EvaluationChloe Bonner

In what ways does your Media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?The magazine, across the 4 pages, ‘repeats’ (Steve Neale) codes and conventions from ‘Q magazine’. I used the February 2014 issue of ‘Q magazine’ as my magazine of research. The front cover of the February issue had a black and white main image, therefore I ‘repeated’ this convention and made my image black and white on the front cover of my magazine. Additionally, I ‘repeated’ the way that the headlines were set out on the front cover. One of the headlines had a box with text in it, therefore I ‘repeated’ that and made it the headline for my ‘top indie tunes’ story. Then, my main headline which links with the main image was also spread out big across the page, like the ‘The Smiths’ main headline that is on my magazine of inspiration. Here is my magazine ‘ZONE’ and my magazine of inspiration ‘Q’ this constructs how I have used conventions from a real media product and put it into my own media product. However, my magazine may ‘challenge’ some conventions that would be in a ‘pop’ music magazine as they would use a lot more bright and random colours, whereas I have used more subtle colours, yet they are still bright so that they can catch the audiences eye.

In my contents page which I have created for my magazine, I have also ‘repeated’ conventions from my magazine of inspiration. For example, I added a screenshot of my front cover and placed it where ‘Q magazine’ had placed their front cover. Also , I ‘repeated’ the banner across the top of the page with the issue number so that my audience were aware that this was the first issue of the magazine. The way that I have set out all of the page numbers, headlines and cover lines has also been ‘repeated’ from my magazine of inspiration. However, it ‘challenges’ my magazine of inspiration as ‘Q magazine’ doesn’t include an editors letter, whereas I have added an editors letter with

In what ways does your Media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?an editors picture, signature and contact details at the bottom of the page. On this page I have included a picture of the magazine of inspiration that I used and also a picture of my contents page that I have created for ‘ZONE’. They are very similar as I have used many of the conventions that ‘Q magazine’ have used on their front cover so that my magazine looks professional.

In what ways does your Media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?For my double page spread, I also used conventions that was on ‘The 1975’ double page spread in my magazine of inspiration. At the top of the page, I added all of Katie Melua’s previous albums and wrote what year they came out. On ‘the 1975’ double page spread, they have a box at the top like the one I’ve created, which has each band member describing each other. This can show the audience how many albums she’s previously had and whether they know any of the albums. Additionally, another convention that I added to my double page spread that was similar to the real media product was my main image. I positioned it in the same place as the one in ‘Q magazine’ and added text overlapping the image. The main image allows the audience to see who the article is about. Another convention that I ‘repeated’ from my magazine of inspiration was Katie Melua’s new album, like Q have added ‘The 1975’ new album. I also positioned my quote from the text in the same place as where Q have placed their quote. My drop capital is in the same format as my magazine of inspiration. However, I have challenged my real media product by making the questions from my interview red and making my answers black. This relates to the main colour of the magazine which creates brand identity for the audience and brand awareness.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?The denotation of the representation is the ‘E’ section of the socio-economic needs table; unemployed, students, pensioners and casual workers. This is because my magazine is target towards young people of the ages 15-20, therefore they would stereotypically be students, unemployed or casual workers. This means that my magazine appeals to my audience profile as the target audience that I created was between the ages of 15-20. The magazine, across the 4 pages helps to represent this social group as the price is only £1.20, therefore people of these age ranges will be able to afford the magazine. Additionally, it helps to represent the ‘E’ section as the colours are very bright and will therefore catch the audiences eye and make them want to buy the magazine if it stands out to them. My audience can ‘personally identify’ (Katz) themselves with the character as they are ‘social climbers’ (Maslow).

What kind of media institution (Publisher) might distribute your media product and why?From the research that was completed pre-production, I would envisage that ‘Bauer Media Group’ may publish ‘ZONE’ because they publish many Indie style magazines like the one I have created, such as; Q, kerrang and mojo. This means that they are looking to publish magazines that are revolved around this genre of music. I have done a lot of research on this publisher throughout my planning and research as my magazine of inspiration was ‘Q magazine’ and ‘Bauer Media Group’ are the publishers for this magazine. The similarities of my magazine to ‘Q magazine’ also ‘signifies’ (De Saussure) that the genre of my magazine will appeal to this publisher as this is the kind of magazine that they’re looking to publish, considering they already have a magazine that is like ‘ZONE’.

