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

In progression from my preliminary task I have learnt a lot. My minor task was very simple with just a picture, simple fonts, colours and standard barcodes etc. So I have learnt how to slant text, put block colours behind texts to make them stand out, change bar codes to make them personalised, edit pictures and use bold headings. All of these have heped me produce a product that using conventions similar to real madia products.

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

Well as I have re done my coursework I had already learnt how to work/use Indesign. However by redoing my coursework in greater depth I have learnt new tools. The first one being the effects tool which I used on my pictures these are; inner glow, outer glow, inner shadow and outer shadow. I then learnt the rotating tool which allowed me to slant certain titles/headings to make them look more interesting. I also learnt how to layer text to give them a 3D look.
I then learnt how to change my barcode by usin painshop Pro. These are the technologies I have learnt throughout constructing my product.

Evaluation - How did you attract/address your audience?

Referring back to my previous answer, I think I have attracted and addressed my audience well.
Firstly, the colour theme throughout my whole magazine is very consistent which helps attract the audience. By having a dark background and bright yellow, white and red writing it really stands out and attracts the audience. I think the pictures I have also used throughout my magazine are good as there is a variety of them and also by editing my pictures, I have made them look more interesting and appealing. The language I have used throughout was very important too, I chose to use a language which was not formal however was not 'slang', so I found a balance between the both which has also attracted and addressed the audience.
Front cover- I chose my sub headings well as I made sure they were to the point and striking due to the colour and font (easy to read). I'm hoping this will make the readers want to read the articles inside the magazine.
Contents Page- I made it clear that it was the contents page but stating that at the top of the page, like examples of real media products I looked at. This addresses the audience well. By putting the contents of the magazine under headings with page numbers next to them, this addresses the audience well. The layout is also very simple and easy to read, the short paragraph I have included about the main cover story attracts the audience to read the full article. I also put in red letters 'See more on pages 22 - 23'.
Double page spread- The pictures I have used are very appealing to the audience as I edited them. The whole article is addressing the audience about questions they might wish to know about 'The Olivers'. I made sure the questions I asked were similar to those in a real magazine to attract the audience.
So all of the above are ways in which I think I attracted and addressed my audience.

Evaluation - Who would be the audience for your media product?

As I have said in my previous evaluation answer, my audience would be a variety of people. The main audience however would be 15 - 21 year olds. Both male and females would be included in this audience as the band I chose - 'The Olivers' appeals to both sexs.

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

The type of media institution who would distribute my media product are any standard news agents or any other institution where they sell magazines and newspapers. Also I think any music shop distributing CD's, DVD's and magazines of the same genre as mine. I think this because my magazine is not an exclusive magazine, it is one that would appeal to many members of the public. Also because my magazine will include many different articles which would interest a variety of people. For the music shop, I think they would distribute my magazine as it is a music magazine so they would be interested in selling it.

Evaluation - How does your media product represent particular social groups?

My media product represents a particular social group, this being 15-21 year olds, both male and female. This social group being light rock, indie groups. I believe my magazine represent this social group due to the appearance of the font and colour I have used. The colour theme, being dark backgrounds with yellow, red and white writing helps represent this social group. I also think the language I have used help represent the social group I am aiming my magazine at. I have not used formal language however I have also ot used 'slang'.

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

My media product develops and challenges forms and conventions of realmedia products in many ways.

First of all my front cover challenges real media products, as on my front cover I have put a barcode, price and date of issue, this is very similar to real magazines as thses are featured on real magazine front covers. Below is a picture of my barcode:

Here is my example of a real magazine and I am linking this, showing they have a barcode and so do I

My front cover also challenges conventions of real media products as it has the name of the magazine on it and the headings, sub headings and picture of main article inside. My contents page also challenges these conventions by listing the articles featured in the magazine and these articles have their page numbers next to them. It also has a picture of the cover story on the contents page with a short paragraph informing what the article is about and it also says 'read the full article on page 22-23', which is informing the readers well. My double page spread also uses thes conventions as it is an interview and like real magazines my interview consists of questions and answers. This spread also includes pictures of the band and a website address informing the viewers they can see more on the band if they visit this website.

