Initially, I have decided to shoot for the media magazine in my models kitchen keeping in mind that producing freshly baked goods is always a bonus, especially if it’s all homemade. In today’s modern time especially, the consumers prefer anything that has been made at home compared to items in the local market etc. The time of the day would be kept in mind- according to what has been decided the shoot will take place before noon so we have the calm environment and good lighting.
Author: fatimaali97
A level media student @ Learning Alliance.
Mise-en-Scene for the shoot
This is a slideshow I created to describe the elements of Mise-en-Scene needed in the production of my media magazine.
The Article (body-copy)
Sugar, spice and everything nice- this might just be a motto for everyone who loves to cook and bake, a hint of these magical ingredients makes everything either absolutely yummy or just.. not so yummy. That happens, a lot because no body is perfect and the only thing that is capable making anything close to perfection or outclass perfection is practice. The more one practices, the better the food is, unless of course it’s all natural talent.. pft.
One thing that I learnt was, if you’re determined to do something in life there is nothing in the world that can stop you from reaching the greatest heights unless you give up yourself thinking about the fact that its impossible- the word “impossible” itself suggests “I’m Possible”. In the modern day we see many people pursuing their careers, doing what they love and earning respect and loyalty and that is where the world has realized that food is a work of art, it is the young aspiring artists who do what they love and provide us with deliciousness.
If there is one thing in the world that can make ones day easily is a yummy cake- whether one is low, or upset over something or even super excited about something anything becomes better when you have a cake to eat- also, which is all for yourself and no one else! Be it birthdays, wedding days or casual parties a scrumptious cake can make it all complete.
Today’s feature is about one of those young artists, Bushra Mustafa who managed to earn while dong her A levels, she is not only an excellent baker but also an inspiration to all of us- she has given young girls a chance to think differently instead of following the mainstream path. Recently, Bushra got admission in one of the best culinary universities of the world, Cordon Bleu- it is an immense pleasure to have young talent like her to be getting an opportunity to become a renowned baker.
Bushra Mustafa has made the best cakes and cupcakes- provided Lahore with the yummiest bakery, her cakes not only taste good but they look even better! And of course, a cake is a weapon than can switch moods from sad to happy, low to super excited and it can make anyone’s day. I mean who wouldn’t want a double chocolate cake with buttercream frosting? Yumm. What more does one even want?
Cakes that make your day, because sweetness spreads happiness- As cheesy as it sounds, it’s nothing but true.
Happy Cake-ing!
Magazine House Style
Moving towards the completion of the media magazine the main styling of the magazine needs to be done for it to look professional and conventional at the same time.
Talking about the colour scheme of the magazine, keeping it very conventional and interesting at the same time, the background of the magazine cover (Keeping options open) would either have a plain white background so that the cake in the picture is the only dominant thing or to give it a very fresh and serene look, the background would be of a morning with a small proportion of light sunlight coming in- the blue sky etc. but if the background is left exactly the way it is captured then the main product on the magazine wouldn’t have the spotlight; the background would overpower it and hence, I would soften the background using the software, Photoshop and add other effects if necessary.
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The main colour scheme of the magazine would be similar to this keeping in mind the photography that will be done. Although I would want to change the colour of the masthead to something brighter- turquoise or maybe light blue.
The cover- lines and the strips would be a combination of purple with either one of the colours mentioned above.
Typography being an essential element in everything that is done represents a lot, it is not just there to make a document or an image look fancy but it connotes a greater meaning to what is being presented. For my media magazine, I would want a font that is classy yet it complements what I will be providing otherwise it would all look out of place- looking at the general food/ dessert magazines the fonts used are different from the other magazines for example fashion, sports etc.
The font I plan to choose for my magazine is,
Kristen ITC depicts a very fun- loving casual image. It would make the magazine look not-so-formal, it would attract the younger audience as well because the more formal the fonts are, the lesser is the variety of audiences; and every font has its own symbol- the font that Time magazine uses gives it a more business oriented look while magazines like Foodie or Q magazine give a very simple yet casual look. It would be a very lively addition to a delicious Food magazine- with the typography, color schemes and great graphic elements no one will be able to resist the attractiveness of the magazine!
Graphic elements can make the magazine look like a completely different version of what we expected it to be, it look colorful, lively, attractive and a great source of communication with all forms of audiences- media is the tool of domination and anything extra can help a medium of communication change an individuals perspective of something. Media is extremely powerful but- it is the way people perceive ideologies that changes point of views, graphics however, enhance the way a magazine looks- they make it very comfortable for consumers to enjoy what they see. Also, graphic elements include the puffs, plugs, buzzwords etc. Small symbols along with the text denote ends or beginnings of stories. Magazines are full of creative information graphics. For example, Rolling Stone includes an annotated timeline along with all of its big political stories.
Considering the fact that people read captions of highlighted stories and skim through the images provided on/ in the magazine, just like various famous magazine editors, by following the conventions i would do the same- put the most important information about the story underneath a photograph or illustration. An interesting caption is a way to draw someone who is just skimming into reading the main part of the story. In the magazine world, typography is treated as an art form, and not just as a means to an end. The first word of a long feature story often contains a drop-capital, it gives a very classy and interesting look.
