Magazine evaluation

The people who feature in the image are all in the same age bracket as the target audience, I have done this in order to make my target audience feel like they can relate to the magazine and feel involved in stories. San serif font has been used throughout my whole magazine to make it bold and eye catching it also shows simplicity. The masthead and the main cover line are good examples of this.

My mast head follows the conventions of a magazine by being placed in the top corner top the page. I have used house colours that are shown throughout my magazine this follows the conventions of magazines by showing brand identity and not over complicating the format by using only 3 colours.

I have made my magazine follows forms and conventions of magazines by placing one main image on the front page some of the people in the image are directly addressing the camera, this is to draw the reader in. Other people in the image are not addressing the camera this is to show a fun laid back feel to the magazine.

The mise-en-scene ties in with the bands image for example the setting of the image is outside with a graphite fence behind the band, this gives a rough edge fun feel to the band and magazine. The clothes that they have on are very casual and fits in with the laid back feel to the magazine.

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge

forms and conventions of real media products?

I have used text boxes such as sky lines and box outs to make important information stand out, this is commonly used in magazines. For example in NME as shown below,

I have added a barcode to the bottom of my magazine, it also had the date and issue number as this is commonly put on the front of magazines.

First draft

Final double page spread

My first design looked as though it was two separate pages and not one double page spread , this was because the image and text were very separate and didn’t show a connection at all. In order to resolve this problem I moved some of the text across to the other page and tilted the image so it covers both sides, this brings the whole page together and makes it feel a lot more connected. In a lot of existing magazines this is done bringing the two pages together. For example in ....

In my final design I have also made some of the font red, this is so that it fits in with my house colours and shows brand identity as well as being a main colour in the image. I felt it was important to introduce the brand identity to my page spread to constantly remind the readers of the magazine brand. Magazines do this in order to encourage the reader to buy the magazine again and so that the brand is easily recognised.

I have used different font types throughout the spread, this highlights the key information and makes the most important text stand out. The rule often followed by magazines is that no more than 3 font types should be used on a page I have tried to follow this rule but broken it slightly by putting some text in capitals. I have done this to highlight information and to make the page more interesting to look at so that the readers do not get bored of seeing the same this the whole way across the page. I have used pull quotes as leads into the text and to make the layout more interesting and as an entrance to the story.

The mode of address used in my magazine is very casual, using some slang, I have done

this in order to relate to my audience and there age group drawing in more interest

and understanding from the younger audience. This is similar to the style

that ........... Is written in.

My magazine includes a mixture of music genres featuring some rock, pop, alternative

and so forth, I have done this in order to appeal to as many readers as possible. In

order to represent this to the reader I have used fairly mural house colours of black

whit and red that could represent any of these genres of music.

I have used a lot of WOB (white on black) in this double page spread this is to make

information stand out and to make it eye catching as well as appealing to my target

audience.

I have used a lot of white space and very little visual clutter, this

show that the magazine sais what it needs to and gets

straight to the point, this will appeal to my readers letting them know the magazine is

telling them what they need to know. Another music magazine

that dose this is Rocksound

I have added a folio to the bottom of all my pages, this shows the page number and the name of my magazine in order to remind the reader of the brand. This is commonly done in magazines.

I have added a letter from the editor to my contents page, this gives a brief summary of the content of the magazine, this is often shown in magazines, it also make the reader feel more involved and directly addressed my the magazine.

Although not in obvious ways my magazine cover main image is similar to the one of NME. Some reasons for this are the fact that some of the band members are using direct address and some are not. This shows a more natural effect to the picture and makes it feel slightly less staged, this will appeal to the reader as it shows that the magazine is honest and gives truthful information. In both of the above images the bands are having fun and messing around, this shows a relationship between the band members and makes the magazines seem laid back, this creates a relationship between the reader and the magazine making the images appeal to the target audience.

The clothes worn are casual and similar to the clothes that would be worn by my target audience. This will draw in more interest from them. All of theses aspects are key to making the target audience feel like they can relate to the magazine and the content making them feel as though they are involved in the magazine.

How does you media product represent particular social groups?

My target audience is aged 16-25, of both sexes. This is the stereotypical social group that also appears in NME. they have carefree lifestyles, would be interested in travelling and would have a care-free approach to life. I have used both the subjects of the image and the mise-en-scene to create an atmosphere suitable for the reader. The posture, gestures and expression of all the band members are fun and lively this gives the magazine the same vibe.

Overall I have tried to create a fun playful image to my magazine as this is similar to my target audience and the will be able to relate to the magazine and have a better understanding of the content.

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product?

An institution likely to suit the ideology of my magazine would be IPC, they commonly get there readers involved in the content of the magazine by including techniques such as placing questioners in there magazines to get feed back from readers. This helps them to improve there product and make it more appealing to there audience. I feel that this is appropriate to my magazine as I have given my readers this opportunity.

Another media institution likely to distribute my product would be WWMO as they distribute a large majority of the countries music magazines including Q and Uncut both magazines have simpler target audiences to mine.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

The target audience for my magazine is both male and female of ages between 16-25. They are young and carefree. They are likely to be in education so may not have much money, therefore I have made my magazine reasonably priced and encouraged them to buy the magazine with competitions and buzz words such as WIN!

They are likely to download music illegally as it is free and easily available Do they buy music??? Legal downloads? Spontaneously or subscribe? Loyal readers

How did you attract your target audience?

I have used contrasting colours of black white and red in order to make the

page bold and make the text and images stand out,

therefore eye catching to my readers.

The mode of address used in my magazine is very casual , using some slang, I have done

this in order to relate to my audience and there age group drawing in more interest and

understanding from the younger audience.

