for some people as nobody would actually be able to figure out what it is and it could get their attention. This links back to the target audience has my target audience are more likely to have a shorter attention span than people of an older age so having something like this which has different aspects to look at is good. Moreover, my target audience are more likely to be attracted to bright, vibrant colours which is why I've used a blend of blues and purples for the background. 

One weakness that I have found in my front cover is that there isn't a lot related to North London about from the wording in the cover lines and skyline. In future issues I will try and incorporate a North London background so people can link the magazine more to the area it is based on. This could be slightly annoying for the young target audience as they could expect to know the background of the North London magazine but instead they just see a colourful background. 

Another strength that I have found in my magazine front cover is that the way it is all laid out is very easy to read and understand. This is important for a magazine as without it being easily readable people wouldn't be able to get a full understanding of what is being written. This is shown in my front cover on a few of my text pieces. For example, the masthead at the top of the page 'NOLORAP' is in a big, bold and easily readable font. Even though the 'R' is covered at the bottom it is still known to the audience that it is a rap magazine and the title is NOLORAP. As well as this, the headlines at side are in a basic, yet attractive font for the readers and they are all extremely easy to read. A final example of the easy layout is where it says 'exclusive interview with' at the bottom. Even though it is in a different colour to all the other text on the page, it is still easy to read and stands out a lot. This is useful to my young target audience as they would need to be able to easily read everything on the page and if something isn't easy to read or if it is laid out poorly, then they would be less likely to buy or read the magazine because they get more easily distracted.

One strength of my double page spread is that the body copy is on a very clear surface and it is more than easy to read. The fact that it is on a lightly opaque background makes it easily read and easily understandable and the fact that it is in a black and red colour is also very useful as these are basic colours which are easy to read. The colours are allowed to be boring for the body copy as all of the background is colourful and there is a lot going on, so a basic black or red would be useful to use. Although the body copy in the top left isn't in the opaque outline, it is still easy to read and understand because I have placed it in an area of the page where there is only a blue background so the black text is still easy enough to read. Linking this back to my target audience, it is a positive thing that my body copy is in basic colours and on a clear surface as it would be easier for my younger target audience to read it all and they wouldn't struggle. 

A weakness I found in my double page spread is that MB Amba has half a leg missing in the photo of her. This is actually a very bad mistake as a lot of people could pick up on this and say some very negative things about it. When i realised this was the case, I should've retaken the photo but I couldn't because there was a fence in the way of her leg, hence her having only half a leg. This could be bad for the target audience as they are younger so they are more likely to pick up on something as important as this. 

A second strength for my double page spread is that the background is very suitable for a magazine in North London rap. This is because Parliament Hill, Hampstead, is a main attraction point for people in North London as it is the highest point in London and the view is incredible seeing over the whole of London. The picture is very bright and colourful which is very attractive for the reader as it gives them a nice picture to look at as well as reading the body copy. I also think that it is a very big positive that it is taken at the top of a hill because it allows the viewers to see the whole of London and the magazine is about the rap scene of London so the readers being able to look at the whole city is a big positive. The young target audience would enjoy this background as it is likely that they themselves have visited Parliament Hill so they would probably recognise it.

A second weakness I have found in my double page spread is that all of the font is the same throughout the whole text. This could be an issue because my young target audience could get bored or distracted easily so having the same repetitive font throughout could allow them to do that. In future, I could mix up the font for the questions so there would be variation in my work. As well as this, I could make the body copy in the top left of my double page spread a different font all together so then it is even more different and every section to the page has a different font. 

Create production materials (U3: P4, M3)

Learning Outcome 3 (U3): Be able to create production materials for an original media product to a client brief (P4, M3)

Body copy
I wrote the body copy as a question and answer so everyone could get a good idea about the type of person M.B Amba is. Furthermore, I used a lot of different topics in the questions to get a wider understanding of her. I used modern, informal language so it be easier for the younger readers to understand and connect with what is being said. Informal language also suits the genre of music. Rap music has always been about language coming from the streets, so the informal text of the body copy follows these codes and conventions.


