I showed my Magazine project to a number 0f schoolfriends, and this is the feedback they gave me.
Sophie, 17 - "I like how the title is nice and big, as it makes it stand out. I like the eye contact the main image has with the camera. I also like how the hook "Lucy Smith" is overlapping the main image. I would defienately buy this Magazine, if it was on the market today".
Jordan, 16 - "This magazine is very attractive, because of the bold, bright colours. However i do not think it would buy this magazine, as it seems to be aimed more at girls. But i think it would do very well within the magazine industry".
Jodie, 19 - "I love this magazine, it is based on all the kind of music i listen too. The colours work so well, with the main image. The article could also be very inspiring. This would definately catch my eye, if it was on a magazine shelf".
Susanne, 40 - "It looks very professional, and if it was my work, i would be very proud of it. But, it is definately aimed at a younger audience. I would not buy this magazine, because of that reason, but i think it would do very well with a younger generation".
Monday, 10 May 2010
Wednesday, 17 March 2010
Media Evaluation
Media Evaluation
My Magazine is called “AMP” it’s a monthly music magazine aimed at both male and females ages 15-30, featuring Indie/Rock music.
In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
In order for my product to relate to real media products, I followed the conventions from magazines, which I researched like Q and NME. For my magazine front cover, I took the idea of my title from Q as their title is also placed on a square block of colour, situated in the top left corner. Also I overlapped the title with the model slightly which NME and Q do regularly. I used a stereotypically attractive female model. I also used a hook bar on the bottom of my magazine, to promote a competition, to attract readers; Q, Mojo and NME are known to do this also. For my contents page I found a picture of an example on Google. I have posted the picture on my blog; I took the idea of the contents writing being on an angle, from that example. However I have kept my article page very simple, by putting my writing into columns, and situating my model to the right hand side of the article. I decided to crop the picture, as it was too large. I challenged the convention of real media products for example, Q and NME, by using a model for my front cover, as she is not directly looking into the camera, but it is a headshot image, which can be very effective. My model, is wearing black and grey clothing, which can tie within indie/rock genre targeting men and woman from the ages 15-30, which this magazine is. In most magazines I researched all models were looking directly into the camera and they were either full body shots or medium shot, for example NME uses a lot of body shots of bands on their front cover.
The pose of the cover image is meant to show the reader to be proud of what music they listen to and love. Because the model is looking directly into the camera, there shows no hesitation, as there is no hesitation when listening to a song, you either love it or hate it.
When my product was finished I showed it to a group of people, to get their opinions of the magazine. They were all very impressed by it and how it was very eye-catching. They thought the price was also reasonable, and that if it were a magazine being published today, they would buy it. I took advantage of uses and gratifications because people interested in the genre will buy the magazine for a sense of identity and to find out about the artists my magazine features.
What have you learnt about new technologies from the process of creating this product?
I have learnt a lot about new technologies during the process of creating my product. I learnt how to use a digital camera and tripod .I learnt how to create layers, for every time I added new things to my product. I learned how to manipulate images and saturate the colour of the skin and resize the image. These are some examples of manipulating images:
Original Image Manipulated Image
I used the “Magic wand tool” this cuts out the background of an image just
leaving the person, or the focused object. The magic wand tool cuts out the background carefully and accurately; it cuts around the outline of the main image, destroying all things in the background. I also learnt that I could change the tolerance in order to cut out more neatly. When I had used the magic wand tool, I went round with the rubber to smooth the edges, and also tried using the blur tool and sharpening tool to make the image look more professional. You can clearly see that I have manipulated images in my product.
I also learnt how to create effects on my “hooks” by double clicking on the layers; I can drop shadows, use an inner glow on the writing etc. I had to do this on all of my “hooks” because the writing was not very readable being based on the black background.
During the process I also learnt how to combine words and images on my blog and publish my work on the Internet to an international audience. I switched from media consumer to media producer. When doing practical work, I learnt how to use a digital camera and tripod.
Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
During the progress from my preliminary task to the finished product, I have learnt a lot, of what is important in a magazine, and my product needs to be up to all standards in order to do well in the magazine publishing world. I learnt about the needs of the readers and convention of the existing products by researching several magazines and creating a questionnaire. The importance of researching my audience is so that I can target them effectively. Researching magazines helped me to recognize how to structure my product, for it to look professional.