Who would be the audience for your media product and why?Hartley’s Seven SubjectivitiesAccording to Hartley’s Seven Subjectivities the age of my audience are 15-20. This is shown through the pricing of the magazine as it is very cheap so people of these ages will be able to afford the magazine. The target gender for this magazine is both males and females as there are things that will relate to both genders. The stereotypical ethnicity is White British male and females for my magazine.Katz’ Uses & Gratifications theoryAccording to Katz’ Uses & Gratifications theory, the audience can ‘personally identify’ themselves with the articles and the people within the magazine as this will be the kind of music that they’re also interested in.Maslow’s Hierarchy of NeedsAccording to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, my audience are ‘social climbers’. This means that they will want to read my magazine as they aspire to be like the characters within the magazine. Therefore, they will read what the characters within the text are getting up to so that they can try to be like them.

How did you attract/address your audience?The inclusion of codes and conventions such as the bright masthead helped to appeal to the target audience because the bright colours would attract the young audience that I am aiming my magazine at. As there is a bright red colour that has been used, this means that it will stand out and attract the audience as it will catch their eye. Here is my masthead:Another code and convention that I have included in my magazine to attract my target audience is the images that I have included within all of the pages. These images relate to my stories, therefore my stories attract my target audience as they are about topics that people of those ages would be interested in.

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?The denotation of the software used to construct the media product entitled ‘ZONE’ was Adobe Photoshop CS4. One of the tools I used through this piece of software was the hue/saturation tool. I inserted the main image onto my front cover and then desaturated it to make it look black and white. This gives the magazine more of a retro/indie feel, therefore it will help to attract my intended audience as they will like the image that is on my front cover. Another tool which I used through this piece of software was the shape tool. I created many boxes throughout all of my pages in my magazine to outline the main areas. The box tool also makes things stand out on the page, so therefore will attract the audience. Additionally, through putting certain pieces of texts in boxes it looks more professional than just leaving the text.

This picture shows my front cover. It includes the desaturated image that I created using the hue/saturation tool. It also includes some of the boxes that I created using the shape tool:

Photography Planning – Front CoverThe photo that I have used for my front cover is a photo of my friend Abbie. I asked her at college if I would be able to take pictures of her for my media coursework and she agreed. Therefore, I asked her to wear indie clothing, such as the hat that she is wearing in the front cover main image. I decided to use my friend Abbie as she has the indie look, therefore she would fit in with the genre of my magazine, which would also allow the audience to ‘personally identify’ (Katz) themselves with the character within the picture.

Photography Planning - ContentsThe shot type that I used for my editors photo was a medium close up. This is because I had seen this shot type being used in many different magazines editors letters, so I ‘repeated’ (Steve Neale) what they had done for their editors letter to make my magazine look more professional and like a very popular magazine that is already famous. For my editors letter, the main image that I have used was of my friend Abbie again. When we were taking pictures for my magazine we took many, therefore the one that I have used for my contents page was one of the pictures that we took then. This means that I have kept the person in my images consistent as she relates to my main story within the magazine. Also, she has the indie look and therefore fits in with the magazines genre. However, she took off the furry coat which she is wearing in the front cover picture and is wearing a vest top instead, although she still has the hat on to keep the indie effect.

Photography Planning - InterviewI took the pictures that are presented in the double page spread because they allow the audience to see who the interview is about as the pictures are just of her. This is ‘repeated’ (Steve Neale) from other magazines as they use images of just that person to make it the main focus. There are two main images within this page to show the main person in this article. I integrated text and imagery together through overlapping the text on the image. My main headline on my double page spread is overlapping the main image so that it stands out more and people can relate the picture to the fact that it is ‘Katie Melua’.

Analysing my Front CoverMain Image

Main Headline

Headlines

Masthead

Social Media links

Analysing my Contents PageFront Cover

Main StoriesCoverlinesMain Image

Editors Letter

Analysing my Double Page SpreadMain ImageDrop Capital

Questions Answers

Headline

Audience FeedbackPerson 1:What is a strength of my front cover? Large, bold font catches the readers attentionWhat could be done to improve my front cover?Add more colour Do you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my contents page?The contents are listed clearlyWhat could be done to improve my contents page?More colourDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my double page spread?Used many pictures and a very detailed interviewWhat can be done to improve my double page spread?NothingDo you think my double page spread will appeal to my audience of 15-20 year olds?Yes What magazine does my magazine look like or ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale) conventions from?Q magazine

Person 2:What is a strength of my front cover? Clear and easy to readWhat could be done to improve my front cover?Add a better quality pictureDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my contents page?It’s very informative for the reader What could be done to improve my contents page?More colourDo you think my contents page will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my double page spread?Detailed interviewWhat can be done to improve my double page spread?Make it clearer to read Do you think my double page spread will appeal to my audience of 15-20 year olds?Yes What magazine does my magazine look like or ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale) conventions from?Q magazine

