Looking back at your preliminary task (the college magazine task), what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?
From creating the college magazine i have developed an understanding of many of the crucial forms and conventions of standard magazine design, this includes the use of layout and photography as well as written journalism. My college magazine was amateur and had no relation to any existing product which made it unsuitable. My development of my college magazine how to properly structure an audience questionnaire that i then refined and modified to be appropriate for my music magazine.
Through research i learnt that it is much more interesting to design a magazine which features a range of different photography angles and distances. I took a range of shots in order to make my publication appear more professional. I learnt more about niche audiences from this research and feel i learnt how to find my audience and adapt my journalism to what my audience would want to read. I tried to make my audience feel like a priviledged few as research into my genre brought out the severe lack of publications available to the audience.
I learnt how to find existing products and analyse the points that compliment the audience and also how an audience can be presented/attracted through the design of the magazine. i tried to replicate this effect with my own magazine using my refined skill with the technology of photoshop i was able to create a much more conventional magazine that was based on an existing product so that there are elements to it that appear natural as if the magazine existed on the market. While designing my music magazine feedback helped me to develop my idea as there were times where the arangement of page sections or the saturation of imagery was not up to standard and i was then able to edit the magazine to work appropriately. also the members of my target audience also helped me to blend the design into something that they would be interested in seeing but without alienating it from existing products. For this to work i had to be very thorough with how i designed each step of my magazine rather than just creating it how i thought it would work best. I developed my magazine in great detail making sure everything was exactly as it should be in terms of colour, position and style.
The layout design of my magazine was relatively straightforward but i think the journalism was the harder section to create. I had to change my article because it was not efficiently 'news-worthy' but i think that my current article is much more insightful and could be considered a genuine story featured in a new music magazine. the quality of my written text in the music magazine is greatly improved upon the college magazine in terms of my audience but the preliminary task helped to find the weak points and improve them.
I think that i have developed my design skills greatly since the preliminary task and have created a magazine that could be real. The whole process from concept to reality has been extremely fluid because of the design skills i have learnt from the preliminary task and the research into the specific publishing industries, processes and conventions. I feel competent that i have created an effective product but one that could be improved further now that i have experienced the production process.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Evaluation: Technologies
What have you learnt about tecnhologies from the process of constructing this product?
The magazine industry is a product of technology. In order to create my own magazine i had to rely on the use of technology through photoshop so that i could create an authentic design that looked somewhat similar to an existing product. I manipulated my photographs with this program because most magazines on the market have a high saturation of technology and editting in the images in order to make them look 'perfect'. the actual design and layout of my magazine relied heavily on technology in order space the features on my pages evenly and find the exact centre on my DPS. The good side to this form of DTP is that a conceptualised design is much easier to make with the freedom of photoshop. Using these programs also opens up the option for easy editting, drafting, re-drafting and printing. after having feedback on my design i was able to easily modify the mistakes i had made without the need to start my whole design again. The use of layers in photoshop amplify this convenient effect.
I have used online technology through 'blogger' and 'flickr' so that i can document my work and present it in a straightforward and easily viewable format. This has helped me to locate my work when referring back and has also given me a permanent copy of this work so that there is little chance of anything going wrong and/or me losing this blog. Because of the synergy between these technologies i am able to annotate the supplied images for the convenience of my viewer.
The magazine industry is a product of technology. In order to create my own magazine i had to rely on the use of technology through photoshop so that i could create an authentic design that looked somewhat similar to an existing product. I manipulated my photographs with this program because most magazines on the market have a high saturation of technology and editting in the images in order to make them look 'perfect'. the actual design and layout of my magazine relied heavily on technology in order space the features on my pages evenly and find the exact centre on my DPS. The good side to this form of DTP is that a conceptualised design is much easier to make with the freedom of photoshop. Using these programs also opens up the option for easy editting, drafting, re-drafting and printing. after having feedback on my design i was able to easily modify the mistakes i had made without the need to start my whole design again. The use of layers in photoshop amplify this convenient effect.
