Question 7: Looking back at my preliminary task, what do I feel I've learnt in the progression from it?

Question 6: What have I learnt about technologies in process of constructing my product?

Evaluation Question 6 by Slidely Slideshow

To view the slides, click the small camera icon at the top left of the Slidely

http://slide.ly/view/1f01a9a08601e9f42d5c60d51d4b417e

Question 5: How did I attract/address my audience?

https://www.thinglink.com/user/509720647509737472/scenes

Question 4: Who would be the audience for you media product?

My music magazine will be for a specific audience. My magazine will be for a mainstream audience as the majority of people in the UK listen to the charts. I have chosen to create a music magazine with a centre of the charts, this is the most popular genre of music and I feel that this will give my music magazine a wider range of audience as different genres such as R&B, Pop or Rap can make it into the charts. I did say at first that my magazine would be aimed at just R&B but I feel that I had to open up my options to try and get more customers in for my magazine. My magazine will be very similar to existing magazines such as Q and NME but I feel that with a much wider range of artists to choose from, my magazine could become more popular. My magazine will attract both men, women and teenagers. As the charts is very popular, my magazine will have to suit the need of all. Having well known male artists or groups will attract both men and women. My magazine is mainly aimed at males and females ranging from the ages of 14-30 as the charts music is most popular between these ages but this doesn't stop people of other ages buying and reading the magazine and having an interest in it. Having well known female artists or groups will attract both male and female aswell. For example, having Eminem on the front cover of my magazine will mostly attract males as males tend to listen yo Rap more than females. But having The Vamps name on the front cover will attract more females as they tend to follow this young, good looking male band. Having teenagers as part of my audience is a good way to promote my magazine, teenagers tend to have more spare time and always tend to gossip and spread good products. I hope to please teenagers by having a lot more popular artists that will appeal to them but will also appeal to other people aswell. I also hope to attract people who want to become a singer or a group. As I have new artists in my magazine that have made it big within a short space of time, I hope that this will make young, aspiring people to buy the magazine to see what the existing artists today did to make it to where they are today. The Vamps are a perfect example as they weren't known by many people this time last year, but other this year, they are a very successful group with a massive fan base. The hi bar scale is a scale that divides different groups of people, media producers use this scale in order to help identify and target a specific demographic. My magazine will be aimed at all of the Jicnar scale but will mainly be brought by group C1, group C2, group D and group E. I feel that my magazine is not that high end to be extremely popular with group A and B, but this won't stop them buying it. It will be more popular with the groups I listed above, if we look at existing products that are similar to mine like Q and NME, they are very popular within these groups so I hope that mine will be also be popular. I want to compete with these magazines as they are very popular so having similar target groups will hopefully do this.

Evaluation Question 3 What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Evaluation Question 3

http://www.scribd.com/doc/223492435/Evaluation-Question-3

Evaluation Question 2: How does your media product represent social groups?

http://prezi.com/vclhmkjql3cs/how-does-your-media-product-represent-social-groups/

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

Created with Padlet

http://padlet.com/wall/oszetm9mv9

^ link to Padlet where I have done my first answer on.

Final Front Cover, Contents Page and Double Page Spread

Front Cover

Contents Page

Double Page Spread

Double page spread layout and content and also Page Funiture

Page Furniture 

Page furniture is essentially the conventions of the double page, they are certain components of the page that make up the page. They aren't necessarily the main things on the page but they are small things that make up the double page spread. Below are the page furniture that make up a double page spread:  

• Pull Quotes
• Cross-head
• Box-outs
• Option Box
• Folio/slug
• Caption/Caption Header
• Byline
• Header sell/Strap
• Reader Information
• Info Bar
• Drop cap

Double Page Spread Content

Interviewing all of Alternative in a room together is like being ushered into a zoo and asked to keep order in the chimpanzee house. The boys – Harry Jenkins, Luke Hemming and Jake Bullock– are shrieking exuberance and energy, even halfway through a grueling nine-month world tour. They bounce on their chairs; interrupt each other, create the kind of chaos that leaves teenage girls fainting and screaming in their wake. Frankly, they’re exhausting.
Life though has been anything but real for Alternative, even since the five of them were meshed into a band by the Machiavellian hands of Simon Cowell on the X-Factor in 2012. They came second in the show but have gone on to sell around 45 million records –their second album, Take Me Out, was number one in 28 countries – and are chased by girls everywhere they go. They’re outside the concert venues, in the hotel lobbies, outside their mothers’ houses and a few have probably delivered themselves, Cleopatra-style in a carpet, to their dressing rooms. With such fans, what on earth don’t they already know about Alternative?
“Lots,” says Harry Jenkins earnestly, his angelic face furrowed with concentration. “This was really a bit of a thank you to fans really, for sticking with us. We wanted to show them the real us, because social media and interviews don’t really give you the chance to get to know someone. I really think this will help.”
Like all groups, Alternative are locked up together for long periods of time; after three years they can finish each others’ sentences. There are band dynamics within the band: Harry and Luke do most of the talking; they have a rapport, which means Twitter constantly speculates as to whether they’re an item. They jabber like magpies when asked a question, but if you want a serious, considered answer, it’s Harry Jenkins who will deliver it.
So when asked why they chose Spurlock to direct the film, the others shout out “his jacket” or “his mustache”, but Jenkins patiently waits until they've finished, and adds: “We really liked his style of film making. Whatever Morgan does, he always seems to get right into it – he immerses himself into that world. And that’s what we wanted; it’s nerve-wracking letting people into our lives, even if cameras were following us around on the X-Factor for 10 weeks. We needed someone we could trust because we were actually scared. But we've never said to him: ‘Stop filming, this is private.’ We really did want everything about us to go in.”
All three are now certainly too old to be throwing paper in classrooms: they range from the ages of 17, 18 and 19. The last part of their education has taken place in lunatic conditions, with 19-year-old jack Bullock remembering with wonder that “the first few gigs we ever did, in some nightclubs, girls were fainting and getting pulled out of the audience. We thought it was the strangest thing we ever saw. I didn’t think any of us would get used to the screaming, and that reaction. It’s just mad.”
Now, clearly, it’s normal for them, with Jenkins confessing that “even when you’re having a bad day, the energy of 50,000 screaming fans is what lifts you. You can’t go out on stage with a scowl. They keep us going.”

Surely at some point, as with all boy bands, this bubble will burst and one of them will break out, be photographed, wild-eyed and drunk, at Glastonbury. But right now, they’re remarkably sober about their success. “Helping the people we love,” says Jenkins “Out of all the success we have had, the fact that we have been put in a position to do something tangible for them is the best thing we have achieved so far.”

To us, we like to think we have style as we have our own clothing brand. We do try to keep a sense of style on tour as all of the clothes we wear are our own brand and we are the models so we need to maintain this sense of style. But in all fairness, our own personal stylist follows us round where ever we go and basically give use clothes to wear (all three laughing). We don’t mind this though because they always make the right decisions, we are very thankful of them as they all do a very good job looking after us. But even when we are performing, we go crazy and forget about our ‘style’ the music take takes over.

(Harry) “When we was younger, we all wanted to be like Busted, we thought that it would be great to be exactly like them.” (Luke) “I remember watching an interview and they were saying that being a singer was the best thing that has ever happened to them and that they loved performing to their fans, and from that point, I have wanted to be a singer in a group. I remember his one time I went to watch them live at the 02 Arena and the atmosphere was amazing, I have always said that one day I will be like that and now it has happened, as soon as we walk onto the stage and start singing, everyone sings along with us.” (Jake) “The only downside of being a singer in a well known group is that when I go shopping, we cant get anywhere without being stopped by people, which I don't mind that much because they are our fans and the fans come first, but this happens all the time. I actually remember Busted themselves saying this, I think this is one of the reasons why they split up, because they didn't have a private life anymore, once you get well known you have the media following you all the time and somehow know exactly what you are doing and when you are doing it”

