1. AS Media Studies
Constructing and Presenting your Evaluation
(20 marks)
Question1:
In what waysdoes your media productuse, developor challengeformsand conventionsofreal
mediaproducts?
For thisquestion use elementsof yourproduct research,whereyou haveanalysed existing products.
Usethe table belowto help draftideas
Music Magazine
Done
The title of the Magazine:
Fonts/Colour scheme/lexis
(wording)
The title (masthead) of the magazine isaveryclear,broad title which
isobviouslyrelatedtomusic,makingitveryobviousthatthe genre of
the magazine ismusicbefore the readerevenhastolookat the
articles. Ialsowentfor a bold,eye catchingmasthead asmagazines
such as NME have a veryclearmasthead. The lexis of the frontcover
involvesalotof propernouns,whichare otherbands/artists,these
artistshave a similargenre of musicto the genre of the musicmagazine
itself (indie).The colourscheme consistsof mainlycoldcolourssuchas
greys,black,whitesandblues.Itriedtokeepthisconsistent
throughoutall 3 piecesof workinghoweverthere isalack of blueson
my double page spread. The fontof the title isverythickandbold,this
isusedto grab the attentionof the readers,howeverthe writing of the
maintext/subtitlesisverythinandsmall,thisisso that the title of the
piece isthe mainattraction, and then the textisa separate attraction
to entertainthe reader. Manymusicmagazinesalsodothisbyusing
small more formal textforthe mainbodyof textsuchas Q,Kerrang
and NME as well asmany more.
design and layout/house
style/Guttenberg principle
My frontcoverhas a radial balance.Thisis because the mainimage
(Abbie /Haylee Emett) isthe mainfocal pointof the magazine andthen
everythingelse aroundthe image are visual weightsdistributedevenly,
to grab the reader’s attention,yetnotoverthrow the readerwithtoo
much informationatone point. Mycontentspage has an asymmetrical
balance.Thisisbecause there differentelements,withanequal visual
weightoneachside,thisisbecause oneach side there isanimage and
some text,eventhoughthere isthe same elements,the sidesaren’t
completelyidentical astheyhave adifferentlayout.Finally,the double
page spreadalsohas an asymmetrical balance aseachside has
differentelementsof equal weightstobalance outthe page.Thisis
because onthe leftside,there isthe maintext/informationandonthe
rightside there isthe mainimage.
2. photography/mise enscene/rule
of thirds/props
The main image of the whole piece isthe image of Abbie (Haylee
Emett) On myfrontcover. Her physicalityonthisimage isquite
serious,yetlaidback,eventhoughthese contradicteachother,Ifeel
like theyworkverywell witheachotherinthissituation.Thisis
because herfacial expressionlooksquite serious,asthe genre isindie,
so itworkswell,yetthe actual bodyis quite laidback,asit showsshe is
comfortable withher‘Job’.Ihave usedamicrophone asa prop,as
‘Haylee’isasoloartistand sings,therefore she’sthe mainvocalist,
therefore wouldneedamicrophone forthisimage towork. I alsoused
an electricguitaras a prop forGeorgiaand Sophie onthe contents
page,thisIs to show that theyare a differentbandtoAbbie ( Haylee) ,
on the image of Georgiaand Her outfitconsistsof blacksandgreys,I
thinkthisworkswell withthe genre asfamousindie artistssuchasthe
Arctic Monkeys,wearverydarkclothessuchas blackleatherjackets
and blackjeans.
Special effects anyimage
manipulationyou have usedon
photography
The original image whichIusedforthe front coverwas originallyan
image of Abbie andSophie,howeverIcroppedSophie outandjustleft
Abbie.Ididthisas justusingan image of Abbie workedbetteronmy
frontcover andfilledmore space withoutleavingtoomuchempty
space whichI wouldn’tbe able touse. I thencut aroundthe image of
Abbie andusedthe paintfill tool toaddcolor to the background. For
the image of Abbie onthe contentspage and double page spread,Ijust
usedthe dodge tool to whitenthe background.Ialsousedthisforthe
image of Georgiaand Sophie onthe contentspage.
Written article:
Format/style/tone/use of
journalistic techniquesie
simile/hyperbole
Layout of columns/use of
kicker/pull quotes etc
I have useda pull quote onmy double page spread;thisistoattract
the reader’sattention.The quote reads‘PossiblyaUK tour…’ Thiswill
attract readers,especiallyfansof ‘Haylee’wholive inthe UK.I also
decidedtoaddthispull quote to myfrontcover,just underneaththe
coverline forthe same reason,but alsobecause the NME magazine
alsousespull quotesfromthe artist/bandfeaturedontheirfront
cover,underneaththe coverlinesandIdecide totryit myself. My
contentspage isalsosimilartoKerrangscontentspage as it sharesa
similarlayoutasI likedthe designbalance theircontentspage hadand
wantedtotry and re-create some of theirideasontomywork.
