Magazine Evaluation

By

Callum Sands

http://armthorpecsands.blogspot.com/

My main source/inspiration for my magazine project was NYLON.

I followed this product very closely in terms of the forms and conventions it uses.

The use of bright colours.

The style and overall layout of the magazine.

I used all of these forms and conventions and weaved them into my own designs.

Now I had reliable guidelines to help me develop my own magazine, but I needed to give it my own personal touch to reduce the chances of me copying the original.

Their unique style of plugs.

One of the first things you can notice between mine and the original cover is the use of bright colours.

Another obvious similarity is the layout of the covers. With all the information on the cover surrounding the main cover image.

Also the style is a similar aspect that both covers share, this is font and style of the plugs.

You can also see I’ve taken certain aspects of the original but used them in a different way, this refers to the highlighting of text on the cover.

And also I have included my own ideas like the style of font used on the mast head, so it gives the cover a touch of individuality.

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

Issue number

White space; allows cover to breathe and none of the content is squashed.

plug

masthead

barcode

website

main cover line; also name of the article inside the

magazine

plug

Large cover image; attractive and

attracts the reader

List of content within the magazine. It is

also set in my house which consists of

three columns which is present throughout

the magazine particularly in the

double page spreads.

Photograph catches the readers attention with the use of the model featured

in the photograph

Masthead is featured again to

help the continuity of the house style

throughout the

magazine

House style is still present in the form of the three column

formulae used with the article

Stylish and attractive photographs used; helps set the tone of the article and also the photograph used relate to the article

as well

Quote helps break up the article for the reader

The social groups that my magazine represents are those who have a alternative taste in music and people who are individual.

The magazine represents all the teenagers who aren't like everybody else, they don’t listen to popular music they respect the values of the musicians.

The magazine’s style represents individuality and stands out from the crowd, this is shown through the use of bright colours on the cover of the magazine, of other publications of its kind which speaks to the teenage audience who like the magazine like to be individual from everybody else, in terms of style and appearance.

The double page spread represents independence which is something that all teenagers want so I feel it represents those teenagers who are independent or those who crave independence. Another theme in the article is making it on your and chasing your dreams.

http://armthorpecsands.blogspot.com/2011/01/article-analysis.html

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

This would be the publisher/distributor of my magazine as they responsible for the creation/distribution of NYLON, which was my overall inspiration for my magazine. The founders of Pop Media are also responsible for Ray Gun, which was an alternative rock magazine in the 90’s. It’s a perfect fit for my magazine as it would become part of the family of publications as it shares similar aspects with the other publications within the companies.

Nylon Holding Inc.

Pop Media

Ray Gun #11, November 1993. Swervedriver cover

Use of bright colours Unusual

masthead design; also allows the

magazine to be unique

and original

Bold cover image; allows all of the colour

used to standoutplug

barcode

Issue number

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

Nylon Holding Inc.Pop Media

Use of bright colours

White space; allows the

magazine to be spread out and it also prevents the content on

the cover not be

cramped.

main cover line

plug

masthead

website

barcode

Issue number

Large cover image; attractive and

attracts the reader

I knew I wanted to create a magazine for my age range, seventeen year olds, so I could then put all of my passion and thoughts that would interest me into this magazine. I knew making a magazine for another age range would prove to be more of a challenge but I soon realised I had to create something that would interest both boys and girls so that was the challenge.

With this in mind I knew that my magazine would be aimed at teenagers aged 17+.

The magazine has a more mature and grown up vibe to it in terms of the style and language used throughout my magazine. So the magazine is aimed at the more intellectual side of my age range. Also some more younger aged people may find the themes and language used throughout the magazine difficult to read and understand.

The price of the magazine would be around £3.50 due to the magazine being a glossy and classy magazine compared to many others of its kind. It also is based on research I have conducted on the income of teenagers my age.

My target audience also falls into certain social class’ which are A,B and C1.

Male/female Monthly income Would you pay 3.50 on a monthly magazine?

male 30-60 pounds yes

Female 20-40 pounds yes

Who would be the audience for your media product?

Social Grade Social Status Chief income earners occupation

Examples

A Upper middle class Higher managerial, administrative or professional.

•Experienced doctor •Bishop•Police superintendent•Board director of a medium to large company

B Middle class Intermediate managerial, administrative or professional

•Recently qualified doctor •Vicar•Solicitor•Chief clerk in a bank

C1 Lower middle class Supervisory or clerical and junior managerial, administrative or professional

•Student doctor•Supervisor of 25+ employees •Inexperienced journalist• monk or nun

Typical M&M reader

I’m 17 years old

I like listening to a variety of alternative rock

I’m in college

I like using social networking sites.

I love to socialise with my friends

I like to be individual in my personal choices and in my overall style

Id love it if I got my dream job when I’m older

I love reading magazines

I attracted my audience with the use of bright colours, which would allow my magazine to stand out from the rest of the other publications on display.

