Evaluation Question 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?
I feel like I have come a long way from my perliminary product and improved my media skills a lot. I have learnt a lot about the use of ICT in the real media world and how to take professional looking photographs that are relevent and representative of my magazine. I have also learnt what to do in order to attract my target audience to my magazine and how real media publishers do this.

 Below are links to two prezi documents that answer this question

http://prezi.com/_op0lwuzqone/evaluation-question-7/ 

http://prezi.com/guo5ulom3hwi/contents-pages/

Evaluation Question 6

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

I have learnt a lot from constructing my media product, the process of creating my media product has allowed me to learn how the real media world create their magazines and how photoshop and indesign are used by media companies for the benefit of their magazine. I have learnt how to use these programmes which has widened my knowledge on ICT and technology.

Coursework Feedback

Today I was given feedback on my blog and on my media product as a whole. Other members of my class looked through my blog and at my final work and suggested what was good about the work and what could be improved. The general impression was that my media product was good and there was house style consistently throughout the three final pieces and they could be easily associated with eachother. However some of the feedback said that some work on my blog could be improved such as my target audience post.

Complete Media Product

Evaluation Question 5

How did you attract/address your audience?
Similarly to magazines such as Q and NME my magazine features a photograph of an aritst that my target audience would recongnise, this attracts my audience because it gives them incentive to buy the magazine. The mode of address used by my magazine presumes that the reader already knows many of the bands that are featured and uses language that makes the reader feel welcome to the magazine.

By using questions such as "Are you a real rock'n'rolla?" the reader feels as though the magazine is questioning them specifically and so feels comfortable and welcome.


The use of the word "exclusive" on the coverlines of my front page attracts my target audience because it shows that they will not get this featured story anywhere else. This makes my magazine unique because it shows that the artist likes the magazine enough to give them an exclusive story.

Also to attract my target audience, I used a female artist on the front cover wearing clothing that will attract the male gaze - seeing as my target audience mainly consists of males. This picture that is featured on the front of my magazine will attract the males eye which will then lead him onto reading the coverlines and evidently purchasing the magazine due to the genre of music that is featured. Also, the fact that this edition of 'RIOT' is a festival edition would attract the reader because my target audience would be likely to attend the festivals.

Double Page Spread Construction

The first thing that I did for my double page spread, was to choose the photograph that I wanted to use. I chose this photo because I liked the background and I thought that the outfit, pose and the fact that it had a guitar in it was all appropriate for my magazine/the genre of my magazine. I edited the photo (made it slightly brighter and edited out the bruises on her legs) and then added the pull quote in the bottom right hand corner. I chose this quote because it makes the reader question "what was a massive fuck you?" and gives them incentive to read the story.






The next thing that I did, was to add the text. Once the text was put in place I could then add pictures and pull quotes to make it look like a more authentic double page spread. Similarly to my front cover and contents page, I used the colours white, red and black throughout my entire double page spread so that all three pieces of work are tied together and the house style is shown. As well as this, the font that I used was 'Coolvetica' which is what I used for the coverlines and the writing on the contents page.

I added this line to the top of the page to show the reader who the story was about. This adds authenticity to my double page spread because a similar element was used in a Q interview with Lady Gaga.

After I had placed the writing, I added this pull quote to the centre of the page. This quote shows the attitude of the artist and suggests to the reader that she is misunderstood. To create this pull quote, I used the rectangular marquee tool then filled in the rectangle. I then duplicated the layer three times to create 4 exact same rectangles. I then added the writing on another layer on top of them.



 I added this photo strip like photograph to the right page of the double page spread. The second photograph in this strip looks casual and shows the reader what the artist looks like in her own environment, this shows a private side which the reader finds interesting. I created this picture strip by making a rectangle then filling it in black. I then put the three photos in and made them all the same size. I then used free transform to make the black parts of the strip the same size.










The last thing that I did to my double page spread was to add an album cover which makes Laura look like an authentic artist. I made this cover by editing the photo, then adding the writing and barcode on the photo.

InDesign allowed me to easily change the font and experiment with different fonts to see which one best suited my double page spread. As well as this, it allowed me to change the colour to see which best suited the magazine/supported the house style.






                                                                                    
The gridlines that InDesign offered helped me to structure my double page spread quickly and easily. They allowed me to place my columns and make sure that they were all equal widths and lengths - this is important because it makes the double page spread look genuine and like it could exist in the real media world.

