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.