I have used online technology through 'blogger' and 'flickr' so that i can document my work and present it in a straightforward and easily viewable format. This has helped me to locate my work when referring back and has also given me a permanent copy of this work so that there is little chance of anything going wrong and/or me losing this blog. Because of the synergy between these technologies i am able to annotate the supplied images for the convenience of my viewer.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Evaluation: Addressing my audience
How did you attract/address your audience?
In order to attract my audience into purchasing my product i have marketted my magazine as a publication that is covering a genre that no other magazine dares to cover. My uniques selling point is that it is the only magazine of its kind but has links to a wide networking of online societies and media technologies that can advertise or share a link with my magazine. Because of this my magazine boasts revealing new talent and is a unchallenged brand. My niche audience would use my product as it is a unique publication that is one-of-a-kind on the market. Another good point of my magazine that will help it to attract my audience is that i drew inspiration for its cover design from the popular magazine Kerrang so it will look somewhat geunine, and realistic. Because of the genre being associated with a minority audience it will be much more comforting for the audience to see that it blends well with existing products so they will be able to see themselves as buying the same products as everyone else.
As for my text, i have adapted my register to be colloquial and humorous as this is the kind of quality of written communication my audience would expect from the lyrics of the songs they are interested in for this genre of music. the text is not solid informative journalism as this would become extremely tedious to my audience so i had decided to make sure my audience could relate to the style of writing in some form. My colour scheme used is quite dark but it is not gothic or dull, the dark colours worked well to bring out the blue and whites in my design which really compliment the attractive points throughout my magazine design. This combined with my logo design creates a house style that would keep my audience interested in the look of my pages and would therefore encourage them to read on further.
In order to attract my audience into purchasing my product i have marketted my magazine as a publication that is covering a genre that no other magazine dares to cover. My uniques selling point is that it is the only magazine of its kind but has links to a wide networking of online societies and media technologies that can advertise or share a link with my magazine. Because of this my magazine boasts revealing new talent and is a unchallenged brand. My niche audience would use my product as it is a unique publication that is one-of-a-kind on the market. Another good point of my magazine that will help it to attract my audience is that i drew inspiration for its cover design from the popular magazine Kerrang so it will look somewhat geunine, and realistic. Because of the genre being associated with a minority audience it will be much more comforting for the audience to see that it blends well with existing products so they will be able to see themselves as buying the same products as everyone else.
As for my text, i have adapted my register to be colloquial and humorous as this is the kind of quality of written communication my audience would expect from the lyrics of the songs they are interested in for this genre of music. the text is not solid informative journalism as this would become extremely tedious to my audience so i had decided to make sure my audience could relate to the style of writing in some form. My colour scheme used is quite dark but it is not gothic or dull, the dark colours worked well to bring out the blue and whites in my design which really compliment the attractive points throughout my magazine design. This combined with my logo design creates a house style that would keep my audience interested in the look of my pages and would therefore encourage them to read on further.
Evaluation: Target Audience
Who would be the audience for your media product?
My magazine would target quite a niche and selective audience.
My audience are generally between the ages of 19-30. Between C1-D for the social classes. 70%-30% male/female audience split. The audience for this magazine will be national as to showcase british comedy music talent.
Audience profile: This magazine is for the light-hearted music enthusiasts, considering comedy music to be a genuine genre but believing themselves to be a secluded minority. These music enthusiasts will appreciate music in most forms, being rather ecclectic in their taste but having no particular favourites. My artists love to rock out like the models on my cover but prefer the comedy and social interaction that comes with it. Many of my audience will not attend music festivals or gigs but instead watches them online. They have a dependance on technology to bring them what they want to see because they are never truely sure what musical taste they favour. My magazine will apeeal to this audiecne because it is all about the minority stepping out of the shadow of bigger acts and proving that this genre can be just as sucessful once the audience prove they are a genuine gap in the market waiting to be filled.
