Representation in Beauty Magazines

Hello! I'm back again, this time analyzing the representation of "beauty-gurus" in the media... Here's what I found:

Within my project, I will represent people who enjoy makeup and beauty tips, also known as the makeup “gurus” group. In the media, especially in magazines, this group is usually women ages 15 to 25. Hence, the make-up and clothing that will be talked about will be colorful and bold, since younger people are often more open to push their boundaries and try out new products. Furthermore, since young adults today are increasingly present in social media platforms, the magazine will incorporate pieces of these types of media, such as interviews with and recommendations from popular social media make-up gurus like Kylie Jenner and Jeffree Star.

Most beauty magazines also show women as successful and beautiful only if they wear certain clothes or makeup that are “in style.” Because of this, women who do not like these trends or cannot afford these products may feel inferior if they do not wear these looks. Furthermore, an issue I might want to represent in my magazine is the pressure for women to “look good” and wear makeup to fit in with the “norms” for girls. My magazine would not just recommend makeup that a woman should wear but makeup that a woman can wear only if she wants to, without any pressure from society. In other words, this beauty magazine would encourage women to embrace their natural, raw beauty, being their own authentic self with no filters or cloaks to mask their real beauty.

Within the media, this group is already represented in the social media platform of YouTube; for example, in the channel “Nikkie Tutorials”, a YouTube channel with a whopping 11 million subscribers. Nikkie is the epitome of “makeup gurus”, as she is in her mid-20s and uploads weekly videos of makeup tutorials and makeup product reviews. Nikkie also frequently wears bold makeup looks, using rainbow eyeshadow and bold lipsticks, unafraid to challenge her viewers' expectations. Uploading frequently to additional social media platforms such as Instagram and Twitter, the trendy YouTuber creates original looks never done before and uses her platforms to advertise and represent the “makeup guru” life, marketing towards young adult women. Another example of a type of media that represents “young beauty specialists” is Allure Magazine. This magazine introduces new looks and styles for women, especially makeup looks; the editors exhibit celebrities’ best makeup looks, recommend products that will achieve the “no makeup makeup look”, and present tips for self-styling. Furthermore, this is the essence of content that represents the group of young women who enjoy beauty tips. The editors and models are all seen as fashion-forward examples-to-follow since they know about all of the trends that are most popular in celebrity looks and all the new products that women should try. In addition, these beauty gurus are represented as bold, outspoken women, since they are not afraid to criticize celebrity looks, and always look impeccable, with flashy clothing, hairstyles, and makeup.

Based on how “beauty-guru” women are represented, I do think that it is fair to assume they are very fashion-forward since they analyze celebrity styles and are knowledgeable about the newest trends. However, I do not believe that they should be represented as always looking flawless, wearing a layer of makeup and bearing anything but sweatpants. Consequently, these women are criticized if they have messy hair, wear no makeup, or wear casual clothes when they go out in public. These women should not be pressured by society to feel as if they always have to look good and fashionable to look beautiful. Instead, these beauty lovers should be allowed to go out in public wearing what they want to wear and learn that they are beautiful even if they don’t wear the newest trends or the best makeup.
I would retain the characteristic that beauty gurus are extremely knowledgeable about makeup, hair, and fashion trends. However, I would challenge the characteristics that all beauty gurus have to be women and always have to look exemplary. Thus, I will promote raw, natural beauty with pictures showing all types of models wearing only what they want to wear. Most importantly, not only will girls be represented in my magazine, which is the usual target demographic for make-up and hair magazines, but also boys, as genders should not be limited by the media by being told what type of media they are supposed to consume. Hence, models, editors, and beauty gurus will be females and males, such as is already the case in media examples such as James Charles’s and Manny “Mua” Guiterrez’s YouTube channels.

And the research continues...

Hello again! I'm back with more research for my magazine, this time analyzing the beauty genre! Right now I'm still leaning towards making a travel magazine, but I'm still keeping my options open in case my team members recommend me something or I find something that I really like!
Hope you enjoy my research for beauty magazines:

1. Genre:

a. Beauty Magazines

2. Genre Conventions–Content

a. Most beauty magazines are combined with fashion, like popular magazines Elle and Vogue.

b. Beauty magazines provide information for women to look their best and suggestions for their overall well-being.

c. The articles contained can give suggestions on what is “in style” that season, what products celebrities are wearing or using, and possible relationship advice.

d. Additional topics covered in beauty magazines are recommended make-up products and make-up tutorials.

e. Advertisements in beauty magazines are on almost every other page and are all related to beauty products such as perfume and make-up.

f. The longest article in the magazine is generally about the person on the front cover of this publication and is usually located near the end of the magazine. This feature usually starts with a short biography about the person, usually a famous celebrity, and continues with an interview of the person.

g. The pictures utilized in the magazine are normally close-up shots or extreme close up shots in order to give a detailed view of the model and the product she/he is wearing. In the case of the close-ups used for the interviewed celebrity, the pictures are used to establish a closer intimacy and vulnerability, so building a connection to the audience.