Person 3:What is a strength of my front cover? Simple and colourfulWhat could be done to improve my front cover?Make the photo less blurryDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my contents page?In a clear orderWhat could be done to improve my contents page?Add a better title than just ‘Issue One’Do you think my contents page will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my double page spread?Looks professionalWhat can be done to improve my double page spread?NothingDo you think my double page spread will appeal to my audience of 15-20 year olds?Yes What magazine does my magazine look like or ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale) conventions from?Q magazine

Audience FeedbackPerson 4:What is a strength of my front cover? BrightWhat could be done to improve my front cover?Add more thumbnail images related to the other storiesDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my contents page?Looks professionalWhat could be done to improve my contents page?More detailDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my double page spread?A lot of detailed informationWhat can be done to improve my double page spread?More colourDo you think my double page spread will appeal to my audience of 15-20 year olds?Yes What magazine does my magazine look like or ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale) conventions from?Q magazine

Person 5:What is a strength of my front cover? The coloursWhat could be done to improve my front cover?Make the picture less blurryDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my contents page?The layoutWhat could be done to improve my contents page?More colourDo you think my contents page will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my double page spread?A lot of picturesWhat can be done to improve my double page spread?Make it more excitingDo you think my double page spread will appeal to my audience of 15-20 year olds?Yes What magazine does my magazine look like or ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale) conventions from?Q magazine

Person 6:What is a strength of my front cover? The colours What could be done to improve my front cover?Make the photo less blurryDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my contents page?In a clear orderWhat could be done to improve my contents page?Add a better title than just ‘Issue One’Do you think my contents page will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my double page spread?Well presented and looks professionalWhat can be done to improve my double page spread?NothingDo you think my double page spread will appeal to my audience of 15-20 year olds?Yes What magazine does my magazine look like or ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale) conventions from?Q magazine

Person 7:What is a strength of my front cover? Main imageWhat could be done to improve my front cover?Free spaceDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my contents page?The layoutWhat could be done to improve my contents page?More storiesDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my double page spread?A lot of detailed information in the storyWhat can be done to improve my double page spread?More imagesDo you think my double page spread will appeal to my audience of 15-20 year olds?Yes What magazine does my magazine look like or ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale) conventions from?Q magazine

Audience FeedbackPerson 8:What is a strength of my front cover? The colours are good and eye catchingWhat could be done to improve my front cover?Make the social network names clearerDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my contents page?The arrangement of the photosWhat could be done to improve my contents page?Less writingDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my double page spread?A lot of detailed informationWhat can be done to improve my double page spread?Add more space so it doesn’t look cramped together Do you think my double page spread will appeal to my audience of 15-20 year olds?Yes What magazine does my magazine look like or ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale) conventions from?Q magazine

Person 9:What is a strength of my front cover? Looks very professional and has used a good colour schemeWhat could be done to improve my front cover?Tilt the Z straight in the masthead Do you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my contents page?The amount of informationWhat could be done to improve my contents page?N/ADo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my double page spread?Looks professional and like a real magazineWhat can be done to improve my double page spread?N/ADo you think my double page spread will appeal to my audience of 15-20 year olds?Yes What magazine does my magazine look like or ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale) conventions from?Kerrang

Audience FeedbackPerson 10:What is a strength of my front cover? Good bold masthead, simple colour scheme and a great layoutWhat could be done to improve my front cover?A better main imageDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my contents page?Good layout, great original images and all of the cover lines are easy to understandWhat could be done to improve my contents page?NothingDo you think my front cover will appeal to my target audience of 15-20 year olds?YesWhat is a strength of my double page spread?Nice layout and questions are differentiated from answersWhat can be done to improve my double page spread?NothingDo you think my double page spread will appeal to my audience of 15-20 year olds?Yes What magazine does my magazine look like or ‘repeat’ (Steve Neale) conventions from?Kerrang

For my audience feedback I created a questionnaire and handed them out to 10 different people to ask them what they thought about my magazine. There were 4 different sections, one for my front cover, one for my contents page, one for my double page spread and one for my magazine overall. Everyone that I asked said that all of the pages that I have created are suitable and will attract my aimed target audience. What I have found out through this questionnaire is that there are very little improvements that I have to make to my magazine and that I have ‘repeated’ (Steve Neale) many conventions from Q magazine and my magazine looks a lot like it. However, some people have said that my magazine also looks like Kerrang. It is good that they have said that my magazine looks like Q magazine as that was my magazine of inspiration. Most people thought that my double page spread was very detailed and gave a good interview.

Looking back at your Preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?I feel that, having completed the preliminary task and learning about the demands of this production process, I have learnt that I need to be organised so that I can get everything in on time and at a high quality standard so that everything looks good and professional, like a magazine should. I have learnt how to use tools that I never would have known how to use before through photoshop to help to make my magazine look a lot better and more professional and to add the codes and conventions that were needed and that I wanted to make my magazine fit in and appeal to my target audience.