Media Evaluation- AS Magazine

1. AS Media
Magazine Evaluation

2. In what ways does your
media product use, develop
or challenge forms and
conventions of real media
products?

3. PAGE NUMBERSPAGE NUMBERS
All of the page numbers are a main body font are the same
size and big enough in the bottom corners. I also checked
to make sure they correlate to the flat plan of the
layout and draft plans of the magazine.

4. For example, in this double page spread taken from Kerrang you can see
the page numbers at the bottom two corners of the page

5. MASTHEADSMASTHEADS
For the main masthead of the magazine, the vibe that I followed was from the Kerrang
magazine. The K in that magazine is very significant and can be easily identified. When
deciding fonts for the masthead I chose this one as the feature of the lines above and
below the 'lower case' letters make it easily identifiable.
The transition from
the ‘R’ to the ‘E’
in the title of the
magazine is supposed
to be eye-catching
and memorable, in a
similar way to how
the Kerrang magazine
is known for the ‘K’
and the ‘!’ At the
end of its title
The significance
of having the
title end with a
capital S is
again to make it
memorable.

6. STYLE OF PHOTOGRAPHYSTYLE OF PHOTOGRAPHY
For the photography in the
main front cover of the
magazine it was a direct long
shot of the model/artist.
This followed the ideas of
featuring a main artist on
the front cover, again as I’d
seen in the Kerrang magazine
and RockSound
For the photography in the DPS I made sure
that the main image was a landscape long shot
featuring the artist to the side in ways that
I had seen in RockSound and Kerrang. The
photography was also taken in a way that
allows for text and other images to be placed
over the top to create that section of the
magazine, in order for it to still look
professional.
By using the rule of thirds it places my
model in the left third leaving the middle
and right free for text, images, and pull
quotes etc.

7. FONTSFONTS
The colours change for the fonts to fit the theme for the part of the magazine that they are
representing. I used the fonts TipoCapital1St for the masthead and the ‘Gerard Way’ plug. I
used Tunga, Vani, and Vijaya for the QUIZZ PLUG, Panic! At the Disco plug, and the poster
title. This is because they're easy and simple to read and attract the reader.
The shade of red for this
piece of text is a
similar colour to the red
in the models hair. This
is to link them together
and correlate that they
will be featured
The use of having a
‘model’ Gerard Way in the
deep red is symbolic as
red is a colour in the
theme of My Chemical
Romance. This makes it
instantly relatable for
the fans.
The advertisement of
‘quizzes inside’
acts as a plug which
would attract
audiences who follow
the genre of music
advertised.
The bright red ‘Panic! At
The Disco’ attracts the
reader as is stands out
compared to the words
‘exclusive interview’ as
they’d be more interested
in the band of Panic! At
The Disco rather than the
interview itself without
the context

8. In the Double Page Spread, the fonts used are ‘Modern No, 20’ for the heading, and ‘Minion
Pro’ for the article and pull quote.
The heading of this article is red
with a white outline as these two
colours reflect the known colour
scheme of ‘My Chemical Romance’-
(Gerard Way being the lead member of
the band) this creates synergy
between my magazine pages which
makes it identifiable as the band.
The font used in the article
is white, again to follow the
colour scheme of this page,
and also because it contrasts
well with the background
making it easy to read. This
font is simple and looks good
so that people can read it and
it looks professional like a
real magazine.
The pull quote is the same
font and colours as the title
this makes it appear to be
important. The font is
different to the fonts used in
the main article columns. This
is what attracts the readers
attention as it makes the
reader want to read more.
I used the drop cap feature
to capitalise the first
letter of the paragraph as
it resembles similar effects
used in news articles and
scriptures, making it appear
more visually pleasing for
the reader.
The text is laid out in six
columns over two pages,
with the left image taking
up two columns.

9. In the contents page, the fonts used are ‘TipoCapital1St’ for the Contents title, and the font
‘Vani’ for the rest of the text describing the sections with their titles.
The contents page title
follows the same idea of
the Masthead on the front
cover in order to emphasise
the significance of the
page in highlighting and
connecting the key parts
together to represent the
full magazine. The colours
contrast to the background
and fit with the scheme of
the photos.
The font used in the
headings for the pages and
the description is ‘’. The
font’s colour is again to
match the theme of the
background with the photos
at the side. I used this
font as it is clear to read
and is similar to the fonts
I have seen in real life
magazines.
The pictures link
together in that the
red and black colour
scheme links to My
Chemical Romance and
the colour scheme of
that DPS with Gerard
Way
The text is arranged
in sections and in a
logical way, which
is conventional and
helps the reader
work out where
articles are.
The text and images
create a balance in
the left and right
thirds.

