EVALUATION 5

EVALUATION 6

Evaluation 6

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EVALUATION 1

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

My magazine cover challenges conventions in many ways. However also follows a lot of trends that the normal indie rock magazine follows.

My cover:

My cover has the classic sale lines about concerts and and upcoming trends that the generic reader will want to read about. However, i challenged conventions by having a lot of fonts and shapes that over lap and cover each other. For example the over sided quotation marks. Although this is odd, it doesn't look out of place.

Contents:

I continued the over lapping themes on my contents page. My contents page is based on one from NME because this is the same genre as my magazine, however I developed the conventions by over sizing different aspects and changing the focus of the over all page.

Double Page Spread:
My double page spread follows the classic convention of having one main image covering both the pages, and having the fonts on top of it. I really like this affect, that is why i used it. I also followed the convention of having a impacting quote from the band as the biggest font to make you interested in reading it.

To conclude, I have challenged, followed and developed a range of conventions to not only make my magazine original and innovative. Although i do believe in following conventions so that is easily recognisable by my consumer. 

EVALUATION 2

http://prezi.com/dz9dux9on_wj/evaluation-2/

EVALUATION 7

http://prezi.com/vak-nrcind4n/evaluation-7/

EVALUATION 4

who would be the audience for your media product?


The audience I have aimed my product at are the older teenager age to mid 20's. This is because my genre of music that I have based my music magazine on has its own social group: indie. 
Although this meant I almost had guidelines to follow to make sure I kept the conventions of this genre. It also meant I had be not only creative, but careful when straying from conventions to create new trends to not stray too far from the obvious themes. 

I wouldn't say my magazine is aimed at particular genre. It has different aspects that will appeal to both men, and women. For example, subjects of the front cover photo, the three men, appeal to women because they are good looking. However they also appeal to men as they are dressed fashionably and so can aspire to be like them. Also, the colour theme doesn't limit me to one particular gender either as they are all pretty multi-sex colours. The sale lines will also appeal to men and women because they aren't all just about "hot guys" or "sports news". Another reason I have made sure that my magazine doesn't just target one single gender is because the social group of indie people tend to not stick to just sex friendship groups but often have it half female, half male. 




In terms of class and whom my magazine would be aimed at, it would be mainly the middle class. This is because the people in my social group are mainly in this class. Also, I don't think a lot of the things included in my magazine would be relevant or interesting for people from different classes.


The lifestyle of the audience my magazine would have would be quite laid back. Earlier in my research I did a questionnaire to see what sort of things people expected from an indie rock magazine, and one of the questions was:

I tried to make sure that I maintained these stereotypes throughout the magazine, some more subtly than others, but still maintaining the identity of the genre. 

Finally, I believe the type of audience my magazine will attract will be uni-sex, young adult people. Typically coming from the indie social group and trying to be individual in everything they do. 

EVALUATION 3

20TH APRIL 2012

I've made some minor adjustments and improvements to my project and now think I am finished. Let me know if you can see anything needing changing or any advice. 

10TH APRIL 2012

LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK 

26TH MARCH 2012

DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD ISSUES
As part of creating the double page spread of my magazine I faced many issues.


PROBLEM:
We couldn't two A4 pages to appear side by side each other


SOLUTION:
it just turned out the software was trying to help and in fact we had to insert three pages, because the cover of a magazine wouldn't be double page. 


PROBLEM:
I couldn't get text or images to spread across the two pages without disappearing.


SOLUTION:
Instead of putting two pages side my side, I doubled the width of the A4 page so that it would be the size of a double page. Although, this means I wont have guttering.

19TH MARCH 2012

DRAFT COVERS:

Before deciding for sure what picture I wanted to use as my cover I tried out various different images just to be sure. Here are some of my earlier drafts which in the end I chose not to use -

 To the right is the final image I chose to use. It is only a draft and I will probably end up changing a lot of what is on it, but for the time being I happy with what I have created.
I was originally going to call the magazine UNEXAMPLED however changed my mind as one of the things all music magazines have in common is that the title usually has something to do with music, leading me to the name LOUDER. 

12TH MARCH 2012

POSSIBLE COVER/DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD PICTURES:  

9TH MARCH 2012

PLEASE COMMENT STATING YOUR FAVOURITE FONT FROM THE LIST BELOW: 
The font chosen will be the font used for the mast head of my magazine. I want to give the "free" impression. That the magazine isn't trying to follow a previous media before, and offering a unique, informative magazine. 

9TH MARCH 2012

FONTS:
To make my magazine original and unique. To make it easier for me to find the fonts I am going to make a list of the fonts I download. 


Anthem 
Aristotle Punk
Bete Noir
brand new burn
Broken Ghost
Bada Boom 
carbon
dirt2death
Embossing Tape
More Than Enough
quick end
Rough Linen
sidewalk






I am now going to narrow this list down to my top 5 favourites and the ask my target audience which they like the best. 

2ND MARCH 2012

McQuail (1983) classified the following common reasons for media use:

INFORMATION: Different groups of people use NME for different reasons. Information is given in any magazine and NME is no exception. People will be looking for relevant events and conditions in immediate surroundings, the society and the world. The magazine will also provide advice on practical matters/opinions and decision choices - this could be based around a new upcoming artist or about what new trends will be soon popular. NME will also aim to satisfy curiosity and general interest by continually updating their information and reporting reviews and interviews of different music medias. Finally people who read the magazine will want to gain a sense of security through knowledge and so the magazine will aim to provide as much new information every issue as they can. 

PERSONAL IDENTITY: In music, one of the main aspects it covers is personal identity and allowing people to be who they want to. They will establish personal values and find models of behaviour to allow consumers to think they are making their own decisions about their life whilst subtly being influenced. NME will give identity with valued others in the media and often make it easier for you to relate to celebrities, which then makes you think you're gaining insight into yourself. For example, like in the cover below; "I would have never got through X Factor auditions" - Florence. This makes you think that Florence, is just another normal person like you. 

7TH MARCH 2012

RECCE
To experiment what type of background and setting we would want our magazine covers to have. We did this by going around school and taking pictures, but obviously being in school we were limited. I tried to find as many as original pictures as possible because one of the things that came back from my questionnaire was that they expected the indie genre to be unique and not follow the crowd. 


I like the image to the left because it has a 'free' and 'airy' feel. When I think of the stereotype indie I imagine it outside and generally natural and carefree. I like the bike in the picture because it also symbolises that they are going somewhere. This also represents to the genre indie as every day it becomes more and more popular. 










I also like the image to the right. I love the sky with the clouds in the background, symbolising freeness and nature with the grass also in the image. But also by having the fencing and railings in the picture and having it at a low angle gives in a almost superior feel, as though to be taken seriously.












I love the blue sky and definitely think I will include this if not on my cover definitely somewhere in my magazine. I like the old, battered affect from the broken basketball hoop because I think it gives the photo personality and a story. 

27TH FEB 2012

QUESTIONNAIRE 

- I devised a questionnaire to ask various people from my target audience to find out what they want. 

1. Who's your favourite Indie Rock band?

• Charlie Simpson
• Ed Sheeran 
• The Killers
• One Republic

2. What would make you buy an Indie Rock music magazine?

• people I like, new bands
• someone knew
• bands I like, girls, festivals
• a good band

3. Who would you like to see inside?

• a mix of really famous and really new upcoming artists

4. What's your impression of Indie Rock fans?

• individual
• just trying to be different
• a bit weird
• fun

5. What do you expect to find inside?

• posters
• interviews with bands
• reviews
• festival events 
• concerts
• horoscopes
• music
• line ups 

6. What adverts would you expect to see?

• upcoming concerts and festivals
• music vouchers

7. How often would you like it to be released?

• majority said fortnightly 
• minority said monthly

8. How much would you pay?

• £2.50
• less that £5
• up to £5
• £2

To summarise my findings, the people I interviewed generally all wanted the same thing. 

Like any other magazine they expected to find posters, charts, upcoming events and interviews. It being a Indie Rock magazine led them to want a mixture of both new and original artists to keep the magazine current and up to date. I will probably have the magazine be a fortnightly one as this option came out most popular, and put the cost at £4 because from the answers I received it was obvious people would pay this amount. 

24TH FEB 2012

RESEARCHING A NICHE MAGAZINE


ABC : audit bureau of circulations 


A NICHE magazine is a magazine about a sub-genre of a major genre which as a lot of depth to it. Niche magazines have many different pros and cons which drive them publication.


PROS: 

• the audience they are targeting will be far more loyal and committed to buying the magazine each week
• the magazine will have more specific content

CONS:

• niche magazines means their target audience will be smaller
• smaller audiences means smaller income
• can't include much variation

I am now going to look and study a niche magazine and look at the sales, marketing and publications. 

Cross Stitcher is an example of a niche magazine. It sells around 38,684 magazines ever six months and last years sales decreased by -18.7%. Sales probably dropped because one; this is a very niche hobby and so will have a small target audience and two; because it is such a rare hobby and we're in a recession people wont be able to spend money on leisure activities. Another reason cross stitching magazines are going "out of fashion" is because people will be spending more money on the equipment they need and not wasting it on magazines when all the information people can pay for from the magazine they can get for free from the internet. 

However, although Cross Stitcher is decreasing in sales, two similar magazines; The World of Cross Stitching and Cross Stitch Crazy, both owned by Immediate Media Company, sales have increased. 

Immediate Media Company also own many other magazines, some associated with the BBc therefore although they are publishing a niche magazine, have a huge backing which will able to publicise the magazines more, making people more aware of them. This therefore explains their sale increases. Future Publishing, on the other hand, own Cross Stitcher who have decreased. Future Publishing owns a lot of computer and television based magazines and so wont be "showing off" cross stitching as much. 

The magazine to the right is the cover of the magazine I have been discussing. Its typical niche target audience is going to be women and that is most probably the reason the colour theme is based around pink and yellow and is covered in flowers and girly fonts. There are  several sale lines and promotional images which they could be doing to bring in and interest new readers. 

10TH FEB 2012

MOOD BOARD:

10TH FEB 2012

I have decided to change the genre I want my final magazine to be to
                      INDIE ROCK.
This is because I believe this genre has a much more broad variety of artists and routes I can take with it. 


INDIE ROCK is a genre of rock and was born in the UK and USA in the 1980's. It has many different genres within it such as indie pop and grunge and includes artists like Ellie Goulding, The Fray, Snow Patrol etc. It was originally a term used to describe record labels however then went on to identify "outsider" artists, not many people had heard of. 
INDIE ROCK describes small and relatively low-budget labels which has a do-it-yourself attitude of bands and artists involved. 




HISTORY OF INDIE ROCK
In 1986 NME, the main music magazine producing indie rock articles, was a document of the UK indie scene. This then gave a major influence to the development of the British indie scene as a whole. Significant labels then included CREATION, SUBWAY and GLASS. In the 1990s major changes were bought into the alternative rock scene. A lot of the smaller bands of the sub-genres of indie rock like the grunge bands PEARL JAM, SOUNDGARDEN and ALICE IN CHAIRS broke into the mainstream achieving chart success on a widespread scale. Bands reviving the punk genre, like GREEN DAY and THE OFFSPRING, also became more popular and grouped in the "alternative" genre. 
Throughout the next few years different artists emerged and genres changed and more became grouped under the alternative grouping. 


Finally in the year 2000 to present day, indie rock presents its self in mainstream charts. Because the changing music industry has cause the decline in record sales, the growth of new digital technology and increased use of the internet as a tool for music promotion has allowed indie rock bands to achieve mainstream success. 

1ST FEB 2012

Investigate at least two music magazines currently on sale in Britain and answer these questions


A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE MAGAZINE
SMASH HITS -
was founded by Nick Logan in 1978. Nick had previously edited other music magazines like New Musical Express during one of the most creative periods. A test was released in September 1978 with Plastic Bertrand on the front and the first issue was published in November 1978, featuring Blondie on the cover. After only three months the magazine went from being a monthly release to a fortnightly. In its early days its major selling point was the publication of Top 20 song lyrics. It became a "phenomenon" in the 1980s and helped launch the careers of now major journalists who went on to produce Q, Mojo and The Word. 




KERRANG! - 
It started as a magazine supplement  which came with "Sounds" magazine. It proved so popular that it became an independent publication in its own right. Kerrang! got its name from the sound a guitar player makes when he throws his guitar. 

TYPICAL CONTENT

SMASH HITS - 

• usually a count down of the "hottest guys" or the top songs 
• free posters or gifts
• prizes 
• often a "battle of the bands" 
• sob stories
• personal stories of artists
• gossip
• often some free themed extras

KERRANG! - 

• poster
• often sale lines portraying an uproar or rioting 
• usually more based on mature articles about different new and popular rock bands
• contains sex, love and drugs articles
• personal articles about artists growing 
• agressive photography
• major band on the front cover as main image. eg, my chemical romance
• festival information
• album reviews
• lesser brands in the strip and the bottom

TYPICAL READER

SMASH HITS - 

is usually aimed at young girls, probably no older than  8 -16. However, the secondary reader is therefore going to be parents. They want to know the magazine is safe for their children

KERRANG - 

readers are a lot older. Generically 20 year old, greasy, long haired men. Also the girlfriends and girls from this "clique" would read it. The consumers would probably be aged between 16 and 30. 

MAGAZINE HOUSE STYLES

    SMASH HITS - 

• fonts usually big and bold. Often continued capitals to show how important and interesting the articles and sale lines are supposed to be
• the colours of smash hits magazine are almost neon in every issue. They don't tend to follow the convention of having three similar colours throughout and instead make them contrast and stand out.
• the models on the cover and throughout the magazine are usually current popular pop artists. They are nearly always smiling and "messing around"

KERRANG! - 

• fonts usually take the form of being bold and clear and don't often use any crazy effects or different font styles to make the magazine seem more exciting. However they do use a smashed glass effect in the master head font. This is to appeal to its audience of protesting adolescents.
• KERRANG! usually has one main image with smaller, less important images to the edges of the page.
• in KERRANG! they normally use two or three main, contrasting, bright colours that fit in with their sale lines or artist on the front
• the models in the magazine are nearly always important, major bands whom usually have a new album or tour coming up. 

6TH FEB 2012

THE 4 F'S

FUNCTION: what are your magazine objectives?

FORMULA: elements that make up your magazine, amount of articles eg length, type of                              photography

FRAME: margins and gutlers for printers

FORMAT: presentation

30TH JAN 2012

TROPE 

"a re-occuring element or convention which has formed over many years. "

MEME

 "a cultural unit that gives us information about something and spreads from people to people."

POP TROPES

• really fashionable
• looks like having loads of fun
• usually singing about the opposite sex
• smiling
• girly
• attractive people
• bright colours
• appear perfect
• idolised by all ages
• can be liked by all ages
• in bands often members where the same things in different colours, or each member given a colour and wear their colour in different items of clothing 

The tropes of anything is important in giving a genre an identity and giving it its memes. Memes of a particular industry change over time depending on the themes the genre portray. These are changed by different people developing different fashions and trends depending on the history of that genre. 
Pop music derived from rock and roll in the 1950s. There are few incidents in the history of pop music however many of the charts is dominated by pop artists and millions of copies of there singles and albums have been sold around the world. 
Memes of pop music at the moment are the over the top outfits and music videos. 

HIP-HOP/RAP TROPES

• usually quite sexual
• sometimes a lot of tattoos on the artist
• often collaborate with other artists 
• don't tend to wear generically glamourous clothing
• always appear quite rough and 'from the hood'
• have a lot  of skin showing
• will often wear a lot of jewellery 

HEAVY METAL TROPES

• aggressive 
• angry
• usually singing about something they hate or are passionate about
• wear a lot of leather and chains
• usually have long, dark hair
• big part of song time often given to an instrumental 

27TH JAN 2012

DRAFT SCHOOL MAGAZINE COVER

27TH JAN 2012

DIFFERENT MUSIC GENRES

27TH JAN 2012

"The ideology of the music will affect the design. A pop magazine may, for example, use bright primary and pastel colours and use smiling pop stars. Rock magazines will use clashing and aggressive fonts and colours and have grimacing bands, sometimes making rude gestures."
                - Mr Swain

27TH JAN 2012

DRAFT CONTENTS

After reviewing the feedback of my focus group I picked out things that I thought were wanted by all, and things that were generic of a magazine and put them into a contents page for a mock school magazine. I have also done a Cover page which I will be uploading shortly. I think the colours, font and images will be liked by all, it is easy to interpret and contains the majority of what all age groups wanted. 

20TH JAN 2012

Today as part of our research into our preliminary project we got three different focus groups in to see what they would want in a school magazine.


YEAR 7

• particularly wanted celebrities on the cover, for example all agreed on 'One Direction' and then included inside, pictures and interviews
• they wanted feedback from council meetings
• upcoming events in the school and local areas
• achievements from things like sport
• a free gift for example house points, vouchers for the canteen
• a timetable of revision sessions
• horoscopes
• games
• agony aunt
• competitions 
• a new magazine once a month
• the canteen menu and an opportunity to write in with new suggestions
• the colours to be seasonal

STAFF

• they wanted information about students opinions and things they want and have created
• house reports
• the magazine to be published once a short term
• theme each addition
• teacher interviews
• a problem page
• the school colours to be the main colour theme
• hard hitting stories about the school area
• education stories, things in the news that will be affecting the school
• polls and opinions
• light hearted stories
• teacher comic strip
• letters page
• events upcoming in the school and local area
• house colours down the side of the page
• a lower and upper school section

MALE SIXTH FORM STUDENTS

• in the words of the sixth formers a "fit bird" on the cover
• attractive people on the front
• a fashion page
• gossip column 
• bold colours, but not the school colours
• to be published once a fortnight
• whats on in the canteen and again offer vouchers
• football scores and reviews from the school team
• a comment page
• agony aunt, eg Dear Derdrie 
• a cartoon with a moral 
• events coming up in the school and local area
• music/game/film reviews
• discounts

The points in bold are the ones all focus groups suggested and so are the things that should most probably be included in the magazine.