Recce

1.    Are there any potential hazards that could pose a health and safety risk where your photo shoot will take place (trailing cables/traffic/other objects)?

The only real hazard is that there is a small podium on the area I wish to take my photos,
      and if it rained the day before it may be slippy and could cause someone to fall. There is also a main road not far from the area we are shooting, so we will have to take extra care while crossing just incase there are a lot of cars.                         

2.    What will you do to ensure these risks are minimised?

I will bring something I could use to dry the surface just in case, and pay extra attention on the road.

3.    Will the time of day/weather affect the outcome of the photos? Have you allowed for this?

The time that we are probably taking the photos will be around 1pm, so the time of day won't be a problem as there will still be a lot of daylight present. If it rains then that may ruin the outcome of my photos, although I do have multiple back up ideas in case of bad weather. 

4.    Have you considered the background to your photos, particularly if taken outside? How will you ensure you will get the background you want?

One of my models knows the area well and told me there are a lot of trees and nature around, which is what I wanted in the background. I will also make sure to get some photos without this background just incase it doesn't work as well as I expected.

5.    Have you considered lighting? What about the ‘problems’ of natural lighting, either outside, or streaming through a window? Will you need to use a flash? Have you considered reflective objects that might spoil the effect?

As I will be shooting outdoors, lighting may be a problem if it’s very cloudy. Although if that is the case, we could use one of my back-up ideas that takes place inside. 

6.    Do you need permission to take photos in the place/venue you have in mind?

I doubt I will have to, although as there are a lot of benches around, I may have to ask some people if it’s ok if they’re in the background of some of my images.

7.    Do you need to book time in a room (eg the photography studio at Shiney)?

I don’t particularly need to as I am doing it in a public area outside Gateshead College, although I may still book the studio for just a short time to get some extra photographs.

8.    Are other people/crowds likely to be an issue for you? What have you done to ensure that it will not spoil the effect?

As it is a Saturday I’m shooting on, I doubt there will be many students around. However if there are people passing by every so often, I can just wait until they’re out of frame. 

9.    Are you reliant on lifts/props/friends’ equipment/models? How have you planned that these things will come together at the appointed time? Plan B?

We’ve planned to meet at my friend’s house at 11:30am, and we will get the metro to Gateshead then one of the models will show us the way to the planned shooting area. I am very reliant on these plans to complete my photo shoot, although if there is a complication with the metro or something meaning we can’t go out, we will just do it inside my friend’s house.

10. Finally, have you thought of every eventuality…?

There aren’t too many things that could go wrong, although if a problem does occur, we could just use one of my back-up plans instead.

Props and Costume Research

I let my models where what they choose as I know they already wear clothing appropriate for a pop magazine, but later on I mentioned that my inspiration for the cover is Demi Lovato, as she is idolized by a lot of my target audience.

I had no intention on using props, although when we done the shoot we decided to mess around with the things we already had with us, such as bottles of water or the berries from the trees.

Lighting Styles

For the images I am going to include in my magazine, really need to focus on what style of lighting I choose as it effects the mood of the photo and how it reflects the rest of the magazine.

Here is an example of high key lighting. As you can see this is a very pale and light style and there are very few shadows visible, and usually takes place with a white background.

This is an example of low key lighting. This particular style gives off a very dark and mysterious feel, and puts the majority of the subject in shadow. It also typically has a black background.

I think that the most appropriate lighting style for my magazine cover will be high key, as it uses a very flattering and soft light and you can clearly make out who/ what the subject is. For the rest of the images inside the magazine I will use a variation of lighting styles, but still attempt to keep them slightly similar so there will be a reoccurring theme throughout.  

Images Moodboards

Front Cover Images

This helps me as it shows a variation of typical poses for images on a front cover, and gives me inspiration for what I'm going to do on my own magazine. For example, The Kerrang! front cover with You Me At Six shows the front man 'smashing' the logo, which I might use on my magazine.

Contents Page Images

I've created this moodboard to give me inspiration for the contents page and the images I will include. I really like the first Billboard contents page as on the left side of the page it lists the top singles and albums of the week, keeping the reader up to date on music.

Double Page Spread Images

This board gives me a good idea on what images and layout companies typically use for a double page spread. The one that gives me the most inspiration is Q's article featuring Lady Gaga as they have used a giant letter L spread across the entire right page, and have made it really stand out and will make people want to read it.

Preliminary Task Feedback

Here is the feedback sheet for my group's preliminary task. To sum it up, most of the comments are that the colour scheme is slightly too over the top, the layout is good, the main image is too stretched and we included good conventions.

The reason the colour scheme is too much is because we attempted to use the official college colours - as it is a college magazine - although we failed to match the colours to the official ones, so just went with the brighter, flashier versions of those colours. When choosing the main image, we thought the one we used would be the most appropriate as they are sitting outside the college campus. Although when attempting to make it the size of the page, it wouldn't correctly fit, so we had to stretch it slightly.

For my final project, I now understand that I should pay close attention to my colour scheme and shouldn't make it -too- eye catching as it will over power the rest of the cover. I should also make sure the image isn't warped at all when choosing my main image. It was also mentioned that there were too many gaps between the cover lines so I will make sure to use the correct spacing next time.

Categorising Facial Expressions

Facial Expressions Powerpoint

Shot Types

Medium Close Up

Medium Long Shot

High Angle Shot

Full Body Shot

Close Up Shot

Low Angle Shot

Medium Shot