Evaluation

Evaluation By Emily Shufflebottom

Question 1 - Conventions For the first question I must answer I will have to talk about how conventional my product is. This is my front cover. I believe that the whole thing looks conventional but if I look at it in more detail I can start to see that small things make it up to be conventional overall. Like other media products, I have kept the theme going of one large image in the middle of the page. I haven't put any small images around it, just text. I have made the image bold and sharpened in Microsoft Fireworks to really make it stand out. I decided not to put a border or anything on the image because it would not look conventional if I did. I also decided not to but a shadow on the image because I thought that it wouldn’t look right with the colour of the background. Secondly, I believe that the text on the product is conventional as well. For the title, I kept to the theme of it at the top of the page with the slogan underneath and a headline under that. I did also put a few headlines on the front cover to show the audience what is in it. I have put an example of a music magazine front cover at the bottom of the page so I can compare my product to that one. Like the real media product, there is one large image in the centre of the page with text surrounding it. There is also a barcode on the media product, as there is one on mine in the same place but opposite corner.

Conventions continued… Another point about how conventional my product is, is the border of the names at the top above the title. I have kept the text in the same font as the rest of the text on the page but I have put a star in between each name to make it look more professional. With the background, I decided not to go with the traditional plain background (as you can see with the magazine front covers at the bottom of the page) and put an image there instead. I had seen a magazine cover previously and loved the idea of splattered paint in the background. I still think its looks conventional because the background is not to dark. If it were it wouldn’t match the text or the image and it wouldn’t look right. I searched for a while to find the right image for the background because most of wouldn’t have looked right, but eventually I found the one I used and I thought it was perfect. I thought that the black and red on the image I used would match the splattered paint.

Conventions Contents Page This is my final contents page. I had so many ideas for the contents page. Overall I believe it looks quite conventional. Firstly, I thought about the title. In most magazines you expect to see the title at the top of the page and in the same font as the front cover. As you can see, the title is at the top of the page and is in the same font and colour. I also used the same background as the front cover because would look silly if I didn’t. I did what I did with the front cover to the background by making it lighter aswell. As for the text, I used the same font and colour to match the title to make it conventional but I spread the text out because I had a space that I couldn’t fit an image there so I thought I would put the text there instead. The original idea I had for the images was to put lots of small images around the text (like the example in the bottom right corner) but once I started playing around with the images I changed my mind. I thought it would look more conventional if I put one large image (maybe edited) and a small one underneath the text. As for the small image it looked too plain when first put on so I thought I would put an effect on it. I used the effect called Bevel Emboss. It makes the image looked 3D as you can see.

Contents Page continued… In the right hand corner is the original idea I had for the large image. I had seen a similar contents page earlier on and I liked the idea of the effect so I decided to try something like it. However from the comments I received on the two products, they thought that the one on the left looked more conventional and professional. However I still wanted to use the image so I decided to put the two together and now it looks quite good. For the image I used the effect of layering. I started with the larger image at the back and made it lighter so that you could see through it. Then I put a smaller image on top of that but made it a little darker. Then for the final touch I put another smaller image on the top of the other one but didn’t adjust the brightness at all. Overall I believe that this contents page looks more conventional than the one below.

Conventions Double Page Spread This is my final Double Page Spread. Like my contents page, I had so many ideas on what to do. Firstly, I used exactly the same background as the front cover and contents page but instead of using the image exactly the same way I decided to flip the image so that it is reflected on the opposite page. Secondly, I didn’t think about the text this time, I thought about the images. I had looked at other media products previously and found out that conventional magazine double page spreads usually have one large image on the right hand page, so I decided to do the same. I chose an image that I hadn't used on my front cover or contents page simply made it bigger. The next image I thought about was an album cover. Of course I had to Make my own album cover. I made the cover in Microsoft Fireworks and honestly it didn’t take me very long. I found an image on the internet and thought it was perfect because the colours matched and it was similar to the splattered paint background. All I did with the album cover was add one of my own images to it. I thought I would put the album cover on the first page underneath the interview. The only other image I used was the small arrow above the large image on the right hand page. I had seen this design on previous magazines and liked the idea.