10. COLOUR SCHEMECOLOUR SCHEME
The colour scheme of the end product
consists of a grey, blue, black, white,
and red dominated scheme. Particularly
for the black white and red colours,
they fit the conventions for the punk
rock genre. The blues, greens and pinks
are generally more to attract the
readers attention than to symbolise
anything within the magazine. The
double page spread follows the colour
scheme of the contents page as the
images tie them together and the faded
grey.

11. PULL QUOTEPULL QUOTE
I used a pull quote in my double page
spread which features elements of an
update from Gerard Way which would catch
the attention of the reader seeing what
they want to see. The idea of my pull
quote is to excite the reader so that
they'd want to read my article in order
to understand the context surrounding
the pull quote. The talk of the music
and how he is always ‘writing’ or being
creative will excite fans as sometimes
it takes a while to receive updates from
their favourite artists. It keeps the
fans engaged in what they're reading.

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

13. My music magazine represents teenagers in a way that is rebellious as
their choice of clothing does not fit the expectations that other
members of society would expect from them. For example, in my cover
picture, my model has short, and unnaturally coloured hair which
represents how teenagers these days are wanting to break some of the
expectations put out in society. The same can also be said for the
model in the double page spread as her appearance is a bold statement
of individuality which again represents teenagers as wanting to
conform to their own sense of identity.
The choice of clothing represents teenagers, again, and stepping out
of the gender binary as they wear clothes which stereotypically males
wear more of. The magazine represent teenagers as the generation that
bring the movement of individuality and changing dress codes from the
gender binary which to some; promotes teenagers as rebellious, and to
other readers, promotes them as forward thinkers and powerful with
their statement.

14. The models are also
wearing dark clothing
which does not follow the
typical portrayal of
females who wear bright
dresses or small revealing
outfits in other
magazines. This represents
this group of teenagers as
against expectations which
to some is actually a
positive rather than
negative that they don't
want to show their bodies.
Both models have dyed
their hair, which can be
perceived as a statement
of their identity within
the ‘alternative’ style

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

16. I decided to use the ‘Future PLC’ publishing company to distribute my
magazine as they already have a collection of many other magazines
which cover varieties of other genres, however they do not have a
magazine that covers specifically the pop-punk genre of music. I
know my magazine will probably be best in their distribution as
there is a gap n their production for pop-punk/rock music. Other
distributors such as Rocksound are self-titled, and so my magazine
would not fit their quota as they do everything themselves, and
the Bauer Media group already have Kerrang in their production
line which does not leave much room for my magazine in their
placement.
I chose this publishing company as they have
similar magazines such as ‘Team Rock’ and
‘Classic Rock’ as they both promote similar
reviews on similar genres of music as to what
my magazine is promoting. I think the
popularity of this publishing company will
draw many readers to my magazine. However,
they do not have a specific magazine for the
pop-punk genre, so there should be market
space for my magazine.

19. Who would be the audience for
your media product?

20. From my audience
research I found that
my audience are mid to
late teens, and mainly
female. From this I
created a reader
profile
ts, and Fall Out Boy. She enjoys hanging out with her friends and works part time in order to buy new music and to find out about the updts, and Fall Out Boy. She enjoys hanging out with her friends and works part time in order to buy new music and to find out about the updts, and Fall Out Boy. She enjoys hanging out with her friends and works part time in order to buy new music and to find out about the upd
Reader Profile
Laura is a 17 year old girl from York.
She plays guitar; having been influenced
by bands such as Panic! At the Disco,
Twenty One Pilots, and Fall Out Boy. She
enjoys hanging out with her friends and
works part time in order to buy new music
and to find out about the updates for her
favourite bands. Laura says she enjoys
reading Relentless as it overviews all
aspects of the music field which she
enjoys.

21. While creating my magazine I intended my audience to
be for teenagers and young adults, however, as I
have included many posters and quiz-like features in
the overall plan for the magazine, I believe the
secondary audience for my magazine would attract
younger teenagers from the age of 13-16 who intend
to learn about artists rather than fans who have
been around for longer who may not be interested in
the quizzes etc. Again, whilst constructing my
magazine I did not stick to attracting a specific
gender, however I believe my end product would
attract a balance of genders given the artists that
are featured and the style of the whole product.
Stereotypically girls tend to like posters and
collect them so the advertisement of them on the
front cover would generally attract more girls than
it would boys.

22. How did you attract/address
your audience?

23. In order to attract my audience, I used black and white images on the double page
spread which would attract people from the alternative fan base, as black and white
filters are common among the alternative genre, so it reinforces their identity.
I also attracted my audience by doing the photo shoots in a city center. This would
attract readers as cities are easily accessible and would bring them closer to the
associated lifestyle of the bands/artists.
I also used particular images to portray
gender in a different way which
reinforces the sense of individuality and
alternative as the models do not follow
the stereotypical ideals of their gender.
For example; my model for the Gerard Way
article is wearing a long jacket and
trousers which covers her which is
different to the ideas the media portray
women. It gives the audience a sense of
female power, and the pull quote (where
they are talking about themselves, talks
about them as a musician and not as
someone hiding from the male gaze) This
reinforces the sense of female power
again to be who they want to be
The model for the front cover
expresses similar ideas. She
does not have a natural hair
colour which breaks away from
the idea that all females have
long, naturally coloured hair
and are conformists. This again,
reinforces the modern view that
there is not a strict binary
with gender. This attracts
people from the alternative
genre as they support
individuality and diversity.

24. In my Magazine, the top
3 bands that came up as
a response were Panic!
At The Disco, Fall Out
Boy, and My Chemical
Romance. These bands
are featured on the
front cover or
throughout the
magazine, fulfilling
the attractions for the
reader.
My audience feedback outlined that
readers prefer magazines that
include posters (possibly part of
the way teenagers use
magazines/posters as a way to
reinforce or legitimise their sense
of identity).

25. WRITING STYLESWRITING STYLES
In my magazine, the writing style
is informative in a style that a
young teenager or adult that like
My Chemical Romance would
understand. The writing relates
directly to the audience fan base
of that band/artist, for example
through the use of abbreviation
of band names. An example of
informal language that I have
used is abbreviating the band
name ‘My Chemical Romance’ to
‘MCR’. This attracts my target
audience and speaks directly to
them as they understand what it
means.

26. What have you learnt about
technologies from the
process of constructing this
product?

27. CameraCamera:: For the preliminary task, I used the cameras provided by college in order
to get the photography. Although the use of the cameras made no contribution to the
final product, I did learn how to use the cameras in order for future use.
Camera (phone):Camera (phone): I used the camera on my phone in order to get the photography
for the images used in my final magazine. I am used to using my phone for taking
pictures, so when I used my camera on my phone I knew how to edit the photos in
order to get the best quality pictures.
Video:Video: In order to get information for my audience research, I interviewed a
classmate, and recorded the interview with my phones video camera. Again, I already
knew how to use this, so I did not learn anything new from using this.
Photoshop:Photoshop: In order to put together my overall magazine piece, I used Photoshop.
Before, I had never used Photoshop properly, so my knowledge was very limited in
what I could do and figure out. As I went along it became increasingly easier to
put together pictures, edit them, and place them on the document so the magazine
looked good. I also learned how to add text and blend the layers together so that
they looked professional as a magazine.
Blogger:Blogger: I used blogger, which is an internet blogging site, in order to save and
upload my work leading up to the final completion. There, I introduced myself and
uploaded some of my early work for my preliminary task, along with all of my
planning and research which I had in order to create my actual piece. Within this
website it allowed me to embed my PowerPoint and word documents along with images
and videos.
Survey MonkeySurvey Monkey:: I used survey monkey as part of my audience research to see what
people like to read, and to see what features they have ion order to make my
magazine to the best of what the audience would like. I did this by creating ten
questions and sending them through a URL via social media sites.

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

29. Overall in the progression from the preliminary task to the final product, I
have learned the most on how to use Photoshop. I have learned how to edit and
arrange photos so that they look professional (especially in a magazine style).
When I started the preliminary task, my work was very basic, and there was
minimal amounts of text- I wasn’t sure what I was doing and worked with what I
had. However I have grown more comfortable with using Photoshop, and I am able
to place images on the document. I also learned how to download fonts and
transfer them to work over Photoshop. This helped to make the magazine look
better. From the preliminary task to the final product, I have learned about the
conventions and how to present them in order to attract the audience (mastheads,
images, colour schemes etc.) all of these have presented a more solid final task
for the final magazine pages in comparison to the initial preliminary task.