Photography Inspiration for the final task
These are a few images that inspire me because of the way photography has been done keeping in mind the beauty of the cake as well as a background that complements the overall look of the magazine- these magazines and photographs not only tempt the consumer but also persuades them into buying the magazine in order to know more about what the cover page shows, the true meaning and passion behind the making of the product along with how the photograph has been taken.
For the cover- page mainly, following the conventions of photography, the photograph would be according to the rule of thirds, the cake would be on top of a cake stand, on slice would be cut which would give an inside look of how the cake looks.
Sketches/ Layout for the magazine
What will the magazine look like?
The sketches below give us an idea;
Brainstorming & outcome
As we keep moving towards the completion of our final task for the AS level media magazine, we need a cover story- something that would attract the audience in less that a second and definitely something that wouldn’t give the audience a chance to think twice before purchasing the magazine.
Keeping in mind the fact that my magazine is about Food and this edition is about Cakes! “Cakes that make your day” is the main coverline, which very clearly describes that if there is anything that can automatically make a person feel better is a cake with colourful icings or a beautifully done fondant art; this not only makes the cake look better but it tastes better than it looks. The cover story would obviously be about how a cake can make your day- Today we see, thousands of people baking everyday, as a hobby or even as a means of earning money: for people like these, baking means everything because they feel that baking is what makes them unique and in the modern world baking beautiful cakes is recognised as a form of art. Whether it be teenagers, young adults or even adults- everyone loves cakes!! Whenever theres a birthday or a wedding day or even a small lunch or dinner theres one thing that is never missed out on, a cake. Whenever there’s a Birthday the first thing that comes in mind is a cake, and thats something that is enough to make another person feel better.
Sweet things make life a whole lot sweeter than we expect them to- whenever someones upset all they need is a doube chocolate fudge cake to feel better because flavours like chocolate make everything better! Our feature baker is Bushra Mustafa who talks about how she makes her cakes with love and passion and how she tries to make her audience happy with what she produces- in the cover story Bushra Mustafas recipe will be of a great delight to everyone.
This is what the cover story will feature along with pictures of cakes and a few people who ordered cakes from our star, Bushra.
What will it include?!
In order to attract the audience to buy my magazine, the magazine MUST have interesting articles and images so the audience has a great, foodilicious incentive to purchase the edition!
Cover-story Check list!
Starting off with the ideas for the cover story, a lot of brainstorming was needed. There were a gazillion ideas but executing those ideas was the greater issue. In order for the magazine to be a big hit the cover story must fulfil the criteria required,
- The idea must be appealing,
- Greater audience should be able to consume the item,
- The cover story must have an exciting caption;
- It should all be related to the magazine genre otherwise it’s just useless.
For the food magazine, I had various ideas out of which I had to choose the one that was the most interesting and would undoubtedly attract consumer attention- the ideas that I jotted down were:
1) Introducing Newali (Nepali) Cuisine in the Pakistani culture, allowing the taste buds of local consumers to feel the difference in the type of food they have.
2) Seasonal fresh Fruits and Vegetables, making cocktails, sweet items, various deserts with fruits or maybe using a mixture of green leafy vegetables to give different food items a vegetarian touch!
3) Desserts Special; featuring Bushra Mustafa: From vanilla cupcakes to chocolate molten lavas- from a basic cake to fondant cakes.
These were the three main ideas that I had for my magazine cover-story but the story that seemed most interesting and attractive was of the “Desserts Special” because it would be a very light yet interesting story since the celebrity chef that would be featured in the magazine is the youngest baker who has not only been baking because she enjoys it but is also earning from whatever she bakes. This would encourage teenagers to pursue what interests them and instead of not doing anything productive with the skills they acquire they should make a business out of it.
The Foodilicious Magazine, dessert issue would feature the yummy, moist cakes and cupcakes made my Bushra Mustafa and it will also include the easy to bake- 5 minute cake recipes!
Magazine Proposal
The first official task to make the magazine is to decide a name for it. Keeping in mind the greater audience for the food magazine, a lot of brainstorming was required to come up with a name that had not already been used and something that would attract the audience.
Some ideas were discussed in school but unfortunately they weren’t the most creative ones, and also, they weren’t according to what the audience would prefer considering the fact that a larger part of my audience includes the teenagers and young adults. Anything that sounds sweet and exciting at the same time is said to attract the target market- also, teenagers and young adults are extremely fun loving and would want anything that’s easy and not too formal.
After conducting the survey amongst the public, it was concluded that the large market is among the 15-17 year old being the teenagers, while some of the audience belongs to the group of people who are 18-21 year old.
This is the survey analysis of the age groups that would be targeted largely for the food magazine. People within the age group of 15-21 are usually school/university students and they are almost always in a hurry and obviously, to get things done they need to be super energetic!
The name of the magazine that the people liked the most and approved of was “Foodilicious”.
The size of the magazine is going to be the standard size following the key codes and conventions of various food magazines in the market; 8.5″ x 11″. The content of the food magazine would include food items and recipes that are extremely easy to cook and wont take up a lot of time keeping in mind that the target audience is super busy and won’t have enough time and energy to be able to make food that takes quite a lot of time- So easy to cook food would take up the major part of the magazine. Also, looking at the greater trend in today’s market, people are more interested in deserts as new, delicious deserts have entered the food industry; it’s simply irresistible! Different types of easy to cook, quick food and deserts would be featured in the magazine.
Fatima's media magazine 