Conventions Double Page Spread continued… The next thing I thought about was the text. Like the front cover and contents page, I have used exactly the same font and colour for the text. I didn’t want to use different colours or fonts for the text because I thought it would look unconventional. I also made the title bold so that it would stand out. As for the actual text (interview), I thought I would use the same font and Colour and lay the text out in columns so that it looks conventional. Another thing I did with the text was take a small quote out of the original text and put it into quotation marks. I noticed on previous magazine double page spreads, they all seemed to have this one feature. Once I had chosen the text I wanted, I looked on the internet to find some quotation marks. I eventually found them but they weren't the right colour so I edited them so that they would match the rest of the page.

Question 2 - Representation Most of the magazines I looked at and researched all helped me to think about what age group I wanted to represent with my product. I wasn’t really sure what age or social group I wanted to aim my product at. I thought maybe to aim the magazine at teenagers aged between 12 and 18. I think I achieved this but I think I didn’t only aim for teenagers, I also wanted to aim at young adults as well. Maybe aged between 16 and 25. With the 12 to 15 year olds, I thought by putting a teenager on the front of my magazine, I could attract their attentions and get them into learning more about the different styles of music by buying the magazine. I also wanted to attract an audience of anyone who can afford to buy the product. Secondly, the main genre I aimed at with my product was pop. I chose this genre because most teenagers nowadays listening to pop more than any other genre such as rock or country etc. According to figures I researched, pop makes the most income in the music industry than any other genre. I chose pop because pop can be portrayed in many ways. I wanted to be different with my magazine because on most magazine today, celebrities are the main icon of the product. There is always an image of either a famous singer or a famous band, so instead of putting a very famous person, I put an image of someone who has been ‘’normal’’ and has just been writing songs and performing them. Not a person who is permanently known to the public eye. By putting an image of a ‘’normal’’ person onto the front cover, it aims to attract audiences of both sexes. Usually, magazines with a good looking celebrity tend to attract audiences of the opposite sex, but I intended to attract an audience of both sexes. Thirdly, I believe that the colours I have used will attract a great amount of attention because the style today is black and reds so having an image of a singer wearing black and red will make the audience who see the magazine think about buying it. The colours also represent the genre of pop because they are not too dark (which could represent rock) or too light (which could represent classical). Now that I come to think of it, blacks, whites and greys would not have fitted the genre at all. Photos were the main thing I had to think about because I didn’t want the model to be in the wrong position or wearing the wrong type of clothing. I wanted to keep it in the style of pop, so I thought I would make the model to dress suitably but not to flash (black shirt, black trousers etc.). I also wanted him to pose calmly because it is not a rock magazine. As well as the clothing and the positions he is in, I didn’t want him to have any sort of facial piercing, tattoos etc because he is of course only 13 and it would not set a good image or be a icon if he did have all of these things. Lastly, with the interview, I didn’t want the readers to get bored so I didn’t put as much text on there as I had seen on previous magazine double page spreads. I just kept it simple and decided to put a range of images on there instead so the pictures could tell the story.

Question 3 - Institutions I think that a certain media institution that would publish my product would obviously be a music magazine company because it wouldn’t make sense to have a company such as Factory Media because they publish magazines about sport. I think I would choose a magazine publisher who is an international company instead of just a small company. I have done some research on each of the companies to see which on I would want to publish my product. http://www.musicmags.net/ Music Mags is a well known music magazine distribution company. Managed by the MMPA (Music Magazine Publishers Association) and distributed by RetailVision. Music Mags supplies a selection of over four dozen leading music magazines to more than 1400 music dealers, just in the US. It was created in 1998 and was given the name the Music Magazine Authorized Dealer Program (which was the former name of Music Mags). Under Music Mags, you can order as many different titles and design you like and only get one bill with one distributor. The magazine are even Consolidated for shipping so that store get them all at one time. I think that MusicMags would be perfect to distribute my product because it is an international and popular company.

