Media Studies Creative Critical Reflection

1. Creative
Critical
Reflection
Aurora Smith
Aice Media Studies

2. Contents
CONVENTIONS & REPRESENTATION
ENGAGEMENT & DISTRIBUTION
DEVELOPMENT OF PRODUCTION SKILLS
TECHNOLOGICAL INTEGRATION

3. Conventions &
Representation
How does your product use or challenge
conventions and how does it represent
social groups or issues?

4. General Conventions
Fonts
Heading
Subheading
Body Text
The Black Mango font is modern, bold, and simplistic. The font does not take
attention away from my magazine, rather, it compliments the other typefaces
while still placing an emphasis on the titles. The font is seen on mastheads and
other headings throughout the magazine.
Gothic A1 Light is a sans-serif font that is clean and simplistic. It heavily
compliments the heading font, while still standing out from the body text font.
This font is seen throughout the magazine, primarily on the subheadings and
coverlines. The typeface in all caps looks clean and organized, used primarily on
bold subheadings.
Open Sans Light is a simple font that, though similar to Gothic A1 Light, has
enough contrast to differentiate the two. The font matches cleanly with the other
two fonts and is effective as a body text typeface.
Colors
These muted, but still eye-catching colors maintain the calming aura I want my magazine to
convey, but still bring in color and emphasis to specific key points. I incorporated these colors
in my photos and in my magazine itself. In addition, I stuck to this color scheme in my blog
and my creative critical reflection.

5. Using Conventions- Cover
In my teenage lifestyle magazine entitled, ‘Kalon’, I utilized specific conventions to maintain order and recognition
Masthead
To best characterize my magazine, I utilized the font, Black Mango in the entirety of the
headings, most significantly, the mast head. By doing this, I made my magazine recognizable and
established order. In addition, I used all capital letters, generating focus on the masthead.
Typical of many lifestyle magazines and prevalent in mine as well, the use of the Black Mango
font remained solely to the masthead, creating a natural emphasis on the title. The placement of
the magazine was also conventional, placed at the top center, guiding the audience.
Essential Information
To market and date the media, under the mast head, I have the price and the issue
number. This is conventional and creates validity in the magazine as it is a typical and
necessary component to magazines.
Coverline
Beneath the image subject, the magazine gives a tagline, informing the reader of the contents and peaking
their interest in the text. The tagline offers contrast, by placing "Achieving beauty" in a different color, creating
focus. In addition, the tagline uses a different font, Gothic A1 Light, used as a subheading in the remainder of
the magazine.
Central Image
The central image is the background of the cover, with the subject on center. The focus is drawn to the image,
and the hues of the magazine are enhanced in the cover photo.
Barcode
By placing the barcode at the bottom right, it serves the purpose as marketing to the people and
legitimizing the magazine for genuine consumption
Strapline
The tagline, shown in a multitude of lifestyle magazines promotes insight
to the contents of the magazine. By stating, "Leading Teen Lifestyle
Magazine", the reader is provided context on the subject. Placing the "Teen
Lifestyle" in a different color creates a focus on the subject. The usage of
the font, Open Sans Light creates order, as the body text will match.

6. Using Conventions- Contents
Masthead
Similar to the cover, I used the mast head in the same font and size to establish order and
recognition in my magazine. The usage of capital letters and the pink hue puts an emphasis
on the title, while also blending in to the magazine with the color scheme.
Headlines & Subheadings
Situated between the title and the photos, the headlines and subheadings inform the
readers on the contents of the magazine. By putting the title in the Gothic A1 Light Bold
Font, it creates focus as it is contrasted with the Open Sans Light size 12 font under it. In
doing so, the reader naturally can see the separation between the headlines and
subheadings.
Other Contents
Placed at the bottom right, the other information remains viewable, but does not
become a hinderance to the remainder of the page. While maintaining the same
fonts and scheme as the remainder of the magazine, it blends in and creates focus.
Photos
In the contents page, I used a variety of photos that were relevant to the contents of my
magazine. This is conventional to a magazine, as it is important to properly represent what
is inside your magazine. In addition, photos were edited to a specific color scheme which
was also present in the cover and feature article of my magazine, creating a style that was
easily identifiable and relevant to my magazine.
Page Numbers
Essential to a table of contents page, the page numbers for each article are detailed in both the
photos and the correlative headlines and subheadings. By doing this, the reader is aware of the
connection amongst the photos and text. In addition, the font used atop the photo is Black Mango,
the masthead font creating focus and emphasizing style. Similarly, the page numbers next to
the contents are atop pink circles that match the color scheme, tying in the page.