Contents Page Construction

I started the construction of my magazine's contents page by adding the title, numbers, pictures and third column so that placing the text and the rest of the elements of the page were easy to structure. I created the page numbers by making a small black square then adding a new layer and writing the page number on top of the square. To create the third column (black box) I used the rectangular marquee tool to create a box then filled it in with black using the fill tool. The font of my title is the same font that I used for the title 'RIOT' on my front cover. This shows a house design because the font is consistent throughout the magazine.



After I had done this, it was easy to add the writing because the numbers were already in place so I just had to match up the stories to the correct number. Once i had done all the writing I realised that I didnt have headings for each of my columns so added those after. I created a box just above the picture in the bottom right hand corner where my 'subscribe now' feature would be. The font of my writing is 'coolvetica' which I also used for the coverlines on my front cover, this also shows house style because this along with the 'Nova Solid' font are used consistently. The red writing contrasts with the black and the two colours are used on my front page and on my Double Page Spread.




I added some festival logos either side of my title because there was too much space with made my contents page look unauthentic. I added the festival logos because as you saw from my front cover, this edition of 'RIOT' is a British Festival Season edition. Here I also added writing to my 'subscribe now' box which - after the writing was added - looks realistic.

The final thing that I did to my contents page, was add the bands to the 'bands featured' section. This section of the contents page is very important because if the reader were to pick up  the magazine to see if they wanted to buy it, they could simply look at the 'bands featured' column and see if the genre of music that is featured in the magazine matches their own personal preference. The black, white and red theme is used here which compliments the rest of the contents page.

 To create my subscribe now box, I made a line using the brush tool, after creating this line a duplicated the layer twice which gave me three lines, I then put this in the shape of a square up against the 'bands featured' box which gave me an empty box in which I could write my 'subscribe now' text. The use of layers made creating my front page easier and more organised. They allowed me to link layers and move things quickly.

Target Audience for my Magazine

The target audience for my magazine is 'Indie Scenesters' between the ages of 16-25. I have chosen this sub-culture as my target audience because the genre of music that is featured in my magazine is the type of music that indie's are typically associated with. Bands such as Foo Fighters, General Fiasco, Vampire Weekend and Klaxons.

This is a post from uktribes.com, it shows that 'Indie Scenesters' are driven by fashion and listen to music such as the Klaxons. This website also shows the brands that are usually associated with indies and gives examples of a few bands that they might listen to

The graph on the right shows that indies spend a lot of time on the internet and reading magazines/newspapers. This shows that they are an appropriate target audience because they like to read magazines in physical form as opposed to on the internet; this means that my magazine will gain a lot of custom from the target audience.

Indie's are fashion driven and here are some pictures of the type of fashion that my target audience would favour

NME's target audience is similar to my target audience which successfully shows that it is appropriate because there are many similarities between my magazine and NME. To attract my target audience I have featured bands that they would be associated with and the clothing that is featured on my model in all of the pictures that are featured in my magazine are clothes that would be appealing to indie's. As well as this, the festival edition of my magazine is appropriate because Reading, Leeds and Glastonbury festivals are popular amonst this fashion driven - music loving sub-culture.

Evaluation Question 4

Who would be the audience for your media product?

The target audience for my magazine is Indie Scenester's between the ages of 16-25.

This is my target audience because the genre of music that is featured in my magazine is very popular amongst indie's so they would find the magazine interesting and be able to relate to the stories and genre of music featured.
Indie Scenesters typically like music such as: Klaxons, Vampire Weekend, General Fiasco and Two Door Cinema club

This sub-culture is typically seen to enjoy independent bands until they 'go mainstream', when this is seen to have happened the bands previously loyal fans lose respect for the band for 'selling out' and stop listening to their music.

According to uktribes.com, Indie Scenesters like to shop from high street brands such as Topshop/Topman, American Apparel, urban outfitters and vintage shops in London's Brick Lane such as Beyond Retro and Rokit.

As you can see from the picture above, this is the clothing that is typically associated with indies. Also, the fact that indie's are typically associated with carrying around 'Rough Trade' branded canvas bags shows their taste in music, it also shows that they support independent labels which is where the term 'indie' originated.

 

Levi's denim shorts are regularly associated with indie girls' fashion, usually worn with a band t-shirt or blouse of some kind. Dr Martens, Chelsea boots and Creepers are very popular amonst this sub-culture.

For indie boys, skinny (usually black) jeans are often worn with a checked shirt and baracuta harrington jacket, with usually vans or converse. An image of my target audience is shown above

Indie's are often driven by fashion and use the internet to search for new ideas on how to dress, lookbook.nu  is a website devoted to fashion that can be considered to be indie and allows people to upload pictures of their favourite outfits. 

According to this from uktribes.com, indie scenesters are very influenced by the media - spending the majority of their time on the internet or reading newspapers. This chart shows that indies read magazines 'heavily' which shows that this is an appropriate target audience for my magazine because it would actually gain custom from an audience that want to have the magazine in physical form as opposed to reading it from a magazine themed website. 
It also shows the brands that this sub-culture favour.

Indie's do tend to spend most of their time on the internet, a website that is widely used by the indie population is tumblr. This is a blogging website where people can share photos and write blog posts and gain followers.

Evaluation Question 3

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

IPC media distributes NME magazine, this means that they have experience in publishing and distributing magazines aimed at the same target audience as my magazine. For this reason, I think that IPC would distribute my magazine because they have experience and knowledge in how to do so and so would not have to think of new marketing strategies or do much more research which is beneficial for them.


According to their website  "IPC Media produces over 60 iconic media brands, with print alone reaching almost two thirds of UK women and 42% of UK men – almost 26 million UK adults – while our websites collectively reach over 20 million users every month." This shows that if IPC media did publish my magazine, not only would it reach a high percentage of my target audience in physical magazine form, but also through the form of a website on the internet. Having a website for a magazine also increases custom; people view the website for free then could purchase the magazine because they see it as an elaborated more detailed form of the website.

 My media product would fit in well with the products that are already sold by IPC media, its layout is different to any of the magazines that are already produced by IPC so that would offer readers a fresh magazine to read which would be appealing.

Evaluation Question 2

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

 Here is a picture that I took of my model and a picture of Florence Welch from an NME magazine. The posture in the magazine's picture is very similar as they both have their arms back supporting their body and their legs in a similar position. 

However, the clothes that my model is wearing are very different to the clothes that Florence is wearing, I think that the clothes that Florence is wearing don't really portray the genre of music very well because the outfit that she is wearing could easily mislead the reader into thinking that she is a pop artist, however the clothes that my model is wearing portray the genre of the music featured in the magazine well because they are clothes that are typically associated with Indies, the parka - usually associated with mod's - and the plain colours of the shorts and top are simple and effective. Also, the Black Dr Martens that my model is wearing make her look edgy and boyish which is good for the indie music genre.

The facial expressions of both models are very similar however Florence is looking directly at the camera where as my model is looking up. Where as the shot of Florence is a medium shot looking straight at her, my photograph - although a medium shot - the camera is looking slightly up at her. This shows the reader that she is strong and dominant.

My photograph is lit only by natural light so it is a fairly bright picture with very little shadowing, where as the picture from NME is lit with artificial lighting and the shadowing in the top left corner looks as though it has been edited in. Although the picture in the magazine does look more professional because of the artificial lighting, I think that my photograph portrays the Indie genre well because the clouds create natural shadowing which compliments the dark colours of her clothing.

Although there aren't any props used in either photo, Florence is sitting on a platform and my model is sitting on a tyre. The stripes on the platform that Florence is sitting on are associated with America because the article is based on her music becoming prominent in the USA however the background of a field and the fact that she is sitting on a tyre in my photo shows the reader that the article is based in Britain because of the British countryside and shows the typical 'British indie' culture.

Above, is a picture of Laura Marling and the picture that I used for my front cover. Although the picture of Laura Marling was not featured in a magazine it was used on the NME website, there are many similarities between the two pictures, for example the fact that they are both holding a guitar and they are both looking down. Both pictures have very plain backgrounds which makes the person in the photograph dominant and ensures that the audience will look at the person rather than the background. However, there are some differences between the two photographs, for example there is a lot of shadowing in the picture of Marling where as my picture is very lit and bright, also, the facial expression of my model is that she is smiling slightly which makes her look happy and welcomes the audience where as in the picture of Marling, she is frowning and looks sad which makes the reader immediately assume that her music is of a sad tone.

The fact that these pictures look alike represents the indie social group well because Laura Marling is a recognised musician in the indie music scene.

Evaluation Question 1

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

conventions of real media products? 

The current market of music magazines is very competitive and it is becoming increasingly difficult for music magazines to become and remain successful.

At the beginning of 2011 the circulation figures for a sample of music magazines was:

• Mojo ( Bauer Consumer Media ) : 87,555 ; -7.5%
• Q ( Bauer Consumer Media ) : 77,522 ; -12.1%
• Classic Rock ( Future Publishing Ltd ) : 62,354 ; -7.9%
• Uncut ( IPC Media Ltd ) : 62,305 ; -14.2%
• Kerrang! ( Bauer Consumer Media ) : 42,077 ; -2.1%
• Metal Hammer ( Future Publishing Ltd ) : 35,259 ; -15.7%
• New Musical Express ( IPC Media Ltd ) : 27,650 ; -14.0%

As you can see there is a lot of competition and each magazine's circulation has decreased, most noticably, Metal Hammer which has decreased by 15.7%.

On the front cover of my magazine, the union jack design element shows the audience that that particular story in the magazine will be based in Britain, it also shows that this story is important  in the magazine and that is why it is standing out on the page. This design element also adds a professional look to the magazine and grabs the readers eye immediately, this is a convention of music magazines and has before been featured on the cover of Q which shows that it is a legitimate convention.

The title of my magazine on  the front cover is similar to the colour of the background, this challenges the conventionality as most magazine covers have their title a very different colour to their background so that it stands out. However, my title still stands out equally, if not more then these magazine because the title has an outline which compliments the "Nova Solid" font and distinguishes is clearly from the background.

The picture that I used for my front cover is conventional for a music magazine; the guitar shows the audience clearly that the genre of the magazine is music and the fact that it has a woman on the front cover appeals to the target audience (indie males between 16-30), my model is looking down and smiling which looks coy and a bit shy but the fact that her legs are bare is common for magazines because it adds insentive for males to buy the magazine.

I chose this model for my magazine because she is an indie person naturally, she suits the clothes and her hair is a similar golden colour to the guitar so it meant that I could use the eyedropper tool and apply this colour to some of the fonts. The clothes that she is wearing are associated with the indie culture, the typical 'grandad cardigan' and band t-shirt shows the audience what the genre of the music that will be featured in the magazine is.

Most music magazines consist of three columns, although they are sometimes uneven, for example sometimes it will appear that there are only two columns when in fact there are still three but a picture or paragraph of writing takes up two columns with one third pf the page left and consisting of more writing. On my contents page I have created three columns but the picture in the bottom hand corner goes across two of the columns. This breaks up the writing and allows visual aids for the reader so that they dont get bored or skip the writing all together because it could appear overwhelming.

  

 My target audience will understand what genre of music is featured in my magazine because of the stories that are featured on the coverlines. Bands such as Vampire Weekend, Foo Fighters and General Fiasco are featured which shows the indie rock genre and appeals to the target audience.

Double Page Spread Final

Double page spread analysis

This is a double page spread from Q magazine featuring Lady Gaga. There is only one picture used of Lady Gaga ans this picture takes up an entire half of the double page spread. The only colour that is featured in this double page spread is the L in the background of the writing, this design element grabs the readers eye and immediately makes them realise who is featured on the spread. In the bottom right hand corner of the page, Q has put their logo and page number. However, page numbers are not featured on every single page of the magazine and always have three digits, for example 010-100

This double page spread from NME features Lily Allen. The Black colour of the text/her hair contrasts with the red colour of her shirt. Lily Allen is renound for being edgy and having an attitude about her, the effect around the writing suggests this, as well as this, the pose of her photograph and her facial expression also insinuates that she is confident and bold.
The writing on this double page spread is split into four columns and it appears that there isnt much writing. The picture and the pull quote dominate more or less the entire double page spread and the quote shows the reader what the tone of the interview will be before they even start to read it. The page number is featured on the bottom left hand corner of the left page so that the reader can easily access the story by just flicking through the page numbers.

Contents page analysis

 This is a contents page from the music magazine 'VIBE', the photograph dominates the page and is the first thing that the reader looks at. In actual fact, the picture takes up two of the three columns that are used in most contents pages. This is often the layout of the contents page in 'VIBE', a picture of an artist always dominates the page with only a little bit of writing on the right side of the photo. This contents page is very dissimilar to that of NME and KERRANG! for main reasons:

• This contents page only has one picture where as NME and KERRANG! feature more than one picture in their contents page
• There is very little information on this page but NME and KERRANG! both have a lot of writing on their contents pages

                


This is a contents page from KERRANG! It features an editors note which uses a mode of address that makes the reader feel welcome to the magazine. The yellow colour and style contribute towards the brand identity of the magazine. There are six different photographs featured on this contents page which draw the readers eye to the stories which those photographs are linked to. This contents page is similar to that of NME because of the amount of photos used, however this contents page features more writing that both NME and VIBE

The NME contents page is very simplistic, it features seven pictures each one representing a different story, there is a fair emount of writing however there is no editors note. On this particular contents page from NME there are several different fonts all of which contribute towards the brand identity. There are three columns used in this contents page however the middle column is wider than the two on the sides. The layout of this contents page is similar to KERRANG! because of the positioning of the photos, but it is very different and almost opposite to the contents page from VIBE, which is probably appropriate because they represent two completely different genres of music.