Q6. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

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

In this coursework unit, I used a lot of products of technology. The first piece of technology that was used was the internet. I made an account on Blogger.com - a blogging storage service that allows users to posts private blogs with time-stamped entries. And the facility to upload images as well. I have never used blogging but I found its concept very easy to understand early on in the task. Although it is straight forward to use, I found a few problems with its inconsistent operation. For example there is a limited viewer when creating a blog. This is really poor when I was trying to arrange large images to the right place within text, it could be structured properly. Secondly, although Blogger supports shortcut it does not seem to work for me. This was a major problem. For examples of ‘Ctrl+V’ to paste text from Microsoft Word. The only way was to drag and drop the text. Also, the text formats were different. When trying to preview the blog than when it is being put together. Nonetheless, investing a bit of time into using Blogger, and I was able to overcome these limitations and put together a decent, if not eye pleasing, record of my work. I also learnt that Blogger only had limited access to accounts, the advantage being that unauthorised people could not view other student’s work to copy their ideas.

I also used the internet in my researching. Using Google.com as my search engine of choice, I found images of magazine front covers for my textual analysis in Google’s image browsing function, as well as using the web search to find relevant magazine publishing companies to write a case study about. I also used Wikipedia.org, an online worldwide encyclopaedia that can be edited by the public to get detailed information about topics such the publishing companies, and technologies such as the use of soft-boxes.

I used software on the computer such as Microsoft Word 2007, which is a standard word processor, to type up and store my work as well as create my audience research questionnaire. I made use of its spell-check ability to make sure that my work was grammatically correct.

I also used Adobe Photoshop CS3, an advanced graphics editing software to convert my print screens of my audience research graphs into a .JPEG image file that could be uploaded onto Blogger in a good resolution and small file size. Its main use however, was when I used it to edit my images. I knew how to use Adobe Photoshop, so I concentrated on trying to get the best out of my skills. I used Hue and Saturation adjustments on my pictures so that they would look right in my scenes that I created in Photoshop. An example would be changing the colour of the logo and laces of one of my model’s hoodie from a vibrant blue to a more subtle indigo to suit the colour scheme. Secondly, I used the Lasso tools, to remove the backgrounds from my subjects, so that they could be placed onto my custom backgrounds and scenes. I also used the Spot Healing and Patch Tools to remove spots on my model’s faces, and a variety of blur techniques to make my model’s faces seem smoother and shadow. I used Custom Shapes to create my text boxes, Brushes to create the centre division on my double-page spread, and used Blending Options and Opacity to texture the statue.

Although I did not develop any more knowledge about the application, I gained new skills by trying new ideas of manipulating images such as texturing the statue design on my double page spread.

Lastly I used a Canon EOS 400D 10.1 megapixel camera to take my pictures. This was my second time using the camera – the first being in the preliminary task; therefore I was learning new things about this piece of technology all the way through. The first thing that I learnt about using the camera correctly is the correct orientation when taking a picture. They are usually taken in a portrait orientation to fit in as much of the subject as possible, leaving out unnecessary background. When taking my pictures, this made me consider how the image was going to turn out rather than just taking a picture. I also kept in mind how I would frame my subject and the type of shot that I was going to use. I used long shots because once imported into Photoshop

Q5. How did you attract/address your audience?

My magazine attracts my target audience by the large and visible central image of a the music artist on the front cover. The model is 18 years of age which attracts a similar age group audience. He is wearing fashionable vintage clothing which could attract my audience as he is wearing trendy clothes, this is what a lot of my target audience are intrestes in because i am targeting trendy, fashionable teenagers.The audience that are in to music and fashion would be fascinated because they would be able to relate well with the artist.

I used the baseball hat on my model as a prop on the front cover to attract the audience as baseball hats can be associated with rnb and hip-hop. By having these props on show, not only do they tell the audience something about the group, who can play what instrument, but also each member can connect with actual musicians and their instruments.

The model is relatively attractive and well groomed – he has are a fresh haircuts and so would easily appeal to the female audience. who would take an interest to the model. However he would also appeal to males because they would be able to relate to the model as they are both males.

