Final product & Evaluation

Evaluation:

Throughout my media product I have used the codes and conventions from a real music magazine; this is shown in my planning because it shows the actual pages I have been inspired from. Even though all my products are inspired by certain music magazines I have developed them in my own way which links with my genre which is indie/folk. I think my music magazine shows my ability to make a real looking magazine from taking ideas from actual magazines. My media magazine is aimed at people who listen to indie or folk music; I didn't want to make my magazine relate to a certain age or gender because music can be listened to by all types of people. My media magazine represents people who listen to this genre of music by my photographs having a lot of nature involved which reminds me of being at festivals. Also on my front cover I have competitions that can help readers win chances to get tickets for festivals. Competitions like this are seen in real music magazines, but I developed the idea to focus on my genre.

In my front cover of my music magazine I have used many factors of a real music magazine. My front cover develops real media products because I have used many influences from actual magazines this can include; editing, photographs and the content. For example; I have used an overlapping feature over my magazine name, because many actual magazines would do this as they have recognition from readers. This makes the magazine still able to be seen by more familiar audiences. My front cover represents my genre which is indie folk, I have made many references to what my idea of an indie folk reader would like to read such as; competitions that include being able to win festival tickets. I think this would represent the social group that would read my magazine, as many indie folk musicians play at festivals and it would something that would interest them. The audience of my music magazine would be anyone would listens to indie folk music, I haven’t made my magazine selected to only a certain gender or age because I don’t think that any real music magazines do this as there are so many types of music that so many different types of people listen to.  My front cover has attracted the audience with its photo on the front page because I think this is the main part of this particular page. In real music magazines, audiences will always look at the photographs first to see whether or not they know the musician, this may influence them on buying the magazine. My photograph on my front cover has my models looking directly at the camera, therefore means it appears that they are looking directly at the audience, I think this makes my magazine look more directly spoken to the audience. So I spent a lot of time taking my photos as I wanted them to look the best they could of. My music magazine addresses the audience in a very casual and informal way which suits my genre. The colours on my front cover are bright but not neon, which I think makes my front cover look welcoming. I have used a colour scheme of 4 colours; blue, yellow, pink and white. These all contrast each other and make my front cover look interesting and adding the affect of summer also in my opinion linking with my genre. After looking back at my preliminary task’s front cover I can clearly see how much progress I have made. I can now easily edit a photograph to make the colours, shape and layout of it a lot better and more professional looking. I know how to use the programme that is best for making a magazine; Seriff Page Plus, whereas when I made my preliminary front cover I used word as I didn't know about any other programmes.

In my contents page of my music magazine I have used all the features of that would be in a real music magazine. After looking at actual music magazine contents pages I decided that they were boring and normally black, white and another colour. I developed other music magazine contents pages by adding colour to my own and making it link with my front cover with use of colour and photographs. For example; I used the same background from my front cover and put it in my contents page underneath all of the colours, this is common in real music magazines as it helps link all of the pages together. I was influenced for my contents page from the layout of real music magazine contents pages, as it is almost always laid out in columns and most of the time going downwards. I did this sort of layout because it looks how real magazines do it and also it fits my photograph and how it is placed on the page. Although I have developed the ideas from real media products I have also challenged the traditional norms of it, I have done this by having my contents page look almost messy and unorganised. This adds to the effect of my genre because indie folk remind me of a hippy and free-spirited person therefore by doing this it links with my audience. The representation of my audience is shown through my use of colours because my audience that I have aimed my magazine at are people who enjoy going to festivals and enjoy the summer. I have used lots of pale, pastel colours which influence this factor. I attracted my audience in my contents page by having a ‘new week’ section because I feel that if my readers were able to see what is in new weeks issue they are more likely to purchase it because they are interested. Also like in every contents page I have a list of things that are in my magazine that issue such as; features and every month. From creating this contents page I have learn that just because all other magazine contents page are plain and quite boring it doesn't mean that my own one has to be conforming to that style.

My double page spread has used the most inspiration from a real music magazine. I was influenced by the article about Lady Gaga and the way that particular page was laid out. I think that I developed the ideas used in this and made them my own therefore linking in with my own genre. I used one of my favourite photographs that I took of my model and edited the colours of it to make it look more professional and realistically placed in a music magazine. I used the idea of having the first letter of my artists name go over the writing in the article and I think this make it look more diverse. Instead of copying Lady Gaga's one I then changed the colour of the L to make it a more brown/darker red colour, I think that this made it fit with my genre and I think that if it was bright red it could look slightly pop. 

A music institution that may produce and sell my music magazine may be Bauer media as it is Europe's largest privately owned publishing group. I think that Bauer media would sell my magazine because it is more diverse that pop, hip hop and rap magazines they may usually sell and I think because they are privately owned they have more choice in what to publish therefore they publish such a broad range of genres that my magazine could be part of that.

Looking back on my preliminary task I can clearly see how far my skills have actually progressed because when I did my preliminary task I didn't even know what Seriff Page Plus is and I ended up using word to try and create a school magazine. In my preliminary task I used simple fonts, colours and didn't edit my photos in anyway to try and improve them, I also didn't get any influence from any real school magazines so none of the actual content sounded interesting for the reader. My product looked quite tacky due to the text boxes and such basic layout of it therefore compared to my music magazine I have created now I think that my skills have developed so much which now have made my music magazine look quite professional. I have done all the things that a real music magazine would do to make their magazine appealing to the target audience and I believe that my magazine has been a success.