"No, we are far from ‘making it’ as we are still young and still learning, we have a long way to go in this industry. Don’t get it wrong, we've made it a long way to get where we are, competing for awards with bands such as One Direction and Take That, but we believe we need to get our name more out there and to do so, may need to take some risks along the way. We don’t believe that we will ever be properly competing for the top spot to be the best boy band there has ever been because there has been such big bands such as The Beatles who are absolutely massive and are highly respected. The music we make isn’t to make as much money as we can, we make music because we enjoy it and we like making out fans happy, if anything we would love to be at the top of all their playlists, that’s how we see success."

Double page spread analysis

I have found a double page spread of the rock magazine Kerrang. On this double page spread, the denotation of the double page is that on the left hand side of the page, there is a big picture of a male holding a microphone and looking down at the floor, also on the same page; you can see another small picture of another male on the right hand side corner. On the opposite page, it contains three small pictures at the bottom next to each other of four different males. Going across the double page you will be able to see the writing “We’re being the best MCR we can be” in red and white font.

            The main rock band for this interview or for this part of the magazine is the popular rock band, My Chemical romance. Also known as MCR for short. As My Chemical Romance is known to be a rock/ emo band, this double page looks dark and gloomy.

The setting in which the interview took place is in My Chemical Romance’s studio. We know this is because partly of the writing underneath the main title which also looks like a quote from the interview as it has speech marks around it and is “We’re being the best MCR we can be”. The writing underneath this quote is “My Chemical Romance invites Kerrang to their recording studio” This shows and that this magazine is promoting this band as well as it connotes that the magazine Kerrang is very friendly with these rock bands and rock artist as they can go and chill out with the band members at their own recording studio.

Kerrang is a popular rock magazine which mainly focuses on rock music therefore they have chosen the rock band My Chemical Romance to have an exclusive interview with. We know that this is exclusive because on the left hand page on the top, it says “World Exclusive” in capital white letters in a red shape which looks like an arrow. The red arrow makes the words stand out from the background as well as the white writing. The words “World Exclusive” is also written in capital letters to catch the reader’s attention and it also connotes that the Kerrang magazine has the latest news about rock bands/artists. Also to promote their own magazine, they have added on the left page at the top left hand side corner the Kerrang website and it also says at the bottom of the website “For all the latest news”  which they can go to get more information. This again connotes that the kerrang magazine is up to date with the latest gossip and has exclusive stuff for readers who enjoy rock music. Also on the right hand page, it has a teaser of what on My Chemical Romance’s upcoming new tracks and some information about each song. This boasts about the Kerrang magazine statues as it shows that the interviewer has already listened to it. However, they have also added what each song sounds like therefore it seems like to the reader that the Kerrang magazine thinks about the readers and informs them about it therefore more people may buy this magazine as they know that this magazine prioritises its readers with the exclusive news.

            As My Chemical Romance is a rock band, their studio also gives it away as from looking at the pictures it looks dark and you can mostly see the colour black. The colour black connotes death and gothic which suits the Kerrang magazine as it shares the same genre as the rock band. The magazine then added some red fonts which connotes blood and death which goes and suits both the magazine’s style and the bands style as both are concentrated on rock/emo. As the My Chemical Romance is a rock band, and rock normally connotes loud, lively and hard sounds, the layout of the page looks quite busy ad packed as well as the pictures showing the band members concentrating on their singing career which connotes they are very successful.

Step by step on my contents page

 I first added a large picture of the group that the double page spread would be on, I then added a large title so that people would know what page they are on. I also added two different sections that the main pages will be divided into. I used the same colours that I have used on my front cover so that I am sticking to the same house style so it all looks similar.

 I added all of the page numbers and different artists to the two sections so people know who is going to be in the magazine. I also added two black banners, one under the large banner at the top where I have written the website on which will hopefully get the website better known, and one at the bottom right which has the twitter and facebook pages on, this will also get the magazine better known. It also has a hashtag on it which are used on twitter, this is a good way to find out what people think of the magazine.

