AS Media StudiesOCR G321: Foundation Portfolio

Brief from OCR syllabus

Name: Lizzie StringerCandidate number :2985Centre: 33435 Aquinas College

Question 1- Who would be the audience for your media product?

1.Who would be the audience for your media product?

I aimed my magazine at….

Music they like- artists/ bands of this genre

Influenced by

Who spend money onWomen and Men

Who go to gigs/concerts or festivals

Who like to shop at

16-24 year olds

Similar products, sub genre and hybrid publications

I feel that my magazine would be similar to NME and Q and the audience that purchases this type of music magazine. However, my unique selling point would be that I have more of a variety of artists and bands that are not usually mentioned in these particular magazines. There is a gap in the market for a music magazine which has a variety of different artists but is more strongly for indie music. Based on my audience research I found that there is a gap in the market for a new niche product that combines indie music with a variety of artists from other genres such as pop and rap. This will be aimed at a primary audience of any gender but with an age range of 16-24 with a interest in indie music mainly but other genres also. The issues of NME below use the same repetitive colour scheme in the main header for NME with the red, white and black which I have tried to do in my magazine to keep a consistent scheme going throughout my magazine.

The majority of feature I will include are mainly used every magazines which are connotations such as masthead,pug,barcode etc. I tried to use this and then use a new colour scheme which wouldn’t usually be used for a magazine in this genre. This is to make it stand out more and help my unique selling point, which is being mostly indie music news but also a variety of other genres blended together in one magazine.

1.Who would be the audience for your media product?

In this edition of NME, it has two artists for the main image, which are Jay-Z known from his raps so would be in the r n b genre, whilst Ian Brown is from the indie genre of the music industry. This is what I aim to do with my music magazine except making this my unique selling point and keep trying to mix the genres together instead of just sticking to one genre only.

Also the edition on Eminem for NME is different because it’s audience would usually expect someone less well-known or in a different genre (indie) than rap music. NME has done this multiple times which I will do however, instead of mixing rap and indie music I will try to do indie, pop and rap but like NME mainly consist of the indie news and gossip. Also, NME is a well-known British music magazine which is sold and promoted nationally around the country in a variety of shops, which is what I aim for Neon magazine to achieve.

Primary and Secondary Audience

My primary audience would be any gender and interest in mainly the indie genre of music, but also pop. They will want to know about the latest gigs and festivals. My secondary audience would read this magazine but only if it was purchased by a member of family or friends. The age range for my primary audience would be 16-24 and mainly consist of being interested in the things which are mentioned in my magazine, this is because they would make up a big percentage of the people which would be interested in my new music magazine and listen to this type of music genre which mainly consists of indie artists and bands. As shown from the image above the audience will have an interest in events such as gigs and festivals which are related to the music genres of pop and indie and are interested in the gossip of these well-known events which my magazine will provide. You can also see images of artists which are linked to pop music which will be included in the magazine as well.

Demographic and Target Audience

My demographic would be to try and get more of a female audience reading music magazine and trying to see if people like the blend of different genres in one magazine to purchase. From the questionnaire, people who took the survey were mainly female and mainly preferred the indie music based artists and groups however, there was a majority who were interested in pop music and the artists in that genre,. This means that there is evidence that people are interested in my unique selling point and would want to purchase my magazine.

The survey was mainly taken by the age range I wanted which was between 16-24, I also made sure I had a variety of gender which is what I needed to know what my target audience desired in my magazine. Most people liked the title of ‘Neon’ for my music magazine which is why I used that for my final front cover. The gender was varied which is shown in question 2, however mainly female which shows that I should make sure it is appealing to both female and males. I asked in the survey what artists they preferred (most to least) and the most popular was The Arctic Monkeys, showing most of my audience prefer indie music and bands however, Ellie Goulding was the second most popular. This shows that the audience like a variety of music and that made me realise there was a gap in the market and no magazine does a variety of genres all in one magazine mainly consisting of indie music and gossip.

Target Audience SurveyAlthough I asked my target audience what TV show or films they preferred, as I wanted to add some to go with music. I decided not to add this to my final piece because I wanted to focus on the music part of the magazine specifically and make sure that’s what the magazine was about I wanted it to compete with other music magazines rather than broaden the competition with TV and film magazine also.