Feedback on Double Page Spread from family and friends

Feedback on Contents page from Media students

After recieving feedback on my front cover, I am now going to get feedback on my contents page.
I first of all asked Beth for positives and criticisms on my contents page, I wanted to know:

1. What do you think on the layout on the contents page?
2. Do you think the use of fonts and colours are conventional?
3. Do you think the language I have used is appropriate?

Answers:

1. The layout is very clear and easy to read. I like how the colours used on the contents pages are the same as the front cover which makes it link well.
2. The use of the fonts and colours are conventional as in all magazine they use the same font and colours on each page and that is what you have done on your magazine.
3. The language you have used is good as it is easy to read and not too complicated.

Feedback on Front cover from other media students

Alec: "I like the picture you have used as your main picture. I also think the fonts link in well as all the sub headings are in the same font"



Laura: "The Title of the magazine is effective as it really stands out. Maybe next time you could use a picture that is in colour so it looks more busy."



Kemi: " I like the way how you have used a black and white photo and then bright yellow and white writing, this really stands out. I also like how you have put the bar code, web address and price on it as this is what all/most magazine front covers have."

I asked these people for their feedback as they are my target audience being 16 -21 year olds.

Feed back from parents

Now I have finished my magazine I am going to show it to my parents and ask for their feedback.

Below I have uploaded a pie chart graph on their feedback:

I asked my mum, dad and brother (Rhys) whether they thought the picture I used for my front cover of my magazine was a good one to use.

Mum - Yes

Dad - Yes

Rhys - No

Summary and step by step of Double Page Spread

I have already spokn about how I produced my background and title of double page spread in my earlier post, so now I am going to talk about how I produced the rest of my double page spread.
The next thing I did was I placed the two other picture I was using on my DPS. I placed these at the bottom of the left hand side of the DPS. I then edited these by selecting the effect icon from the 'object' toolbar. I then used the 'inner glow', 'outer glow' and 'inner shadow' to edit these pictures.
I then added in the quote that I used on the front cover and put this next to the title - 'Our Break has finally arrived' I then edited this by just using a yellow outline as the font colour.
Next to this I then placed the Album cover of The Olivers. I have shown this image in a previous post. I edited this album cover by using a 'gradient shadow tool' in effect section.
I then went on to produced the magazine logo in the bottom left hand corner of the left hand page. I did the logo in yellow and I then used the 'rotate' tool to rotate it anti clockwise..
The text -
for the 'Y' I did this in bigger font to be conventional as other magazine use this. As
I have a dark background, I am going to have my font colour white so it stands out in contrast to the black background..
I did a short paragraph on the interview and then started with the questions 'Kelly Smith' asked. I have done Kelly's name in red and the members of the band in yellow. This is so there is s distinction between the interviewer and the interviewee..
For the boys answers I used the rectangle tool to create a red box and then on top of that I used a text box and put the boys answers on top of the red box, this is so that it stands out to the viewers.
At the end of the interview I then put in white writing to see more on the Olivers visit our website below.
Below this I then put the web address, I did this by using the rectangle tool and producing a red box. On top of this I then used the text box tool and typed in the address in yellow writing to stand out on top of the red box.

I got all of the above ideas from this real music magazine double page spread:

Finishing product of Double page Spread

I have now finished my Double page spread and I am going to upload a picture i took of it before I start talking about how I produced this page step by step:

Producing my Double Page Spread

I am now going on to producing me double page spread. Firstly I selected the 'rectangle' box tool and dragged it over the double pages, I then changed the colour to black.
I then inserted the title on the left hand side of the page. To do this used the rectangle box tool and changed this colour to red, I then edited this by selecting the effects icon in the object tool bar. I then chose the 'eboss' effect to make it give it a 3D effect.
I then used the 'text box' tool and wrote 'EXCLUSIVE' in white then placed it over the red box.
Just underneath this I used the text box tool and wrote 'The Olivers' in it, I then made it Yellow with a faint red outline. With both the Exclusive and The Olivers, I used the 'rotate' tool to rotate each of these a little bit anti clockwise so they were slanted.
On the right hand side of the double page spread, I then used the 'rectangle' tool box and dragged it over this half of the page. I then went to 'file' in the tool bar and selected 'place'
I then found the picture I wanted to use of the band in my Pictures and place it on to the page. I did this by right clicking and selecting 'fitting' then 'fit conent to frame'. This then fits the picture to the rectangle frame I made.
My double page spread is very similar to the example I gave of a real magazines double page spread.

