AS Media Studies: 2015

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

I chose this layout for my contents page as I thought it was extremely conventional and organised. Both of our page numbers are similar; being stood out for the photos so that the reader can identify where the content is going to be. Also the use of columns are similar as the numbers are larger so that they can see them clearly but also skip to the page of their choice easily. They have used large images that have taken up most of the page as this is the article that will feature on the magazines double page spread. Also the use of hearts indicate the audience's age and keep it conventional to the genre.

In my double page spread I feel like I have included all the conventions I need for my genre of magazine. I kept the pink and blue so that my magazine had continuity and also because it is young and girly and looks good together. I also used a drop cap as it is a popular convention for a magazine as it looks professional. The heading for my magazine was a pull quote as it is conventional and makes the page look fun and also makes you want to read on. I also think the black and white photos make the type stand out and vica-verca. The page number and name of the magazine in the corner again make it a conventional double page spread.

2. How does you media product represent particular social groups?

Within my media product I have represented a certain social group as the model I chose, I wanted to represent or have a look of Taylor Swift. This is because she was the most popular female artist on my survey. I wanted her to look confident but friendly as I thought this would appeal a larger audience as no one wants to feel intimidated by an artist. This again addresses my target audience because at this age you can be sensitive and want to feel inspired rather than intimidated.

I made my model wear makeup bu still make it natural as I obviously want my audience to be happy with themselves and don't want my model to make my audience feel unconfident with themselves. I also used makeup to cover up any blemishes or imperfections as in the industry, artists are deemed to have flawless skin and this is another convention of my genre of magazine. I also chose this model because she is blonde (Taylor Swift link) and put her in a stripy navy and white top as this would be a common thing that Taylor would wear and is recognizable as her own style.

The reason to why the images were in black and white is because I wanted it to have more or a serious tone, to link with the interview. This is because I wanted the interview to be inspiring and give advice to young girls, rather than just questions that weren't useful to an audience. The T-Shirt choice also makes the model look more casual and gives off a positive vibe that any member of the audience can look like this. All you have to do is work hard; this is what the interview is all about. It also makes the audience feel equal and that they can achieve what the artist has as it makes them feel comfortable and like she is just a normal person, which I think is unconventional for a magazine. This is because usually artists/celebrities are portrayed to be better or of more value.

This is one of the photos that I chose for a feature story. I chose this photo specifically because I thought using a model that is smiling connotes happiness and makes her look more approachable to an audience. It makes the reader feel comfortable and gives off a positive feeling and therefore will make the reader feel happy too. For this shoot I again chose simple makeup as I wanted the models to look natural. This is of course the original image but I did use photoshop to clear up her skin and whiten her teeth so she looked stereo typically perfect.

3. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why

I decided that my magazine would also be available on a iPad or other mobile device. You would reach my online version by visiting www.inspiremag.eu. I did this because I wanted my magazine to reach a larger audience and by making it available on a mobile device, it is allowing people who want to look at the product quickly, although they would get it for free, they don't get an actual copy and would be updated each month. Once a new version of the magazine is out, the previous month's will be removed.

4. Who would be the audience for your media product?

The first prezi I did was at the beginning of the project and was for Audience Research.

5. How did you attract/address your audience?

In my front cover I have attracted my audience through the use of colour, photographs and the content and language used. In order to find out what other people thought I put together a small questionnaire and used videos and GoAnimate to record the results.

1) By looking at my magazine, can you tell the genre that I have produced?

2) Do you think my front cover, contents page and double page spread look like a conventional magazine?

3) Do you think I have represented my audience through my design?

4) What do you find the most appealing about my product?

5) Could you tell me the positive factors about my magazine?

6) Would you buy my magazine or visit it online?

7) How do you think I could improve it?

http://goanimate.com/videos/0AHu2gZWdZoI?utm_source=linkshare&utm_medium=linkshare&utm_campaign=usercontent

By clicking this link above you will be able to visit my GoAnimate page.

http://youtu.be/cS8ic-ONTi4 and http://youtu.be/gYGNczBInAg
I was given mainly positive feedback. Being told that my magazine looks like it should be on a shop floor and that the bright colours make it look realistic is really good to hear. Although I was told to include more colourful photographs on my front cover and contents page, the photographs that I used were said to be effective and look good.

I also chose competitions for X-Factor, which is extremely popular among young teenagers.

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

In these images I am changing the brightness and hue to make the image brighter but also more yellow toned instead of pink. I also changed the levels on the images so the shadows were darker and highlights lighter.

For this image I created a new layer and made the model's lips more pink by using the magic wand tool and highlighting her lips. Then colouring them in pink and changing the opacity so it looked natural.

I also used Survey Monkey to create survey at the beginning of the project to collect information about the audience, pricing and magazine name. Survey monkey was useful to me as it was presented really simply so it was easy to convey the information that had been collected. It also told you a percentage which therefore make my results exact and precise. You even got to chose how you would like your results presented so it is all specific to you and your design preferences.

This information then went into Prezi and I created a presentation that you I inserted in an earlier question.

I used both my iPhone and a larger digital camera to take my photographs and I think the outcome from both technologies were great. I found that my phone was great for taking photos of things up close i.e the flowers and the camera was better for portrait photographs of the models.

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

When I look back on my preliminary task I feel like my design has stayed pretty similar due to my style preferences but I know that my layout and photography has improved due to stylisation and having a different brief.

I think you can tell that my photoshop skills have improved. I am now able to make skin look more 'perfect' and colour correct to go with the rest of the colour scheme. In my preliminary task I feel like there was a lack of images and the white background looked quite plain. My music magazine is full up of articles and photos whereas on my college magazine it is quite sparse and only has words, which I realise now can be unappealing to an audience. I think the layouts of both magazine are quite similar but obviously with practise I have been able to build up my photography, photoshop and all round editing skills.

This chart demonstrates how I included most of the conventions of a magazine in both my preliminary and my music magazine.

If I had to re-do my college magazine I wouldn't change much as I feel like it is very good for a first attempt at a magazine. I would maybe include some more photographs just so that it isn't all words and doesn't look as sparse. Because my college magazine in mostly text, I found it quite easy to construct and make it look conventional. Also because I was basing the content on something I happened to be interested in, I found it easy to come up with feature stories and slogans. Whilst doing the music brief I also learnt how important lighting was whilst taking a photo. In my preliminary I simply used daylight to take photographs, but because in the music brief I wanted more of a dramatic look, I played around with lighting using a dark room and large torch and this seem to give me the dramatic effect that I desired.