School Magazine Initial Research.

Media Studies School Magazine Initial Planning and Research.

My school based magazine will mainly feature teenage students, from around year 10 (14-15 years old) to students starting University. The first example magazine I have found features a group of Year 13 students with their A level results letters, this is relevant to my target audience as they are within the age range I am aiming my magazine at.

The image on the front cover is simple, a group of students outside in front of what  looks to be the school they attend. The mood of the image is cheery, with none of the models used looking upset, this is possibly to encourage a positive attitude with potential readers. The magazine has chosen to use simple white text, as it stands out from the background and has a simple feel to it, instead of being over-elaborate.

The layout of the magazine is clean and modern, it is not cluttered with stories, and has a short summary of the issues content at the bottom under the main stories name. The cover contains information such as the date the issue was released, a related website address, and a notice for a special offer run by the magazine.

The second example I found takes a different approach. This magazine has used an image of a student holding various different cables, with the article it is aimed at being called "The Great Disruption? - Technology and the future of our schools." This is also relevant to my theme, as technology is an important part of modern schooling, with many lessons being taught with computers. The magazine has also chosen a clean, simple large white font to use for the title, with a summary of the contents at the side out of the way of the main image. The image used in this magazine is in a different environment to the other example magazine. It has been taken in a dark environment creating a lot of shadows in the final shot, this is maybe symbolic for the "Disruption" that technology may be causing. This magazine also has relevant information such as the date and a short subtitle which backs up the main focus of the magazine.

I like the design of this magazine as it is more complicated than the first, but is not TOO complicated. 

The last image I found for my initial research shows a young student directly facing the camera, with a few other students behind her, slightly out of focus. Unlike the other magazine covers I found, this image is not a full cover photo, and instead covers about 3/4 of the page, with a space at the top for the logo and a brief contents description. This cover is clean and not over complicated.

In my magazine I will use a simple and clean text for the title, as it serves its purpose well without drawing too much attention from the rest of the page. My cover image will be taken outside in a light environment, so the titles image will not be able to be a light colour such as white, as it will conflict too much with my background image. The lighting of the image used is important, as the content pictured must be easily view able by the reader.