Improvements to my Evaluation
After receiving feedback from my teacher, I have added the following into my magazine analysis:
I wanted to represent Molly, the lead in my feature band, as a rock star rather than part of a girl band. I have conveyed this by dressing her in normal closes, making her look down to earth and normal. This is also reflected in my double page spread as Molly comes across as a friendly, polite, down to earth person. I didn’t want Molly and the Bisons to be recognised as a “girl band” but as a band with raw talent and passion for their music. I think this is important for my readers as a girl band may not be their ideal main feature. I wanted to tailor my article, my band and my layout to suit everyone who would want to read my magazine. I did use feminine colours, for example a purple title, but this was to make it stand out rather than convey the same thoughts as a girl band. The poses Molly used look natural, relaxed, and as if she’s just having a laugh – she doesn’t take herself too seriously. I think this is good to show my audience because it shows that not all rock stars are pompous and arrogant. The way a front man or woman is conveyed is a true reflection on the bands attitude, behaviour and even their music. I believe the readers of my magazine would much rather read about someone normal, on their level rather than some wannabe superstar dining on caviar and demanding a hotel room with sea-view room.
Uncategorized | Comment (0)Music Magazine Evaluation
Audience:
The target audience for my music magazine are teenagers and young adults aged 16 and above. All readers will have a passion for rock and alternative music and some will enjoy going to gigs and discovering new music. I used the results from my questionnaire to determine which artists were most popular and what genres I should base my magazine on. I felt that I should base the age range of my target audience around me as I can relate more to music and the language used by my age group.
Before I handed my questionnaire out, I had already decided on my target audience so it was easier to produce to those who would be interested in my product.
Audience Feedback:
I posted the following on my blog to get some audience feedback from my target audience:
In order to complete my coursework, I need to gain audience feedback from my target audience. Please answer these questions in a blog comment to help me improve my product.
- Do my main page and contents convey those of real magazines?
- With the artists shown and the layout used, would you buy this product? If so, why? If no, why?
- What do you like about my product?
- What do you think I could improve to make this magazine better?
- Other comments?
After gaining feedback from my target audience, I made a few improvements to my magazine, taking into account the comments they had made.
My target audience thought that my front cover and contents page were conveyed to those of magazine as they looked professional and realistic. They especially liked the layout of my contents page as it was easy to navigate, tidy and it conveyed a real magazine.
The artists shown in my feature were perfect for my target audience. Most said that purely based on the artists shown, they would buy or even subscribe to my magazine if it were made into a real feature.
The parts of my magazine that my target audience liked were; the use of colour on the front page, the bold magazine title and the articles advertised. Some felt that my picture could have benefited from a plain white background. I tried to improve this however; I could not find a background that was any better suited, as I didn’t want the background to draw attention away from my feature artist. My target audience also felt that I needed more space for my double page spread, as more pictures and an expansion on my article would have given the target audience even more of an insight into my feature artist. I did have to cut down my feature article, because it was too long and it couldn’t fit on the page. I found it difficult to cut down my words as it may completely change my article and its tone, but I managed to fix it. I also wish I could have added more pictures; however a double page spread wasn’t big enough to present all the pictures I had taken. Although the two pictures I did use of my feature artist showed my photographic ability, I felt I could have shown off more by displaying more pictures I had taken.
How did you attract/address them?
For my front page, I used a direct mode of address with my artist. This directly draws the audience in, as if she is looking at them and willing them to read the magazine. The mise-en-scene is very plain, with a white background, as I wanted all the focus to be on my artist. This mean that the audience are instantly drawn to her and not distracted by is going on around her. I have used a medium close up to show her body language, her style and the also her face and how she is smiling and looking relaxed rather than intense. Thus style is similar to conventional magazine layouts. I wanted the picture to look bright and fresh and the white background shows this. I also enhanced the image on Photoshop as I was not completely happy with the lighting so I simply used the lighting tool to enhance it.
I wanted my magazine to look as real as possible so I took inspiration from other music magazines in the same genre, such as NME, Kerrang and Q.
With each of these magazines, I looked at the price so I could realistically price my product so it is affordable for my target audience. I decided that as most of my audience will still be in education that they may not be able to afford a costly product. This is why my magazine is priced at £2.50 and is only a monthly magazine. This is to keep my target audience interested and I can then add more content to my magazine on a monthly basis.
I used basic primary colours for my colour scheme such as red and yellow because these are simple yet they are eye catching and would attract the attention of my target audience. The red connotes excitement and ambition. This is reflected in my magazine as it is fun and exciting and my feature artist shows ambition. The yellow connotes happiness, optimism and sociability. I wanted to show continuity in my magazine, so I used red, yellow and purple as my main fonts for my contents page and then I used purple for my title for my double page spread. The purple used connotes creativity, which is proved as my product is a music magazine. It also connotes mystery, which is the effect I wanted my audience to feel when wondering about my feature artist. The main bulk of font throughout my magazine is in black, which connotes sophistication, which is important as my target audience are “young adults” My titles are in a bold, eye catching font to make it stand out from other magazines and so my target audience will instantly know which magazine it is. My anchorage text is in the middle of the page in the biggest font so it is instantly recognisable.
I created my own slogan “Your monthly music magazine” to give and insight to the audience to what my magazine was about. It is simple and easy to remember and my target audience will instantly recognise it.
With both the title of my magazine and then title for my contents page, I have used the same style of font to show that they are both part of the same magazine. This also shows continuity that I have used to same font for my titles. As my double page spread is separate from the regular pieces in my magazine, I have used a different style of font to show that it is a one off article in my magazine. I feel that I kept my magazine simple and effective by only using a few different styles of font, as many styles of font would make my cover look too busy and the audience would not be drawn to my main picture as the cover has so many things going on at once.
By using buzz words such as “exclusive”, “plus!” and “free!”, I have drawn the audience to something in my product that may be of interest to them. My use of exclamation marks shows excitement to the articles I am advertising. This means that even if the audience are not interested in my main article, they may find something else of interest to them. I have advertised other articles in my magazine on my cover which I have then shown in my contents page to show that they are relevant to my magazine.
I liked how my contents page from my school magazine had turned out, so I used the same layout for my music magazine as I feel it looks tidy and I had a chance to use more pictures I had taken. I knew how to construct it, and I had fewer problems with the creation on Photoshop.
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
I decided not to challenge the conventions of a music magazine because I felt that I could take inspiration from other magazines to help me with my product. I felt that I could use these to the best of my abilities to create a product that looked and conveyed a real music magazine.
Kerrang! is the world’s largest selling music magazine so I wanted see how the conventions of the magazine were used to help me improve my product. I analysed an issue of Kerrang! magazine, to see how the front cover, contents and double page spread were formed. This was a really useful exercise because Kerrang! magazine’s target audience is similar to mine, so to have a look at a current music magazine helped me in designing my product. I took inspiration for my contents pages from an issue of Elle magazine. When I created my school magazine, I had a look at various contents pages and I thought that this layout was simple, easy to create and I could easily fit all my information onto one page. I used this design in my preliminary and my coursework because when it came to the coursework itself, I knew how to use Photoshop to manipulate my page.
With my front cover, I had several things that made it look like a conventional magazine; a main picture; a large title about my feature article; a price; a barcode; a strapline, and buzz words such as “free” and “exclusive”. I kept my colour scheme basic to ensure that my page did not look too busy. This kept the main focus on my double page spread.
As any conventional magazine, I used an image that was relevant to my feature article, (my double page spread). My image takes up the whole page, making it stand out and will be the first thing my target audience will notice when they see my product.
My choice of text was to make sure that the title of my magazine stood out instantly so that my target audience would easily recognise it.
My colour scheme was maintained throughout my magazine, and my pages didn’t look too busy. This was to make sure that my target audience would be attracted to my features.
For my contents page, I also looked at other magazines with similar target audiences for inspiration. I found that most off free gifts or posters, so I have included them in my product. I used language that is specific to my target audience and used terminology such as “gig guide.” I also included relevant band names specific and relevant to the magazine’s target genre.
With my contents page, I followed a contents page design from Elle magazine. I also used this design in my preliminary task. I chose four pictures relevant to articles in my magazine. I used a large font to clearly show the relevant page numbers that each image belongs to. I used red font again, as on my front page to show continuity within my magazine. I kept each page description basic, so not to give away the content of my magazine but to give a brief insight into each article.
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
My magazine is a rock and alternative magazine. My feature article represents this with the relaxed, casual clothing, the accessories she is wearing, and for example a ring and her nails are painted shows her “rock and roll” side. The clothes are laid back and she looks relaxed, which sets the mood for the magazine.
I think teenage girls will be particularly interested in this issue as my feature article is about an all girl band. However, there are aspects in my magazine that are suitable for both genders and I have included many bands that will appeal to the whole of my target audience. I haven’t aimed my magazine at a specific gender, as I think that the content is suitable for both male and females.
My use of “young” language shows that I have represented my target audience’s age range well because they will understand what I am talking about by the language I have used. It is both relevant to my content and modern.
