This document outlines Amelia Morris's work on producing materials for a music magazine called BEATS. It includes slides on setting up equipment, changes made to pre-production materials like drafts and covers, test photography, production processes, and using desktop publishing tools. It also provides steps taken in proofreading the double page spread interview for errors. In conclusion, Amelia recaps the changes made to materials and guides produced for the front cover and interview of BEATS magazine.
2. Contents
Setting up of Equipment: Slide 3
Changes to Pre-production Materials: Slide 4
Hand drawn draft changes: Slide 5-6
Front cover changes: Slide 7-8
DPS changes: Slide 9-10
Locations recce Changes: Slide 11
Photography Plan: Slide 12
Test photography: Slide 13
Production Processes: Slide 14-15
Operating Desktop publishing tools (Step by Step) guide: Slide 16-21
Proof reading: Slide 22-25
Conclusion: Slide 26
3. Setting up Equipment
1. This was the stool I used for George
Ezra to sit on in the scene. Using a
stool in this scene will give the
photographs a very structured and
professional feel.
4.Make sure the spotlights are
plugged in efficiently and neatly
so that the wires are not in the
way . Once the camera is set up
on the tripod, you can switch
the light on.
2. Then set the camera up
tightly and securely onto
the tripod.
3. Make sure that the camera
settings are correct so that
4. Pre –Production Material (Changes made)
There are many things that I have reviewed again and made changes to
make it better. These are
• Hand drawn Drafts
• Front cover and DPS
• Locations Recce
5. Hand drawn Drafts
First version Final Version
I have made changes to the rough
sketched for the front cover because
there was a lot of issues concerning the
presentation, content and use of colour
in the first version that I drew.
In the first draft, I missed out the
barcode, price strapline name, cover line
text and I missed out the main image.
So in final draft I decided I needed to
include all of the above to make it more
realistic.
6. Hand drawn Drafts (Continued)
First version Final Version
I have made changes to the DPS because it was lacking in detail and there was a lot of content I missed out for
example the pull quote, page numbers, mag logo, social media links, names of those involved and key facts
box.
7. Front cover changes
First Second Final Version
I have made lots changes to my first draft of my front cover to make it more realistic and like a real magazine
that you buy from a retailer such as WH Smith. I have changed the puff promotion in the corner to a round
circle instead of a rectangle squashed right into the corner, I have also changed the font style and colours of
the cover lines and main headlines
9. DPS (Double Page Spread Interview)
First Second Final version
I have made changes to the double page spread interview because it was looking abit plain and ordinary. I needed
to add some well known magazine denotations such as Drop capital, stand first, image descriptions, page
numbers, social media links, pull quote, bigger main heading, people names that were involved and Key facts box.
11. Locations Recce
This is my locations recce, which
outlines where I will be taking
the images, all the equipment
needed to be able to take them,
The permission required and all
the potential risks and hazards
that could occur and the control
measures put in place to prevent
them from happening.
12. Photography Plan
This is my Photography plan, which outlines the reasons behind choosing “BEATS” as my magazine title, the product
description, the photographers details, casting members and reasons for choosing them to feature in the first issue of
my magazine, (model requirements) how they should like?, hair and make up and finally where and when the
photoshoot is going to take place.
13. Test Photography
By taking photos as trial versions is a good way to get the best possible images at
the end for my new magazine BEATS!
These are photos that I had taken that are not great quality. This is due to many
factors such as poor composition, the fact that the second and third image has
the guitar cut off, there is other distractions in the background of the image that
makes the main subject unimportant. In future I need to make sure that the
photographs taken are either full body or medium close up with all the required
details within the frame of the image.
To make these photos compatible and of good quality I need to upload them in to
Photoshop and use the correct tools that are provided with the software such as
the brightness and contrast tools, I will use the refine edge tool on every
selection I make to the image to make sure that there is no parts of the image I
have left out or that there are no sharp edges.
14. Production Processes for BEATS Magazine
In the production and distribution process of any music magazine i.e. NME, there is a chain of events which occurs from the
magazine producers to the distribution of retail outlets.
