Evaluation of unit

1. Evaluation
1.) The conventions utilised within my media product where conventions that where
integral to the layout and structure of any magazine and leaving them out would
leave little left to physically identify the product as a magazine these where of
course the masthead, the left 3rd and a barcode. The masthead remains in the
traditional location (at the very top of the page) in order to provide my audience
with a comforting sense of familiarity when using the product the same can also
be said for the left 3rd because it’s extremely difficult to challenge a convention
that clearly states the content in question should remain on the left and of
course my barcode also remains in its conventional location at the bottom right
hand corner of the page in order to add a sense of authenticity and legitimacy to
the product additional conventions where incorporated into the Contents Page
such as hyperbolic language with phrases such as ‘’UNMISSIBLE TIPS!’’ and
‘’Exclusive interview’’ featuring heavily within the final product I felt that the
usage of such journalistic vocabulary was imperative in securing a professional
look and realism within my final product. One convention that I decided to
challenge within my final piece is the ’’ Overlapping title main imag e’’ that will
be all too familiar to any magazine reader instead I incorporated a collage layout
featuring relevant sixth form related images and I chose this layout deliberately
in order to create a feeling of reminisant enjoyment within the reader becaus e
when one thinks of a collage they will naturally picture multiple nostalgic
reminisant images that capture poignant significant moments in their lives filling
them with joy so when a potential reader picks up the product they will see the
familiar layout and then begin to instinctively reminisce enjoyable moments
within their own educational careers placing them in a good mood thus
rendering them more likely to spend money and buy the magazine.
2.) Firstly my product represents the student communities best interests by
portraying them in a most favourable light this is achieved with the application of
photography the one photo of people that features within the product depicts
three students ,two girls , one boy, which communicates subtly that both sexes
are equally as capable of attaining the grades required to reach KS5 it also
prevents the magazine from being perceived as being overly masculine or
feminine this precaution was taken deliberately because a successful magazine
should be PC and uncontroversial additionally it capture the students hard at
work with only their bright futures and success on their mind which again
portrays the student community as a dedicated group of people contrary to
popular opinion furthermore those with an eye for extracurricular activities have

2. been catered for with the information regarding societies and other additional
avenues of outlet whether it be social or academic.
3.) Naturally it would be safe to assume that a publishing house would be the
obvious media institution that would distribute my product however taking into
consideration the fact that the product is in fact a six form magazine designed
exclusively for those whom attend Nicholas Chamberlaine Sixth Form a
publishing house is appearing less likely because a sixth form magazine wouldn’t
make for a viable product in such a competitive industry where the content that
is selling is high society, fashion ,music, the arts, Hollywood celebrities etc. not
local topics for a small local magazine.
4.) The audience for my media product would be 16-19 year olds that attend
Nicholas Chamberlaine Sixth Form because the specialized content and
information within the magazine would be completely irrelevant to anyone who
doesn’t attend NC Sixth Form.
5.) I attracted the attention of my audience by featuring topics within my magazine
that are universal to my target audience for example driving test tips and
university open day dates and relationship advise by streamlining my content so
that the finished product only contains universal information regarding events
that are happening or will happen at some point in the lives of every single one
of my readers therefore the likelihood of my magazine being purchased will
increase tenfold because it only contains relevant information that my audience
want and upon giving an audience what they want reaping the rewards is only
inevitable.
6.) I have learnt that although the use of unfamiliar software can initially be an
extremely daunting task with perseverance and resilience the program will
eventually become significantly easier to operate a prime example of this would
of course be Adobe Photoshop although I am familiar with its baby brother
program Adobe Fireworks the leap in terms of pick up ability is immense with
Photoshop’s interface proving significantly more challenging to navigate than any
other program of its kind one does find oneself spending your first few hours
using it wrestling with its countless features, settings , menus and submenus as
well as software difficulties the blog uploading of coursework system appeared
worryingly alien to an old school student like myself who’s preferred method of
notation of work is good old fashioned pen and paper however it has definitely
become a routine process overtime and finally the biggest challenge for me
personally during the completing of this task was the transition from the familiar
world of PC to the uncharted territory that is the Apple Mac without wishing to
spark the infamous PC vs Mac debate I personally found using the Mac initially
highly infuriating even something as simple as browsing the web became an

3. arduous task as I can recall spending a grade total of 40 minutes attempting to
open a new tab however like anything that is new it became profoundly easier to
operate with time however the absence of the ‘’copy’’ and ‘’paste’’ feature is
highly irritating as well as time consuming to go through the rigmoural of
downloading every single e image you wish to use in a piece of work regardless
of these minor setbacks I have thoroughly enjoyed being exposed to new
technology because it has broadened my skillset as well as given me a much
needed insight into what’s to come in the main task.