In what ways does your media product use, develop and challange forms and convetions of real media products?

In what ways does your media product use, develop and challange forms and convetions of real media products? on Prezi

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

I think that the photos which I took represent the social group of Indie. One of these is the image which I took:

My photo which I have used on my contents page has similarities and differences to the photograph which I found in a proffessional magazine.


I think that my image represents the social group of indie through the mise-en-scene. Her clothes show that she does not follow trends and is independant. The use of black connotes that she is passionate and like rock/indie music. The dirty brick wall also represents indie as it shows that they are not perfect. Her pose conveys the message that she has attitude and is not nescarely smiley.

I think that this image is quite different to other images used in double page spread music magazines. This is mainly because of the location. However the location has meaning behind it as it is where the video for the artists video is set. It would appeal to the group of indie as it is somewhere where they would hang out.

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

I think that an instituation such as Bauer media would distribute my product. The are a large institute who already own magazine such as Q and Kerrang which I got inspiration from for my product. However my magazine is different to these because it has a different target audience and is aimed at a different social group, however it has some of the same conventions. This would mean that it would get sold in all shops and supermarkets around the country. As they are a large instituation it means that they would have a large budget to spend on the magazine which would mean that the magazine could be produced to a high standard and therefore attract people to but it.

Here is my front cover and a cover of Kerrang. I think that there are similarities between the two as the same colour scheme is used which makes it bright and outstanding. However the main image is very different as my magazine shows that the artist is soft and gentle where as the Kerrang image shows that they are rock stars, through their dominating pose and the showing of their tatto.

Who would be the audience for the media product?

Who would be the audience for the media product? on Prezi

How did you attract/address your audience?

How did you attract/address your audience? on Prezi

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

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

For my prelim task I had to create the front cover and contents page for a college magazine. I think that my skills have improved drastilcy since the prelim task. I have improved my skills in photoshop and have learnt new skills in indesign in order to create my contents page and double page spread. On my prelim I used the same fonts throughout however now I have learnt to use a variety of fonts and in different sizes. I have also learnt that colour is important and decided on a colour scheme before I started. I feel that my prelim front cover looks boring as there is lots of dead space and whiteness.

I don't think that my contents page looks very professional compared to my final product. Things such as the lines not fitting together makes it look unfinished and reduces the quality. Yet again the colours are very plain and I did keep the colours consistant. During the production task I learnt how to put affects on text and images which make it more appealing to look at.

Final products

Front cover

Contents pageDouble paged spread

Rough cuts

From the last rough cut I changed the font of the masthead to 'capture it' as it is bolder and so attracts the attention of readers. I added a thicker outer edge to the 'Harriet' so that it is more eye cacthing than before. I added some sell lines to the left hand side and a circle on the top right to put some information in.

This is my first rough cut of my front cover. I like the quote used at the bottom as I think it stands out against the background. I like the font which I have chosen for the title Harriet however I do not feel that it stands out enough so needs to be bigger and bolder. I also think that the masthead 'Musik' needs to be stronger.

This is a rough cut of when I first started constructing my contents page. I decided on two columns with a large picture of the artist on the right with writing underneath explaining what it is about. I made specific titles such as 'Live' and 'features' so that the reader can quickly skip to the content which they are interested in. From the last rough cut I finished entering all of the information saying what is included within the magazine. I decided to change the next because I felt that the text before was to large and I wanted something simple so that the reader can quickly read through and so that the focus is on the main image. I also made the text closer together because it was wasted space when the spacing was far apart. I made the outline of 'Liz Mcdade' bigger so that it stands out against the background. I also added an editors letter because I think that people will be interested in this.

Here I started to construct my double page spread. I decided to have three collumns for the text to go in and inserted a quote from the text in the middle of the page so that it will attract the reader and give them an insight into what the interview will include. I decided to have the whole of the right page with the main image so that this is the main focus and relates to the article.