For all of the above:
Discussthe conventionsyouhave used
Evaluate howsuccessful youhave beenindevelopingconventions
Explainanddescribe influencesonyourtextandhow youhave usedconventions
Use examplesfromreal magazines andimagesof them, aswell asexamplesfrom yourown
magazine
Question2: How does your mediaproduct represent particularsocial groups?
Howare age groups/gender/socialclassesrepresented? Usetheskills and knowledgeyou gained for
preparation of section A of the exam.
3. Question2 Notes
The social groups of my magazine are represented as lower class. This is shown through
their outfits mainly. They are all dressed in casual clothing such as jeans, t-shirts, jackets and
trainers. Although they are casual they are branded clothes, this suggests that they aren’t
under class as they have the money to be paying for branded items such as ADIDAS and
Nike.
The participants who I have taken pictures of are females. Their facial expressions make
them look as if they are moody or annoyed, as well as their posture as it’s very laid back and
it seems as if they don’t care which could be quite stereotypical, however they are like this I
think this sort of appearance goes well with the genre of the magazine.
The age of the participants that volunteered to be photographed for my magazine is also
represented In quite a negative way. Due to them only being 16-17 they look very serious
and this may come across as quite rebellious due to them being teenagers. This is a negative
connotation of the participants as realistically their posture and facial expressions are all
actor orientated.
Question3: Whatkind ofmedia institutionmightdistributeyourmediaproduct and why?
The two majorpublishing housesin the UKare Time Inc. and BauerMedia. Lookat the profileof each
of the magazineson thelinks below. Lookat theexisting magazines,or‘brands’ they distribute. Are
there any similar magazines/brandsto yours?Would yourmagazinefittheir profiles? Which of the
publishing houseswould bestsuityourmagazine?
http://www.timeincuk.com/about/
http://www.timeincuk.com/brands/
http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/
http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/about
http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/brands
Question3 Notes
Time Inc. UK might distribute my magazine as they my magazine is quite similar to NME
which is a music magazine they distribute. This is because I have used ideas similar to theirs
such as the pull quote underneath my cover line which comes from the interview Haylee
‘participated’ in. However my magazine is also similar to Kerrang which is from the Bauer
4. Media Group website. This is because my contents page has a similar layout to Kerrangs
contents page, as I have used ideas from their layout as I really liked the look and how it left
minimum empty space by having lots of pictures and text on the page without it being
squashed and cramped together. I have done this by adding 3 columns of articles and
adding 2 images, one of ‘Haylee Emett’, the main artist of the magazine and one of a sub
band which is also featured a lot throughout the magazine.
Question4: Whowouldbe the audiencefor your mediaproduct?
Relate this to yourexisting marketresearch.Also carry outa focusgroup overthe breakwhereyou
showyourfinished productto at least5 people. The best way to do thisis set up a closed groupon
Facebookand invitefriends to commentupon yourwork. Screen shotthese commentsto present
on yourblog. Ask themquestionsrelated to theproducti.e.
Content/Genre/Photographs/Colours/Fontsand theoverallsuccessof the magazineyou have
produced.
5. For this I have posted pictures of my front cover, contents page and double page spread on a
group on Facebook. This group has everyone from the media class in it, therefore will know
what to judge exactly.
People have said that the color scheme of my work works very well, and the layout works well
and isn’t too overpowering. There has been constructive criticismwhich I will look at to
improve my work, these involve taking more pictures to add to my blog/ work and adding vital
pieces of information to my front cover such as the date/ issue number and price. All subtle
pieces yet, will work well on my front cover in order to make it look more like an actual
magazine cover.
Question5: How did youattract/addressyour audience?
Stateyourtarget audience,based upon yourmarket research.Assesstheresponsesof yourfocus
group fromquestion 4. Considerhow the content; photography,housestyle anddesign andlayout
of your magazine, aswell as useof theGuttenberg principleonyour cover/pagesaddresses the
needs of your target audience.
6. Question5 Notes
The main image on the front cover attracts my target audience as her clothing and posture
relates to an indie artist.
The masthead of my front cover implies that the genre of the music magazine is either indie
rock or rock, or alt. Each of these genres has a similar target audience and, if one likes indie
rock, then they usually like alt too. Therefore this attracts the audience I want as amplified
suggests heavy music.
The house style of my work will definitely work to attract the target audience as the colors
of the work are very dark yet subtle, such as the light grey, working with the black and
white. This attracts the audience as the colors are colors many indie genre based magazines
use.
The language used on the double page spread works well to attract the target audience as
its very informal and some taboo language is used throughout it. This shows the audience
that ‘Haylee’ is quite laidback and doesn’t change her attitude or personality when being
interrogated. This will attract the target audience as they will be interested in reading it.
The Gutenberg principle of my front cover works well, as the primary optical area is where
the price of the magazine will be printed therefore, it will be the first thing the reader see’s
and if it’s a reasonable price the target audience may be more interested in buying the
magazine. The reading gravity goes over the main image, therefore fans of ‘Haylee’ will see
this and will automatically be attracted to the magazine as they would be interested in
reading about her for their own personal entertainment, this will also suggest the genre
straight away as you wouldn’t find her on the front cover of a pop genre based magazine.
The strong fallow area of the magazine falls out of the reading gravity and therefore
receives minimal attention; however this has been emphasized by a competition, attracting
the audience. The weak fallow area also receives minimal attention, however this has also
been emphasized to the reader as there’s information as to where you can find ‘Haylee’s’
music or more information on the artist. Finally the terminals point of the magazine just
shows the barcode which is only used for decoration.
Question6: Whathave you learnt abouttechnologiesfromthe processof constructingthis
product?
Evaluateyourprogresswithall of the technologiesyou haveused,such asPhotoshop, Blogger,Slide
shareand digital cameraswhilst completing yourproject
7. For all of the above assess:
• Successesin your use of them
• Limitationsin your use them
Commentuponhowwe use digital technology,via TECHNOLOGICALCONVERGENCE,toresearch,
record,edit,distribute andpresentourworkfromthe same machine.
Question6 Notes
My work has beendone mainlyfrom the use ofa computer. This isbecause I have used Photoshop
to edit my work as well as work on it and improve it. I have done this by cropping pictures,
changing the colorsand writinginformationon each my front cover, contents page and double
page spread.This has all beendone through the use of one applicationon a computer.
I have also useda computerto distribute my work. This has beendone over a variety ofwebsites
such as Hotmail and Facebook.Each of these websiteshashelpedme improve my work, as
participants of the focusgroup on Facebook commentedon strong points ofmy work and used
constructive criticism on how to improve my work.
To take my picturesI used a camera howeverthiswere all uploadedonto a computer inwhich
they were theneditedand added to my work.
8. Question7: Lookingback at your preliminarytask, (collegemagazine) whatdo you feel you have
learnt in the progressionfromit to the full product?
Evaluatewhatyou learnton yourancillary,and how you haveprogressed in terms of use of:
Digital photography, (composition/ruleof thirds/lighting/uploading and saving work etc.)
knowledgeof design and layout
use of Photoshop and photo manipulation
Question7 Notes
Since the preliminarytask,Ihave learnthow touse more toolson Photoshopsuchasthe
doge tool whichI use to whitenthe backgroundof the image.The paintfill tool,toaddcolor
to the backgroundif I wantedto.And how to place the image better.
I have improvedwithmyphotography,asIhave learnthow to place people whenwanting
to use the image for myfront coverso that there isnoemptyspace.Thishelpsme when
wantingtoadd coverlinesandsub titlestoattract the audience asall the space is being
usedeitherbyan image orby textso the frontcoverisn’t too plainandempty.
I have learnthowto use lightingmore effectivelywhentakingportraitshots.Thisisvery
helpful asitaddsa more natural glow to the colorof people’sskinmakingtheirskintone
standout a lot more,withoutmakingitlookfilteredand photoshopped.Itcouldalsobe
usedto add a natural showto people/props.
Evenwhenitcomesto layingoutmy work,I have improvedasthere’snottoomuch
informationinone pointof the magazine makingitlooktoocrowded. Thisalsoworkswith
the opposite results,withthere notbeingtoomuchemptyspace onthe front coverwithno
writingorimagesfillingit.
9. Presentationofyour Evaluation
http://prezi.com/
Create an account with Prezi andpractise creatingPrezi’s overthe break.
You will transferyourevaluationtoacombinationof Prezi,PowerPoint,audioand video,afteryou
have submittediton April 19th. Your workwill be returnedmarkedon April 22ndh
and youwill then
create Prezi’s,videosectionsof yourevaluationandredraftfinal courseworkpieces,forthe final
submissiondate of WednesdayMay4th.
You will alsouse Soundcloud,to create podcastsfor some of the questions.Eachof youranswers to
the questionsmustbe postedseparatelyonyourblog,inorder 1-7
Create yourSoundcloud account here:
http://soundcloud.com/
See the linksbelowforlevel 4examplesof evaluations,completedusingPrezi software andvideo
http://smithmediaportfolio.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/F%3A%20Evaluation
http://monahughesasmediafoundationporfolio.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/F%3A%20Evaluation
