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1. Unit G321
Evaluation
Georgina Eleftheriou

2. In what ways does your magazine design use, develop or challenge forms and
conventions of real magazines ?
My music magazine design uses the typical convention of a masthead which is text displaying the word ‘intentions’.
Most music magazines use the title of their magazine as the masthead which is exactly what I have done for my
design. The juxtaposition of my masthead is also conventional as it is further up the top of the page with a slight gap.
Most magazine covers place their mastheads at the top ensuring that the text isn’t right at the top of page.
As for the main image, I have used a medium shot at eye level. This is a typical convention of a music magazine as
most tend to use a shot where the head and shoulders are visible. Like most music magazines (and in magazines in
general) I made the main image the background in order to make other conventions (such as the cover lines and
anchorage text) visible.
I have developed the convention of a strapline due to it’s placement. Most magazine cover designs place the strapline
at the top of the page above the masthead yet I have placed mine down the bottom of the page. I did this as it framed
the page nicely. Adding on to that, if I moved my masthead further down to fit the strapline at the top, it would be
harder to read the masthead and would also overlap part of the main image (the subject’s head). Lastly, placing the
strapline down the bottom made it possible to crop an undesirable part of the image.
Moving on to the main cover line, I have placed it in a common area. Most typical magazine covers keep the main
cover line to one side of the page which is what I have done for my own design. Furthermore, the main cover line is
over lapping the image which again is conventional of a music magazine cover. As for the anchorage text I have used
it conventionally for my design due to the fact that, the text is connected to the main article which is what most
magazines typically do. My deign uses the typical convention of cover lines. I have placed them in a list which is a
common way to have them on a magazine cover.
The colour theme of my cover consists of 4 colours (black, white, red and grey) which is very typical of a real
magazine design. Having looked at many existing magazine covers I have analysed the pattern of the colour theme
which always tends to be around three to four colours.
Lastly, I have developed the convention of a barcode. Although I have placed it to one side like most magazine cover
do, I have put it nearer the top. Most covers have the barcode further down the end of the page. Adding on to that,
most covers have the barcode horizontal whereas I have opted for my barcode to be vertical.
All 3 of these music magazines have 3
to 4 colours and have the barcode
placed further down the page. 2/3 of
these covers also have the barcode
horizontal.
My Music Magazine

3. In what ways does your double page spread design use, develop or challenge
forms and conventions of real magazines ?
My double page spread uses the typical convention of image use.
The right page of my double page spread only consists of an image.
This layout I have gone for is a common design in real life magazines.
As for text I have again also used a quite common layout. My article
is a Q&A and I have used different colour text to separate the
questions from the answers. Many real life magazines do this in order
to make it easy for the readers to understand the article. More on to
the text, I have placed a quote from the article in the middle of the
Q&A. This isn’t the most common layout used but it is still used a fair
bit. Thus, although I haven’t used the most typical design my double
page spread still looks like how a real magazine would have their
spread to look like.
Moving on to the title of the double page spread I have developed this
convention due to the fact that, I have just used the subjects name.
Designers often use a quote from the subject who the article is based
upon or a catchy line for the title. I just kept it simple and stuck with
the subjects name instead. For the subheading however I did keep
that pretty conventional. Having looked at plenty real life double page
spreads they all pretty much have some text under the title
summarising what is involved within the article. For my own design I
did the same.

4. In what ways does your contents page design use, develop or challenge forms and
conventions of real magazines ?
For my contents page I think that I have kept most things conventional. Talking
about images, I have kept mine pretty conventional. This is because the main
image I have used is the background for my contents page. It is even more
conventional as the subject is to one side of the frame. This is common for
designers to do this as it enables them to place the text about the content of the
magazine in a list.
I have also developed the use of images due to the fact that, I have overlapped
my cutout image on top of where the subject is in the main image. Having
looked at real music magazine contents pages, most designers don’t overlap the
images.
I have also developed text placement as I’ve put a page number slightly on top
of the cut out image so that it overlaps. Most typical contents pages may put a
page number with the cut out but with the title of the article as well. For my
design I decided not to do that as I already have the title of the article within the
list above.

