Websites

I looked at many different websites, particulary from girl bands so that I was able to see what kind of pages they included, what kind of format used and how the whole websites were presented.

Some of my favorites were The Spice Girls Below.



I really liked the idea of under "THE GIRLS" page there was a different photograph of each of them separately. As you click on the picture it comes up with a small bit of information about them. I also like the fact that there are each of the members signatures next to the photo. This is different to in the Girls Aloud website while clicking on "The Girls" it simply comes up with information about the girls:



However this is a photograph of all 5 girls, where if you hover the mouse over a girl it highlights her and brings up her name.





Another website I really liked the style of was Beyonce's 'Events' page because it clearly listed the date/city/venue of each of her concerts in a simple straightforward layout that fans can easily make sense of:


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other yellow website

Here are a couple of other single covers from Girls Aloud that the band did not release as albums, to show the different formats and ways of posing 5 girls


I think this cover is really interesting because the girls are based around a wall so that they are able to use it as a prop to sit on, lean against etc. They are all wearing something white which links their outfits together in terms of colour. I also like the contrast of the white wall against the black background, and the way the band name stands out in white letters so you are able to read it clearly.



This single hit cover is quite different to their normal style because the cover is a collage of only their heads and shoulders all placed behind the letters of the band name 'GIRLS ALOUD' designed in a quirky format. There is no clothing scheme as only the girls skin is revealed and they are all looking various ways with their eyes. The title is at the top left hand corner.



I was surprised because this single hit cover is very simple and plain compared to the rest of Girls Aloud covers as it doe not even have a photograph. It is a purple background with huge silver letters of the band name and name of the single to stand out against the purple and catch your eye. There are also various black lines tangled around each other which was I think was probably the inspiration for the design of the cover of the album in which 'Tangled Up' was in (see earlier blog).

However, my favourite cover is the album cover of 'Out Of Control' as explained (see earlier blog), which i will use as an influence to my own album cover.

cont

This is their fourth 'studio' album released in 2007 and as you can see it is styled very different from all previous albums, with the album sectioned off into different triangles, with a girl n each section.

I like the idea of the ropes 'tangling' them up as their are posed as trying to escape.

They are all dressed in simple white strappy tops, with their hair tied back and they are all wearing bold colours of eye shadow on their eyes.

Make up, dressing and hairstyles will be important to think about in my shoot.

This is the band's latest album released in 2008. It is my favourite album cover out of all of them, as i think it looks the most interesting.

The cover consists of a full body shot, which i will be doing with the girls all posed in different positions while standing in a row, which i think looks more interesting then doing similar positions like their previous album covers.

The are all dressed in different dresses and different high heels, and i like the fact that the dresses and heels are all bright, bold colours and contrast with each other. i like the fact they don't match in with the shoes.

'Girls Aloud' (the band name) is written in big letters behind them which i like because it looks really appealing and the album title is written in another colour underneath. The lighting also looks effective with the black letters at the back having light shining on them helping to highlight them and also creating a shadow of the letters on a shiney floor beneath. This album cover is very different from the bands first album cover and it was interesting to see how they have changed over the years.

Girls Aloud Research into their albums

As you can see from their first album cover, the band is presented simply, with all members standing against a plain white background, dressed in black to help make them stand out. They are all doing relatively relaxed poses with arms by their sides. As the album was released in 2002, you can see from the outfits that they now look slightly outdat

ed, for instance the crop tops and baggy trousers. 

This is the second album, released in 2004, there is a clear difference in how the band are posed and their whole style. including different haircuts creating a more updated image. The photograph is very different from the last album; all the girls are looking in different directions, wearing strappy tops and photoshopped into postion where only their heads and arms are revealed, with the the Girls Aloud logo postioned in front of them.

Their 3rd album released in 2005 again has a different style. The band are wearing colour coded clothes in red are the shot focuses on their face and hair (with similar hair styling), with the girls faces postioned close to each other.

This album released in 2006 is very different to all the others as it does not involved a photo shoot of them. Instead it is a drawing or has been photoshopped with the girls represented by dark silhouettes in the picture.  

Girls Aloud

I have decided to focus on ' Girls Aloud', popular girl band created by ITV's talent show 'popstars'.
Info: They one of the most successful British pop groups of the decade, with a string of 20 consecutive Top 10 singles (including four number ones) and six albums (including two number ones).

I have decided to base my band album cover in the style of them.
Research into them:



Their first album -

Girl Bands

After researching into several different single female artists, single male artists and then bands like the pigeon decetives, kooks and kaiser cheifs, i decided i would like to look at girl bands.
I briefly looked at :

"The Saturdays",


Here is the album cover for The Saturday's first and latest album. Ir is interesting because the background is all in clear white and grey, in order to draw attention to the five members each dress in a fashionable brightly coloured dress. They are all in different yet slightly similar poses and staring into the same spot which i think is effective i like the shadowing and the bold title.



The Saturday's website
I like the clear title indicating the band with the members appearing to sit on each of the letters. The poses and postions are the same from the album cover which is clever. I like the fact a music video is uploaded (black box) to watch for free, and a forum with latest news events also looks good.
I like the clear links at the top of the page, however they could also be located at the bottom for ease.


"The Spice Girls" - famous world wide girl band from 90s - recently made a 'come back'.



Likes - massive bold letters of the band draws my attention.
The members are all positioned relatively close together, wearing 90s outfits, fashionable at the time, however the outfits to not appear to match into each other in terms of style or colour.



I think this album is really unique because each of the members appear within a letter of the band. I think it's effective however I would prefer to see them positioned closer to the screen to get a better look.




The website - I felt like the different bits were a bit all over the place, but I liked the idea of having the different tabs positioned in the centre screen. I think the photo on the left could have changed as it remained the same even if you click on different links.


"Sugababes"


This album cover is different to the other shots of members of the girl bands, as it is a close up, however i do not think the the tops of their heads should have been cropped off as it looks as if they are missing. Colour scheme of yellow.

Website



Likes - moving images of the band postioned behind boxes of texts and over links - really effective.
I like the idea of becoming a member - fans feel more involved. Clear different links at the top of the page including forum and news - simple.


After researching into several different girl bands i have decided to focus on successful girl band 'Girls Aloud'.

pigeon detectives

I came across a website for the band the pigeon detectives, which i really liked.



I like the way it is unique to most other 'mainstream' websites.