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

forms and conventions of real media products?

This is my completed magazine front cover and contents page. I am pretty

pleased with the final results and feel as though they look authentic and have

many aspects of conventional music magazines, along with elements that make it

original that I feel have put my own take onto it.

Initially it looks very typical of a

regular magazine as it has a similar

layout to magazines such as NME

which I have based my magazine

upon. It has a typical form of title

and it is on the left hand side like the

majority of magazines on the market

today.

This is the title on NME

magazine, compared to the title

on my magazine. I feel that it fits

the conventions of typical

magazines as it has the same 3

letter abbreviations, in similar

colours on the same side as the

original magazine, I even

adapted the “New Musical

Express” that is on NME and

made my AMP into “Acoustic

Music Productions” I think it

looks effective and authentic

and would pass as an original

magazine if against them.

For the image on my front cover I used the plain background of the photography studio as, not only is it

similar to the white background used for magazines such as NME. Furthermore, the plain background

meant that there was no distractions in the mis-en-scene to draw the attention away from the models that I

have used. I adjusted the contrast and the brightness on photoshop for the final image to make the

background whiter and more fresh. The models I have used, Shona and Josh, I feel fit into the quirky and

indie image that I was looking for and basing my magazine upon. They are looking directly at the camera

at the audience, attracting people to buy it. They are quite young and would therefore appeal to my target

audience of late teens, as they are a similar age to the audience that I am aiming for, and therefore would

be able to relate to it. I also used pictures of Josh and Shona for my double page spread.

For the page before my double page

spread, I particularly liked this photo of the

pair hiding behind the cushions. I feel that it

looks individual and the writing on the

cushions that I have used as props is

different to what is normally used on the

double page spreads in magazines.

This is a screenshot of part of my double page

spread as an example of the text that I used on

my double page spread, it has the conventions

of a typical magazine, as it is in columns, and also

has a quote in larger font, similar to normal

magazines, and has a picture which includes a

quote, which is again, a typical example of what is used in many

of the magazines.

The main texts that I used for my title were from the

website www.dafont.co.uk, and then adapted it so that it

could be used on photoshop.

Acid Label was used for the main

title of the magazine.

Then I changed things

on photoshop, such as

the stroke and drop

shadow of the text, to

make it stand out more

on the page.The other font that I used quite a lot on my front cover and

contents page was VeteranTypewriter and here is an example of

it being used for my header on my magazine

2: HOW DOES YOUR MEDIA PRODUCT REPRESENT

PARTICULAR SOCIAL GROUPS?

I used a mixed gender, so that it would appeal to a wider audience, and I made them look like

the indie culture yet with a slight poppy edge. They are smiling and looking happy which

Is slightly different to conventional magazines that go for a harder edge.

For this model I tried to bring across, again the indie

culture and went for a form of “bad girl” image.

Also, attempted to have a mix of gender.

Before choosing my final images

for my contents page, I was going

to use the one on the left, however

I thought that the model looked

too young poppy for the image of

my magazine.

For this photo I tried to create an

authentic band feel as I wanted my

magazine to look like it had found new

artists or really been to gigs that they

had played at.

The majority of my models fit into the new indie generation, as I felt that was a large and wide

target audience, I tried to use a mixed gender to attract both male and female, and also kept the

models at around 18 onwards, so that it was clear what age group my magazine was being

targeted at.

3: WHAT KIND OF MEDIA INSTITUTION MIGHT

DISTRIBUTE YOUR MEDIA PRODUCT AND WHY?

By researching about magazines and the costs included, I

realised that advertisements are a key way of funding the

music magazine industry. I feel as though I should have

included more adverstiments in my magazine, as that

would have made it look more effective and realistic.

I found much of my research for costings on the site;

http://www.isubscribe.co.uk

I researched distributors responsible for

NME, Blender, Kerrang! and Q.Dennis media, is the production company for the magazine, Blender.

Bauer Media Group produce Q, NME, MOJO and Kerrang!.

I would let Bauer distribute AMP, as it is european and from the amount of

magazines they advertise they are reliable and successful. Furthermore, it

produces the type of magazines that I have based mine upon, so feel that they

would be the most likely to gain my magazine an appropriate audience.

Institution

Most lifestyle magazines are published by a

few major companies: IPC Media (part of Time

Warner Group), Bauer, Conde Nast, Dennis

and the National Magazine Company. There

are a few smaller companies such as

Rodale, but 90% of them are published by the

„big 5‟.

Purpose of a magazine

To make money for a publisher

The function of a magazine is to deliver a stable

audience to advertisers.

Glossy mags make most of their money from

advertisers; downmarket mags make about the same

from cover price and from ads.

So magazines need to provide advertisers with detailed

information about their audience.

Two audiences. Profits from magazines come from

cover price but also, crucially, from advertising sales.

Therefore, the publishers of magazines have, in a

sense, two audiences to please – the buyers of the

magazines, and the buyers of the advertising space.

4: WHO WOULD BE THE AUDIENCE FOR YOUR

MEDIA PRODUCT?

This would be the type of audience for my

magazine. They are a mixture of male and

females all around the same age and interested

in the same sort of music. They are open minded

in music and television and such things, so would

be willing to adapt to new bands, which was a

major point of my magazine.

I used the websites http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/Insight/

http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/Insight/Project-Phoenix/ to research into potential audience groups, trying to find what

my target audience would be classified into and what I would need to take into account when making my magazine.

