Final Media Product

 

 

 

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

In order to make my magazine look professional, it was vital that I used the appropriate editing software. However, first I needed to use technology to ensure I had the components for my magazine.

Technology I used throughout my production:

 

 

 

 

For the research part of my coursework, I used the internet in the form of Google in order to find out information and search different music magazines for me to analyse. This was a convenient and swift way to do so. Otherwise, I would have had to buy magazines and take pictures of them, which would have been very expensive and time-consuming. Using the internet for my general research meant that I could get very accurate information according to my vision.

 

To take my images, I used an iPhone 5C, which is my own phone. I did not use a camera because if I'm honest, nowadays, the quality of the camera on a phone equates to the quality of an actual camera. Cameras on an iPhone enable you to do multiple things: zoom in and out, use flash, and choose different profiles such as portrait or landscape. This meant that I could get the best photos possible, which is great if you want your magazine to look professional. I learnt a lot of things by using the camera on my phone like using it to its best ability.

 

To edit my photos, I used the application from the Apple Store called Photo Lab. This app is very good as it allows you to do almost everything; edit, crop, add filters etc. For the image on the front cover, I used the filter from this app which makes your images look like they are 'The Scream' by Edvard Munch. I felt like these images definitely triggered the artistic qualities within my music magazine. For my other images I used a variety of different tools to let me change the overall look of the image: I adjusted the contrast in my images to make them more eye-catching, I brightened up my images to make them less dull - I did this on quite a few of my images as the lighting wasn't that great due to the location being outside and the lack of sunlight. For the images on my double page spread, I used the black and white filter on Photo Lab - this was to add contrast to the colourful illustration of the sunset. Furthermore, I used tools, like crop, that actually change the shape of an image, and I used a tool that allowed me to remove backgrounds. This tool, however, I used in a combination of Microsoft Word and Pixlr Editor. I removed the background in Microsoft Word, and to make the image look polished, I then continued on to Pixlr to magnify the image and erase any irretrievable parts. Overall I have learnt that this type of technology is very useful as it allows me to create a very professional look to my images, and will thus, make my magazine look very professional.

I used the website Canva to produce all of my work. Believe it or not, this is a very inspiring website and a highly recommended one from me. It holds everything you need to create an amazing design; templates, images, filters, text, fonts, icons and shapes. EVERYTHING. It still requires you to do the work, but it is very easy to use.

 

Blogger is the platform that I have used to upload all of my work. It is a webpage in which you can post 'posts' on and it is very easy to use. It is very pleasing too as it enables you to personalise your blog as much as you like. It is also good for the reader as it clearly shows each post and allows you to comment on it.

 

For parts of my evaluation, I uploaded PowerPoints that I created on Microsoft onto SlideShare, which I then linked via Blogger.

 

Overall, without all these different technologies, my media product would not be possible. At least, not professionally possible. Canva is a very good technology as it enables you to do anything with your design. Next time, I will most likely use a professional camera to take pictures instead of my phone just to make the whole experience seem much more realistic.

 



What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

As my media product is designed for a niche audience - but is based on a genre that is of interest for many people - it is quite difficult to place which media institution should distribute my media product. It could eventually have a lot of readers, but I think this would be gradual and not immediate. For this reason I think it has more chance of being picked up by an independent publisher, and then experiencing growth at a later date. This might provoke a move of being published by a large media group.

Therefore, the media institutions that I would like to publish my magazine are Bauer Media and Dazed Media.

 

 

 

 

I have chosen DAZED MEDIA because it is the world’s leading independent fashion and culture media brand. They believe in 'accelerated transformation' and that is what I have done in the production of my magazine. Magazines that they have distributed include:

These covers are very innovative and bold - like the cover of Obscure. And I feel like my magazine would be something that Dazed Media would be attracted to due to this. Also, notice, these two magazines on either side are not based on music, but on fashion and culture. This could mean that Dazed Media would have an extra interest in my magazine as it isn't like anything they have distributed before. The company also encompasses exclusive events which is something I could feature in my magazine from time to time as the people on my survey said that this was the feature they had most interest in.

 

However, if I were to choose a media group that already publish music magazines, I would choose Bauer Media as they publish famous music magazines like Q and Kerrang! These magazines, however, are already big selling magazines, and looking at their NRS results you can see that they have a massive, steady circulation. Therefore, the question is: Does Bauer Media need to publish another music magazine of a similar genre? To be honest, I would say yes because even though the wide variety of my magazine means a small market, it is a rapidly growing market as people are showing a greater interest in the blended mixture of art and music. Seemingly, as well, all of the magazines that Bauer publish are male-orientated, therefore my magazine will be a breath of fresh air for them as it aimed at both females and males.

 

I think there is a gap in the market for my magazine. This is because mine is aimed at young people aged between 16-25 and focuses on topics they enjoy. The music magazines I looked at were aimed adults as well as teenagers. However, because of the wide variety of my magazine (art, rock, indie) it will fit into a gap in the market as it will appeal to more people. In my opinion, I think people would prefer a music magazine if it consists of a few genres and not just one.

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

 

I wanted my music magazine to look as  professional as possible, and I wanted it to look like I could imagine seeing it on a newsstand. However, I also wanted it to look extremely innovative - especially, after my media teacher said it would be very difficult to make your magazine innovative and appealing at the same time. After looking at my finished preliminary task I decided that it was a good base to build upon, as I had followed rather conventional magazines in making it. Thus, I could see many areas that I wanted to improve on as I wanted to do things differently in my final piece. This was the main reason I found my preliminary task useful, because it sparked my imagination, and gave me something to refer back to for each aspect of my magazine, so I could see how it didn’t look professional and do the opposite I did for the preliminary so that Obscure would look better.

 

Overall, I have learnt that this has been an amazing experience, although very stressful to uptake all the different roles. However, taking up all these roles allowed me to create a magazine the way I wanted it to look - to use my vision.  I definitely did not want to copy another magazine. I have learnt though that for a music magazine to be truly successful it requires a team of different roles to produce it. Another important thing that is needed for the production of your magazine is making surveys, which is difficult as you have a clear vision in your head but opinions from your peers are required. Furthermore, the colour scheme you use is very significant - if you are aiming your magazine at both genders, make sure you use colours that are associated with both genders! That was my mistake; when I asked people on my survey which social groups they thought my magazine portrayed, they mostly said female, when really my magazine was unisex. In my personal opinion, I think people just don't realise how influential the colour pink has become in the worlds of fashion and design - particularly millennial pink, a shade that is so timeless, yet very 'now.'

Harry Styles, for example, seems to challenge the belief over the colour of pink as he predominantly uses the colour for his album art:

In terms of technology and editing, it is important that you take time editing your pictures and removing your backgrounds etc. as you do have a particular target audience that you are wanting to aim your magazine at.

 

In the media world, there are many professional roles in making a music magazine, and these were the ones I was responsible for:

 

1. Journalist - who would interview special guests and then write the article on them. This was most likely my favourite part as my ambition is to become a music journalist and this allowed me to experience what it would be like. However, it was rather tricky writing about someone you made up in your head based on a friend who modelled for you.

 

2. Photoshoot director - this person directs the photographer, is in charge of the costume and makeup artist, ensures that everything ran smoothly on the shoot, and that everything was risk assessed. For this role, I decided that I wanted my magazine to wear all leather clothing and to have a guitar. Overall, this role was quite easy, as my friend is rather 'rock' anyway and she made the images look really effective.

 

3. Art director/ editor -  they would handle the designing of the magazine, and would give directions to the photographer and head of the shoot so that the model is portrayed in the way that they want, to fit with the style of magazine they have planned. I tackled this role by doing surveys and summarising what the target audience want in an Editor's note on the contents page.

 

4. Photographer - take pictures of the model. This role gave me quite a lot of accuracy when it came to shooting images, as I wanted to have both candid and staged images. In the end, my favourite picture was when the model was not looking at the camera.

 

5. IT director - this person will work closely with the art director to construct the magazine. This role was very enjoyable for me as it allowed me to make my own vision.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Click here to view how my media product has represented particular social groups.

How did you attract/ address your audience?

Click here to view how I attracted my audience.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

Click here to view the target audience for my media product.

 

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

Click here to view how my media product compares to the conventions of other magazines.

Double Page Spread draft

 

 

 

Double Page Spread Research

 

For my double page spread, I am planning to use the above image as my style model. As soon as I saw this image, I was immediately drawn to it. I knew that I wanted my double page spread to look like this.

 

Although, this double page spread may look quite conventional, it is not. The main image is on the right hand side, when usually it would be on the left. The lyrics behind the image on the left hand side provide a story, informing the reader that the article is worth reading. The subject's name is in a typewriter-style font, which is effective, as it hints at an older audience and, possibly, an older style of music. For example, Maggie Rogers (the subject of the article above)is a folk player but she also loves to make dance music. Therefore, the blend of the innovative presentation and the old typewriter-style font demonstrates the blend of Rogers' style.