Question 7

1. Loo
Question 7: Looking back to your
preliminary task, what do you feel
you have learnt in the progression
from it to the full product?

2. Importance of research- understanding conventions
Exploring two real media products in the initial stages of my research meant
that throughout every set of processes I was able to understand, recognise,
replicate, and challenge forms and conventions of real media products. It also
enabled me to revisit my detailed analyses of these products, and be reminded
of which elements I had decided were beneficial, so that I could consider
incorporating these within my media product. I feel that this is something I
have really learnt the importance of since my preliminary task, as I often felt,
during that process, that I was lacking in a lot of specific product knowledge,
which could really have helped me out in terms of my understanding of
conventions. Only when moving on to this project, with this detailed product
knowledge, could I really see how beneficial this was.

3. Importance of research- Asking better questions
A skill I really developed, in relation to learning the importance of the
research stage, is the asking better questions within a market research
questionnaire, to really retrieve specific sets of information. In my
preliminary task, I conducted a questionnaire, composed of some very basic,
closed questions. And only after I had collected and analysed these results,
did I begin to understand that these were extremely limiting, in that I had a
lack of understanding of my specific audience, the demographics and
psychographics of this group, and most intrinsically, the content they most
enjoyed reading and seeing in magazines. I feel that this was a definite learning
curve that exemplified to me the full benefit of conducting a preliminary task.
So, when writing my second questionnaire, I really put thought into exactly the
information I needed from my audience- not just their age and gender, but their
employment status, and if they were still in education, and then psychographic
information, such as the reasons as to why they buy music magazines. I feel
that I learnt so much about conducting questionnaires, and their contribution.

4. Importance of research- audience
Another aspect that I feel I have really learnt a lot about is understanding
your audience, and their needs and preferences. This is definitely something I
considered during my preliminary task, but I don’t feel that I really recognised
how much this information could benefit each choice, and even in some cases,
make the decision for you. In a similar sense, keeping audience feedback in mind
is of real benefit, during every stage I was referring back to my audience
profile, and basing content and editorial decisions on this, but also I was
obtaining audience feedback in informal ways all the time, simply through
showing my work to my classmates that fit my target audience, and asking
questions to attain even more opinions.

5. Importance of research- compiling a visual theme
One blog post of this task was a design inspiration moodboard. I did not compose
a moodboard during my preliminary task, and I feel that the difference this has
made is so evident when looking at the final products against one another. The
aesthetic and tone of my music magazine is so much more consolidated and
visually pleasing than that of my college magazine, which is something that I
feel made my whole magazine far more effective for attractive for the
audience. I would credit so much of this to the design inspiration board I
created, so I have really learnt a lot about the value of this step.

6. Importance of Planning- Preparing body elements
I have since learnt that Preparing the body elements, including article lists,
interviews, coverlines, pull quotes, etc., is a task I did not consider performing
during my preliminary magazine, as I was not aware of the ways in which they
would contribute to making my whole process smoother and easier. This time
around, when I prepared these elements beforehand, I found construction far
easier- every piece of text could be simply input into the page, rather than
thought up there and then.

7. Importance of Planning- Photoshoot plan
Writing and providing images for a detailed photoshoot plan is really crucial
for achieving the desired end product. A simple and brief description (as I wrote
for the photoshoot plan of my preliminary task) does not suffice or provide
the in depth, descriptive, and illustrative content needed for you to really
understand what kind of images you’ll be recording. Every aspect must be
planned for, including lighting, after effects, makeup, positioning, clothing,
and accessories, etc. This is something I learnt during the photoshoot for the
preliminary task, where I felt slightly under-prepared, especially now in
reflection on this, where I feel that I was really benefitting from having such
an in depth photoshoot plan, and every doubt I had about the look of my
magazine’s main image was answered by the plan I had composed.

8. Importance of Construction- Drafting
Drafting is such an important part of the process of construction,
particularly when keeping a blog on this, using boxes and frames on InDesign to
set up each element of the layout before adding the actual content to the
page, of course I would have been able to do this without writing about each
draft screenshot, but I felt that this was a real benefit- self reflection is key,
and through commenting on why I have placed the boxes and frames as I have,
as well as discussing my thoughts on, and how I thought the audience would
feel about the initial stages of construction, which allowed for a better end
result. This is definitely something I have learnt during the progression of the
tasks, and would know in future that drafting is a really valid part of
construction.

9. Importance of Construction- Construction Log
A huge part of my process on this magazine task was spent keeping a
construction log of each decision I made within this stage. This included taking
screenshots and writing about why I was making certain amendments or adding
certain elements, furniture, and content. Not only did this ensure that each
decision made had a reason and benefit behind it, but it allowed me to keep
record of these choices, which opened me up to a new way of thinking critically
about my magazine during construction. This is definitely a skill that I have
developed from my preliminary task to this task, as I really did not give this
stage any thought when constructing my college magazine, yet it brought so
much benefit to this magazine, and I can really recognise this as something I
have learnt in progression.

11. Front cover Development
Layout: I really feel that I
have learnt to space out a
page far better than
before, and this is evident
here, my main coverline is
much more readable, my
buzz is not in the centre of
my page drawing all of the
attention, and the kerning
of my coverlines is even this
time around. The
improvement is huge.
Accessibility: all of the content on my second
cover is so much more readable and accessible, I
have learnt to achieve this through colour, and
also the background of my main image, and the
placement of text over this.
Masthead: One key concept
that I have learnt is that I
do not have to be afraid of
making my masthead large,
and grabbing- this is the
whole brand’s logo, and is
allowed to occupy a lot of
space, this is very much
reflected in the end
product.

12. Front cover Development
Photography: my photography has improved so much
since my preliminary task, and this really shows, I
decided that by bettering the quality of my image I could
improve the look of my whole music magazine cover.
Colour: my colour scheme
and aesthetic is so much
more consolidated in the
progression between the
tasks, this has been such an
important part of setting
up a house style and brand
identity, as I have
established over the
process.
Font: font variation has
really aided the whole look
of my second cover, and
appears so much more
professional than on the
first cover. a large variety
of fonts is a tool I have
learnt to employ to really
mirror and follow
convention.

14. Contents page Development
White space: a real change
is that I am no longer afraid
to use white space, and I do
not feel that I have to
occupy this with panels,
boxes, or purpose-less
information. This is a real
learning curve for me.
Brand Identity: There is a
clear difference in the ways I
have represented my brand
identity between the two
products, and I have really
learnt to better demonstrate
this.
Professionalism: I have used
furniture far more
effectively across the
pages to better represent a
level of professionalism-
another process I have
learnt in progression.Fonts: once again, multiple
fonts have really
contributed to the overall
look, and this is a factor I
am no longer afraid to
include, thanks to the
initial task.

15. Contents page Development
Convergent Links: I have
learnt to employ
convergent links in more
fitting, and bolder formats
and placements, which is
something that came to me
when researching real
products- links are placed
with subtlety.
Article lists: the content I
have included in my article
lists is so much more
descriptive, which is a real
benefit for the readership-
they can better understand
the content inside the
magazine.
Folios: My use of folios has
improved so much from my
college to my music
magazine, as I am now using
images as folios, and
placing the folio in a more
conventional place- to the
left, rather than the right
of the article list.
More Images: The use of
further images has aided
the whole look of my
magazine hugely- real media
products use multiple
images, as I learnt from my
research stage.