1. Media Evaluation Amisha Patel

2. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? I have decided to lay my magazine out similarly to magazines such as Kerrang and NME as well as being different and creative. The reason I chose these magazines were because they relate to my target audience and from closely analysing them I was able to create my own magazine consisting of the genre rock which also suited my target audience’s needs. The first convention is that my magazine consists of a big masthead which is placed at the top in the centre. This is like any other music magazine; this makes it easier for the reader to see what the title of the magazine is and not get it mixed up with the main cover line which is usually in the centre of the magazine. My main image is a medium long shot of Jack holding the guitar. However in many magazines, the focal image is usually looking at the audience. I challenge this as Jack is looking to the right. This makes the magazine stand out as not many magazines based on the genre of rock have the focal image looking away from the audience. My main cover line is quite large as it is based on my main article and this is what will grab the reader’s attention before looking at the rest of the front cover. Like any other magazine, I have decided to add a barcode, price and date to my magazine to make it look more professional. Moreover, for my contents page consists of several conventions such as the title which like any other magazine stands out to show the reader what page they are one. I have decided to make my title quite large and the colour scheme blends in with the picture. I have also created subheadings for my magazine, with page numbers helping the audience find where they want to go. My double page spread also uses conventional techniques, the main image is at the let of the page and this is the first thing the audience is going to look at when they turn the page. The biggest thing on my page is the title and this is placed at the top of the page like any other magazine. A good title will always attract the reader and this is why titles are usually big and bold as they need to stand out to grab the readers’ attention. I also have the page number and the date of the magazine at the bottom of my page as this is to make the magazine look more professional.

3. Front Cover Both front covers have a big title that stands out. The models in are both looking away from the audience, this is different to other issues of Kerrang where the model is looking straight at the audience. Having the model look away from the audience therefore makes the picture stand out. They both also have small images to the right showing what will be featured in the magazine and they both have a well laid out colour scheme. In my magazine and the Kerrang magazine, both the models are holding guitars showing the genre of this magazine is rock. Contents Page Both Contents pages have images at the top and also have a great colour scheme. In the Kerrang magazine, the colour scheme is yellow and black and in Pulse, the colour scheme is blue and black, with a bit of red. Both these contents pages also have subheadings to help the audience get to where they want to go instead of flicking through and in the bottom left hand corner they are both promoting their products by offering consumers a cheaper price if they want the magazine delivered to their door.

4. Double Page Spread Both these double page spreads are set into columns. There is also a large image that is closely related to the article. In my double page spread, the image is on the right. This will be the first thing that the reader looks at when they flick through the pages. In the Kerrang magazine, it is on the left. Both images are there to grab the readers attention and get them to read the article. Like in any other magazine, my double page spread has numbers at the bottom of the page so that the reader can see what page they are looking at. By having numbers, it makes the magazine look more professional. Both the headlines are quotes from the article. They are big and have some bold letters in them to stand out. I have have decided to slightly rotate each line and have different sizes with my title as it gives a more crazy look and suggests Jack’s outgoing life with the band.

5. How does your media product represent particular social groups? My media product represents particular social groups through the use of representation. This is ‘the description or portrayal of someone or something in a particular way or as being of a certain nature.’ In this case, it is the way people and things are presented through the use of media and the way people dress can sometimes categorize them as a certain person that they are not and this is known as a stereotype. For my front cover and double page spread, I decided that Jack should wear casual clothes. Although people within the genre of rock mainly wear black, I decided I wanted Jack to look different and stand out. From this it may grab the reader’s eye as he was my front cover image and the colours used on my front cover are eye catching and stand out. Jack is wearing casual clothing and this is the type of style my social group would prefer. Jack is also holding a black and white guitar and this represents the whole genre of rock. Having this prop would attract my audience as this instrument is used in rock music. For my contents page, the image at the top is of a gig that I went to. This would attract my social group as they tend to go to gigs and therefore may wish to read up on it. I have decided that my music magazine is going to be aimed at people in the social group C2 – E as people aged 15 – 25 would mostly be college students, university students or young employees. The image on my front cover is of Jack who is young and represents the genre of rock through the clothes that he is wearing and his hair is everywhere, as well as this he is holding a guitar. Unlike Q magazine which has a wide range of music genres, my magazine only focuses on rock like the Kerrang magazine. The language that I have decided to use for my magazine is informal language. As rock magazines do not use slang. As well as this there will be abbreviations to words and a few swear words as this is what my target audience expects. I have also made sure that my magazine does not have big chunks of text in it as a majority of my target audience would not really enjoy reading. Therefore I have added more images and less text.

6. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why? Choosing the right media institution to distribute my magazine is important as each company has a different way of distributing their products. Taking into account the cost of the magazine, the number of pages there are, the quality of these pages etc. I have decided that the media institution that would be best suited for my magazine is ‘Bauer Media Publications’. This is because they produce a range of different magazines suitable for a large scale of audiences. Bauer publish successful music magazines such as Q and Kerrang and these are the magazines that I have mostly researched on as they also appeal to my target audience. Kerrang is ‘the UK’s premier platform music destination bringing you the best rock online, on radio, on TV and in print.’ (Bauer media website). By having several different platforms, Kerrang can appeal to a larger scale of audience as they can access Kerrang through several sources of media. There are several ways in which media products can be distributed. One of the main ways a product is distributed is that they are sold in local supermarkets such as Tescos and Sainsburys and newsagents. Many music magazines also have a website as well. This is very useful as it is easy to access and you can read up on anything that interests you. My media product would be distributed via local supermarkets and newsagents. As well as this it will also have its very own website for people to access. Having a website usually helps to market and promote products. I have found that on the Kerrang magazine website and many other websites, they have a blog and this helps them see what the audience want in order to improve their magazine and make comments on what they think about their weekly issues. This is something I would have if I were to have a website for my music magazine.

7. Who would be the audience for your media product? The audience for my music magazine would be young teenagers and young adults aged around 15 – 25 who have an interest in rock and heavy metal. This magazine is aimed at both males and females however I believe that more males will take interest in reading this magazine as I believe they have a greater interest in rock and gigs than women. Due to the language and way that my magazine is laid out, the social groups best suited would be between classes C2 – E. This is because people in the higher social groups would not take interest in the genre of this magazine and would prefer formal language rather than informal. The magazines that are read by the higher social class of people would be plain and formal with dull colours. A majority of it would be text with a few pictures here and there. My magazine on the other hand has bright colours and informal language. There will also be several images that are big. With the use of pictures and big headlines, it would grab the reader’s attention and make them want to read more. Social Grade Social Status Occupation A upper middle class higher managerial, administrative or professional B middle class intermediate managerial, administrative or professional C1 lower middle class supervisory or clerical, junior managerial, administrative or professional C2 skilled working class skilled manual workers D working class semi and unskilled manual workers E those at lowest level of subsistence state pensioners or widows (no other earner), casual or lowest grade workers

8. Audience Profile Interests Websites I asked several people who enjoyed reading magazines such as Kerrang what their interests were and this is what they mostly enjoyed. Movies Food & Drinks Clothing

9. How did you attract/address your audience? When constructing my media product, I wanted ensure that my magazine successfully attracted people with an interest in rock. The first thing that the audience will look at is the front cover and I had to ensure that it looked eye catching in order for it to grab their attention. The first thing that the audience usually looks at is the front cover image. I had to ensure that my model was chosen carefully. The reason that I chose Jack is because I liked what he was wearing and I needed my model to have spirit in them when they were holding the guitar. On my front cover, I dressed jack in bright coloured clothing instead of black as I believed that his clothes would stand out and therefore make the colour scheme of my magazine brighter. If jack were to be wearing black clothing, I would not have much of a selection of colours used in my front cover and this might not attract the audience. I have tried to keep the colours consistent to what jack is wearing. As well as using the colours black and red which are used for my title. I created a pulse rate line and placed it behind my title. This would attract the audience as it links to the title. The reason I named my magazine pulse is because the magazine is created to grab the audiences attention, making them excited to read it producing a faster pulse rate. For my contents page, I decided to add a big image of a gig from Bullet for my Valentine. When the audience turns the page to look at the contents page, this is the first thing that they will see. As my audiences are the type of people to go to gigs, this will make them want to read more about that section. I have also created subheadings and highlighted them. This will attract my audience as they will then be able to go to the page they want without having to go back and forth through the whole magazine. I have used bright colours such as blue as this primary colour attracts the reader’s eye and is easily noticeable. For my double page spread, the colours that I mainly used were black and white. This was to make it look simple. Although these were plain colours, they were able to stand out through my headline. To make my headline attract the audience, I decided to slightly rotate the lines slightly to the right or left to create a sort of crazy outgoing look which described my model Jack. I also used another eye catching image of him on the left. As jack was 17 years old, he would attract my target audience and to portray the rock element, he would be holding a guitar. The language used within this magazine would also represent those who take interest in this particular genre. With the use of swear words and informal language, the audience are able to relate to this magazine.

10. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product? In order for me to construct my media product, I had to learn to work with new technologies such as working with a more advanced camera, learning how to use Photoshop and InDesign, using Microsoft office to create word documents and PowerPoints and how to use BlogSpot in which my coursework was uploaded on. Firstly getting used to a Cannon camera was difficult at first as I did not know how to use it, however by exploring its features and taking pictures of random objects helped me get used to how it worked. This camera was used to take pictures of my models and model in my preliminary exercise. I started off by taking pictures of Anwaar in college for my preliminary exercise. In this photo, he was looking at some past papers that he was holding. Then for my front cover for my music magazine, I took some pictures of a few of my friends holding the guitar. I found it difficult to take several pictures at first but I overcame this problem by testing several different settings on this camera, which helped me in different ways to improve my photography. Having used programmes such as Microsoft word and PowerPoint before, tasks which involved these were not as difficult. In this task I had to create a PowerPoint researching on a magazine of my choice. Microsoft word on the other hand was used in order for me to answer my questions on, which I soon put on BlogSpot. This all involved using a computer which I also used to research on magazines and look through the internet. I also used a scanner to scan my flat plans and a few magazines on to the computer. This was not difficult as I had learned how to use a scanner previously and therefore was no problem for me. In order to get my models and an interview, I used a mobile phone to text and call them. As well as sending them emails on the computer to keep them updated on everything.

11. In order to create my preliminary exercise and music magazine, I had to use two software’s, one for editing and one for creating my magazine on. These were known as Adobe Photoshop and InDesign. As I was new to these software’s, I did not know much on how to use them and therefore needed practice. Our first task was to imitate a double page spread. This task was done to help us get used to the programme. As well as this, creating my preliminary exercise would help me gain a better understanding on how the software works and would help me to create a successful final product. After playing around with these software’s, I soon got the hang of them and how to use the different tools that were provided. In order to edit my pictures, I used Adobe Photoshop to cut the background out, this was a very helpful tool and I got used to it quicker than I got used to InDesign. I also used Youtube, a website that I visited regularly. This was video sharing website where I was able to upload a video of my audience feedback. Having used this website before, I was able to upload with no difficulty. Finally , I also learned how to use an online website called BlogSpot. This website looked difficult to use at first but I soon got used to it and it enabled me to post all my coursework onto a blog. I think that be having a blog, my coursework is laid out neatly and it easier than creating a folder and printing everything out. As well as this, I can add things to my coursework without having to reprint it and this can be done anywhere there is internet access and this is much easier than having a file of work that may be all over the place.

12. Looking at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product? Looking back at my preliminary task, I feel that I have progressed in a large amount in skills and techniques and have also expanded on my knowledge by researching and analysing music magazines to help create my product through the use of Adobe Photoshop and InDesign. For my preliminary task, I had to create a college magazine. This task was set to help us gain a further understanding in Photoshop and InDesign. From doing this, I feel that I have gained a better understanding and a better knowledge on how to create my final product. My preliminary task was different to my final front cover. For this task, I did not carry out any questionnaires or research and I feel that because of this, my preliminary task lacks several qualities. These are that the model in my picture is not looking at the audience but looking down at some papers. Also there is not much information on the front page and it looks very plain. The colour scheme wasn’t that great either, as both red and yellow seemed to clash. If I were to have carried out a questionnaire, I would have been able to see the needs and wants of possible buyers. In order to create a successful magazine, it takes time and effort. A lot of research also has to be carried out in order to find out what your target audience want. From researching and analysing music magazines, I was able to find out a bit more on what people wanted and this helped me when I was creating my final product. In order to create a successful media product, I have learnt that you need to plan carefully and develop ideas from the help of feedback from the target audience. Time is also very important because in order to create a successful product, time and effort must be put into making it as a lot of thought has to be put in. Unlike my preliminary task, I put time and effort into my final task and did the best I could to produce a magazine suitable for an audience with an interest in rock music. From my preliminary task, I have learnt how to use programmes such as Adobe Photoshop and InDesign, I have also learnt about the scheme of colours and what colours would be appropriate when creating a magazine. Lastly, I have learnt to lay out my magazine in a similar way to music magazines giving it a more professional look.