Institutions continued… Here is another distribution company that I have researched. Factory Media is another well known distribution company and I and heard about them because I am a media student. I think that Factory would be an idea for the distribution of my product, however they are only a sports magazine distribution company. I have found some background some background information on Factory Media that might help me to make up my mind. Firstly, Factory Media was formed from three established publishing houses; Action Sports Media, Permanent Publishing 4130 Publishing. All of these merged together in December 2006. It subscribes magazines worldwide, with half a million readers. Factory Media now have 16 online platforms reaching in excess of 2.5 million monthly users and growing. As the leading actions sports media owner in Europe, Factory Media is passionate about serving core consumers with high quality and exciting media. http://factorymedia.com /

Institutions continued… http://www.ipcmedia.com/ Here is another example of a distributor that I could use for my product. IPC could be a great distributor for my magazine because the company distribute a range of different magazine themes such as sport, TV, fashion and music. I have found some quite interesting information on IPC. The International Publishing Corporation (IPC) was formed in 1963 following the merger of three leading magazine publishers – George Newnes, Odhams Press and Fleetway Publications who came together with Mirror Group. However, IPC magazines were created five years later in 1968. IPC did not publish a magazine first, but a newspaper. The very first magazine published by the IPC was in 1911 when Woman's Weekly made it into shops. The main music magazine that IPC publish is NME magazine. However, the IPC publish a lot more TV and fashion magazines instead. I think that this is a publishing company that I would really consider for my product.

Question 4 - Audience In my research, I used three magazines that really inspired me. NME, Q and Vibe. From these I was able to identify the different genres for each and I thought that I might relate them to my magazine. I could also tell the target audience for each one because of the way things have been put on the front cover such as the title, picture they have used, language the have used and even the colours they have used. I noticed that the colours that were used, were used for a certain genre. Such as for Q magazine, they have used bright reds, whites and yellow for the title. They have also made the models on the front cover dress in black. All of these colours match and make the front cover eye-catching. Immediately, you can tell that the genre for this magazine would be pop because there are no deep/dark colours. Where as for NME magazine, it uses dark colours such as deep purples, blacks and reds. It also uses yellow for the title like the Q magazine did but they have used it in a completely different way. This could mean that the genre for NME magazine could be rock or heavy metal. I think it also clever that NME magazine doesn’t use any images on the front cover, just text. Different genre’s use lots of different methods to attract their audience. My research gave my different ideas about the genre of my product. For example, I used Q magazine to help me with my product because I wanted my magazine to be aimed at pop. I used the idea of one large image in the middle of the page and the name of magazine above it. I also used NME as an inspiration for the banner across the top of the front cover. For my product I wanted to attract an audience of teenagers and young adults. I believe that I attracted a niche audience but I felt as though I could have attracted older audiences as well.

Question 5 – Attracting the Audience From my research, I was able to identify the ways in which different magazines attract their audience. I used an example of NME magazine for the title in my product. I looked closely at the title of NME and it gave me the idea to use a similar font. It was bold and plain, perfect for attracting the audience I wanted. I also noticed that the title was all one colour and not loads of different colours. So I decided to make my title all one colour. I wanted to make it the same colour as the model’s clothes so that it would match and it would stand out if it were on a shelf in a shop. I also spotted on certain magazines in my research that the title was layered behind the main image, so I decided to do the same thing with my product. As well as making the main image bold and bright, placing it in the middle of the page attracts the attention of the audience. If you have an image of someone famous then the audience will immediately look at the cover and think there will be a story about them. Putting cheesy headlines or stories on there will help to attract the audience aswell because they will read it and wonder what the it might mean, so they will want to buy it and read on. I also noticed in my research that most of the front covers have an advertising section where prizes may be won. I did plan on having an advertising section on my product but I decided not to put one on.

Attracting the Audience continued… I believe that I have achieved in capturing the audience’s attention with my double page spread. I think that the interview will really make the reader read the rest of the magazine once they have read this. It tells the reader all they need know about GWS (just as it says in the title). I believe that with all of the images I have used and the article I wrote, I think that I may have attracted the audience’s attention. I have put on my front cover as much as I can about news, bands, and gossip as possible, so it should attract the audience’s attention.

Question 6 – Use of Technology I believe I have learned varies techniques whilst using technology in Media… Hardware: I have learned a lot about hardware and how to use it. I have learned a lot about camera work such as lighting, angles, mise en scene etc. From watching TV dramas and British Films I have learned how to analyse the clips and spot the different techniques. I have also learned a lot about computers whilst doing my coursework. I already knew how to research various things on the internet but I had a small idea of designing and construction. I have also learned quite a bit about communicating with my peers. Since starting Media, I have not only learned about camera and sound, I have learned how to use them effectively for my product. Whilst taking pictures for my product, my photography improved. Not only did the images look better, but the way I took them improved. Software: I have learned loads about software since taking Media Studies. The main software I have used is Microsoft Fireworks. I have learned how to use so many effects and how to make my work look even better. The first thing I learned on Fireworks was how to make images look 3D using the Bevel Boss effect. I learned how to put a motion trail on the images as well. For my front cover I learned how to layer the image over the title to make it look more appealing ad eye catching.

Technology continued… Continuing with software, for my album cover that I used on my double page spread, I used Microsoft Fireworks to make it. I simply found the background image on the internet but I added one of my images that I took onto the background. I then used the layering tool that I had learned about and put my image on top of the background. Whilst I was searching through the options on Fireworks I was able to find more tools that I could use for my products such as sharpen, blur etc. Another part of technology that I used was websites. I have used a variety of different website for my coursework such as Blogger, Slideshare etc. I didn’t even know about these website before we started the course. I have learned how to upload presentations to my blog and even how to create a blog for my work.

Question 7 – Progress from Prelim For the last question, I will explain about my progress since making my prelim earlier on in the year. This are my front covers. The one on the left is my prelim and the one on the right is my final product. As you can tell, there are many improvements on my final product. Firstly, the background. The only background on my prelim is the two rectangles making half a border. They are one plain colour and the only effect on them is the bevel boss effect. However, on my final product, the background looks a lot better because it is an image of something and not just plain. There are also lots of colours on the background and it really makes it look brighter. On my prelim, the border isn’t faded or changed, where as on my final product, the background has been changed. I changed the brightness of the background using Fireworks because I thought it would look too dark and look silly. Secondly, instead of having a banner of images across the bottom (on my prelim), I thought I would have a banner of names across the top (on my final product). I personally think that both techniques look good but I feel that the banner of names looks more professional, especially with the small star in-between each name. Even though the banner of images has a small background to it, I still think that I have improved in the way I present it. Thirdly, I believe that I have improved quite a lot With images. The main two images on my prelim were taken by me but I think that the images on my final product look a lot better and more realistic. I feel that the image on my final product looks better without and sort of border around it. The only effect that I did put on the main image was a sharpen effect to make it look more bold. There wasn’t much difference in the text on my work. I still kept the text plain, but bold. Unlike my prelim, I decided to put quite a bit of text on my final product and I think it looks more professional than my prelim. I also experimented with the colour of the text so that everything would match (like my prelim).

Progress continued... These are my contents pages. Honestly, I don't think there is much improvement between the two and I think they both look professional, however there are some differences between them. Firstly, I kept the backgrounds the same on both and put the same effects on each one. As for the text, I kept it plain and simple. I thought about using exactly the same font for both titles, but decided to choose a different font for my final product. I have used a different effects on the images on my final product than on my prelim. On my prelim, I had put a small border around each of the images but on my final product I decided to do something completely different. By using the layering effect that I just learned about, I was able to create the image that you see. Not only did have improved technology wise, but I have also been a lot more organised and keeping up to date with deadlines, not just in Media Studies but in other subjects as well

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