Erika Mason completed a skills audit for her AS coursework foundation portfolio. She researched existing magazines to gain an understanding of conventions and layout. This included analyzing magazine covers and spreads using PowerPoint. She also looked at websites like NME, Q, and Mojo to inform the genre and portrayal of her own magazine. Erika gathered feedback from her target audience on magazine preferences. She created the magazine using InDesign and Photoshop, applying knowledge of positioning from real magazines. Erika used different fonts to create band names and got audience input on preferred fonts. While research and gathering feedback helped her creativity, she notes weaknesses in thoroughly documenting the audience involvement.

1. Skills audit of AS coursework (Foundation Portfolio)
Name: Erika Mason Name of production: Question Date: 11/06/2015
What did you do?
Specifically, what did you use / look at / read
/ do? Details matter here so be precise:
what equipment? Software? Websites?
Magazines? Articles?
How did this contribute to your
CREATIVITY?
(How did your before and after stages
make the product better?)
Audience
How did you use your target audience in
the different stages of production?
Social media? Focus groups?
What were your strengths and weaknesses
in this area? (what went well and was
useful vs. what was not really done or
used at all)
Research and
planning
• I looked at existing magazines to collect ideas
and an understanding of what the magazine
should roughly look like.
• I used PowerPoint to analyse existing front
covers and double page spreads.
• I also looked at websites such as NME, Q and Mojo.
This helped me gain more information on what type
of genre my magazine would be and how I would
portray it.
• it gave me an understanding of how the
magazine should look like and how it
should be set up.
• It also showed me existing companies
such as Q, which helped me create a
name that fit in with my genre.
• Showing them and asking them what
they thought of existing magazines what
they did and didn't’t like about the
magazines.
• Planed out my magazine and asked my
target audience what they thought and
what could be changed.
• Asked what their preferred genre was to
help me create a magazine to their needs
• not getting my target audience that much
involved. In future asking my target
audience throughout the whole production
and planning will help to improve the look
and design of the magazine.
• Strength was looking at current and existing
magazines to help me when designing my
own magazine.
Conventions
of real media
texts
• the name of the magazine was positioned in
the same way as NME as this made the
magazine look more real.
• How the centre page was planed out, the
positioning of text and the main front cover
picture.
• Give me an understanding of what my
magazine should roughly look like.
• Gave me ideas of where to position my front
cover images and how to arrange my double
page spread. From looking at existing
magazines it showed me that the majority of
the photos where on the contents page.
Therefore I used more photos on this page to
make it look more realistic.
• got my audience to look and examples
and tell me what they did and didn't’t
like.
• however I forgot to record this and
therefore this wasn't on my blog to show.
•
Digital
technology
• using InDesign and Photoshop to create the
magazine. This was used by making logos,
cutting out pictures and actually creating the
magazine. Used DaFont
• Searched for different fonts to create different
band names.
• Using prezi to produce ideas and feedback
• using the software help me produce the
heading, subtitles and use different
fonts. I used different fonts to create
different bands and give them
individuality.
• used the fonts and in PowerPoint chose
a name for the magazine and put it in
different fonts. This was then presented
to my target audience to see what their
views were and what was their most
preferred font.
• weakness: was not showing this as much
on my blog and keeping my blog updated.
Post
Production
• arranging the text and photos on the page to
create the magazine pages.
• Cropping photos changing colours to create
more interesting and depth in the photo.
• Changing fonts to make them unique to the
band but to also help them fit in.
• • •