As social networking sites are popular with my target audience and of mainly the age range I’m aiming for and all genders, I wanted to see which they use frequently and later would add part of this to my magazine so they could use it socially and spread the word of mouth which would help business and increase purchases. The most popular sites I found out were Facebook and Twitter, to try and give what my target audience wanted I added in my contents page a prize to subscribe to Neon magazine and win tickets to a festival. By giving this offer I have linked it to my magazine, social networks and something my target audience is known to be interested in and is popular for people who like indie music and other genres. This also links to another question I asked in this survey, which is how they would prefer to get involved with the magazine. The highest answers were competitions and subscriptions, by adding this in my contents page it put the two together.

I also had in my double page spread ( interview), in the right corner a website page which fans will go on and this will compete with other webzines in my genre such as Spin.

Target Audience SurveyAlthough most people who like the indie genre will be interested in gigs and festivals that feature artists and bands that they want to see live. In my survey I analysed which they preferred and most either wanted to purchase or maybe win through my magazine concert or gig tickets. I added this to most parts of my magazine. This made me know they would want to win these which will want them to purchase my magazine more, this will also help me compete with other magazines which will have the same genre and want to try and go for my target audience. Examples of me using this would be on my front cover where I mention a festival which is well-known to people interested in this particular genre. I also added a list of people that were at the festival to give a hint of what's inside the magazine, which will want them to buy it.

The last question I asked in my survey is what genre of music they preferred to listen to, even though my magazine’s genre is indie ( which was the second highest) the highest answer was pop/chart music. This is what gave me the idea of making my unique selling point about making it mainly indie music and gossip but making sure it had hints of pop and chart music to make sure that my target audience got what they wanted and I filled a gap in the market. This means that I achieve my target audiences wishes which will mean more profit from the magazine and also the website and subscription etc.

Audience Idols and Ideal Readers

My research shows me from my survey, that my audience are interested in the genre of indie music. I looked at the biggest stars in this type of genre which were mainly bands such as The Arctic Monkeys, The Courteeners, The Killers, XX etc. I also looked at some artists in different genres since in my survey that were mentioned such as Ellie Goulding and Eminem. This is the reason I thought that a hybrid of mainly indie and other genres would work well as its never been done before and will interest different types of audiences to just one magazine. Such as, Eminem is a rap artist and is in the rap genre but has been in indie genre magazines such as NME and Q. However I wouldn’t include in my magazine fashion or gardening type people as they don’t appeal to my target audience and don’t have anything to do with my hybrid genre or target audience.

My ideal reader is someone who aspires to do well in a band or looks up to at least one of the artists from the genres I’ve mentioned in my magazine. My target audience will be people who idolise these artists and are interested in their personal lives as well as their music career.

Question 2- How do you attract/address your audience?

Question 2- Attracting and Addressing AudienceMy target audience will be attracted to purchase my magazine with the bold masthead that is used. The masthead has bold bright colours which are used to start the colour scheme, green, orange and black. I also used purple to attract a more feminine audience as I want my magazine to be similar to NME but for both genders. I also made the masthead in a graffiti type style which relates to youth and rebellion which is what my genre is mainly about, and being different which my masthead is related to. My cover star facial expression is looking down with no smile, as this genre of magazine mainly have very bland and moody facial expressions, he also isn’t giving the audience any eye contact. The button with the news on Mcbusted (pug) is in purple which is a more feminine colour which will help me get this target audience with men. I have used a cheaper price than NME magazine and Q, this means my target audience will choose mine as it’s a cheaper magazine but with the same content as the rest but with pop and indie genres combined.

The audience is visually spoken to by the language I use, which is informing and persuading to make them want to buy the magazine and be interested in the stories I have used for the issue. The mode of address that I have used to speaking to the audience is friendly and inviting towards them, if I was aggressive then they would be put off towards the magazine and the magazine would get a bad reputation from its target audience. I was trying to connote to the audience by using the indie genre by the colour I used, black represents rebellion and dark which is used for my font throughout the magazine and even for the background on my double page spread, I also used the colour orange which is bright but unique and different which is what the indie genre and my target audience are. I’m trying to tell my target audience the cover star is representing rebellion and sadness which most artists portray for my competitive magazines. The front cover makes the reader aspire to be like the star by wanting to dress like him and have his fashion taste which will make him more relatable, they will also want to become famous and relate to him in his interview as he says he had struggles which even people who aren’t famous and my reader might have.