My skills developed rapidly on Photoshop, as I was new to it. The use of digital imaging software made me become more confident. I learnt all the basics on Photoshop, for example, creating new layers and I learnt how to manipulate images, in order for them to attract the readers. Magazine research helped me learn that colour connotations and the choice of language are very important for my product, but also the type of content and features of layout and language. The understanding that both technological skills and careful research are vital to create a magazine to compete in the market place, next to the likes of Q and NME, as apposed to my preliminary project that was aimed at a small local audience and had no competition.
My Magazine is called “AMP” it’s a monthly music magazine aimed at both male and females ages 15-30, featuring Indie/Rock music.
In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
In order for my product to relate to real media products, I followed the conventions from magazines, which I researched like Q and NME. For my magazine front cover, I took the idea of my title from Q as their title is also placed on a square block of colour, situated in the top left corner. Also I overlapped the title with the model slightly which NME and Q do regularly. I used a stereotypically attractive female model. I also used a hook bar on the bottom of my magazine, to promote a competition, to attract readers; Q, Mojo and NME are known to do this also. For my contents page I found a picture of an example on Google. I have posted the picture on my blog; I took the idea of the contents writing being on an angle, from that example. However I have kept my article page very simple, by putting my writing into columns, and situating my model to the right hand side of the article. I decided to crop the picture, as it was too large. I challenged the convention of real media products for example, Q and NME, by using a model for my front cover, as she is not directly looking into the camera, but it is a headshot image, which can be very effective. My model, is wearing black and grey clothing, which can tie within indie/rock genre targeting men and woman from the ages 15-30, which this magazine is. In most magazines I researched all models were looking directly into the camera and they were either full body shots or medium shot, for example NME uses a lot of body shots of bands on their front cover.
How does your media product represent social groups?
My product represents both male and female social groups of middle working class backgrounds. Including stories, which both sexes can relate to and connect to. Also it has real life stories about drug addicts changing their lives around. So my magazine could give a sense of hope to all readers if they have suffered the same problems or know someone who has in the past. My magazine represents people who do not follow the crowd, and like to be classed as an individual. Therefore people buying my magazine can feel this, as the genre is not the most popular in our society. My magazine tries to portray the social group in a positive light, and to prove not all fans of Rock music are drug-taking rebels, as the media likes to portray Rock fans. The story featuring in my magazine could be an inspiration to many readers. There is a page in my magazine, which is called “21 celebrity top fashion tips this month”. I think this page would be more aimed at younger women (15-25), because a lot of young women are inspired by celebrities and what they wear.
What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
My media product is different and unique in its on ways. I think it could possible have as much success as Q and NME. Bauer is the largest private magazine distributor in Europe. However I think my product would do well with Bauer because most of their magazines are woman’s E.g. Take a break, or television magazines. Because my audience is going to be music fans who are interested in Indie/Rock genre, and Bauer does not distribute many music magazines. Therefore I think there is a gap in the market for my magazine that will bring Bauer Profit and also great success for my product.
What would be the audience for your media product?
The audience for my product would be both male and female, but those who have a great interest in music, especially Indie/Rock. My product is aimed at the ages 15-30. I think this is a good age range to aim my product at because the price should be affordable to everyone. My price is £2.99 monthly which I think is a reasonable price and also cheaper than Q magazine which charges £3.90 monthly. However NME charges £2.10 which is cheaper than my magazine, but NME is weekly.
Average age reading magazine – 23
64% - Male readers
36%- female readers
Mostly spend their money on – Music festivals and gigs, nights out, clothes and music downloads.
How did you attract/address your audience?
In order to attract/address my audience I analyzed existing products such as Q and NME. I also carried out a questionnaire, so I could target the needs of my potential readers. For example, the story hooks on the cover and contents page are in direct response to this.
However I did not use any colloquial language, although it would’ve made it easier for my audience to relate to my magazine. The questions I asked in my questionnaire were about the price of the magazine, colour themes, music genre etc. I based my product on the results of the questionnaire, as I believe it is important for my product to give the reader what they want and to interest them.