I added text under the artists which includes some information about what is going to be on the page about the different artists. Between each of the different artists, I put red lines which would separate the names from eachother so that it doesn’t confuse people and it also makes it look professional.

I then finished off writing the rest of the information that was going to be on each page. This is my final front cover. I believe that it looks very professional and would start out from any other contents because it is neat and well organised. I have used the same house style so it matches the front cover and will match the double page spread when I finish it. I have also used some of the same fonts that I have used on the front cover so that everything is the same.

Conventions of a Contents Page

The contents page also has to have conventions to make the contents page a contents page, here are the conventions needed for a contents page:

·         ‘Contents’- having the word contents identifies that that page is the contents page, although it may be obvious that it is, it is useful having the word on the page as this will help you stick to some sort of house style.

·         House Style- having the same house style as the front cover and the rest of the magazine is vital. If it doesn't use the same colours or font, it will look like it is not even part of the same magazine and this will put people off buying the magazine as it will make it look tacky and stupid.

·         Structured layout- having a structured layout makes the page look neat; this will be easier for the reader to find what they are looking for. To help keep a structure layout, using guidelines will help alot; it’ll help keep everything in order and in straight columns.

·         Images- having some images on the contents page is important, people like to know what sort of things will be on certain pages, so having images will show the reader what is on the page and what people look like if they don’t already know.

·         Page numbers- People need to know what pages everything is on, so if there are no numbers, people won’t know what page anything is on.

·         Pull quotes- pull quotes tell people what sorts of things are going to be on the page and something that they have said, this will make the reader carry on reading on the page if they like what has been said in the pull quote.

Step by Step on a draft

This is the photo I decided to use for my front cover. I decided that having a black and white edit on a photo as it will allow me to use colours for my text so it would stand out more.

I have now added a banner along the bottom of the cover, this is where i decided the main cover lines will go. I also made a head line, this chose a red a this stands out alot on the black and white picture.

I added more cover line to the banner and also as yellow circle with 'plus' in it, this brings the readers eye to it and will draw there eyes towards the banner for the audience to read.

I then started testing different colours for my headline to see what stood out more, the headline is one of the first things I want someone to see who could potentially buy the magazine, so when they look at the magazine I need them to be interested on what it says on the front.

Once i had decided on what colour the headline should be, i moved on to writing some coverlines and I also introduced a pug. The pug is used to make people want to buy it more or to interest them in some way. I thought that i said it was the 100th issue, people would want to read it to support the magazine or maybe to read about the the 100th issue.

This is what i thought was going to be the final piece of this draft, I thought that all the colours went well together and that all the text was all the right size and that I had used the right fonts. I got someone to look at it and they said that i should change the colour of the banner that has the important stories in it. I also recognized that front covers shouldn't have page numbers on as this is what the contents page is for.

This is what it looked like after i had changed the colour of the banner. I used the same colour as the headline as this is part of my house style. I also took the page numbers off as i said i will do. But i now thought that the cover looked abit empty.

I tried to change the colour of the picture to see if this made the page look any better, which I found it did. But the page still looked quite empty. So I tried to change the layout of the page around.

Changing the page around made it look worse, the banner didn't look right at the top and the cover didn't look very good at all.

I decided that I should completely change my front cover which I thought looks alot better than before. I kept some of the ideas that i had from before. I changed the Masthead because I needed it to look better with the picture, i added a drop shadow to it to make it stand out. I made the headline bigger so that people could see if from further away, so it would catch their eye. I changed my pug to make it stand out more, and making the coverlines bigger made it easier for the reader to read. This is what i have chosen to be my final front cover as i think everything stands out and that it is a good quality front cover.

Photo ideas for my Front Cover

To start my Music magazine, I first had to decided which photo i wanted to use. I edited some pictures using fireworks and put my logo on it, and then added a head line. This helped me decided what photo i wanted to carry on with. Below are the designs i used to see which one I was going to use: