Feature Article

Contents Page

Magazine Cover

Draft of Contents Page

I think this is a good layout for the contents page as the layout is organised and everything can be found easily. I think that having two images on this page is probably the best idea as the point is to tell readers what is included within the magazine, and some people may prefer to see an image of someone or something before deciding to buy the magazine and/or read the article(s).

Third Draft of Magazine Cover

I like this layout for a cover mainly because the masthead is in a different place, possibly showing that the magazine is different and unique. I think that showing an image of the feature article on the cover could be a good idea as it shows the reader the kind of content that the magazine holds before they buy it.

Second Draft of Magazine Cover

I think this is probably the best draft of my magazine cover as it utilises the cover space well, leaving none of it empty. I think that having a small space for some of the magazine's features at the bottom of the cover may possibly gain more readers as they can see some of the main articles etc. within the magazine, whereas with some magazines you have to look inside to see what or who the articles are based on.

First Draft of Magazine Cover

This is the first draft of my magazine cover. I like it as it is neat and organised and uses the cover space well, leaving only a small amount of the page blank. I think the idea of having more than one image on the cover is good because it makes the magazine look different to most others and therefore may be more eye-catching potentially gaining more readers.

Overview of the Magazine Industry

There are many magazine publishers hoping to capture the magazine industry, but the largest consumer is Bauer with a 25% share of the market which is closely followed by IPC media with a 20% share of the market, both of them producing big brand magazines such as; Marie Claire, Now, Kerrang!, and Grazia. Due to dominating the magazine industry, they are now the biggest publishers in the industry which allows them to branch out their product and explore the different genres therefore resulting in them gaining the potential to become even bigger media producers.  In stark contrast with publishers like Bauer and IPC are the less popular publishers which produce magazines such as Herst. These companies fail to become as well-known as they lack a wide variety of magazines and possibly distribute them to just one area, resulting in a smaller revenue.

The magazine industry is continuously explanding and growing. Today, there are over 3,200 different consumer titles, compared to 1980 when there were only around 1,383 titles, so we get a clear view of how the industry gains more products in order to keep their audiences interested. In 1970, only around 1.3 billon magazines were said to be sold each year. Now the statistics show that this is about 1.4 billion a year, having descreased drastically from an almost doubled figure between then and now. This is probably because of the accessibility to technology and availability of online magazines etc.

The main focus within the magazine industry is to sell the product, probably in newsagents and stores like WHSmiths, in order to generate a profit. Some publishers may include one of their titles as part of an offer in a newspaper which could attract more readers. Consumer magazines make up a large percentage - 90% - of titles sold in newsagents. The majority of these are designed to inform and/or entertain.

Information On Magazine Publishing

IPC Media

IPC media publishes over 60 iconic media brands and creates content for multiple platforms, across print, online, mobile, tablets and events. They engage with 26 million UK adults - almost two thirds of UK women and 42% of UK men. IPC was created in 1968 but its history dates back to 1799.

Bauer

Bauer Media is one probably the main publisher of magazines within the UK and is part of Europe's largest privately owned publishing group; the Bauer Media Group. The Group is a worldwide media empire offering over 300 magazines in 15 countries, as well as online, TV and radio stations. Today, Bauer Media spans over 80 influential brand names covering a diverse range of interests including Heat – the must have weekly celebrity title, Parkers, MATCH!, CAR and Yours. Their magazine heritage stretches back to 1953 with the launch of Angling Times and the acquisition in 1956 of Motor Cycle News, both still iconic brands within their portfolio.


Future PLC

Future PLC (listed on the London Stock Exchange) is an international media group. Having been founded in 1985 with just one magazine, it now has operations in the UK, US and Australia creating over 200 specialist publications, apps, websites and events as well as specialising in many high quality multi-media products.

Location, Props and Costume

The location I used when taking photos for my magazine was the Media/Photography studio within college. I did this due to the available lighting equipment. Another factor which contributed as to why I shot my photos there was the plain backgrounds. I felt that having plain backgrounds would make my photographs easier to edit and therefore make them more effective. Also, I feel that the use of a white background in my main cover image creates a brighter and more fresh air about my magazine. It also gave me more choice as to which colours to use as almost every colour went will with the image and the background. For the cover image, I asked the model (Rose) to simply stand and smile. I did this to create a more inviting feeling in order to try and attract more readers, as much as the fact that I think it shows effectively what the person is truly like if you can get a good view of them.

I didn't use any props because I didn't deem it necessary. Having decided to create a magazine based on pop/acoustic music, I thought that the best way to reflect these genres is to show what is really there without covering anything up. This is specifically in relation to acoustic music as it is really stripped down and raw. Another reason I decided not to use props in my shoots is because I knew most of my photos would be close-ups, meaning they would be irrelevant as they probably wouldn't even be visible. On my contents page, I used two black and white images in order to balance the colours on the page which are bright shades of red and blue. I also feel that these two images are some of the strongest ones I took. For the feature article, I felt that I still needed to incorporate a photo despite already having the minimum four images throughout the rest of the magazine. This image was actually intended for use as part of my Photography coursework, but my Media tutor and I both thought it worked too well with the article to let it go amiss and so I used it for both sets of coursework, and I feel it really added to the overall mood of the article.

I asked the model on the cover to wear something plain and simple for the cover photo, which is why she is wearing a hoodie. I feel that this gives the sense that she is relaxed and open. However, in the second photo that she is in, in the feature article, she is wearing a blue dress with black tights. I did this in order to relate it to the article and I also feel that having such a simple photo on the cover adds to the effectiveness of the other images throughout the magazine, especially the one in the article. I think that my target audience would probably wear similar clothes to those that the female models (Rose and Chloe) wear in their photos, possibly establishing a connection with the readers.

Original Ideas Statement

My original idea was to create a magazine based on the pop genre because it's the genre I listen to the most, however I also thought about creating a magazine which focuses on acoustic music as I also listen to a lot of acoustic covers. In the magazine itself, I hope to include a wide range of articles based on artists with different styles within the same genre and area of the music industry. This could potentially lead to more people buying the magazine, resulting in a larger revenue.

I want my magazine's cover to be simple, but interesting and effective, so that in a way it reflects pop and/or acoustic music. I plan to use an image of a solo artist on the cover as I feel that it will make it easier for me to write an article on them making the article more effective. I will use a font that I feel best reflects the style and mood I want my magazine to set, and will use similar fonts throughout the magazine but alter them slightly so that it becomes easier to differentiate which text matched which image and/or article. The main cover image will probably be central meaning the masthead, strap lines and cover lines etc. will surround it. The date, issue number and web address of the magazine will be placed either at the top or the bottom of the page.

The contents page is something I have struggled to gather my ideas for. As I, personally, do not read magazines I am unfamiliar with many of the codes and conventions set within the industry, and due to this I will probably keep the layout of my contents page relatively simple. I intend to keep the same colour scheme and fonts from the cover in order to give a sense that the magazine is relatively neat and organised.

As for the feature article in my magazine, I will probably write an article based on the artist on the cover either about a more personal side to their music, the lifestyle they now live due to being in the music industry, or something along those lines. This will probably include at least one more image of the artist, possibly two depending on how many I put on the cover and in the contents page. Again, I will use the same colour scheme and fonts in the article in order to link it with the rest of the magazine.

When taking photos, I plan to do lots of different shoots in order to take as many photos as I can, meaning I will have a wider variety when it comes to choosing which images to edit for my magazine. I plan to  get the models to pose in effective yet simple and inviting ways showing a relaxed atmosphere about the magazine, in an attempt to attract more readers. I plan to take the photos inside in order to make them seem more professional, as well as maximising the effectiveness due to the accessibility I have to lighting equipment. Also, if I do take my photos in the studio, they will be easier to edit however I wish because there will be plain backgrounds also meaning there is nothing to detract the readers eyes from the models making it easier to focus on them and text relating to each image.

Looking back at your preliminary task (the college magazine task), what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

When creating my preliminary task (college magazine), my knowledge of Photoshop was very limited, however in my finished product my Photoshop skills were much better. I leared how to control the layers and edit the contrast, brightness and levels in images in order to make them more appealing, which was something I didn't do in my preliminary task. Doing this, it makes my magazine appear more realistic and similar to a professional product which my preliminary task magazine doesn't.

