Looking back at the preliminary tasks, the student learned several important lessons that helped in developing their music magazine: 1) Conducting audience surveys and research on existing magazines helped the student understand what their target readers would want in a magazine, such as font styles, pictures, and freebies. 2) Analyzing the history of existing music magazines showed the student how different magazines appeal to different genres and helped them choose an appropriate model. 3) Creating prototypes like mood boards and magazine layouts allowed the student to practice incorporating elements like typography, colors, and composition that would appeal to readers. 4) Observing magazines in stores revealed important branding and design lessons, such as using eye-catching

1. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in
the progression to the full product?

2. Looking back at when I did the school magazines it helped me to get an
understanding of the general codes and conventions of magazines. I
learnt what the public generally would like for things like a masthead
and the pictures to go in the magazine. This helped me make my music
magazine because I knew about what the target audience would like to
see in a magazine. I learnt about what things shouldn't and should go
on the front cover of a magazine.Making my school magazine helped me
learn about different technologies and would go on to help me make my
music magazine.

3. Audience survey
Doing my survey helped me to get a better understanding and
knowledge of what people would like to see in my magazine,
such as colours, pictures, font etc. I learnt that younger
people would like to see different fonts in magazine rather
than the usual fonts other magazines use. I also found out
that people would like freebies on the magazine such as,
CD's and posters.
The history of music magazines
By making an institutions grid, which looked at different
music magazine companies and their backgrounds, helped me
to understand how each magazine attracts their audience
and what each genre needs to do to attract their market.
This helped me to choose an institution for my magazine.

4. Typography
Looking at different fonts helped me to decide which font looked
the most appealing as the masthead for my magazine.
Flat plan
By looking at different flat plans I learnt what things go in
magazines, but actually what featured in magazines that attract
the audience.
Three oligopolies
I learnt how each magazine institution attracts different
audience's and how to establish a powerful brand. That was how I
then knew how to make my magazine successful and a corporate
brand that would sell my magazine.

5. Mood board
Whilst making my mood board I found that it helped me decide what
I would want to feature in my music magazine like choosing the,
typography,photography,the colour scheme, the composition and the
graphics, keeping in mind the audience and their needs at all the
times in order to create a successful magazine that would appeal
to my target audience.

6. Magazines in shops
The branding is important on music magazines, that is how they are
sold successfully. So when I went into the shop I took pictures to
show how they are represented, for example what stands out the
most on the magazine. It shown me ways to make my magazine and
gave me some pointers that I should include on my front cover in
order to make it look eye catching and appealing to the audience.
I knew that I would need to make sure that my magazine will be
suitable to the current market who buys music magazines. For
example, the classical magazines don't get sold as much, this is
why they put the magazines at the back, so my magazine would have
had to be pop, indie, rock etc. in order for my magazine to be
successful. I learnt that I would need a clear bold masthead so
customers can easily state what my magazine and what it's called.
Also, the cover image will need to have eye contact as that is one
of the main selling points, it also makes the magazine look more
appealing. Finally if the magazine advertises a free gift then the
magazines tend to use a hotspots in the shop to sell the magazine,
therefore I knew that I had to advertise the freebie in a bold
colour font so it stands out to the audience.

7. Music magazine audience
research
By doing the research on what age group usually reads the most
magazines helped me to choose my target audience for my
magazine. This helped me whilst making my magazine as then I
knew what sort of things to include such as, main story on my
double page spread.
Magazine annotation
From the magazine annotation of NME, it helped me decide what I need
to include in my magazine and where to put it. This helped give me
ideas to put in my magazine such as a colour scheme all throughout
my magazine. Whilst looking at NME magazine I seen that they usually
stuck to one colour, this made it easier for the target audience to
read and I thought I should include this in my magazine. This made
my magazine look more creative and stand out more rather than having
a magazine full of different colours and pictures.