5. How does your magazine represent particular social
groups?
I would say that my magazine cover, contents
page and double page spread all represent
social group E in particular.
The reason as to why they could all represent
social group E is because all three of my
designs have a young person(s) on the page.
This means that a younger age group are
more likely to be able to relate to my designs
rather than somebody from social group A or B
who have high paid jobs, who most likely don’t
have the time to engage in social media and
are much older.
For the type of language i have used however, I would say that it is open to all social groups. This is because I haven’t used informal
language so everyone can understand the text I have included on my magazine cover, contents page and double page spread. The fact
that I have done this could mean that my audience could be wider in age. My target audience is 18-25 year olds however, some older
aged people may engage with my cover, contents page and spread as I haven’t prioritised a particular group with the language thus,
there is no barrier there.

6. What kind of media institution might distribute
your magazine and why?
I would say that IPC Media might distribute my magazine because they distribute big music magazines such as NME.
I would also think that a magazine institution such as Rolling Stone would distribute my magazine due to the fact that my cover has the same
kind of theme as theirs. Rolling Stones design is not a typical pop look like Vibe. They’re a little ‘alternative’/different which is what I would
describe my own magazine design to look like.

7. Who would be the audience for your
magazine?
The audience for my magazine would be people of a young age ranging from 18-25 year olds
(social group E for some). This is because my magazine contains bold colours (in particular the
shade of red I have used which is more likely to appeal to younger people) and the font is quite
‘causal’. What I mean by this is that compared to other fonts they look more mature. For example
the magazine Rolling Stone uses a bolder more structured font that looks more grown up than the
laid back font I have used.
Moving on to the subject, the type of fashion and accessories the subject is wearing in the main
image I would say are more likely to be worn by younger people. The subject is wearing a leather
jacket with quirky shades and a patterned bandana. It is unlikely that you would see a 40 year old
wearing this kind of clothing and accessories. Thus, this magazine is more likely to be attracted by
a younger audience as they would consider the subjects outfit to be ‘fashionable’.
I would say the same audience would be attracted to my double page spread too. This is because
the subject is around a similar age therefore, the readers are likely to be more interested in her.
Some may even be able to relate to the article that I wrote about the subject which will further
appeal to the audience.
Casual font
Fashionable
clothing
Vibrant
colour
choice
More
grown up
front than
the one I
have used
Popular hair style for young
people
Both subjects are young
As for my contents page, I would also say that the audience
would be young. Again as I have used young people for both
of the images included on that page, it is likely to appeal to a
younger audience instead as they share a similar age. The
way that the subject’s hair is styled is also something that
would be liked younger people as it is a current trend for
teenagers to do with their own hair (due to the young singer
Miley Cyrus)

8. How did you attract/address your audience?
(Magazine cover)
In order to attract my audience I ensured that I chose a photo that had eye contact with the
audience. I felt as though it would be better to chose a photo that I took where the subject is
looking into the camera as it will engage the audience more. This is because if I were to
choose an image where the subject was looking away or down it wouldn’t be very eye
catching as there is no ‘connection’ between the audience and the subject. Adding on to that,
I asked the subject to not only look at the camera but to tilt their head and raise their brow.
Having an interesting pose makes the cover a little different. It is quite common for magazine
covers to have the subject doing a simple pose and just looking into the camera but I thought
if I changed it up it would be easier to attract my audience as the image has is not the usual
thing my audience see.
The subject has quite quirky coloured eyes as well so I thought it would be best to capture
them as they’re attractive thus they would add to the overall appeal of the image on the cover.
Another way that helped attract my audience was by adding some vibrancy to my cover. For
example for my main cover line I chose to use the same bright tone of red as the subject's
lipstick. By using some brighter colours for some of the text it lights up the page a little making
it look more attractive.
In order to attract my audience I also ensured that the strapline was a vibrant colour too. I
want my audience to notice it quite early on when looking at my magazine cover as it has key
information in it therefore it was necessary to make this convention a bold colour anyway. I
used the same tone of red as I did for my main cover line so it would match up and look more
professional which should appeal to my audience much more rather than using random bright
colours.
Both of these music
magazines have medium
shots where the pose is quite
simple which is what I
avoided.

9. How did you attract/address your audience?
(Double page spread)
In order to attract my audience I ensured that I changed the image on my double page spread. After analysing my questionnaire I
discovered that my audience prefer a medium close up shot where detail is visible. As I experimented with different looks and
make up before, I was able to chose an image out of the selection I took. I chose one that showed the subjects face in depth with
makeup that enhanced her features. So, the experimentation came in handy as this enabled be to choose a better image that will
attract my audience more. This image has better eye contact than the previous image I had chosen for the spread as well thus it
will engage my readers more.
Another way my design should attract my audience is the layout of my text. To keep things interesting, I placed a large quote
down the middle of the article on the left page. This just breaks the page up nicely as looking at lots of small text may be off
putting. Furthermore, the fact that I used two separate colours to distinguish which pieces of text are questions and which are
answers should attract my audience as it makes the article easier to read.
I also addressed my audience by making a specific word in the subheading in italics. By doing this, I’m telling the audience that I
want them to put emphasis on this word.

10. How did you attract/address your audience?
(Contents page)
To attract my audience I also ensured that I used at least one image
that was a medium close up (which is my cut out) as mentioned
before analysing my questionnaire showed me that my target
audience (18-25 year olds) prefer that type of shot on a magazine
front cover thus that gave me confidence to feature that kind of shot
on my contents page as well. I made sure that both images I used
have eye contact with the audience as that creates a connection
between the readers and the subject.
Also, the fact that I have used more than one image makes the page
more interesting and look a little ‘busier’. This isn’t a bad thing as
younger people like to see more going on which is what I discovered
when I was researching about social groups (for this case social
group E) and the types of magazines that would attract them.

11. How did you use technologies and processes to
construct your magazine, contents page and double
page spread and what did you learn from it?
For my magazine cover, contents page and double page spread I used
different technologies and processes in order to construct all of them.
For example I used physical technology (my camera: the Canon
Powershot) for image taking. I needed to take a main image for my
magazine cover, contents page and double page spread. I took one
extra image using my camera for my contents page (cut out image). I
learnt how to use different functions on my camera and how to use
lighting to my advantage. Overall, as I took more and more images I
am more experienced in taking a good quality image.
Moving on I also used digital technology. I needed to use this kind of
technology (a computer) so I could see my designs on a screen so I
could edit and so on. Furthermore, I needed the computer ( I used a
Mac) so that I could store all of my images, different Photoshop
documents and anything else that helped me construct my final pieces.
As for software, I only used Photoshop. I used this program so I could
edit my images, add text, resize things and put everything together.
Having used this program much more, I am now able to edit in more
depth and correct images better.

12. Looking at your preliminary task - what do you feel you have
learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
One of the preliminary tasks was to create a school contents page. I wasn’t to happy with mine as I did not think it appeared to
be very conventional/realistic. This is because of the image I chose. I feel like if I took a closer shot then the page would look
better as I feel like the image has to much ‘space’ within in it . Furthermore, I wish that I included a few cut out image as that it
very common for contents pages and that would've filled the gaps nicely. Therefore, I took this on board and ensured that I
took closer images for my music contents page (my questionnaire analysis also helped prove that I should do this). Also, I
made sure I used a cut out image so that my music contents page wouldn’t look ‘empty’ and more conventional than the
school contents page that I created.
As for my other preliminary task, which was making a school magazine, I think that one went well. Creating that magazine
taught me the importance of a strap line as it does many things such as, framing the image, adding extra information (thus
attracting the audience more) and hiding unnecessary parts of the main image. Therefore, this made me keen to include a
strapline on my music magazine cover as well as it can make quite the difference. Also, I feel as though I focused on sizing of
text a lot more. On my school magazine cover I think that certain parts of text should've been adjusted in size. For my music
magazine cover I ensured that my masthead was large enough and slightly bigger than my main cover line otherwise
everything looks out of proportion on the page.
Main cover
line looks to
big here
This
should
look
slightly
larger than
the main
cover line
Pages space is filled up better in the music magaz
contents page
Sizing of text is better on this
magazine cover