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

Throughout the two tasks I have progress a lot and I realised there’s more than what you expect that goes into a magazine whereas the preliminary task was how I expected it to be.  At the start of the course I believed that the preliminary task and the main task was quite easy however I was wrong, the preliminary task was okay and most of the aspects was already chosen for you. As we done a sixth form magazine for Ryde academy my audience was already selected for me because if it’s a sixth form magazine for students at Ryde academy then that’s who my target audience was whereas the music magazine was different. For the music magazine I had to choose many different things like my target audience, what kind of person would be looking at my magazine, age group and even price of the magazine.  These are all ideas I didn’t look into when I first fought into creating a music magazine.  The audience is the key element for selling any type of magazine however for a music magazine you need to make it look professional and it to have a unique selling point (USP) which is what I had to think of to do this is created a questionnaire for my target audience and I got good feedback in which I implied it to my magazine. I had to make my magazine eye-catching enough to make sure people would actually buy the magazine whereas in the preliminary task I didn’t need to do this.  I made my magazine eye-catching by using a good colour scheme and the use of the pictures on the page really help to sell the magazine. Also the slogan and masthead put it right up there with the good selling magazine because it like professional and it sounds like a music magazine. 

When I started my preliminary task I didn’t even know how to use programs like Photoshop or even the blogger. First of all I felt that I wouldn’t be able to use this site because it looked hard to use but now looking back on it I had nothing to worry about because it is really to use. Photoshop was really complicated at the start and for my preliminary task I could only use the basic tools but towards the end of creating my music magazine I can now use most of the tools on Photoshop well and efficiently.  My knowledge and understanding of these programs have improved dramatically since the start of my preliminary task and now I wouldn’t make a music magazine without using Photoshop.  Looking back into my main task which was to create a music magazine front cover, double page spread and the contents page I would have done things differently. For example on the front cover I would have made the price and issue number smaller so it was that big on the page because I fear that the prize may distract the audience from buying the magazine even though my research says otherwise. I would have changed my contents page slightly, rather than having the win festival tickets on this page I would have like to have done that on a different page like the double page spread and instead of that I would have liked to have done an editor’s Colum. Finally on the double page spread I would have made the interview text smaller, and made the interview a a lot bigger for example I would have wanted more questions about the band and how they‘re becoming bigger and how they made it.  Lastly I learnt that the people and band members that would be on the front cover need to be directly looking at the camera to give the audience an instant relationship and to have more visual impact with them.

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

Though out the process of producing my product I have learnt a huge range of new technologies and I have learnt some new knowledge from how to use them. Firstly I didn’t know how to use Photoshop but now I do and I believe that I can use it well enough to create many more different things like movie posters and promotional things. At first I didn’t have a clue how to use this program at all but after researching it on the internet I have learn how to use it. I used Photoshop to edit my image, crop the image and used different backgrounds together to mix it up a bit to grab the audience’s attention. For this magazine I believe that I successfully change the outcome of my product and made it better for my audience because of Photoshop. Just from this website the blog itself was a new technology to me as this is the first ever time using a website like this. At first I really didn’t want to new this website because I felt like I wouldn’t be able to handle it well or use it at all, I thought I wouldn’t be able to accuses it easy, wouldn’t be able to get used to it or understand what it is capable of. However looking back now I had nothing to worry about because I can now post anything to anyone I like and I fully understand how to use this site. For example I learnt that I could post images, videos and even slides.  At times this site was annoying because some of the time I couldn’t accuses the site from home properly however I could in school so it got complicated.  I learnt that this website can really help improve my work and when the website is working properly and I can now use it for my other subjects. I could also use it for the future for example if I wanted to have it as a dairy which I can look back upon in the future then I could.

 

5: How did you attract/address your audience?

I attracted my audience by the masthead being eye-catching and something that will stay in your mind as it just clicks. I believe that it will stand out on the shelves where it was distributed and it will stand out more compared to the others. For my central image I ensured that my model has eye-contact so that they would draw the audience in and build a relationship straight away, this is because you look directly at the image and then the masthead. I created a slogan riding on top on my masthead that covers all of it to give it more of a music magazine type feel. The slogan “Hear the music. See the Music. Live the Music.” This shows all the things you can expect in a magazine and it relates to the modern society because you can literally do all of these things and my magazine will tell you how to do it. I think that could easily make a potential reader pick up the magazine.  Doing a questionnaire to my target audience gave me the information about what they wanted to see in a music magazine such as mine. Almost all of the people in the questionnaire wanted a monthly A4 sized magazine with the prize between £2-£3 which is why I went for the middle at £2.50. From this questionnaire I also found out that readers would like to gain free posters of the newest bands that are on the rise and they would also like to have reviews on the newest bands.  I had done this in my magazine to make it more appealing for my audience.

4: Who would be the audience for your media product?

My audience for my magazine is aimed at the age range of 15-25 year olds. I made it this way because it contains langue that is suited for this age group. Therefore younger readers might understand the words as such as the older generations may be looking for more exquisite words. I believe that the people of this age group are more likely to have a wider understanding and knowledge of music. I also gained a lot of information that age group during my primary research and through my questionnaire. As I am only 16 myself I would also fit into this age group and I feel as If I could relate to what this age group would want from a music magazine such as this one. The social group my magazine is aimed at would be the “rocky” person who likes a lot of music. With my magazine the audience would be able to relate to themselves because I know what the audience lifestyle would be similar to mine for example most of them could still be in school/college/university, the type of people that typically wake up late, breeze through on the bare minimum and usually don’t  have breakfast ect.

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

My product would be distributed worldwide eventually as this will take time for the magazine to be recognised in the UK, once this has happened then we can move on towards the bigger companies selling my magazine and then worldwide. This is because it would be very unlikely for a business to put a lot of money into a magazine to create so many copies worldwide first time out when nobody at all has ever heard of it. I would like my magazine to sell across the UK and I believe my magazine would be able to sell well with advertisements such as music channels and before gigs and concerts of rocky bands and gigs.  The reason why I expect my magazine to sell well is because people are always looking for the next thing and something to grab when they’re on journeys and this is a great way to spend your time. The main areas I would want my magazine to start selling first would be train stations, bus stations and airports so anywhere, where travelling is occurring because this is where most people would be buying music magazines. I would love my magazine to be sold by the Worldwide Magazine Distribution or COMAG because then this way they can change my magazine if needed as they will know how to sell it to an audience and a new range of people plus each of these would know how to advertise well to get the magazine recognised. Another reason why this would be a good idea would be because of the other magazines sat side of side from these distributers as it would mean my magazine would have high expectations therefore many people will buy it.

2: How does your media product represent particular social groups?

My media product is aimed at young adults and teenagers from the ages of 15-25 year olds. This is because I feel that there’s more of a niche market here plus in my opinion it would be easier for me to interact with this age group as I would fit perfectly into this group I understand and know how most of them would feel around music and how it’s a massive part in their lives.  I have intended my magazine to represent none of the social groups because this way it would open up to a bigger audience however it is has come out more aimed at the individual person, a type of person that keeps themselves to themselves. My magazine is also aimed at people that have an educated background; therefore they would be classed as a lower middle class. This is because they would need to be able to afford for the magazine or their parents will have to buy it for them. Another thing would be that they would need to have an idea of the news ect as sometimes it can relate to the bands in the magazine.  This magazine that I have created is very biased towards the male gender as all of my models and band members are all male. I have done this because I think that it will fit with my theme better and it’s better to aim to more directly at certain people, even though it would be better to have a wider audience but if the audience was to big it could not attract many people because it’s not directly for them only some parts may be suitable. Whereas if it directly for them it will make them want to buy it more and want it more. From my questionnaire I decided that my magazine would be based on rock music and aim at teenagers to young adults so this is what I have done.


 

1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge form and conventions of real media products?

My media product uses forms and conventions of media products. Firstly I decided to have my magazine in the size A4 as this is a normal size for a magazine, then this way we can easily find the magazine and fitted on the shelf. If I wanted to include extras into my magazine I could always have an A5 size inside my music magazine as it would fit.  On the front cover of my music magazine it is an actual gig, this gives it a much better effect because it shows what you can expect to see of this new upcoming band and I wanted to make it shout out a message to the readers. That message being come hear me, come see me also the model is fist pumping the air as if he’s number one and it shows the audience that his band is number one. I did this because many other magazines use powerful images and I wanted mine to do the same. All the imagines used complement the band and that the members in the band represent your average teenagers.

The colour scheme I went with was light grey/black, red and white. I done this because it means that the models and the main image of the magazine will always stand out and after all it’s about the music and the people around the music, which my magazine is meant to be portrayed as. As I have a light grey colour as my masthead it means that it can go with allot of colours and images so it means I can make changes to the magazine over time if I need to. I used the red and the white because it gives the magazine a rock type feel towards the magazine which is what you should expect of my amplify magazine.

I have the title/ mastheads of the magazine “amplify”, this is meant to show that you can tune into the music world as little as you like or as much as you like and it’s exactly what you are after. I also feel like it’s a great name because you have an amplifier for guitars and they fit perfectly into the music world plus as my magazine is a rock style.

There are conventions in my magazine as I have a barcode, issue number and distribution date. I made these small as I didn’t want to distract the audience away from the purpose and the cover of the magazine. However now looking back on it I would have made the text size even smaller and I now have moved the issue number down a little so it wouldn’t be riding on “y”.

 

Double Page Spread

 

This is my completed double page spread for my music magazine, AMPLIFY.

Again with this page I kept the same colours, Grey, red and white. I done this to keep the same theme and feel towards the magazine and just to make sure that the readers always know what they're reading. I have also kept the same front for this double page which is Impact and rockwell extra bold.

 

Everything else on the page i did for a reason and that is mainly to keep the readers interested and always looking at the next part to read.

 

This was done photoshop.

Double Page Spread flatplan

This is my design for my double page spread. I will try to stick to this as much a possible.

Contents page finished

This is my contents page for the AMPLIFY music magazine.

 

Firstly I created a logo design for my magazine where it can be found at the top left hand side on every single page so the reader is always reminded what magazine they're reading. In my opinion is also makes it look proffesional. The logo is AMP which stands for AMPLIFY, with a light red box background. The front is Rockwell Extra Bold which is the same as the name of the front cover as i felt i had to keep is the same otherwise the readers wouldn't be able to recognised the magazine. However I did change the AMP colour to white instead of the light grey colour because it give it more impact but i didn't want to have this impact on the front cover of the magazine.

 

At the top middle side of the page you can see the title contents, this is bold and simple with a big text side front without taking up to much of the page. I have done this because if the reader is flicking through they can clearly find the contents page with ease and if they want to read it they can. I have done this is the white colour with a light grey background. This was to keep all the colour the same and to make sure that they will always associate these colours with this magazine.

 

The main picture is of the band D.E.A.D line up looking directly at the camera which gives the affect that they're looking at the reader. This makes the audience have more interaction with this magazine. They're also slightly higher and looking down a little so the reader would be looking up at them. This cannotes that the band is more imporant than the reader but everyone is almost of the same level. This hopefully could make the audience feel more imporant because everyone always feels like famous people are better than more but they aren't. This shows that they're a little but only because they're more known but it doesn't make them more imporant.

 

The second, smaller picture is of the band D.E.A.D in live play. This is to show the audience what they look like when playing. It also shows that they're capable to moving around and jumping around on stage and they aren't afaird to show their pride and passion about music and especially their own music.  

 

On the left hand side of the page we can see Features, i have done this is a Rockwell Extra Bold front to keep it all the same and simple to read. I made the words white to go with a red background as it also matches the logo to keep it similar feel to the magazine. It is also in a slightly big front to make sure that the readers see it and also it is my subheading on this page. The name is features because underneath is the main reason for a contents page which is the page numbers and what can be found on them pages.

 

The numbers are in big and bold and in a Rockwell Extra Bold front to keep the same type of text without looking to boring and plain. The numbers are in red to keep it the same theme of the magazine also to make it stand out more. The words next to the page numbers, is in Segoe UI Symbol front and in the size 12 front. This is to make sure it's not to big but still easy to read. Again i used this front to keep it clean and proffesional looking. The colour is a light grey to keep the same feel and to make sure that i only use three main colours on every single page.

 

On the bottom left hand side of the page the words "win festival tickets!" as this is where there's a quick way of the readers trying to win themselves some free festival tickets. I have done the front letters of the words in red and the rest of the letters in light grey to give it a good impact and to catch your eye.  It is also good for the website because it will also bring more people on it therefore more views and adverts views which leads to bigger profit mirgins. The text and the colours are the same again here to keep it the same kind of feel about this magazine.  

 

Finally i have left little borders all around the page to make everything inside stand out more. On the left side of the page i've done it in a different shade of grey to make it stand out even more. It also gives it more a proffesional look aswell.

 

I did this in Photoshop.

 

 

Contents page flatplan

This is my contents page design, i will aim to make it look similar to this.

Front Cover finished piece

Here is my front cover for my music magazine. I ended up calling my magazine AMPLIFY, i decided to have this one over the others because i felt it fitted my magazine style and it actually gave the magazine a music feel straight away. Amplify is a word that is loud and a name that you'll remember, i also feel it's allot more catchy then the others. 

My slogan for my magazine is called Hear the music. See the music. Live the music. I wanted this one more than the others because i felt that's what readers and music lovers would be after. I also wanted it long enough to ride on top on the name of the magazine which this does perfectly. 

The picture really suits the style and engagement with the audience is also key, it give it a feel like the person "Alex Mountford" is singing out to the audience to gain their attention. 

In the left side third of the magazine is where most of the information on the front cover can be found, we have free posters inside which hopefully we entice the audience to buy the music just so they can get the cool posters. It could also mean the die hard fans might want to try and get all three.

The headline "The killers, Kings of Leon and Muse" are what you can also expect in this magazine as it also goes with the type of music that you can expect to find in this magazine.   

The cost of this magazine will be £2:50, From my research  this is a suitable amount of money to provide profit for the magazine and it's roughly how much a customer would expect a music magazine to be. I feel like it's a really good price for what's inside. This is also the first issue and this is telling the audience straight away as it says it in the top right hand corner. Along with this is also says the date of when the magazine will be released. The bar code at the bottom of the page is also essential as that is where the staff at the shops that are selling the magazine will scan the bar code to see the price ect.

The use of colour in this magazine is very effective, the colours used are the following: White, grey and red. This gives off a feel to the magazine of what you can always expect to see in  AMPLIFY. The colour in the AMPLIFY also means it can go with allot of things and different colour designs if ever need be because it is one of them colours that can go with allot of others because it's not in your face and a outrageous colour.

I have Used only used three different fronts on this magazine cover, they're two main ones which was Tekkon pro, Arial Rounded MT Bold. The third one was Rockwell Extra Bold. I used these because it was simple and easy to read. It would also be easy to maintain these fronts through-out the magazine.

This was all done on Photoshop.

Front Cover flat plan

Pictures For Music Magazine

Here are some of the photos i took when we went out. These are just a few of my favourite pictures and i will try to use as many as i can in the magazine.

Names and Slogans Ideas

Music Magazine Ideas

Listen - Listen In - We Listen - iListen

Turn it UP - TIP

Tune In

Volume - Volume UP

AMPLIFY

Music Mad -MM

Love Music

LOUD

Sound

Click


Music Magazine Slogans Ideas

About the music, not the people

Hear the music. See the music. Live the music.

Live life through the music.

Music to our ears.

Tomorrow music today.

Music Matters.

Keep Connected with music.

Real music now.

Our Lives, Our music.

Newest Bands, Greatest sounds, We got it.

Double page spread deconstruction #2

Here is another double page spread, it is actually done by another student. Their magazine was called Riot.

Firstly we look straight at the picture, the picture takes all of the pages up however only one side you look at and the rest is just a background. The person is sat down looking up at us as if we're looking down at them.. This gives the page a casual and relaxed affect, it's where the reader will feel laid back when reading this articles. This is because it's what most teenagers and music fans do, just relax and listen to music which is what this magazine is trying to say is very acceptable.

The magazine name is once again found at the top of the page to the left, this is just to make sure that the reader is always being reminded of what they're reading. It also look very professional.

On the left hand side of the double page we can see a tinted black text box with writing and a little picture in it. All the words are done it white because it goes well with the black tinted box. This makes the words stand out. The use of red in this also makes the area stand out more so it's more eye catchy. The picture helps break down the words otherwise it could be to much to read.

Double page spread deconstruction

In the top left hand corner we can see the the logo of the magazine which it always expected to be their. As we can tell this is magazine is caleld Rader.

This picture takes up half of the page, the people in this is mean to be your average teenagers which goes with the headlines and the audience because the audience is mainly aimed at teenagers. They're looking up at the camera as if we're looking down at them. This cannotes that we the audience are better than these people even though most of the readers will be teenagers. It also suggests that we can be better than these people and the actile is probably going to tell.

At the bottem of the picture we can see a supposedly ripped of bit of paper with writing in it but it gives it a reall cool effect as if its the only bit we need to read and as it's only little it's saving us time. It's just quick intertainment. It gives it a teenager feel as they're always writing down notes ect.

The title " The Teenagers" is in a massive text size to make sure you instantly look at it so you know what this page is about from the begging. They have kept this simple and easy to read with the big bold text they have used.

On the next page they have deceided to split the page up into two different articles which does make it look likes there's allot of writting and reading to do however there isn't much. They have done this is two different degins as well to keep the audience interested in the articles however they haven't made it look too different from what you would expect in the magazine.

They have used other smaller pictures where the text is to break down the text allot more to make it seem that's there's not that much and it also helps with the stories you read. This is a good idea because it give the reader something else to look at as well.

The colours used are black,blue and white with a hint of red in some places. These are the main colours in a teenagers life and it makes the arctile mainly for males as all these colours would attract them. This also looks very prossefional and well thought out. I will use this affect and look in my magazine and it perfectly fits my audience and my type of magazine im trying to create.

Contents decontruction page #2

This is another contents page done by Q. We can tell this because of it's logo and the top left hand corner. Aside next to it has the contents in bold and black and we can tell when the magazine was coming out and it was in NOV05. I don't think that this is important because it can just be left on the front cover. They have also used a line as it's a title straight across the top of the page.

The picture takes up again around a thrid of the page which suggests it's very imporant and it makes it look like there's less reading to be done and so it's not to much words without looking at anything. This is a close up of a person who is looking directly at you at eye line to make it look like you're looking straight at him. This connotes that you are on the same level as him and nobody is bigger than anyone else, no matter what lift style. Everyone is equal.

On the left hand side we can see the features, again the "Features" is in bold and white but with a black background. They have done this to make all the titles on this page stand out to make sure you read it just incase it might interest you. Plus it tells you want is going to be underneath.

Under this we have a text box which outlines the rest of the page as if it doesn't fit in witht the rest of the page however it could be usefull for the reader. This has been seen on most of the contents pages so its another thing which the reader would always expect to be their. It's one of their features which is unquie about the magazine.

Kept on with the same type of style we continue to have the same kind of feel which is good because if they mixed it up to much it would look unpossefional and disorganised.

The colours used in this pages are the following, black, red with a cream background. This is to go with the magazine through out to keep it all the same design. So the front cover matches the contents ect, i will have to make sure i do this for my magazine.

Contents page decontruction

This is out of the magazine Q. We can tell this instantly because of it's logo at the top of the page. Which gives us the impression that they're really proud about their magazine and they want all the readers to alaways be reminded of what they're reading. The "Contents" next to it is in white with a black background and bold to make it stand out. This justs makes it's easy to read if you're just flicking through the magazine which is a good idea.

The pciture on this page takes up almost a thrid of the page, they have done this because it's the frist thing we look at therefore it needs to interest the reader straight away. The bands members eyes and heads are all looking at the camera to give it the affect that we're looking at them. They're just standing casual which give off the "cool" affect as it's not like they're even posing for the camera.

On the left hand side we can see the features, again the "Features" is in bold and white but with a red background which changes it up a little and to go with the red logo. This is good because it gets straight to the point and wer can find where the pages are for the bands and other things we're looking for. They have kept this clean and tidy and it looks very professional.

Under that we have a gold "special" text which entices the reader to read this bit of the artical. This just makes this part stand out more and it gives a eye catching look to it. This also mixes up the page a little without giving it a bad use of colours affect.

To the bottem right hand of the page we can see a smaller picture with some texts and another headline, this breaks up the texts otherwise it might seem like it drags on and there's to much to read.

Lastly the colours and fronts that are used all make it flow with the magazine, meaning they use the same colours through out and it now what the audience from this magazine would expect to see. The main colours that are use are red,white and black with a lighter background which gives it a good professional  look. The fronts and bold and easy to read.

Second: Music magazine deconstruction

This magazine is a different type and brand compared to the other one which was "VIBE", this one is called "Q" and it's more a rock type magazine. We get this impression straight away because we can see key headlines like Foo fighters, biffy clyro and arctic monkeys and they're all type of rock bands. The audience of this magazine would mainly be anybody that likes rock music.

From the picture, we can see it's in a close up shot of a man opening his month, inside is him and his band. Firstly its a close up just so they can see more of the month to fit the people in it. I also believe that is shows that the music is allot more about passion and  it shows they just want to play music from the heart. This also shows that anybody can play music and it doesn't matter who you are or what you look like. He is representing the people involved within music and the people in this month especially.

The fire used in his month connotates that he could have a firey personailty and it's shown in his music. It is also used to make us look right into his month where his band members can be found. This also links up with the headling "THIS WILLL KILL ME" meaning that if anybody had fire in them it would literally kill them but it's just how the person feels about music. Music in his eyes in something to die for and he will happily.

As we can see in the top right hand corner there's a circle which has the words " FREE!", as a reader will see this striaght away they read on and getting people's attention is half the battle of selling a magazine. Having free stuff in  magazines always helps to increase sales and make the magazine more popular so for my magazine i will do this.

The colours that are used in this front cover gives a massive impact towards it's audience. The colours that are used are white, red,  gold and black. These are all well choosen colours as most of the people that are into this type of music usuaslly wear them type of colours and it draws the reader in. In my opinion it also makes the picture stand out more. This decontates that this "Q" magazine will always use these colours so it's easier for their audience to find in the future.

The left side thrid in this magazine front cover has the most words and information of which you can expect to be found inside the magazine. There are names being shouted out in your face, so if you like them you will be allot more interested in the magazine. They also do a variety of bands such as Biffy Clyro and the foo fighters they play the same kind of music however they are completely different types of people and bands so it gives a bigger audience again without one hating the other.

Results of questionnaire

What Gender Are you?
Male     female
   9              6

What age group are you? 0-12     13-18     19-26      26+    0            15            0           0 Do you buy music magazines? Yes     No    5        10 How much are you willing to pay? Nothing     £0-2     £2.01-3     £3.01+      0               3            10             2 What kind of music are you into? Electro     Pop     Rock     Rap     Other       1             3         3            7            1 What you like to see new film reviews? Yes     No  14        1 What you like to get free posters of bands? Yes     No 13        2 So these are my answers from the qustionnaires i gave out. From this i have learn that my target audince is going to be for male teenagers. My price of the product will hopefully be around £3. The type of music i will be covering will be rap. Little features like films reviews and free posters will be inclueded.