NoLoRap caught up with the new and upcoming artist M.B Amba to find out all the secret information about why she is so loved by everyone. M.B Amba had a difficult home life growing up, due to her dad leaving the family home in Enfield, North London. She spoke to us about her inspirational mum and all to do with the music business.

Q: At what age did you know you wanted to become a rap artist, and why?
A: For my 9th birthday, my mum bought me a microphone and a guitar. Those were definitely the best presents I ever received and they changed my life forever. Of course, I'm a rap artist now but when I first started playing I played acoustic pieces on my guitar and sang my own lyrics on top of them. After around two years of doing this I listened to the song Jocelyn Flores by xxxtentacion who was assassinated in June. This style of music was something I had never heard before. It was rapping, but singing with a guitar at the same time and it was something truly amazing. After listening to this song, I realised that this is the style I wanted to make music to. At the age of 12 I knew that this is what I wanted my life to be about. Rapping, singing and playing guitar. My three favourite things in life.

Q: What do you think makes you different to other artists in the industry?
A: I would say that I am actually very similar to other artists in the industry but I am one of the lucky ones who got noticed. In my opinion, there are much better singers and rappers than me that are too shy to actually come out of their shell and perform in front of people. I had a fan come up to me in the street the other day and asked if she could sing for me. She sang like I've never heard a girl of her age sing before so I asked her how long she'd been singing for. The girl said that this was her first ever time singing outside of her house. I think that more focus needs to be on the talent of the younger generation as opposed to the majority of artists who use autotune and can't sing properly. Oh, and of course, I don't use autotune and I rap freely with my own voice so I guess that's is what separates me from the other artists in this industry.

Q: How can you create a positive stigma around the genre of rap?
A: I believe that there isn't a negative stigma around the genre of rap but main stream media have made it look and sound like there is a horrible atmosphere around it all. Most of us rap artists are only trying to give out a message and it's our way of escaping the world as it is. By creating music, and of course I speak on behalf of most rap artists similar to me, we are creating masterpieces for the rest of the world to admire and a motto for our fanbases to follow.

Q: How do you manage to balance your lifestyle considering you are the leader of the North London Mental Health Trust?
A: To be honest with you, you would be surprised with how much free time I actually have. I'm in the studio 4-5 hours a day and then the rest of the day I just do whatever I please. I usually spend 2-3 hours a day in the mental health trust just helping around cleaning, cooking and sometimes performing. I really enjoy knowing that other people are getting good use out of what I do in my life. It's so rewarding. After I leave from there I go home to my mum, watch a movie with them or something and then eat dinner and go to bed. It's the dream lifestyle isn't it.

Q: How have your personal struggles helped you to achieve what you have achieved so far?
A: That's a very interesting question. Ever since my dad left I learnt to be extremely independent and I enjoyed doing everything alone. This actually came as an advantage to me after all the bullying I used to receive. During this time of my life, I just wrote my own music with no distractions for hours on end because for me, it was a way of getting away from all of the stress of my life around me. In a way, I would thank my bullies for making me who I am.

Q: What inspired you to have your unique sense of fashion?
A: Well, I've always wanted to be different and stand out from the crowd. If you aren't unique then aren't we all the same? From a young age I started dressing differently from everyone else and I used to get bullied for it but now I'm older and all the people around are more mature, they admire me and value my fashion sense. As I'm sure you're aware, I have many sponsorship deals with clothing brands and because of this all of my social media pages are growing, meaning that my unique way of dressing is becoming more available to other people as well. It's astounding how sticking to what you enjoy doing can get you so far in life.

Q: Finally, what advise would you give to young musicians who are thriving to become a top artist?
A: To all you young people out there who want to become a musician, the only advice I can give is don't ever change who you are based on the people that you meet in your life. You just have to keep doing what you love doing and never give on what you love.


My original images
I had MB Amba dress up in a hoodie and jeans as I believe this could look a little bit intimidating with the hood up. As well as this, the pose she is making with the shoe against the wall suggests she is waiting for something and she is comfortable in her surroundings. She has quite an empty expression on her face which would show the audience or whoever is looking at her that she is intimidating and shouldn't be messed with. In this photo, I would only be showing her head so the location around isn't particularly important, but the white background is important because this shows purity and cleanliness.

