Research and planning – Digipak: Drafts of digipak

Drafts of digipak

After identifying the most common details associated with our digipak such as artists name, album title, track list, parental advisory label and bar code - we created drafts for our digipak. This allowed us to explore different software and be creative to make it as appealing as possible to our target audience. We also took in feedback which allowed us to meet the target audience standards , this identified the importance of the digipak and the correct presentation and use of conventions were vital in ensuring how successful the album would be.

Draft 1:

Analyse your use of conventions using PEER:

• I have included an image of my artist and he is looking away from the camera, he is mainly wearing dark clothing which is captured with a medium shot - this is conventional as it makes my artist look mysterious and does not make the audience aware of what his intentions are.

• The title of my album is "Changes" which can intrigue the audience as they could have their own interpretation of the word, also it suggests that a story will be told.

• The low key lighting as well as the use of the blue and purple gradient creates a mysterious and intriguing atmosphere and mood. This is conventional as we are inviting the audience to discover more with this artist.

• The typography contrasts the background but also stands out, this yellow/gold colour can give off the idea of hope juxtaposing the negative connotations the dark themes may have.

• The overall layout is neat as everything fits properly and it does not look too cramped, this is conventional as the most important image of the artist is clear.

• The second image I have used is a train and can be linked to travel which can also be linked to the album title of changes, this further intrigues the audience leaving them wanting to know more about the album and what it contains.

• The language I have used is simple as the audience should be able to relate to it easily as my target audience are predominantly working class and I wish for them to understand it.

• Adorno and popular culture: This digipak follows most conventions and therefore is not going against hegemony, it is appealing to a mainstream audience due to the dark colours and the low key lighting, the artist does not look entirely relatable but his costume can be seen as conventional for those of the hip hop genre.

• ME-Ka is seen as promoting his culture and ideologies as he is dressed as a typical working class young male, representing them for their masses.

• Hebdige's subcultures: This digipak can also relate to the hip hop subcultures as well as others as it looks like a conventional hip hop album, very few hip hop albums are entirely about positive things. 

Audience feedback: Victoria, 18

What do you like about it?

Front cover

The title is clear

Very consistent with colours and text

Artist image is quite clear and intriguing 

Back cover

Gradient colour is nice as opposed to the same colour as the front

Image of train is interesting

What did you not like about it?

Front cover

The artist looks confused in the image

The artist name is not on the front

Back cover

The track list should be more clear and sizes should be changed.

How can it be improved?

Front cover

The artists name needs to be added to the front

Make the image of the artist brighter

Back cover

More information such as artist name on the back

Distributing company logo can be added

Production details on back cover need to be added

Draft 2

Analyse your use of conventions using PEER

• I have included an image of my artist and he is looking away from the camera, he is wearing all black which is captured with a medium shot - this is conventional as it makes my artist look mysterious and does not make the audience aware of what his intentions are.

• The title of my album is "Changes" which can intrigue the audience as they could have their own interpretation of the word, also it suggests that a story will be told.

• There is a darkened image of my artist which has tones of blue with low key lighting, this adds mysteriousness to his character which should intrigue audiences.

• The typography contrasts the background but also stands out, this yellow/gold colour can give off the idea of hope juxtaposing the negative connotations the dark themes may have.

• The red colour of the background represents blood, sorrow and pain which contrasts with the typography.

• The layout of the front and back images is consistent and works well as whole as it is simple.

• The language I have used is simple as the audience should be able to relate to it easily as my target audience are predominantly working class and I wish for them to understand it.

• Adorno and popular culture: This digipak follows most conventions and therefore is not going against hegemony, it is appealing to a mainstream audience due to the dark colours and the low key lighting, the artist does not look entirely relatable but his costume can be seen as conventional for those of the hip hop genre.

• ME-Ka is seen as promoting his culture and ideologies as he is dressed as a typical working class young male, representing them for their masses.

• Hebdige's subcultures: This digipak can also relate to the hip hop subcultures as well as others as it looks like a conventional hip hop album, very few hip hop albums are entirely about positive things. 

Audience feedback: Matthew, 19

Strengths - 

Colours and text is consistent

Typography is clear and juxtaposes the background well - stands out (which is conventional)

Good artist representation - it is intriguing 

Weaknesses - 

Image of artist too dark

Parental advisory label missing from front cover

Artist name is missing on either cover

No production information

Conclusion:

The drafting of the digipak process has allowed us to create a final digipak which has been built from the constructive criticism we received from the feedback. The changes we made included changing some of the spacing of the typography, as well as adding a parental advisory label to the front cover and the artists name to the back. We chose not to add his name to the front as we wanted him to seem like an established commodity who is recognised via his star image. A barcode was also added for when the album goes on sale as professional digipaks have this. The drafting process was vital and it was effective as we were able to understand the small issues with the quality of the digipak, without it it would not be as successful.