My magazine uses a sans-serif font to display its cover lines. This connotes the magazine and its contents being contemporary and is what the vast majority of my target audience wanted referring to my audience research, so this would attract my audience to my magazine. I also used a large bubble-writing font to be able to create a recognised brand logo so that it would clearly stand out on the front page, and for my audience to be attracted to it through its originality and positing which suggest that the magazine is proud of its brand, and so transfer this message to the reader and them being proud of reading the magazine also. Firstly this attracts the audience by giving a personal feeling to the reader as if they or someone else wrote on the magazine making it more informal and easier to connect with. Secondly the little smiley on the front page beside the word “TRADEMARKED”, is a device that I used to attract the audience through humour, and making them feel good through the smile. It also connotes that the magazine is happy that its brand is protected. Lastly, I chose a very bubble style font to act as the official font for my artist – Chris C.  Secondly, I placed it behind the models head using Photoshop.

Q4. Who would be the audience for your media product?

Who would be the audience for your media product?

 The target audience for my magazine would mainly be black British teenagers from the age of 16-23 years old. As the younger generation would be interested in the interviews, reviews and also the competitions. Ethnically the magazine will be targeted to the specific race, being the black ethnicity. There are two main genres that the magazine promotes, which is Rnb and Hip-hop. Both target the Black ethnicities because stereotypically most artists in these genres are black and this would attract other black audiences. The magazine also targets both male and females; moreover it targets all religions because music is meant for everyone to listen to.

The audience it targets is also in to rnb and hip-hop. The magazine targets people that are enthusiastic about music because of the detail in music the magazine holds. The target audience of the music magazine also has to have a social life for example people that got to concerts and people that social network. This would mean that the audience would have knowledge about different music genres, the latest song and it would mean that they are also into the latest, popular technologies. Such as IPods, Iphones, Blackberries and Dre beats headphones. The teenagers the magazine would target would also be in to TV and watch music videos. Moreover they would be in to game consoles such as Play station 3, Xbox and Nintendo Wii. They must also have an interest in music games such as `Michael Jackson Experience’.

If my target audience enjoys going to concerts or nightclubs, then the free concert ticket in my music magazine would appeal to them to great extent. In addition the magazine would target working class people so the price of the magazine would be an advantage to them.

The target audience would also either be in full time education or have a part time job, which means these people would have a social life and have similar interests.

Evaluation Q3

I researched many magazine publishers which i thought would be likely to distribute my magazine. Bauer Media is a UK media group which consists of companies in the magazine and radio division. It is a sub division of Bauer Media group, based in Germany and is Europe’s largest privately owned publishing group. They also have 300 published magazines, TV and radio stations which broadcasts to 15 countries. Therefore i find this beneficial as this can help my magazine be further distributed.

 
I thought this would be the best way to publish my magazine, because it does not have a magazine that is the same genre as mine, already. Their music magazines are MOJO, KERRANG and Q. Which are all widely known, and have given their audience a unique passion for music. However their magazines have a rock genre to them, where as mine focuses on Hip Hop and grime.

Moreover, I would like my magazine to be distributed in general magazine retailers, such as WHSmith. As, this way it will be accessible to many of my audiences, and as WHSmith holds a variety of magazines, many who read other genres of magazines could still acquire my magazine. I will also want it to be distributed  in music stores, as they would have a focused music audience, making it easy for my magazine to be distributed. Also perhaps performing arts schools and youth clubs, as my target audiences are youths, who are very interested in music, study music and want to be in the industry. 

Q2. How does your media product represent particular social groups?

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

My magazine was also made to focus on a particular music genre, which was RnB and Hip-hop. I wanted my magazine to focus on that kind of music because it was linked to my target audience which happened to be young, black teenagers from the age of 16-23. So I thought it would be better to focus on the music my target audience were in to.  Also by focusing on such music genre I believed it would be good to grab the audience’s attention. I have constructed a magazine which seems to only target black people as I only photographed black teenagers in my magazine. This results to not other ethnic groups being excluded

As you have read above, my magazine was made to represent a black female and male audience with an age range of 16-23. This age range has an enthusiastic interest in RnB and Hip-hop genres. So it features an image of a black aged 18 male on the front cover that raps for the hip – hop genre. I represent this culture by having the model portray a stereotypically black male rapper. So that it could draw the attention of people who interested in the RnB genre.

