Group advert

 How did your group share your ideas and designs around?
The main purpose of the magazine advert is to encourage sales of the album therefore it is important that the audience view the advert as highly appealing. Discussions were carried out in order to make unified decisions such as the decision made in order to increase the effectiveness of the digipak was to create a connection between the ancillary products. This was achieved through involving elements previously seen in the music video or the magazine advert promoting the album. 

Evaluate each the group member’s designs by commenting on the following:
- What do you like about the magazine?
- How is the magazine conventional to your music genre?
- How can the magazine be improved?

Individual design:



The main focus of the advert is the artist himself which is a convention of promotional media and follows the conventions of the pop genre. A midshot of the artist has been used so that his facial expression is visible as well as the costume and iconography i.e. the guitar. The guitar illustrates the artist's talent and therefore presents him as a talented artist. The costume conveys the ordinary aspect of the artist as stated by Richard Dyer's stardom theory. Burning cards have also been used due to being significant iconography. The typography presents the artist, his album and places emphasis on one song which the majority of the target audience would be aware of. An effect has also been used to create a smoke like effect in order to bend the fire into the background. The colours that have been used are primarily black and white however the fire is in colour which emphasises its impact and is likely to infer varied connotations to the audience i.e. the pain the artist is feeling.



Lauren Vale's design:

The design involves white writing on a plain black background. This is effective as it makes the writing stand out from anything else on the poster drawing in the audiences attention. The colours used on the poster are non-gender specific. This in turn attracts a wider audience rather than singling out a specific gender encouraging the most amount of people to read the magazine advert. A red king and queen of hearts have also been included due to being significant iconography. The colour red connotes the love the artist felt in the relationship and the pain that was caused due to the break up. This gives the audience an insight to not only the new single but the meaning behind the album. The audience are therefore encouraged to buy the album as it evokes curiosity.







Which magazine will you submit and why?
The individual design involves smoke surrounding the artist as well as the burning of the playing cards which also hold great significance in the music video. However the magazine advertisement chosen to be submitted was Lauren Vale’s design which was slightly modified in terms of typography. The text was specifically chosen from fontspace.com. The font isn't gender biased which is important due to the artist being aimed at both genders. It is also quite simplistic in order to prevent it from taking away the audiences' attention from the artist himself. Through the use of Photoshop, the background has been removed therefore the artist has been placed on a black background. A mid shot of the artist has been used so that his facial expression is visible as well as the costume and iconography i.e. the guitar. The guitar illustrates the artist's talent and therefore presents him as a talented artist. The costume conveys the ordinary aspect of the artist as stated by Richard Dyer's stardom theory. Burning cards have also been used due to being significant iconography. The typography presents the artist, his album and places emphasis on one song which the majority of the target audience would be aware of. The colours that have been used are primarily black and white however the burning of the cards is in colour which emphasises their impact and is likely to infer varied connotations to the audience i.e. the pain the artist is feeling.

The most dominant element of iconography used in the music video are cards which have many possible connotations. Cards signify a 'game' which can also be related to the concept of a relationship as the male and female are on opposite sides, potentially against each other. The use of cards show the relationship at its best and worst therefore creating a contrast. The male and female playing cards has positive connotations and allows the iconography to be established. As there are numerous types of cards, they can be selected specifically such as a king and queen to portray the relationship. However when the breakdown of the relationship is initiated, the iconography also illustrates this.

The cards combined with fire are used to show the relationship burning out. The cards built up have been set alight in the music video to show the relationship ending. This was shown alongside the male and female arguing therefore displaying the literal and metaphoric aspect of the music video. Fire has powerful connotations of pain which is effective in displaying the emotions felt due to the relationship ending. As well as being an effective technique of illustrating emotions, it is visually effective. This element of iconography was therefore used when the strongest chorus of the song hit in order to create tension and excitement. The iconography such as the burning of the cards signifies the artist's pain and therefore also displays the emotions felt by the artist, helping the audience to further develop their understanding of the artist.

A guitar has also been significant iconography as it is a stereotypical genre convention. It emphasises the artist's talent which is a vital element of his success within the music industry. The guitar is also dominant in the performance aspect of the music video which was carried out in the studio room. As the artist was isolated and surrounded by low key lighting, the guitar is emphasised. A guitar is a prop commonly seen in music videos of the pop genre therefore the video conforms to genre conventions. Although it does not convey any hidden meanings, it is still effective in conveying the performance aspect.

The final changes made to the group advert involved a change of font which was acquired from the website fontspace.com. This was then replaced to make the overall product look more professional and therefore similar to existing media products of the pop genre.  'Now available on iTunes' was also added in order to make the product more conventional as this is involved in many magazine adverts seen.