My Evaluation Slideshow

Music magazine evaluation slideshow

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7. Looking back at the preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression?

I progressed on the research and planning by asking more potential readers, so I had more results to evaluate with. I also then, when creating my magazine, I planned the content according to their answers and produced a magazine that the target audience had specifically asked for not what I felt was best.

I also planned the process and judged my time of constructing the magazine better than the preliminary task. I took the images for the magazine a week in advance which left me plenty of time to edit them and retake if necessary. The images taken for the preliminary task were very rushed and left me little time to edit them.

On the contents page I created an editor’s letter and I thought of many other pages that may appeal to the target audience of the magazine. The contents page of the preliminary task was only a mock up so for the main task I had to fully create the contents page. The layout for the preliminary task still looked like a simple layout compared to the main task, there were more elements included in the main task e.g. an editor’s letter.

For the main task I also progressed on the double page spread. I had to use a journalistic convention of which was the correct register for my magazine. This register was fairly colloquial as my target audience is young male and female ranging from around 16 to the early twenties.

I also progressed on the photography itself as the model on the preliminary task would not smile and you could not see eye contact. Also the image was rather blurry and the misé-en-scene had no connection with the magazine. On the main task my image had eye contact was smiling and the environment was connected to the magazine. The image was taken in front of the Leas Cliff Hall and this is where the artist had recently played. I made sure people could see this connection by leaving the sign in full view.

On the front cover of my preliminary task I have progressed in the page structure. I had lots of empty space around the image that could have been filled by more sell lines. On the main task there is hardly any blank space that could be filled without making the magazine look crowded. Page structure has also been improved in the contents page as looking at the plan for the preliminary contents page there would have been a lot more blank space. 

6. What have you learnt about the technologies from the process of constructing this product?

The technology that I predominantly used was Photoshop; I used this to edit the images that I took. Some of the images that I took were too dark so by researching and asking others how to use Photoshop I managed to lighten the pictures. I also learnt how to cut out the person neatly so that I could place him over the heading using the cut and blur tool. This allowed the person to look more 3D compared to the background; as though they were more in front of the magazine; the main focus. Placing the image over the masthead creates a meaning of the person being the most important element on the front cover.

I also learnt how to use blogger as I had never learnt how to blog before. I learnt how to create new posts and insert pictures into them. Through trial and error I managed to follow some other people who had also took media. Using blogger allowed me to keep myself and others up to date with what I had done and allow feedback such as comments on what worked and did not with the magazine.

Another technology that I learnt how to use was a 12 mega pixel digital camera. I used a less advanced camera but it did not have many of the special effects that I needed; the pictures that I took were too dark and were blurry. I then borrowed a more advanced 12 mega pixel camera which allowed me to take much larger pictures that were of a higher quality. This produced a better image as it was not pixelated and was more in focus, this then allowed me to do a better job of editing in Photoshop as I could blow up the image still with high quality. Using this advanced camera I could take better quality pictures in the dark, this allowed me to take the picture outside of the leas and have the sign shining out from the dark. Consequence to this it allowed me to create a more professional looking magazine.

5. What kind of institution might distribute your product and why?

The medium of this magazine is print production so the media institution that might distribute my magazine is any of the main magazine publishers: Bauer, IPC Media, Future Publishing, Hearst.

Bauer has the market leading music and entertainment titles such as Q, Mojo and Kerrang. There aim is to produce influential media brands and some of the best known magazines in the UK. They want to deliver excellent content to audiences whenever and wherever they want.

IPC Media reaches to two thirds of the female population and 42% of UK men. It focuses on three core audiences: men, mass market women and upmarket women; they want to be a publisher for everyone.

Future publishing’s aim is to be the number one provider of trusted editorial services for enthusiasts in every one of our specialist sectors, and to be the number one partner of the companies who want to do business with these enthusiasts. There main music magazine focuses on the guitar rather than the actual music.

Hearst is one of the world’s largest publishers of monthly magazines. There aim is to lead by example and to be the main publisher that people come to.

My magazine is for the genre unsigned Indie, so it links most with the magazine Kerrang which is published by Bauer they would have first hand experience in making magazines like this successful. This publisher produces over 50 magazines already; about 5 of these are music magazines. I have chosen this publisher because they are well established with that form of media and the magazines that they publish are successful. IPC Media is based mainly on women where as my magazine would be, for the majority, men. Future is for guitar enthusiasts so my magazine would not fit in with their style. Hearst gives off the image of being a more professional style of magazine, more focused on the older audience therefore my magazine would not fit in with their productions and maybe too much of a risk for them to produce.

