evaluation of preliminary task

1. Media – G321 – Preliminary Task – Evaluation.
In what way does your media product use, develop or
challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
I used typical features of a magazine in my Sixth Form magazine to make it professional
looking and realistic. The conventional features on my cover page include; a large, bold
title that is interrupted by the main image of the cover page – predominantly a person or
figure, an advertisement of some sort, a barcode and a logo.
Sixth Form magazines are very organized and are not clustered. I have corresponded with
this factor by creating a layout of thirds. I sectioned my title, text and image into this
format which is a typical design. Despite the professional appeal, I chose to take influence
from Pop magazines for my subheadings by making them colourful, whilst maintaining
my colour scheme, and bold. I felt by doing this I would further attract the young target
audience I had.
One of the magazines I analyzed had many images on the cover page with several of
them being at angles, an effect of this was a reflection of what a student’s life may be like
– hectic – however I chose to have a singular image on my cover because initially it
matched my layout, but also it gave my page a focal point. I felt using this image of a
student in this way would give the impression, to young people who’re considering this
Sixth Form, that students are well looked after within the Sixth Form.
Commonly, Sixth Form magazines just focus on new students. In contrast to this, I have
tried to appeal to the students leaving to the next stage of their lives. I attempted this by,
on the opposite third of the page, asking the older bracket of the audience what their
plans are. By directly asking them I immediately engaged them into the magazine.
To make my cover page additionally professional, I changed the background for my
image. I observed that some Sixth Form magazines use a photo shoot image for their
main image and so I attempted this by erasing the original background of a class room
and adding a plain backdrop. To this backdrop I added a lighting affect to give the whole
page depth. The plain background also posed as a canvas for my text to sit on visibly. I
observed that the subject in the image was often expressing happiness and making eye
contact with the viewer. I asked my model to do the same as eye contact portrays him as
being confident but also welcoming and a smile shows he’s friendly possibly as a result of
the Sixth Form being an enjoyable place.
I have attempted to continue my theme onto my content page. To accurately achieve this
I used the same base backdrop from my front cover. I utilized the colour of the backdrop
to introduce a landscape of the school site into the whole page. The bluish colour of the
background appeared to be the sky to my picture protruding up the page. I added, to the
background, a lens flare to brighten it up to make the picture more appealing. To section

2. my content page I used boxes of weak opacity. This was an effective way of organizing
the page without disrupting the image. Regularly, the contents page has several images
relating to the content within the magazine. Doing this means the theme of the page is
not consistent. To avoid this I only used one image which was a way of maintaining the
style of the page. To follow the professionalism of the magazine it placed a logo in a top
corner, I did this because many Sixth Forms and Colleges have their recognizable logo
throughout their magazine. I utilized the lens flare to section my page. The flare
produced a line which I sat the title on. This is a stylish and modern way of combining my
whole page together.
How does your media product represent particular social
groups?
With my magazine, I have tried to appeal to as many social groups as possible. To achieve
this I have tried to make it professional in a way so it isn’t bias towards a particular type
of person. My colour scheme, in context, is neutral and applicable to the school and no
particular group. This means I have avoided discriminating any group. Considering the
content of my magazine, I have designed it to feature a section that encourages
individuality and expressing this. I have chosen to include this because Sixth Form, a time
between School and either University or the work place, is when a person develops and
discovers who they’ll aspire to be if not already. My magazine is professional in a way
that welcomes individuals serious about their future, both young adults finding a Sixth
Form or a College and those seeking guidance for their future education or place of work.

3. What kind of media institution might distribute your media
product and why?
Nicholas Chamberlaine School, the place of which I have designed the magazine for,
would best suit the role of distributing the magazine. This is because Nicholas
Chamberlaine already has an audience which is the base of pupils at the school.
Despite this, the Sixth Form department may feel they need to branch out to students
from other areas and so they may have to employ an organization to further distribute
the magazine.
Who would be the audience for your media product?
The audience for my project would be young people fitting in the age bracket of sixteen
to nineteen year olds. The type of person I am targeting would be interested in further
education. Despite this, individuals of this age are typically very diverse in interests and
such. Therefore, I have attempted to design my magazine as broadly as necessary due to
the fact the Sixth Form would not be looking for a certain type of individuals who share
interests and mannerisms. The Sixth Form would hope to attract a diversity of young
people, this is because the reputation of the Sixth Form would benefit and also otherwise
this could be controversial.
Unfortunately, I cannot suit each group ideally and not everything in the magazine can be
of interest to everybody. However, the professionalism and encouragement could be
reassuring to and individual or group in terms of acceptance.

4. How did you attract/address your audience?
Initially, my actor who posed as the subject of my front screen was from the same group,
in terms of age, as my target audience. Considering this, it familiarizes the magazine with
them, leading to them being more inclined to proceed into the magazine. Further, my
actor is making eye contact with the viewer and this necessarily humanizes the media but
also brings both the viewer and the product to a similar level with a connection made by
the subject of my cover. Also an effect of one subject on the whole front page symbolizes
importance of each individual within the Sixth Form. This suggests they’ll be a sense of
belonging when they’re a member of the Sixth Form.
I used flares as a contribution to my theme. The flares brightened my product which
made it more attractive and more protruding from wherever it may be, whether that be
a shop shelf or a desk. The colours I used were bright and attractive, but necessarily
professional which suits the type of people I am aiming the media towards because
they’re maturing. On my front cover I sub headed current affairs that possibly would be
applicable to the reader and therefore engaging them in the magazine first and foremost.

5. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of
constructing this product?
Prior to the project, the most considerable development of my knowledge is the
utilization of online tools available. For example, since the project I have discovered an
online display mechanism which allows me to display my work in on place.
In terms of creating my work, I used, predominantly, Adobe Photoshop. This is a software
I was already familiar with. Despite using the programme for a number of years, I did not
use it to even a fraction of its capabilities as a considerable amount of tools within the
programme were alien to me. Through experimentation and observation I have achieved
a new level of understanding for this programme which means I can now, more
efficiently, produce work that is to a better standard due to the features I now know how
to use on Photoshop. Additionally I have recognized how to combine the abilities of
different programmes to achieve new levels of work.