Evaluation Q7 - Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

From creating my preliminary task of the college magazine to my final product of my music magazine, I feel that I have learnt a great deal about the research process and creating progress and I think that my technical ability has grown a lot.

Research into other products on my preliminary task was scarce, I thought that a minimum amount would be acceptable and all that I needed to make a good product, I was very wrong. I have learnt that the research process is the most important part as this is what will make your product realistic and helps you realise what it is you need to do to attract your specific target audience and make a profit. Along with making me realise and understand how to ‘target’ my target market using aspects like Demographics, Reader Profiles and statistics. I have also learnt to research into the conventions of magazines which is what makes the magazine realistic and eye catching which changes a product from being amateur to professional. Things that would seem simple to the untrained eye like the placing of the masthead or image are crucial to the effect it has on the audience and therefore would affect profit. The masthead in my music magazine is placed correctly in the top left hand corner where as in my college magazine it is central, which is not conventional and does not look realistic. On closer inspection I can see that my college magazine does not include the price, an issue number or a website address, these things are what make the magazine a lot more realistic and professional. The text in my college magazine does not follow conventions, the font does not stand out and the colour makes it difficult to read. There are no bar lines or blocks of colour behind the text to separate the text for easier reading. I have included these things in my final product and I think it looks a lot better for it.

This process has also made me think a lot about images and their importance, the use of iconography, the attitudes they display and how they attract the audience. I had to consider the use of mise en scene in relation to costume, setting and props. In my preliminary task, the image does relate to its purpose however it certainly does not attract an audience, firstly, the simple idea of the model's eye line. In most magazines, including my final product, the model is looking at the camera to give the impression that s/he is looking at the audience, this straight away pulls in the audience whereas in the preliminary magazine, it does not have the same instant affect. The clothing and setting also are more prominent in my final product, as my magazine's target audience is a smaller subgroup in society than simply college students, the clothing an setting are more specialised and relate more to the specific people I am addressing. The iconography is also important, in my final product my model is pictured with a cigarette which is stereotyped with my target audience, the young, indie/rock section of society and is poised at the forefront of the image, however my college magazine has little iconography, a computer, which can be associated with a wide range of society, not just specifically students. It is also not as visible as the cigarette in my other image so does not stand out.

I think I have probably learnt the most about the use of Photoshop during this project. As you can see, my preliminary task has very little editing, the only editing used was for the text and even that was minimal and because of this, the product looks incredibly amateur. My final product on the other hand, looks reasonably professional in my opinion, I think this is mainly down to the image, as shown in the Photoshop question of my evaluation, you can see that many changes were made to the original image like changes in contrast, levels and the colour which was changed to black and white. I also learnt how to remove blemishes which is conventional, as no magazine models will have spots unless they are intentional. I learnt how to make my text more realistic by changing the blending options and using glows and emboss to make text 3D.

Overall I have learnt a lot since starting my preliminary task, from research, production and technical elements, there has been a lot of work but I have enjoyed all of it!

Evaluation Q6 - What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Evaluation Q5 - How did you attract/address your audience

Evaluation Q4 - Who would be the audience for your media product?

In the research stage before creating my product, I determined my target audience, basically who I was going to aim my product at and who would be interested in and buy my product. This was decided on what my magazine was about and the people it is stereotyped or associated with. On deciding to make my magazine based on Indie/Rock music, I then proceeded to find the types of people that are most commonly associated with this genre, I found this to be a relatively easy thing to do as I, myself fit into this category. I then went on to research existing magazines and ones that are similar to my own to find their reader profiles, mood boards, focus groups and demographics to locate their specific target audience and applied it to my own magazine and created my own reader profile, mood board, focus groups and demographics seen below.

By using these, I could then determine the general age range, sex, class, occupation and social group in society. My results came to show that my target audience would generally be within the age range of 16-24, a median age of 19. There will generally be more males buying my magazine than females and they will be between the upper middle and lower middle classes. Their occupation would predominantly be a student and the social groups in society that will buy my magazine will be 'Indie' and 'Grunge' this particular social group is associated and stereotyped with things like Doc Martens, drugs/smoking and festivals which will help me to target them specifically.

Evaluation Q3 - Who would distribute your media product and why?

On researching different distributors of media and magazine I came across the company IPC Media. They are a company that is very much horizontally integrated and hold business in distribution, advertising and publishing.  I thought this would be the perfect distributor for my magazine for many reasons. Firstly, they are also the distributor for a competing music magazine NME which I have modelled my own magazine around. This already shows that if other existing, successful companies are using this source then it is likely to be reliable. IPC Market force is the distributing section of IPC, it is a British company so is easy for us to use and helps support the British distribution industry.