Project Phoenix is Bauer Media‟s window on the world of music and an unrivalled view of the opportunities and

challenges that the UK music industry faces. After conducting 1800 interviews with consumers aged 16-45 the

results are back and we are ready to reveal our findings. After the initial phase of Project Phoenix 1 (2003), we

have witnessed some of the biggest consumer shifts the music industry has ever seen and some unique

indicators for the future of the business.

Key findings of Project Pheonix. Music is Still the UK’s Key Passion

and is Bigger Than Ever

More people are interested in music than

any other passion/interest (e.g.

films, shopping, sport, fashion etc)

People are listening to more music than

ever before

The UK’s Connection With Music is

Evolving

The mainstream even have an active

approach to seeking out music

Everybody now takes a pick and mix

approach to music.

Live is Where the Energy is at

No evidence of decline in people‟s

attachment to live music

In paradox to the decline in the

album/single/video, live is the

heartbeat to the music fan‟s life

Brands are Welcome

Consumers accept the involvement of

brands in the music space

People recognise the music industry needs

new sources of revenue

Broadly brands have succeeded with music

event sponsorship

PROJECT PHOENIX’S MUSIC SEGMENTATION

As part of the research, we‟ve also conducted an in-depth segmentation

of the UK marketplace, breaking people into groups defined by their

relative interest and passion for music. This segmentation can aid the

targeting strategies of any advertiser seeking to use music as a

means to get closer to their consumers.

Background Listeners (39%

of the 16-45 population)

The Headliners (20% of the

16-45 population

Track Hunters (24% of the

16-45 population)

Pace-setters (17% of

the 16-45

population)

MY TARGET AUDIENCE FITS INTO...

Track Hunters (24% of the 16-45 population) They like discovering new bands, but are probably not the first person to find out about

new artists.

Track Hunters are slightly more likely to be female.

The Track Hunter doesn‟t buy into celebrity culture and fads – they think the albums are

as important as the songs, and are more interested in the artists‟ music than their

lifestyle.

They think music is best enjoyed live, and when they go to a gig it‟s to see a band they‟ve

heard good reviews about.

Pace-setters (17% of the 16-45 population)

Pacesetters see themselves as being interested in different things to the mainstream and as having a true passion for music.

A male skewed group, more likely to be ABC1, in terms of social grade.

They talk to friends about music a lot, and even argue with them about music and bands.

Whilst the Pacesetter group includes people who have an obsessional interest in music, it„s fairly diverse but not all members are that extreme –what they all have in common though is a deep rooted passion for music.

5: HOW DID YOU ATTRACT\ADDRESS YOUR

AUDIENCE?

This is a way that I have attracted my target audience, as I

know that the majority of them are interested and like to

attend music festivals, so mentioning them would attract their

attention.

I used conventional methods in order to attract my

target audience such as dramatic colours and props

which connote attitude and rock music. I wrote in a

conversational style in order to create a

relaxed, familiar tone in order to build a relationship

with my reader and sell the story, whilst also using

colloquial lexis in order to match the conversational

styles of my target audience.

The title of my magazine is very bright and

looks three dimensional which may catch a

person‟s eyes. The main image on the cover

features music which people will be fans of. I

also used bold fonts and bright colour‟s which

stand out on the page.

6: WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ABOUT

TECHNOLOGIES FROM THE PROCESS OF

CONSTRUCTING THIS PRODUCT?

The technologies that I have used are firstly;

Adobe photoshop I used this, mainly because it was the most accessible design programme

available in college. I had never used Photoshop before, and it took me quite some time to

get used to the techniques and effects used to make my magazine.

I used Microsoft Publisher to do my double page spread, as it

was easier to make the columns for my text and move the

pictures and quotes around.

I used an SLR camera for my photoshoot.

The technologies that I used helped me in making my magazine, as

firstly, they are very easily accessible and easy to use. The speed of the

programmes such as Photoshop to edit my photos really helped to make me

complete my project quicker. The ease of taking pictures and uploading them

quickly also sped up the process and made me realise the amount of effort

and time that must have gone into making all of the magazines in the past.

7: LOOKING BACK AT YOUR PRELIMINARY TASK

(THE SCHOOL MAGAZINE TASK), WHAT DO YOU

FEEL YOU HAVE LEARNT IN THE PROGRESSION

FROM IT TO FULL PRODUCT?

Looking back at the preliminary task, I feel as though I have learnt a lot from the process. The picture

that I have used for the front cover is a lot better and the colour scheme and text I have used are also

a lot better, due to learning how to use the programme better and import the fonts from dafont.

The contents page is a lot better than on my prelim task as it looks more like a realistic magazine, this is

mainly due to the layout of columns on either side and pictures in the centre.

From making my magazine, I have learnt a lot about

technologies like Photoshop and SLR cameras and I

am now confident in my ability to use them.

Additionally, I now know a great deal about magazines

and their genre's, what conventions they use and how

they attract their audiences. Also, I have learnt about

the importance of props and how they can make things

look individual, for example, the cushion.

From this project I have also learnt a lot of

practical skills, such as time management as I

have had a lot of things to do and have had to

meet deadlines, and so, to do this, I had to

create a work schedule to ensure that all my

work was completed on time. I think that

feedback from others has helped a lot as the

advice I have been given was constructive and

really helped me to improve my magazine.

Finished double page spreads.

FEEDBACK

The images above are print screens from Facebook of people commenting on their opinions of my

magazine.

I used Facebook to gather peoples opinions as the majority of my friends on there fit within my target

audience and I knew that they would give honest feedback.

The comments from one of my friends gave me constructive criticism (these have been highlighted in

the previous slides) and these are the things that I would take into account if doing my magazine again.

It is just little things to do with the presentation which I would learn with time.