here are the pictures of my final front cover, contents page and double page spread, after making final amendmants to them after having them marked by my teacher.
Monday, 11 May 2009
March 2009
To evaluate my magazine using the questions that I mentioned earlier in my blog I will present my work to my class on a powerpoint presentation answering those questions in the powerpoint. Here Is the script for my presentation:
Media Script
I tried to make my media product use and develop the forms and conventions of real media products by following the codes and conventions of a music magazine. The codes and conventions I followed on my front cover include the title being the largest text on the page. The title is also a unique font and is different to all of the text used in my media product; I made it unique by outlining it in black to make it stand out from the rest of the text. The font I used for my title was Rockwell Extra Bold, and I did not use this font anywhere else on my finished media product. Another convention concerning my title which I followed is that it is only 3 letters long, and most music magazine titles are only 1 word and have very few letters. The positioning statement for my magazine, ‘All the latest from the indie music scene’, is also placed underneath my title, and this is common with most music magazines. (click)
I followed the codes and conventions for the main picture on my front cover by placing it in the middle of the page. The picture is also a medium close-up, which for most magazines, is the most common camera angle. The artist in the picture is conveying a certain attitude to fit in with the genre of music, the artist in my picture isn’t smiling and this conveys attitude and also makes the artist seem ‘cool’. The main cover line anchors the meaning of the image and it is in the largest font on the page apart from the title to make it stand out from the rest of the articles. Is it placed at the bottom of the page but centred to make it take up a lot of space and make it stand out. Other cover lines are spread on both sides of the page, and do not really cover the top half of the artists body so the picture of the artist is clearer. There is a strip at the bottom of the page containing a cover line, and this is common in a lot of magazines as it allows room for extra articles. (click)
The codes and conventions which I followed for my contents page include having a list of articles and page numbers linking to where the article is in the magazine. There are 3 columns with the headings ‘on the cover’ ‘features’ and ‘every month’, this is to ensure the reader of the content of the magazine, and make it clear of to what is in the magazine. I used the same colour scheme for my contents page as on the front cover to anchor them both together and to also make it relevant. I also chose the colour scheme to be simpler and use fewer colours, because I didn’t want it to overpower the front cover. The title ‘CONTENTS’ is the largest text on the page and is also a different font to everything else on the page. The title ‘contents’ is also in green, to link with the main title of my magazine which is also in green on the front cover. For the pictures used on my contents page, I followed the codes and conventions by using one large photo to take up most of the page. The picture which I chose to do this with links to the article I wrote in my double page spread, and that is the reason why I chose it. I used another 3 smaller photographs to fill in the space, and these pictures are all anchored to an article by putting the page number on the picture. I also added the issue date and magazine website address at the top of the page, which would also be found in real media products. (click)
The codes and conventions which I followed for my double page spread includes one main picture taking up a whole page. The main picture also corresponds with the article, and the mise-en-scene is carefully considered as the band is performing in a small venue, and this links to the article. I also added an interesting quote from the article and applied it to the picture in a larger font to make it stand out and catch the reader’s eye. The headline for my article is creative and unique, and anchors to the article and the band. The headline is also the largest text and is spread along the top of the page, it is also in a different font to the rest of the text to make it stand out and look appealing to read. I used the same main colours, red and green, as I used in the rest of my media product so it is relevant to the rest of the magazine. I added a stand-first under the headline as most double page spread articles have them. I started my article with a drop capital which tells the reader where to begin reading the article and I also put the first opening paragraph in bold. I chose my font to be 11pt type size as most music magazine articles are in a small font. I added a by-line to the end of the article and also changed it to a different font. Because I have done all these things when producing my media product, I have followed and developed the codes and conventions of a real music magazine. (click)
My media product is aimed to represent indie music fans and I applied this in numerous ways to my magazine. As I was representing this certain social group, I chose the colour scheme for my media product to be green, black, white and red. I chose these colours to represent indie fans as they are common colours in that social group’s culture, and may also be found on similar types of the same genre magazine. The social group is also portrayed in a positive way, as the bands which I have used in my media product are represented as ‘cool’, which conveys the social group to be the same. There is also no negativity portrayed in my media product, as all the articles are about music which has been represented in a positive way. My media product is also more likely to represent indie music fans than a social group who are fans of dance music, as the layout is simpler and seems more ‘mature’, whereas a dance music magazine would have bright colours and a more unusual design. (click)
The kinds of media institutions which would distribute my magazine would be Bauer. This would distribute my magazine as it is one of the main distributors in Britain, and publish most of Britain’s magazines. Bauer also would be more likely to distribute my magazine as it owns Q magazine, therefore it would want to own both competitors to generate more money for the business. Music stores would also sell my magazine to generate more money for their business, HMV is an example of a music store which the target audience for my magazine are likely to shop in. Newsagents and supermarkets would sell my magazine as well, as the audience for my magazine would go to these places regularly, therefore are more likely to buy my magazine there. (click)