Pre- production
Date of publication - This is the first stage of the production process, whereby the whole team get together and decide on a
date to publish their magazine.
Managing the schedule - This stage of the process is very important because every team member has to make sure they
contribute to their role and keep to their deadline.
Editorial and budgetary decision – During this stage of the production process, the editorial team get together to decide upon
what they are going to include in that issue that week/month. They also have to make the decision on the budget, they look to
see how much money they have available and how they are going to spend it.
Production
Content Acquisition – During this stage, they have to collect all the content for that through house staff writers and through
external writers.
Sub-editing – This stage focusses on quality control. This involves checking upon accuracy on all facts included in all articles,
spell checking all words included, checking on the punctuation and grammar, making sure all articles follow the same house-
style and finally working on the layout of the magazine.
Page Layout – At this stage of the process, the layout team get together to produce the magazine. They use very powerful
Desktop Publishing (DTP) programs such as InDesign or Pagemaker to get the job done. It is at this stage that adverts from
advertisers are placed into the content.
15. Post – production stage
Proofreading - Once the editing is complete they print a hard copy and proof read over everything included
File emailed to printer – At this stage of the process the pre- press come in to check and make sure that all the correct fonts
and images are with the file.
Distribution
Lastly, all the magazines will be packaged and sent the warehouse and then from there to all retail stores to be sold to the
public.
Relation to BEATS Magazine
However in terms of BEATS!I will plan a couple of weeks in advance and each department will have their own responsibilities
in bringing the magazine together i.e. reviews, features, photoshoots, design, etc.
Source: http://hosbeg.com/the-magazine-production-process/
16. Operating Desktop publishing tools (Step by Step) guide
1. First, I opened up my main
image by clicking on file and
new and made it my base
background layer.
2. Then I inserted a black shape on
the top left hand corner and clicked
on the text tool. I chose a Sans Serif
font in red and bold. I double clicked
on the layer and gave it a slight drop
shadow and white stoke effect.
3. I then inserted the strapline and date
using the text tool. Using the mask tool
I selected around the head and brought
it in front of the masthead. To achieve
this I had to inverse the selection and
delete the background.
17. 4. I then inserted the puff promotion in the top left corner. To achieve this I selected a circular
shape and filled it with black. I then used the text tool and used a red, bold font with a white
stoke effect to write “WIN 2 free tickets to”. I also thought it was a good idea to insert the V
Fest logo, instead of typing it. To do this is saved an image from Google, then opened it up in
Photoshop. I used the magic wand tool to get rid of the white background from behind the
logo itself, I then selected it and moved it over to the front cover. I then typed out the price
within the masthead and strapline and I also inserted a barcode and the social media and
publisher links. To do this I created a white rectangular shape with a slight red stoke effect by
double clicking on the layer in the layers panel and selecting the stoke effect option. It is
extremely important to keep everything in proportion because you don’t want a crowded
front cover.
5. I then inserted the cover lines and main headline using red bold text and a
slight drop shadow and a white stoke effect.
Instead of using this puff promotion layout I
changed it for a more sutle and rounded smaller
shape. This is because this one is to big and
doesn’t fit to the proportion of the page. It also
doesn’t look professional as it is just to plain and
bulky
18. I changed the barcode layout because the first
version was particularly spacious and slightly
pixelated. I decided I needed to make it more
concise, clearer and visible. So to do this I
removed the price and moved it and placed it
at the top left of the front cover, within the
masthead. I then chose a barcode that was
less pixelated and more clear and focussed
I changed the main
headline because it was too
big and spaced out and I
changed it from being in
the centre to the left hand
side.
19. 1. The first step was to create a base layer and choose the colour I wanted to use(black). Then I
had to make sure that the ruler tool was on by pressing CTRL &R. This is so that I can accurately
make sure that all features were in line, straight and of the same size. If I didn’t use the ruler tool,
then everything would look all over the place, messy and unprofessional. I also inserted the
magazine masthead (BEATS!) on the top left of the DPS. As I had already created the official
masthead font style I saved it as jpeg and then inserted it into the double page spread (DPS). I
decided that to make it more realistic I needed to insert page numbers on the bottom left and
right of the DPS, I also inserted the logo/masthead in a smaller format on both sides at the
bottom of the DPS.
This was the first colour (Grey) I decided to use. I
discovered that it was not the right colour for the
mood and genre of the interview.
2. The second step was to create the headline for the article/ mag interview. I had
to ensure that it was the correct font style for the mood of the interview. I then
added the editor, photographer and stylist names at the start of the interview so
that readers would know who was involved in the production of the article. By
using the pen tool I started to create the first column and copied the content for
this from my draft article (in word).
20. 3. I continued to create the remaining three columns using the pen tool
for the interview and copying the content from the draft into the
provided space.
5. I then decided to add a image caption under the smaller image on the
bottom stating “Above George Staying Ezra!” This is suggesting to the reader
that George Ezra wants to keep doing what he is doing and not change
because of someone else’s influence. He wants to be unique and be himself. I
also have included social media links both Facebook and Twitter to follow
George Ezra on these sites. This is a good marketing and advertising
technique.
4. I placed a pull quote within the second column to increase the visual element and also to inform
readers that it’s the most important part of the article. To do this I created a black shape with a black
stoke effect and inserted my favourite quote from the interview. This was “It is pretty breath- taking,
sometimes I wake up and still believe it is all just a dream, but then I realise its actually reality!” I have
also included two photographs to make it more eye catching and visual appealing to the reader. For
both images, I made sure that they were of good quality i.e. sharp, clear, focussed, perfectly composed.
I also made the background of the image black and white to create that indie edge/feel. To do this I
selected the main subject and used the refine edge tool, then inversed the selected so that the
background was selected and then clicked on Image, Adjustments then clicked on black and white.
21. 6. Finally I inserted a Key Facts about George box as I
realised there was a lot of empty space that needed to
be filled up. To achieve this I created a rectangular red
shape and gave it a white stoke effect. Then I selected
the text tool and created the sub title “Key Facts About
George!” for this I used white font and a black stroke
effect and drop shadow. I then created the two text
boxes within the shape for the 6 question and answers
from George. For example “favourite food? favourite
colour? favourite place? ….”
I also thought that I would write at the bottom right of
the page “ Check Out the full interview at “Check out
the full interview @BeatsMusic-Mag.com”.
22. Proof- Reading
It is extremely important to proof read my interview due to spelling, punctuation and grammar mistakes, but also to check to see if there is no
hyphenated text or to make sure that there has been no breeches to the editors code.
As I started to proof-read my interview, I noticed that
there was the word “rollercoaster” in hyphenated text.
So to fix this there is a few steps to make the text all on
one line.
Firstly. Go to window, then character.
23. Proof- Reading
When this appears, make sure that you have selected
paragraph and then untick the box that says “Hyphenate”.
Here shows that the word “rollercoaster” is all on one line.
24. Proof- Reading
Now it’s time to check for spelling and grammar mistakes and also to make sure there is no offensive, discriminating
language used within my double page spread interview that could potentially be a breach in the editors code.
Here is the whole text from the
interview. It clearly shows that I have
proof read all of my text on my
interview and there appears to be no
spelling or grammar mistakes.
25. Proof- Reading
Here is my 8 quick questions. I have read through this to make sure there are no spelling or
grammar mistakes or anything else that could come across offensive.
26. Conclusion
In this section, I have been able produce materials and actual step by step guides to how I
have produced my final front cover and DPS interview for BEATS! Music magazine. Within
this I have gone through the changes that I have made in my front cover, DPS, locations
recce and hand drawn drafts.
I have produced some test photography to show you how the effect of a bad photograph
can have on the production of a magazine.
I have also given evidence of the magazine production process and how I will relate it to
BEATS! Magazine.
Editor's Notes
Operating Desktop publishing tools - You have not mentioned and or made it clear (Bold) what tools you have used to construct your page - When talking about the step-by-steps