My Design Philosophy

One of the most important factor when designing not only my magazine but every magazine is the four F's, as this way i will be following typical conventions. Throughout my research in magazines i have noticed particular traits in music magazines one being that continuity must be used, this means that colour schemes, picture editing and fonts should be keep practical consistent throughout the magazine.

Four F's

Frame is important when making my magazine as i must make sure that the gutters and margins are kept the same  around every page. I must make sure i present the correct formula, as this is how readers find there way around the magazine and what gets them interested in the first place, in my case it will be interviews with the people who appear as the main image. Format of the magazine must be presented right, format includes the colours and fonts used, these aspects must represent or present my chosen music genre, which in this case is alternative rock. And lastly, function, this is a very important part of the magazine as it tells the audience and reader what the magazine is about, that is is a rock magazine, they must be able to know this just by looking at the front cover. This function must be consistent throughout the magazine.

Ideologies

Ideologies are things that you associate with genres, for example many people associate indie with festivals, and rock with guitars and leathers. It is a massive and important part of any magazine, as this tells the audience exactly what the magazine is about just by looking at the layouts of pictures used. Audiences are used to certain house styles for different genres, if i were to go against and attack the ideology of rock,it may confuse the reader into thinking it was not in fact the genre is was supposed to be representing. A rock ideology is someone playing an electric guitar and dressed in dark clothes, if i challenged this ideology i could use someone wearing a checked coloured shirt and posing with a banjo, the audience would typically think of country music not rock, this could then lead them to be confused about the magazine and uninterested. When making my magazine i will stick to the ideologies of my genre as i think it is important when making a new publication.

Retro vs Modern

When making my magazine i think that i will make it more modern as i believe this will appeal to a wider range audience (broadcast). The age group that is more likely to buy a music magazine is adolescents and so modern will appeal to them more. As my target audience is late teens  and early adults, a more modern and up to date vibe will appeal to them more, for example up to date music, artists and features. Target audience is the most important thing to consider when making your magazine and so i must do what i think is best from them, this is why i will be sticking with a modern magazine throughout.

Minimal Vs Cluttered Design

When it comes to design minimal and cluttered can have both advantages and disadvantages depending on different aspects of the magazine one being the genre. Having a cluttered design means that it is eye catching and can show the reader a lot of what is inside meaning that there is more chance of the magazine being bought. However a cluttered design can be too busy and compact, which can repeal a reader into buying it as it can sometimes come across immature. A minimal design is what i will be using for my magazine in my opinion less is more, some rock magazines are cluttered but because my magazine is alternative rock i will be using a minimal design as the genre style is considered quite casual and simple, a cluttered design is something that most people associate with pop magazines.

Conventional Vs Unconventional

If you are aiming to mass market magazine then the best design would be a conventional design as the are more popular, and better at selling. Even though it is well known that unconventional designs do not sell as well, some original publications can become successful such as Ray Gun even though it was a hit with some people it did eventually go out of business, this shows that as a whole audiences prefer a conventional design over unconventional, this is mainly because they are more familiar with it. The specification or my magazine must e conventional and so i will be sticking with this convention when making my music magazine, to do this i will be using things such as direct mode of address and typical conventions associated with my music genre in order ti appeal to my target audience.


Colour
During my research i have noticed typical colour schemes throughout many rock magazines. The typical colours used are very dark with one or two brighter colours in some words that are supposed to stand out. When making the magazine i will be sticking to a 3 colours scheme, 2 being dark and one being bright and links with the main image.

Eye for DetailWhen it comes to magazines small details can make the biggest difference, these are very important a they can tie the entire magazine together. If details are overlooked or not spent time on then these can make the magazine look unprofessional and untidy. It is very important to perfect the product as much as possible to make it look sophisticated and professional, this way the target audience is more likely to but the magazine because of the good quality. When making my magazine i will take care and make sure all details are looked at and are presented at the best possible level.

Consistency Vs. Inconsistency
I want my magazine to look very professional and therefore i need to make sure that i am consistent with many aspects such as text font and colour schemes throughout my front cover, contents page and double page spread. This way the magazine will look polished and tidy, even though i am making a rock magazine and i want it to look edgy many people would think that inconsistency would apply, however i want my magazine to look professional and so i will make it look edgy but keep the edgy look though out the publication keeping it consistent, as this is the house style i want it to be carried on though out.

Conclusion:
Taking all of these aspects into account i have a vivid idea of what i want my magazine to look like in order to look its best and meet the criteria and look its best to come across professional.