1. 1. OCR Media Studies AS Level Unit G321: Foundation Portfolio in Media Evaluation Name: Eleanor Mason Candidate Number: 6692 Center Name: St. Pauls Catholic College Center Number: 64770 Music Magazine Production Evaluation
2. 2. In what ways does your Media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? The magazine, across the 4-pages, repeats (Steve Neale) codes and conventions from magazines such as Billboard in which I have used as inspiration for my own magazine Virtuoso, some conventions that I have used throughout all of the pages in my magazine is the colour scheme which is simple, like Billboards, using black, white and pink so it will make my magazine look professional but still catches my target demographic; by using this colour scheme in all my magazine pages it creates continuity and shows that these pages are all linked and the pages flow. For my front cover there were some main codes and conventions that I repeated (Neale) such as the masthead, the date and price/convergence, the main headline and the layout of it, the main image and a unique selling point. Similarly, in my contents page I have used conventions such as the sections, the page numbers and sub-lines, web address and social networking sites/convergence and images that link to the sub-lines. Then in my double page spread I continued to repeat (Neale) conventions such as the convergence, the page numbers, the main image thats different to the front cover and contents page images, in my interview the questions are highlighted in pink which sticks to the colour scheme for my magazine and I credited the photographer, stylist and editor which is a common thing to do in all magazines. However, there are examples of some difference in terms of the forms and conventions in my own media product for example on my front cover I have also included more cover lines than my magazine of inspiration, giving the audience more to read on the front cover to attract them to buying my magazine, I have also included a promotional offer which links to the stories and main article that has been included in my magazine which will also attract my target audience to the magazine because it is bold and stands out, also on the front cover I have included convergence and a strapline to also attract the target demographic which isnt included in my magazine of inspiration because Billboard is already a well established magazine so it doesnt need any other selling techniques as most people have already heard of. In my contents page, I have also included an editorial which isnt used in Billboard because it is so popular, in my editorial I have made it slightly colloquial so that it suits my target audience and the type of dialect that they use however I still use quite sophisticated language so that its still a professional magazine whilst still creating a reader-editor relationship. Also, to distinguish my magazine from existing ones, I have changed the layout of my double page spread making the quote, title of interview and main image the main focuses of this page; by making the double page unique it attracts a larger audience because it is something new, different and interesting.
3. 3. Howdoesyourmediaproductrepresentparticularsocialgroups? The denotation of representation is the way something is viewed by others, so the representation of my magazine is the way that social groups are targeted and how they are shown in the magazine making sure that Virtuoso can appeal to a mass audience. The main social group that is targeted by my magazine would be more average teens and young adults who like to stay up to date with the charts and what is the most current music, my magazine doesnt really have a particular social group that it would appeal to because my magazine is the current charts which means that all genres of music could be featured in the stories and the style and layout of the magazine would be changeable depending on the artist that is featured as the main article. By my magazine not having a strict and certain social group this means that it can appeal to a mass audience and there will always be certain groups that will appeal to the magazine due to genre not being constant or staying the same. However, the main genre that will most likely be featured would be pop because it is the most popular type of music that the majority of people will like and know about which I found in my questionnaire. The magazine, across the 4-pages, helps to represent mainly pop music because Ariana Grande is the main feature/artist in my magazine pages who is a hugely successful pop artist the does include other genres of music in her albums. However, artists such as Kanye West and Avicii are also included in my magazine which have a more RnB and electronic style and genre of music, this shows that my magazine doesnt have a set representation of social groups as it would always change depending on the most current music that is featured in the charts for the week/month. On all of my pages, especially in my contents page, I have included a range of artists so that the magazine doesnt just appeal to scene kids or hipsters but to all social groups. Virtuoso is a magazine that is representative of all types of people and of all social groups making my magazine a universal and unique magazine; I also think that this aspect of my magazine makes a good unique selling point as it allows my magazine to be more economical and creating a larger demographic for Virtuoso.
4. 4. What kind of media institution (Publisher) might distribute your media product and why? Billboard is musics most powerful brand. Across platforms and around the world, Billboard serves diverse constituents from musics most passionate fans to the industrys most influential people. From its award- winning website to its iconic, authoritative weekly publication, Billboard content is consumed by millions of people in more than 100 countries. Billboards additional assets include its more than 200 iconic weekly charts, which are the most viewed and quoted in the world, the Billboard Music Awards, Billboard Latin Music Awards, Billboard conferences, and a robust global licensing business www.prometheusgm.com/billboard From the research that was completed pre-production, I would envisage that Prometheus Global Media may publish Virtuoso because they also publish The Hollywood Reporter and Film Journal which are also well known magazines meaning that this publisher is well able to heighten the personal relationship (Katz) that the magazine has the potential of by using colloquial language that is representative of the target demographic, this publisher would be able to create this relationship with the readers and audience to make a globally popular magazine that appeals to many people due to its certain qualities and differences that make my magazine unique. Virtuoso magazine also includes synergy and cross-media convergence such as the Twitter and Facebook links which are shown on most pages and also allows the reader to access information about the magazine in different ways which also appeals to a mass audience as it allows them to read the magazine in the way that they prefer. The similarities of my magazine to Billboard also signifies (De Saussure) that Virtuoso is very similar in content and design so this company would most likely want to publish my magazine also due to the similarities that occur in both magazines. By my magazine showing similar codes and conventions this would make it easy for Prometheus GM to publish my magazine as similar audiences will also be interested in my magazine then the readers for Billboard.
5. 5. Who would be the audience for your media product and why? According to Hartleys seven subjectivities, people of the ages of 16 30 years old would be interested in buying my music magazine with both genders being targeted. This is because the artists and celebrities that would be featured will be of both genders also, meaning that it would appeal to both females and males who are of all class because even though this magazine isnt the cheapest it would still appeal to everyone. According to Katz Uses & Gratifications theory, my target audience would be able to from a personal relationship with my magazine because of the colloquial language that is used through out the magazine; the target audience might be able to personally identify with the artists that are used in the magazine because in the articles they will take about themselves and what's happened in their life which the target demographic might be able to relate to and to identify with the celebrity. Other aspects that will attract and audience is the female gaze (Diana Saco) and male gaze (Laura Mulvey) who will buy the magazine because of the artist that is used on the cover or in the other articles because they like them which also attracts both a female and male audience. According to Maslows hierarchy of needs, social climbers would buy my magazine because it includes all the latest trends in music showing the top 15 songs of the month which will make those people want to be able to find the latest trends to add to conversations within friends; they would also want to seek as much information that they can so that they can climb the social ladder and improve their social standing. Social climbers will also want to buy my magazine because they might be able to relate to the articles and might want to share what is in the magazine with their friends.
6. 6. How did you attract/address your audience? In order to attract the intended target audience I decided to use many different unique selling points (USP) so that this will appeal to people and stand out compared to other existing magazines. By using different USPs such as the masthead being down the side of the magazine, and including a charts on the contents page will attract a mass audience in order to show a difference between my magazine and other magazines that have already been made. However, I have also included aspects that are already used in magazines that make it successful such as using promotion e.g. win tickets to see Ariana Grande in concert which encourages the target audience to buy my magazine so that they can win this prize. Another aspect that I have repeated (Neale) from my magazine of inspiration is the simple colour scheme with a simple layout which will attract my audience because it is classic and doesnt have any garish designs that arent very aesthetically pleasing but still has a small pop of colour to attract an audience due to its subtlety and simplicity. The inclusion of codes & conventions such as convergence and using social media has helped to appeal to the target audience because it also engages the audience to find out more information about the magazine and gets the target audience more active and involved in the magazine creating that bond between the editor and the reader of the magazine. Also, by using an editorial this gives the same effect of an active audience in the magazine because they can form a personal relationship (Katz) with the editor as the magazine is friendly and colloquial and using language such as you and I which addresses the person reading the magazine, making them feel included and valued as a consumer. Some codes and conventions that I have used to attract an audience like using the promotion not only on the front cover but in the contents page as well creates that bond with the audience so they can feel like they can get involved with a competition and we, as the creators of the magazine, give back to the audience for buying the magazine!
7. 7. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product? The software that was used to construct the media product entitled Virtuoso was Adobe Photoshop CS4. By using this software to create my magazine it allowed me to make magazine pages that look professional and polished because you can used many different tools to create the look that you want, for example changing the layer style to create shadows and outlines on pictures and texts which allow you to make a certain aspect stand out from everything else like the main article or the main image. I had previously used Photoshop before as I had used it to create another magazine for my GCSE media coursework but I have learnt even more skills by completing this task such as editing a picture to a better quality and using the pen tool to create a textbox around an image which also makes my magazine look up to a higher standard. By learning these new skills it has improved the look of my pages as I used the layer style to create the gradient background that was carried on throughout my pages, I have also used the pen tool to create a text box around the image that I used in my double page spread. By using Photoshop it has made it easier to manipulate the images that I used, for example I used the quick selection tool to delete the background of each photo so that it blended into the background of the magazine. It was also useful because if I made a mistake it was easy to rectify this mistake without starting again, for example when editing the pictures all you have to undo the mistake to go back to what is was before which makes the editing easier and quicker. For the fonts in my magazine I used some from www.dafont.com and I also used the default fonts that were already on Photoshop to have a variety of different type of texts to differentiate the magazine and to create more differences on the page; I have also used different fonts because this is repeated (Neale) from other magazines because this is conventional for music magazines. In order for this product to look fit for purpose and appeal to the target audience, I decided to create energy in the magazine pages which I done by using the paint bucket tool and eye dropper tool because it allow me to get a precise colour that I wanted and allowed me to create continuity throughout my pages and create thing burst of colour which represented my target audience. I also decided to create brighter images but using the brightening section to make sure that the image looked bright and youthful which also represented my target audience. Overall, I have learnt lots of skills by using this software and made a professional looking magazine.