3. Genre conventions – production techniques

a. The backgrounds of the layouts are frequently white in order to make the products and pictures displayed stand out.

b. The layouts are either a large picture or a collage of the product or model with text in between.

c. The arrangements of the pages frequently include swatches of make-up products alongside the name of the product in order to show the reader the pigmentation or texture of a specific make-up merchandise.

d. Most of the fonts are either bold, large serif fonts for the titles and body. In addition, many of the fonts used are curvy and cursive to give off a feminine feel, since this is the target demographic: women.

e. The most used colors in the front covers are pink, red, and white.

f. The body text is usually displayed in columns, leaving gaps to be filled with pictures and swatches.

g. The target audience of beauty magazines are usually women ages 16 to 35 since this is usually when women start to become interested in beauty products and when they are most in need of them.

h. Swatches and pictures are usually accompanied by a caption including the name and price of the product being advertised/recommended.

i. Magazines are mostly distributed not by purchase in a store, but by mailing subscriptions, mailing them to the readers’ houses.

4. Film/magazine sample #1 – include analysis of how this magazine embodies your genre

The magazine Allure magazine embodies the beauty magazine genre because based on the front cover, it provides recommendations for make-up products which I found was one of the most common beauty contents in a beauty magazine. In addition, another text on the cover includes, "Behind the Scenes with a Skin Doctor: And Her 15 New Rules", showing another piece of content that is regularly displayed in beauty magazines: recommendations for women's wellbeing and ways for women to look and feel their best.

Like I found in my research, this beauty magazine uses feminine colors such as pink and white, depicting another reason why this magazine is a great embodiment of the beauty magazine genre.

The picture shown on the cover is a mid-shot of celebrity Jessica Alba, attracting readers who are in the targeted audience: women in their mid-30s.

5.Film/magazine sample #2 – include analysis of how this magazine embodies your genre

The magazine Modern Hair+Beauty is a superb example of the beauty magazine genre. This publication is filled with content such as hair and make-up tips, claiming to be "Your Ultimate Hair and Makeup Manual". This is the most common content of beauty magazines, according to my research.

Furthermore, the picture on the front cover is a close-up of the model wearing a makeup and hair look that is "in style", another content criteria in the beauty magazines genre.

Using pastel colors such as light orange and baby pink, the magazine attracts a female audience between the late teens and mid-30s.

Overall, this magazine focuses purely on beauty recommendations for the target audience of women, making it a clear example of the beauty magazine genre.

6. List of 5-7 other film/magazine examples within the genre (with links or images of these examples)

(Shown above):

-Professional Beauty Magazine

-Black Beauty Magazine

-New Beauty Magazine

-Hello! Beauty Magazine

-Pro Hair and Beauty Magazine

-Cosmopolitan Hair and Beauty Magazine

-Marie Claire Magazine

Genre Research

Hello! I’m back. I started researching the travel genre and I’m getting pretty excited…. Here’s what I found:

1. Genre: Travel Magazines 

2. Genre conventions-content

       a. Lead/Hook: Traps the reader in and introduces the topic. The article generally starts with an interesting personal anecdote of the place traveled to.

   b. What: Description of the story, quotes from people, opinions of the writer, anecdotes, and facts of the travel location.

        c. Where: The location, establishes the geography of where the story takes place.

        d. When: The season, time, and climate of the place traveled to.

        e. Why: The reasons for the trip, motivations/goals/motives of the writer.

        f. Who: Introduce the writer to identify with the reader, establish the people involved in the story.

        g. How: How the location is reached, how the story unfolds.

       h. End: Wraps up the story, relates to the lead, is a time of reflection and/or opinions and recommendations.

        i. Some examples of articles include travel tips, destination information, interviews,       and hotel “hot deals.”

        j. The tone is “business casual;” the writer is trying to convey accurate information while also allowing the reader to enjoy reading the magazine and feel comfortable while doing so. At the same time, the writer should use everyday language so that he/she is more relatable to the reader.

       k. The writers mostly use the second-person point of view when addressing the readers, and the first-person point of view to describe their personal experiences and opinions.

       l. Pictures are vital: they should be beautiful and appealing in order to truly capture and convey to the reader why they should visit the location.