On this rough cut I enlarged the image on the right page so that it fills the whole page and looks more professional. I also changed the two names of 'Harriet' and 'Harriet Smith' from a pink colour to a red colour to experiment. I inserted my article and made sure that it flowed on from each collumnI added a smaller image at the bottom of the left page to break up all of the text and make it more intresting to look at.

Article

“I’m so sorry that you’ve had to wait so long” apologises Harriet “The last shot took way longer than expected” she laughed. As she gets ready for the interview Harriet continues to apologise and explain about her hectic day which she has had on the last day on the set of her second music video. It’s clear that everything is very new and exciting to her which is to be expected as she is only 18 years old.
Harriet still lives at home in a small village in the North East with her Mam, Dad and younger brother. Since a young age she has had a passion for music ‘I liked music from a very young age’ she told me ‘and I just really enjoy it’. Although her immediate family are not musical she was inspired by her grandparents to start playing musical instruments. It was at school were Harriet’s musical ability became clear to see ‘I got into the soul band as a singer’ she laughs ‘and then I built up my courage from their’. Even though Harriet says that singing and piano playing come naturally to her she hasn’t always been so confident in her ability ‘it took me a long time to build up my confidence’. It took Harriet a long time to build up the courage to perform her own songs. She started off doing covers of pop songs and as she was not confidence enough with her own material. It shows that although it took her a while to gain enough confidence eventually she achieved what she wanted.
Many people are not aware of the fact that a career in music can very challenging and is not all about playing sold out gigs and making lots of money. “I think people think that being a musician is easy but it’s really not! I’ve been working really hard on my music since the age of 13, doing gigs in WMC trying to get people to listen to my music, it hasn’t been easy. However I wouldn’t change a single moment of it for the world”. I asked Harriet if she had ever considered entering a reality TV show such as the x-factor. “Never” she exclaims “It takes away your individuality, people may think that it’s the easy road to success but I don’t think it is. It’s all part of the fun gigging etc. So I wouldn’t want to be shot straight to stardom”.
“I still can’t believe that my single is at number 1” Harriet sequels when I mention the success of her debut single ‘Guilty’. “Never in a million years did I think I would make into the charts never mind to number 1 and to stay there for five weeks!” “I could not stop screaming when I found out, I think after a while I was getting on everyone’s nerves. Harriet hopes to follow up her recent success with the release of her second single.
What is the story behind you new single ‘Meant to be’ I ask. “It is about falling in love” she laughs “ I know it sounds really clique and the same as everyone else but I think that people will really be able to relate to it. I’ve had a lot of feedback from people saying how much they like it so I thought that it would be perfect for my second single”. Harriet worked with legendary producer Mark Ronson on her new song. ‘Meant to be’ has a much slower and mellow feel to it than any of his previous work, and it shocked the Musik team that this was his work. “Working with Mark Ronson was one of the best experiences of my life, he had so many great ideas, I was a bit overwhelmed by it all”. It is clear in the song that the two worked very well together and have created a song which I think will stay around for years.
As much as Harriet has high hopes for the future is keeping her feet firmly on the ground and is being realistic about the future. “I know that I’m not guaranteed a successful career, when I see bands and artists who have a one hit wonder then fade away. I panic that the same is going to happen to me”. She told me how that whatever happens with her career music will always be a huge part of her life and that she will always be passionate about it.
I believe that Harriet will have a great career within the music industry as her down to earth personality and combined with her musical talent make a recipe for success. Harriet’s new single ‘meant to be’ is available to download from the 2nd April and is in the shops on the 9th April.

Construction

Here I changed the stroke of the outer edge of 'Harriet'. I did this by double clicking on the layer and then clicking on stroke. I experimented with the thickness of it and then decided on a thickness of 16 and with 100% opacity.

This screen shot shows how I added an in glow to the name of 'Liz Mcdade' which is a sell line down the left side. Firstly I changed the stroke of it like I have done above. I then clicked on 'outer glow'. It gave me a range of options which I could chose from, I decided that I wanted the opacity to 100% so that it would be as bold and outstanding as it can be.

