Wednesday 3 March 2010
Saturday 27 February 2010
Friday 26 February 2010
Evaluative Questions
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Before producing my magazine I spent a long time looking at and analysing existing music magazines that are already on the market and selling to the general public. This helped me to not only gain knowledge of the basic material needed to create a successful magazine that features content that will sell, but also how to set out each page’s layout, with the use of effective colour schemes and images.
Throughout my magazine I followed simple conventions that you would find in any magazine, no matter whether it’s one on music, fashion or even babies. This included; ensuring there was a header on every page, having at least one image on every page and creating each individual page to be attractive to the products target audience. Following the very common convention of using big, bold, shocking text for the title, whilst also making the title colour red, I was ensuring that my product would appear as if it was already on the same standard of professionalism as the existing ones. However, I did challenge this convention slightly by putting the title of my magazine ‘inTUNE’ in the top, right hand corner of the front cover, instead of in the top left hand corner like all the magazines I researched had.
The convention of using one large image on the front cover, I used. I then connected this with my double page spread by having the image of the artist whom was the main article, which was the content of my double page spread.
To ensure I followed several conventions from real media products to create a very realistic, relatable product I also chose to use the same fonts and colour schemes throughout. My main four colours used for the magazine were red, black, white and grey. In spite of this, as with the front cover title idea, I decided to try and develop and improve the idea of the use of colour schemes and slightly altered the colours used for my double page spread. I chose to incorporate the colour pink, instead of the use of red, with this article as I felt it fitted better with the article topic (‘a day in the life of Sophie Grace’- a young rock chick superstar who is known for wearing a lot of pink) and also brought more colour to the production, which some magazines I looked at avoided.
By following regular conventions of real media products I was enabling my magazine to be instantly likeable and reassuring to potential consumers that would find comfort from it being similar to existing product. By then adding my own spin on some of the conventions, developing them in a way in which made them even more attractive, I was bringing a ‘new and improved’ looking magazine, which would attract the modern day society.
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
I aimed for my magazine to cover as broad a variety of social groups as possible, to try and prevent singling out particular classes and units of the general public. By producing articles on information and artists from a wide range of musical genres it meant that I could ensure there was something to interest everyone, in each issue. Also by looking at music from all centuries, past and present, I was enabling older generations to reminisce and muse over songs from their youth, which other magazines do not offer, making mine appeal to a bigger prospective audience. In the particular issue I have created the main focus of that month was a new young female singer, Sophie Grace, who would predominantly attract the younger generation, 14 to 17 year olds, with the majority also being female. This would mean that for each particular month and with each issue will come a core, focused social group that would cover the most part of the overall consumers for that issue, dependant on what or who are the main focus, on the cover and inside by the use of articles.
At just £2.50 an issue, I had managed to create a price that was not only affordable for all classes of people, but was also great value for money. With it being such an extensive magazine, with lots of pages and articles and lots of information, offers and competitions, the consumer would expect to pay a much higher cost than £2.50, therefore being affordable for anyone, no matter their background or affluence.
What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
Some would say that publishing companies can make or break a magazine, dependant on who they know and how much experience they have. This is why it is important for me to ensure I pick a suitable publisher for my product. Formerly known as International Publishing Company UK Ltd, IPC media is one of the UK’s leading consumer magazine publishers so would be an ideal publisher for a publication like mine. I would also pick these producers as they have a lot of experience dealing with magazines, already publishing top music magazine NME. This may also even help bring links between my publication and NME, making my brand stronger and encouraging consumers of NME to look at purchasing inTUNE also.
Who would be the audience for your media product?
My target audience would be both males and females ranging from the ages of 14 to 25, however this does not mean to say people younger or older than this may not also wish to purchase the magazine. The typical person to purchase my product would be someone who not only enjoys listening to music but also takes an active interest in finding out more about and broadening their knowledge on things such as music artists, events such as concerts and festivals and songs-old, new, and soon to be released. The typical consumer for my magazine would either still be a student in education (compulsory and higher) or be employed. Those in education may also have a part time job and pay for the magazine themselves.
How did you attract/address your audience?
As my audience would all be already interested in music, artists and events, it was not too difficult to attract them to my magazine. By creating articles for all different sorts of music interest I was easily addressing every potential consumer in each issue. The use of bright colours and large clear images also helped capture the attention the magazine and initially draw their eye to it first when bronzing though many. The offer of competitions that are free to enter is an extra added bonus, from the consumer’s point of view, as these opportunities come with the price of the magazine, with nothing more to spend. The use of colloquial language throughout my magazine makes it much more personal and relatable for a reader, bringing comfort and enjoyment to them without making even the least music-knowledgeable person feel awkward or embarrassed.
What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
Producing my magazine, inTUNE, has not only expanded my knowledge of the music industry immensely, but has given me new skills, and developed some I previously possessed, with technology. I now have a great knowledge of the computer software Photoshop. I have learnt how simple software such as this can be used to create complex, professional looking productions, such as the magazine I created. I have also learnt the importance of technology for not only the creation of such products, with the use of computers and printers for example, but also for the research that needs to be undertaken before creating it. The internet is a prime example of this, with it offering information on anything you wish to learn about or discover.
Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
I feel my knowledge and skills have improved greatly since when I undertook the preliminary task at the beginning of the course. During the development of the preliminary task I was able to acknowledge ways in which I could improve my product and what skills to take forward with me for my music magazine and what to avoid trying again. From looking over my preliminary task I realised that I would need to make bigger, bolder statements with both the text I put on my pages and the pictures I use. From not having a great expertise or familiarity with the music industry or magazine industry I learnt the importance of research and planning. By obtaining wisdom and understanding of particular aspects of both diligences before starting the process of actually producing my magazine, I was more advantaged, compared to with the preliminary task where I rushed my research and attempted to go straight into just doing the magazine. I also learnt that, like with all large pieces of work, by planning the layout of each page before creating it I set myself guidelines to follow and was also able to set targets for completion.
Before producing my magazine I spent a long time looking at and analysing existing music magazines that are already on the market and selling to the general public. This helped me to not only gain knowledge of the basic material needed to create a successful magazine that features content that will sell, but also how to set out each page’s layout, with the use of effective colour schemes and images.
Throughout my magazine I followed simple conventions that you would find in any magazine, no matter whether it’s one on music, fashion or even babies. This included; ensuring there was a header on every page, having at least one image on every page and creating each individual page to be attractive to the products target audience. Following the very common convention of using big, bold, shocking text for the title, whilst also making the title colour red, I was ensuring that my product would appear as if it was already on the same standard of professionalism as the existing ones. However, I did challenge this convention slightly by putting the title of my magazine ‘inTUNE’ in the top, right hand corner of the front cover, instead of in the top left hand corner like all the magazines I researched had.
The convention of using one large image on the front cover, I used. I then connected this with my double page spread by having the image of the artist whom was the main article, which was the content of my double page spread.
To ensure I followed several conventions from real media products to create a very realistic, relatable product I also chose to use the same fonts and colour schemes throughout. My main four colours used for the magazine were red, black, white and grey. In spite of this, as with the front cover title idea, I decided to try and develop and improve the idea of the use of colour schemes and slightly altered the colours used for my double page spread. I chose to incorporate the colour pink, instead of the use of red, with this article as I felt it fitted better with the article topic (‘a day in the life of Sophie Grace’- a young rock chick superstar who is known for wearing a lot of pink) and also brought more colour to the production, which some magazines I looked at avoided.
By following regular conventions of real media products I was enabling my magazine to be instantly likeable and reassuring to potential consumers that would find comfort from it being similar to existing product. By then adding my own spin on some of the conventions, developing them in a way in which made them even more attractive, I was bringing a ‘new and improved’ looking magazine, which would attract the modern day society.
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
I aimed for my magazine to cover as broad a variety of social groups as possible, to try and prevent singling out particular classes and units of the general public. By producing articles on information and artists from a wide range of musical genres it meant that I could ensure there was something to interest everyone, in each issue. Also by looking at music from all centuries, past and present, I was enabling older generations to reminisce and muse over songs from their youth, which other magazines do not offer, making mine appeal to a bigger prospective audience. In the particular issue I have created the main focus of that month was a new young female singer, Sophie Grace, who would predominantly attract the younger generation, 14 to 17 year olds, with the majority also being female. This would mean that for each particular month and with each issue will come a core, focused social group that would cover the most part of the overall consumers for that issue, dependant on what or who are the main focus, on the cover and inside by the use of articles.
At just £2.50 an issue, I had managed to create a price that was not only affordable for all classes of people, but was also great value for money. With it being such an extensive magazine, with lots of pages and articles and lots of information, offers and competitions, the consumer would expect to pay a much higher cost than £2.50, therefore being affordable for anyone, no matter their background or affluence.
What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
Some would say that publishing companies can make or break a magazine, dependant on who they know and how much experience they have. This is why it is important for me to ensure I pick a suitable publisher for my product. Formerly known as International Publishing Company UK Ltd, IPC media is one of the UK’s leading consumer magazine publishers so would be an ideal publisher for a publication like mine. I would also pick these producers as they have a lot of experience dealing with magazines, already publishing top music magazine NME. This may also even help bring links between my publication and NME, making my brand stronger and encouraging consumers of NME to look at purchasing inTUNE also.
Who would be the audience for your media product?
My target audience would be both males and females ranging from the ages of 14 to 25, however this does not mean to say people younger or older than this may not also wish to purchase the magazine. The typical person to purchase my product would be someone who not only enjoys listening to music but also takes an active interest in finding out more about and broadening their knowledge on things such as music artists, events such as concerts and festivals and songs-old, new, and soon to be released. The typical consumer for my magazine would either still be a student in education (compulsory and higher) or be employed. Those in education may also have a part time job and pay for the magazine themselves.
How did you attract/address your audience?
As my audience would all be already interested in music, artists and events, it was not too difficult to attract them to my magazine. By creating articles for all different sorts of music interest I was easily addressing every potential consumer in each issue. The use of bright colours and large clear images also helped capture the attention the magazine and initially draw their eye to it first when bronzing though many. The offer of competitions that are free to enter is an extra added bonus, from the consumer’s point of view, as these opportunities come with the price of the magazine, with nothing more to spend. The use of colloquial language throughout my magazine makes it much more personal and relatable for a reader, bringing comfort and enjoyment to them without making even the least music-knowledgeable person feel awkward or embarrassed.
What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
Producing my magazine, inTUNE, has not only expanded my knowledge of the music industry immensely, but has given me new skills, and developed some I previously possessed, with technology. I now have a great knowledge of the computer software Photoshop. I have learnt how simple software such as this can be used to create complex, professional looking productions, such as the magazine I created. I have also learnt the importance of technology for not only the creation of such products, with the use of computers and printers for example, but also for the research that needs to be undertaken before creating it. The internet is a prime example of this, with it offering information on anything you wish to learn about or discover.
Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
I feel my knowledge and skills have improved greatly since when I undertook the preliminary task at the beginning of the course. During the development of the preliminary task I was able to acknowledge ways in which I could improve my product and what skills to take forward with me for my music magazine and what to avoid trying again. From looking over my preliminary task I realised that I would need to make bigger, bolder statements with both the text I put on my pages and the pictures I use. From not having a great expertise or familiarity with the music industry or magazine industry I learnt the importance of research and planning. By obtaining wisdom and understanding of particular aspects of both diligences before starting the process of actually producing my magazine, I was more advantaged, compared to with the preliminary task where I rushed my research and attempted to go straight into just doing the magazine. I also learnt that, like with all large pieces of work, by planning the layout of each page before creating it I set myself guidelines to follow and was also able to set targets for completion.
Friday 19 February 2010
Looking At My Product
For my main AS Media Studies coursework I was set the task of producing the front cover, contents page and a double page spread for a music magazine that I would be designing and creating. When looking at well known, already publicly sold, music magazines I was shocked and worried of the assignment but after recognising that by following particular trends and conventions that were common amongst almost all of the commercial media products looked at, I could form a well produced result which would be attractive to the target audience (who, as a result, would consider purchasing it).
For front cover-
From my research, I noted that front covers of music magazines, simply, always have a header and at least one image. The header is the chosen name for the magazine, being the trademark for it and what everyone would refer to when talking about it. This is why it is important that the header is simple yet quirky, making the magazine instantly attractive to the viewer’s eye. It also needs to be memorable and, if possible, to do with the topics the magazine covers. This is why I decided to name my magazine ‘inTUNE’. I felt this name would be a successful attribute to my magazine as it is not only shocking with ‘tune’ being written in capital letters, but also as the term ‘in-tune’ is connected with music, which directly lets the reader know that the magazine is focused around music. The header is big and bold, which was the same for every magazine researched (actually common to any published magazine, no matter its focus or features) to make it eye catching and easily recognisable. Most headers are positioned to the top left of the front cover or top centre. However, I decided to challenge this convention, to make my magazine slightly different to the other ones on the market, in order to make it stand out. The typical colour for a music magazine header is red, a tradition that I subsequently followed. The font chosen for the header was called ‘You Are Loved’, and I felt it worked very well for my magazine. The jagged, not completely filled in look stands out from the rest of the text on the page which use block colour. The fonts I used for the other pieces of text across the front cover work well together, without any one in particular standing out or over-powering another. The colour scheme I chose to use for my front cover is red, black, grey and white. I felt these colours would combine successfully, and cannot be classified as gender specific, so will attract both sexes. So as not to make the page too crowded I chose to only use two images, one as the main background image, and the other a small one at the side of the magazine. The main image is of a young music artist that is to be featured in the magazine, and is the content of the main article of that issue. The other one is also of a music artist to be in the magazine. I believe both are proportioned well, with the main image attracting most attention, whilst the other one is also attractive and provides more amusement.
For Contents Page-
From the three production tasks set (front cover, contents page, double page spread), I found the contents page to be the most challenging. This was due to the fact that, unlike front pages and double page spreads in magazines, there are not many set, commonly used conventions for contents pages. From my research on music magazines currently on the market, I noticed that the layout of contents pages was not similar from one magazine to another, and individual magazines themselves completely alter the layout between issues. This meant that I had few guidelines to work with when designing my layout, which made it hard as I had to try and create an effective layout, but it also benefitted me in the sense that no-matter how my contents page looks it doesn’t matter, as long as its original. I decided to not over-do my contents page, in fear of it looking too crowded, so kept the layout basic. Instead of simply using the word ‘contents’, or ‘contents page’, for the header of this page I chose to write ‘this month’. This clearly defines what the page is going to tell the reader (the content of the magazine for that month) but is a different, innovative approach. I used large pictures of artists that were featured in the magazine and put the page number that they were featured on over the picture. I felt this would be effective as it’s a quick and easy way for readers to navigate to particular articles that interest them, without having to read through any text on the page to find out which page to turn to. I feel it also makes the page more aesthetically pleasing, with images being nicer to ‘read’ than text. With regards to the pictures themselves, I added effects to make them brighter and more colourful. This simply adds to their ability to catch the consumer’s eye. I decided to make the picture of my front cover, and main article, artist (Sophie Grace) the largest in order to show the importance of her article and for people to notice with ease, especially for those who simply bought the magazine due to her feature article. After realising it may look slightly unprofessional if I only use pictures on my contents page, I added some text down the right hand side. The text was short introductory titles for a selected few articles in the magazine, and the pages the reader can find them on. In the top right corner of the page I also added some text encouraging people to subscribe to the magazine, at a rate sixty pence cheaper than normal cost per month. After putting all the text onto my contents page I thought it looked slightly bland and there was nothing special about the writing compared to the bright images next to it. For this reason I added effects such as coloured borders and speckled backgrounds to each of the individual pieces of text, to make the page more attractive as a whole. The colour scheme I used for my contents page was the same as the front page (red, black, white, and grey). This was to maintain a common theme throughout the magazine to form a continuing identity for the product.
For Double Page Spread-
I chose to do my double page spread on the main focus of my magazine; the story on the famous teen rock chick Sophie Grace. The layout of my double page spread was very simple. I chose a picture I had taken of my model (Sophie), as the background across both sides. In the image Sophie is in the bottom right hand corner, at the top of a hill, with the back-drop behind her being a scenic view of the ocean. I felt this picture would not only be attractive for the viewer for its beauty, but also it ties in with the setting of the article, Southend-On-Sea, Sophie’s hometown. ‘Sophie Grace’ was the title of the article and I displayed this in a very large, bold font. This was positioned, mirroring where Sophie was sitting in the background, on the left page of the spread. The colour I chose for the title was white, but I added a pink outline around each letter as I felt this colour would be more appropriate to the article’s content. I also chose the same colour pink for any parts of text I wished to make stand out, for example a piece of text informing readers of which page to view to win a prize related to Sophie Grace and also the first letter of the main piece of text for the article. Having a different colour for the first letter of the first word of the article, as well as making it slightly larger than the rest of the text, is something I learned to be a convention amongst almost all magazines, including music magazines. Also following what other magazines do, I chose for my text to be black, small and set out in three columns. So as not to make the double page spread seem too empty, therefore dull, I added three pictures of Sophie Grace in the large space, on the right side page. As a final touch I added a pink border around each image, the same pink I used for all my pinks texts, making it seem more connected and bringing the whole article together.
I took all the regular conventions I discovered from my research into consideration, and incorporated similar ones into my own product. Following and using conventions that are used by all magazines I knew would make my magazine seem more professional and more relatable to the reader. On the other hand, in parts, where I have challenged conventions and added my own twist to ideas already used, I have put my own stamp on the music magazine market and bringing in a modern and exciting new publication for consumers. I feel my magazine would be successful as, after listening to and taking into account the feedback I received from the general public and reviewing my own research undertaken, I have incorporated many aspects that seemed to be most favourable of a music magazine, which would, in-turn, encourage consumers, experienced purchasers and music magazine virgins alike, to buy and read my product!
For front cover-
From my research, I noted that front covers of music magazines, simply, always have a header and at least one image. The header is the chosen name for the magazine, being the trademark for it and what everyone would refer to when talking about it. This is why it is important that the header is simple yet quirky, making the magazine instantly attractive to the viewer’s eye. It also needs to be memorable and, if possible, to do with the topics the magazine covers. This is why I decided to name my magazine ‘inTUNE’. I felt this name would be a successful attribute to my magazine as it is not only shocking with ‘tune’ being written in capital letters, but also as the term ‘in-tune’ is connected with music, which directly lets the reader know that the magazine is focused around music. The header is big and bold, which was the same for every magazine researched (actually common to any published magazine, no matter its focus or features) to make it eye catching and easily recognisable. Most headers are positioned to the top left of the front cover or top centre. However, I decided to challenge this convention, to make my magazine slightly different to the other ones on the market, in order to make it stand out. The typical colour for a music magazine header is red, a tradition that I subsequently followed. The font chosen for the header was called ‘You Are Loved’, and I felt it worked very well for my magazine. The jagged, not completely filled in look stands out from the rest of the text on the page which use block colour. The fonts I used for the other pieces of text across the front cover work well together, without any one in particular standing out or over-powering another. The colour scheme I chose to use for my front cover is red, black, grey and white. I felt these colours would combine successfully, and cannot be classified as gender specific, so will attract both sexes. So as not to make the page too crowded I chose to only use two images, one as the main background image, and the other a small one at the side of the magazine. The main image is of a young music artist that is to be featured in the magazine, and is the content of the main article of that issue. The other one is also of a music artist to be in the magazine. I believe both are proportioned well, with the main image attracting most attention, whilst the other one is also attractive and provides more amusement.
For Contents Page-
From the three production tasks set (front cover, contents page, double page spread), I found the contents page to be the most challenging. This was due to the fact that, unlike front pages and double page spreads in magazines, there are not many set, commonly used conventions for contents pages. From my research on music magazines currently on the market, I noticed that the layout of contents pages was not similar from one magazine to another, and individual magazines themselves completely alter the layout between issues. This meant that I had few guidelines to work with when designing my layout, which made it hard as I had to try and create an effective layout, but it also benefitted me in the sense that no-matter how my contents page looks it doesn’t matter, as long as its original. I decided to not over-do my contents page, in fear of it looking too crowded, so kept the layout basic. Instead of simply using the word ‘contents’, or ‘contents page’, for the header of this page I chose to write ‘this month’. This clearly defines what the page is going to tell the reader (the content of the magazine for that month) but is a different, innovative approach. I used large pictures of artists that were featured in the magazine and put the page number that they were featured on over the picture. I felt this would be effective as it’s a quick and easy way for readers to navigate to particular articles that interest them, without having to read through any text on the page to find out which page to turn to. I feel it also makes the page more aesthetically pleasing, with images being nicer to ‘read’ than text. With regards to the pictures themselves, I added effects to make them brighter and more colourful. This simply adds to their ability to catch the consumer’s eye. I decided to make the picture of my front cover, and main article, artist (Sophie Grace) the largest in order to show the importance of her article and for people to notice with ease, especially for those who simply bought the magazine due to her feature article. After realising it may look slightly unprofessional if I only use pictures on my contents page, I added some text down the right hand side. The text was short introductory titles for a selected few articles in the magazine, and the pages the reader can find them on. In the top right corner of the page I also added some text encouraging people to subscribe to the magazine, at a rate sixty pence cheaper than normal cost per month. After putting all the text onto my contents page I thought it looked slightly bland and there was nothing special about the writing compared to the bright images next to it. For this reason I added effects such as coloured borders and speckled backgrounds to each of the individual pieces of text, to make the page more attractive as a whole. The colour scheme I used for my contents page was the same as the front page (red, black, white, and grey). This was to maintain a common theme throughout the magazine to form a continuing identity for the product.
For Double Page Spread-
I chose to do my double page spread on the main focus of my magazine; the story on the famous teen rock chick Sophie Grace. The layout of my double page spread was very simple. I chose a picture I had taken of my model (Sophie), as the background across both sides. In the image Sophie is in the bottom right hand corner, at the top of a hill, with the back-drop behind her being a scenic view of the ocean. I felt this picture would not only be attractive for the viewer for its beauty, but also it ties in with the setting of the article, Southend-On-Sea, Sophie’s hometown. ‘Sophie Grace’ was the title of the article and I displayed this in a very large, bold font. This was positioned, mirroring where Sophie was sitting in the background, on the left page of the spread. The colour I chose for the title was white, but I added a pink outline around each letter as I felt this colour would be more appropriate to the article’s content. I also chose the same colour pink for any parts of text I wished to make stand out, for example a piece of text informing readers of which page to view to win a prize related to Sophie Grace and also the first letter of the main piece of text for the article. Having a different colour for the first letter of the first word of the article, as well as making it slightly larger than the rest of the text, is something I learned to be a convention amongst almost all magazines, including music magazines. Also following what other magazines do, I chose for my text to be black, small and set out in three columns. So as not to make the double page spread seem too empty, therefore dull, I added three pictures of Sophie Grace in the large space, on the right side page. As a final touch I added a pink border around each image, the same pink I used for all my pinks texts, making it seem more connected and bringing the whole article together.
I took all the regular conventions I discovered from my research into consideration, and incorporated similar ones into my own product. Following and using conventions that are used by all magazines I knew would make my magazine seem more professional and more relatable to the reader. On the other hand, in parts, where I have challenged conventions and added my own twist to ideas already used, I have put my own stamp on the music magazine market and bringing in a modern and exciting new publication for consumers. I feel my magazine would be successful as, after listening to and taking into account the feedback I received from the general public and reviewing my own research undertaken, I have incorporated many aspects that seemed to be most favourable of a music magazine, which would, in-turn, encourage consumers, experienced purchasers and music magazine virgins alike, to buy and read my product!
Monday 15 February 2010
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