I also learnt how to digitally colour an image, which I have done in the image on my feature article. I did this as it is a mix of black and white, and colour in one photograph, and it is the fifth image in the magazine, while two of the other four are in colour and two are black and white. To do this, I created a hue/saturation layer mask on the image, and dragged the saturation down to 0. Having done this, I used the brush tool and changed the colour to black, and brushed over where I wanted to bring back the colour which was the models dress and hair. I also feel that doing this strengthened the image and made it more interesting than it was previously as it is something unique in my magazine. The colours of the original image link to those in the rest of the magazine, and so I wanted to emphasise them by digitally colouring the image so that the only noticable difference between the final image and the original are that the colours are brighter and the models arms are in black and white.

Another factor of progression is that having created different moodboards, such as a target audience moodboard and an advertisements moodboard, I knew what my target audience would be looking for in a magazine as well as how they would want it to look. In accordance to this, I followed the conventions of popular music magazines such as Q evidently, however changed the design slightly to make it unique. Many other popular music magazines focus on young generations wanting to buying them which may make it more difficult for my magazine to sell, however due to slightly altering the design to make it more unique this may be a factor which largely contributes to the sales of the magazine. Also, having done research through surveys, I found out what some members of the target audience would look for in a magazine like my own, and this helped me decide what I needed include in my magazine and the types of artists to feature in it. While I didn't want to copy popular music magazines, I didn't want to avoid the codes and conventions in case this made the magazine unappealing to readers, so I chose to create my own artists which would be seen as low-profile rather than featuring bigger, better known names like Lady GaGa and P!nk.

When writing my double page spread, I wanted to create a relaxed atmosphere which was relateable for the target audience. I did this by avoiding the use of slang to make it more formal, and writing it as it would be spoken rather than having a heavily edited body of text. This is relateable as the audience are female high school or college students, and therefore they would be relatively relaxed and intelligent and prefer to read something properly rather than in slang, so I tried to make it well written to attract my target audience as well as targeting others who aren't necessarily associated with them.

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

To create my media product, I used Adobe Photoshop CS6. I used this program to design my magazine cover, contents page, and double page spread as well as editing my pictures. Using photoshop, I learned a range of techniques when editing my photographs in order to make them stronger and improve the asthetics, as well as designing the main media product. Some of the techniques I learned are changing opacity of shapes, and changing the contrast and levels of the images. I feel that doing this made the images more effective and more pleasing to the eye. Overall, using Photoshop made it easy to create the product rather than using numerous programs, though I did have some problems with it at the beginning due to lack of experience with the program which I eventually overcame. These are just some of the advantages of using Photoshop, although it does take time to get used to using it especially when you have never used it before. Some of the disadvantages are that it sometimes takes a while to save work from the program, and occasionally it freezes. In addition to Photoshop, I also used internet sites such as Blogger, DaFont and Survey Monkey to do my research and create my magazine.

Blogger is the site I used to post my finished product, it was also good to upload my preliminary task and other pieces of coursework, and the site was very easy to navigate having never used it before.

Survey Monkey was useful as all I had to do was sign up and then I could instantly create a survey. One disadvanage of this though, is that rather than the site sending the survey to a randomised selection of site members, I had to actively send a link to the survey via email to people. In addition to this, some of the people I sent the survey to did not complete the survey, making it harder to gather relevant data.

DaFont was extremely quick and easy to navigate, and has a wide variety of fonts to choose from. However, if you used a font from the website and then closed the window, unless you took note of the font name or downloaded the font, it became very difficult to find the right font again. This was also a disadvantage as rather than being able to download fonts due to computer accessability, we had to take screenshots and crop them, although this was made easier with the use of Photoshop.

How did you attract/address your audience?

My magazine attracts the target audience by using a layout relatively similar to that of a conventional magazine, but still challenges some conventions. I did this because my target audience is mainstream teenaged girls, who prefer simple and organised things, but still focus on being an individual. The reason for the simple and minimalistic layout of the magazine is because it is supposed to reflect the readers preferred style. I decided to use brighter colours in my magazine as it is aimed at a younger audience, however combined with the simple layout I feel that it gives the magazine a somewhat sophisticated appearance which is what the younger generation often wish to be seen as.

In my feature article, I tried to create a relaxed atmosphere by writing the interview as it would be spoken, rather than a heavily edited type of interview. This is because my target audience are young and therefore are probably used to relatively relaxed atmospheres. I also used pull quotes that I felt may be relateable to the readers. By doing this it has made my magazine more appealing to the target audience and it will help to increase the sales of my magazine. To make the main article easier to read, I used black text on a white background, while using red text on a blue background for the additional information. This gives the sense that the additional information has been highlighted, and is there for the reader to look at if they wish too.

On the contents page I used an extremely simple layout, though again I feel it appears very sophisticated. I used the same colour scheme as the front cover and double page spread so that it tied together and didn't detract from the overall appearance of the magazine. I also used a two black and white images, as I felt that this page was the one using the most colour in my magazine and rather than add to that, I believe the use of black and white images gained the right balance and added to the sophisticated look of the page.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

The target audience for my media product would be mainstream teenaged girls who like to keep relatively up to date with the latest music and fashion. They would normally were a simple outfit of jeans or shorts, a plain or casual tee or vest top, maybe a hoodie or a jacket, and some converse trainers or something similar. When shopping they may sometimes go for slightly more expensive brands such as Hollister or Jack Wills, but often they wouldn't obsess with having the most expensive things and would like to dress simply and for comfort rather than style.

I think they would purchase my magazine because it represents what they may like in their lifestyles: simple yet interesting. By setting my magazine out in the format I have, I believe I have made it relatable not only to the target audience but also similar to other magazines while challenging some of the codes and conventions of professional media products. Doing so, I feel it may encourage readers to buy my magazine.

I believe that bands and artists featured in the magazine should have their merchandise, tour dates and gig tickets advertised in the magazine as this is what the audience would probably be interested in. For example, someone may only buy a magazine because they see a particular artist on the cover, rather than because of the regular content of the magazine. Another reason is because they may be interested in purchasing tickets, for example, as they have not yet had the opportunity to see a band or artist that they like live. By regularly advertising different things like merchandise and tickets for the bands and artists featured, I feel that the sales would increase as it may give readers an exclusive opportunity to purchase these things that they may not otherwise know about.

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

When trying to get my magazine published, I would probably look to IPC media to distribute it. I would choose to do this as IPC is a worldwide company, which would instantly give my magazine recognition. I also believe that IPC media do not currently publish a magazine like mine, and would be interested in selling a magazine like mine as my magazine would attract a different audience to that which the company already targets, therefore creating a larger revenue. This then creates a larger access scale to potential customers, as well as generating new advertising opportunities due to broadening their customer base. My magazine would be unique compared to the others on the list of magazines currently published by IPC as none of them focus on the genre of music that mine does, in the way thay it does. Though not specifically stated in my magazine, the idea is that it focuses mostly on acoustic music, which I tried to emphasise slightly in my feature article, as well as the images used throughout the magazine. A significant advantage of being distributed by IPC media is that they have a lot of money, meaning that if the magazine were to be a success a website could be made creating an even larger revenue, and attracting more potential customers due to accessibility.

However, I also feel that my magazine would benefit from being self-published. Although I believe my magazine to be unique I can see that a publishing company such as IPC media may want to make adjustments as it is similar to some current magazines, such as Acoustic magazine, in terms of content whereas if my magazine were self-published, it could remain the same as it is without any significant changes being made, meaning it would stay true to itself and sustain its current target audience. There are, however, several disadvantages to this such as printing and advertising costs, and not making a profit quite as large.

I would completely avoid publishing my magazine with a smaller company, for several reasons. There may already be new magazines looking to get publised as quickly as possible, meaning that the smaller publishing companies may have little space for newly developed magazines. They also have a lot less money than companies such as IPC media, and if they were to go into administration I would lose a large sum of money. However, I understand that there are advantages too being distributed by a smaller company such as the magazine remaining focused on what it was initially, and therefore being the product that I would be looking to make as opposed to an adaptation of it.

