Question Seven

Looking back at my preliminary task it is clear that my basic understanding for photoshop and using the tools has developed a lot. I also think that when it comes to using adobe photoshop my confidence has grown and I'm willing to try new things and be more inventive with my work as opposed to sticking to my design with no room to change. Everything on my current product is of a better quality then it was on my preliminary task, this is mostly because of the amount of time allowed to be spent on my preliminary task was literally nothing compared to how much has been spent on my magazine.

For my main task I staged a proper photo shoot using a professional quality camera and professional lighting, opposed to taking photos at random locations and intending to cut the background out. The lack of structure and organisation when making my preliminary task contributed to the outcome being reasonably poor. During my preliminary task I didn't add any effects such as drop shadows or bevelling and embossing the text partly because I didn't know how to and partly because there wasn't time to add the final details.

However when making my final product it was the finer details that I seemed to pay more attention to as they could determine whether the piece of text or image belonged on the particular page. My design sketches were more guidelines and I found that because I had more time I was more relaxed about playing around with the layout of certain pages. When creating my preliminary task it was hard to find inspiration as there aren't many school magazines around. However as the genre of music is so popular and common in magazines all I had to do was research what kind of layout was conventional as well as what type of images I should be looking to use.

Another thing that I managed to adapt from my preliminary task was a set colour scheme. Although my preliminary task did have a  colour scheme of blue and yellow (school colours) it wasn't as strong and consistent as my final product which I think is another aspect which made my piece more successful than the preliminary task.

 

 

 

 

Question Six

Question Five

The obvious main way to attract my Target Audience would be through my front cover as that would be what they'd see first when my magazine is on the shelf next to the others. Therefore I chose a relatively strong picture for my front cover as I needed my model to stand out and really sell the purpose and idea behind my magazine. As previously discussed the type of audience that would appeal to my magazine would be interested in indie/music and have a range of fashion icons and styles I thought it'd be crucial to in a way underdress my model. This is because I wanted the main focus to be on the attitude of her face which relates to the rebellious image of the music genre.

 

 

The lighting contributes to the photo and meant that little editing had to be done as she was wearing bold colours and her make-up was also done so that as little editing and airbrushing would be needed as possible. Even though the audience may not be able to tell I wanted to do as little editing as possible to my model to make her appear as natural as possible to help to subtly connect to the reader. By making my model as similar to the reader as possible will help to form a relationship between the iconic star and reader therefore helping them to escape from every day life. The use of escapism relates to the uses and gratifications theory.

As well as using my model as an iconic figure I also carefully chose which bands would feature in the sell lines on my magazine.

 

I chose bands that frequently headlined festivals and also tried to re-create a buzz for old favourites like Sum41. By having this range of news on the cover I hoped this could only further engage my audience as the future of bands they currently and or used to love should be a keen interest to them. This again relates to the uses and gratifications theory of the audiences thirst for knowledge. I have incorporated band who are famous world wide as well as broadcasting smaller bands who may be more well known to a predominantly british audience. This is because each band brings something different to the genre which will appeal to different ages and possibly genders of my target audience. For example younger members may feel a stronger connection to pop punk bands like Blink182 whereas slightly older members may have more of a love for the classic Britpop bands like Oasis.

 

 

This highlights how I've acknowledge how even within my target audience there are different areas that'll appeal stronger to others as each have their favourites.

I haven't included the use of social networking on my front cover as I've kept that to my subscriptions box on my contents page. My reason behind this is because I was trying to keep a stylish, modern and subtle feel to the front cover. I also expect the audience of this age range to figure that there would be a smart phone ap or social networking page for my magazine as it is one of the most important areas in socialisation today. This supports how I have considered my audiences needs and have taken in to account their knowledge. As well as hoping that they'll acknowledge my front cover enough to look inside my magazine.

Question Four

Question Three

What Kind of Institution Might Distribute Your Media

As it is important to have a variety of different media programmes when posting my music magazine evaluation task questions I decided to use microsoft powerpoint. It's very similar to prezi and therefore easier to use. As it is a software opposed to being online I consider it to be reliable as you can use it even when the internet is down.

Question Two

Above is a prezi which helps to display what audience my piece is aimed at. I chose to do a prezi as they're easy to create and to use afterwards. Prezi is a online and interactive software which makes it more beneficial and fun for the audience as they get to participate in the presentation. For my media music magazine coursework evaluation task I thought it was important to try and answer teach and every question as detailed as I possibly could and I found that prezi is a good way to do this. This is because you can choose your own layout and set the paths to where you want them to go. This is why I feel it's better then powerpoint.

Question One



When planning and creating my magazine I tried to conform to the typical conventions of an Indie/Rock magazine. When doing my similar product analysis I tried to focus on products which I could  base my product on and to help develop my ideas. I gained further knowledge on magazines like Q, Kerrang and NME when doing my Key Concepts Prezi which then enabled me to start my magazine appealing to a target audience of 14-25 year olds. My target audience needed to have an interest to predominantly mainstream music and have similar-ish fashion to the iconic artists who make up the genre.

I aspired for my magazine to be the most eye-catching among the others of its type in the hope to sway their audience on to my magazine making it the most popular. I adapted my masthead from how it was originally going to be built up from speakers and guitar necks to make it easier to read and bolder, I extended the letters to make them taller and added a drop shadow. The colour of my masthead is grey which is a underrated colour, this could imply that the artists within do not get the recognition they deserve therefore this is why the magazine is promoting them. This is reinforced by the bold red background as it represents the passion for music that the magazine will be representing.

My main sell line is centred near the bottom of my page, I felt positioning is crucial as well as size, font and colour. It needed to have some form of diversity from the rest of my sell lines so that it didn't blend in. Therefore I chose the font impact and capitalised the text. The artists name is in red to signify her importance, similarly to the masthead she has a drop shadow on her name. However the colours aren't the same as there needs to be something that differentiates them to avoid confusion and to create hierarchy. My model is positioned in the centre of the page leaning forward towards the audience. I chose this particular image as it's like the model is inviting the audience to join her. The models head covers some of the Masthead which signifies how the magazine consider their stories and artists more important than the name of the magazine. There is a banner that spreads across the bottom of my page which says "FREE RHCP POSTER" the use of the acronym for Red Hot Chilli Peppers signifies that the audience will have preconceived knowledge of what this stands for. My sell lines are situated down either side of the page in the same colour as my masthead. The feature bands such as "Atryeu", "Lana Del Rey", "Kasabian" and "Blink 182".

My contents page highlights the consistent colour scheme of the magazine. I followed a similar layout to NME by separating what bands are featured in my magazine down one side as well main stories and news down the other. Again I've used the centre of my page for the pictures, creating a staircase image with the most important story at the top, again establishing a hierarchy to the audience. I included a subscription box in the bottom corner of my magazine which also has  details of a smart phone AP. I also got inspiration from the Facebook button to create my own for my magazine. By incorporating social networking and APs into my magazine will appeal to a broad teenage audience as they rely on communication a lot via social networking sites.

My double page spreads again uses the same consistent colour scheme of red and grey, which will create familiarity for my magazine. The colours will help demonstrate the mood and add mystery of this weeks artist as the audience may not have heard her story. I created an introductory page consisting of the pull quote; "SOME PEOPLE PRAY I TURN UP THE RADIO" which already gives an insight into the artists faith in music. There are 3 images underneath the quote of my model sitting on an amp which signifies what type of music she plays. On the other side of the page is an introductory paragraph and an anecdote from my artists mother which helps to give a back ground story. I put a picture in behind the text of my artist holding a microphone out to the audience which signifies how her voice has been heard and now it's their turn. I changed the opacity of the picture to help blend in behind the text. My second double page spread features a black and white picture of my artist eating a strawberry. The whole picture is in black and white apart from her lips and the strawberry. I followed a similar style as y first page with my second as I put a picture in behind the text of my artist throwing confetti in the air which helps to display how she is young and celebrating her success. I also have a third and final double page spread being made which features most of the article.