Final Post - Note to examiner

I hope you have enjoyed my AS coursework blog and found it to be of high standard.

My blog posts are clearly labeled and you can navigate through these using the label list on the right.  I also hope that my Magazine itself has been entertaining and interesting for you to read.

Final Magazine

Preliminary Magazine

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

The title of my magazine 'Beat' is typical of a music magazine as it relates to music. The irregular thing about my title is that 'Beat' relates to all kinds of music but my magazine is just based on the indie/alternative genre.

The cover is conventional as the masthead is placed at the top of the magazine which most magazine do, also the title is short which i guess is done to make it more recognisable to audiences and many magazine do this e.g, NME, Q, Clash. Having a short and bold title will also grab the attention of readers and this attracts them to the magazine. I did this on my magazine for this reason.

The layout I used was quite conventional for a music magazine. On the front cover, I had my masthead across the top of the cover, a mid-shot of my model in the centre and had most of the cover lines in the upper third of my magazine. I also put the monthly issue number underneath the masthead and in the bottom left hand corner I put a barcode with the pricing above. My cover page is set out in a fairly simple manner; the main image takes up a large part of the page, as it's a mid shot. This resulted in a few white spaces, so I put cover lines in than i originally planned to.  I feel the final cover has enough content to fill the page but not so much that it looks overcrowded.

Above is my contents page and example of Esquire magazine contents page.

For my contents, I went for a fairly standard conventional layout with the monthly and features contents being in the middle and bottom thirds of the page, split up into three columns. In the third column I put two images that are relevant to the features.  Above the contents is the main image that takes up the width of the page. At the top of the page I put my masthead and underneath that I put ‘contents’ and the date. My contents page is set out in a more complicated way although I feel that it is still easy to understand and read. I have made lists of the features included and images of the main stories in the magazine. The contents page is split up into three columns, i feel that this is quite conventional as many magazines use this similar layout with an image at the top of the page with the contents underneath.

On the double page spread I used a conventional method, putting the image on the left page of the two, with the article on the right. Also on the right page in the bottom corners I put the page numbers.

The outfit I used for my model was suitable for the genre and also the target market. I based his look on Noel Gallagher with the jacket and Orlando Weeks with the t-shirt, jeans and shoes. This style fits in well with the indie/alternative genre and also appeals to my target audience. For the mise-en-scene, on the cover my model was on a white background, as I wanted him to stand out which grabs reader’s attention. For the contents page I had my model outside, in front of a old brick wall with various items hanging off the wall, I did this for as it’s a change from the colourless image on the cover and I felt that having him in a different environment would make the readers want read further. For the double page spread I change the background of the image again, with him now sitting in a distinctive chesterfield wing chair with him looking directly at the reader.

The camera angle I used for my front cover was a mi-shot, as I felt was appropriate so most of the attention was on the model, but some was left on the cover lines. The main image on the cover follows the rule of thirds with the image being directly in the centre, which many magazines do and unconventional magazines may not follow this at all and have their images anywhere on the page. This is effective but I thought that my magazine would look better if I followed this and have my image in the middle. This is fairly conventional for a music magazine cover and magazines like Q or NME use this. For the contents I used another mid-shot but this time with the model in front of a different background, I felt the background helped to make the my artist stand out and make the readers to read further. I put a frame round this image make it more significant. For the double page spread I used a low angled shot, with my artists sitting in a chair looking directly at the camera. I did this to make a reader feel as if they were the one interviewing my artist.                        

I made the cover & double page spread images black & white as I felt it makes the image more distinctive and removes the distraction of colour from the image making you to not get drawn away from the main subject. I think that this is conventional as magazines out there do use.

The masthead font I used was a font called ‘Abadi MT Condensed Extra Bold’. I felt this font was nice, simple and very bold which made the magazine stand out. The other font I used on my cover was ‘Myriad Pro’, this is again a basic and the font gave my cover a sharp look. I used this font for the rest of my magazine as it makes the magazine sharp and neat. For the contents page I used the font with contrasting colours to show importance e.g. page numbers, titles and pull quote.

