This is the main image of my front cover. I was inspired by the Q Magazine cover, which featured Florence Welch. At first I was going to feature a full body shot on the cover, however this does not fit the codes and conventions of a magazine cover, so I had to retake my photos.
I then added a circular gradient behind the image, to put emphasis on the model, and really make her stand out.
I then added my masthead, 'RIFF.' To create the guitar neck that replaces the, 'I,' I took a photograph of a guitar neck, before going into Photoshop and turning the brightness etc. right down, to create the silhouette illusion. I was very happy with the outcome, as it was just what I was looking for. The rest of the masthead I then create using the fonts in Adobe InDesign.
After placing the masthead in a suitable area, I added a bar code in the bottom right corner, and created the main coverline, 'Rachael Morgan.' I did try a font similar to the one I was intending on using (see on drawn draft of the front cover), however it did not look as good as I thought it might. Therefore, I spent a while trying various fonts, and found that the 'stencil' font worked best. I coloured it white because I was planning to stick to a black and white theme, to go with the rock/metal genre. Soon after, I added a bannerline at the top of the cover. When researching music magazine covers, I found that many had bannerlines, and I thought that, 'Voted Best Metal Magazine Of 2012,' would be suitable.
This is my third attempt at my cover. This is where I began to look less at my drawn draft, and more at what actually works. I edited the masthead, by adding a red to yellow gradient, which really makes it eye catching.
I then added another coverline, 'Back From Hiatus FALL OUT BOY,' which wasn't initially in the plan, however after realising that it was acceptable to use read bands in our magazine, I thought that this was appropriate because it is real, recent news.
In my next attempt, I made another bannerline which I positioned at the bottom of the page. This sort of bannerline is featured in loads of magazine covers, as it is useful for adding extra information that would not fit on the cover as singular coverlines. It is often featured on the Kerrang! magazine covers. For my banner, I used an already existing banner from a Kerrang! issue as a template, and added various rock bands that are featured in the issue.
I then added the sub-main coverline, 'Go Through The Looking Crystal With,' which reflects both the Alice in Wonderland theme and the artist's drug addiction. I also changed the main coverline to yellow, as I think it makes the cover more interesting, and works better than the white that I was previously using.
I then added a flash to my cover, with the line, 'FREE POSTERS,' layered on top. After, I inserted various photos I took of my model, some of which I would not have used. I was skeptical at first as I thought tat subsidary images would look strange, however it appeared to work well.
I also changed the colour of the word, 'BOY,' to white, as I felt that it didn't work, and that it made the coverline look like two different features.
This is the final attempt, and my final version of the RIFF Magazine cover. I edited the 'PLUS' on the bottom bannerline, as I felt that red worked better with the theme. I then added another image onto the chain of free posters, before inserting a star with a competition to win a guitar and a games console, as flashes like this one are featured in a significant number of music magazines.
I am extremely happy with my cover, and although I didn't stick to the plan/draft, I think that going with my gut feeling was best for the outcome of my cover.
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