8. 8. Photography Planning Front Cover I took a variety of pictures for my front cover so that I had lots of choice in what kind of image that I wanted to used. The main type of shots that I used were a close up, a mid shot and a long shot. In the end I used the mid shot on the bottom left because it was the best image that I took with this outfit. I liked the way this picture looked because this also fitted into the front cover with the masthead and sub lines that were also used on the front cover. For these image I wanted her to look quite happy and relaxed like she was having a fun time whilst doing the photo-shoot; this was because I wanted to make it look professional by using the white background and light boxes so that I could create this effect, but I also wanted some of her personality to show through and the fun-loving side of her which is shown in the one smiling and in the other ones. The image that I ended up using was very similar to my magazine of inspiration which also shows that repeated (Steve Neale) aspect of my magazine as not only from my magazine of inspiration but in the majority of other magazines use a mid shot on their front cover which was another part of the conventions that I wanted to use in my magazine also showing why I chose the bottom left image. She is also standing in quite an open and friendly way which also appeals to my target audience and the type of people that would most likely read this magazine which is another aspect that has been repeated (Neale) from other magazines as it shows that when the main image on the front cover is open and seeming more friendly then the target readership will be able to form that personal relationship (Katz) with the artist which will also make them want to buy the magazine. A male audience will also be appealed by this image/front cover because it shows the male gaze (Laura Mulvey) making the image a main selling point for all target demographics in order to form that relationship that the readers need to buy the magazine.
9. 9. Photography Planning Contents Page I also took a variety of images for my contents page in order to achieve the right look for my magazine. Also my images are important for the magazine because it links in everything in my magazine such as the colour scheme and the type of design that my magazine has; by it having a simple colour scheme and layout this is also replicated in my images because the background is plain and simple, the clothes are simple but have a pop of colour in them. By doing this it creates continuity in my magazine pages and links the pictures to the actual magazine itself. I chose these types of photos because it shows the range of artists that are meant to be featured in my magazine such as Ariana Grande, Avicii, Taylor Swift and Kanye West. I also got her to change her outfit so I could use similar pictures on each page but with different outfits to show some change in the pages. The images that I ended up using were the top left and right, the middle left and right, the bottom pictures. I chose these pictures because I thought they all went together with the colour scheme that is used in all my pages and they all looked good when put together. In the end I used a lot more pictures on my contents page that I originally thought I would need which shows why some pictures like the bottom three are slightly different in quality because I used different lighting and a different camera. These pictures also link to the articles in the contents page by showing who the article is talking about which is also made clear with the page numbers that are used to the indicate which article that links to what picture.
10. 10. Photography Planning - Interview I took a variety of different pictures for my double page spread so that I had lots of choice in what type of shot I wanted, for example I used a close ups, long shots, mid shots etc. By having many different shot types this allowed me to pick the perfect picture for the double page so that it suited the layout and design of my magazine. I liked having different props as well like the dog which links to the article and what is talked about in the pages however, I ended up using one of the dog pictures in my contents page instead. For these pictures I wanted her to look like she was in a photo-shoot however I still wanted the elements of a natural posture and the way she stands, which is also conveyed with her holding the dog, showing that even in the photo-shoot her personality and information about her are still showing and is quite relaxed. I used a light box and white wall behind her to create a more professional look to the photos and to also make it easier to edit the pictures if I needed to so that when I placed the pictures into Photoshop there wasnt much that needed doing to them. I also planned these pictures to be simplistic which I think I achieved with having a plain background and only using minimal props like the handbag and the dog. I found that the top right picture was best suited to my double page spread because it was similar to my magazines of inspiration and it made the layout of my pages look professional and appealing to look at as the text surrounded the picture making sure that she was the main focus of the page. The only editing I done to my photos was to take away the background so that it blended even more to the magazine, in the end I didnt make any colour corrections or use any filters as the picture was already up to a high quality so it wasnt necessary to make any other corrections. I did really like the other pictures but they werent as suited to the magazine as the final image was.
11. 11. Analysing my Front Cover Puff/ Promotion: I used this convention to capture the audiences attention and to act as a selling point for the magazine and will create more interest around the issue. This is repeated (Steve Neale) from existing music magazines. Sub Lines: I used this to attract the target audience so if they are not interested in the main article then they the other articles might be of interest to them Main Image: This is the focus of the front cover as this would be one of the first things the audience sees when the look at the magazine so it uses eye catching colour. Social Networking: This is so the target demographic can access this magazine in any form they want and can input their ideas for the magazine on these pages to make it more interactive. Masthead: This is also a main feature of my magazine as this will not only inform the audience in what the magazine is called but it is big and bold to actually attract the audience to look at the magazine. Tag Line: This is a persuasive technique to encourage the audience to buy the magazine and using social statues and peer pressure to get the target audience to purchase this magazine. Main Article: I used this to also attract the target audience to this magazine because if they are interested in this artist then it persuades them to keep up on what they are doing which means buying this magazine. Convergence: This is used to allow the audience to access more information about the magazine and access it in different formats.
12. 12. Analysing my Contents Page Images: These link to the articles that are split up into 3 sections. This are used as a visual aid to the consumer so that they can see who is mentioned in which article. Charts: I have used this chart for the top singles because it was also used in my magazine of inspiration and can be used as the USP for my magazine because it appeals to the Social Climbers (Katz) who want to keep up to date with the recent activates to improve their social status. Editorial: I have used this to create the personal relationship (Katz) with the audience so they feel involved with the magazine. Convergence/Social Networking : I have used this to create the option to the audience to find the magazine in other areas. Masthead: This is carried on from the front cover to create continuity in the pages so that they link together and look like a professional magazine where everything is carried through the magazine. Convergence: This is used to allow the audience to access more information about the magazine and access it in different formats. Page Numbers: This allows the audience to clearly see which pages link to which articles and shows this in a visual way. Sub Lines: This gives a brief summary about each article so that the reader knows what articles include what they want to read or are interested in. This is an extra part for articles that show extra promotional things that will also attract an audience to the magazine.
13. 13. Analysing my Double Page spread Interview Headline: Makes is clear who the article is about so the reader can quickly and easily identify the artist and know what is going to be asked in the interview. This is used to make a quick summary of the article and what kind of subjects will be talked about so the reader can get an overall view of the article. Masthead: This creates continuity between each page because the masthead is shown on each page so that the reader can see that this is the magazine that they are reader and if they enjoy it then they can repurchase it. Quote: This picks out a certain part of the interview in which, might interest the reader into reading the article and what is being said by this artist. Credits: This states which people helped with the making of this article and generally tells the reader who took the photo, who styled the artist and who was the editor of this article. Convergence: This gives the reader an option to see this article in different formats and allows the reader to gain more access to the other issues that have already been and gone. Interview/Main Image: This is what the whole issue is based upon, this gives the audience/reader the information that they wanted as this is the magazine they chose to buy this issue with this artist. The main image is the main focus of the who page because the artist is in the middle of the page and everything else is positioned around it.
14. 14. Audience Feedback Jades Feedback Front Cover Contents Page Double Page Spread Katherines Feedback Front Cover Contents Page Double Page Spread Leezas Feedback Front Cover Contents Page Double Page Spread Rafs Feedback Front Cover Contents Page Double Page Spread Gopikas Feedback Front Cover Contents Page Double Page Spread These are the audio files for each page of my magazine. Some questions that I asked were: What do you think of the placement of the name of my magazine, What do you think of the images used in the contents page, What do you think of the layout of the double page spread and what are the positive and negative aspects of this page etc. I asked some specific questions to get some specific feedback on certain features however I also asked some more open questions so that the audience had more of a chance to give their opinion on the whole page put together as well. By doing this I think that I have covered a variety of angles in order to get true feedback on how to improve my magazine even further. Also, from completing this audience feedback I can also see what the target demographic want from the magazine and aspects that are needed to change slightly so that my target audience would want buy my magazine, for example, one improvement was to make the contents page less cluttered which I could do by making the editorial shorter and including less promotional offers at the bottom of the page. Overall, my audience feedback has been successful and my magazine had points to improve and there were also key features that would attract my target audience which makes my magazine successful.
15. 15. Looking back at your Preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product? I feel that, having completed the preliminary task and learning about the demands of this production process, I have learnt many things not only on the software that is used to create both the tasks but on things like time management which allowed me to create a very professional looking magazine because of the time I spent on each page and the work that went into these pages. By completing the preliminary task this has allowed me to refresh my skills that I had previously learnt on Photoshop which then allowed me to create a flowing magazine because there is continuity throughout the pages like the colour scheme and the masthead on each page. There is evidence of progression that I feel particularly demonstrates how I met the demands of the production process, for example the way my text in the double page spread fits around the main image which uses all the space of the page up so that more of the article can fit onto the page. Another aspect that I feel demonstrates how I met the demands of the production process for example the way that the picture quality of my images are very clear and up to a high standard which was another aspect that I wanted to improve on from the preliminary task.