The music genre I chose for my magazine was indie/alternative. The cover lines have bands and references that relate to the genre. Also in the contents page there are features that relate to the indie/alternative genre with having bands interviews and mentions. This is conventional as music magazines have content that relates to its genre.

The colour scheme is used throughout was red, white, black/grey. This colour scheme is conventional for the genre as it uses a similar colour pallete to a lot of real music magazines out there.

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

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

Below is an online copy of my magazine. I made this with Issuu.

Evaluation Question 4 - Who would be the audience for your media product?

Evaluation Question 5 - How did you attract/address your audience?

Evaluation Question 6 - What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Evaluation Question 6; What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this produc... by NathanSimmons

Evaluation Question 7 - Looking back at your preliminary task , what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

Evaluation Question 7

Today's Lesson - 17/04/13

Today I plan on finishing evaluation question 3; What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why? I am doing this question on Prezi.

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

I would say that my magazine has similar conventions to real products and some unconventional features. 

The title of my magazine 'Beat' is typical of a music magazine as it relates to music. The irregular thing about my title is that 'Beat' relates to all kinds of music but my magazine is just based on the indie/alternative genre.
The cover is conventional as the masthead is placed at the top of the magazine which most magazine do, also the title is short which i guess is done to make it more recognisable to audiences and many magazine do this e.g, NME, Q, Clash. Having a short and bold title will also grab the attention of readers and this attracts them to the magazine. I did this on my magazine for this reason.
The main image on the cover follows the rule of thirds with the image being directly in the centre which many magazines do and unconventional magazines may not follow this at all and have their images anywhere on the page. This is effective but i thought that my magazine would look better if i followed this and have my image in  the middle. Having the image i the middle also helps the cover lines stand out as they can be used evenly in the space around the image, which i have done with cover lines either side of the image and the main cover lines on the image.
My front page is set out in a fairly simple manner, the main image takes up a large part of the page as it's a mid shot. This resulted in a  few blank white spaces, so I put cover lines in than i originally planned to.  I feel the final cover has enough content to fill the page but not so much that it looks overcrowded.

My contents page is set out in a more complicated way although I feel that it is still easy to understand and read. I have made lists of the features included and images of the main stories in the magazine. The contents page is split up into three columns, i feel that this is quite conventional as many magazine use this similar layout with an image at the top of the page with the contents underneath.

The double page spread is set out in quite a formal style, this arguably goes against the normal conventions of the indie/alternative genre where the layout can be fairly messy and a bit unconnected in places.

2. How does your media product represent particular social groups? - DRAFT

My artist Jake Levigne (left), Noel Gallagher (middle), Orlando Weeks (right)

The image of Noel Gallagher(right) shows him in a similar style to my artist. They are both wearing a similar jacket with it zipped all the way up. I would say that the style is the only thing similar to my artist as he is younger and plays a different genre of music. This is the sort of style my target market likes.  Appearance wise I have compared him to Noel Gallagher although my artists does play a different genre. Indie artists that i compare my artist Jake Levigne to are Orlando weeks (The Maccabees) but my artists character is a bit more outlandish and has a 'louder' personality with the way he performs on stage which can be seen in my article. The two are also in the same social group, they are both white, middle class .The Maccabees are an example of what type of music my audience enjoy so having my artist playing the same type of music but also making him an enthusiastic character will appeal to readers of Beat magazine.

3. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why? - DRAFT

IPC Media is a consumer magazine and digital publisher in the United Kingdom, with a large portfolio selling over 350 million copies each year. 
Some of it’s leading magazine brands include mens magazine Nuts, Marie Claire & Look (fashion), What's on TV (TV guide), World Soccer, Uncut (rock) and NME which would be the closest competitor to my magazine. 
I think that IPC Media would be suitable to publish my magazine as they only currently publish two music magazine; Uncut (monthly rock magazine) and NME (weekly indie/rock magazine). Although this may mean that a company would not want to take on a similar magazine to one that it already has, IPC Media as shown above has some magazines that are even more similar and would have very similar audiences for example Marie Claire & Look which are both fashion. 
I think the difference between NME and BEAT is that it is a monthly magazine unlike NME which is weekly. Also i think NME is selling more now to a mainstream market than it used to. I think that IPC Media having a indie/alternative music magazine would suit them nicely as it would be monthly and wouldn't effect the sales of NME. 
A magazine publishing company is responsible for editing the magazine and putting it out into the media. Magazine's are published on a regular schedule and the company doign this has to keep to that schedule and produce the best possible magazine. IPC Media obviously has great experience in this as it has done it with many magazines spread across many genres.

4. Who would be the audience for your media product? - DRAFT

My ideal target audience would be those that are interested in the Indie/alternative musical genre between the ages of 16-30. I think this age range is suitable as my magazine is targeted to a young audience. I feel my magazine isn't aimed towards a certain gender as indie is a genre which is popular in both men and women. My target audience media consumption is heavy with them enjoying listening to music, watching TV, browsing the internet, reading magazines and going to the cinema regularly. A typical member of the audience will be interested in new and current music in the indie/alternative genre. Their musical interest would include artist such as The Maccabees, Foals, The Courteeners and The XX.

I chose this age gr

5. How did you attract/address your audience? - DRAFT

Cover:

Masthead; This will attract audiences as it is positioned at the top of the magazine making it visible from a shelf. I used a large bold font in block capitals which would make it hard for audiences to miss and therefore attracts them to the magazine.

Cover Lines; The main  cover line attracts audience as it is large and bold which makes the cover stand out. Other cover lines stand out well from the background and they appeal to my target audience. For example the 'Glastonbury, Reading & Leeds' cover line attracts the audience as i have targeted my magazine to younger people who enjoy music festivals. 

Main image; The model i used on my cover have the same style as my target audience. This makes the magazine appeal to them as they can read about people similar to them in a way.

Price; The price can be seen on top of the bar code in the bottom left hand side of the cover. I've priced my magazine at £3.99. I think think this is very reasonable price as 

Contents Page:

Bands/artist featured; The bands that are featured are popular with my target audience and this will make them want to read further.

Main Image; The image is of the same person used on the cover but has a change off background and colour included. Also that it's a large image shows it's importance over the other features of the magazine which makes readers interested to read further in to this.

Double Page Spread:

Main Image; The image takes up the entire left page and shows the model in a different environment. The model is seating down and looking directly at the readers which appeals to the audience.

Pull quote; I only used one pull quote which is on the left page above the model. Pull quotes attract the audience to read further as they show a glimpse of information that is included in the main article.

Headline; 'Jake Levigne' is large and bold and spreads across the right page and becuase of the size attracts the audience to read further.

6. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product? - DRAFT

Camera:

To take my images I used a Canon 600D. I found that the pictures on this were of a much better quality than other cameras. The images I took with the camera were both inside and outside. The lighting for the inside was bright as there was daylight so there was no need for a flash. Outside it was bright as well and there was no need to use the flash on the camera.  I learnt how to use the camera, by that I mean I learnt about the different settings and filters and how to use them correctly.

Computer/Laptops:
I used the school computer sand an Apple MacBook Pro to create my coursework. I used both of these for research and planning in to my magazine. I didn't really learn anything new about these two computers however I did learn how to use the software more efficiently on them such as Photoshop.

Adobe Photoshop CS6:
Adobe Photoshop is a graphics editing program which I used to create my magazine. Since I started this coursework I have gradually became better at Photoshop. The main thing I feel I learnt is how to cut using the lasso tool properly which I used mostly to cut out images (for example the cover photo). I created my Cover, Contents and Double Page Spread with Photoshop. Having very little experience with this program before, throughout this course I have learnt how to use Photoshop.

Blogger:
I posted all the stages of my coursework through blogger. I learnt how to use Blogger and from this I posted the research, planning, drafting, final pieces and evaluations.

Prezi:

I used prezi during research in my coursework, it help me with my magazine pitch and others. I learnt how to put a presentation together on Prezi.

USB Flash Drive:
I used a usb to save coursework on to use on different computers. This really helped me throughout the course.

Slidshare:

I learnt how to use slidehsare to show PowerPoint presentations I’ve made on my blog. I found slideshare really useful during the course as PowerPoint presentations are an efficient way of showing information.

Safari & Google Chrome
These are the two search browsers i used in the research and planning stage of the coursework. They are both very useful for researching and planning as they come up with images and information on magazines. I didn't really learn anything new about these two internet browsers.

7. Looking back at your preliminary task , what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product? - DRAFT

Comparing my preliminary magazine to my final i think i have firstly improved on the layout of my magazine. In my preliminary i think i used the space very poorly on both my cover and contents page. The cover page on my final piece i think i used the space well and kept it simple to give it a nice clean look.  The contents page on my final i thought was much better than my preliminary but i feel i have struggled with the contents page throughout the course. The preliminary magazine contents i thought was vey poor, from then i tried a few layouts. Research on magazine did really help me and the inspiration for my final contents page was Esquire magazine's layout.
Secondly, I've learnt how to make images more aesthetically pleasing. In my preliminary the images were very plain with them all being on the same background. From this i thought carefully where and what type of images i would take. The main images i used in my final piece all had different backgrounds and colours and they all weren't the same type of shot. Looking at the final images compared to my preliminary images i think i have really improved them and made them much more aesthetically pleasing. 
Overall i think that i learnt a lot and improved in every area of the magazine from my preliminary to my final magazine.

Photos - Double page Spread

Photos - Contents Page

Photos - Cover

Photo shoot for cover

UPDATE - Contents Page

After feedback on my draft piece it was clear that i had to change the layout of my contents page. Above is an rough image of what the layout is going to look like. I think this is a vast improvement from my draft contents page. The main image will be of the model on the front infront of a different background from the cover. There will most likely be more text on the page so i have to take space under consideration when progressing with this layout. 

Change of Colour Scheme

I have decide to change the colour scheme of my magazine because feedback showed that it didn't work and that certain colours didn't stand out. I'm now going to use a white/red/dark grey colour scheme which i think will work well. On the cover the image will be over a white background, the masthead in the contrasting colour red and cover lines will use a mix of dark grey and red.

On the contents page i will have again a white background with a mix of red and dark grey text. The red will be used possibly for page numbers and maybe quotes  as this will contrast with the white background make them stand out and grab the attention of the reader. 
On the double page spread red will be used for the main title and possibly pull quotes which stand out from the other text. The article will be in dark grey/black and the interview questions will be in red, this will separate the answers from the questions which makes it easier for the reader.

Feedback - Draft

From the feedback I have received from teachers and peers, i think the following improvements may be necessary: 

Colour Scheme:
-Needs to change.
-Too dark/overwhelming 

Cover:
- Image of model could be bigger.
- Change size of masthead.
- Barcode needs more detail (issue, month, price).

Contents:
- More information needed.
- Need to use space better.
- Layout needs changing.

Double Page Spread:
- Check spelling errors.
- Longer article needed.

From this feedback I've been given a lot to think about. Firstly i am going to change the colour scheme as the black, white, blue made it hard for images and text to stand out and is too dark. Also i am going to make a change the layout of the contents page as the feedback shows that the layout doesn't work.

BEAT Magazine - Draft

In my final piece i will have a different person with a different name. 

Draft - Photos

Band Profile

Name: Fuse

Music style:
Indie/alternative, lead singer, guitar, bass, drums.

Influences: 
The Maccabees, Foals, Oasis, The Courteeners.

Band Members:
Lead singer/ front man who can play the guitar, another guitarist, Bass and a drummer.

Cover: A mid shot of the lead singer not showing that much expression on his face in front of a black or white background.

Contents: Again a mid shot of the lead singer on a different background.

Double Page Spread: Maybe a mid shot again or a low angled shot looking up at the lead singer either sitting or standing up. 

Style: They would have a simple style and will be wearing a plain coloured shirt, t-shirt or jacket. 

Draft Article

Ever since Fuse started as a small English band from the midlands doing open mic nights at their local pubs, they’re rise to fame wouldn't have been as substantial without the enthusiastic frontman Jake Levigne Leading them on. Beat magazine’s own Nathan Simmons talks to …… in this exclusive interview with the man from Fuse.

He is thought of as the stand alone man from Fuse and is undoubtedly one of the most influentially talented musicians coming out of the industry currently.

2012 has been their breakout year with firstly supporting Foals at the turn of the year, and then a top selling album which stormed to the top of the indie charts followed with a European tour with critical acclaim. And just to think a year before they were in their hometown of Coventry trying to get any gig they could; now they are one the most talked about upcoming bands with an ever-growing fan base. They have completely taken over the indie genre by storm and are increasingly becoming the main face of the genre. Now with a new year, Fuse’s front man has told Beat that he wants this year to be even better

You've just finished the tour, how was it?

This being are first and obviously not last tour I’ve got nothing really to compare it with but what I can say that it was absolutely amazing. Everything about it was overwhelming, I mean the crowds were just incredible and this really helped me and the band perform passionately. The first gig at the Ricoh Arena in Cov(Coventry) was the most nerve racking as I’ve always wanted to play there but once I saw the crowed and walked on to the stage my nerves were gone and this gave us a good start which followed us throughout the tour.  

You seem to be much more chilled than you are on the stage. Normally we see you jumping around doing some crazy things, why is this?

I think it is that when I have a crowd in front of me and there screaming at me it makes me sing more passionately and sometimes I may go over top but I feel that its more enjoyable for the crowd and the result is that we give an even better performance from this. Also the fact that I’m playing with my mates helps me perform like this. But I do agree with you that I’m much more quiet and chilled off stage and I suppose this a good thing otherwise id be tearing down this room if I acted like I do on stage.

What do you think when people say you are the stand out member of the band?

It’s flattering to hear that because I do a lot of hard work striving to get this band further and I’m glad it is paying off and if getting highlighted as the stand out member because of this is what comes with hard work then I’m happy with it. But i don’t really take any notice of it because without Dan, Tom and Charlie I and the band wouldn't be anything.

2012 was incredible for you, what do you want 2013 to be?
I want it to be even better and have more success than last year. I think we can do this if we are dedicated and work as hard to produce quality music.

What's to come in 2013?
We're currently in the studio working on another album to be released October/November time. Also we got lots of festivals to come in particular Glastonbury, Reading & Leeds in the summer and throughout the year some small gigs throughout the UK.  

BEAT Magazine - Mock

Colour Scheme ideas

I want the colour scheme on my magazine to be quite simplistic as i think this will have a good effect on the magazine. I will use neutral colours and stick to 3 colours. I'd like the background to be either white or black because this makes the text and the model stand out more. I will maybe have 2 main colours and  1 contrasting colour that I will use either on the masthead, image on the cover or text. The contrasting colour can also be used to highlight the importance of something in the magazine e.g page numbers, pull quotes.  

I like this colour scheme as the blue contrast well with a black background and white text that would be on the magazine. A good example of this colour scheme is Clash magazines cover on above. The blue on this cover contrast really well with the black background and the white text. If I did use this colour scheme I will make my cover have a black background with white text or blue text and the masthead would be large in a bold white font.   
   

                                                                                                                                                                                                 

Above is an issue of NME magazine, this uses a red/white/black colour scheme. I will use the colour scheme (red/white/dark grey) above in a similar way. With the red/white/dark grey colour scheme there are many different variations of ways I can use this on my magazine. I could make the masthead red on the white background and use the dark grey as the cover lines and text. Having a white background will make the image on the front of the magazine stand out. The white background would also be in on the contents page and double page spread because  white gives a magazine a clean look,  also having grey/black text will also make it look sharp and appealing to readers. The red can be used also to show the importance of something on the magazine, for example on the contents page, the main article could be highlighted in red to show it's more important the other contents on the page. Also red could be used as the colour for pull quotes in the double page spread interview because this would contrast well with the white background and the grey/black text.

I cant decide without seeing them on a draft of my magazine so I will try both of these colour scheme ideas on my draft  and decide from there which looks better and use this as my final idea.