4. Who would be the audience for your media product?

The target audience for my magazine would be teenagers both male and female, a slight bias more to males, who are interested in both the production and listening to the music. They would also play musical instruments for themselves as they are passionate about this shown by the main artist being an all rounder in terms of music e.g. playing the music instruments himself. This is also shown by the competition on the contents page where the prize is aimed for readers who record their own music. My target audience would also be open minded about being introduced into new genres of music, anything new that is being released. This is because the genre of my magazine is independent so therefore various genres of music would be conveyed in the magazine. They have an open mind about all different genres and are happy to listen to all kinds, not just the one. They would also like going to live shows as they like the atmosphere of the event and they like to hear the music live, not just through recordings. This is shown by the numerous references to tours and concerts. They also have an interest in the typical teenage TV shows such as Misfits and Skins; they also play the typical video games such as COD. This would be assumed by the typical teenage artist on the front cover suggesting that most of the readers would be typical teenagers.

3. How does your media product represent particular social groups?

The magazine represents the artist as both a singer and a musician this is shown in the editor’s letter where it states that he composes, produces and writes all of his own music. This is then referred back to in the double page spread where he says that ‘These videos were just me singing and playing guitar’ showing that he is not just a singer but also plays the guitar. This represents that he likes to make his own music.

The images on the double page spread also represents that he is touring quite a lot, he is represented as a live performer shown by the image of his stage at the venue where he performed on the double page spread. There are also many references to touring involved in the interview. This also shows his success as he says that he will be a support act for the Klaxons. Having so many references to touring indicates that the reader may have a love of concerts; this is shown more by the contents page where many of the pages are dedicated to that. E.g. Silent Sundays we follow them on their first gig around the UK.

Through their love of concerts the readers are also shown to be consumers of live music. The double page spread refers to many music organizations such as The Limehouse Studios which suggests that they have an interest in, not just the music itself, but also the production of the music. Many internet pages are also mentioned throughout the double page spread such as Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Youtube which suggests that they like to research the music; be the first to know about a new track through the use of social networks where their peers or fan pages will talk about this. The editor’s letter then supports this as it explains fully that this is what the magazine does itself; it finds all the unsigned popular bands by researching who is being talked about on social networking sites.

The double page spread represents him as popular with the target audience which is both male and females aged 16 to early twenties. In this case the interview shows that he gets on really well and admires his fans ‘my name was put forward by many of my fans’ it shows that they want him to achieve success and that he is ‘chuffed’ about this.   

2. How did you attract/ address your audience?

To attract my audience of teenagers and young adults I have made blue the most dominant colour throughout the whole text; to not exclude the female readers I have also included the colour red. My market research that I had done showed that blue was the most sought after colour.

The front cover makes use of emboldened and large font to attract the audience’s attention I have made the word ‘exclusive’ stand out which would draw the reader in; they want to see what this new information is. I have made it stand out by although it is a blue colour against a blue background the main words in the sell line is also blue. This would make the reader associate ‘exclusive’ with being one of the main features. My target audience would want to be some of the first people to hear about the latest news, so this would appeal to them.

Also at the top of the magazine the free poster that is advertised may also attract the audience as they would feel that they are getting something extra with the money that they are spending. It would help entice the readers to the magazine in contrast to another one that did not have a poster. Also the target audience of young adults that I am aiming for are most likely to put posters up on their wall so it would be relevant.

The image that I have used fits in with the colour scheme, by the blue eyes and the outfit, which makes the magazine more appealing to look at; it makes it loom more sophisticated. The artist is smiling and is having eye contact with the audience which in turn would make it help to establish a relationship. It creates interaction with the fans and they would feel a connection with the artist himself. In contrast to this I have made the artist put his hood up to stress the fact that he is undercover, that he has not been discovered by a record label.

I have also addressed my target audience by stating different technologies that are used e.g. internet, youtube. My target audience would be some of the sole users of this so they would feel that this magazine is aimed at them. 

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or change forms and conventions?

