Evaluation

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
Through research of products already available on the market such as NME and Q magazine I have been able to see what the forms and conventions of a music magazine in a similar genre of mine are. I learnt a lot about the layout and images that are normally used to get across a view of the musician that the magazine is trying to portray. For the majority of my magazine I have followed the conventions and forms, this is because this is a layout which has been proven to attract audiences and also it makes it easier for the readers to navigate round, when items such as the contents of the magazine are layed out in a similar way. However following all the codes and conventions means that the magazine would be boring and not a new fresh idea. This is why I have used the 'best of both worlds' and went against some of the codes as well.
I followed the convention of using three main 'house' colours, this is because it enables you to alternate between colours to make the magazine interesting, however does not overload the magazine and distract the reader from the content.

On my front cover (visual to the left)  I have kept with the codes and conventions with having one main image in the background. The use of puffs follow the conventions because they surround the main image. However they do now have their own images next door to the puff, this goes against the conventions. I chose to do this because I did not want the reader from the main image however I feel that through the use of colours and grammar they stand out enough from the background. I followed the conventions with the placement of my barcode, however the location of the price and date of issue goes against the conventions because form the magazines I analysed they were located next to the barcode, this is because they are seen as not important and placed in the bottom right hand corner, because this is the last place the reader will look. I decided to put the date of issue and the price in a banner underneath the title of the magazine. This is because I feel that by advertising the price and placing it in a more visible place people will be encouraged to buy the magazine, due to its cheaper price than its competitors, yet that they feel that they are paying enough money for a interesting and enjoyable content.

 For the double page spread (visual to the left) I have followed the majority of the codes and conventions. By placing the title of the magazine and band in the top right hand corner I have used the rule of thirds to make the page balanced and the reader is encouraged to read the whole of the page. I have gone against a code by using more than the normal three house colours on this page, the use of the green quotes, however I decided that the green would stand out against all the other colours and attract the reader to read them and encourage them to read the rest of the article.

 With my content page (visual to left) I have used many codes and conventions, however this is the page where I have gone against conventions the most. I decided to put the advertisement for the subscription service in the bottom left hand corner. This is the last place where the reader looks, however I felt that by using a large font size, the logo and using a variety of the house colours this would still capture the readers attention and encourage them to subscribe. Also by the location of the background it draws attention towards the subscription advertisement.



Overall I used the majority of the conventions, however added a little twist to them to make them my own and to make the magazine stand out.

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

My music magazine represents the indie/electronic/rock social group by the colour scheme and content of bands in the magazine. The colour scheme of red, white, black with bits of green are colours that one associates with electronic items, such as the colours in a wired plug.

The font of the band (visual on right) also represents the groups because the font looks like it is associated with a computer, which is how this genre of music is created. 

However for the band on my front cover I used a non-stereotypical band of the genre, this is to show that not all members of this social group are the same. I decided to send a message across that not all of the social group are rebels and 'freaks', that anyone can enjoy to create and listen to this genre of music.

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

I researched into a variety of companies that distribute magazines. One of these was the BBC, however I decided against this company because the majority of their magazines are mainstream with the majority focusing on younger children aged between 0-10. I found two which would be suitable these are Bauer and IPC. IPC is a company which focuses on three major groups these are mainstream women, men and upmarket women. They currently publish a range of magazines including NME, which is a magazine that's genre is very similar to mine. Bauer is the other publishing company. It  is a German company, which focuses on female magazines and puzzles,

however also publishes music magazines such as kerrang and Q magazine, which are similar to the genre of my magazine. It is also a worldwide company and which originated in German, like the genre of music my magazine focuses on (Indietronica) therefore I feel that this would be the most suitable.

4. Who would be the audience for your media product?
The target audience my magazine is aimed at is male and females aged between 16 and 19, who are interested in indie/ electronic/ rock music. I chose this group because through my target research I found that they would be the most in rested in a magazine of the genre of music of indietronica.

5. How did you attract/ address your audience?

I attracted my target audience by using the information I gained about them through my primary research. I used colours which are associated with the genre of music of  the magazine. I also used a language, which is personal and  to which the readers can relate to. An example of this is on the content page (visual to the right), where I used the words 'All this, just for YOU! (that can't be right?!)'. This is less formal than 'Contents page'. I also targeted both genders of my target audience by including a balance of informative and visual content on my double page spread. This is because males prefer bite size chunks of information with lots of visuals, while generally speaking females prefer longer more informative writing. An example of this is by using fact files of the band members, so a lot can be learnt with little reading.

6. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
Through the process of production I have learnt a lot about programmes such as photoshop and indesign. Before we started this project I had limited knowledge of photoshop and had never used indesign. However through lots of practise and  informative tutorials I now feel confident using both programmes. On photoshop I have learnt about how to use many more of the tools available including how to put font and writing on images and how to use 'layers'. With indesign, I learnt how to use the 'smart tools' and other general advantages of using indesign over photoshop. It took a while, however I feel it was time well spent.

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

 After finishing my final task I feel that my preliminary task looks rather shocking! Before I did my preliminary task I learnt how to manipulate the image, however I did not learnt a lot about the font and how to make that look interesting. Therefor for my prelim task the image is good quality, however the lack of exciting fonts  lets it down. However as I spend more time on photoshop and learnt how to use more tools and about more options I was able in my final magazine to make the font glow and make it overlap with other fonts and layers.  I have also learnt a lot about layout. I feel that the layout of my prelim task is too one sided,  and that my final task is more balanced and look more professional. I also feel that my music magazine targets my target audience more, through colour scheme, text and layout than the school magazine.

Overall I am impressed with my music magazine and have thoroughly enjoyed making it. :)