Media

2. IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR MEDIA
PRODUCT USE, DEVELOP OR CHALLENGE
FORMS AND CONVENTIONS OF REAL
MEDIA PRODUCTS?
For the production of ‘PULVERIZER’, I based my
ideas from the analysis of ‘TERRORIZER’ that I did. I
found that ‘TERRORIZER’ was the closest version to
the type of magazine I wanted to create because it
had a similar age and gender demographic to what
‘TERRORIZERS’ audience was, therefore I followed
the conventions it had as well as challenging them in
order to create a magazine with some individuality
which would stand out among the other Heavy Metal
magazines.

3. MAIN COVER
My magazine uses the convention of having a main image on
the front cover to draw the audiences attention to my
magazine. The magazines feature a main image which is
specific to the magazines main article, this helps the
audience determine if this issue is relevant and appealing to
them as a consumer. For example Fans of Metallica are
more likely to choose the magazine with the main image
being Metallica rather than a magazine which just mentions
Metallica in a smaller less attention grabbing font size this is
because the main image is often related to the main article
therefore there is more information on the main image than
any other article.
I also used the convention of a barcode, this is on every
magazine because it is required to let the audience purchase
the magazine. However the way the barcode is positioned is
very important. It is always quite small as you don’t want it to
detract from the front cover as the cover is meant to draw
your audiences attention to your magazine and chose it over
the other magazines similar to it. Also the Barcode is always
positioned to the edge of the page, I chose to put my barcode
at the bottom, in the right hand corner because then it was
out the way so it wouldn’t detract from my cover lines or
masthead.

4. I also used a selling strip at the bottom of my magazine because I
thought it was an effective way to convey to my audience a number of
articles that are included in my magazine without making my magazine
look crowded, because crowded magazines often look informal therefore
drawing in a younger demographic however my target audience is
mature young adults to 35 years old so I need to have a professional
looking magazine.
Also on the front cover of my magazine I stuck with a strict colour
scheme of 4 main colours, these were; yellow, white, black and red. I
only used 4 colours so my magazine was simple but eye-catching as the
red and yellow stand out against the black and white main image, lots of
magazines only use 4 colours because otherwise they look too busy and
childish, this may work for teen or children magazines but as I knew my
target demographic was 18-30 year olds. I knew I had to make my
magazine look professional and smart so it would appeal to older
people. I used black, white and red because those were the main
colours that I picked up from my magazine analysis that other heavy
metal magazines.
Another convention includes having the Masthead at the top of the
Magazine. This is because the top of a page left to right is how people
read therefore, if the masthead is at the top of the magazine then it is
more likely to be read and noticed drawing in the audience. Furthermore
I also noticed when researching magazines that the main characters in
the main image where placed in front of the masthead to make the
image stand out on the shelf amongst other magazines. I followed these
conventions so my magazine would look Professional like other best
selling magazines, such as KERRANG and Metal Hammer.

5. For my contents page I also stuck with conventions
because this way I knew that my page would look how it
should and deliver the right kind of information a contents
page should give. One convention that I used was columns
this is a way of organising my contents page because it
makes my page look professional and allows articles to be
divided. To fit in with my column convention I also chose
photos which would fit into the columns I created.
Another convention I followed was having sub categories
divide up my articles. I chose to follow this convention
because it was widely used in the music contents pages I
studied this is because music magazines cover a variety of
topics therefore by having sub categories it makes the
articles clear and allows my audience to navigate easily to
the section they want to read.
Additionally, I followed the convention of including photos,
many of the pages I studied had only a few photos, I
decided to use three images; one as a large main image
and two others to draw attention to particular articles
creating enigma codes by not giving away what the article is
about. I chose to stay with convention because I thought the
simplicity of my design would denote maturity and
professionalism drawing in my target audience of mature
young adults to 35 year olds.