The main artist is dressed very trendy in a vintage type of clothing. However it could also be said that the main artist in the front page is dressed quite urban as he is wearing a baseball hat which could be associated with street culture. This could be said to represent teenagers. But it could also hint that the magazine is related to rap/ hip-hop music.  However this can not be seen in a convention from a music magazine because they are dressed very different, which they typically dress rappers in T-shirts, jeans, heavy jackets and big weighty chains. Moreover the model is wearing beige chino trousers which is not common in the rap culture but can be associated in the Rnb culture. However the model is wearing a jeans shirt which is buttoned to the top and this is associated within the rap/Rnb culture.

Moreover the posture of the model is very laidback which is common in the rap culture for an artist to be laidback. As you can see the model is also black, this is a huge stereotype in the representation of the rap culture.

Q1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Music Magazine Double Page Spread

Music Magazine Contents Page

Music Magazine Front Cover

Equipment I used

Canon EOS 400D Camera

Canon Powershot SX 120 Is

Influences

Magazine Photos Used

Mood Board

Audience research

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:Hiya u alright?

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:wat u up 2?

Audrey says:nothing just on my bb you

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:ok, ohhh yhh, can i ask u sum questions for my media wrk?

Audrey says:course go ahead

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:ok, firstly, erm how much are u willing to spend on a mag?

Audrey says:1.15 why ?

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:its for my media loool i tld u a min agowhat kind of music do u like?

Audrey says:well course funky house grime RNB bashment (: afrobeats

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:ok, do u fink the mag should have more pics or text?

Audrey says:both well mostly pictures because you cant have a mag without pictures it wouldn't attract the audience

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:yhh *thumbs up*wat colour scheme do u fink the mag should be? black,white,grey or blue,red,black orr yellow,green,grey?

Audrey says:black and blue

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:k, wat size do u fink the mag should be? A4 or A5?

Audrey says:A4

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:ok do u go to concerts?

Audrey says:yeh i went drakes

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:isittt

Audrey says:OMDSSS i fort of a idea it wuld be sick if u put free tickets in the mag trust me more people would want to buy it

 ---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:yhhhh i was finkin dat aswell gd idea

Audrey says:yep

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:do u fink the mag should have news on different celebs?

Audrey says:yeh to make it interesting like you can include chips success from fire alie and how his now got a new song with one of the best celeb chris weezy

 ---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:loooool yhhhn do u listen to the radio alot?

Audrey says:yeh bare times mostly choice n kisss it wuld be also gd if u rote bout gd stations in ur mag styl

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:yhhhh gg

Audrey says:well got to go speak to u lateeer

---...--.>Whitney<.--...--- says:fanks cyaaaaa

Audience research questionnaire

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/FZY5CCJ

Audience research questionnaire

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/FP67RH6

Profilling your audience

Audience Profile

Female                                    50%

Male                                        50%

Age                                          16 – 20

Ethnicity                                  Black/Mixed race

Style of dress                          Indie/Trendy

Interest                                   Sports/Fashion

Dress brands                          Superdry/Levis/Ugg/Vans /Topshop/Topman/Riverisland 

Hobbies                                  Shopping/Football/Dancing

Spare time                              Facebook/Tv

Technology                             Blackberry/Iphone/Macbook/Laptop

Textual analysis of a music magazine double page spread

Textual analysis of a music magazine double page spread

The denotation of this magazine is that it is a double page spread of a music magazine, which shows a photograph of the artist Jamilah. The woman is looking directly at the camera to engage with the audience. It is a medium long shot; however parts of her lower body seem to be showing because she is posed resting her head against her knee. The background of the photograph looks as if it is a headrest from a bed. Which suggest the photograph was taken in a bedroom, which we presume was hers. However the background is out of focus, which could have been an aperture of F 2.8. The photograph also has a high key lighting to make the photograph seem brighter. There is also another photograph of the woman which is placed behind the text, which is a medium close up. There is also a text in big sans serif font; the font is also transparent which lets us see part of the photograph behind it. However this part of the photograph is in colour while the rest looks as if it is tinted black because it is in the background.

Mise en scene included the main photograph of the woman she has a smile on her face and she is also leaning her head on her knee. This gives us the impression that she is happy and the pose suggests that she comfortable. Setting: It is set in a bedroom as we can see from the background of the photograph, while the other photograph looks as if it was outdoors. In the photograph the woman is wearing a t-shirt as this could be home wear or pyjamas as it was set in her bedroom. In the photograph behind the text she is dressed casually in a vest top.

Moreover there is also some text above were her name is written which says, “ The queen of rnb on finding her voice, and feeling exposed.” This tells the reader what to expect throughout the page spread.  

Textual analysis of a music magazine front cover

The denotation of this magazine is that it is a front page of a music magazine, which shows an image of the artist Nicki Minaj. The photo is in a colour contrast which seems to be bright, vibrant and vivid. She has bright green hair which immediately catches the audience’s eye and the woman is looking directly at the camera, which seems to indulge the audience. It is a medium close up which shows her head down to her top pocket, part of her arm is visible in the shot as she is doing a small action. The background of the photograph is plain white and the photograph only covers a section of the magazine as there are small other photograph of her and a photograph of a man, this tells us a little of what to expect in the magazine. The lighting used in the photograph is a high key lighting especially on the main front cover photograph. The light is really bright on her hair to make it stand out and alert the audience. NVC: The woman has a shocked impression on her face but yet it still seems cheeky and flirty as it also seems as if she is flaunting her eyelashes.

In front of the woman is the Masthead and there are also four different coverlines written in a lime green colour except for one of them that is written in yellow. A barcode can also be seen in the bottom left hand corner. With the dateline which says, “June 2010”. However there is no selling line on the top of the magazine.

Masthead: This reads, ‘Word Up’. It is very vivacious, as it is in Yellow with small dark shadows beneath it. The font is a sans serif font, which makes the magazine modern and directed to the younger generation. The masthead is very plain and simple so that it can be easy to read. The words ‘Word Up’ gives me the impression that they are trying to portray a very young and ‘hip’ image, these words also seem to be slang and very informal. This also tells us that it is a very modern magazine. 

The cover photograph is of Nicki Minaj. She is posed looking in a very seductive/shocked way. The clothing she is wearing is a black dress which shows a lot of cleavage however it is covered by the coverlines, I believe this has been done to appeal to the appropriate target audience of the magazine. This is likely to be teenagers.  She has also got on a black leather glove which completes the look. She has a connotation of being an innocent girl.

The main coverline in relation to her photograph says:

“The blinged-out Barbie returns”  

This emphasises that Nicki Minaj went somewhere and is back bigger and better. The “The blinged-out Barbie” reference indicates that Nicki Minaj wears a lot of jewellery. Also this term is very slang as it is targeted to teenagers. So they automatically assume teenagers will understand the type of slang used.  Also the term “Barbie” tells the audience she is very girly and cautious about her image. One of the coverlines also read, “12 giant colour pullouts” with two photographs of Nicki Minaj. Which are the photographs that are included in the giveaway.

All the different coverlines tell us that this magazine doesn’t focus on just one topic and one celebrity but much more.  Some of the other artists’ mentioned in the coverlines include Waka Flocka, Sean Kingston, Jaden Smith, Lil Chukee and Lil Twist.

With all these points in consideration, I would suggest that the most relevant target audience would be for the younger generation because the slang used throughout, the vivid bright colours and the type of artists the magazine would include.

Introduction

Music magazine

The main task is to create a music magazine with a contents page and also double page spread I will be creating a front page of a magazine, a contents page and a double page spread. But before I do this I will do audience research and I will also find out who my main target audience will be.

 

College Magazine