Saturday, 24 April 2010

Target Audience Feedback

Emma - Your magazine looks professional and looks like it would reach the target audience, however it could use a few brighter colours and another photo shoot as there is only one.

Ella - The layout is neat and stylish and the mast head looks good, however the colours aren't vibrant enough to catch peoples eye.

Jemma - the layout of the double page is sleek, but the blue background on the contents and front page doesn't give enough impact. She likes the font on the left of the contents page but there is not enough impact on the front cover.

Sonia - It could do with a bit more bolder fonts, the pictures are relevant to the magazine genre, also the double page spread looks professional with good quotes which are easily seen. Also the pattern on the tour dates column looks good. The continuation of the lines on the double page also makes it look well thought out.

Wednesday, 17 March 2010

Evaluation

1- The media product which i made was a music magazine named 'Broken Record', i was inspired by many magazine layouts and contents' so i used these as a guideline for what i wanted to produce. I chose to do an 'R&B' magazine as this is the genre of music i listen to the most above all the othe genres. However 'R&B' magazines are normally fairly 'scruffy' by which i mean the layout of the front page is not neat, and looks like they want it to be messy. Such one would be 'Vibe'. I did not want mine like this iw anted mine to be sophisticated and more upper class, including my contents page and double page spread, i also wanted this look to carry throught o the other pages i produced. The first though i had about my magazine and hwo i first set it out is comploetely different to my final design. The background was purple and all the fonts and content was different. I kept changing parts untill i was happy with what i saw, my efforts in trying to use other magazines as a guideline were successful, i found many different ways in how to set out a magazine. My Masthead was too small at first and when i printed it out i was able to see this clearer than on screen, so i changed this to make it appear more noticeable. I feel that i have fulfilled my task very well compared to how i thought it was going to turn out like.

2- The social groups which my magazine could represent are age, i think that it is a magazine you would pick up in a shop when walking past as it is cheap but looks classy, the age range looks around 20-mid 30's as it will be people who are only in to 'R&B'. The gender would be unisex as it is specialised for 'R&B' fans, also the colours i used were intended to not be more male/female to the other, this is so that it catches the attention from both genders. The light blue and purple i used goes well. I intended for my magazine to be more upperclass however i reckon it would be for middle class workers as well, because of the price and it looks classy, people who are single are more likely to buy it as they will want to know about the gigs and going out to have a laugh with their mates.

3- Bauer media would produce my magazine as they dont have an 'R&B' magazine in the industry so it would target another audience for them. This would bring in a lot more money and also give my magazine a head start as coming from Bauer media, it will look good. This is because it is a well known publisher. Also by having an R&B magazine released in the industry will give it a good head start as there are none by Bauer Media, this makes it have an advantage.

4- The target audience for my magazine is readers of both genders between the ages of 20-35 who are interested in R&B. I dont think gender comes into my magazine as it appeals to both male and female, this is because both may be fans of R&B. My magazine does appeal to my target audience because of the way i have set it out and the colours i have used, it is not biased and i think will attract the readers and fans of R&B.

5- I attracted these by the use of language, colour and pictures. The colours are designed to attract male and female of any age and the pictures are younger looking and look quite cool. The language i used was addressing the reader so as if i was talking to them directly, such as 'want a recording contract?' on the contents page. This would make them want to buy it as it looks like im interested in what they want to read about. My final product was not how i expected it to turn out to be like and it is not as sophisticated as i wanted it but the decisions i made throughout the process means now i have a wider target audience and the final outcome looks better and appeals to the target audience more, this is because of the use of the colours and fonts i used withinmy magazine and the pictures i took were sophisticated yet looked like an 'R&B' magazines photos. I am pleased that my outcome was not how i originally planned it as i think this represents the target audience a lot more than my original plan. The font in which my writing is in are not boring because that doesn't reflect well on an 'R&B' magazine, they are curvy fonts which stand out to others. For example if i used Times new roman it would of looked too boring and would not stand out. My magazine now looks a lot more 'Street' than smart, this is more appropriate for my genre.

6- Technologies which i have learnt about through the process of my product would be 1) Photoshop - i have developed the skills to edit pictures in an acceptable manner and to make them look realistic, not just edited. Before doing this product i had never been on photoshop and found it very difficult starting off with it.

I also learnt how to do different digital photographing angle shots with the camera and focusing and lighting.

I also found out that you can download different font off of the internet to find one which suits your magazine.

Another skill i developed was the use of macs, i did not understand them at the beginning and found them very difficult to use, however now i like using them and can do so very well. For example i cut parts of photos out of others and stuck them into other photos using photoshop and managed to blend them in, in order to look real. I made a lot of changes to each photo untill i was happy with the outcome. I did drafts of each photo to see which one i preferred.

7- Throughout the whole task i have developed a range of different skills which will be useful for int he future. I know how to write about what i have done and keeping drafts so i can see the progress i made, i found this helpful as it encouraged me. It has helped me develop my creativity skills and going back to things to improve on. Also photography i have developed well as i was an awful photographer before but now i know the different shots and how some are more effective. The skill i found i have developed the most was the photo editing and the putting together of the magazine, i really enjoyed this and would like to progress it further. It allowed me to be creative and think about what would be most effective and why.

Tuesday, 9 February 2010

Photo Editing













- Magic wand tool to select the background
- Fill in white for the parts which are selected
- Those i couldn't select i used the clone tool to take white from another part of the picture
- I used the blend tool to soften out the edges
- Healing tool to make the complexion clearer













- I used the magic wand tool to select the background
- The fill toll to fill in the selected items the colour i wanted to use
- Clone tool to copy parts of the background to areas which weren't selected
- Played around selecting different colours until i found one which i liked
- Healing tool to make a clearer complexion
- Smoothed around the edges using the smudge tool to make it look natural
- Changed the colour of the sunglasses by selected them then using the fill tool
- I then smudged them so the colour faded into the lens better








































- On this photo i selected the background using the magic wand tool
- Used the fill tool to change the background to white







































- I got rid of a couple of blemishes and make the complexion look clearer using the healing tool where you can pick a piece of skin next to the blemish and replace the blemish with that piece of skin colour.
- To fill in the background white i used the magic wand tool which selects a large area of colour and then i filled this in white. For the parts which didn't fill in white because of a darker shade i used the clone tool, with this i took a bit of the white background and copied to the place i wanted it.
- To blend the picture in with the background i used the smudge tool, this makes it not look so sharp and more natural.



















- I used the healing tool to make the complexion clearer and get rid of any imperfections.
- Using the magic wand tool allowed me to select the background so i could fill in the background white.
- To get rid of his shadow i also used the magic wand tool to get rid of this.
- To blend him into the white background i used the smudge tool, this made it not look edited.
































- Magic wand tool to select the background
- Fill in white for the parts which are selected
- Those i couldn't select i used the clone tool to take white from another part of the picture
- I used the blend tool to soften out the edges
- Healing tool to make the complexion clearer
- I then chose to use a different colour for the background i so i selected this one and filled in the white background green/blue

Progress throughout my magazine

Front Page














Contents Page














Page 1, Double page spread
















Page 2, Double page spread










Thursday, 28 January 2010

Contents Pages

This contents page stands out very well from the background and to me it looks very upper-class, this is because of the city nightlife in the background and the font they use for "features" down the side. The pictures they use fit in well with the fonts and writing, and it does not look over crowded.


This magazine uses a red background and white writing so that it stands out, the date is fairly big compared to some other magazines and this makes it stand out. Drummer is the name of the magazine and this is held throughout the contents page so the audience can see what the name of the magazine is. They might do this so that the name/picture gets stuck in their heads and so they dont forget it. This way the next time they are in a shop and see this magazine they could pick it up as last time they enjoyed it and remembered the name.


This magazine contents page is very simple and plain but it gives a good effect, i like how the red on the white background makes it stand out and look simple. the picture down the side of the page is also simple, and the way it is red goes well with the colour of the font, the red is carried through the whole contents page and uses no other colour, this gives a really nice effect and does not make it look "scruffy".

This page is over a double page and is brightly coloured, it uses a black theme for the riting but the colours on either side of the page make it stand out. The few pictures which are on this page fit in well as they are small and nearer the bottom. The pictures at the top of the page are to show where these are in the magazine and are likely to be the main stories. This is good advertising and it will make people want to read the article if they find the picture interesting.

Different angle shots

Side ViewCantedBirds EyeWorms EyeHigh

By taking photos of the different shots i can use in my work it allows me to get to know them and will then make me use them when i take my photos.

Different shots

Medium shotMedium close upClose up shots would be used so that facial expressions can be seen clearly, i might use one of these for my contents page so that it shows the face of the new artist i am interviewing, this way if girls like what they see they will want to read about it. These are also used so you can feel what the person in the picture is feeling, so you can tell if they are angry because of the espressions they use.Big close upExtreme close up