Question 2- Attracting My Target Audience

Masthead

Cover star/Main image

Strapline and

Unique selling point/ stories

Main story/header

Review header/festival news

Barcode

Colour scheme

Quote from main story/ cover star

Question 2- Attracting My Target Audience

Gender:My magazine is aimed primarily at females and males that like the same music (indie) and artists/bands. The cover star is however, male who looks relatable to my target audience and is wearing something casual in the image used for the main cover story.Age:The target audience for my magazine is mainly aimed at teenagers aged 16-24, the cover star is in that age range which makes is relatable and will attract my target audience.Genre: The genre of the magazine is mainly ‘indie’ with parts of other genres blending in i.e. pop/chart music, this is because they were what my target audience asked in my survey and if I include this in my magazine then they will want to purchase mine over NME and Q. This genre is portrayed through the cover stars clothing, being the coat and hairstyle that people of this genre/artists would typically wear, this is also portrayed through the other photos of the star included throughout my magazine and the star’s name.

Question 2- Contents Page

The word ‘free’ will attract the reader to buy the magazine and continue buying it to receive more free merchandise. The contents page also has a continuous style of the colour scheme from the front cover used. By putting the news and gossip into different sections and making it a regular structure in each issue it will make the reader know my brand identity and recognise this to be Neon. The use of images for stories will make the reader get a glimpse at the story and will want to read the story or gossip on this particular artist or band. Also, by using the ‘subscribe and win’ offer this will make my target audience interested and want to subscribe, also as its in bright colours it will be more easy to see on the contents page even though it is a small size, also by using these colours it will be recognisable as the festival because these are the colours they use and my target audience will know the artists and bands perform there.

Also with the images in the corner having page numbers, these numbers stand out and are in the colour scheme I’ve kept throughout my magazine. This will make the reader want to go to that page by seeing the image and if they are interested in the audience be wanting to purchase the magazine.

Question 2-Double Page Spread

Here is a pull-out quote from the interview with my cover star, it is relatable to the audience and is an interesting quote to persuade them to read the interview and want to know about the star.

The image of the cover star for the double page spread interview is idolising for the reader and relatable to my target audience as they will want to know the fashion/clothes he likes

In the corner of the interview is a image of another band which links to the interview, their genre is indie which links to the cover star. Below, is a paragraph briefly explaining how the cover star knows this band. This will promote the band and my reader will know the band if they are interested in this genre.

The masthead I have used is similar style to the front cover and keeps the colour scheme of orange and green. Also below gives a brief on the subject in the interview and updates you on news about the cover star.

For the interview itself, I used columns to keep the questions and answers structured and organised. I also kept the colour scheme throughout and put bold on the questions to separate it out more.

Question 2

In my magazine throughout there is a repetitive colour scheme which consists of orange,green,yellow and purple. These colours in particular aren’t typical of any gender but are bright and colourful, this means that I have fulfilled both genders and would be put by the promotion company into mass market of women and targeted at men categories on the website. Purple is quite a feminine colour which helps attract girls and it contrasts with the yellow and orange making it stand out more compared to competing magazines.

Question 3- How does your media product represent particular social

groups?

Question 3- Cover Star

The cover star for my magazine in all the photographs taken is the same age and gender of my ideal reader, however is I would want my ideal reader to be both genders. I tried to make sure that he would be appealing and relatable to the audience that I want to purchase my magazine. The star represents a blend of different genres but mainly indie. The image has direct eye contact and a casual shirt which connotates he has a laidback attitude and he is relaxed which reflects in his music.

My cover star had to look relatable to my target audience and look like the genre I was aiming for, to do so I tried to make him not give the camera direct eye contact and make sure he had stylish hair. I also know that people who are into indie music are also aware of fashion so my cover star wore a stylish Parka coat which is currently in fashion and will attract the reader to the magazine. With the cover star he connotes what the people typical of this genre and my target audience would wear and the mode of address is indirect with the prizes and subscriptions my audience could win. This is used in my contents page and on the front cover. On the front cover of Neon magazine it tells you that tickets for a variety of bands are out, this is indirect as it doesn’t use the words “ you could win” the message in the pug is informing the reader that the tickets are now on sale for McFly, who are pop band with Busted who are rock which blends the two genres together.

My other message on my front cover is The Courteeners and mentions to the reader that tickets are now on sale, this is indirect and makes the reader aware about the band and want to go to the concert or purchase the album. If they are a fan of either of these bands then you would want to buy the magazine. I also mention in my contents page about if they subscribe to my magazine they have chance of winning tickets to the Leeds festival this year, this is an indirect message to the audience and makes the reader want to know the details for this competition. Neon magazine’s audience would be interested in this competition because it’s a festival that has many artists and bands they would take an interest in and would want to see live. I also mention the review of last year’s which would also make them intrigued to who would perform this year’s festival.

Question 3- Cover Star

Question 3- How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Appeal to female fans

Not on stage, photo shoot environment

Direct eye contact to camera

“rock and roll” style with leather jacket, links to music genre

Ring on pinkie finger, not usually where you put a ring- unique

Body language-in action, could be posing?

Not smiling- not welcoming the audience

About to smoke, attract audience “bad guy” attitude shown

Hair- gelled back and styled on purpose

To appeal to my target audience, my star for the front cover and main story of my magazine would have to represent and summarise an idealised version of the audience and reader. To do so, I have to attract and appeal to as many consumers and my target audience as possible whilst achieving my hybrid genre and demographic. The star must appear non-threatening and have similarities to the main genre- this being indie. On the following sides, I will demonstrate how Alex Turner, one of the artists in a well known, not mainstream band called The Arctic Monkeys, my chosen audience will be interested in, filters, his appearance and performance depending on his audience. Below is the mainstream representation of him-

Question 3- How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Below is the niche representation of him-

Seems casual look rather than stage

Not typical of genre look/his appearance

Direct eye contact with audience, not camera

“casual” look with black top and jeans

Red bracelet on right hand- from gig/festival?

Body language- in action, not posing for camera or aware of it

Long hair combed down, not typical of his style

Question 3- How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Appearance- both outfits and images represent different genres The leather jacket connotates rock and roll and rebellion, with the black top and jeans represent a casual look. Both these would appeal to different audiences. Also, the hair styles are very different, on the left is styled and gelled back which is typical and trying to appeal to a female indie audience whilst on the right is more casual and laidback which also would be used for the same type of audience.

Alex Turner would wear this outfit while fronting his band, as it does represent the image that he promotes.

Turner would not wear this outfit while fronting his band, as it does not appropriate for the audience he is trying to appeal.

Question 4- What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this

product?

Question 4- TechnologiesTo produce my magazine I had to use a variety of different pieces of technology, such as Adobe Photoshop. This was used so that I could get a white transparent background, to do this I had to use the magic wand tool. Once I clicked on this I clicked on the background and erased all the background I wanted to, then to finish any pixels that were left and make it look neat, I used the magic eraser tool to make sure my image looked clean and I could put other parts of my magazine over the top of the image. This is shown through the pictures on the right.

I also used a digital slr camera to take the images that I used for my main cover star and other photos. This gave my picture good lighting and better quality which should come across in my magazine. I also used a Canon digital IXUS 70 for pictures of concerts and festivals which are included in my magazines contents page and double page spread. I learnt from the canon digital that you can focus on facial features with a tool and it has a timer to make sure you get the picture at the correct time for the cover star. For me to create the magazine I used Microsoft Publisher, this is because its easier to move images around and to change different text fonts and sizes. I also created my own masthead in Adobe Illustrator, this is because I wanted to add Neon lights in my header. I did this by using a site which works with Illustrator and these colours worked the best.

I learnt from Photoshop how to edit pictures and use the tools to edit the photo to what I needed for my front cover and double page spread. With Illustrator I learnt how to create the text I wanted for my masthead and the type of font I wanted to use for my front cover and contents page. Once I did this, I could use illustrator and Photoshop together and learn how to use their tools combined.

Question 4- Technologies

In Photoshop, I made the headers that I used for most parts of my magazine. For my front cover however, I made a square shape with the shape tool and made sure it was in my colour scheme so used either purple/orange for the back colour. I needed a colour that stood out in front of this for my text as this was the main story and it needed to stand out compared to my competition to get bought of a stand, I made sure this colour also stayed with my colour scheme. Then, I saved this as a PNG in my media folder and pasted this onto my front cover which is shown through my print screen on the right.

With Publisher, I used the bold and underlining tool for the interview part of my double page spread, this meant you could see clearly what part of the interview was a question and an answer. This helped me separate the interview and make it look like a professional interview. I also used a layout tool to helped put the text in 3 different columns and organise it all.

Question 5- In what ways does your media product use, develop

or challenge forms and conventions of real media

products?

Question 5-In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

There are many ways in which my media products are developed forms of real media products, one of these reasons would be the main image. The main image in my magazine front cover is angled in the centre and has direct eye contact with the reader which is what's expected of a magazine. This is similar to the other real media products which is the name of the masthead which has to relate to the genre of the magazine, this being indie music. With this in mind, I decided to add below the image a main heading which includes the artist’s name. This was in a big size and font indicate to the reader that this is the main story. The colours of then main heading were orange and yellow which were to link with the original colour scheme of the entire magazine spread, it also attracts the reader and is the first thing they will read. The colour scheme of the magazine is colours which are linked with the genre which are orange, yellow, green and purple. These colours are very bright and different and wouldn’t usually be put together which is why I chose it for my front cover.

The subheading for the front cover are to add to the main heading, but must add more information about the main story as an idea of what's inside the magazine to the reader. The header above the main heading tells the reader that it’s an exclusive and if they were interested in this artist and were a fan would want to purchase this magazine. The subheading below however, is a quote from the artist which is “music is my life”. By adding this quote it summarises the whole story for the reader and gives a preview of the story which is what most real media products would have on their front covers. The magazine title of is ‘Neon’ , I chose this because it is simply and catchy and links to my genre which is what the examples of my other indie music magazine are like with titles such as NME, Q and Spin. The header is in a edgy style and looks different from other magazine headers which is what my aim was, also it links with the colour scheme of most of the pieces of the front cover and is kept the same throughout to keep a consistency and for the reader to recognise when seeing it on the stand to purchase. I have chosen a range of artists which are linked to the indie genre such as The Courteeners and The Killers which is what my audience are into and the genre they are interested in, at the bottom of my page I have added a review of the Leeds/Reading festival this year which is what my genre would want to go to and be interested in reading on. I have structured this by putting the logo of the festival which is well known in the left corner and wrote a list of all the artists which are known to have played there and are what my target audience are interested in. At the side of my front cover I have written the stories of what are going to be featured in my magazine, I have written a header which has the colour scheme in with the font being one colour which contrasts with the background shape, in this I have written the artists which is featured in that particular story. Underneath this I have written a paragraph which will interest the reader further and summarises the story which is like the way I did the main story but in a much smaller and simpler style. With this I have also added a pug which tells the gossip on the collaboration of Mcbusted and which should add the target audience wanting to purchase this magazine.

My front cover has all the forms of a real media product as it is used the same conventions such as a masthead, pug and main story which is what should be featured in a front cover. This is also added by the barcode which is placed in the right hand corner next to the masthead. This is because I thought it would look much less like a real media product if placed in the corner and in a much bigger size. Also the housestyle is consistent and has a pull quote for the main story of the main artist in my magazine. My front cover is mainly similar to NME compared to the style of Q and Spin.

Question 5-In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? – Contents Page

My contents page consists of a organised and structured style which adds to the real media products. It has all the main headings which summarise a contents page and has a blocked layout used. The different stories have been separated out into different feature sections which consists of News, regulars, review and festivals. This is what's seen in most of the real media products in my genre for indie music magazines. Also, you can see the colour scheme from the front cover has been used in the contents page as well, using the orange and green front for my feature sections and underneath having a paragraph about the story which is intriguing for the reader and makes them want to read and purchase my magazine. I also have kept my header in the contents page which is similar to my real media product examples which is what most of them have in the contents page. I have also had with my stories page numbers which are in colours linked with the colour scheme which keeps it much more linked and structured together as a magazine should. I have laid out the page numbers on the left of my paragraphs and kept it all align with one another to add to the structure and make it look more realistic like my real media products.

I have used images which have a subheading and a page number underneath. The images used are linked to the stories featured in my magazine. My contents page also has a subscribe part and offers available to the reader which are laid out on the top and bottom of the page. I have kept the top header which is on the front cover of my magazine and changed the colour of the shape to orange with a yellow font to separate it out from the rest of the page. By doing this I am keeping a consistent style and professional layout to my magazine. I also have an offer which mentions ‘3 free posters’ which will make the reader want to purchase this issue in order to have these posters of favourite bands/artists. My layout of my contents page is similar to the layout of the NME contents page mainly as I have a range of secondary images and have put the page number in the corner. I also have similar artists which they use mainly as the genre is indie bands/artists.

My target audience are interested in bands and artists of the indie genre mainly, with this being part of my unique selling point I made sure there were images that showed the bands/artists they wanted to read about. I made sure the images were clear and structured on the page and linked to the style that my front cover had in order to give my magazine a brand identity.

Question 5-In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? – Double Page Spread

In my double page spread I have used the colour scheme of black, orange and green. This is because I wanted to keep the colour scheme from beforehand but also wanted the main focus to be on the interview with the main artists from my front cover. This is why I used a similar style header which has the artist’s name but with the font in a green with an orange shape which links to the interview colour scheme text. I have not used a dropped cap in my double page spread, even though its used in real media products. I wanted to make the double page spread different and unique but taking into account the style of real media products used for my genre. I think my double page spread is similar to the style of Spin which has Florence and the Machine featured as their interview and main story. This is because I have written a grey box in the left hand corner which takes into account the interview and summarises it however in the Florence and the Machine double page spread they have used it to take into account the photographer and interviewer. I have used a green then changed to orange throughout my interview as the main colour scheme, with a black back to make the colours stand out further. I have also used a pull quote which is above the interview and bolded a word which will stand out to the reader which would be a fan of the artist. I have written underneath the main header with the artist’s name a brief paragraph on what the interview is on and what the artist’s has been doing for the year (summarised) which is what real media products do to introduce the artist to the reader. I also have used a secondary image in the left corner which is on the band the artist has toured with and links to the interview etc. I have added underneath a comment on what the picture is about which is what real media products do such as the interview on Elbow in my examples of real media products.

In the top right hand corner is a feature sections which links to my contents page and keeping my theme and style consistent which is what an aim of a magazine should be. The main image takes over one of the pages in my double page spread, which is what most real media products use as shown in my examples chosen. They have used a photograph which is made the main one and have the interview directly across this. This is the way I aimed to structure mine. Furthermore, I have bolded the questions which I asked the artist to make them stand out more from the answers and make it clear to the reader which part is which in the interview. I have used a pull out quote which is part of the interview so its linked and kept a structure similar to real media in my interview page. However, my real media products have a more wider image and less of an interview whereas, my interview is more of the double page spread. To make my double page spread better I would try and make the image more bigger and the black background with my interview smaller so that it looked more realistic, but I have challenged a convention of a real media product.

Question 6- What kind of media institution might distribute your

product?

Question 6- Distributors

The institution which would sell my magazine would be one that is based in the UK, and similar genre magazines are sold there i.e. Q, NME, Spin.

• The publishing company IPC Media publishes the well-known magazine NME, which is a similar genre to my music magazine. It also is based in London which is central UK which could help with the aim of getting my magazine nationwide. They put the current titles into three different subjects- targeted at men, targeted the mass market of women and targeting upmarket women. These sections are the core audience groups, which they focus on as a company. NME was in the section for targeted at men, if I chose this company I would aim for targeted mass market of woman and men.

• The publishing company for Q magazine is, Bauer Media Group, being a multination media business which is centred in Germany, but has an office in the UK. It also has many other music magazines it publishes which are well-known such as Kerrang. Q aimed to specialise in entertainment for indie, rock and alternative. If I chose this publishing business it means that they would focus on the indie genre which is the main part of my magazine, but might lose sight of the others genres, also they publish two other music magazines which are competition.

Publishing Company -----> Music Magazines

•Spin magazine stopped being published in 2012, however when it was in print it had a broad music coverage on rock music with the on-going emerge of hip hop. This is blending two different genres which is what my music magazine’s unique selling point is. The genres Spin covered were varied from artists from underground music and experimental rock to hard core punk. The company focuses on pop culture and media blogs. The company is known for doing sites for more reality TV celebrities or actors/actresses, which couldn’t help my magazine.

Question 6- Distribution

The institution which will sell my magazine will be the same publishing company as NME, this is because they put their magazines into different sections, which are based on who they are aiming the magazine at. This will be either women or men, so if the company base my magazine I would try and aim for it to be aimed at two groups- targeted at men and targeting the mass market of women. This broadens my target audience and means more customers to purchase my magazine. This publishing company is called IPC Media, and it has only one other music magazine which means they would focus on my magazine and become a sister publication with the existing popular magazine NME. My magazine would be competing against Kerrang and Q’s publishing company and I have to try and persuade their audience to buy my magazine over them. However, Spin is now a webzine so they would be a different audience and different competition as my is for publishing and only has a website. Neon magazine would be published monthly meaning there

would be 12 publications per year, like many other mainstream magazines. The price for my magazine would be £2.00 per issue. This is because when I looked at the price of other magazines it ranged from free to £3.90 being the highest price, I knew to compete with these I needed to make my magazine cheaper, so that’s why I made sure it was under £3.00 but I made a profit. If I keep the magazine at this price, it means it is cheaper but that I will get more of my target audience and earn a profit.

Question 6- WebsiteThe print screen above is of my magazine’s website. There is a link mentioned in my magazine in the interview (double page spread) which tells the reader what the site’s name is and where to get more information of the artist. This is why I’ve used a photo from the photo-shoot of my cover star on my website.

Here is my brand logo which should be recognised straight away

Cover star which links to the issue of my magazine which is now on sale

News section which is used in magazine as well to look organised and split different parts up, this will be updated weekly unlike the magazine which is monthly

Here is the latest top tracks and downloads of the indie genre with well-known artists and bands

www.neonmagazine.com

Question 6- Apps

By making an app for my magazine, this will make it more accessible to my target audience. Also, because my age range is 16-24 I know that their interests are technology and most of them owns an apple product or mobile phone. If I make an app for my magazine which takes them to the website which is mentioned in the magazine, this means I will broaden my target audience and still make the audience aware of my magazine. By using my masthead, but cropping it just to the ‘N’ in Neon magazine, it makes it more recognisable to my audience and my target audience and frequent readers will know the brand identity of my magazine and want to purchase the app to updated daily.

Question 6- Masthead

The font I'm going to choose for the music magazine is none and decided to design my own because the capital N is bold and in general the masthead needs to be bold in order to capture the target audiences attention. The genre of the magazine is indie pop and the text needs to be bright so I'm adding lights to the texts to link to the neon and make it more unique, so regular readers will recognize the masthead straightaway.

Question 7-Looking back at AQ magazine what have you learned

from progressing the final product?

Question 7-Aquinas Magazine

The technology that I used to produce my Aquinas magazine was publisher for the creation of the texts and fonts that were used for the magazine, also I used the internet for the barcode that was needed to make it more authentic and realistic. For the image that was used was edited in Adobe Photoshop and taken by a camera which specifically focuses on the facial features.

Question 7-Aquinas Magazine

I feel that this front cover is a much better piece and more of an improvement to the previous college front cover. It fits to the genre which I aimed for and is what my target audience wanted to purchase, from my results in the survey I gave out. The colour scheme doesn’t link to the genre typically however it appeals to both genders which is what I aimed to do in my proposal. I also wanted to add an element of all the genres blended in together as part of my brand identity and unique selling point. I feel that my skills on Adobe Photoshop have developed, this is by editing the pictures better and using more of the tools which are provided, this helped make the images I used better quality this is also because I could take better photos on the camera which I used, which focused on the facial features. I also made sure the person I chose would appeal the audience I wanted and be relatable. I also used Adobe Illustrator for parts of the masthead and header and used tools like the square shape for around the text to make it more structured and clear. I also used the variety of fonts and colours which were available through using Microsoft Publisher, which made it easier to move images and change the page much quicker and easier.

Question 7-Aquinas Magazine

The masthead has used brand identity by making the second letter capital ‘aQuinas’ which is used continuously for the contents page and will be recognised by the target audience which is college students.

The masthead used is big and in a red which is the colour linked to the college and part of their colour scheme. This will make it clear to the reader

The pug is in red and has an offer for the reader which will make them want to buy the magazine and win the student discount

The image is relatable to the reader as it is a college student which makes the reader want to know about the student and the college news.

This competition makes the reader want to purchase the magazine and is linking to all the elements of the magazine by using the red colour scheme and white outline around the text. The target audience will want to go to the festival as they are known to be interested in these types of events.

The cover stories fill out the space which is why I made sure the cover star was on the right looking directly at the stories, this will draw the readers attention to them. They are also relatable to the reader and they will be interested in these topics.

Question 7-Aquinas Magazine

My first piece was less organised and structured, it also had a lot of space which could have been filled and the photo edited in more thorough detail. However, there is a colour scheme of red, blue and white which is consistent and there are elements of a magazine used for the structure and parts of the front cover. It is missing some conventions of adding social network logos and it could use more images for the cover stories instead of the main image on its own. It includes a pull out quote from the main star and a main header and masthead which should be part of the brand image.

The colour scheme and elements are important when presenting the ideology in a magazine, in each of my front covers it has a particular colour scheme which relates to the genre and style. For the first piece this would be college colours i.e. red and white with blue however, for my music magazine this would be a variety of colours consisting of purple, orange, green and yellow.

Question 7-Aquinas Magazine

The technology that I used for my contents page was Adobe Photoshop to edit some images used, I also used publisher for the font and keeping the colour scheme and brand identity from the front cover to transfer onto here. I also tried to keep the stories for the magazine into columns to make it more organised and structured for the reader, this will make it clearer and easier to read for the target audience.

Question 7-Aquinas Magazine

The technology that I used for my contents page was Adobe Photoshop to edit some images used, I also used publisher for the font and keeping the colour scheme and brand identity from the front cover to transfer onto here. I also tried to keep the stories for the magazine into columns to make it more organised and structured for the reader, this will make it clearer and easier to read for the target audience.

The masthead has used brand identity by making the second letter capital ‘cOntents’ which is used continuously for the magazine and will be recognised by the target audience which is college students.

With an editor’s message in the contents page it’s more personal towards the reader and is direct towards the reader. It also briefly explains the issue and what's inside the magazine.

By using these images which are linked to the interests of the target audience, this makes the magazine more intriguing and has an offer/competition which they will want to be a part off, because the message is direct address on the reader.

The cover stories are what the target audience are interested in and links to the front cover by mentioning the main story and star, also by using a similar image. Also with the page numbers which are used but keeping the colour scheme which reflects the brand identity.

Question 7-Aquinas Magazine

I feel my work has progressed throughout the unit, because each piece I create it becomes more structured and organised. I also keep to the colour scheme and remember my brand identity to keep throughout each piece and page I make for my magazines. I have learnt about magazine conventions which is shown through my front covers I have made, this is because I used all the features needed and kept an identity and theme constantly.

Question 7- Choosing A Cover Photo

When choosing my images, I had to take into account if some were usable for the magazine, making sure the picture was good quality and focusing on facial features. I also had to check if they were appropriate for my magazine and audience, using the rule of thirds and a blank background and good lighting. I thought using a photo of Elliot looking away at the camera was better, as he could be looking at my features in my magazine directly instead of giving the audience direct eye contact which is more typical.

This image is too close up and isn’t giving the camera direct eye contact, it would also take up too much of the page needed for other elements of the magazine.

The picture is bad quality and the star isn’t giving direct eye contact to the camera, there is no focus on the facial features.

This is the image I’ve chosen as its clear and good quality, it also has enough space for the main elements of the magazine.

Question 7- Rule Of Thirds

The rule of thirds is where the frame is divided into 9 different sections. The first photo is an example of 'framed to the left', this is when the person in the photo is more to theleft side of the photograph and a lot of space to the right for text etc. Framed to the centre will be in the middle of the screen with empty space on both sides. Framed to the right will be more dead space on the left with the person in the photograph to be on the left of the picture.

Question 7- 1st Draft and Final Piece

Question 7-Final Piece