6. Although I did then go back to convention using page numbers on my
images to relate the image to an article helping my audience navigate to
the article but also by matching the page numbers of the image to the
articles on the contents page; this is again to help my audience navigate
quickly and efficiently to my articles allowing them to read certain articles
in depth this is due to the fact that in my audience research I found that
my audience preferred to read certain articles in depth rather than read
the whole magazine cover to cover.
One convention used in many contents pages is to have a clear, solid
colour as the background often white or black allowing the reader to easily
rea the articles, however I deviated from this and chose to use an old
paper effect on a grey background. I chose to do this because I believed it
made my page stand out and look interesting and eye catching to the
reader. Also the use of the fawn coloured background contrasting the grey
columns made them stand out adding to the interesting effect I had with
the design of my contents page.
Lastly, I followed another convention which is crucial to having a good,
organised magazine. This is having the page numbers of my articles set
out chronologically allowing my audience to quickly and efficiently navigate
through my magazine. I found that all successful music magazines,
including KERRANG, Metal Hammer and Terrorizer all used this
convention of having the listed page numbers in the contents page set out
chronologically therefore it thought it would be beneficial to my magazine if
I also followed this convention.

7. When making my double page spread I also chose to follow the convention of having a large main image and this large main image had direct
address using eye contact to connect with the reader. The main image I used was a low angles hot therefore the main characters in the image
looked down on the reader, connoting the power and strength that the Heavy Metal Genre represents. My main image was then bordered to make
it stand out further.
One convention commonly used in Double Pages spreads are having a stand first. This is an introductory paragraph about the article. It is often
short and snappy, capturing the readers attention making them read the full article. I followed this convention because it is a great way to introduce
the article to the reader, making them want to read on. My stand first was only two sentences long so it didn’t take up a lot of room but served it’s
purpose of introducing the article.
Another convention I followed when creating my double page spread was keeping a consistent and simple colour scheme, this made my page look
enticing to the audience because it looked professional. The colour scheme I chose was White, green, fawn and burgundy with some tones of
deep crimson red.

8. Another convention used widely by Music magazines are columns of text instead blocks of text, this is because broken up
text looks more appealing and easier to read where as heavy text articles, readers often assume they will be dull however
with columns breaking up the text making it seem like there is less text, it increases the chance of the reader reading the
article. There wasn’t a single magazine Double page spread I analysed that didn’t use columns to present their text therefore
I knew it was an important factor in creating a good double page spread.
Another convention used is to have a large headline captivating the audiences attention therefore the reader will read the
article. From the Music Magazines I researched, I found that the headline used the bands logo to make the article more
recognisable that the article is about the band, furthermore the headline is bold and clear to again gratify the reader.
From my magazine research another convention I found among the more successful magazines were drop Capitals,
however I decided to negate this convention due to it not fitting with my theme of danger, strength and power; the values
reflected from the heavy metal genre. Instead I used a clear font to present my text boldly engaging the reader in my text.

10. My magazine represents the classes by including a variety of adverts, which are of
different prices to make the products in my magazine purchasable by a large
majority of my audience because my magazine is aimed at those which have the
income of C1, B and A. I knew my audience would have a disposable income and
would spend a large amount of their money on music because during my research, I
interviewed my audience and I found many of my audience spent £20-£40 on music
alone but then spent further money going to at least one gig a month and then
constantly investigating in the latest equipment.
Also I have included a reviews section in my magazine about different musical
products, in the issue I created, a wireless speaker and guitar was reviewed, this
allows my audience to purchase them knowing the product is reliable. Also the
adverts I used within my magazine consist of speakers, guitars and albums to make
sure there is something purchasable by every member of my audience. This helps
them feel included in my magazine.
My main audience is 18 – 25 year olds, these people are most likely to be students
or starting work. I have represented age in my magazine by including gigs which
are in big cities to accommodate those at universities but also free gigs from
underground bands so students can still enjoy music even though they may not
have a lot of money. This can be seen in my contents page where I have the regular
article of calendar of events where gigs will be advertised.
Another way I have represented age is through the language I used in my articles. I
have deviated from the use of slang and chose to use more formal language but
keeping a fresh and friendly tone.