7. Using Conventions- Feature
Headline
To continue to characterize my magazine, I used the font Black Mango in the same size as the
cover and contents. This created a natural focus and by situating it at the top, the reader's eyes
would naturally follow. By putting "beauty" in bold, it creates a focus on the word beauty, a
theme heavily present in my magazine.
Lead In
To best grab my
reader's attention and
maintain formalities, I
used a lead in, which
was mirrored to my
contents page. The
lead in was the same
font as my other
headings, Gothic A1
Light, contributing to
the style and
recognition of my
magazine. By using the
same font and phrases,
it promotes uniformity
of the magazine.
Photos
By having one dominant photo and three other photos which are of the same
person and events, it creates an aesthetic of the double-page spread. Having one
photo enlarged creates a natural focus, allowing the reader to focus on each
component of the page. The photos follow the rules of thirds and are composed
with the person as the focus of the image. The background is muted to maintain focus
on the subject of the image. The subject also has eye contact with the camera, creating
a connection amongst the viewer and the magazine.
Page Numbering
In the Black Mango font, the
page numbers are situated
at the bottom, visible , but
not distracting to the
components. The page
numbers enhance validity
and continue the style of
the remainder of the
magazine.

8. Challenging Conventions
On the cover, I generally stuck to the conventions of most lifestyle magazines. Though, where mine differed was the cover photo itself.
Most magazines have the subject with strong poses and eye contact to captivate attention. Though, my magazine differed from these
conventions, with the subject facing away from the camera. This unconventionality was purposeful, as the theme of my magazine is
beauty beyond what is perceived with the eyes. By situating the subject away from the camera, it ties into the theme of natural beauty.
Cover
In the majority of the table of contents of magazines, the title is bolded at the top. Contrastly, I situated the title on the side. By
doing this, it challenged the norm of magazines, while not deterring from the focus. Due to the sole usage of that text font, the
reader can still focus on the title.
Unlike typical magazines, my contents page did not feature a feature photo which is correlative to the feature article. This
nonconformity was due to aesthetic reasons, wishing to place the photos in a natural manner to the eye.
In my magazine contents page, I mentioned in the other information the title of my my magazine and it's definition. Though this
is atypical, the mentioning of the theme created engagement and allowed the reader to understand the purpose . In addition,
it filled up white space in a relevant and aesthetically pleasing manner.
Contents
For the feature article, I maintained most conventions, in title placement, photo placement, etc. Though,
where 'Kalon' differed from other magazines was the absence of a drop-cap at the beginning of the article.
Though prevalent in a majority of articles, I found the drop cap to be unnecessary and distracting to the eye.
Due to the differing fonts and the usage of the line to create division, the drop cap was unnecessary in
establishing a natural starting place for the reader. In addition, the feature article broke conventions as
instead of a pull quote, the blue box featured phrases and gave detail to the contents of the article. As it still
pertained to the article, this artistic choice did not distract from the feature article. Another challenge to
typical conventions was the style. The majority of teen magazines use bright colors and cover topics such
as style and gossip. While my table of contents did follow some conventions, in general I aimed to be
unconventional and focus on pressing issues which I felt were important.
Feature

9. Representation of Social
Groups
By making my magazine female-centric, it represents femininity and tackles the issue of female over-sexuality in the media. 'Kalon' being
created by females with females, it redefines the media and includes female-dominant forms of media production, a topic which has been
overlooked for long. Furthermore, knowing that my audience were females, I market-
ed the contents to them, who primarily enjoy photos which are pleasing to the eye and easily replicable. In doing so, 'Kalon' represents
the female gender as it portrays media through the lens and eyes of a female.
Gender
I tackle the issue of ethnicity as I represent a variety of ethnicities in my magazine. As an Asian-American, I
become representative of the Asian population in terms of media development Historically, Chinese
representation is poor in the media, so by having a publisher that is Asian, I would be tackling the issue
directly. In addition, my table of contents features two photos of my sister, Lillian Smith, who is a Haitian-
American. By including her, I increase the representation of her in the media. By doing this, I model that
'Kalon' is focused on representing a wide range of audiences in their content, showing it as an inclusive and
representative magazine. Many magazines and other forms of media lack proper representation of these
minority groups in their publishing, so by directly using minority groups, 'Kalon' combats this issue.
Ethnic representation is a huge problem in our current media, and I sought to change this.
Ethnicity
As 'Kalon' is a teenage lifestyle magazine, I represent the age range of teenagers, who are often not showcased in the print media.
Though they are the frontrunners in media consumption, the majority of magazines are not marketed towards them. By making a
teenage-centric magazine discussing teenage issues, my magazine grows to be representative of another demographic. Another
factor that I addressed would be the teenage budget. Knowing that most teenagers live on a restricted budget, I decided that
my magazine would be $5.99, a price which is marketable to the age range, demonstrating the representation of teenagers
through my magazine. Many teenage magazines are marketed towards younger, less mature audiences, filled with content
that doesn't pertain directly to them. Rather than this being a plain teenage magazine, it is aimed to be a wellness/lifestyle
magazine, expanding on the previous pretenses of these magazines. As a result, the subject matter in my magazine is more
mature, and designed by a teen, for a teen, increasing the genuine age representation in the consumption of media.
Age

10. Representation of Issues
Emphasized heavily in the feature article, I targeted the issues of social media in defining
beauty. This is a heavily important topic, as teenagers everywhere are extremely susceptible
to this manipulation. Eating disorders, body dysphoria, and suicide rates are at an all time
high, largely credited to the impacts of the media consumption. By focusing on this issue, I
represent the issues of the media and spread awareness of the topic.
To best address this heavy topic, I decided to use uplifting and encouraging words, proposing
a solution which was agreeable and simple. Proceeding through the media with caution is
easier than urging erasure of the ever-prevalent media.
Through media, there is an issue being how heavily reality is mediated. I decided to directly
address this issue, discussing the topic in my feature article. By expressing the curation of
social media, 'Kalon' sought to break down these borders and create a more real and
genuine piece in the heavily fake world of the media.
Another issue prevalent in the media would be the underrepresentation of specific elements
which I sought to combat in my magazine. First, I analyzed the underrepresented groups in
the media, being females and minority groups and worked to properly represent them, in
both the publishing and content sectors.
Beyond this, another issue facing the media would be the false representation of specific
components in the media. For example, often women are over sexualized in the media, to
which I gave them proper representation, of them in their true form.
As a whole, through 'Kalon', I sought to combat a variety of issues that face the media. In
'Kalon', I chose to cover an intense issue, show genuine media, and represent specific groups
that deserved the recognition.

11. Engagement &
Distribution
How does your product engage with
audiences and how would it be distributed as
a real media text?

12. In 'Kalon' I found audience engagement essential to the marketing of my magazine. The first thing people see
from a magazine is the cover; regardless of the contents, if the cover is disengaging, the magazine will not be
picked up. As a result, I picked my cover photo with this in mind. From my blog, you could see the heavy
debate amongst the cover photo, selecting an engaging and relevant photo. I decided on the photo seen to
the right which was engaging as it differed heavily from the majority of magazines. As previously mentioned,
conventional magazines feature the subject with eye contact, creating a draw to the viewer. Though, this
contrast would create more engagement, due to the unconventionality. This photo is also engaging to the
viewer due to the carefree emotion, which was a tone I wanted to be communicative in my magazine. The
colors are engaging to the audience, as for the most part, the teenage population enjoys pastel muted colors,
which are shown in the ocean and sky in this photo. Furthermore, by using phrases such as 'leading',
'achieving', and 'beauty' this markets to the audience as it shows relevancy and provides context.
Cover
STYLE- relevant to those interested in enhancing their style and following trends, many teenagers are
interested in adhering to trends and establishing their own.
SEASONAL- relevant to those in winter and summer, transposing the audience to those environments
LIFESTYLE/WELLNESS- relevant to those who are seeking representation of themselves in the media
To make my magazine engaging to the viewers, I hoped to continue the style of the cover in the contents page,
while also bringing in new elements that would get the reader interested. The photos featured include a
variety of subjects:
and the subject matter is engaging to teenagers interested in travel.
In general, these photos and titles encapsulate a variety of styles and are marketable to almost any
teen, in doing so, it keeps the audience engaged as it is highly applicable to differing audiences that fit
in similar demographics. Lifestyle, candid, traditional, and close-up photography are all elements fea-
tured on this page, with varying photos in terms of composition, making the subject matter more
engaging to the viewers. Moreover, the placement of the mission statement is engaging, as it puts a
greater emphasis on the subject matter, and creates interest as the reader becomes attracted to
the contents and how they relate to the mission.
Contents
Audience Engagement

13. Audience Engagement-
Feature Article
To best market to
my audience, I
decided on a
concise, relatable,
and simplistic
article which would
cover the
necessary grounds,
though still keep
the reader's
interest. The
parallel amongst
the cover, contents,
and feature page in
the title convey to
the audience that
this is the feature
article. The subject
is seen wearing a
trendy outfit, so
teenagers are more
likely to focus on
the page as it is
relevant to them
and their personal
interests.