Here I added a drop shadow to the image of the editor. I did this by right clicking on the image and then going to effects and clicking drop shadow. It then came up with a range of options which I could change. After playing around with it I decided on an option which I liked.
Here I made the text flow from one text box to the other. Firstly I created three box's the side which I wanted the text to fill within the three columns. I then changed them all to text so that my article could be placed inside them. Next I had to link all of the boxes together. I did this by clicking on the small X box at the bottom of the first column, which connected it to the next box and so on. Next I pressed placed and dragged my article into the first box which automatically followed on to the next.

On this screen shot I added a drop shadow to the small image so that it added depth.
I also titled the image so that it is slightly diagonal by changing the rotation at the top to 7. I right clicked on the image and chose drop shadow. I then changed the capicity to 75% and decided on the angle which I wanted the shadow to come from.

Photography construction

I am not going to use this image becasue she is not framed in the centre of the frame so it does not look like right and also I am not keen on the background of the image.

I am considering using this photograph becasue it gives Harriet status as she is on a higher level. Eventhough she is placed to the right of the frame I think that it still works. Also I like the souroundings as it looks slightly deralict which goes with the genre of my magazine.

I do not think that I am going to use this image becasue I think that the lighting is to dark and her facial expression looks sad her body language looks unsecure which is not what I want to portray.

I like this photograph because Harriet is placed in the middle of the frame which draws your attention. Even though it is a high angled shot and she is sat down it does not lower her status. I am considering using this image on my double page spread.

I am not going to use this image becasue it is to far away so the model can not be clearly seen and it does not show what she is wearing so I feel that it would not be suitable for a contents page image.

I like this photograph as I like the sourounding however I don't think that have a high angled shot works because it does not give the artist a high status and instead makes the reader look down on her. Also the pose does not look very natural.

I intend to use this image on my contents page because it is a low angled shot therefor encourages the audience to look up to them and gives the impression that she as the artist is of a higher status. Also the brick background and her clothing show attitiude which is what I want to reflect in my magazine.

I like this photo however I think that the contrast of the lights may be too bright but the photograph could be edited to change this. Even though it is a close-up I feel that it may be too close as there is not a lot of room for sell lines etc. to be added.

I am not going to use this photo because I think that it is too direct as she is looking straight on and into the camera which I dont think creates an intresting picture to look at.

I like this photo becasue the use of the microphone empasises that it is a music magazine and the position of the model with one hand on her hip and the other clasping the microphone gives the impression of attitude.


I think that this image works well becasue she is positioned in the centre of the frame which is what is wanted for a front cover shot. As it is a medium close-up it means that all the relevant information can be placed around the sides.

I intend to use this photo becasue she is in a natural pose which does not make it look forced so I think the audience would be more drawn to it. However the down side to this photograph is that she is not positioned in the middle of the frame and half of her right arm is cut off. I think that this photo would still work because the white gap created on the left side gives enough room for cell lines etc.

Journalism Development

Paulo Nutini
Paulo Nutini grew up in the city of Edinburgh. From an early age he showed musical potential playing a variety of instruments. He then moved to London at the young age of 17 to pursue his musical career. After getting signed to Atlantic records, he released his first album 'These Streets' which went to number 3 in the charts. He released four singles of the album. In 2009 'Sunny Side up' was released and went straight to number 1. Paulo takes inspiration from artisits such as Bob Marley and the Specials, and trys to incoperate their sound within his music.

Paolo Nutini- Pencil full of lead
Pencil full of lead is quite different to any of Paolo Nutinis previous material. It has a fast tempo and resembles the sound of the 50's. It has a jazz feel to it which is aided by the trumpets at the chorus and trombones throughout. It has a lively and uplifting feel to it which I think will help it appeal to a wider audience then his previous album. The chorus is very catchy and after a few plays soon gets stuck in your head. I think that this will be a very successful song as it creates an uplifting atmosphere for the listener.