Masthead

A very typical masthead on my magazine with a block colour and simple font. So the title of the magazine is easy to read and stands out against the rest of the page. My masthead is similar to that of Kerrang because both magazines have around the same target audience. Both mastheads are at the top of the page and are slightly obscured by the artist’s head. Making the artist seem as if they are more dominant in the magazine.

Artist

Because my magazine is based on independent artists I have conformed to the conventions. This is because the artist that I have chosen is quite young, this would be normal for independent artists as they would want to start off in the music business quite young. I have also been unconventional in using just one artist on the front cover; this is because there would most likely be a band consisting of around 4 members on the front cover of an Indie magazine. However, I think that it works well because I have made sure that the artist is an all rounder, they compose, produce and play all their own music. This would make the audience feel more curious about the artist.

Sell lines

I have developed where the main sell line is placed, it is normally in the top right of the magazine just beneath the mast head. However on my magazine I have placed it at the bottom; it is in the boldest and biggest font though. This is so I could have the sell line bigger as if I had conformed to the convention it would have obstructed the main image. Another convention that I have challenged is the use of a text box displaying many artists. Normally the front cover is full of sell lines however the main point on my front cover is the text box. It allows the reader to see clearly what bands/ artists are in the magazine so would potentially buy it more if it displayed their favourite band.

                                        Contents

On the contents page I have again used most of the conventions however I have challenged the number of images that are normally used. I have only used two which lets the reader see what are the main articles in the magazine; the top pages. One of them is of the artist on the front cover which emphasises how ‘exclusive’ the article is. I have also conformed by having an editor’s letter, this is so the reader can gain a view of what the magazine is about; it makes the magazine seem friendlier as well as exchanges some extra information on the  production of the magazine. In my case it shows how they search for new independent artists and therefore how they came across the artist.

Double Page Spread

I have also challenged the placing of where the double page spread is; instead of being near the middle of the magazine I have placed it closer to the front. This is so that the article can be at the top of the important articles in the magazine. When reader’s read through the contents page it will be the first one that they would see. On the double page spread I have conformed by having one main image and then some smaller images. This is so that people who scan through the magazine will see the images it also breaks up the blocks of texts. Readers who like to read will be positive about the double page where as people who don’t will not be excluded as the images break the text up. I have broke the text up further by using the convention of a question and answer information which creates segments; people who scan the page will be able to read the questions that they want the answer to easily. 

My final drafts

SUmmary of the results

Everyone that I asked knew what the magazine was about and even the sub genre of the magazine. This shows that I have conformed to the conventional view of a music magazine and that of the sub-genre. The people felt that the sell lines helped to show people what style of music the magazine is, the band names that I had included also helped with this.
The target audience for my magazine was clear as everyone knew who the intended audience was. However, one person felt that it was aimed more at males then females. To combat this I could use less blue and instead try to make the magazine a bit more feminine by using the more feminine colours in the house style. Including images of female artists could help this.
The main aspect that people liked was the colour scheme, it was felt that this gave the magazine consistency. The colour scheme was carried on throughout all of the pages that I produced so helped gain the 100% of seeing a theme.
The main problem with the magazine was the images. To help with this I could take more pictures and also in different locations. This would help to give more images and more variation that the audience were looking for. Another problem was the fonts, this is easy to change and so I would just try out a different style until they worked.
Everyone felt that the language I had used was engaging to the audience.

Results of the audience feedback questionnaire

Results of audience feedback

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Result Questionnaire- Audience Feedback

1. Can you identify the genre of this magazine?

           Yes             No

2. If so how?

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

3. Can you identify the subgenre of the music magazine?

Yes              No

4. Who is it for, who is the target audience?

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

5. What do you most like about this magazine?

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

6. What do you not like about this magazine?

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7. Would you buy this magazine?

Yes              No

8. Why?

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

9. Can you see a clear style of the magazine?

Yes             No

10. Is the editorial engaging to the audience, and why do you think this?

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Progress towards my final magazine- All the stages of production

Progress towards my final magazine

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The Images That I Took

As well as taking some pictures I photo shopped them so that they looked better on the magazine e.g. I brightened some and took the background off others.

The programs and everything else I used to create the magazine

The main program that I used to create the magazine was publisher. This was the program that I used to save my magazine progress along the way. Using this program I also saved my magazine into the file type .pdf ready for viewing. I created most of the magazine on this program such as the word art, inserting the pictures and moving them around to the right place.
To take the pictures I used a Nikon Coolpix 5200 as these produced the best images. For the first pictures I had to use a phone camera as my camera kept running out of battery. Using the Nikon allowed me to blow up the images as big as I needed without them becoming pixelated. Therefore I could crop some of the image and not worry about it becoming blurred like the phone images did. The camera also worked better in the dark so I was able to get a better effect with the Leas Cliff Hall sign.
For the images I used Adobe Photoshop so that I could change the image slightly e.g. make it brighter. This let me change the backgrounds and helped me to create the best image that I could. I also used paint to help me with some of the fonts that did not look as I wanted them to. I used it to add borders or fill in some of the fonts with a different colour.
I used www.dafont.com to get different fonts for the magazine. This allowed me to search for more proffesional fonts that would make my magazine more appealing to the eye.

The interview from the double page spread

Here is the interview from the double page spread

Quickfire consists of only one member; Sam who independently produces and writes all of his music. Originally from Folkestone he now lives in the outskirts of London where he has access to many recording studios and can kick start some serious gigging.

Sam is now not just taking the internet by storm but he is coming across his tracks being sold in independent music retailers. It won’t be long before Sam becomes a super signed act after just two years self promoting.

But now we catch up with him early in November a week after he has just performed at the Leas Cliff Hall.

Which musicians have most influenced you?

I get most of my inspiration from Bloc Party; I really like their style of music. It would be great to receive an award such as the ‘Indie album of the year’ just like they did. I’d like to be as successful as they are. Obviously the Arctic Monkeys are a great influence as they paved the way for bands to come to public attention via the internet; they were one of the first acts. They successfully turned a hobby into a career.

Is your aspiration to become signed one day?

Of course, it is the next step in my career. It’s almost impossible to exist in the music industry without being signed. There isn’t much further I can advance without being signed to a label. I like to think it isn’t too far away.

Do you never worry about not being noticed due to being unsigned?

When you’re unsigned there is always a very high chance that you won’t get noticed. I need all the promotion I can get so when interviews like this come along I’m eager to do them. It shows me that I am being noticed, which is what so many millions of internet bands want.

How did your fan base develop?

It was well over a year before fans started to catch onto my music. First off I created a MySpace page and then a YouTube page where I uploaded my songs. I was getting around 20,000 views on average per song so it wasn’t too bad as a starting point. After a while I decided that it was time to try and get myself more heard; this is why I moved to London. I played for A&R people at The Limehouse Studios who then allowed me to record some tracks there. During the first few months of gigging CDs were given out to people at the end just like the Artic Monkeys did. Word was soon spread and before I knew it the hits on my video were rocketing reaching around the hundred thousands. These videos were just me singing and playing guitar in my flat; filmed by some of my friends. So for uploads like that to be watched that many times was great. Now I get letters from people asking me to play at their venues.

You performed in your home town late September for the first time since moving to London, how was this?

It was great to be back and the reception was amazing. The crowd was singing along with me which always helps to put me more at ease. The applause at the end was incredible; the evening seemed to be a hit. I’ll admit that I was more anxious then the other gigs though. There were a few familiar faces in the crowds which some artists find a comfort but I felt as if I had to get it right to justify my move to London. But no I came away feeling my happiest that I had been that month.

What’s the difference between gigging when you left and now?

Gigging at the beginning was just really small events; like school halls. The schools would arrange a day, a bit like ‘Battle of the Bands’ were students would perform. Most of the space would be taken up by the family and friends so not many people outside of that would see you performing. Now gigs are in bigger and more well known venues just like the Leas Cliff Hall where people come to see just you, not a range of bands. The audience know your songs and they sing along with it; this never happened in the beginning.

Where are you next performing?

Well I’m back up in London to perform. I’m going to be a support act for the Klaxons who specifically asked for an unsigned act. My name was put forward by many of my fans so I was chuffed about that.

Your latest song is called ‘Dressed for sorrow,’ what inspired you to write this track?

This song ‘Dressed for Sorrow’ is all about the funeral of one of my close friends who passed away. We were close so the song is all about celebrating his life, letting him know that we won’t forget him. He was a massive support in my life.

Dressed for Sorrow is available to download from iTunes for just 79p

Who I chose for the artist

This is the person who I chose as the artist for my magazine. I chose him because he is a lot like the audience of my magazine, he would be able to represent them. He has the same style as many of my audience as well as the same music taste e.g. The Kooks, Arctic Monkeys, The Klaxons.
He was also available for whenever I needed to take the pictures which came in handy when I needed to take more pictures because the first ones were not good enough.
He was also young enough to look like he was an upcoming artist and therefore would make the magazine more believable.

Mood board for the audience of my magazine

This is the mood board for the audience of my magazine. In the board there are a lot of elements related to music e.g. the iPod, instruments, bands and stages. Suggesting that their lives are mostly revolved around the music.
There are many references to festivals such as the stages, the festival style clothes (straw hats) and the alcohol. This suggests that they go to a lot of concerts and a lot of parties.
It also contains many social networking sites such as youtube, twitter and facebook that show they are in touch with what is happening. The magazine gets new artists by looking at who is being talked about on various social networking sites so this mood board suggests that the audience would be some of these people.
It also shows many of their hobbies which would be skateboarding, taking pictures etc which suggest that they are skill full and quite creative in their hobbies.
The style of clothing is hoodies, shirts, skinny jeans and plimsolls. This is why I have chosen the model for my magazine to be wearing a checkered hoody, skinny jeans and some pumps. It fits in with the mood board. There are also many references to him playing his own music and using the social networking sites.

An action plan for my Magazine

What I plan to call the magazine: UnSigned

I have chosen this name because indie rock is also independent rock. Artisits have a do-it yourself approach to music, most acts are unsigned. It is a short title of only 2 syllables so will be easy to remember.

My reader profile:

My target audience would be interested in music. They may play instruments for themselves or just have a love for listening to music. They would be quite open minded about being introduced into new music that is being released. They would like going to concerts and going to see live shows. They would also have an interest in watching TV programs e.g. misfits, skins. Also an interest in many different video games.

Ideas for the front cover image (remember that this is what makes or breaks the magazine sales):  Aiming for a plain background with the singer up front and the other members of group lingering in the background, but they are still seen. The front person will be standing to the side but keeping eye contact wit the readers, the other members will be facing towards the camera. The picture will be taken from higher up as if it is looking down on them, but not too much. This is because the band will be unsigned and an upcoming band in the music world.

What do I need to do to achieve this? (How to find your model, location etc)

1. Ask friends and family to be models             
2. Try out different locations to see what is best

3.    Look around the area for a location and make a list of the best ones        

4.    Try different positions in the photo, who is standing where

5. Take varying shots to see what are best, overhead, below eye line
6. Take plenty of images and see which ones are the best to use

Ideas for the main cover line and other sell lines (and tag line): The tag line for the magazine is ‘Underground brought above ground!’ The main cover line will be ‘(Band name) Uncovered- Find out how they aim to become a success!’ Other sell lines will be ‘Exclusive: (Band)’s new release!!! Read the review inside’ ‘Win!! A chance to win a Jaxville Skulls Electric Guitar Pack’

Ideas for the contents page:

I will have an editor’s letter to the left hand side then the contents page will be split into two columns. One column would be the contents, text with the page number and the other column will contain images associated with the contents page. At the bottom left hand side of the page there will be a bigger image containing the band on the double page and the page number on the image. The heading will be at the top of the page as well.

What do I need to do to achieve this?

1. Write an editor’s letter to put onto the contents page
2. Take some pictures to put onto the contents page
3. Create a list of pages that will be put onto the contents page
4. Create a heading for the contents page to put on it
5. Try out different layouts that may suit the magazine better, make some drafts
6. Ask for people’s opinions on whether the contents page looks appealing and is clear to read

Ideas for the double page spread – type of feature.

The style of journalism that I will take on the double page spread will be novelistic. It will not just be a question and answer the quotes will be incorporated into the article. This is so facts can also be given about the band as well as actual quotes from them. I am also thinking of using big images which will take up one page. So half of the double page spread will be images.

What do I need to do to achieve this?

1. I need to think of a list of questions that may be asked to a band
2. I then need to think of answers that may have been said
3. I then need to think about albums, singles and managers they have signed to, or whether it will be all independent
4. I then need to write up a narrative piece on the interview (what they may have been doing during the interview)
5. I then need to merge the interview answers into the article
6. I then need to see if it needs any opinions incorporated within the article