I will not be using the image above as although she looks somewhat intimidating, she also looks a bit uncomfortable and it is a very awkward stance. Generic codes and conventions of the rap genre include self-confidence. It is important for rappers to project this image. Rap battles, for example, are a little like boxing matches, where nobody wants to back down or shown weakness.

I have chosen the photo above to be the image that I use for my front cover as I believe it is the most intimidating picture out of them all. As well as this, the model looks very confident whereas in some of the other pictures she looks a bit timid. This best suits my magazine as rap can be seen as a very confrontational genre of music so by using this image, it further portrays the genre of rap.

I won't be using the image above as firstly, her eyes are half shut and secondly I feel as if a photo with her hood up would better suit my genre. Hoodies are often associated with the rap genre. Having the hood up is often used to hide somebody's identity, and there has often been a link between rap and illegal activities.

I decided to use the image I mentioned above because I believe that compared to the other pictures, my model looks most suited to be in a rap magazine.

I have chosen to use the image above because the mise-en-scene is edgy and the lighting source is low-key, which follows the codes and conventions of the rap genre. I had the model wear a Revenge hoodie. Revenge is a clothing brand that has a lot of connections with the rap genre. Revenge collaborated with the rapper xxxtentacion for this hoodie, so fans of the genre will be familiar with the brand, and will automatically link it to the genre. Therefore, using this hoodie follows the codes and conventions of the genre.

This images above are of me taking the photo for my front cover. I used a camera and a tripod to make sure I got the best quality and most still photo I could have got.

I kept all of the photos and evidence in one folder so that I know where they all are at one time.

Setting up the templates

This is evidence of me setting up my front cover as A4 on Photoshop.

This is evidence of me setting up my double page spread as A3 on Photoshop and rotating it.

The way that my actress is standing makes her look like a very sassy and intimidating individual. This is suitable to my genre of rap because a lot of rap artists are seen to be very scary and humiliating. An example of where I have used this is in my final photo of MB Amba where she is pulling a very dominant stance. This relates to a lot of examples in other rap magazines where there is an individual pulling a similar stance which could give her a powerful representation to the audience. 

As well as this, the conversation between the interviewer and MB Amba is extremely informal as it is a smoothly flowing conversation. If the conversation sounded more structured and put together then it wouldn't fit in with the usual calm and relaxed way that rap artists talk to each other. For example,' Rapping, singing and playing guitar' is used in a very informal manner and this is shown by the use of listing mid sentence. 

Lastly, the way that MB Amba is dressed suits the codes and conventions as she looks very intimidating with her hood up and with her tracksuit bottoms. Most rap artists would wear something similar to this as it is the generic look. In the first photo, you can tell that she is dressed suitably to a rap artist as she has a very humiliating stare into the camera and she has her hood up. 

Plan and develop pre-production materials (U3: P3, M2)

Learning Outcome 2 (U3): Be able to plan and develop pre-production materials for an original media product to a client brief (P3, M2)

Mood board

I have created this mood board which includes suitable artists, colours, magazines and venues for my genre. 

I used Skepta, Lil Pump and xxxtentacion as my artists because each of them have a very important part in the rap game. 

I used the main colours in my colour scheme which are grey, white, red and black.

I used three different magazines in my mood board. XXL Freshman, XXL and Flavour. I put these three in as they are the most famous rap magazines in both UK and USA. 

Colour palate

I chose these colours for the following reasons: 

White - Represents purity and I want to give rap music a positive stigma so using a brighter shade will help this. Furthermore white connotes cleanliness and angels, which further represents my genre positively.

Light grey - It is a very casual, neutral and emotionless colour. This suits the genre of rap as it can be an aggressive sort of music so this directly contradicts to the emotionless colour of grey.

Red - Has a very energetic and powerful vibe to it. It stands out from other colours so it will attract to the audience. As well as this, 

Dark grey - The colour grey can cause the mind and body to be unsettled. Although this is usually a negative, it can be positive in a rap magazine because

Black - Black represents darkness and absence. This can be used in my magazine occasionally rap music is a way to express escapism and the darkness in the black would be a good way to do this as it symbolises individuality.  Black can create a sense of dullness and fear and in rap this is significant as it can be seen as an aggressive genre.  

Linking back to the brief, it says it has to be for a vibrant music scene and all of the colours above have connotations with the genre of rap.

Font styles

Masthead - 

For the masthead I have chosen to use the font Pilot because it has a very eroded look which creates an urban atmosphere.

I chose to use a sans serif font as it is easier to read and for a masthead you would need it to be simple, modern and basic.

I have used two separate colours for the title 'NoLoRap' to split up the two parts to 'North London' and 'Rap'. I did this to create an understanding that NoLoRap isn't all one word and it does actually stand for something.

Strap line - 

For my strap line, I have chosen to use the font Finished Sympathy. This is because it is sans serif and has a very assertive connotation.
I think that the black box outlining of the text really shows that the text within is important and makes it look extremely dominant.
Furthermore, even though it is meant to be clear, which it is, it still has an urban look to it as the edges of the black box seems to be a bit distorted and this really suits the genre of rap.

Headlines -

For the headlines in my magazine, I will use the font Pride Thusly. For a headline you would want something big and bold to show the reader what the article is about. This font is very bold and is easily readable.
Even though the text is very clear to read, it still sticks to the genre of rap by having little bits come off of some of the letters to show an urban setting.

Body copy -

For the body copy of my magazine I will be using the font Geo Sans Light. This is because the body copy is the main article text and for this you would it to be easily readable and understandable. To make this as easy as possible, it should be thin with no complications, like the font Geo Sans Light. Furthermore, having a thin font allows more text to be on a page meaning there can be more information. 

Location Recce - 1

Location = Parliament hill, Hampstead Heath

Parliament Hill is the perfect location for the image of my double page spread as there is a spectacular view in the background and there is a large variety of colours that would work along side the image. Furthermore, it will help me meet the brief as Parliament Hill is in North London so it would make the readers understand that their is still a very good music scene in their area as it could be local to them. As well as this, it is a public park so there will be no issues with entering or taking photos of the area. 

Potential issues and how to get around them

. Risk of getting mugged - Travel in a group and that way decrease the chance of being targeted

. Hard to get to due to lack of transport - I will get driven there by either my parents or Uber

. Could be busy - Go at a less popular time or designate a section of the viewpoint which isn't busy

. Could be raining - Bring a rain coat or and protection for the equipment

Location release form 1 - 

Location Release Form - 2

Location = White room in house, 178 Coates Way

Legal and ethical issues - 

Legal issues =
- Trespassing - Trespassing could effect my work if i was taking photos in private property, but I will be taking photos in a park so this will not effect me.
- Copy-write - Copywriting could effect my work if I was going to use someone else's work in mine. For example, if I used a brands logo as my own and claimed it as mine, or inserted some music without permission from the artist or producer.
- Discrimination - This can effect my work if I didn't hire people based on their age, gender, ethnicity or race. My work will not be effected by this because I am using a female model to be my model and she comes from a minority background which shows that I am not being discriminatory. 

- Privacy - I will not give out any of my models details or information away and I will keep them private so nobody else can see them.
- Children - I will not use talents under the age of 18 without their parent or guardians permission.

Ethical issues =
- Racism - This could effect my work if I discriminated against an individual race. I only have one model and she is a white female which goes against the stereotypical image of a rap artist.
- Minimising the risk of harm - I will make sure that everybody in my set is safe and will take all safety precautions to make sure of this. For example, I will give everyone a high visibility so that they stand out from the general public and don't get lost or injured.
- Appropriate for younger people - I will make sure that there are no inappropriate images or wording in my magazine so that is is completely appropriate for younger people.
- Misrepresentation of location - I will not give a false location of my magazine. By giving the wrong location, I would be breaking a very big ethical issue.
- Bias - I will make sure that I will not show only one view point, be it political or just general opinion. This will not upset any of my audience as I will be giving different opinions.

Risk Assessment - 

Talent consent and release form

Sketches of front cover and double page spread

Gantt Chart