14. Distribution as a
Media Text
1 'Kalon' would first be externally assessed, taking criticism from editors to fix specific elements, but also given to a relevant audience
to recieve feedback and make any necessary adjustments.
2
Next, 'Kalon' would launch digitally, as a way to quickly market to large masses of the population and conserve resources. The file
would be distributed on Issuu.com, an online platform which focuses on media publications, as well as being published to its own
website, where the readers could also buy the magazine.
3
After launch, 'Kalon' would begin to be marketed and advertised. Influencers on media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram
would be contacted with goals to 1) establish a sponsorship so they could advertise to their audiences or 2) be featured in future
issues of the magazines. In addition, I would launch an ad campaign and boost engagement through social media. TikTok would be
an advantageous platform, due to its algorithm and the ability to reach large audiences for free. Instagram would also be used, due
to their advanced functionality in creating posts, engaging with posts, and networking. Both TikTok and Instagram have some of the
largest active teenage users, making those platforms an effective mean to generate sales. Over time, the marketing
would expand to more digital platforms, but beginning with TikTok and Instagram would serve the widest use.
4
From this point, 'Kalon' would experience a significant growth and would expand even further. This
expansion would occur in forms of being sold at newstands, expanding the reach, creating an entire
publishing platform. Moving forward, 'Kalon' would become the most influential teen magazine plat-
form, seeking to address relevant issues and expanding its reach to more than ever before. The mag-
azine would hire more writers and designers, focusing on teenagers who are interested. In doing so,
it would provide experience to the teenagers, and also make a wide-range platform that continually
represents, distributes, and grows.

15. Development
of Production
Skills
How did your production skills develop
throughout this project?

16. Throughout the project, my photography skills enhanced dramatically. At the start of the year, I was taking photos on my phone,
completely unaware of specific principles of photography. Throughout the year and during this project, I began taking photos on a
Canon SL3, enhancing the quality and teaching me specific conventions. I now am comfortable making adjustments to my camera,
altering my photos to specific environments. For example, I learned the importance of white balance, ISO, shutter speed, and more, and
could evaluate my photos. Preliminary exercises were put in place to make this possible, along with my growing role in yearbook,
shooting content for the year's book. Not only did my experience with a camera enhance, I was also able to translate this to my phone
photography, adjusting specific settings to establish a quality comparable to that of a camera. With the culmination of all this, I was able
to make significant strides in taking photos.
Photography
Before this year, I would often make simple adjustments to photos in the Photos app, or would upload them into
Lightroom and either use presets that I found online or use the pre-made presets. Though, this project encouraged
me to learn the principles of photo editing, learning how to make adjustments and what they would change. In doing
so, I developed my own presets and learned to make adjustments to factors like exposure, contrast, vibrance, and
saturation. I also learned how to manipulate colors, enhancing specific colors which I wanted to be emphasized in my
magazine, or on the flipside, desaturating colors that I found to be distracting. As a whole, through this project, my
editing skills changed from minimal experience to being able to manipulate my photos to match specific contexts.
Editing
Skills Development
Through the development of this magazine, I saw a significant growth in my skills in
all sectors, significantly: photography, editing, writing, and design.
Through this project, I also learned how to combine photography and editing to
compose a good photo. For example, I began to reduce the ISO, and then raise the
exposure of the photo in my edits. In doing so, the quality drastically improved, and
I had more control over the photos.
Combined

17. Skills Development
Through the development of this magazine, I saw a significant growth in my skills in
all sectors, significantly: photography, editing, writing, and design.
Before this year began, I was entirely inexperienced in writing a journalistic story. As preliminary exercises, I began writing stories for
my yearbook class, abiding to specific conventions and learning important elements which would directly relate to the writing of this
magazine. As I began improving, I learned that I write the stories best on topics I find relevant and interesting, urging me to pick a topic
under the same grounds for my magazine. Besides this though, I improved in writing as I gained experience and worked with those
with more experience than I. From these experiences, I learned to make my writing relevant, interesting, understanding, and detailed.
For the project itself, I did research into writing magazine articles and stories, following the advice in my magazine. In the final analysis,
the usage of this class, and specifically this project allowed me to develop greatly in writing stories.
Writing
At the initiation of the year, I would use preselected templates on Canva and the only adjustments I made were to the
content, selecting stock photos and putting in phrases that my teacher instructed me to do so. Though, through this
project, I altered my previous actions, designing from an empty page and learning important design elements which I
was entirely unaware of. In addition, I learned how to use InDesign, an Adobe Platform which is widely used
nowadays. Even though I did not select this platform for the completion of my project, the project itself encouraged
me to expand my previous comfort levels and learn new things. In addition, my design grew drastically in Canva.
Through the heavy use of Canva in my media studies class, I discovered new elements and used Canva in an
enhanced way. Without this project, my design elements would be nowhere near where they are today. In addition, I
learned specific principles pertaining to magazines, but could also relate to other aspects. I took what I learned and
applied it to other classes and elements of my life.
Design

18. How did you integrate technologies –
software, hardware and online – in this
project?
Technological
Integration

19. Technological Integration
This project put a heavy emphasis on technology and its growing impact in the design world. For this reason, I
used a variety of technological elements in the creation of my magazine.
Software
Hardware
MACBOOK- In both the planning and the creation of my magazine, my MacBook was a key component. In planning, I typed out all of
my blog posts and made the blog itself, all of which was aided with the usage of my MacBook. Additionally, in the creation of this
magazine, I used my MacBook to create the designs, utilizing softwares that had greatest functionality on my Mac.
IPAD- To best edit photos and map out ideas in a more hands on way, I used my iPad and Apple Pencil substantially. In my blog,
you can see that the majority of my planning was conducted on my iPad, allowing my data to sync across all my devices. My iPad
became fundamental in planning for my magazine.
IPHONE- To take candid and more realistic photos, it was necessary that I had a simple means to take photos in the moment.
Due to this, it was essential that I integrated the usage of the iPhone camera. My iPhone 11 Pro Max was a good option,
comparable to that of professional cameras. Though the quality is better on a professional camera, learning photography
skills on an iPhone was essential to the ability to capture any moment at any time. Though the iPhone was not the primary
form of photography, it became helpful in getting content, some of which was used in my magazine.
CANON SL3- Before this project, I had minimal experience using any camera other than the iPhone camera. The
Canon camera was a great, beginner-friendly, and intuitive camera which was fundamental to the production of
my photos. The ability to quickly send photos through Wi-Fi or Bluetooth, along with the easy connection
to the Mobile App allowed for a simplistic process eased with the insertion of new technologies.
Adobe's free Lightroom mobile became key in editing my content that I shot. The expansive adjustments that I
could make were free and the software was easy to learn and use. I installed this software on my iPhone.
For the magazine and planning, I used Canva as a means to compile all of the necessary elements. The simplistic
interface and expansive free resources allowed for an easy process with minimal frustration. Canva's use of
branding packages model the benefits of growing technology, as it streamlined the entire process and improved
the design greatly.
In the creation and organization of the magazine, I fully immersed myself in Apple's iCloud storage. From this, I could
have access to any file, on any device, anytime I wanted. This made the imports/exports of photos, copy/paste of text,
and the overall creation of the project much easier.

20. Technological Integration
This project put a heavy emphasis on technology and its growing impact in the design world. For this reason, I
used a variety of technological elements in the creation of my magazine.
Integral to this project, I had to document my process using a digital platform. After searching through a variety of online free
website platforms, I found Wix. By documenting my process digitally, I could reflect on my process. In doing this, I integrated
Wix's blogging functionality, which allowed me to conveniently organize my contents in tags, separating my content into
specific categories. In addition, Wix had a simplistic way in compiling photos and text together to create an effective and
aesthetically pleasing blog. Wix made website creation, a normally tedious process, simple and fun.
Wix
To best inspire me and find references, I often used Pinterest. I was previously very familiar with Pinterest, and I utilized the
board creation and effective algorithm to get inspiration for my magazine. I found photo inspiration, content inspiration, and
design inspiration all on Pinterest. The usage of this platform aided my in-depth research and greatly inspired the creation of
my magazine.
Pinterest
In creating my magazine, I used social media platforms in a variety of ways. One, I used social media to identify specific
trends which I could apply to my magazine. To elaborate, I recognized the clothes people would wear and the content
they discussed. In this, I also found how to make my product unconventional, seeing what the media did not portray
so I could portray it in my magazine. Secondly, social media was used in the formulation of my cover page. To
best market to my audience of teenage girls, I asked my social media their thoughts on the cover photos,
having them select their favorites. Social media allowed me to freely reach people and audiences,
while simultaneously target my demographic further.
Social Media Platforms
To best conduct my necessary research, I found that Google on Safari was the most effective. Google provided a plethora of
resources that I would use in conducting research and creating my magazine. Google gave me access to thousands of
references, teaching me about conventions, principles, and more. Often times, I would create tab groups in Safari, simplifying
the process as I could manage my project all at once, avoiding the hassle of closing tabs and reopening them.
Google/Safari