Along with NME, IPC is also behind many other companies which cover a wide range of genres and themes, these include famous women's weeklies including Now, Chat and Woman; TV entertainment brands including What's on TV, TVTimes and TV & Satellite Week and the goodtoknow network. Leisure brands including Country Life, Horse & Hound, Rugby World and Decanter, as well as lifestyle brands including Nuts and Mousebreaker . Luxury fashion brands including Marie Claire and InStyle, lifestyle brands including woman&home and Essentials and home interest brands including Ideal Home, Livingetc and housetohome. These well-known magazines show that IPC is a trustworthy, reliable and experienced distributor that cover every target market and specifically appeal to mine with the lifestyle genre of magazines by selling like products including NME.

IPC reaches a gigantic audience being the UK's leading consumer magazine publisher. They engage with 26m UK adults - almost two thirds of UK women and 42% of UK men. Their websites reaches over 25 million users globally every month. This reassures me that my magazine will have the best chance possible at reaching the wider audience and maximum profit.

Evaluation Q2 - How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Double page spread Conventions analysis

My Main Image is conventional to existing products in relation to layout, effects, and iconography. The image is positioned on the left page so that it is the first thing you see when turning the page, it leads well on to the text that follows. It takes up the whole page as this is conventional for other magazines to do so, it reinforces the artist mentioned and could promote a new album or product. The picture again follows the iconography and stereotype of this genre. She is holding the cigarette and wearing leather, usually associated with the rebels and an indie rock genre. The black and white and the deep contrast adds an edgy feel to the mood which reflects the genre of the artist and magazine. I think the black and white also makes the pages flow more which improves the continuity, this is also shown throughout the magazine as the front cover image is also black and white, linking the two pages.

I have used a Pull quote as my title on this page. This has been used by a lot of other existing magazines as it draws the audience straight into the article. The text is fun and intriguing so it leaves the readers wanting to read on. It is in large text at the top of the page so the reader can see it straight away. Some of the text is in bigger lettering than the rest, this is because they are the words that will attract the readers so again will stand out better.

The Colour scheme and Layout are consistent throughout all the pages to show continuity and help the product flow. It shows that they are from the same magazine and improves the aesthetics. This is conventional to all existing magazines as they too want to keep consistent.

The Features I have used like page numbering, credits, ‘exclusive’ and the stand first are little things that can differentiate between an amateur and professional product. All existing magazines use these features  to help the reader navigate the page and inform them of important aspects. The use of ‘EXCLUSIVE’ on a red background informs them that it is an important interview and the stand first that usually goes unnoticed is a conventional feature used to briefly tell the reader what the article is about. Credits are always used on the images for legal reasons so are definitely needed. Page numbers are another think that may go unnoticed but are vital for any magazine. They are placed at either the top or bottom of the page and subtly help the reader find certain articles.

The Text is simple all the way through in century gothic font. This makes it easy to read and conforms to the text in existing products. The text is white on a black background which helps it stand out while looking more sophisticated than the usual black text on white background. Other existing products like from kerrang magazine have used this technique. The text in bold are the questions from the interview, I think this makes it easy for the reader to differentiate between the interviewer and the artist and helps them to navigate around the page. The text is in columns so that it is easy to read and is conventional to all other magazines as it splits the writing into manageable sections, looking less daunting to the reader. I have used a pull quote in the middle of the page, this highlights an interesting part of the interview and stands out and makes the reader intrigued and want to find out more. I have also included the artist’s name behind some of the text in a calligraphic font. I think this feature makes the page look more sophisticated and aesthetically pleasing. Other magazines like NME and Q have used this to make the page look more interesting and professional. The text ‘EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW’ is in capital letters and is in a very simple font simply to stand out and attract readers.

Contents page Conventions analysis

The Title is conventional to existing products in the regards of it’s layout and design, also by including the magazine logo next to it. It is placed at the top left hand corner so that it easy to see and is the first thing the reader will see. It has large text and a simple font for easy reading and the white texts contrasts the black bar background so it stands out while still staying within the three colour colour scheme. By including the magazine logo next to the title reinforces the brand and follows the layout convention being at the top of the page so it can be seen easily.

I have taken this specific Feature from the existing magazine NME. Other magazines use similar features to make magazine navigation easier and more personalised for the reader. This particular feature shows what artists are mentioned in the issue so it helps the reader see if they want to buy this magazine from a glance instead of having to read through the whole magazine.

My Main image on my contents page is conventional to other existing products as it is the same artist featured on the front page of the magazine, the magazines pay a lot of money to get the artist so they publicize them the most, it also shows that it is the main article in this issue. The layout is fairly central while keeping the text in columns. This is so that it can be seen straight away. The model is seen with a cigarette and swearing which relates to the iconography and stereotypes of this genre of music and the magazine.

The Plug/subscription is used on the contents page of most music magazines at the bottom of the page along with the contact information. It is big and bold with bright colours to attract the reader’s attention and encourage them to subscribe. I have used yellow text like in NME as it is eye catching because it is bright and out of the colour scheme. 

I have used Other original images in my contents page to make it look more realistic. The lighting in the photos are professional and make it look more sophisticated. It is conventional how the pictures all relate to the article they are next to, to give the reader a visual idea of who they will read about, readers may recognize certain bands by the pictures also. I have edited the photos having some black and white and some in original colour, it makes the shoots look different and gives a different effect.

The Text is a simple and easy to read font. It keeps consistent with the colour scheme apart from the plug which is meant to stand out. I have used red lettering on the first letter of every heading to split up the sections for easy reading and have also used it on important words like band names to make them stand out. Bigger lettering and a different font were used on the band names, again to stand out to the reader while still being simple.

Front Page conventions analysis

My Masthead is conventional for a music magazine as it is placed in the top left hand corner so it is the first thing, aside from the main image, that the reader sees. It’s realistic as all the other existing products follow this convention. The masthead fits in with the colour scheme which is conventional as makes the page flow and sets the colour scheme, however it is unconventional as most mastheads only use one colour, I thought I would add all the colour scheme colours as it allowed me to play about in photo shop to make it more 3D and look more professional. The smooth texture reflects the cool and calm vibe of the magazine. I used the font magneto as it looks quite retro which is the unique style I was going for which represents the style of the magazine.

I used two Plugs in the front page, these are conventional techniques used by most existing products to attract the reader. I placed one at the bottom of the page and one in the top right corner, that way, even if a reader only has a quick glance, they are more likely to see the plug and buy the magazine. The text is conventionally in capital lettering and is bold so it can be seen easily. I made the top plug stand out the most by using white as this is the one readers are most likely to see.

The Sell lines are placed along the right side of the page with the text running downward, this mirrors all existing products as it is easy for the eye to follow without taking the attention away from the main image or main sell line. I have highlighted the main word in red to attract the reader and instantly inform them of who it is about. I have used the convention of bar lines to separate the sell lines, it makes it easier to read and improves the aesthetics.

The Date is positioned above the Masthead, this is conventional as most existing products place it above, next to or below the masthead. It is placed at the top of the page so that it can be seen easily. I decided to follow the design of the masthead on the date so it fits in and looks part of the magazine. It is also sized just right to fit with the lettering of ‘Buzz’ making it flow and look professional.

The Main image is conventional to existing music magazines as it is a mid-shot of a single person (artist), it is the same artist that is featured in the double page spread. I made the image black and white to fit in with the colour scheme. The iconography in the image include the leather jacket and her smoking, these represent the attitude that this genre of music is linked with. In the image the model is looking straight to the camera, this is conventional as it draws the reader in as it looks like she is looking straight at you.

The Headline is a very important convention in a music magazine. The layout is conventional as it is placed in front of the main image at the bottom third of the page. It is in big bold lettering to catch the reader’s attention. The big quotation signs show that there is information directly from the artist shown which will get the reader interested. I chose a simple font so that it is easy to read and visible among a shelf of other magazines.

Features like the barcode, web address and price are small things but they make the magazine look realistic. The layouts of these things are conventional, price at the top near the masthead, barcode at the bottom right and website along the bottom. The price is bright and visible in red and larger text while the website is small in thin lettering.

Evaluation - Question 1

Throughout all the pages of my product, I have tried to use continuity so that the product flows and looks more like a conventional magazine. I have done this using a set colour scheme, artist, and the same location in the imagery. I chose the colour scheme of red, white and black for my magazine as It looks quite simplistic and classy, it is not overrun with colour and in your face, the contrasting of the black and white makes the text easy to read and is conventional to most magazines. The only time I have veered from the colour scheme is on the plug to make it stand out and attract the attention of the reader; this too is conventional for magazines to do. I have used the same model on all pages to show continuity as she is the main article. I have also made the images on the front page and DPS black and white to link the two pages whilst using images from the same location on the DPS and Contents page to link the two. This shows that it is from the same magazine. On making final adjustments to my product, I will also change the font on the front page to match the DPS.  I think the layout of my magazine generally goes with the conventions of a music magazine, for instance my main image on my DPS is on the left page so it is the first thing the audience sees when they turn the page and it leads on nicely to the text as they immediately know what they are going to read. I also used little features like bars of colour along the bottom or top of the page to highlight specific information like the masthead or plug.

Magazine Promotion

With the massive percentage of our population having portable internet devices and access to the internet,
I think it would be most sensible to use this to my advantage to promote my magazine. I can use Web 2.0 and social networking sites to post adverts of my magazine and links to the magazine website like on Youtube and Spotify. On the website I could offer sections of the magazine to be read for free to draw in readers who may not have been as interested before. We could also offer a discount for subscribers who recommend my magazine to their friends. I believe these ways of advertising are better for this day and age.

Contents page feedback

jamie's comment;

the contents page is busy and full of good information and instructive notes about the magazine. it looks appealing and it leads your eyes around the page with all the different things going on, the font and pictures all match and suit really well. nothing stands out for the wrong reasons or doesn't fit in and i really like the side red box with all of the names of the artists and bands. i also really like the highlighted letters to indicate importance  on the first text box you need to space the writing so its not over flowing on to each other!

james's comments;

I like how full your contents page is and the images that you have chosen and i think they look pretty realistic. The use of different colours on you page also make you focus on different sections of the page. The things that you could improve is that you could do something to the contents heading because at the moment there's a bit of plain black space there that could be filled.

Kiera's comments:

I like the title and how it stands out .You've carried on the style of the text which is good because there's consistency throughout. Everything is in line so it doesn't look scruffy at all, The band index is a nice idea and the layout is looks realistic. Where you've put the contents name there's a lot of black, so maybe you could add something in there to fill the space. Well done!

Teacher's comments:
In order to improve your contents page, make the 'Contents' title bigger so it takes up most of the space and put the 'Buzz' logo where the date is. Make the date smaller or totally remove it as it is already featured on the front cover. Use original images as well as your main image to make it more original, you may need to change the artists to ones you have made up.

DPS Feedback

Ellie- I really like the setting and the mise en scene of the image like the use of the cigarette and the brick wall, it gives off the right impression and attitude of the magazine. The use of speech marks are good because they draw attention. The font on 'Dee' is good as it looks sophisticated and shows dynamic within the page. Improvements - better font on title as it looks quite simple.

Elle- I really like the layout of the page and how the image takes up the full page, it stands out and straight away shows the audience what the article is about. I love the pull quote as the title and how you have enlarged the speech marks to stand out. The fonts are consistent and it shows good continuity to your other products.

Jamie- There is good continuity between all of your products. You have used a good image which reflects the idea of the magazine. The pull quotes are outstanding! it looks really professional. Very good layout that is easy to read however there is too much writing.

Front Cover Feedback

Ellie- I really like the Masthead and the Photoshop effects used in making it and you have set the magazine at a good price which makes it more realistic. For improvements, I think you could change the star shape on the plug as it doesn't look as professional. (HAS BEEN CHANGED NOW)

Elle- I really like the use of house style colours, this is effective and creates realism to your front cover. The Masthead looks GREAT. I think its good that you have clearly considered the use of conventions with the bar code, issue number, price and website details! The plug in the top right corner is a good way to attract your target audience therefore you have clearly thought that through as well.

Jamie- It is really cool, the colour scheme is really eye catching and appealing and makes you want to but it. The sub-headings on the side are eye catching. The stories are interesting and make you want to read and so makes you want to buy the mag. The image suits the genre of the magazine and is also a great image on the whole.

FINAL

Third Contents page draft

This is my third contents page draft. I like the layout of this draft, I used the idea of the logo in the red square from Q magazine. however I don't think it is my best draft as some sections look more amateur like the left hand side. the main image is an original image but the other three were taken from the internet to look more realistic. 

Second Contents page draft

This is my second contents draft. I am really pleased with this draft as I think it is eye catching but not too 'in your face'. I like the feature used of the band index which I have taken from the NME magazines. I have used an original image in this draft but also have used some images from the internet to make it look more realistic  Over all this is my favorite draft.

First Contents page draft

This is my first contents page draft. for this I have used a full image as the background and added the text around it. I think this is good because the colours in the image are bright and eye catching, however I think the mixture of the bright colours and the amount of text make it look too busy. I do like how I have used the logo within the masthead, I think I will use this throughout my drafts.

Final Front Cover Draft

A few changes were made to my first draft, which is now my Final Draft.