Because of my article I think it will make the readers feel a sense of hope, and that anything is possible. I used a lot of “hooks” on my front cover to draw the reader into the magazine. I tried to use as many sharp effective hooks as possible. I also used a hook quotation on my article page, by taking a line of speech out of the article itself, and making it look more effective, so the reader wants to know more, to attract the reader. According to the results of my questionnaire, readers would prefer to see a well-known band or singer on the front cover instead of an attractive model. So I took their opinions into consideration, and decided to use the Lucy Jones story and how she made it to fame, and how she coped with her past. Lucy Jones is a successful new artist to currently enter the charts. I thought this would be necessary because it’s promoting the article which features in the magazine.
I used an attractive model, however many female models are being portrayed in the media as negative role models. Although Naomi Wolf, has tried to point out that both men and women are equal and that it is unfair to women to be known as sex objects, and men to be known as success objects, she also points out that images of attractive women are used to sell products to women because they have been conditioned by society to want to look like the model. On the front cover I have taken advantage of this. I also used a musical term for my title, as it has connotations of electric guitars and rock. I also used a lot of colour to attract my audience, as colour is what catches the eye when looking at a front cover of a magazine. I used colours with connotations, Such as black to represent the Indie/Rock feeling of the magazine.
Results from my questionnaire, show that people would much rather buy a magazine with a free gift inside than a magazine without one. So I used a promotion line on my front cover, to also attract more readers. Because readers can participate by entering the competition, it gives them a sense of ownership.
On my contents page I used sharp hook quotes, not revealing much at all. This will make the reader hopefully want to read the story or interview etc. For example “pg. 2 Hayley Williams reveals all”. This hook, states that Hayley Williams reveals all, but the reader will have to go to page 2, to find out exactly what she reveals. I also used a model, and situated the image next to this hook, to represent Hayley Williams herself.
The pose of the cover image is meant to show the reader to be proud of what music they listen to and love. Because the model is looking directly into the camera, there shows no hesitation, as there is no hesitation when listening to a song, you either love it or hate it.
When my product was finished I showed it to a group of people, to get their opinions of the magazine. They were all very impressed by it and how it was very eye-catching. They thought the price was also reasonable, and that if it were a magazine being published today, they would buy it. I took advantage of uses and gratifications because people interested in the genre will buy the magazine for a sense of identity and to find out about the artists my magazine features.
What have you learnt about new technologies from the process of creating this product?
I have learnt a lot about new technologies during the process of creating my product. I learnt how to use a digital camera and tripod .I learnt how to create layers, for every time I added new things to my product. I learned how to manipulate images and saturate the colour of the skin and resize the image. These are some examples of manipulating images:
Original Image Manipulated Image
I used the “Magic wand tool” this cuts out the background of an image just
leaving the person, or the focused object. The magic wand tool cuts out the background carefully and accurately; it cuts around the outline of the main image, destroying all things in the background. I also learnt that I could change the tolerance in order to cut out more neatly. When I had used the magic wand tool, I went round with the rubber to smooth the edges, and also tried using the blur tool and sharpening tool to make the image look more professional. You can clearly see that I have manipulated images in my product.
I also learnt how to create effects on my “hooks” by double clicking on the layers; I can drop shadows, use an inner glow on the writing etc. I had to do this on all of my “hooks” because the writing was not very readable being based on the black background.
During the process I also learnt how to combine words and images on my blog and publish my work on the Internet to an international audience. I switched from media consumer to media producer. When doing practical work, I learnt how to use a digital camera and tripod.
Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
During the progress from my preliminary task to the finished product, I have learnt a lot, of what is important in a magazine, and my product needs to be up to all standards in order to do well in the magazine publishing world. I learnt about the needs of the readers and convention of the existing products by researching several magazines and creating a questionnaire. The importance of researching my audience is so that I can target them effectively. Researching magazines helped me to recognize how to structure my product, for it to look professional.
My skills developed rapidly on Photoshop, as I was new to it. The use of digital imaging software made me become more confident. I learnt all the basics on Photoshop, for example, creating new layers and I learnt how to manipulate images, in order for them to attract the readers. Magazine research helped me learn that colour connotations and the choice of language are very important for my product, but also the type of content and features of layout and language. The understanding that both technological skills and careful research are vital to create a magazine to compete in the market place, next to the likes of Q and NME, as apposed to my preliminary project that was aimed at a small local audience and had no competition.
Wednesday, 3 March 2010
Magazine flat plans
This is the front cover of my magazine, as you can see from the comparison my front cover has went to plan.
This is my contents page, and as you can see it is very different to my finished contents page. I created my flat plan first, but then but decided not to follow it when creating the actual contents page
This is the flat plan for my magazine article. As you can see from the comparison, i followed the flat plan when creating the article page.
Monday, 7 December 2009
Music magazine article page
Introducion
For part of my media assignment, i also had to create a magazine article, this article could be based on anything, from real-life stories to interviews with a celebrity etc. I decided to create a story, which would be real-life to the reader. I tried to make the article as effective and inspirational as possible. I wanted it to have a positive effect on the reader.
During the process
I started creating my article, by situating the writing into columns, as that is the most effective way to read an article and is also the most traditional way. I done this by:
I used myself again as the model for this article page, as i used myself for the front cover of the magazine, i was posing as Lucy Smith on the front cover also. I cut the image using the magic wand tool on photoshop, then went gently aruond the edges with the rubber, to smooth them. The image looked abit squashed, so i widened the image. I thought it was appropiate to have a guitar in the image, as the music genre of my magaizne is Indie/rock. Also a guitar is mentioned in the story, so the image does relate to the story.
For part of my media assignment, i also had to create a magazine article, this article could be based on anything, from real-life stories to interviews with a celebrity etc. I decided to create a story, which would be real-life to the reader. I tried to make the article as effective and inspirational as possible. I wanted it to have a positive effect on the reader.
During the process
I started creating my article, by situating the writing into columns, as that is the most effective way to read an article and is also the most traditional way. I done this by:
- opening word
- situating writing into columns
- copying pasting article onto a fresh page on photoshop
- making sure the columns are in line on the article page
As you can see from my article page, i have kept it very plain and not busy compared to my magazine cover and contents page. I chose to do this because i want my reader to focus on the writing only, and not be distracted by too many images, colours or shapes etc.
I used a plain white background, to keep the article neutral and again to keep it as less-distractive as possible. I used a straight line to create a triangle shape on the top left hand corner of the page. I coulered it purple as that was the colour theme for this article page. I used a shape on the contents page, which i had also used on the contents page. I have used it so it can be seen as the magazines logo or signature to readers.
Finished product
I used myself again as the model for this article page, as i used myself for the front cover of the magazine, i was posing as Lucy Smith on the front cover also. I cut the image using the magic wand tool on photoshop, then went gently aruond the edges with the rubber, to smooth them. The image looked abit squashed, so i widened the image. I thought it was appropiate to have a guitar in the image, as the music genre of my magaizne is Indie/rock. Also a guitar is mentioned in the story, so the image does relate to the story.
Monday, 30 November 2009
Music Magazine contents page
Introduction
We were asked to also create a contents page for the music magazine. It could be a double page, or single. I decided to do a single contents page. I used several magazines to help me come up with stories to use for the contents page such as Q and NME. I also took some new pictures, to represent stories which i had written.
I started my contents page and realised that i had used the same photograph as someone else. So i decided to change all of my contents page as i also did not have enough stories, and it was looking very plain and boring. The picutres on the contents page were not captive enough.
First draft of Contents page
How and Why
I stuck to 3 colours for my contents page, as i believe more than 3 colours, would look to much and over the top. Those were red, black and white. I used a diagonal line to seperate the top half of the page from the bottom. I used a black background for the top half, and a white background for the bottom half. After creating the background, i thought my contents page, still looked plain and not very appealing. So i used a circle shape in the top left corner, to make it look more funky. By using the custom shape tool, i came across a shape to situate in middle of the contents page. I decided to use it as part of my background, by replacing the layers of my stories, on top of the shape layer.
