Evaluation questions

Evaluation Questions1) In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge, forms and conventions of real media products?

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This is my music magazine (Right), this magazine uses typical forms and conventions of real media products.For example, my magazine (right) has the same placing of the masthead as NME's magazine (left).The placing is on the left third at the top, this is to identify the magazine to the audience, and is clearly presented to do so, as is NME's.

Another convention is that the articles, are also on the left third, as is NME's articles. These articles consist of interviews with other artists/celebrities, as it states on NME's magazine, as well as mine. These are placed on the left, not for identifying, but out of choice, but are similar to where NME have also placed theirs. The articles are directly underneath the masthead, on both magazines.

The main conventions that I have used in my product, compared to a real life media product, are the masthead, articles, and main image.The only conventions that are not similar are the 'FREE' sign, on my magazine, and the header, on NME's.

2) How does your Media product represent particular social groups?

My media product represents particular social groups, through genre. Genre will determine who's going to purchase and read this magazine. The genre of this music magazine, is a very mainstream style of music, mainstream music could range between hip hop, rap, drum and bass, and dubstep, so my magazine would cover 4 genre's in one, therefore, it may have a very large audience. The audience that like this genre of music, would commonly be a younger audience, so these people could be aged ranged between 16-21.

It is a unisex magazine, so males and females could purchase this magazine.The magazine features a lot of young/middle aged artists, and their music would appeal to this audience. As it is young/middle aged artist, audience's could identify with these artists and their music which would be a key factor to the audience when buying and reading this magazine. Another factor that may encourage audiences to read this magazine, is their interests. The audience of this genre of music would matter a lot when they are reading this magazine, if they are do not share the same interests as the artists featured in this magazine, then they would not read it.

3) What kind of media Institution might distribute your product and why?

Media institutions are organisations founded for a specific purpose, in this case, a social purpose for a magazine. Some common media institutions are Warner Bros, 20th Century Fox, BBC etc. These are examples of institutions, however these do not fit into the magazine institutions category. Some the most well know media institutions for magazine are IPC Media, BBC, and Bauer.

I think my magazine would fit into the IPC Media and Bauer magazine institutions, as these magazine are well known world wide, and also feature some of the artists that I have in my magazine, typically mainstream artists.

This is IPC Media’s logo. This institutions such as Look and NME signed to the label.

This is Baur’s institutions logo, and has such magazines as FHM, Closer and Empire signed to them.

4) What would be in the audience of your media product?

In the audience of my media product, would typically be a more younger audience. 16-20 is an appropriate age for the audience of this magazine. This audience would have to have the same interests in common, to create a good market. For example, the audience would have to like the genre’s of the music featured in the magazine, so Hip Hop, Rap, Dubstep and Drum and Bass. They would also have to have the same interests as each other, share things in common.

The social groups would be a youth social class, the music is mainstream, so people that may enjoy rap or hip hop could purchase this magazine. I think the majority of people that would purchase this magazine would be males, as the genre of music mostly appeals to them, even though it is a unisex magazine. More males would enjoy this type of music, as females would be more into Girl bands maybe, and the genre may not appeal to them.

I think that this type of audience would purchase this magazine, as the genre of music would appeal to them, as well as the artists and the magazine itself. This would create a good audience relationship between them.

5) How did you attract/address your audience?

The way I attracted/Addressed my audience, was by the articles about the artists.These are commonly well known artists in youth music, as the audience seeing their favourite artist/band, would attract them to this particular magazine, and want to purchase it.

Another way that I addressed my customers was by the free poster inside, the audience could acquire a poster of their favourite artist

Another way, was by the main image of an upcoming artist. The audience may have heard of this artist, and liked her/him, and want to find out more. If the artist is well known, I made it clear to the audience that the magazine features this artist, the main image is large, to grab the readers attention, and maybe make them buy this magazine, to find out more.

What I like about my music magazine, is just the general house style, I think the colour collaborate well, and not too bright and bold. I also feel the same about the way the font collaborates with these colours as well.

6) What have you learned about new technologies from the process of constructing your product?

Some of the new technologies that I have learnt from this project in particular, is colour splashing.

Another skill that I have learnt to do from this project, is to fade out a background, which I did for my main front cover of the magazine.

As you can see on the front cover image, there is a light blue background, with a white fade out, in the middle of it.This is how I learnt to create the background fade out.

This is why my background looked like, before I added to main image, and masthead etc. to it.

This is how my front cover looks, using the background fade out, just a darker colour blue.

7) Look back at your preliminary product (college magazine) task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

My college magazine is on the left, and my Music magazine, on the right.

The only thing that has not changed is the placing of the masthead on both magazines. However, I think the quality of masthead has changed a lot in my music magazine, I think it more creative, and stands out more, also it is more of an identifier

The articlesOn my music Magazine have changed, I like the layout of them, compared to my college magazine, I think they are more bunched together, whereas on my college magazine, they are dotted around. The quality of my

main image has changed as well, this one is more large, and stands out, and does not have writing across it anywhere

There are more conventions on this magazine, for example, the ‘Free’ sticker.

The image on this magazine is on the centre, which compared to my music magazine, wasn’t a great idea, as the audience may not be able to identify this magazine

On this magazine, there is not much writing around the main images face, compared to the image on the other magazine

• I think I have progressed a lot from my college magazine, to my music magazine.

• I think I have used more techniques and conventions of my music magazine, and improved the general layout of the magazine, there is a bigger variation of colour and image, and fonts collaborate well together