The task was to produce a music magazine which is appealing to the target audience. My Magazine is a British magazine, as the main star on the front page is British as I mentioned in my article. I have decided to Pick the R&B genre as in the market right now it is very popular. Whether the magazine is fully R&B or has elements from R&B. So therefore, I think my magazine would be very popular if on the shelf. More young people are interesting in R&B as it relates to the youth more. This is an element which made me pick R&B as my chosen genre as I am trying to appeal to a young audience which are teenagers. I have decided to specifically target a gender of my audience which is female, I feel I have more knowledge of relating to females more and can use and interpret this is my magazine. This is the reason I used all female images and mentioned only female artists in my magazine, which also identifies what audience I am trying to target. The artist which relate to the genre of my magazine are: ( Each name is hyperlinked to either their website or biography) Rihanna Beyonce Mariah Carey

I have challenged the forms and conventions of a real media product. The masthead typically in and R&B magazine has “girly” font with soft colours. As my magazine is for females you would expect there to be some pink, I have chosen not to do this as I did not what to portray my magazine as stereotypical as not all females like the colour pink, so I have chosen red which is an appealing colour and eye-catching.

I have found while looking at magazine covers there is nearly always some sort of competition which makes the magazines more appealing as the in a way the magazine is giving some thing to the readers for buying the magazine

I have used a large image as typically in a real music magazine this type of shot is used a lot to emphasise the main star on the cover, also to represent them in a certain way such as style.

Similarly, in this R&B magazine the same shot is used to portray the main star, also representing their individual style

My font is rough looking can also portray attitude which is one the known personalities of an R&B star to be a “diva”

Here is a typical example of a music magazine using pink to portray a female star, not only with the font her name but what she is wearing, this is the stereotype I am trying to not portray in my magazine

I have used the same convention of putting a quote from the main article on the front page, this way the reader is intrigued straight away and is interested in reading the article.

The barcode is essentials in all magazines as it is needed to be actually distributed and sold to the consumer. I have used a barcode in my magazine that i found on Google images

Billboard Magazine (Hyperlinked)

Most magazines have their own logo or font, I have created this on my magazine with my masthead and content page this gives a clue to the reader that the both pages are linked to the same magazine.

In magazines out on the sale right now usually have some thing free for the consumer, making the magazine more persuasive to buy. I have incorporated this into my magazine but giving away a free poster. I have also detailed the free poster on the front page on the top strip in capitals so it is more noticeable and stand out from the rest of the text.

Conventionally content pages do not normally have top strip, so I decided to included one on my content page which gives details of how often the magazine is disturbed, what issue this is and the magazine website.

I have noticed in any magazine that there is come sort of comment or letter from the editor, I wanted to included this in my magazine as I feel it is like an introduction to the issue for who ever has not read the magazine before

Nearly all magazines have some sort of competition in them. As this is a music magazine I thought it was appropriate to do a completion about winning tickets to a festival. These competitions in magazines are a chance for the reader to get more interactive with the magazine. I have enlarged this completion page as it is more eye-catching and noticeable.

This is a magazine advert which is related to the main star in the article. I will explain further in detail on the next slide.

CD advertisements are likely to be in music magazines. I have decided develop this convention in my magazine article but also linking with my article, these adverts are to promote the star and the single/album.

The magazine which I previously analysed was flavour I noticed that that the image on one side on the article was enlarged, to create more focus on the star, I used this concept in my magazine as this is the effect I wanted to create. Furthermore the name of the star and sub-heading is next to the large image which shows that this is the exclusive story and gives details of what the article is about, I did the same but instead of the actual article title I decided to but a quote which is more interesting for the reader as they are hooked to the article straight away

Flavour magazine (Hyperlinked)

In my article I have separated the story into sub-heading which makes it easier to read and more understandable. I inspired by the flavour magazine I previously analysed

One of the conventions used in magazine article is the enlarged certain quotes. The quotes which are enlarged are sometimes the quotes on there own are over exaggerated so the reader what's to read the article to find out the whole story.

I think my music magazine is easily recognisable and potentially appealing to someone who is specifically into R&B music and culture. I feel my magazine would be popular in this social group as R&B is very recognisable genre as it is publicised in the media through celebrities and big music artist such as Beyonce.

In society there are many social group, and sometimes they are stereotyped through sources of media like magazines. In my magazine my main goal was not to stereotype my target audience, if I did it would be a risk and a chance of a decrease in profits. Teenagers are one group in society which are stereotyped through the media. In my magazine I want to show a good side to teenagers by not displaying negative news put more positive news. As the model I have displayed in my feature article is of the same age group I want to target and portray a good story to. I feel in my magazine I have achieved this.

The specific social group with in teenager that would be into my media product would be teenage girls who like to look up to an glamorous image and lifestyle being portrayed to them as they feel they can achieve this as well. To represent this to the social group in my magazine I have to think about fashion to create and image which is more appealing and desirable. The clothing for my model was inspired be Rhihana who is a worldwide star recognised for her R&B music. Her image seems to be “cool “as it appeals to her fans, I decided to create a similar version with my model as I wanted this appeal from my target audience.

Heel-Dominance and glamour

Jeans more casual balancing out the image more

Scarf – more trendy equals a unique style

I have chosen IPC as the institution to distribute my magazine for many reasons. I feel it is a diverse institution which publishes a range of magazines for different audiences. Also can appeal to my social group as IPC distributes well known fashion magazines such as Marie Claire and Look magazine, these fashion magazines are read and recognised by teenage girls . Not only this but IPC distributes NME magazine which is a popular music magazine which is well known, so I feel If IPC did distribute my magazine they would have the knowledge of both fashion and music to get my magazine across to the consumer.

FACT FILE

IPC Media is a leading UK consumer magazine publisher. Almost two in every three UK women.

Distributes over 80 magazines

It's their creativity, innovation, talent and commitment that drives our market-leading position in UK consumer publishing.

http://www.ipcmedia.com/

The NME is the longest published and most respected music weekly in the world. Every week it gives its readers the most exciting, most authoritative coverage of the very best in contemporary music. The award-winning www.nme.com, launched in 1996, has grown to be the biggest commercial music news site in Europe.

Look is the fast-paced, glamorous, glossy high street fashion and celebrity weekly for young women. It has a unique mix of up-to the-minute affordable fashion, high street shopping advice, celebrity style and news, coupled with thought provoking real life. Look is the accessible, must-have glossy weekly high street fashion bible.

www.look.co.uk

http://www.nme.comMarie Claire is a worldwide icon. With editions in 29 countries, it epitomises style and substance, with fashion and beauty that embrace everything from catwalk to high street, and feature content that reflects both the fun and more serious sides of its readers' personalities. Marie Claire is published in the UK in partnership with French publishing company, Group Marie Claire.

www.marieclaire.co.uk

Target Audience Profile:

Age: 16+Gender: FemaleSocial Group: Teenagers(specifically into R&B music)

The main age group I want to target as my audience is 16+, I am not limiting the age above 16 as I will give the audience the decision if they are interested in it for example someone who is in their mid 20’s maybe interested in my magazine for many different reasons. Also by not limiting the audience above 16 it makes my target audience wider consequently, increasing the magazines popularity and profits. I have not targeted the magazine below 16 as they might not understand r relate to the content of the magazine as well as my target audience.

I have chosen to target a specific gender which is female. I feel I have more knowledge of what a female would want and how to appeal to them than a male, I can therefore use this knowledge in my magazine. Some people may ask the question of why not do a magazine to appeal to both genders. I feel in the market right now the magazines are more male dominated, so by me doing a female specific magazine I will reach a gap in the market which will appeal to females who do not want to be stereotyped. Within my magazine I feel I have near enough achieved this.

QESTIONNAIRE:

1) What attracts you to this magazine?

ColourFont

LayoutCompetition

2) What age group do you think this magazine is for?

1415

16+3) What gender do you think this

magazine is for?Female

MaleBoth genders

4) In your opinion is this magazine specifically a music magazine?

Yes No

5) Would you be interested in reading the feature article?

YesNo

6) What makes the feature article persuasive to read?

I gave ten people at random a copy of my magazine and then told them to answer my questionnaire to see what they thought of my final media product

1) What attracts you to this magazine?ColourFont

LayoutCompetition

As we can see the result are varied, Which means different people find something different which attracts them to the magazine. This is a positive thing for me as I wanted to attract people in different ways not only on one specific thing.

2) What age group do you think this magazine is for?

1415

16+

The Graph shows us that all the people I question said that the magazine targets the age group 16 +. Which is what age group I am trying to target. From the feedback I can now tell from someone else's perspective that the magazine does appeal to 16 yr olds and over.

3) What gender do you think this magazine is for?Female

MaleBoth genders

The minority of people thought the magazine was more for females. This may be due to how I addressed My audience and how this came across.

4) In your opinion is this magazine specifically a music magazine?

Yes No

All the people I questioned thought my magazine was a magazine. I think this is due to the main focus of the article being about music. Also I used allot of connotation towards music for example, in my competition it was about winning an trip to a festival. I also used the word, music reviews, concerts and music charts. The main give away is the title of the magazine which contains the word “Music”.

5) Would you be interested in reading the feature article?

YesNo

Everyone would be interested in reading the feature article. This maybe as they may relate to the main image as they maybe a similar age to her. Also may just be intrigued to read more, because of the quote displayed above the main article title.

6) What makes the feature article persuasive to read?

I gave the people I asked an opportunity to answer the question without any options so the results are more varied.Four people said that the colour makes it more persuading this may be due to the reason I used contrasting colours. Three People were persuaded by the Article title, as they may be interested to find out more by reading on. Finally, Three people thought the word “Exclusive” made it persuasive for them. They may feel by reading the article they are being let into a secret.

There are many ways I attract/address my audience within the content of my magazine:

Addressing My Audience:

I address my target age group straight away as I use a model who is 16 which is the main age group I am targeting, by using a teenage model I feel the audience can relate to the magazine more than if I used a model who was below 16. I for any one is not clear of her age I have mentioned it in the content page.

The audience is addressed by the fact I only used female images and only mention female music artists, I have highlighted in some images of the mention of females. Also used a female editor which portrays female to be more dominate and powerful.

I have put a website address on the article as teenager are mostly using the internet as the main source of media, so I included an address with is more appropriate and practical for the audience. Furthermore to emphasise on this in the main article In the advertisement I have said the CD is available to download on ITunes, which makes it more appealing for the audience and addresses the age range almost young people use ITunes as a way of getting music.

There are many ways I attract/address my audience within the content of my magazine:

Attract My Audience:

I have used a bright and attractive masthead which will be eye-catching

I have attracted the audience from the front page by advertising a competition which is makes the magazine more persuasive. I have used a well known festival which teenagers are aware of and want to be part of it because of the popularity of it.

The audience maybe attracted to the magazine which doesn't mean they will actually buy it, I have thought about this I have looked at other prices of magazines, Also thought about the target audience nearly all being student, therefore priced my magazines at £3.99. I my opinion I think this is an affordable price which teenagers can afford

The top and bottom strips attract the my audience as they are very persuasive. In my Top strip I have detailed that there is a free poster inside, which makes the audience buy the magazine. Also the new music updates gives the readers a chance to be up to date, and I have given the readers a chance to have there say in 2009 No.1’s. I feel teenagers are not given of saying there opinion. In my magazine I want to change this and make them more interactive with the magazine with their opinions. The bottom strips also details the same thing as the readers can write their own reviews on concert and what they thought about them. I feel the audience will be more interested in hearing other people reviews of the same age and being part of the magazine.

Here is an example of the use of recent music artist, which would be recognised by teenagers. As they are popular as they receive a huge amount of media publicity. Also the use of recent artists will relate to the target audience more and the audience will feel comfortable in reading about some one they know about. Also the music artist I used were female with would be popular for females who are into R&B music

The exclusive article is about a sixteen year old. I feel In doing this it will attract the same age group as they may feel they can relate to the story more and can feel they can achieve the same dream.

To attract my target audience also within this my social group I have to think about image and how it can be attractive and appealing. This is represented thorough the clothing of the model as I have explained in detail on slide 6. The image is vital in terms of almost the magazine being accepted within that social group and connecting with the target audience

To attract the audience I have used the latest music charts so they are up to date may relate to their own music tastes.

I have learnt a lot from the duration of constructing my media product. Firstly, I had to create a blogger account (https://www.blogger.com/start) which I was unfamiliar with before, I had to gain knowledge of how to blog and upload images. This was helpful as I could blog my progress for the task in school and outside of school. I learnt more about how to portray my images in different shots using a professional digital camera. Throughout the task I have been editing my images on Photoshop Such as cropping them. Here I progressed my knowledge further, as I learnt how to edit the lighting and contrast and other ways of manipulating and images. Another programmes I have been using to actually construct the magazine was InDesign. This is a new programme to me, before this task I have had no prior knowledge of this programme. I learned many things, such as how to transfer the images from Photoshop to InDesign. Also inserting text, creating different effect and resizing images and text. Finally, I have realised that you can not rely on technologies a 100% as you have to have a backup file for each piece of work.

Looking back one the preliminary task I have learned many skills within my self such as organisation and planning. This is evident in my flat plans and my research and analysis of other music magazines before I started on my magazine.

Before I made my magazine I made a flat plan which was like a guide to refer back to on how the layout should look like or were the font would be.

I can see the progress I have made but I have stuck to my main ideas from the flat flan. There are only minor changes such as the display for “free poster inside” was in the corner instead of in the top strip

In my content page I have stuck to my main ideas, the only thing I change was on the top strip which was instead on the magazine being released every Wednesday it would now be released every month as I thought of the practical side and question whether it would be affordable for my target audience.

The final product also shows the eye-catching colours and the used of images more than the flat plan would as now I can see more of a visual image to my magazine now that it is done.

The flat plan in my for my article really helped me progress and develop to the final product. I used the flat plan as a guide for the layout. I have made some changes to from the flat plan to the final product, for example I changed were I put the long shot images from the centre to the right hand side of the first page of my article. As now the images is more balanced with the text which is more effective.

I have used many skills and developed them, as by creating a flat plan it made my organisation better. As with out a flat plan I would not have something to refer back to of what photography I need in terms of what shots and angles.

As I am resisting my course work I want to see my progress and improvement from my old music magazine and my music magazine which I produced for my resit.

My first magazine, does not have the main conventions of a normal magazine as my second music magazine. Also the main problem I faced was that I could not use my images as the photography had to be my own in order for me to analyse it. I have still stuck to what genre I picked before which is R&B. The colour was not eye-catching as the images faded the font out which made the text not readable and understandable. Also It did not have a noticeable top strip and bottom strip.

My second magazine that I produced I feel I had gained more knowledge of the main conventions of a music magazine in order for me to full fill the main potential of a music magazine. I have used my own photography in the new magazine so I can explain my own work. I have constructed the magazine better as I used contracting colour to make the writing more noticeable and understandable. Also have a top strip and bottom strip which is more visible to the reader. I used a mid-shot image which is more conventially appropriate for a music magazine, also more appealing as the audience can relate to the main star more whether before they might have not as there were three people.

The first music magazine has the same colour scheme as the second magazine. The editing I feel is not at a high quality. Also I have images of students in a school uniform. Magazines which are published do not normally have this. Also I have a lot of white spaces. In the second magazine I have explored my ideas more in terms of layout. I feel it is more organised and filled.

I have enlarged the main stars image more than the rest to emphasise her importance. I added an editor letter to fill up the space more. This is something which is normally seen on a content page or at the start of the magazine. I have kept the idea of have heading for each page and giving a explanation underneath. I have also added a top strip to make my magazine different. I feel my second magazine is more appealing to read and has new ideas to offer, but also keeping the typical conventions.

The main problem with the first article is that is one A4 page turned landscape. Also did not include page numbers. I used 2 main images of the band. In a real magazine the article has one main image so there is more focus on the star. Also article in nearly all magazines be in columns. I have still used a CD advert to vary the article instead of having just the article. I have kept the bottom strip to display the main stars website as I already displayed the magazine website on the top strip on the content page.

In my second magazine the article is on two A4 pages which is more appropriate is my the article was published in a real magazine. I have put one main image which create more focus and attention on the main star also in doing this they reader can relate to the story more. I have added a music chart strip which varies the article also proving that the main star is No.1. This is also linking with the fact it is a music magazine. I have added a main masthead for the article so the reader is aware of what they are reading straight away. I have put my new article into columns which looks more professional and fits into a typical magazine article.

I feel now having completed the task, I have gained more knowledge and developed my previous knowledge more. I have also learned how to improve on my initial ideas and make them link with magazine conventions. Furthermore, I have gained more understanding of appealing to the target audience through the survey’s I conducted which is part of my audience research. Overall I am pleased with the progress I made from my old magazine to my new music magazine, which I am happy with.