The audience for my media product will be both males and females aged from 16-20. I chose this age as my magazine is meant to be portrayed as ‘cool’ and I feel that people this age would appreciate that as it is in their culture. The people who are between these ages also have to be interested in the indie music scene, as that is the main purpose of my media product and what my media product is based on. To attract my target audience I used direct address by using the word ‘you’. I used the word ‘you’ in my contents page as it is in the name of an article ‘Recommended albums for YOU!’ I added emphasis on the ‘you’ by putting it in capitals. By using direct address it grabs the reader’s attention and makes the article seem more personal to them, and would therefore make them want to read it. As my audience is indie music fans, I constructed my magazine in a way that would appeal to them, and I did this by using codes and conventions of the genre and by stereotypes of indie music fans. An example of this is the articles which I used e.g. ‘the story of Amy Winehouse: Booze, boys and breakdowns’. This article conveys a sense of humour which would appeal to my target audience, as they are young and would be more likely to read an article like this. (click)
I have learnt a lot about technologies from the process of constructing my media product. I have learnt more about the two main technologies which I used in the process, Photoshop and Quark Xpress. The first time I used Photoshop for the preliminary task I found it quite difficult as I wasn’t used to the features on the program, but when doing the main task I had a better idea of which features to use and I also felt more confident using it. I feel that during my main task, the quality of my work was much better than during the preliminary task, and I feel that this is because of what I have learnt through the process. I used Quark Xpress to create my contents page and double page spread, and during my preliminary task I found it quite difficult to use, as it was the first time I’ve ever used it before. But while producing my main production, I found it easier and I had learnt how to manipulate texts and images further, and I feel that this has improved the quality of my work. (click)
From doing my preliminary task I have learnt how to make my music magazine look more realistic, as I believe that my production skills have improved. For my preliminary task, the quality of the main picture on my front cover was quite poor compared to the main picture on my final production. I feel this is because my photography skills have improved as I learnt how to take pictures at the correct angles and lighting. I also feel that I produced a more professional front cover for my main media production, as the layout of the text and pictures seemed more professional and look like a real media product. After doing my double page spread, I feel that my own journalism skills have improved as when I came to writing the article I felt confident after researching and interviewing the band my article was based on. Overall I have more understanding of magazines, their production and design, and the technical skills which I have developed.
Media Script
I tried to make my media product use and develop the forms and conventions of real media products by following the codes and conventions of a music magazine. The codes and conventions I followed on my front cover include the title being the largest text on the page. The title is also a unique font and is different to all of the text used in my media product; I made it unique by outlining it in black to make it stand out from the rest of the text. The font I used for my title was Rockwell Extra Bold, and I did not use this font anywhere else on my finished media product. Another convention concerning my title which I followed is that it is only 3 letters long, and most music magazine titles are only 1 word and have very few letters. The positioning statement for my magazine, ‘All the latest from the indie music scene’, is also placed underneath my title, and this is common with most music magazines. (click)
I followed the codes and conventions for the main picture on my front cover by placing it in the middle of the page. The picture is also a medium close-up, which for most magazines, is the most common camera angle. The artist in the picture is conveying a certain attitude to fit in with the genre of music, the artist in my picture isn’t smiling and this conveys attitude and also makes the artist seem ‘cool’. The main cover line anchors the meaning of the image and it is in the largest font on the page apart from the title to make it stand out from the rest of the articles. Is it placed at the bottom of the page but centred to make it take up a lot of space and make it stand out. Other cover lines are spread on both sides of the page, and do not really cover the top half of the artists body so the picture of the artist is clearer. There is a strip at the bottom of the page containing a cover line, and this is common in a lot of magazines as it allows room for extra articles. (click)
The codes and conventions which I followed for my contents page include having a list of articles and page numbers linking to where the article is in the magazine. There are 3 columns with the headings ‘on the cover’ ‘features’ and ‘every month’, this is to ensure the reader of the content of the magazine, and make it clear of to what is in the magazine. I used the same colour scheme for my contents page as on the front cover to anchor them both together and to also make it relevant. I also chose the colour scheme to be simpler and use fewer colours, because I didn’t want it to overpower the front cover. The title ‘CONTENTS’ is the largest text on the page and is also a different font to everything else on the page. The title ‘contents’ is also in green, to link with the main title of my magazine which is also in green on the front cover. For the pictures used on my contents page, I followed the codes and conventions by using one large photo to take up most of the page. The picture which I chose to do this with links to the article I wrote in my double page spread, and that is the reason why I chose it. I used another 3 smaller photographs to fill in the space, and these pictures are all anchored to an article by putting the page number on the picture. I also added the issue date and magazine website address at the top of the page, which would also be found in real media products. (click)
The codes and conventions which I followed for my double page spread includes one main picture taking up a whole page. The main picture also corresponds with the article, and the mise-en-scene is carefully considered as the band is performing in a small venue, and this links to the article. I also added an interesting quote from the article and applied it to the picture in a larger font to make it stand out and catch the reader’s eye. The headline for my article is creative and unique, and anchors to the article and the band. The headline is also the largest text and is spread along the top of the page, it is also in a different font to the rest of the text to make it stand out and look appealing to read. I used the same main colours, red and green, as I used in the rest of my media product so it is relevant to the rest of the magazine. I added a stand-first under the headline as most double page spread articles have them. I started my article with a drop capital which tells the reader where to begin reading the article and I also put the first opening paragraph in bold. I chose my font to be 11pt type size as most music magazine articles are in a small font. I added a by-line to the end of the article and also changed it to a different font. Because I have done all these things when producing my media product, I have followed and developed the codes and conventions of a real music magazine. (click)
My media product is aimed to represent indie music fans and I applied this in numerous ways to my magazine. As I was representing this certain social group, I chose the colour scheme for my media product to be green, black, white and red. I chose these colours to represent indie fans as they are common colours in that social group’s culture, and may also be found on similar types of the same genre magazine. The social group is also portrayed in a positive way, as the bands which I have used in my media product are represented as ‘cool’, which conveys the social group to be the same. There is also no negativity portrayed in my media product, as all the articles are about music which has been represented in a positive way. My media product is also more likely to represent indie music fans than a social group who are fans of dance music, as the layout is simpler and seems more ‘mature’, whereas a dance music magazine would have bright colours and a more unusual design. (click)
The kinds of media institutions which would distribute my magazine would be Bauer. This would distribute my magazine as it is one of the main distributors in Britain, and publish most of Britain’s magazines. Bauer also would be more likely to distribute my magazine as it owns Q magazine, therefore it would want to own both competitors to generate more money for the business. Music stores would also sell my magazine to generate more money for their business, HMV is an example of a music store which the target audience for my magazine are likely to shop in. Newsagents and supermarkets would sell my magazine as well, as the audience for my magazine would go to these places regularly, therefore are more likely to buy my magazine there. (click)
The audience for my media product will be both males and females aged from 16-20. I chose this age as my magazine is meant to be portrayed as ‘cool’ and I feel that people this age would appreciate that as it is in their culture. The people who are between these ages also have to be interested in the indie music scene, as that is the main purpose of my media product and what my media product is based on. To attract my target audience I used direct address by using the word ‘you’. I used the word ‘you’ in my contents page as it is in the name of an article ‘Recommended albums for YOU!’ I added emphasis on the ‘you’ by putting it in capitals. By using direct address it grabs the reader’s attention and makes the article seem more personal to them, and would therefore make them want to read it. As my audience is indie music fans, I constructed my magazine in a way that would appeal to them, and I did this by using codes and conventions of the genre and by stereotypes of indie music fans. An example of this is the articles which I used e.g. ‘the story of Amy Winehouse: Booze, boys and breakdowns’. This article conveys a sense of humour which would appeal to my target audience, as they are young and would be more likely to read an article like this. (click)
I have learnt a lot about technologies from the process of constructing my media product. I have learnt more about the two main technologies which I used in the process, Photoshop and Quark Xpress. The first time I used Photoshop for the preliminary task I found it quite difficult as I wasn’t used to the features on the program, but when doing the main task I had a better idea of which features to use and I also felt more confident using it. I feel that during my main task, the quality of my work was much better than during the preliminary task, and I feel that this is because of what I have learnt through the process. I used Quark Xpress to create my contents page and double page spread, and during my preliminary task I found it quite difficult to use, as it was the first time I’ve ever used it before. But while producing my main production, I found it easier and I had learnt how to manipulate texts and images further, and I feel that this has improved the quality of my work. (click)
From doing my preliminary task I have learnt how to make my music magazine look more realistic, as I believe that my production skills have improved. For my preliminary task, the quality of the main picture on my front cover was quite poor compared to the main picture on my final production. I feel this is because my photography skills have improved as I learnt how to take pictures at the correct angles and lighting. I also feel that I produced a more professional front cover for my main media production, as the layout of the text and pictures seemed more professional and look like a real media product. After doing my double page spread, I feel that my own journalism skills have improved as when I came to writing the article I felt confident after researching and interviewing the band my article was based on. Overall I have more understanding of magazines, their production and design, and the technical skills which I have developed.
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