My magazine would target quite a niche and selective audience.
My audience are generally between the ages of 19-30. Between C1-D for the social classes. 70%-30% male/female audience split. The audience for this magazine will be national as to showcase british comedy music talent.
Audience profile: This magazine is for the light-hearted music enthusiasts, considering comedy music to be a genuine genre but believing themselves to be a secluded minority. These music enthusiasts will appreciate music in most forms, being rather ecclectic in their taste but having no particular favourites. My artists love to rock out like the models on my cover but prefer the comedy and social interaction that comes with it. Many of my audience will not attend music festivals or gigs but instead watches them online. They have a dependance on technology to bring them what they want to see because they are never truely sure what musical taste they favour. My magazine will apeeal to this audiecne because it is all about the minority stepping out of the shadow of bigger acts and proving that this genre can be just as sucessful once the audience prove they are a genuine gap in the market waiting to be filled.
Evaluation: Institutions
What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?
For my magazine to have a chance at sucess i have tied it into the BBC's magazine range in which links my product not only to a genuine publishing oppurtunity, but a seemingly endless array of advertising possibilities and television and radio synergy. As such i have interlinked the institution to my magazine by including a link to the extremely popular Chris Moyles television and radio shows on radio 1 which has various links with comedy and music. Many of the artists that are interviewed for my magazine would also be featured on this radio/television show and can easily be given many other oppurtunities for spotlights on other TV shows within the BBC channel range. This institution sells 85m magazines a year so they are a very promising company to be part of. However with an even more sucessful publishing house such as bauer the chances of the sales being higher are better but i believe that without the link to the Radio shows the magazine would likely be one of the many titles to dissapear and fail. With the BBC i can see my magazine having a very good chance of sucess.
I have looked into the type of magazines that BBC publish and they are all related to the top rating TV shows, but have neglected their sucessful radio shows. This has led me to believe that my magazine exposes many gaps in the market, not only with the genre of music but the direct link to a specific radio show that the BBC has not exploted to its full potential.
For my magazine to have a chance at sucess i have tied it into the BBC's magazine range in which links my product not only to a genuine publishing oppurtunity, but a seemingly endless array of advertising possibilities and television and radio synergy. As such i have interlinked the institution to my magazine by including a link to the extremely popular Chris Moyles television and radio shows on radio 1 which has various links with comedy and music. Many of the artists that are interviewed for my magazine would also be featured on this radio/television show and can easily be given many other oppurtunities for spotlights on other TV shows within the BBC channel range. This institution sells 85m magazines a year so they are a very promising company to be part of. However with an even more sucessful publishing house such as bauer the chances of the sales being higher are better but i believe that without the link to the Radio shows the magazine would likely be one of the many titles to dissapear and fail. With the BBC i can see my magazine having a very good chance of sucess.
I have looked into the type of magazines that BBC publish and they are all related to the top rating TV shows, but have neglected their sucessful radio shows. This has led me to believe that my magazine exposes many gaps in the market, not only with the genre of music but the direct link to a specific radio show that the BBC has not exploted to its full potential.
Evaluations: Representations
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
In order to present a new musical genre in my magazine i have decided to mix a range of styles into my photo. I have tried to present a slight element of rock in their poses and casual poses, these poses show that the band is the hybrid genre that i described in the double page spread. I suggested a mixture of facial expression and natural casual fashion choices as i wanted my artists to appear natural and genuine as people rather than manufactured products as they are presented in the media in the stereotypical manner of which people have become used to seeing them.
I wanted my artists to be appear to be older teens who had sucessfully achieved a career in the music industry. I realised that comedy musicians are not normally as sucessful as other musicians so i wanted my artists to be represented as natural people with a moderate income from their music, so that they did not appear to be glamorously wealthy. I think that the methods media companies use to improve the quality of the artists images are starting to seem unnecessary to the younger generations of people so i have presented my artists as being natural as an attempt to redevelop the theory of audience role-modelling, or copycat theories. This over-exposure to glossy sterotypes has become too highly saturated across all media products so it is a unconventional but possible rewarding step forward to try and progress the fake representations of people back to their natural forms.
