Analysing Print Screens During Construction

This is the first image I started off with. I chose this image because it has lots of space and so has lots of places to put other text and images for the double page spread, this is because the colours are neutral and the horizon creates a nice line across the page. I added stripes of colour to the right corner, this colour theme can be seen on Crystal Bats home page and MySpace. Using these colours helps the audience make a connection to the artist.

Next I added an image of a tiger (this is part of Crystal Bats’ logo), the heading ‘Crystal Bats’, a cartoon fire on the horizon and I duplicated the image of the singer. The fire is to add interest to the page and orange to contrast to the muted colours on the rest of the page. The duplication of the artist links in with the interview because it suggests that even though he has gone solo he still has the same sound and passion as a full band.

Next I added a bat next to the heading ‘Crystal Bats’, this is because the bat is also part of the Crystal Bats’ logo and can be found on the homepage and Myspace.

I added boxes of colour for where the text would go. I used the same colours as the stripes of colour in the right hand bottom corner of the page so that both pages had a consistent colour theme.

I added random text to the boxes to test if black or white looked better against the colour of the boxes.

Both black and white looked good and so I used both to differentiate between interviewer and artist. I used the colour white for the pull quote because it was on a darker background.

This is the final version of my double page spread, I could not fit the whole interview on without making the boxes bigger (I experimented with this bus I didn’t want to do it because I liked it looking minimalistic), and so there is a note which tells the reader that the interview continues overleaf. The double page spread is the favourite part of cellar Door, this is because it is where I got to be most creative.

To start of with I used Photoshop brushes from the internet to create a low opacity abstract paint look. I used the same muted and neutral colours as I would on the double page spread, mainly bruise purple to create a consistent colour theme within Cellar Door. I added an image of an old fashioned juke box in the corner of the page, this is because I wanted to suggest that Cellar Door is about appreciating old music as well as discovering new acts.

The image I added to the contents page was taken in the photo shoot for the cover. It links to the double page spread as well because you can see it is taken in the same field but the artist is wearing a different outfit. I added splatters of paint using the brushes, some of which were placed coming out from under the images and some were left on top so that it looked artistic.

I used a contents layout similar to NME. This is because I find this the easiest contents page to read, you can immediately see who is on which page because it is done alphabetically, not chronologically.

I added the header which I kept it the same font as the front cover but changed the colour from white to black but kept the same texture on the text so that it had variety but still looked consistent.

I added images to the top of the page to give the readers tastes of what else is in the magazine. There is an article about London fashion week because Cellar Door is also a fashion magazine. The ‘win a cat’ thing is a joke which would make readers want to find out what it was about. Also, the audience I am trying to appeal to (arty students) has recently picked up a new fad which includes taking pictures of, dressing up, and owning cats, examples of this can be found in Vice magazine, and on album covers such as ‘We Are Scientists’.

The image I chose to use for my front cover is a medium close up of the artists face in side profile. The image is almost identical to the original except I have made it slightly higher contrast and added a shine to his ear ring to make the image look more professional. The way that the artist looks gives the impression that he is serious and cares about his music, this means that it reflects well on Cellar Door and will make readers think that it is a serious music magazine. He is also wearing a purple shirt, the colour purple is used frequently throughout Cellar Door, this helps link the two together.

I added a skyline which tells the reader other things which can be found inside the magazine including an unsigned band competition (which would encourage people in bands to buy the magazine), and ‘Win a Free IPod’ which would make anyone who wanted an IPod want to read the magazine. I also added a pull quote from the article which informs readers that Will Vaughan has gone solo and would make them want to buy the magazine to find out why.

I added a tagline which would go underneath the heading which says ‘Music & Fashion’. This tells the reader what kind of magazine Cellar Door is and so would help to appeal to the target audience. I added a barcode to make the front cover look authentic. I changed the colour of some words from black to purple, this is to help link the colour scheme to the colour of the artists shirt to make a connection between the two. Other information on the front cover says the inside contains reviews of various other artists and places, this would be interesting to readers who wanted to find out about new bands.

I added the heading ‘Cellar Door’, I gave it a slight drop shadow to help it stand out but not make it over power the rest of the image. I used the colour white to help make a connection to what the artist is wearing.

I left some space between the heading and the main article, this is because I did not want to overcrowd my front cover and thought that it looked better simpler.

The picture I used at the bottom of the page was an image of I took of one of my friends bands ‘Fearless Vampire Killers’. I used a picture of a live band because it went with ‘Reviews’ and shows that Cellar Door takes the time to go to see live bands and review them.