I used a picture of a female, which i took to represent "The Interview of Hayley williams". I had to change the girl, because i noticed that someone else had used the same picture as me. I also decided to change my pictures of landscape images, to images of actual people, as this relates to magazine contents pages. Many magazines edit pictures, to make them look more effective, or they airbrush models to make them look prettier etc. I decided not to edit any of my pictures for the contents page. Whilst editing my contents page, i noticed that the female model looked to skinny and the male model looked to wide, so i changed the size slightly. I also had to use the Magic tool wand to cut the images, and a rubber to refine the edges.
Origianal Photos
I decided to use a logo for my magazine, aswel as a title. Alot of well-known magazines use logos, and is easily noticble to all readers. I half situated AMP's logo in the top left corner of the magazine. that there magazine is easily noticble. E.g. OK magazine. Ok magazines title is also their logo.
Unfortunately i have lost the image of the female.
Analysis of Contents page
I researched several magazine contents page to try and pick up ideas, and see what techniques they use. I came across this one.
We were asked to also create a contents page for the music magazine. It could be a double page, or single. I decided to do a single contents page. I used several magazines to help me come up with stories to use for the contents page such as Q and NME. I also took some new pictures, to represent stories which i had written.
I started my contents page and realised that i had used the same photograph as someone else. So i decided to change all of my contents page as i also did not have enough stories, and it was looking very plain and boring. The picutres on the contents page were not captive enough.
First draft of Contents page
How and Why
I stuck to 3 colours for my contents page, as i believe more than 3 colours, would look to much and over the top. Those were red, black and white. I used a diagonal line to seperate the top half of the page from the bottom. I used a black background for the top half, and a white background for the bottom half. After creating the background, i thought my contents page, still looked plain and not very appealing. So i used a circle shape in the top left corner, to make it look more funky. By using the custom shape tool, i came across a shape to situate in middle of the contents page. I decided to use it as part of my background, by replacing the layers of my stories, on top of the shape layer.
I used a picture of a female, which i took to represent "The Interview of Hayley williams". I had to change the girl, because i noticed that someone else had used the same picture as me. I also decided to change my pictures of landscape images, to images of actual people, as this relates to magazine contents pages. Many magazines edit pictures, to make them look more effective, or they airbrush models to make them look prettier etc. I decided not to edit any of my pictures for the contents page. Whilst editing my contents page, i noticed that the female model looked to skinny and the male model looked to wide, so i changed the size slightly. I also had to use the Magic tool wand to cut the images, and a rubber to refine the edges.
Origianal Photos
I decided to use a logo for my magazine, aswel as a title. Alot of well-known magazines use logos, and is easily noticble to all readers. I half situated AMP's logo in the top left corner of the magazine. that there magazine is easily noticble. E.g. OK magazine. Ok magazines title is also their logo.
Unfortunately i have lost the image of the female.
Analysis of Contents page
I researched several magazine contents page to try and pick up ideas, and see what techniques they use. I came across this one.
This content page uses a picture for the top of their background. I decided to use shapes of photoshop itsself for a part of the background. I also took the idea from this example, to tilt the stories which are feautiring in the magazine itself.
When uploading pictures, i had to think carefully about where i was going to situate them, so that they did not block any of the writing etc. I took the idea of tilting the writing on an angle, on my contents page also.
Final draft Contents Page
This is my final draft of my contents page and as you can see, it relates to the decription of which i have made above. I have also used to pictures, like the contents page i researched, but i put a border around each image. I done this because, the pictures blended into the background without a border to give the image more effect. During the last stages of processing my contents page i noticed that it was looking a bit bare, above the image on the left hand side. So on photoshop i used a custom shape, which represented a music note.
As you can see my colour scheme for my contents page is the total opposite of my front cover. I decided to use totally different colour on my contents page, to be different and unique as most magazines, stick to a basic colour scheme throughout the whole magazine. I want readers to remember my magazine for this.
Monday, 16 November 2009
Title fonts
I decided on 3 different fonts which i liked for my title, but could only have one, so i asked 100 people what they thought would be the best font for my title. 80% voted for the first one, 5% for the 2nd one and 15% for the last one. So i went with the survey results and used the first font for my magazine cover title.
Monday, 2 November 2009
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