Double Page spread Pictures

Before I start producing my double page spread I am going to upload the picture that I am going to use on my double page spread:

I will be using this image as a background image on the right hand side of the double page spread.

I will be then writing over the top of this photo.

This photo will be inserted on the left hand side of the double page spread and then edited.

This image will also be on the left hand side of the double page spread. It will also be edited.

Summary and step by step of Contents page

I have already spoken about how I prodced the top bit of my contents page - Magazine logo, Black block bar, Contents and date of issue.
I then went on to put the picture of The Olivers onto the page, I chose this picture I took of the band because it is a wide angle shot of the band playing at their Jack Wills gig. I place this picture just under the black block on the left hand side of the page. Once I had the picture in the right place I then edited the picture but selecting 'Object' from the tool bar and the selecting 'Effect' I then chose the 'drop shadow' 'inner glow', 'outer glow' and 'embose'effect to edit my picture.
To the left of the photo, I used the 'rectangle' tool to produce another black box so I could put the website address for the magazine in it. I wanted the address to be horizontal so to do this I used the 'text box' tool, wrote the website in it and then used the 'rotate' tool to rotate it 90 degrees anti clockwise. I then place it over the black box i had already produced.
As the picture is on the left hand side of the page I decided to put the writing about what is on which page on the right hand side of the page. I headed each section, to do this I used the 'rectangle' tool to produce a black box. I then used the text box tool and wrote 'NEWS' in it, I then changed the colour to Yellow and the font is Trajan Pro. I used this so it links in with the other fonts.
Underneath this in red writing still in Trajan Pro font I wrote what the magazine consists of and on what page.
Underneath the picture I used the 'rectangle' tool to produce another black box. I then used the text box tool and in yellow font I wrote 'Cover Story'. Then under this I wrote 'The Oliver's with a little paragraph on what the article on The Olivers is about.
Under the paragraph I wrote in red font 'See full interview on pages 22-23' I did this in red so it would stand out.

I got all of the above ideas for my magazine contents page from this real contents page.. (below):

Finishing product of my Contents page

I have now finished my contents page. I'm going to upload a picture of my contents page and then talk through step by step what I have done to make my contents page:

Producing my Contents Page

So far I have completed the bar at the top of the page. I have put in the magazine name - AZM,
I have done this in a black and white and done it in the same font as I used on the Front Cover - Barber shop.
I then inputed a black block and above this I have put the heading contents page and in the black block below I have put the date the magazine was issued.
I am now going to go on a put the image of The Olivers in and then the rest of the information about other articles this magazine includes. I will then put in a short paragraph explaining what the article is abouton The Olivers.

Start of my Contents page

I want to have a bar at he top of the page which will allow me to write 'Contents' in it to inform the readers that this is the contents page. I have taken a picture of what I tested out and I have decided I am going to start again but I wanted to show a picture of what I tried first to show my improvements:

I have decided I want to change the colour of the bar at the top of the page as it is orange and so far the colours I have used in my front cover are yellow, red black and white. So I want to use the same colours as I did on the front cover so it gives a sense of continuity to the viewers.

I do like how I have placed the website on there though and I will be still doing this on my next contents page.

Contents Page picture

Now that I have finished my magazine front cover, I am now going to move onto my contents page.

Firstly I am going to upload the picture that I am going to use for my contents page:

I have already looked at contents pages from real magazines which i have put up on previous posts. As The Olivers are my band and the main feature of my magazine, i want to have a picture of them and then a small summary of what their article is going to be about.

I then will need to include other information on what else my magazine includes and on what page.