I referred to bands within my particular genres to attract my target audience. I felt that would be more inclined to buy my product if they were interested in the content. In my double page spread, I referred to artists such as CSS, Oasis and Debbie Harry, as I assumed that may target audience would have a good musical knowledge of their favourite genres.
I think my magazine goes against stereotypes, because I have shown in my double page spread that not all famous people are divas and are demanding. In general, there are more male bands in the rock and alternative genre so to interview a girl band is a new take on the music industry.
What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
I researched into different magazine distributors to see which would be most likely to publish and distribute my magazine. I found that most companies don’t just distribute magazines of the same interest, but a range of magazines. Worldwide Magazine Distribution Ltd (WWMD) distributes products similar to mine, for example NME, Kerrang and Q magazine. In the past year, WWMD has distributed 9 million magazines and can dispatch to anywhere in the UK. I think that WWMD would distribute my product because they can easily dispatch my product all over the UK and can also ship all over the world. The company distributes other magazines of different interests such as Elle, Heat, Time, Tatler and Bead Style.
I think that WWMD would be a good magazine distributor because they distribute a huge number of different magazines for different interests and appear to have a lot of experience in distribution. WWMD distribute all the BBC Magazines including Good Food and Radio Times. They cover every target audience and every genre of magazine. Although they do not specialise in one particular interest, I can see that have a good reputation and are extremely valued. In order for my product to be a success, I will need a good distributor to help promote and sell my magazine.
What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
I find the edublogs site quite hard to use as there is very little disk space and in order to post all my pictures, I needed more space as the files were quite large. As a result of this, I could not load my double page spread on for some time because I had insufficient disk space. This meant that I could not gain any audience feedback for my double page spread as my target audience couldn’t see it.
I also thought that my target audience had difficulty using the site and it was quite hard to locate the post they needed on my blog and posting comments was quite difficult.
As I had already used Photoshop for my preliminary task, I did not find it as difficult to use as I did the first time round. I knew how to upload my pictures and add in my text. As a result of this, I found I could create my product more efficiently and faster than I did with my school magazine.
When creating my music magazine, I learnt how to enhance my images, by adjusting their lighting and colour. I finally mastered the magic wand tool and I could add and remove different fonts to my work with ease.
Sometimes I found some of the tools on Photoshop difficult to use because occasionally, the layer I was using would lock and I would not be able to perform the task I wanted to do.
Even though at times I did find the software hard to use, I think my product looked like a conventional magazine and I think that using Photoshop, my magazine looks realistic.
With my digital photography, I used the advice we had been given during a lesson on photography. I kept my zoom to an appropriate degree, by using a medium close up to show my feature artist. I cut out distractions, because that would take the focus from my artist, and I used a plain background to help me with this. My photo is well lit so the subject of my photo can be seen and to make my picture stand out. A badly lit picture wouldn’t draw my target audience and it isn’t appealing and exciting.
I found finding a good picture hard. This was because I had taken some pictures with bad lighting, others will busier backgrounds and some where my zoom wasn’t close enough. In order to resolve these problems, I took a number of shots and then decided from them which I liked.
With the pictures for my contents page, I had taken these pictures from gigs and festivals that I had been to. I feel that they were relevant to my magazine and the lighting and colour was good on them.
I did find these technologies useful because I am not very artistic and Photoshop enabled me to be creative without having to draw anything myself. I really enjoy taking pictures so the digital photography was enjoyable for me. I find the blog a good idea, however, it has become increasingly frustrating with the lack of disk space and sometimes the site being slow.
Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
Since my preliminary task, I am much more aware of how a conventional magazine is laid out. I studied more music magazines for this task than I did for the preliminary task.
I did more research for my target audience, and in this task, the target audience was quite exclusive. This made it easier for me as I could really focus on certain aspects of my product and really adapt them to my target audience.
I have learnt a great deal more about Photoshop and I can use it with greater ease. My photography skills have improved, as I had more time to take pictures and really take the time to get them right. I have progressed with blog, by keeping it updated and I can navigate the site with ease.
As I am a teenager myself, I could relate to the register used within my magazine. With the school magazine, this was for anyone of secondary school age ranging from 11 to 18, I had to broaden my register to make sure it suited my target audience. The magazine was also for people with various interests so I had to cater to everyone’s different needs. With my full product, I could keep the register specific, and I could refer to music at any time as that was the interest that all my target audience had in common.
Uncategorized | Comment (1)Audience Feedback
In order to complete my coursework, I need to gain audience feedback from my target audience. Please answer these questions in a blog comment to help me improve my product.
- Do my main page and contents convey thoseof real magazines?
- With the artists shown and the layout used, would you buy this product? If so, why? If no, why?
- What do you like about my product?
- What do you think I could improve to make this magazine better?
- Other comments?
Uncategorized | Comment (0)Specific Brief
Specific Brief
The target audience for my magazine are teenagers who have an interest, mainly in rock music. The main artists I am going to include (Amy Winehouse, Muse and Moby) were the most popular from my questionnaire. My main features will include a free iTunes download, as many of my participants said they downloaded from iTunes. I will also include gig guides, concert reviews as these were also popular choices for my magazine. My magazine will not only be based on rock music as from my questionnaire I realised that many participants were interested in a range of genres and I will incorporate this into my magazine.
To help attract my target audience, I plan to use buzz words such as “exclusive” and use vibrant colours to make my magazine stand out. I will use relevant pictures of popular bands which will also entice my TA to read on.
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Analysis of Kerrang Magazine
Genre:
rock music magazine
more general genres = rock, metal, punk, indie – lots of different bands on the cover
Target Audiene – a typical reader:
Name: Amy
Age: 17
Occupation: Student
Hobbies: going to gigs, going out with friends
Music tastes: indie, rock and alternative
Main Image: Enter Shikari
- direct mode of address
- mid shot
- inviting you to their tour
- casual mise-en-scene – unshaven, t-shirts, plain background
- target audience = music fans, in this issue especially Enter Shikari fans
Representation
- lead singer smirking – trying to look cool?
- rest of the band looking quite serious
- laid back and cool approach
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School Magazine and Analysis
Magazine Analysis
This magazine’s target audience is the school students however; it has some aspects for both pupils and parents. Examples of this include; information on the new teachers and careers advice.
My magazine design follows a conventional layout because my main photo on my front cover is in medium close up. The title is a large font at the top of the page which easily stands out. I have also used a slogan underneath my title and a school website. My article titles are down one side of the magazine and the main article is in large font across the bottom of the page.
For my contents page, I used an issue of Elle magazine to aid my design. I liked the way the layout was simple and well laid-out. I used a few more pictures relevant to my articles and used a larger font to display the page numbers both on the picture and next to the article title. The font colours match the colours on the front cover to give continuity with the colours.
For my main cover, I used an image of a student. I have used an indirect mode of address to give a laid back and relaxed feel to the magazine. I used a basic mise-en-scene with the student on a cream background in his uniform. This is to highlight his school uniform, the main article of the whole magazine there. The colour of his tie matches with the colour scheme of both the main cover and the contents page. In my picture, the student is smiling, which connotes that he is happy with the new uniform changes.
In terms of photo manipulation, I changed the contrast of the picture to make it lighter as when I uploaded it on the computer, it was quite dark. I used to red-eye remover and the spot healing tool on Photoshop.
For my main title, I used graffiti-type font to appeal to my target audience. I used bright colours such as red, orange and yellow to also draw the audience in.
I used an informal tone because my magazine is aimed for the students and in general, the information given in the magazine is informal. I only used one buzz word; “exclusive” but I used a range or punctuation such as exclamation marks to make the articles sound exciting and I used rhetorical questions in the contents page to entice the reader to read the article. I used anchorage text on my main cover because the main article relates to my main picture. In the contents page, I had three articles that related to my three pictures on the page. The relevant article is numbered on the appropriate picture.
The colour scheme I used was orange red and yellow. The majority of my font is written in black to make reading easier. I used these colours because the yellow and orange connote the friendly atmosphere of the school.
I used one text box at the bottom of my front page; this contains the main article title. I matched the colour or the box, red, to the colour scheme of the rest of the page. The box is semi-transparent so that the picture underneath can still be seen. The red is bright and it will draw the audience’s attention to the main article. The red connotes anger or excitement which relates to the theme of the article.
Uncategorized | Comment (1)Magazine cover
The anchorage text is the largest font on the page which shows that this is the main article of the magazine.
Buzz words include “exclusive” and “plus” which entice the reader to buy and find out more.
Pictures of celebrities will attract the target audience (women interested in celebrities and fashion) as they will want to read more about famous faces.
Angelina Jolie shows a direct mode of address which draws the TA in.
“Your high street fashion & celebrity weekly” is the slogan which gives a short piece of information as to what kind of magazine it is.
A plain background draws the audience’s attention to the main picture, which avoids any other distractions.
Each puff gives the title or the theme of the article.
The use of pink font denotes that the target audience is more suited for a female audience.
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