Planning For The Magazine

Feature	Reasoning
Setting (Background)	For the setting of my magazine will be either somewhere with a graffiti background or a plain white background. This is undecided so I will take pictures of the models in both settings. I have chosen these settings to take pictures with as when conducting research, these were the two most common backgrounds, This will help the audience to identify what the genre of the magazine is from afar. The graffiti is often referred to as rebellious and this links to hip hop music, this would be a colourful and eye catching background to use. However, more hip hop covers already out there have plain backgrounds and simple layouts. This setting would also be easier to put text on top of too.
Models	I have chosen to use two models for this as I think that this is another common convention of a hip hop magazine, when conducting research, I found that there were often two people on the cover. However, I will also take pictures of the models separately- this means that I can test and analyse both types of covers. They will be female, which is uncommon within the typical hip hop magazines, but some hip hop magazines have completely separate magazines directed at and featuring women.
Clothing	I will ask the models to attempt to wear mainly on colour, being white or black. This is another convention of hip hop magazines. All of the men wear typically white shirts with jeans and the females are usually wearing black and white also. Most women featured on the cover of hip hop magazines are usually sexualised, this convention will not be used for my magazine as I feel that it should be mainly women based and empower women rather than sexualise them. I may ask the model to wear a hat as well as this is one of the most common features I came across when I was researching hip hop magazines.  This will also hopefully stand out amongst the colourful background.
Props	I will not use any props for my magazine images in terms of what the models will be holding but I will ask the models to wear chains or other expensive looking jewellery. This conforms to the conventions of a hip hop magazine as the models are usually focused on showing their wealth. Apart from this, if the background of the image is busy, I do not want to add to this clutter.
Camera Angles	I will take pictures at all angles but I think that I will be mainly focused on taking them as ‘medium shots’. This is so that most of the model's body is in the frame and there is still space to add information and a masthead to the image. I will need to leave room at the top of the image as this is where the masthead will need to be placed. I have also chosen to focus on mid shots as this was the most common camera shot for the cover image. However, for the inside I will use different angles to show location. I will be using a 13 megapixel camera to ensure that the quality of the photos will be maintained when they are larger.

 

Double page spread layout from emily_hop

Risk Assessment

Hazard	Risk	Controlling the Risk
Environment	Potentially a dangerous environment for taking pictures. This means that there are probable risks to choosing this location. There is also a risk of the skate park not being open because of the early time I am planning to do the shoot. Also, the inside location may also not be open that early.	I will check to see whether the environment is safe through checks of the location before the photo-shoot happens, this will make sure that there are no safety hazards. Since checking, I have found that the location I wanted to use [the inside location] is shut for refurbishment for the time being. This means that I will just use the outer location and hopefully get all of the pictures I need from there. Also, I found that the skate park was open during the time that I want to work.
Trip Risks	The location has many ramps and skateboard related activities, this means that there are many chances of tripping and falling. It is also likely that my model will be climbing things and crawling under ramps.	I will have to make sure that both my model and I are careful when trying to get in different poses. I will also have to make sure that she is careful when she is climbing and has sensible shoes for the location. We will not do the photo-shoot if it is or has been raining as this would increase the risk of slipping and falling.
Access	Both my model and I are travelling separately. This means that I must ensure the safety of both myself and her on the way to the location. It is easily accessible when driving but it is harder to get to when getting the bus.	I will have to make sure my model knows how to get there and where to go once she reaches where she needs to be. I will also have to make sure that I know where to meet her and how long we will be at the location for incase she needs the information for  bus times.