Final picture of my front cover

This is the finishing product of my front cover:

Front cover Summary

I have now completed my Front cover of my music magazine. I used InDesign to create it.
Firtsly I selected the 'rectangle box' and dragged it all over the page, I did this so I could then place the picture of Andrew as the background of my magazine.
I then went to do the title. I use Dafont font for this and I used 'Barber shop' in yellow, I did this so it would stand out against the black and white background.
I then went on to do the sub headings.. I started with the headings about The Olivers, I used 'Trajan Pro' for all of the sub headings. I did some in yellow and others in White so they all stood out to the viewers eyes. I then put in a quote from the band that will appear on my double page spread.
Behind some of the headings I put a block colour behind them, I did this by using the 'rectangle box' tool. I did this just to give my magazine antoher effect.
I then went on to edit a barcode and add it into my magazine front cover. I have spoken about this below.
The last couple of bits i did was I added in the date of release of magazine and how much the magazine costs. I did this as you always see this on the front covers of magazines. It is a good way to inform the viewers.
The very last thing i did was I added in the magazines website. I did this in a red colour still in the same font but so it would stand out to the viewers eyes.. I then rotated it by using the 'rotate tool'.

I got all of the above ideas from the NME magazine that I spoke about in an earlier post. I have uploaded the NME cover which I got ideas from for my magazine:

The rest of my Picture of The Olivers

Before i carry on uploading blogs on my magazine I am going to upload all of the pictures I have taken of The Olivers. I am not going to use all of these pictures within my magazine but I wanted to take a lot so I had a wide range to choose from. I took all of these pictures at their gig at the clothes shop Jack Wills

These are the pictures below:

Barcode

I researhed barcodes on Google. I then copied one into Paintshop Pro and the changed the code on this barcode to make it mine, more unique and relevant to my magazine.

This was the original barcode:













This is my barcode that I changed for my magazine front cover:

Start of my Magazine Front Cover

I am working in InDesign to create my magazine.
Firstly created a template for my front cover and used a tool called the 'rectangle tool' which allowed me to place the picture of Andrew as the main backgroung on the front cover.
I then added in my Magazine title which is 'AZM' I used 'Barber Shop' as my font.
I then chose which font i wanted to use as my sub headings and I chose 'Trajan Pro' and am going to be using yellow and white for my sub headings so this stands out to the viewers eyes.
Below is what I have done so far:

Video of My Band

Below I have uploaded a video of 'The Olivers' to show what genre of music they do and to show the progress of my project:

My Pictures

Before I start uploading posts of my magazine, I am going to upload and talk about my pictures that I am going to feature on my magazine.

This is on of the pictures I am going to feature on my double page spread on the band:

- I am using this picture as it shows the band during their gig.

This will link in well with my article that I will be doing as my interview is all about their gigs and their journey through creating their band.

Album Cover of 'The Olivers'

As I said below I am not going to be using a picture of the whole band as my background. I have decided to do this so I can feature a picture of them as their album cover on the front of the magazine. I will position this on the left hand side of the front cover and will do special effects on this picture.

The picture which will be the album cover is below:

Main Picture on Front Cover

I am going to upload the other pictures I have taken of the band soon.

I have chosen which picture I am going to use as my main feaure picture on my front cover.

I was going to use the picture of all the boys under the bridge, but instead I am going to use that as their album cover which I will feature somewhere on the front cover of the magazine..

As I am mainly going to be interviewing Andrew (lead singer), I have decided to have a picture of him as the background of my magazine front cover.

The picture I have chosen is below:

I like this picture as I have made it black and white which will give my front cover an edgey effect as I will have the name of the magazine in colour and all other writing in colour.

I also like how i have taken this picture so that Andrew is to the side of the picture which will allow me to put most of the writing on the other side of the page so it does not completely cover him, I will however still put writing over him so it makes the front cover look full of writing.

Pictures of the band I have taken

These are the pictures I have taken of my band so far:

- Andrew and Myles before their gig at Jack Wills



Mid angle shot






- Andrew the lead singer during the gig

I edited this picture by simply changed this picture to black and white. I did this in Paintshop Pro.
Mid angle shot














- Myles during the gig
Wide angle shot

- Andrew and Myles.
I like this shot as I got them in mid action during the gig. I used a mid angle shot of myles.

The start of Pictures for my Magazine

Before I start creating my magazine front cover, I am taking lots of pictures of my band - 'The Olivers'.
I want to take lots of pictures so I have a wide range of choice for which pictures I wish to use.
Below is the first picture I took, I like this picture as it is of the whole band and it represents all of them:

Title/Font of my Magazine

After looking at a few examples of font styles I decided to go with the first one I looked at.