      3. Genre conventions-production techniques

        a. Certain content can be illustrated in a certain format. For example, data can be shown in an infographic or table.

        b. Text needs to be visually appealing (i.e not long) so that the reader is not discouraged from reading a boring article.

       c. Magazine producers generally start with design mock-up to have an idea of what the magazine spread/layout will look like.

       d. Pictures are vital, as they show the audience what location the article is about and further persuade the reader to travel to that location. The shots and framing of the                  photographs should be helpful in conveying the message. Most photographs are long              shots or extreme long shots to capture as much information about the location as possible.

       e. Pictures should have captions in order to give more information on what is happening in the image and to motivate the consumer to dig into the article.

       f. The body text (font, color, size, etc.) should be comfortable to read.

      g. Producers have recently started to publish their magazines on mobile devices in order to reach more people.

       h. Use of bold colors such as red or white on the cover to attract attention.

       i. Blues are used heavily on the covers.

     4. Institutional conventions-how is genre marketed.

     a. The marketed audience is usually in the middle to upper socioeconomic classes, because they can afford to travel.

      b. Cover has a visually appealing photograph and encouraging text to prompt the reader to travel to this location.

      c. Sometimes includes phone numbers and prices of hotels or activities such as whale watching or ziplining in order to make traveling to the location easier for readers, as they already have the activities they will do on the trip,  and therefore further convince them to make the location their next destination.

     5. Magazine sample #1-include analysis of how this magazine embodies your

genre.                                                                   

On the right is the magazine National Geographic Traveler with a beautiful cover of a tropical location, which is sure to convince the audience that this location is worth visiting. In addition, “10 Places to See Now While You Can” is demanding and exciting, and is displayed in a big, dominant font in order to give the audience a sense of urgency and motivation to travel to the location. The layout is simple and clean, focusing more on the image than on the text. 

6.     Magazine sample #2– include analysis of how this magazine embodies your genre.

On the right is The Sunday Times Travel Magazine. The cover is of a small island in the Mediterranean, with a neverending blue ocean surrounding it. This inducing extreme long-shot image alone is capable of convincing the reader to visit this location. As is typical of the genre, “Mediterranean Islands” and the rest of the texts have a large red font, to stand out against its nearly complementary color, blue.

    7. List of 5-7 other film/magazine examples within the genre.

  

  

SOMETHING TO NOTE: I noticed that when I searched up travel magazines on Google, the most predominant color was blue! (As can be seen below) Do magazines with blue colors in their covers sell more, and do magazine producers purposely place pictures with dominant blues on their covers to sell more? I might be getting ahead of myself, but is this because consumers are more attracted to the pictures on the cover (of the idea of being in that beautiful blue ocean) or are consumers just more attracted to the color blue, based on color psychology? I will continue to research this phenomenon…but if my group and I decide on doing a magazine, we will most probably use a lot of blue shades.

Aha! See? On the infographic on the right, it states, “the color blue is the favorite one among humans worldwide.” So magazine producers are using lots of blue shades to make consumers attracted to their magazine and therefore purchase it… I feel an idea forming now...

The Start of a New Beginning!

Hello! Welcome to my blog. My name is Malena Diez and I am an eleventh-grader in AICE Media Studies at Cypress Bay High School. A few weeks ago, my class peers and I decided on which path we would take on our AICE Media project journey: a magazine or film, and if we would work with someone or fly solo.

I decided to work with my twin sister, Catalina, and my friend Valentina, who have similar tastes as me and are very creative and responsible (a vital characteristic). We also selected the magazine route, as we all had prior experience with graphic design and using programs like Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, and InDesign in our art classes. This week, we then had to brainstorm genres in either the film or magazine world that we would most likely be doing for our final project.

Pondering independently about my likes and dislikes, I came up with two options that I love equally: travel and fashion/ beauty. I researched these genres for about an hour in class and I still couldn’t decide on which would be better for my future magazine. I went over to Catalina and Valentina and we all had the same two genres picked out! After discussing for a few minutes, we realized that we all had the same problem of not being able to decide which genre to choose. Ultimately, we decided we were each going to research three different genres; travel, fashion, and beauty, in order to eventually have a more informed decision when we chose our final genre.

Right now, we’re still not sure of which genre to choose, but I know I am leaning towards a travel magazine because I’m always taking pictures of landscapes when I travel and I have previous experience in travel writing for my AICE English Language class. Also, my partners and I are all fairly well-traveled so we can write the magazine with the mindset of a tourist in mind. In the end, I know we will choose the genre that is best for us.

Now for the purpose of this blog: here I will write about everything that happens in the course of making our magazine (the good, the bad, the ugly) like our research, any problems we encounter, how we choose our layouts, colors, pictures, etc. I am honestly very excited to begin this journey because ever since I was little I’ve wanted to design a magazine, choose strategic shots and colors, and more. I will continue to research in the following days in order to make our magazine the best it could be.

Thank you for reading, and I hope you decide to continue following me on my adventure.

Till next time,

Malena