I intended to present my product as being for reformers and individuals who believe value talented musicians for their abillity, rather than their wealth. This magazine is therefore aimed at possible anti-mainstreamers and at an audience of varied age and lifestyle but with similar tastes over use of music and modern day technology.
Evaluation: Forms and Conventions
In what ways does your media product use develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products.
Because of my musical genre being a relatively unexplored field i had to follow some standard conventions in real media products bus also develop my own to match my audience. In order to do this i researched my target audience and decided that for it to appeal to them most efffectively i would need to use colloquial and humourous lexical choices. In terms of the design of my magazine it follows many of the standard conventions, such as the masthead with logo being right alligned and featuring a slogan. Similarly i have followed normal conventions as i have a single main photograph on my cover and a single headline to make it clear that the two are linked.
1.Title: my magazine title, LMAO, is the most relevant part to my magazine as it is a modern day slang accronym that is related to laughter and humour. Because my audience are younger and prodominantly technology dependant this works with my magazine to follow standard conventions and audience pragmatics.
2.Mise-en-scene: For my photography i tried to use high key lighting and a variety of shot distances within the same photograph. as presented in the image i did this by having one band member stand closer to the camera, this i think improves the quality of the image as it appears more realistic as most magazines have artists in a uniform line which makes the image flat and normal. This means that for my photography has bent a convention but kept to part of the standard means of front cover design.
3.Costume and Prop: In order for my band to appear united in my image i branded each of them with an emblem of the magazine logo onto their faces so that they looked like they were the main act to feature in the magazine for the editions to come. I also editted the artists' clothing to match the colours as originally they were in different colours and i thought that instead of blending my colour scheme into the artists i would blend my artists into the colour scheme using some photoshop tools. As for props in the image, i made my band appear to be using 'Guitar Hero' instruments as it is a comical twist to an otherwise serious band. for this to work i acquired a full band of instruments that my band could use to make them appear more convincing and humourous at the same time.
4. People: My artists are primarily female and my audience are not focused on the appearance of the artists like most genre fans so i thought i would use my research into female representation to show a group of female artists as being musicians primarily rather than the normal sex symbols that most media products do today. Also because of the niche audience i have targetted i have more freedom to show my artists as people rather than stereotypes.
5. Font and Style: I have decided on a specific font set to use in specific situation. I noticed that magazines tend to use two main fonts, one being more simple for bulk fonts to be used for articles and longer pieces of text and another to be used for titles and headlines. I found this to be a convention adopted by most magazines i looked into so i think that i accurately adapted this convention into my own magazine.
6. Written Content: For my journalism i felt it necessary to try and keep a serious tone in my writing as the content has to be news-worthy and correct. However i developed my writing upon editing to feature more humourous twists as i thought that my work would be more appealing to my audience in this way. As a member of my niche audience i think that the article works and is both entertaining and informative.
7.Music Genre: In order to capture my audience's attention in my magazine i relied on comedy twists and humour to interest the reader. The comical side to my magazine had to be self-developed because of the lack of current publications to challenge my own.
8. Layout: As the general layout of magazine design was an area i felt inexperieced at i followed the style of the Kerrang magazine i presented under section 'I'. I tried to mimick the design style so that my magazine would look professional because i would know the standard positioning of certain elements of magazine design. I tried to break out of normal forms and conventions within my magazine, for instance i noticed that page numbers are normally printed in the outer corners of the pages but i thought that i would try and change this and print them on the inside corners by the fold line as this way they still perform the function intended but in a unique way.
9. Contents: I have accurately organised my contents into appropriate features that my audience requested. This is another standard form that magazines must follow in order to make them appropriate. I have also used the contents to present the link to BBC Radio 1 which is the main way in which i intend to make my product markettable.
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