I have used a lot of white space and very little visual clutter, this show that the magazine says what it needs to and gets straight to the point, this will appeal to my

readers letting them know the magazine is telling them what they need to know.

My magazine includes a mixture of music genres featuring some rock,

pop, alternative and so forth, I have done this in order to appeal to as many readers as possible. In order to represent this to the reader I have used fairly mural house colours of black whit and red that could represent any of

these genres of music.

I have made sure that the girl in this image is using direct address, this is in order to draw the reader in and encourage them to read the article.

I have tried to attract a loyal target audience to subscribe to the magazine monthly by putting the information in a box out making it stand out from the rest of the page, this will encourage readers to subscribe to a monthly issue.

I have used buzz words such as ‘win’ in order to let the reader know that there is prizes up for grabs, these are lures encouraging them to buy the magazine.

I have used lighting and editing effects to draw the readers eye up the main image towards information and towards the subjects face where she is directly addressing the camera and therefore drawing readers in. (I have shown this with the orange arrow)

I have used box outs showing page numbers encouraging people to flick threw the magazine and generate interest to the articles encouraging them to buy the magazine.

I have addressed my audience in an informal tone using some slang, the articles are very chatty and laid back, this is to appeal to my target audience of aged 16-25 year olds, I found out from my questionnaire that this will make it more likely for them to read the articles.

I have attracted my audience by using a san serif font . It is bold eye catching and very modern, it is simple and appeals to both genders. It is important for the font to be modern as my target audience is young and will be interested in modern trends.

I have used buzz words such as ‘win’ on the cover to attract attention and encourage readers to flick threw the magazine and find out more. I have made the word ‘WIN’ larger than the rest of the text so that it stands out and attracts interest.

I have used interesting shaped box outs to make the page visually attractive and to appeal to my audience.

My main image is fun lively and has a lot going on to look at drawing in the audiences attention and holding it giving them lots to look at. The image relates the my target audience by the band being of a similar age, therefore the target audience will be able to relate to the image, the band members are all messing around having fun making this image realistic and life like.

The main cover line is very big and in a bright colour that stands out from the background, it is the name of a popular band that will be recognised my audience, this will attract them to the magazine as it is a band they are likely to be interested in.

I have enhanced the colours of the image making it brighter and more exciting to look at.

This is an image I have used on my contents page, before and after it have been edited. Before I edited it the lighting was not very good, I have enhanced the colours and brightened the whole image.

I have left the lighting in the bottom right corner darker so it looks like the light is coming in from the top left hand corner. This draws your attention up the page towards her face.

Before editing After editing

I have also removed the background so the page is white and added in a fine line to make the image more visually exciting.

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

I have used photo editing sights such as picnic to enhance colours and change the lighting.

I have also used serif photo plus in order to turn the background white.

Before editing After editing

I have used this image on my features page. I have edited it to enhance the colours and make the whole image brighter. I have airbrushed the image and given the model more of a tan. I think this now looks like it would feature in a magazine.

I have faded out the edges of the image in order to draw the eye line in to the middle of the image.

I have also added text into the bottom right hand corner of the page to look like a signature. I think that this makes the image feel more fitting to be in a magazine.

The clothes I have asked the model to wear are fun and lively with lots of bright colours this helps to create the fun personality I wanted to represent.

Before editing After editing

Here I have brightened the colours to make the lighting better and the weather seem warmer and more inviting, this make the image more lively. I have enhanced the contrast to make the dark space bolder and stand out more.

Here I have softened the whole image making it less defined and slightly blurred, I have the enhanced the bands faces, this draws attention to them and makes them seem more important.

Image featuring on the front page of my magazine

I have picked this location as it the fence is graphite and shows a edginess and a hint of rebellion which is what I want to represent. There is a lot of red brickwork that ties in with my house colours.

This image is fun and edgy, I edited it as an option for my front page.

These are some images I took to show a verity of camera angles and as options for front page.

Here I have used Picnic to edit my images. On this programme I have enhances the colours this makes the image look more likely to feature in a magazine. I have also brightened the lighting to make the image look over all more professional.

Here I have edited out the back ground of this image using the ‘background eraser’ on serif photo plus.

I have also turned the image black and white as I feel that it enhances the picture and is more fitting for my magazine showing more of a simple sophisticated look.

Serif Photo plus is the main software I have used to edit my images, I feel that it has been effective to use as it is a basic straightforward program to use but still has all the editing features that I have needed.

I have used a variation of techniques to take and edit my pictures, I have done this in order to try and achieve a professional look to my images and to make them appeal to my target audience more. I have used lots of different technologies and media equipment in order to create my magazine such as, serif photo plus to edit and manipulate images, professional equipment such as cameras and tripod, picnic photo editing site, serif page plus to construct the magazine, blogspot to upload my work and present it, slide share in order to put power points onto the internet and then onto my blog. I have learnt the most from serif photo plus, using techniques such as editing out the background of images.

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

From my preliminary task I learnt basic techniques such as carrying brand identity across all of my pages this reminds the readers of the brand and encourages them to buy the magazine again.

I learnt from making my school magazine ways to make the pages simple yet still effective. I have then used this to Inspire my music magazine.

I learnt from the front cover of my school magazine I should be using more box outs and buzz words to draw attention to the magazine.

I have learnt that the font size is very important when creating a magazine as it needs to be eye-catching and bold yet not so that it overpowers the rest of the page.

I have used the rule of three sticking to no more than 3 colours in order to keep the page clean so there is less visual clutter.

I have used a lot of white space to create a sophisticated look to the magazine advertising the educational side.

I have learnt how to use a verity of camera angels showing relevant information in the frame. This has then helped me to frame the images for my music magazine showing all of the background and scenery needed.