I think that my journalist skills have improved as I can now evaluate a piece and describe it which I will help me in my article as I will have to desrcibe and evaluate a piece of music.

Paragraph planning

Firstly I am going to set the scene for the interview. I shall do this my answering the following questions of who,what,where,why, when and give a brief history of the artist. Next I will talk about the background of the artist Harriet, and how she got involved in music. I will then talk about Harriets carrer so far such as her biggest achivements and her dreams and asperations for the future.I will then continue with asking questions about her influences, idols and sound of her music. I will then evalute her new single and give my opinion on it. Lastly I will sum up the whole interview in a brief paragraph

Call sheet

Model: Harriet Smith
Character: Herself
Call time: 9:00
Date: Wednesday 10th February
Costume:
Make-up: Dark eyes and red lipstick
Location: Arts centre
Set: Photography studio
Photographer: Lois Bunker
Editor: Lois Bunker

Model: Harriet Smith

Character: Herself

Call time: 11:00

Date: saturday 20th Febuary

Costume: Jeans, long cardigan, leapoard print scarf, boots

Location: Bishop Auckland

Set: Train track/woodland area

Photograpger: Lois Bunker

Editor: Lois Bunker

Model: Liz Mcdade
Character: New artist
Call time: 1:00pm
Date: Monday 15th Febuary
Costume: Leather jacket, biker boots
Make-up: Dark eyes
Location: Durham riverside
Set: Boat house
Photographer: Lois Bunker
Editor: Lois Bunker

Model: Frances Gallagher
Character: Established artist
Call time: 1:00pm
Date: Monday 15th Febuary
Costume:
Make-up: Natural
Location: durham riverside
Set: Brick wall
Photographer: Lois Bunker
Editor: Lois Bunker

Article planning

My double paged spread is going to an interview with the artist Harriet, who is the main focus of the article. The purpose is to promote her new single and album and inform the reader about her style of music. I am going to use 1st person narrative voice because it creates synthetic personalization which makes it more personal between the interviewer, interviewee and reader. I am going to make the interview informal as I think that it will appeal better to the target adience as they will prefer an informal and more relaxed style. I will be asking questions about her music and influence, life and her future within music. I don't want to make the interview to serious as that would not appeal to the target audience.

Reece of location

Photography studio
The studio has a plain white background and all the correct equipment available which makes it the perfect place to photograph the image for my front cover. The high key lighting means that a contrast is created between the subject and the background. The studio is suitable for what I need because it has the correct equipment and is easily accessable reguardless of weather and timing.

Riverside
Durham riverside is the next suitble location which I have found. I will be using natural lighting so I will be restricted as to when I can shoot. However I feel that it will be an effective location to use for my contents page. The subject will be higher than the camera therefore it will suggest that she is important and encourage the reader to look up to her.

Woodland area/train track
This is the next suitable location which I have found. Even though I will be using natural lighting it is a very bright and open space therefore this should not be a problem as long as I do my shoot midday. There are no retrictions to use this location and is not used very often by members of the public which means that it can always be acssed.

Photoshot plan

Rationale: I have chosen to take the photos for the cover page infront of a white screen. This is because I want the subject to stand out and be the main focus against the background. I am going to use a high key lighting on eavh side of the subject therefore no shadowing will be created and it will be even.

Rationale: I have chosen to place the subject either stood on or sat on a small wall. I will be using natural light from the sun and will be moving the position of the camera to take a range of shots.

Rationale: I have chosen to place the subject infront of a large tree and I am using natural light from the sun as it is an outside space. I will be moving the camera into different positions so that I can take a range of shots.

Flat plans

Rationale: I have decided on a medium close-up for the shot of Harriet. This is because I think that it will be bold and outstanding and draw the attention of possible readers. She will have be wearing big bold make-up to emphasise her features and show that she has attitude. I have chosen a large bold font for the masthead. It connotes attitude. I have used the colour red for the section along the top and for the title 'Harriet'. I have chosen this colour because it shows passion. I have decided to shot the front image in the photo studio because I want the photo to be on Harriet not on the background and it will also mean that all the other sections will stand out against it.

