How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stages?

I used many different technologies in the construction of my product, all of which are shown in this powerpoint. I've said when and why they were used. 

Technology

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Overall, I've learnt a lot about technology in this project. Before creating my magazine, I'd never used Blogger, Photoshop or Slideshare, but now I feel confident in using all of them. 

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

Throughout the production of my magazine, I have continuously learnt from audience feedback, making improvements based on people’s thoughts and ideas. As my target audience for my magazine is 13-18 year old females, I was able to ask for many of my friends’ opinions which I found encouraging and useful. Once I’d established the genre of my magazine i.e. acoustic music, I distributed a questionnaire to a random selection of people within my target audience, asking what sorts of artists they were interested in, as well as how much they would be willing to pay for a music magazine of this genre. I found the results were extremely helpful and I was able to use the feedback to create a product that people would be interested in reading. Not only did the questionnaire help me, but peer assessment played a big part in this project. After creating a first draft of my magazine cover, I showed my peers the product and asked for their opinions as to which areas needed improving. From this, I found that the cover lines needed to be bolder in order to stand out, but overall the feedback gave me confidence in my product. Peer assessment was also useful when it came to deciding on what image to use in my double page spread. After some discussion, it was agreed by everyone that the best photo was the one with the most interesting mise-en-scene. This gave me a very good starting point for my double page spread, as I felt the chosen image was striking enough to appeal to my target audience.

See below for audience feedback:

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

Since creating my school magazine cover, my knowledge of using Photoshop has increased considerably. For example, I now know how to make my magazine more effective, by adding drop shadows and outer glows. I also learnt how to select parts of photos using the quick selection tool, which was useful when cutting out the flowers to put on my front cover, contents page and DPS. The layout of my magazine has also improved since my school magazine, as I have considered the ‘golden line’ – something which I didn’t know about before. I have used much more visual fonts that are attention-grabbing whereas, in my school magazine, the fonts are quite plain and boring. Overall my understanding of the software has improved greatly throughout the making of my music magazine, helping me achieve a professional looking product. 

My product placement allowed me to compare my magazine with similar products and test its marketability. I found this useful because I was able to tell whether or not the conventions I’d used stood out enough to make people want to read it. I felt that the magazine visually looked good amongst other magazines and I’m very pleased with the final product. 

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

I decided to use the basic conventions of a magazine rather than challenge them considering my magazine is un established. However, because acoustic music is a fairly niche genre (when doing research, I struggled to find many acoustic magazines), I felt that I could be creative and add details such as the flower pattern, that you wouldn’t normally see in any other music magazine. 

I found the deconstructions of existing magazines very useful, as I was able to take into account the conventions that work, and those that don’t. It made me realise that in order to have a successful magazine, I needed to follow the essential conventions that people recognise. When evaluating my deconstructions, I established that a plain background, clear text and prominent image make the page simple but effective. I feel that I have incorporated all of these things into my front cover. It took many attempts to get the right image, as I knew that it was one of the most important features of a magazine. I focused on making the mise-en-scene relevant to my genre of acoustic music and took the photos outside in the sunshine, to create that relaxed vibe that the music represents. I also didn’t want to stage my shot too much, as I wanted to make it look as natural as possible. There is direct eye contact which is another convention, and also rather than posing, I am smiling in the photo, giving the magazine a light-hearted friendly feel. The blue sky in the photo acted as a good background for my text. The cover lines are the basic conventions of a magazine, so I thought appropriately about the tone I should use to attract my target audience. I made the cover lines as simple as possible, making the audience want to find out more. The editorial profile on my contents page has a chatty, familiar mode of address, which is also conventional.

The colour palette I used is an example of resonance, as not only does the purple/red colour fit in with the bracelet in the image, it is also quite feminine, connoting that the magazine is aimed at females. I’ve established the house style throughout, by using the same colours and fonts in my contents page and double page spread. I wanted to experiment with different fonts to create more variety in my magazine, so I have used a mixture of clear, simple fonts (particularly for my cover lines and double page spread) and ones that look more handwritten – for example in my editorial profile, making it look more personal. 

As I’ve already mentioned, I added a flower pattern which is new and innovative. This is part of the house style as it runs throughout my magazine. I wanted to make it look like they had been drawn on, making it seem quite personal. Flowers also connote nature and femininity, suiting the genre of music I’ve chosen and appealing to my target audience. 

I have also taken into consideration the ‘golden line’ which I recognised as an important feature when doing my earlier research. The Masthead is the top left so it is the first thing the reader is drawn to. I used two different fonts within my masthead, so that the A became a star. This is symbolic of the name of the magazine, i.e. aspiring to be a star. I used the star as my logo which became part of the house style, running throughout the magazine. The eye then follows an almost zigzag pattern from the image to the cover lines. I made ‘Naomi Rose’ a larger font so it is more attention-grabbing, as it is the exclusive feature in my magazine, luring the audience in. The bar code is in the bottom right corner, as it is the least important feature that the eye sees. However I also considered that this corner is the last thing the reader sees so I placed the web address here, making it more memorable. This reflects the direction of new media production, by making it multi-platform.

Product Placement

In order to test my magazine's marketability, I placed my front cover amongst other music magazines. For my magazine to be successful, it had to stand out to lure readers in. I think my magazine cover is eye catching, particularly because of the bold blue background colour and the creative fonts. My magazine has a unique house style which also makes it attention grabbing. The 'free' poster is bold enough to capture the audience's attention, acting as a successful lure. Overall, I'm pleased with how my product looks in comparison to established magazines.

Contents Page Development

When making my DPS, I used a new font that wasn't used in my Front cover or Contents page. I wanted to continue the house style so I changed the font of my editorial profile on my Contents page to the same font as the one I used in my DPS. I think this is an improvement because it looks as though it's been handwritten, which makes the editorial profile seem more personal.

Double Page Spread

For my double page spread, I made sure I used the same fonts and colours to show a sense of house style. Additionally, I also included the flowers from the Front page and Contents to keep the style the same. I decided to change my original idea of having a quote as the heading, because the name of the star (Naomi Rose) stood out more. Instead, I enlarged a quote from the text which acts as an enigmatic lure, making people want to read on. I've used the typical conventions of a magazine, by having three columns of text and I'm also pleased with my image, as I think the mise-en-scene fits in well with my acoustic genre. In the top right corner, I have included a banner with the artist's Myspace address, as this would promote their music online, making the magazine multi-platform. Overall I'm happy with how this looks.

Researching Interviews for DPS

I thought I would research various interviews with artists within my genre to find out the sort of things they would say and the tone of the language used. This will help me when writing the article for my DPS. I came across a few interviews that really interested me including:

Taylor Swift Interview

Pixie Lott Interview

James Morrison Interview

Front Cover/ Contents Page - First Drafts

I've uploaded a few versions of my front cover to show its development/ progression...

Front Cover 1

 To make the front page more similar to the contents page, I changed the style of the banner at the top so that it was the same as the contents page background. I also moved the website address onto the guitar because it shows up clearer.

Front Cover 2

I then added some flowers, which are included on the contents page, so they both look alike. I'm happy with how this looks at the moment, but feel further changes may need to be made before I'm completely satisfied with the finished product.

Front Cover 3

And here's my contents page first draft. Again, I've uploaded more than one version so you can see the progress I made.

Contents page 1

I changed the colour of the 'contents' heading so it was more similar to the front cover. Likewise, I used the same fonts and colour scheme as the front cover. I've also included the logo of the 'A' in 'Aspire' in the bottom right hand corner. I moved this from the left because I thought it looked better where it is now! I removed the stool from the original image to make room for the text which I think works well. I've added a glow to the thumbnail pictures which I've done on the front cover too so overall there is a clear house style running through the magazine.

Contents page 2

Working with Photoshop

Here is a screen recording of me using Photoshop. It shows how I've used tools such as the quick selection tool and eraser tool to cut out a flower from one image and paste it onto my Contents page. I have been experimenting with flower drawings to make the page look more personal and connote the genre of acoustic music.

Video Blog

I've created a video blog entry talking about my blog and how things are going at the moment!

Mock-up Front Cover

Using an existing picture of an established artist, I made a simple front cover as a practice so that I feel more confident using PhotoShop when I come to making my own magazine cover. I have saved it at different stages so that you can see the development of the masthead. I'm happy with the masthead I have chosen, however the colours may change depending on the photo I use as my cover image.Practice Front Cover

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Front Cover Photos

The sun was shining today! So I decided to take some more photos for my magazine front cover. I got a few that I like, however I still don't think I've found 'the one'. Bearing in mind the fact that I have already got my double page spread photo, I might start working on that first. Here's a slideshow of the images...

I tried facing away from the sun as an experiment to see what the natural light would be like:

I really liked the flare that I got from the sun. Even though this wasn't meant to be taken as a serious photo, it inspired me to take some more photos with the sun in the background... 

Taking my photos

Using my storyboard as a plan, I took some photos in the orchard behind my house. I was going to use my sister as a model but decided that it would be easier to use myself, as I also have other photos taken of me performing at gigs and busking that I could use. I think I definitely have my double page spread and contents page shots (just need to choose which ones!) but will probably be taking some more photos for my front cover, as I don't feel the ones I've taken so far are good enough. I feel in a lot of my photos, I've considered the mise-en-scene well to fit in with the acoustic genre. I've put together a presentation of the best images and annotated them.Magazine Potential Photos

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i Magazine - 'The essential daily briefing'

i magazine is the new concise quality newspaper, from The Independent, made for people who want a concise, intelligent daily briefing; a newspaper that gives all the stories you really need to know, at a glance; a quality read for busy people in the modern world. Broadcaster, Jamie Theakston says, “At last, a paper that recognises that people in a hurry don't have to be treated like idiots”. The unique format of i allows readers to digest all the key stories and issues at a glance, making it easy to keep up to date with the news, when having a busy lifestyle. 

The magazine’s unique selling point is its price; at only 20p, i magazine is affordable, attracting a wider audience. It’s aimed at “real people living real lives” (Ross Kemp) – whether a young adult in further education or someone in the working world, the magazine hopes to connect with people from different backgrounds with different economic statuses. i magazine is multi-platform, making it accessible to a larger audience. 

The masthead of i has The Independent’s logo of a bird, so the reader knows the two are connected. The font of the masthead is bold, standing out in red, which gives the magazine an edgier look that’s perhaps more inviting to a younger audience. There’s a unique ‘News Matrix’ at the front of the paper. This allows the reader to take in all the day's main stories without turning the page, pleasing its target audience of busy people who want to keep in-the-know. News reports in i are short and to-the-point, with information boxes to make it easier for the reader to learn more about the stories that interest them. The writing style is similar to The Independent, however the news is cut shorter, giving the reader the facts and most important bits of information. This is attractive to its audience because it doesn’t seem as daunting to read as The Independent, considering there is less text but equally as useful information. The i magazine could be seen as a threat to The Independent newspaper, as it’s appealing layout and edgier look make the magazine appear a more friendly read. However, The Independent is still very popular to those who do want to find out all the information of a story, so they can feel like they’re not missing out on any news – the two papers simply target different audiences. 

i magazine has been given a high profile in retail outlets, by being placed on the counter or somewhere prominent, as I’ve seen myself. They have an advertising campaign on TV to bring it to everyone’s attention, relating to the front page, which says “as seen on TV”. I will take into account the techniques of the magazine and present on the front cover of my magazine what’s inside, in a concise way, as well as pricing my magazine at an affordable price.

Filming Schedule

Here is my filming schedule, showing the day, time and type of shots I want to take for my images. Having it planned out like this will help me get the photoshoot done quickly and efficiently. 

Double Page Spread Plan

My double page spread plan is pretty simple. I'd like the text to be on one side and a large picture on the other. Depending on the photo I use, it could be effective having the image taking up the whole double page, with the text layered over the top. I want a quote from the text to be enlarged to act as a lure, grabbing the audience's attention. The text will be laid out in three columns. As my contents page may be quite busy, I want to keep this page simple.

Contents Page Plan

Here is my Contents Page plan. I'd like to use a simple image such as a guitar leaning against a wall so it doesn't take away from the writing on the page. It will follow a house style because the font will be the same as the Masthead, or similar. I'm also keen on the idea of having patterns around the page and perhaps drawing them from hand before scanning them in would give the page a more personal feel. Using this idea, I'd like my editorial profile to look like it's handwritten on lined paper, as this also fits the acoustic theme - keeping it simple. In the bottom left hand corner will be my logo. There will also be a selection of pictures from various articles presented on the left hand side, but I don't want to make it too cluttered, so I'll only have a few. The numbers will stand out and I want them to contrast to the text, so I'll use a different colour and also they'll be a different font.