Evaluation.

In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Conventions are like rules, guidelines which are followed to create something. All music magazines follow the same conventions, as did mine. I used the same conventions to make my magazine as realistic as possible. The conventions for the front page of a music magazines are:

1. Big and bold catch mastheads which relate to the magazine, usually by genre. e.g. Kerrang, sounds like a guitar being struck and the magazine is about rock music. It is vital for the masthead to be readable from a distance so it will catch the attention of the audience as they are looking to buy a magazine in the shop. I followed this convention by ensuring i had a large bold masthead which was readable form at least a meter away. The name of my magazine " Music From Venus" was chosen because my target audience is women and women are apparently from Venus. Also my magazine focuses on mainly female bands, hence the music is from Venus.
2. A large central photograph which shows at least one of the main stories inside the magazine. The photographs range from Close ups, just showing one musicians face, to a double shot, or sometimes medium shots or even long shots when capturing a full band. Extreme long shots are rarely used on the front cover as the people would be too far away to see and would draw any attention. I tried out a few different angles and distances of shots and finally came to using a medium close up. By doing this I used to eye contact of the musician to draw the audience in. The female musician was also placed in front of the masthead. This makes the model look dominant in comparison to the text.
3. Plugs and buy lines are designed to draw the reader in and give out exciting tasters of whats inside the magazine to tease the audience and make them want to buy the magazine. But also the fonts, colour and positioning on the page are important factors when designing the front page. I followed the classic layout of a magazine by having the image in the centre, masthead at the top and buy lines and plugs around the left, bottom and right sides of the page. The fonts i used where all serif as this is clear and easy to read. But the size of the font varied on the information what was written, as did weather it was written in bold or not. This gives variation and makes the text more interesting to read. Also i stuck to my colour scheme when writing the text and only used the colours black white and pink. The only other colour was green as this was for a separate title. If anymore colours where it would have looked messy.

The conventions for a contents page are:

1. At least one image of someone who is featured inside the magazine, along with a caption explaining who is in the image. I followed this convention by choosing to layout my page symmetrical by having two images at the top, two at the bottom and one image and one text box in the centre. All the images had a caption to explain them.
2. Text, including numbers of pages in order of what stories etc are in the magazine and what pages they can be found on. I also followed this convention by explaining where each article could be found in the magazine.
3. Colour scheme and style that links the front page. This is so the magazine flows together. I followed this convention by using the same colours and fonts as the front cover to link them together.

The conventions of a double page spread.

1. Images that relate to the front cover story. I decided to have one large image and three smaller complimentary ones.
2. Text. I invented a realistic interview between a musician and the magazine interviewer.

How does your magazine represent particular social groups?

There are a few different social groups represented in my magazine, the main one being females who are interested in the music genre rock. They are represented through the images and text I have used. By this I mean I have used images of young males and females who the audience would find attracted to because of their clothes etc.

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

My music magazine is most like magazine such as NME. It covers a wide genre of music and new bands. IPC which is a leading magazine publisher in the UK, publishes NME and as well as a wide range of other products such as Woman's own, Woman's Weekly, Guitar and Rugby world. As it covers such a wide variety of subjects, it is able to cater to a wide variety of people. Though apart from NME there are no other magazines specifically for rock music.

If IPC where to publish my magazine they would be broadening their horizon by producing a music magazine product that is aimed at women, as they do not already have a product which does this.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

I have targeted my music magazine at at females aged 16-19 years old who are interested in rock music. I chose this target market as there are no music magazines currently on the market that cater to this audiences needs. There is also a greater target audience which could be females who listen to other genres of music apart from rock and who are interested in finding out about other features in the magazine e.g. gig outfits.

How did you attract/address your audience?

There are a number of ways I attracted my target audience. Firstly, I ensured I a friendly un-formal language in my magazine. This will make the reader feel welcome and like they can relate to the magazine because its the same language as how they would speak. With this I also used a sans-serif font which is easy to read.

Secondly I ensured I used images which would relate and interest the audience. For example, the my main photograph on the front page needed to be friendly but eye catching for the audience. I did this by using a young model who fits the criteria of someone who would be into rock music and by using eye contact she will interest the reader.

Thirdly I made sure I set the price for the magazine £1.99 as I found out from my primary research of a questionnaire that young women will happily pay between £1.50 - £2 for a magazine each month. By using this physiological pricing strategies its is certain the audience will buy my product.

Finally I made sure I used a colour scheme that would relate to my audience. Although not ever girl likes the colour pink, it is toughened up by the black and complimented by the white.

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

Whilst doing this project I have learnt a lot about different technologies. I used the programme photo shop properly for the first time to edit all of my photographs, and realised its not as easy as it seems, though my photos turned out good in the end. It was also my first time using the website Blogger. At first I didn't realise how much the site was used world wide as a distributor of information to everyone and made by anyone. But now I can appreciate the website because you can express your views online for anyone to read, and it means easy access to post your work and for others to read.

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

Before my preliminary task I only had a basic idea of DTP and photoshop, the two main programmes I would be using to make my magazine. But from that I developed my skills and became more advanced before finally mastering the programmes and producing my music magazine. I learnt that the layout and colour scheme are important as it was very basic in my preliminary task and now i have developed that.

On my college magazine the photos where very pixelated and didn't look very professional. This was because I stretched the image. Where as on my music magazine I ensured I kept the quality of the image before editing it and putting it on my magazine.

My Final Product.

Photos.

All of the Photographs used in my magazine are ones which i have taken myself.
On the front cover there is only one image which is of my friend and is a medium close up.
In the contents page there are four original images which i have taken. The first on is of my boyfriend and his band when they supported the real band Status Quo. The second photo is a medium close up of my friend. The third photo is my boyfiend who is a drummer. And the final image is my friend playing the guitar.

The Double Page Spread.

Double Page Spread.
My double page spread needs to be a mixture of text and images. For mine I am aiming to produce an interveiw with Jodie Smith (prending to be a solo musician). I am using the same story as the main one on my front cover. This will give you an idea of the kind of things i will include in my magazine.

I have drawn a few ideas of how the layout might look. I like this first one but it looks too much like my contents page with the images and text is boxes.

My second idea is going to have snapshots of the preformer on stage down the center and the text around it. This will be neat and interesting to look at.

This third image i have creaded is my favorite. I like the idea of having a large image with the text overlapping it. I would take a medium close up photograph of Jodie. She will be positioned on a side, like she was facing the text. She will be seated and in her casual clothes, like we have taken the photograph before she goes on stage and she is warming up.

Here is a working progress of my work. To further improve my work I am going to make some slight changes. Firstly i am going to add some more photographs and secondly resize the text to make it smaller as it is dominating the page and is too large. I the text was smaller it would look more profesional and imteresting.

By adding in the black boxes along the left hand side, this has enabled me to add in some more pictures of the artist. Also i have moved the text more central and made it smaller so the main focous is now the large medium close up of the artist, not the text. This shows the musician is dominant and important. My next step will be to insert two more photographs and the page will almost be finished.

Here is my final double page spread. I have edited it from the previous one buy moving the text and adding the final images along the left side.

Throughout the making of my front cover and contents page i have followed the colour scheme onto my double page spread. This will show that my pages are linked.

The Contents Page.

Contents Page.

I have drawn togethere these ideas before beggining to work on creating my final idea on DTP. To ensure my contents page is going to work i need to follow the conventions for it. I need to use a variety of images, the same colour scheme as my front page so they link together, features and regulars. Features only appear in that perticular issue and regulars which appear in every issue. I will now show my working progress of my contents page on

DTP.

Here is my working of my contents page. I chose the idea of having images of whats inside my magazine as a snippet to draw the reader into the magazine. By giving them a taster they will want to read on or if if they are looking at the stories in the magazine they will want to buy it.

I have one space left for an image which i have not yet put onto my magazine but when i upload it, my contents page will be finished.

I have continued with the colour scheme of pink black and white on the contents page. This links the pages together. I have also used the same fonts, this also links the pages together.

The Front Cover.

Using DTP I have brought together my ideas and sketches into this design. The masthead will be large but placed in the distance behind the female musicians head. This will show that the model is dominant within the shot. It will also be a long shot showing her stood in a strong position in the center of the page. This will focus the audiences attention and balance the page.
I am experimenting with two possible colour schemes. Firstly I am thinking of using yellow, brown and white. Yellow is a universal colour and appeals everyone. Its bright, eye catching and complementary with brown.
But its not very easy to see and although it looks good on the masthead, its very faint at the bottom outlining the text.
Secondly I am thinking of using is black dark pink and white. This is a magazine aimed at 16-19 year old females and these colours contrast well. The white is clean and professional which
balances with the black which is dark and bold. The pink then adds the edginess because its a sharp tone. Not like a light baby pink tone.

The pink text boxes at the bottom of the page are used to balance out the page, as the masthead is at the top, there needs to be something similar shaped at the bottom or it would be top heavy. As i have done to the right and left sides of the page. The text and image will be equaled out so it is symmetrical.

Planning My Photograph.

My magazine must include at least 4 photographs taken by me.Before taking my images i must consider: camera angles, distance, mise-en-scene, setting and props.The image will add to the whole representation of my magazine. The first image i am going to plan is the photo for the front cover. The front cover has two main jobs. "It has to sell the general concept of publications as well as to reflect, through its design, the intellectual level of the editors content" Swan 1991:133. The other idea about the front cover is: "It is the magazine's face... like a persons face, it is the primary indicator of a personality". So my front cover must reflect the entire genre/ house style i am aiming for. I need a strong image accompanied by supporting text.

Because my magazine is aimed at women i am going to have a female on the front page. Taken from my questionnaire i found out that women prefer a female model on the front instead of men. I am going to use a long shot, as this will capture the full body of the musician and i can place them in the center in a strong position. I will also use a slight tilt up on the camera so the female will look dominant as the camera is looking up at her and at the masthead. This will also attract the readers attention as they will want to find out who the person is.

Here is one idea of my front cover. It includes all the conventions a front cover a music magazine should include.

The masthead is large and visible to read from a distance, which is important because the audience needs to be able to read the the masthead to identify what the magazine is.

The main photograph is a long shot of a female model. This attracts females as they want to find out about her. They are also drawn to her because she looks strong and is in a dominant position.

The mise-en-scene is what is letting my front cover down as she doesn't look like she is in any real place, and there is no eye contact between the model and the audience.

The colour scheme is black, pink, white and green. The colour black reflects with the models outfit which is also black. Black is represented with rock music and rock singers.

I am going to adjust this front page and use a different photograph, but leave the layout as it is. Also i have used an un-original image of pink and i will have to remove it as all images must be original.

This is my further improved version of my front cover. By changing the long shot to a close up i have made the magazine more welcoming as the model is looking more at the audience. The clothing she is wearing is a black "rock" t-shirt. This relates to the rock style of music in the magazine and will reassure the audience of this. But to further improve this magazine even more I think i need to try out another photograph with the model looking directly at the camera.

This is another front cover idea i have created. The image is a medium shot and the model is facing the audience with full eye contact.

Although there is no physical background to the photo, the white space gives the image a clean look and makes the model stand out more.

The clothing the model is wearing reflects the genre of the magazine, not only because of the word Rock written on her t-shirt but because of the black and white and red colours. These are typical colours related to rock and roll.

The colours black and white also tie in with the colour scheme of the page and fit together to make her look like part of the magazine.

Planning.

Target audience.
In terms of audiences, magazines tend to have a main target audience. My main target audience is going to be 16-19 year old females who have a general interest in music. The musical genres i will be covering are rock, pop, jazz, drum and bass, blues and folk. The publications included in my magazine will be information about:
New bands, gigs and festivals
Music based competitions
Interveiws with current musicians and new musicians
It will act as a way of advertising new bands as freebie demo tracks can be given away with the magazine.

It will appeal to this perticular target audience: Female 16-19 beauce I have analysed and compleated a questionnaire on what they would want from a music magazine. My results showed that:
Female models on front cover are prefered.
From this I can get an idea of where I would advertise my magazine. My research shows that most females aged 16-19 spend their time:
At college
At the cinema

At a friends house
Shopping

From these ideas I can choose where would be a suitable advertising point. At college and shopping centers seem to be the best places to advertise as they hold large groups of people at a time.
Now I know my conventions I can use them to start drafting my own magazine. I will start by mind mapping my ideas for a name for my magazine.

From my ideas I have chosen Venus as my name for my magazine. This relates to my genre as there is a saying 'Women are from Venus' and my magazine is aimed and designed specifically for women. This can also give me an oppotunity in the future if i want to expand to a male audience i can call it Mars, because 'Men are from Mars'. Also to make my masthead even better I am going to add Music From - in front of the work Venus. Music From Venus.