Ratinale: Along the top of my contents page I will have the main title of 'contnets' in a white font with a black background so that it stands out. Down the left side of the page will be a collunm in red which will have to storys at the top and a list of bands included within the magazine on the bottom half. All of this will be in a simple white font to stand out against the background. The colour scheme of black,red and white all contrast and suggest attitude and passion. I will have two images included on the page. One will be a medium close-up of a new artsit featured inside and the other will be of a the singer of a band which will link to the gig guide inside. I have split all of the contents up into three sections of, News, Live and Features. This will make it easier for people to quickly scim and straight away find what they are looking for.

Rationale: For my double paged spread the right page is going to be filled with the image of Harriet. This is going to be a long shot of her leaning agaisnt a fence whilst plaing the guithar. The location of this shot is going to be in a woodland area. I have chosen the main colour of the spread to be purple as it is a bold colour which is femmine however it still connotes passion. I have chosen a simple but effective font for the title as I want the main focus of the page to be on the image. Underneath I have included a few short lines which will introduce to the reader what the interview is about so they can then choose if they want to read it. Aswell as this I have inclucded two quotes from the interview which will make the reader want to find out more about it and therefore read it.

Institutional Context

Bauer Media is the worlds largest privatly owned publishing group. It is a global media conglomerate as it owns many different genres of magazines such as Q, Grazia and heat. They also own a range of radio stations including TFM, metro radio and magic. As they are such a large company it means that they have a large amount of money to spend on each magazine. This therefore means that a high standard is created as they have a lot of people working on each thing. I would like to create my magazine for an institute such as Bauer Media even though I will be the only one working on it because I want to create a high standard.

I shall be taking on many different roles within the making of my magazine.
Photographer: I shall be taking on the role of photographer by choosing the recces for each photo shot and making sure I get the best quality photographs at the end. I will take a range of different shots at different locations so that I can pick the best. This role is important because it the photographs are the main feature of the front page and double paged spread.
Editor: I will take the role of editor this will involve deciding on the contents included within the magazine, overseeing the layout and photo shoots and appearance of the magazine.
Journalist: I will have be a journalist by conducting an interview and then writing it up into an intresting and informative article which will appeal to the target audince of the magazine.

Initial sketches

Proposal of ideas and initial treatment

Proposal
Create a front cover, contents page and dps of a music magazine. The intention is to inform the reader about music issues as well as to entertain so that they enjoy reading it. There are lots of music magazines available however I am aiming mine at a young audience between the ages of 16-25 with a genrre of indie/alternative music. I am going to make it appeal to this age by using a young artist on the cover and dps so they will be more able to relate to her. The double pages spread will infrom people about the artist and her music but will also be entertaining for the reader to read. I hope to create a front cover, contents page and double paged spread of a music magazine which targets the audience which I am aiming at.

Initial treatment
The front is going to have the main image of the artisit in a close-up with her placed in the centre. This will be making the audience look up to the artist therefore creating showing her importance. The masthead will be placed at the top of the page on the left hand side because it is one of the main focus' of the cover. It shall be slightly covered over by the image but will still be recognisable. The colours used are going to be contrasting such as black and red or black and white. I am going to use these colours because they connate passion which is what the target audience have for music. The contents page will have one long shot image of one of the articles inside. The rest of the contents will be split into different section headings such as news, reviews etc. I will use a white background so that it doesnt look to busy and will make sure that the main features stand out. The dps will have one of the pages just with the image of the artist one. This is going to be a medium close-up but will be very different to the image onthe front cover. It will be in a different location. The clothing worn will be young and trendy therefore appealing to the target audience and they will be able to relate to her.

Mood board and Rationale

I created a mood board of image and texts which have inspired me and have given me inspiration for the creation of my magazine. The main colours of the board are red and black. On the page the colour red stands out the most which shows that it will stand out on the front of my magazine. I like the big bold titles as they are eye cacthing and attract the eye.

Target audience

From the primary and secondary research which I have done I have come to a conclusion about who my target audience for my magazine are. I am aiming my magazine at both genders between the age range of 16-25. They are either college/university students or have full time jobs. They are image concious and like clothes shops such topshop, triple S etc. They are intrested in indie/alernative bands and artists and enjoy ending live music events. They are open minded to new bands/artists and different genres. They like to use music magazines other facilities especially websites, and use the internet on a daily basis.

From the findings of the results I have decided to create a bold and outstanding front cover with contrasting colours as this will appeal to the target audience who are fun and individual which I know through my primary research.

Primary research

Questionnaire
I created a questionnaire so that I could conduct research into who my target audience are and what their intrests and opinions are. I asked 10 males and 10 females from a variety of ages to complete it.
Here is a copy of my questionnaire:

Here is a table of results from my questionnaire:
I have focused my questionnaire on the ages 16-25. The chart below shows the music genre of music which people are intrested in. The results show that indie/alternative music was the most popualr with 74% of people chosing it.

The follwing chart is the results of 'how often do you use music magazines?' The results show that the majority of people use websites such as nme.com and qthemusic.com more on a monthly basis than a daily or weekly basis. Although all 20 of the people questioned said that they use the internet on a daily basis the chart shows that they dont use the interet to look on music magazines websites although they do use it.
Out of the magazines shown in the questionnaire, the majorty of people said that they found the following magazine NME the most effective. Reasons given for choosing this one are because they found the colours eye cathcing and liked the big bold title of NME and the Gossip. They also commented about the use of colours black, red and white. They liked how they contrasted and which made certain features of it stand out.

Focus group
I held a focus group with people aged between 16-25 as this is the age range for my target audience. I asked them to give their opinions on current magazines and showed them some examples.
When discussing front covers lots of the members said that they like bold contrasting colours to be used. Hollie said 'I am always attracted to magazines with a bold title and large colourful image'. They liked the front of Q and NME for this as black and red are often used. They agreed that the image on the front sould portray individuality in order for it to appeal to the target audience. There was a difference of opinion reguarding the layout of a contents page. Some said that they prefer one main image whilst other liked lots of images linking to the various storys. They did however agree that the contents shoud be split into different sections so that it is easy to find what you are looking for. Frances said 'For articles I like it when there is one large image covering one of the pages and no other images included as it can look a bit messy'. When shown the NME dps of Scarlett Johnson they all agreed that it was effective even though a lot of colour is not used.

Secondary Research

Secondary research looks at who reads magazines and what the readers interest's and personalty's are like. This informs the magazine who their magazine is aimed at so what they need to incorporate.

http://www.ipcadvertising.com/resource/fd4e20nlh1xefkowjxdha4xu.pdf

This reader profile for NME shows who their target audience is. From this I can see that NME is aimed at young men between the ages 0f 16-25. It is clear that they are interested in technology such as phones and laptops. This may also suggest that they regularly use the Internet. It is also clear that they are image conscience as they shop in 'Topman' and 'Levi'. The readers of NME also like to have fun as they are intrested in the x-box and games. This profile shows that generally the readers of NME have a disposable income large enough to spend on looking good and having fun.

http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/Brands/Q/

This is the reader profile for Q magazine. The readers of Q magazine are individual and are older than the readers of NME and Kerrang. They have a variety of intrests more than just music. These include sport film and politics which are aimed more at males over the age of 20. Not only is Q a magazine but it also has radio station and website which makes Q more accesible from different places. Q have readers who are passionate and open minded, this refelcts in the content of Q magazine.

http://www.bauermedia.co.uk/Brands/Kerrang/

Kerrang magazine is aimed at a young audience of mainly male between the ages of 16-25. They are individuals and have a passion for rock music. Kerrang not only caters for their target audince through their magazine but they also have a radio station, TV channel and website, as their audience regually use these facilities.