The article was the main selling point of the magazine and I also wanted it to draw my audience to my magazine. So I incorporated the themes of teenage empowerment and independence into my article, which hopefully would inspire and push young teenagers to be successful and follow their dreams no matter what obstacles they will face along the way.

These two images are very similar in terms of the overall layout and idea. However my photograph, on the right hand side, although it shares similar aspects that the original posses it’s much more brighter and the message its showing is completely different. I also wanted the audience that the original photograph attracts to also be attracted to my magazine with the use of my photograph.

How did you attract/address your audience?

Here are a few links to my blog where I discuss the process of creating the photographs used in my magazine. I felt it would save some time to post the links rather than to write all

the information back onto my evaluation.

http://armthorpecsands.blogspot.com/2011/01/new-magazine-photographs.html

http://armthorpecsands.blogspot.com/2010/11/planning-my-photography-for-my-music.html

Reception

Cover

Positives

professionalsimplegood use of colourgood photography usedclear house style

Negatives

perhaps too simple

Double Page Spreads

Positives

like the flow of the house style used throughout the spreadsprofessionalmature well designed layout design

Contents Page

Positives

colourfulhouse style is still present

Negatives

columns look too far on one sidedon't like the use of the black and white photograph

Throughout the process of creating my magazine I learned how to use Serif Page Plus 8 which was I program I never had used prior to this project but the program helped me construct both my preliminary task and my music magazine efficiently.

I have never used blogger before. So it was a good experience and utility to use to help me throughout the process of creating my magazine

It also gave me the opportunity to develop and use my skills of photography throughout my magazine which helped bring a more personal aspect to my magazine.

I also had the opportunity to use Photoshop on my images which helped give them a more professional touch and appeal to them. The only thing I really did with the images was that I brighten them, converted one of the photographs into black and white and cut the background out of them.

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

One of the first things you notice is that the final product has a much more thought out layout design as the preliminary task seems a bit scattered and I feel as though it looks immature and young whereas the final product seems more attractive, well thought out and I think it looks a whole lot more grown up than the previous task.

I think that the photograph on the final product is so much better than the one used on the preliminary task as it seem more professional and attractive where as the preliminary photograph is restrained due to the background still being there in the image which I felt made the cover look tacky.

Both tasks share similar aspects though, they both use bright colours, the romance alert and masthead are in bright colours so I tried to use that in my final product to help it standout.

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

One of the first things you notice is that the final product has a definite house style present that follows on from the cover of the magazine. When comparing the preliminary task to the final product you can see that the preliminary task seems a bit full of content, mainly because the letter from the editor takes up most of the page. This causes the photograph featured on the page to appear squashed.

I think that the photograph on the final product is so much better than the one used on the preliminary task as it seem more professional and attractive where as the preliminary photograph is squashed up on the page and seems out of place and doesn’t seem to fit in with its surroundings.

Both tasks share similar aspects though, they both use bright colours in their mastheads that again are featured in the contents page. In the preliminary task the mast head takes up the majority of the top page where as in the final product its a lot smaller which is affective as it gives the page a lot more space to allow more information to be featured on the page. The final product is also a lot more professional and has a well thought-out layout design as it doesn’t feature any more additional photograph and large text that takes up the page.

Looking back from my preliminary task I’ve learnt to keep things simple when it comes to the layout design of my cover, contents and double page spread. In my preliminary task I tried to cram everything in

on these pages but this time round I learned that less is sometimes more.

I've also learned how to create a magazine for the same age group but allowing it to be more grown up and sophisticated, this has been developed through the creation of the words/tag lines/article I have

produced. When comparing all of that with what I produced on my preliminary task you can see how much my work has developed. I have also developed my skills with the programs and software I used to help

make my magazines, both final and preliminary.

Also my overall feelings with my preliminary task are mixed to negative. Although there are good ideas I feel as though they weren't extenuated well enough and you can see that in the final product of my preliminary task. The strengths and weakness of the task are also visible to the reader such as the

photographs used are one the strengths and the layout designs one of the many weakness’ associated with the preliminary task.

Overall I am happy with how my final product. At first it might not look like a typical alternative rock magazine because I chose not to follow all the typical clichés that come with it, I have managed to create

a new original idea, although I have followed my inspirational magazine very closely, but its something new and fresh for a magazine of that genre. I have also managed to put a lot of thought into all aspects of creating the magazine, particularly in the writing and construction of the article featured in my magazine. The article is very thing I wanted to put into an article, its original and also its tells a lot about who I am as I’ve tried to put a bit of my personality into it. I am a person who doesn’t follow everyone else in terms of

style, music and overall personality so I created a magazine for people like myself which I think has helped bring for originality to the project.

http://armthorpecsands.blogspot.com/2011/01/analysis.html