11. For gender, I have negated the representation of woman used in all the heavy metal magazines I
analysed, women were represented as sexual objects. To deviate from this representation I have
included bands which have woman in, showing they can be powerful and strong too. Cerebral bore is
an example of this because it has a female guitarist this will encourage woman to chose
“PULVERIZER” instead of the other heavy metal magazines because we have not sexualised women
unlike the other heavy metal Magazines.
I have represented Males in my magazine is through photography presenting the male members of the
Doom Metal Band ‘foreboder’ as strong and dominant. This is highlighted through the low angle,
medium shot of my characters so they look powerful, I have done this to reinforce the stereotype of
heavy metal bands being presented as being strong and dominant. The music genre is known for being
rebellious and alternative. I have represented this through the characters’ long hair and clothing, as
well as the language and aggressive typefaces.
I have represented ethnicity in my magazine through the bands I have chosen to do articles on. Heavy
metal as a genre is predominately has a white ethnicity. My target audience is also white, therefore I
have used white bands like foreboder to make my audience relate to the bands.

12. WHAT KIND OF MEDIA INSTITUTION MIGHT DISTRIBUTE YOUR
MEDIA PRODUCT AND WHY?
A media distributer is responsible for producing and marketing
Magazines, TV and film. In this instance, I am trying to decide which
Media distributer, I would want to market and produce my magazine
‘PULVERIZER’. There are many different media Distributers including;
IPC Media, Development Hell ltd, Future, Dark Arts ltd, Bauer Media
and Frontline.

13. Dark Arts limited is a small publisher based in
Essex. It only publishes one magazine called
‘TERRORIZER’. The UK’s best selling Heavy
Metal Magazine.
Bauer Media is a huge corporation. With 107
brands, expanding over magazine, radio and
TV. This shows Bauer media has a lot of
experience and success in the Media Industry.
Frontline, is the UK’s leading magazine sales,
marketing and distributer. It represents 42% of the
magazine industry. It sold 309m copies of 800
different magazines, through 55,000 retail outlets in
2016. It also has shareholders including bauer media,
immediate media company
and hay market.

14. Development Hell ltd is an Independent Media publisher
based in London. It currently owns Mixmag; a leading
International dance and club music Magazine. It also owns
Mixmag Events and Don’tstayin.com, the worlds biggest
clubbing social Network. MixMag - The only magazine
Development Hell owns.
Future is a publisher specialising in music (Team Rock),
Technology (TechRadar), Photography (Digital Photography),
Gaming (Retro Gamer), and Film (Total Film). It is a
passionate and vibrant business inspired to share their
expertise with the audience making the hobby and interests
for the audience a more enjoyable experience and improving
their skill.
Time Inc. UK is Britain’s leading publisher of print and digital
magazine content. It consists of 60 iconic brands such as
Country Life, NME and Horse and Hound. Time Inc. UK
specialises in creating magazines for multiple platforms
including Tablets and mobile as well as print and online.

15. I would choose an Independent Publisher like Dark Arts Ltd to publish my magazine ‘PULVERIZER’, rather
than a huge global publisher like Bauer media because with them being independent and not having a lot
of projects, my magazine would be their main focus however Bauer media has over 107 brands,
expanding over magazine, radio and TV therefore my magazine would not be their main focus.
Furthermore my magazine is more suited to an audience who deviate from mainstream things therefore, a
mainstream and popular business may not be able to represent my magazine as good as an independent
company which will understand and value my audience as individuals.
On the other hand it would be cheaper to go with a bigger publisher due to Vertical Integration as then we
wouldn’t have to pay a variety of companies for marketing and distribution, this would save the magazine a lot
of money and a company like Bauer media would be able to provide this. Despite this I would still choose to
go with an independent publisher like Dark Arts Limited because Dark arts ltd has Terrorizer which is a non-
mainstream heavy metal magazine like the one I wish to create therefore they will have contacts and already
know the audience I will be dealing with making my magazine more likely to be successful, where as Bauer
Media despite it owning KERRANG. It is a mainstream heavy Metal magazine therefore they won’t know my
audience and how to attract my target audience.

16. Finally, thinking about ‘PULVERIZER’ as a whole product and not just as a magazine, I
could see it expanding to having it’s own festival like Radio 1’s Big Weekend. This is
where fans of the magazine would come together to appreciate the magazine’s
favourite bands on a world renowned stage. I could see this becoming a big event
because there are only three large Heavy Metal Festivals in the UK; Bloodstock,
Mammothfest and Download Festival and even these festivals are very mainstream
therefore they do not include the sub genre of Doom, Slam and Thrash Metal bands
that my audience like. This event could become an annual weekend festival but have
continuous competitions running through the magazine giving away opportunities such
as having the chance to play at the festival on one of the stages, to be in with the
chance of meeting some of the performing bands or just winning free tickets.
Furthermore ‘PULVERIZER’ could also become a Merchandise brand getting the latest
stock of official band merchandise and through Partnerships with bands getting
exclusive merchandise that can only be purchased by ‘PULVERIZER’ subscriber’s this
will generate more income for the bands and ‘PULVERIZER’ while simultaneously the
audience are also getting exclusive merchandise from their favourite bands.

20. • My target audience is mainly white males because heavy metal is dominated by males and
white ethnicity. However there is a small proportion of black ethnicity and females in metal. My
readers will be aged between 18 – 35 because these people will have the most money and
time to read my magazine and go to gigs etc. My audience will also be interested in the making
of music, with many of them playing an instrument.
• From my audience research, I found the heavy metal magazines did not target people aged
18-35 because some magazines focused on younger metal fans up to the age of 20, focussing
on mainstream bands. Whereas other metal magazines focussed more on classic heavy metal
like Metallica and Iron Maiden therefore targeting an older audience. This means there is a gap
in the market for my magazine to approach heavy metal fans aged 18-35.

22. One of the ways in which I attracted my audience
was through the use of ‘puffs’, on my front cover
which links to the interests of my audience. The ‘puff’
on my front cover showed the exclusive offer of
winning tickets to Bloodstock. Bloodstock is a festival
loved by fans of the heavy metal genre, therefore
would interest fans, enticing them to buy my
magazine.
In addition I attracted my audience through the use of
my masthead. I chose ‘PULVERIZER’ because it is a
strong, dangerous word which follows the
conventions of the heavy metal genre being ferocious
and dangerous therefore the word ‘PULVERIZER’
would have attracted my audience.
I addressed my audience through the use of characters
on my Cover because the two characters look Heavy
Metal through the battle Jacket which the character on
the right is wearing and then the long hair and the
leather jacket the character on the left is wearing. I
chose to use these characters because my audience
would relate to them or aspire to be like them therefore
they would buy my magazine to read more about the
characters on the cover but also to investigate the
‘latest Doom Metal Duo’.
I attracted my audience through the use of my cover lines.
I chose cover lines which used buzz words such as
‘exclusive’ and ‘best band ever’. These will interest and
entice my audience to buy my Magazine because my
audience like the bands that I have got an exclusive
interview from.
Through the use of my colour scheme I attracted my
audience because many heavy metal band logos consist
of the colours black, white or red. For example Cannibal
Corpse is red and carcass is white. I chose to use a colour
scheme my audience will already identify with and like, as
it will grab their attention making them buy ‘Pulverizer’. I
continued the use of burgundy to my contents page, so my
whole magazine had the tone of heavy metal making the
audience feel like ‘Pulverizer’ was the heart of heavy metal
and that it was understood and portrayed properly through
Pulverizer.
Another way I attracted my audience was through the use
of a selling strip at the bottom of my magazine. This gave
my audience more information about what was included in
my magazine. I did this so a wider audience would also
enjoy my magazine because if a wider variety of bands are
advertised on the cover then it will attract a wider audience
because there are more bands for my audience to like.

23. I attracted my audience through interviewing
bands they are interested in; big, new and old,
so all my audiences preferences are covered.
I attracted my audience through including a
reviews section because this allows my audience
to buy the best product suited to them. Also a
reviews section was requested during my
magazine research, therefore by including a
section dedicated to reviewing products, I know
I am meeting their needs.
The simple layout will attract my readers
because they are aged between 18-35 they want
a professional and sophisticated looking
magazine and through not over crowding the
page and organising my articles into columns I
am making sure my magazine will aesthetically
please my audience.
A section dedicated to How-to’s will attract my
audience because it allows them to develop as
fans and musicians.Also having How-to’s was
directly asked for in my magazine research
therefore including regular How-to’s will attract
my audience because my magazine is including
articles which are useful to them.
Including a festival section will attract my
audience because going to festivals and meeting
other metal fans is really important to metal fans,
so by including articles dedicated to different
festivals it gives my audience insight into new
festivals or new ways of getting the best out of old
festivals.
Going to gigs is another really important thing for
metal fans because live music is a crucial part to the
genre.Therefore I have attracted my audience
through including a calendar of events in every issue
which allows my audience to see upcoming gigs in
their local area.

24. I attracted my audience in this
double page spread through the
type of shot.The low angle shot is
a common convention used in
most heavy metal magazines to
assert the bands dominance and
power.Therefore, by using
conventional photos it shows my
magazine understands the heavy
metal genre.
The blood splattered effect on the
images connotes the violence
within the heavy metal genre, the
theme of violence and power will
attract my readers.
Furthermore, my audience would be
attracted to my magazine because of it’s
articles. Especially this article, which is
introducing a new band because many
heavy metal fans like to discover new
bands.
Also, the green font for questions will
attract my audience because green is a
key colour used in Slam bands, an
important sub-genre of heavy metal
genre.

26. When doing my coursework I used a variety of different programmes to display and produce my work with for
example PowerPoint an Photoshop. There were some products I had used before like PowerPoint however there
were many that I had not used before like Indesign, Photoshop, Adobe Acrobat, Blogger and SlideShare. I also
used Survey monkey to make surveys for my audience research.

27. To create the masthead for magazine I learnt how to use the gradient
tool. I did this by right clicking on the paint bucket and then selecting the
gradient tool. Then I drew a line across were I want the gradient, the
longer the line the softer the gradient. When making the front cover it
was very difficult because there were so many different elements to it
like, the mast head, the main photo, the back ground, the numerous
cover lines and barcode etc. Therefore to keep track of the different
elements and I had to use layers. To create a new layer you have to click
at the bottom of the tool bar on the right hand side of the page.
I also learnt how to rename the layers so I could locate the layer for each
element quickly. To rename a layer, right click on the layer you want to
rename and then move your mouse down to the selection bar shown
until you see ‘rename’, click on that and type your new name for the
layer. In addition I also learnt how to merge the layers so if I want to
move to elements together they would move simultaneously. To merge
layers I learnt to, click on the two layers you want to merge while holding
shift and then right click on the layer and on the selection bar.
PHOTOSHOP

28. SURVEY MONKEY
Through the research part of my coursework, I had to use Survey Monkey because this website allowed me to create free online surveys
which I could then put on social media for my audience to fill in. I had never used Survey monkey before however after watching a
YouTube demo, I soon grasped how to create a good survey in order to collect the information I needed to about my audience. I made a
multi choice questionnaire because that would collect quantitative data which is the easiest to analyse. I created questions which asked
what age and gender my audience are, then more specific questions about magazines asking how often they bought magazines and what
they like their magazines to include.

29. INDESIGN
I used InDesign to create my double page spread
because that was better at dealing with text than
Photoshop. InDesign was easy to use because it ha a
similar layout to Photoshop. But it was a very good tool
to use when making my double page spread because it
allowed my to play my text around an image and
arrange my text into columns. By putting my text into
columns, it made my magazine look professional and
sophisticated which was important because my target
audience is mature adults.

30. ADOBE ACROBAT
Unfortunately, after uploading some PowerPoints I realised I had done them wrong therefore instead of re-
writing everything again when only minor things needed to be tweaked, I learnt how to used Adobe acrobat to
convert the PDF’s of the PowerPoints into PowerPoints. This was important because it helped me complete
my work quicker.

31. BLOGGER
I used blogger throughout my coursework as a way of presenting my work. Blogger was great because I
can customise the blog style and colour scheme to suit my magazine genre. Therefore I chose a dark
colour scheme to reflect the genre of the magazine I had chose to create - a heavy metal magazine. Also
blogger was very easy to use because it had a simple and easy to navigate layout therefore my blog was
well organised.

32. Another piece of technology I learnt to use was YouTube, despite using it every day to listen to music and
watch TV. I had no idea how to upload a video to YouTube, which was necessary because I needed to upload
my audience interviews to YouTube. All I had to do was create a YouTube account and then in my account,
there was a button which said upload, I clicked on that and chose the video of my interviews from my
computer file and within a few minutes it was uploaded. Uploading a video to YouTube meant a wide variety
of people could view the interview I had conducted and also answer the questions I had asked on the video
in the comment section gaining me even more feedback. Also I can download videos from YouTube and put
them on my blog.

34. Upon reflection of the task, I can see my final product
contrasts massively with my original concepts and
ideas. I feel that as I gained knowledge with the
software I was using, I realized that I had the ability to
create work with a professional standard of quality. This
is something that before seemed way out of reach, so
my preliminary task felt amateurish and generally
unfinished whereas what I created finally felt much
more complete and refined.

35. One of the areas in which I improved from my
preliminary task was my use of characters and
their composition. For my preliminary task I
did not plan the shot with composition in mind,
this lack of consideration resulted in a poor
looking arrangement with an image that
overpowered the key elements of the cover,
such as the cover lines. This is shown through
the lack of contrast between the image and
the cover lines. However with my final product
my image felt considered and appropriate. I
took a long shot to ensure all of the key
elements of my image were easily visible,
such as the dress code, which plays a huge
role in my magazine's cultural aesthetic as I
am appealing to a niche musical subculture.
These considerations help make sure that my
content is appealing to my target audience.
The image had a deliberate vertical emphasis
to allow for it to fit comfortably within the
shape of the cover, which was not apparent in
my preliminary task.
Another area of improvement can be seen in
my masthead design. Though I quite liked the
typeface used in my preliminary task, as it felt
appropriate for my academic magazine, I felt
it was lacking in contrast and seemed to blend
in with the background rather than stand out. I
took this into account when designing the
masthead for my final product. I chose a
broad typeface to help emphasize the
masthead in the composition. In addition to
this I used a subtle red gradient and set the
background to greyscale, to create a contrast
between grey tones and colour. I also added a
very slight drop shadow to help the masthead
contrast further against the background.
Improvement was also shown through my cover lines. In my preliminary task the typeface and formatting
of the cover lines were weak and blended into the background when they should have been more
dominant in my composition. For my final product I took this into consideration and used a bold all-caps
typeface with a light outline and drop shadow. This helps the cover lines contrast from the background.
This is a significant improvement from my preliminary task where the contrast is severely lacking,
resulting in an amateurish looking cover.

36. Another area of which I improved upon was my research skills and
magazine analysis. When I made my preliminary magazine, I did
no research about other academic magazines which were similar
to the one I wanted to create, this meant I didn’t know about the
conventions I should follow to produce a successful and
professional magazine as a result of this I made an amateurish
magazine which wouldn’t stand out to a teen audience.
Furthermore I didn’t conduct any audience research. This research
would have told me what students would like articles on but as a
consequence of not doing any audience research, my articles
were generic and not very thoughtful. Learning from this, for my
final magazine, I conducted magazine analysis on 3 other front
covers, content pages and double page spreads. As a result of this
I found some major conventions of heavy Metal magazines which
have helped me to make a professional front cover. I also made
surveys to find out more about my audience, I found out the
gender ratio of my audience, the age range and what my audience
like to find in a magazine, this information helped me to develop
articles which would appeal to me audience which would lead to
them buying my magazine.