Below is a picture of my title I will be using:

Text Fonts

I am now going to start looking at font ideas for my magazine front cover.


Below I am going to look at a number of fonts that I could use for the title of my magazine:

I have decided that the first font style 'MASTERPLAN' is the font I am going to use for the title of my magazine which will be 'AZM'

Furthur planning for front cover

After looking at another front cover, I have changed my ideas for my music magazine front cover and here is my new plan below:

Follow up from my plan

After looking at my first draft of my front cover I have decided to look at a few more magazine front covers as I would like my magazine cover to have more detail on it.



Below is another real magazine front cover that I have looked at and analysed:

























Analysis of front cover:

1. Picture - I love this picture of La Roux as it instantly draws the viewers eyes to the picture and the magazine.
2. Magazine title- I like the way the name of the magazine name is presented as it is in bright red writing and it stands out.
3. Sub headings - I like the colour of the sub headings as they are white and yellow. this stands out to the audience but does not take the readers eyes away from the picture of the artist.

My first plan for my front cover of magazine

Here I drew a picture of a plan for the front cover of my music magazine. I got this idea from other music magazines I have looked at. I took a picture of my plan and then uploaded it onto my blog.

Other magazine double page spread

After looking at real magazines front cover and contents pages, the last one I am going to look at is the double pages spread.


I am doing this so it helps gives me ideas on how to do my double page spread by giving me ideas for layout, pictures and text.


Analysing double page spread:

1. Picture: I like this picture as it is what attracts the viewers eyes first. It also shows the readers who the article is going to be about.
2. Title: This title is effective as it is asking the readers a question which will make the viewers want to read on as they want to know the answer to that question.
3. Article: I think this article is very good as it is like an interview with the group. This has given me the idea that my double page spread is going to be an interview with my band.

Other Magazine contents page

After looking at oreal magazine front covers, I then looked at real magazine contents pages.
I did this so it can help me with ideas for my contents page.
Analysing contents page:

1. Title: I think the title is good as it informs the readers which page they are looking at.
2. Picture: This picture is very effective as it shows the reader a photo of what the main feature will be inside the magazine.
3. Features: This is very effective as it informs the viewers of what the magazine will include and on what pages it will be featured on.

Other magazine front covers

This was the first front cover I looked at. I like this cover as it has all the elements a music magazine requires.
Analysing front cover:

1. Title: This title is very effective as it stands out to the viewers eyes due to the BOLD lettering and the colour.
2. Picture: This picture is very good as it informs the readers that this band is the main band featured in the magazine. Within my magazine I want a picture of my band to be the main feature of the magazine.
3. Other pictures: The other pictures featured on the front cover is a good idea as it shows what else is featured within the magazine.
4. Text: Each piece of text on this front cover informs the reader about the content of it, however it is good as it does not take the viewers eye away from the picture or name of the magazine.
5. Text font/colour: I like how the font is all the same giving the magazine a sense of continuity. I also like the colour theme as there are not too many colour used.
6. Barcode/price/date: I can see that a barcode/price/date is featured on this front cover, this shows me that i should include these features on my magazine.

Starting to Plan for my Magazine front cover

Now I have chosen and looked at other bands similar to mine, I am now going to start properly planning for my magazine front cover. So to begin with I am going to go search for other music magazine front covers to give me ideas for mine.

Other bands I researched, Hardware/software, Difficulties I will encounter and Decisions I will have to make.

As I am keeping my minor task the same I can now start to move onto my major task. Music magazine.As I am re doing my major task, I wanted to start planning it first and plan it properly. So to begin with I looked at the NME website to get some ideas as to how they review artists today.I am changing from a girl group to a boy band, I am doing this as I think there will be more context I can include about a boy band compared to a girl group.The first band that I looked at on the NME website was Kings Of Leon.

















As I have explained my approaches to my minor task, I am now going to thoroughly plan and research my major task.
HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE I WILL BE USING:
Hardware:

1. VDU (Monitor) - I will be using this piece of hardware as it will allow me to see icons, menus and my magazine. This hardware will allow me to veiw my project as I go along.
2. Mouse - I will be using this hardware device as it will allow me to select icons and allow me to create my magazine.
3. Keyboard (QWERTY) - I will be using this hardware device as it will allow me to enter numbers and letters onto my magazine. This may include title, prices, dates and barcodes.
4. Printer (inkjet) - I will use this hardware to print off hard copies of my magazine.

Software:

1. InDesign - I will be using this software as this is the software I will use to create my magazine.
2. Paintshop Pro - I will be using this software as it will allow me to edit the pictures i have taken of my band.

DIFFICULTIES I EXPECT TO ENCOUNTER:

There will be a number of difficulties I expect to encounter whilst creating my magazine. However as I have already created one magazine, I believe I will not find it too difficult this time round. The only problem I think I may have is that as I want to make my magazine more lively and busy I am going to have to include a lot more content. This means I may have to use tools within InDesign that I have not used yet. This could take me a bit of time getting used to.

DECISIONS I WILL HAVE TO MAKE:

There will be many decisions I will have to make whilst creating my magazine. The first one will be the pictures I choose to use for my front cover, contents page and double page spread. I will have to make this decision carefully as they will all need to link together. The next one will be the text font and colour. On the front page I need to make sure that I use the right colour so it will allow the magazine to flow and show continuity to the readers. Layout is also going to be an important decision as I need to make sure my layout works this time and make sure it looks lively but not too cluttered. The language is another decision I will need to make and this is very important as I need to make sure that the language I use connects and links to the audience who this magazine is aimed at.

Approaches to my Minor task

I think my minor task was successful as it included everything that it needed to have.I took a picture of my friend Charlotte i decided to have her picture as the background of my magazine cover. The picture was taken in a library, which I thought linked in well with the theme of a school magazine.The title 'St.Bedes School' was successful as I placed it in the left hand corner of the page, this looked good as it match the colour scheme of the school which was blue and also it was not too big that it drew the viewers eye away from the picture but big enough to inform them what school magazine it was.The sub headings worked well and I liked where I placed them as they were at the sides of the magazine, i did this so they did not cover the picture too much.I then took a picture of both my media studies teachers and uploaded it under the title of the article about them. I thought this was very successful as it makes the viewer want to read the article even more. I also edited this picture by fading it a little bit so it blended into the magazine more. I added the school logo in the top right hand corner which I thought was good. I also added in the date of the release of the magazine and how much the magazine is to buy. I thought this was successful as all magazines have the release date on them and how much it costs. In the bottom right hand corner i inserted a bar code. I personalised this my changing the code to one related to St. Bedes. Overall I thought my magazine covered everything it needed to and therefore was very successful.

Reasons for Choosing this brief

I chose to do this brief as I originally did this brief before. I could have changed to a different brief like a video, but as I am already familiar with the software for this brief I am just going to stick with this one. I wanted to do this brief as I like the idea of being able to take my own pictures and uploading them onto my magazine. By sticking with the same brief I believe I will be able to save time as I already know what I need to do and what to do to improve it.
My minor task is staying the same but I am going to re-do my major task. I am going to do this by changing my band and choosing my friends band - 'The Olivers'. The brief I will be doing is the music magazine. This will include; magazine front cover, contents page and a double page spread on my band. I chose this brief as I want to take lots of pictures of my band and edit them then opload them onto my magazine.



CHOOSING MY BAND:
My band consist of- Andrew (Lead singer), Mylse, Zac and Ben. The genre of their band is very similar to 'Kings of Leon' who I will be researching.

After choosing the band I will be using I took a picture of them, which I would like to include within my magazine. The picture I took of my friends band is featured below:

Changes to my Minor Task - School magazine front cover

As I am only going to make changes to my major task and my blog I am pretty much going to leave my minor task as it is.
Today I looked at my minor task again and decided I just wanted to make a minor change to it. I changed the bar code at the bottom of the page to make it more personalised. I did this by working in Fireworks MX and i changed the letters and numbers to 'ST1BDS.39274'. I then saved this and copied it into my minor task which was in 'InDesign'.
In my next posts I am going to explain why I chose the brief I did and how i did it.

Below i have uploaded my final school magazine front cover for my minor task



Below is my first original plan of my school magazine front cover: