Cover, Contents & DPS First Drafts.

During the day of 06/04/11, two University of Western England (UWE) teachers visited our media class to discuss the students' coursework so that they can provide us with some feedback and improvements. The teachers, Rowland Cowley and Stephen Priddell are experts in the Print and Design division. I shown them my first drafts (shown below) - they generally liked the layout of my cover, contents and double page spread but they did give me a few improvements to make:
- make the cover image a little smaller, so that the left column text wasn't over lapping with the image.
- reduce the font size on the DPS.
- create a larger space between the columns on the interview as it wasn't completely clear that it was a column.

You will be able to see that I have taken on these improvements in my final products. Also, for the contents page I must make the text a little higher as the printer has cut off the bottom text.

I realised that I hadn't added the name of the cover artist, but just inserted a large caption with a quote from his interview in. So I considered putting his name above, but it was decided that it didn't need it and it appeared that it fitted with the caption above it - "Gerard Way talks lyrics, life and love!" so I chose to name the artist Gerard Way so that I didn't have to add any more text into the cover, as it may have looked too much.
Magazine covers generally have a rule of thirds grid - I have used this layout plan for my cover as I think it looks the most professional and perfectly laid out.

You can see that I have kept within the same colour scheme throughout each page, which is purple. I chose the purple colour scheme from the colour of the model's shirt. You can also see that I have stuck to a grid layout within each page as it is all columned and has rule of thirds. I did this so that my products looked tidy and professional, not messy and out of place.

Representation
I think my representation of an Indie teenager is accurate as the props and costume were considered well. The model wears skinny jeans and a checked shirt and holds an acoustic guitar. All of these factors support the Indie theme. The colour scheme is not too boyish or girly, so attracts both genders which is my target audience.
In recent media, it has been known that men are becoming more interested in their appearance and looking after themselves. I think my choice of model supports this because his hair and skin is well looked after. Here are some scans of articles about male lifestyle magazines becoming more popular as evidence for my point: