Mariya Ahmed Evaluation Media AS

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AS Media: Evaluation of Foundation Portfolio

1. In what ways does your music magazine use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real music magazines?

Front cover similarities and differences I chose to use a banner similar to the ‘Gramophone’ magazine and by following the codes and conventions, I decided to place the banner on the left hand side. The colour of the banner matches the models outfit to make the magazine stand out more. However, I stayed with my colour scheme, as my models outfit was only one colour, so I kept my font black and red. I followed the codes and conventions of the magazines masthead by creating a bold theme. However, I used black and red font instead of white because the background of my magazine is white, as if it was black then it would have blended in with my models hair. The image I used is a medium long shot, which is similar to the ‘Gramophone’ magazine. I felt that the posture of a female would appeal to my target audience and the majority of the front covers I saw featured women. I then realized if I have a female on my front cover it would attract attention and make it stand out. The bar I have used on the left hand side follows the same style of the ‘Gramophone’ magazine which features the title of the magazine, issue number and a few article titles to give the reader a glimpse of what is inside the magazine. I placed the barcode on the bottom right hand corner, which follows the codes and conventions of all music magazines. The barcode is small and doesn’t take up a huge amount of space, which makes the magazine suitable. 2. How does your music magazine represent particular social groups? ‘Classical Vibe’ is aimed at both male and female musicians sharing a passion for classical music. I feel that I have represented my social group through the use of images, language and font style and sizes. Images My music magazine represents particular social groups in many ways. For example; through the images as I have used an image of a female and most of the front covers I saw had images of a female which entices the reader. Also, the colour red connotes royalty and maturity and it’s a popular colour choice as it’s very eye-catchy. Most of the models wear dresses, which is why I decided my model wouldalso wear a dress as well. As, I felt that it would be reacting to what my target audience wanted to have in their magazine, which would give me a higher possibility of my magazine becoming popular. Font style and sizes I followed the codes and conventions of classical magazines font style by making it bold and clear. However, I changed the font style, as the ‘Gramophone’ magazine font style was plain and simple. I challenged the conventions of simple look of classical music magazines; it was necessary for me to change the font as most of my target audience said the title is the first thing that would attract them to a magazine, which made me come to a conclusion that I will have a more funky font which can draw the reader in.

Mariya Ahmed Evaluation Media AS

2 | P a g e

Language The language I chose to write in was formal and for a well-educated audience as classical is aimed at a more mature audience. Also, as my magazine is directed to a mature audience I have more cover lines on my front cover, but I have followed the codes and conventions of the ‘Gramophone’ magazine. 3. What kind of media institution might distribute your music magazine and why?

The media institution that I chose to distribute my music magazine is ‘Haymarket Media Group Ltd’ because they have already published the very popular magazines, which are ‘Classical FM’ and ‘Gramophone’. Because of this, I feel that Haymarket Media Group has good experience and trust from local customers purchasing their magazine. Therefore this means, if they distribute my magazine then there would be a higher chance of it becoming popular.

4. Who would be the audience for your music magazine?

The target audience for my music magazine would be affluent, well-educated readers sharing a passion for the tranquility that classical music provides for them. This is also aimed at those people who love to spend their weekends at concerts and theatres.

5. How did you attract/address your audience in the forms and conventions used in your music magazine? I feel my magazines masthead will attract my target audience as it conveys the classical genre through the big and bold font, its simplicity would make it appeal to everyone. The image of the model wearing a elegant light dress is very eye-catchy and it gives a mature look to the magazine, hinting that it is slightly aimed at a mature audience. Moreover, the female model will attract men as they will find the model attractive and would want to read more about it and in order for them to do that, they would have to purchase the magazine. Also, I placed the bar on the left hand side, which is similar to the ‘Gramophone’ magazine. I feel it is a simple yet stylish way to attract readers and it gives them a sneak peek into what the magazine contains inside. Also, the red house style makes the bar blend into the front cover, which makes it look more realistic than a poster. Also, I placed a puff on the left hand third similar to the ‘Gramophone’ magazine as it gives the audience an incentive to buy the magazine. Moreover, the ye position of the reader is in a ‘Z’ shape, so the puff would be the last thing they would see but it will then immediately make them want to purchase the magazine as the puff includes some interesting facts about what is inside the magazine.

6. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing your music magazine? I have used and learnt how to use several software’s which I had never previously used before. I used ‘Microsoft Publisher’ for when I did my preliminary task. I also used ‘Microsoft Word’ to do my questions for my questionnaire. Then, I used ‘Microsoft Edexcel’ when converting my findings of my questionnaire into pie charts and bar charts. After that, I used ‘Photoshop’ which was more advanced software of editing my images and actually creating my magazine. I also used ‘Google Images’ for inspiration from other magazines and to check whether I as following the codes and conventions of a music magazine properly or not.

Mariya Ahmed Evaluation Media AS

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7. Looking back at your Preliminary Task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it (the preliminary task) to the full product (the music magazine)? I have learnt and progressed a lot from my preliminary task. I learnt how to use different software’s such as Photoshop which enabled me to edit my images e.g. change the colour or contrast of image. Also, by layering and merging the layers, I had full control over where I wanted to place my text, banner and puffs, which I wasn’t able to do on ‘Microsoft Publisher’. I was able to edit my images quickly by using the quick selection tool or the magic wand. Overall, Photoshop allowed my magazine to have a sophisticated appearance, so that it could compete with the industry standard classical music magazines.