Sketches of front page, contents page and double page spread

I like the first sketch of the front page that i drew, as it relates to other music magazines and it also follows a similar layout to music magazines, whilst being different at the same time.
I like the second sketch of the contents page that i drew as it is very full, and the first sketch looks a little bit empty for a contents page, whereas the second one emphasises the amount of content that the magazine has inside.
I like this layout of a double page spread better than the other sketch of the double page spread as the other sketch follows the layout of other media products a lot, whereas this one has a variety of style as well as being easily distinguishable as a double page spread.
I like this sketch if i was to do a dedication of a whole magazine on an artist, but i feel it follows the conventions of most double page spreads, and doesn't have the look of individuality that i am hoping my magazine will have.

Retake : Final Products

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

There are certain rules and designs that have been used in order to create a magazine. These have turn into conventions of a magazine. In order to produce a successful magazine, I had to research these conventions in order to help me create successful media products.

The first convention which I followed in order to create my front page, was the most common convention used in creating a magazine. I placed my masthead and my puff line at the top of my magazine. This convention has formed because in order for the audience of a magazine to be able to see the magazine on a shelf, with other magazines in front of it, the masthead and puff line needs to be at the top. The puff line is at the very top of the magazine in order to entice the audience to buy the magazine.

Although I followed the convention of placing my masthead at the top of my magazine, I also challenged this convention, as I did not position my masthead the conventional way. Most mastheads are places horizontally across the magazine, whereas I have placed my masthead at an angle at the top of the page.

The reason I chose to do this was because I wanted my magazine to be seen as different and not just the same as every one else. The audience will also distinguish my magazine quicker. Another convention in my magazine was the type of shot I used for my front page. Most magazines have a close up or medium close up with the artist looking directly into the audience, this is done so the audience can feel as if the artist on the cover of the magazine has a connection with them.

For my magazine, my photo has neither one of these conventions. Instead I used a medium shot and my artist is looking to the left of her, she is also wearing sunglasses. I wanted to challenge this as I thought the image used on my front cover gave not only my artist but also my magazine a look of class.

As my magazine would be new on the market, I would have wanted to ensure that the genre of my music magazine can be easily portrayed by looking at my front cover straight away. Along with challenging conventions of a magazine, I also followed them. Another convention in which I followed was having a running colour scheme throughout my magazine.

For my contents page I followed the conventions of the layout style. I had 3 main images and then the content of my magazine was put on the right hand side.

It also had a continuous colour scheme that was found on my front cover. Although I followed the conventions, I also adapted it, as I did not include as many pictures that magazines include. I also followed the convention of adding an editors note at the bottom, I included a picture of the editor, although this is not common in music magazines, it is a convention in fashion magazines, I done this as I wanted to incorporate fashion and music together, as the design and layout of my magazine shows this.

For my double page spread, I followed the conventions of having my image on one side and on the other side I have the questionnaire. It is also spilt half way through the page, which is also another convention magazines often follow.

Retake: Q2. How does your media product represent particular social groups

My music magazine music magazine is targeted at 16-20 year olds. In order for me to represent this, I used a model who was aged 18.

I think my magazine positively represents this age group. I done this because I thought my media product needed to allow my audience to feel they have a connection to my artist. I also made my artist look very fashionable although she is only seen wearing a plain white top, the sunglasses and her make-up adds fashion to her look, and they are also readily available and are not accessories that my target audience would not be able to afford if they wanted to go out and buy them.

I thought this was important because as my model doesn’t have any connection with my audience through her eyes, they need to be able to relate to her or feel as if they can. Whereas some magazines represent wealth within their image through the clothes and props the artist is wearing. Another way in which I made my artist represent my audience is by wearing braids in her hair, in doing so she was representing not just African/Caribbean girls, but African/Caribbean females as a whole she is showing that her ethnicity is an important part of her character, and also allows other females of these ethnic background to feel comfortable with this. Unlike some other magazines that just boost an artists appeal and look, and does not help their audience feel they can relate to the artist.

My magazine is targeted at more urban social groups who appreciate the r&b music genre. My contents page also has another girl and a boy who also represent this ethical background with the way in which they look.

They do not represent wealth, but health. I decided to do this as there are not many magazines that don’t emphasise the meaning of good wellbeing and health, and this is shown in my magazine, as well as showing a passion for music and fashion. Although the boy featured in my contents page is not seen to be wearing a lot of chains or have grills in his teeth which many rap artists do, he is representing those who have a passion for music and people with talent, without expressing his success through his wealth.

Retake: Q3. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why

The publishing company I chose to research into was IPC Media.

This publishing company publishes over 90 different magazines. IPC Media is known for magazines such as NME, which is a rock genre magazine, and many other very well known

household magazines such as LOOK and Marie Claire.

I believe that my magazine would do well for this publishing company as it is not within their already wide-set audience. I would think that NME’s target audience would be that of university students who come from the middle class family. My magazine has a target audience for urban youths aged from around 16-20, with no set class of the family of which they come from, and as the age gap is not very big.

I think this will benefit the company as it will have a more selective target audience and can then be based within one county of England, I would chose my magazine to be based in London as it is the capital and the youths within this county have a very diverse sense of style.

Another reason my magazine would benefit IPC Media, is my magazine is based upon new urban UK music, with a bit of American music chucked in. This would be a good investment for IPC media as it will connect to the other big music magazine that they publish NME without taking any of their audience. I say this as they would both be magazines on UK music, but they would have two completely different genres within UK music. As NME is more a rock/metal kind of magazine with features of different genres, my magazine is based on urban music, such as UK Grime, Funky house and some Hip Hop and R&B. So this would enable IPC Media to reach out to both ends of the UK music spectrum.

Also IPC Media say that there target audience for there men and music magazines are aged from 18-34. NME is also targeted for more the men audience, whereas my magazine is targeted towards both genders, so although my age group is smaller I am targeting both genders so it then opens up the audience more.

I would distribute my music magazine in newsagents and WHSmith’s within train stations and hospitals. I would also distribute my magazine within selected youth clubs and colleges which would change every month. I would do this as I believe it would come across to my target audience strongly. The reason I wouldn’t distribute it in WHSmith stores other than in train stations and hospital is because my target audience wouldn’t really go there on a regular basis, and a corner shop or newsagent is much more accessible to my audience that a WHSmith store.

I would also distribute in different youth clubs and colleges as I believe it would receive more interest and would then capture the audience much more quickly, well in comparison to giving the magazine time to distinguish a strong audience

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

My target audience is aimed at 16-20 year olds who are genuinely interested in: music, fashion and getting somewhere in their life, such as those who are attending college, or are doing an apprenticeship or have a job which they are aiming to specialize in .

The reason I have decided I wanted these type of people as my target audience is because I would like to believe my magazine would be inspirational to the readers my magazine acquires. Also as it would be a great opportunity to give those who have something they are aiming for in life, the help that they need.my target audience also have to be interested in music, and for 16-20 year olds, music can be a major part of their lives, for example in my target audience there will be some students who are undergoing the stress of exams and also doing work for school/ college or university, music could be a way for those who are undergoing these stresses to relieve themselves, and that’s where my music magazine comes fits into my target audience, as I will be providing them with the latest news gossip and music events, that will help them enjoy their leisure time.

I have targeted my audience towards those more urban Londoners, this is because London is a multi-cultural city with a high interest in fashion, and as fashion is incorporated through music, I thought it would be a good idea to ensure my magazine held this for my target audience, as they would have an interest in this especially due to their age group.

My target audience doesn’t have a set gender that my magazine is targeted at, and due to the fact that I decided to that my target age group would be relatively small, so in order to capture as much of an audience as possible I thought having a unisex magazine would be more beneficial for my magazine

Retake: Q5. How do you attract/address you audience?

For my front page, I ensured that music affairs and events were included in my cover lines. I ensured I included things such names of big music artists on my front cover who are from America. With the cover lines, I included a white stroke, which I believe is eye-catching to the audience if they was to see the magazine on the shelf in a shop.

I also ensured that my main cover line was big and bold and had an outer glow around it, this also made it stand out from the rest of the text on my front cover, although I made it the same font as my masthead, as I wanted both things to have equal importance. The colour scheme that was used throughout my magazine was also consistent so that the main cover line that was included in my magazine was shown on my double page spread, I done this so my audience would know that it was all part of the same magazine.

I decided to use Standard English in my magazine as I have already stated that my target audience is aspirers and with including standard English within my magazine also implies a tone of education, which is not too overpowering. Which whilst making my magazine I thought would be an important factor when my target audience decided to get involved. It also shows that my audience to be educated. It also shows that I have not put my target audience into the stereotype that they are uneducated and cannot speak proper English.

I used a medium shot for my front cover and also for my double page spread, and I used a mid shot and close ups for my contents page photographs. I thought that using a medium shot for the front page and double page spread of music magazine it would make my magazine more noticeable as other magazines usually use mid shots. I also though using a long shot would make my front page look like its giving off a bold statement and would then attract my urban target audience as it would be different.

I kept the model in my photographs the same throughout my magazine as she is within my target age group which will also help my magazine identify itself quicker with my target audience age, and my male audience also said that they find her attractive. As well as attracting females into her fashion. As she is wearing fashionable clothing which compliments the colour scheme, which will then also attract my audience, My model isn’t wearing much jewellery as I didn’t want her to be too over the top, so in order to attract the female audience I wanted her to appeal to my audience, so she just wearing earrings and is showing off her multiple ear piercings,

which relates to my audience, it may also have given my magazine higher standards and giving my magazine a complex involving classes and wealth, which my magazine is not based upon.