I believe my magazine would be best distributed in stores like WHSmiths as they already have a wide spectrum of different kinds of magazines which I think they would want to add to. I would also have my magazine online in order to develop accordingly with the market changes, potentially increasing the demand of the magazine.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

The people I'm aiming my magazine at are the younger generation of females who may aspire to be like a celebrity in a magazine, also the other members of the younger generation who are interested in the music somebody makes rather than what is going on in a certain celebrity's life. My audience are people who don't dress in any particular fashion and aren't necessarily bothered with the newest products (though some may be), and are friendly people who lead normal lives as high school or college students. The target audience's reputation may not always be the best, although the stereotypes of a teenaged girl often overlook a more 'average' member of this audience, and this is something I wanted to bring out in my magazine. Many people nowadays see teenaged girls as 'slags', particularly due to the clothes they wear, and I wanted to challenge this stereotype in my magazine. I did this by making my double page spread about a more gentle subject; interpretive dance. The reason I did this was to represent that behind each person is a different story, and it may be something completely unexpected, and therefore stereotypes aren't always accurate.

In the image on my double page spread, I was trying to relate it to the article and make it something which strongly represents what and who the article is about, as well as the target audience, through the pose and costume. The model is a teenaged girl, wearing a blue dress and black tights. As the person in the interview, she is a singer/ songwriter who also loves to dance. The pose represents the style of dance she enjoys most, however it also looks as though she may be trying to hide away from something which relates to the article as some of it is about emotions and feelings. The image may reflect a member of the target audience as these are typically feminine aspects, in addition to dancing and singing being popular among young girls.

The age group my product is aimed at is between 14 - 21 year old girls because they often look at other people, often celebrities, as role models. However I feel that some males in this age group may also purchase my magazine for some of the same reasons, or because they just prefer the type of music incoporated in my magazine rather than other genres such as rock and metal, like myself. There may also be several other factors as to why a male would buy this magazine as opposed to a magazine like Kerrang!.

I believe that magazines of this type are often aimed at the audience in a way which sometimes makes them want to be like the celebrities featured within the product. For example, phrases like 'perfect' and 'flawless' are often used when a model appears in a magazine, which may make women think 'I want to be like her'. However, I feel that while my magazine may be similar to magazines that do this, rather than presenting the people in the magazine in this way I presented them in a way which some people may aspire to be like while others may not. To do this, I avoided plastering images of seemingly 'perfect' models all over the magazine and stuck to minimal images in order to show the focus of the magazine but not detract from the other parts of the magazine.

In terms of advertising, I feel that my magazine would advertise things such as social networks like Facebook and Twitter, as well as other things like student discounts for retail stores such as Next and popular resteraunts such as Nando's. In addition to this, it would definitely advertise band merchandise and gig tickets. I feel that my magazine would advertise these types of things as they are the things that my target audience may be largely interested in and enjoy.

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

On my front cover I feel that followed conventions of professional media products relatively closely, while adapting it to my own style aimed at my target audience of girls aged 14 - 18. Usually on a magazine the masthead would be across the top, and I have replicated this convention on my cover. However, I felt that the masthead text being the same scale the whole way through was very common among professional products, so I decided to skew the text of my masthead, which may be a factor contributing to how unique my media product is. In my photo on my front page I followed conventions by doing a close up of the model so that the audience can see evidently what is included in the magazine.

On my contents page, I chose a simple layout which follows the conventions that are set by popular magazines such as Q, although other popular magazines like Kerrang! have a different layout in which everything largely stands out, and I chose to opt for a more organised layout as I feel this would better suit my target audience. However, my contents page also challenges conventions set by professional products in that rather than consisting of just one image, as contents pages often do, it has two images. Initially, I started of with  the second image on the contents page being the only one on there as I felt it was a strong image, but I felt that the image above it added to the overall appeal of the page and gave it a better look.

I also feel that my double page spread is laid out in accordance to conventions set to popular music magazines such as Q. The text is laid out in three columns, with gutters to separate them, and forms itself around two pull quotes. The spread also consists of a full-body image of the model, which is edited in a unique way and relates well to the article's content, a large title which spans across two thirds of the spread, and a box containing additional information to go with the article. I felt that boxing the additional information and the article photo would make it easier for the readers to keep their minds away from them until they had read the text, while still recognising their significance to the article. I also feel that making the article title span two thirds of the spread made it large enough to capture the attention of the reader but not so large that it didn't look right.