Question 6 - What have I learnt about technologies in the process of constructing my product?

• Blogger - when using the online website Blogger I was able to create my own blog where I posted all the things that I had constructed for the music magazine, this meant that I was able to upload different sections of the magazine such as the front cover which then showed the people looking at my blog the developments that I had made throughout the time of being able to construct my product. 
• Prezi – I used PREZi to make presentations which were then able to portray information to the audience about certain things such as how to appeal to a certain audience. Being able to use prezi made things more interesting to make as I had never used that program before, this then allowed me to learn more things about how to create an engaging presentation whilst being able to collect information to include in the presentation. 
• Digital cameras - I had used digital cameras before I started the coursework, however when using the cameras in my media to take professional photographs of my models to include into my media products I was then able to teach myself new things about the different effects that you are able to add on pictures and also how you are able to adjust things in the photo to make other things such as the front model of the image stand out more from the background, thus then creating a stronger image as the model is more on display. The cameras were very fun to use as I was able to experiment with things that I hadn't done before on a camera such as using a tripod to hold up the camera to take a selection of different photos as well as then being able to include my own photos into my work. 
• Flickr - Whilst using Flickr it gave me the opportunity to upload all of the images that I had taken of my models onto one page which the public was then able to see. Due to having all of my photos in the same place I was then able to visually compare which photos would work best on my products and which photos I thought would suit my target audience more than others. Flickr was a very simple website to use and was very helpful when I was able to increase my own knowledge of what websites I was able to use to hold and store my photographs. 
• Online picture editors and software such as Photoshop and other online websites that provide a service for me to be able to upload my photos and then change them to make them more suitable for my target audience, such as being able to change the colour of the picture as well as then being able to change the brightness of the image to make it blend in more with certain things included in my products. For example on the double page spread that I have created I changed all of the photos along the bottom of the page so that they were in black and white so that they weren't as obvious on the page but the image was still clear for the audience to see. 
•  Fireworks – to create all of my media products I used fireworks which then allowed me to use a variation of different techniques to make sure that my products were up to the highest standard that they could have been. Fireworks allowed me to create structure on a page as well as then being able to change things and make them look more professional, being able to use fireworks helped me improve my skills when working on a computer as I was able to make a product on a online page which I hadn't done before – I can then use these skills in later life to create further media products.
• Online font sites such as dafont, this then helped me create a masthead for my magazine which was then used on all three of my media products. Dafont was very simple to use and helped me look at other peoples font ideas so that I was able to choose the best and most suitable font for my products as well as making sure that it stood out from the rest of the things on the page.  
• Padlet - Allowed me to make an online wall where I was able to present my products to my audience whilst being able to recieve feedback on the things that I had done, due to the wall that I had made being public allowing people to send me notes on the things that they liked and the other things that I could of improved. The program was good because of how simple it was as well as then being able to help me learn things about the types of people that I wanted to target my products at, I also used paper questionnaires to ask questions about the things that they would like to see included in the music magazine. 
• Thinglink – I used Thinglink to create ways to present the information that we had found out to the audience, using this method of making a page meant that I was able to give information in a different format to my audience.
• ·         Scribd - I made a powerpoint about the institution that I would choose to distribute my media products if I created a paper version of them. When making the powerpoint I used the internet to research things about different music magazines and the companies that distributed them, when looking at the different companies I created the powerpoint to explain why I decided to chose the company that I did which was IPC Media, once I had then finished the presentation I put it on Scribd which is a website that you are able to read books and presentations on so that I was able to show the public the ideas that I had about my media products and the companies that I would want to distribute them.   

Flickr Account Showing All Photos Taken

https://www.flickr.com/photos/111029335@N07/with/14100293073

Question 7 - Looking back at my preliminary task, what do I feel I've learnt in the progression from it?

When making my school magazine I didn’t use as much technology then the things that I used to make my music magazine which meant that the quality of my school magazine wasn’t as good as it could have been due to not understand the technology as well as I could of done at the time. Throughout the construction of my media products I was able to learn many different techniques and learnt more about the different parts of a media product (which in my case was the music magazine). With my school magazine it was very basic and things on the page such as the structure were in a very more basic layout plan as I wasn’t very confident on the different things that I was able to do to the page to make it look better.

When looking back at the past work that I have done and the products that I created to the ones that I have done now have improved all the way through as I was able to make more improvements to what I have done, whilst being able to try and use new different programs such as fireworks and PREZi to make sure that my work is up to the highest standard. My newer media products show more skill and precision then the older school magazine. When I first started my media blog and posted the posts of my products you can see everything that I have done in my planning, research and the actual reconstruction of my products and skills. My ideas of how I am able to structure things and put things on a page has allowed me to then learn new things which I am then able to now use in the rest of my work for school to make presentations and things more interesting to see as I was able to learn things through research. When being able to create plans and layouts then it meant that I was able to make basic ideas and change them which I wasn't able to when making my first media products (the school magazine) which then helped me change smaller things that I didn’t like or wanted to make better. I was able to address the audience more with my music magazine as I was able to make things more suitable to my audience which I was then able to choose and change when I needed to make things different then other peoples products so mine stood out from the rest, whereas my school magazine was addressed to a certain audience which I wasn't able to change which meant that I then had to focus on a group of people that I knew a lot of things about meaning that it was abit repetitive. To choose my audience I asked the target people questions about what they wanted to see and then I used their information to make my products the best that I possibly could. The differences in my products are very different for example the photography is better in my music magazine as I was able to ask for tips and learn things about what makes a better photo whereas with my school magazine I was stuck for backgrounds and the things that I was able to use in the images such as props and costumes. My media products have changed and improved a lot since I started which has improved all of my own skills as well as meaning that I was able to then see the own things that I had made, my products have got better since I started and look more professional and structured then when I started the course.

   

Double Page Spread - Background Changes

These show a variation of different backgrounds that I could use for my double page spread, I tried to use different images so that it gave the audience something else to look at on the page. I took away the grey background and then replaced it with a blank screen, a background image of a concert crowd and then a watermark which follows the same colours as the rest of the house style. When using other colours and backgrounds than the plain grey solid colour it makes things stand out less on the page as the grey background is very dull and blank, whereas using a coloured background makes the text show on the page that there is something important there. I tried a range of different things that I could use on my background but then I decided that the grey from the original image worked well with the rest of the things on the page and changing the background image to something that would have been slightly more technical (as it would distract the reader from the article onto the background image) would have meant that I would of needed to move around the things on the page so that they still stood out from the page in the same way that they stand out now. Most magazines that I have looked at such as NME and Q use solid colour backgrounds so that the other things on the page stand out more from the page as things are more simple.  

Question 5 - How did you attract/address your target audience?

Question 5 - How Did I Attract and Address My Audience? http://www.thinglink.com/scene/509720824182210561 http://www.thinglink.com/scene/510375680903479298 http://www.thinglink.com/scene/511107864983502849

My Final Products

Question 4 - Who would be the audience for your media product?

The ideal user for my media product (music magazine) is someone that is of the ages of 13-18 that enjoys mainstream pop music artists, as pop music is a popular genre of music that people enjoy listening too. My target audience are females that enjoy learning things about old artists and also upcoming pop music artists. The type of person i imagine to be reading and purchasing my music magazine are teenagers and young adults that are individual in the way that they are and confident with being themselves (as this is the kind of message that I want to portray to my audience that they don’t have to pretend to be something that they aren't for them to be liked by the public eye), the message is then shown through all of the images in the magazine where the model is a strong independent female who is making it in the music industry.

My audience is aimed at females due to the fonts that were used being very bold and clear as well as the colour scheme and house style being more suitable to the stereotypical girl of being pinks, white and black. I expect my audience to be in education or working with a part time job, as they are then able to be able to purchase the magazine using their own money rather than their parents however they also are able to buy the magazine as a reward for working hard in education and being able to push themselves mentally and physically to be the best that they can be in their work, this then gives them the skills to be confident with themselves and appreciate all the work that they manage to do for themselves. I want them to be someone that isn't afraid to be themselves so they are able to wear things that make them individual and unique (as I don’t want my readers to all be the same person I want them to be able to live their lives happy without following a crowd).  The females reading my magazine would be likely to have all different types of hair colour as my magazine is suitable for people of all ethnicity and races, who have a girly fashion sense (of flowers and patterned jumpers) as well as being someone that keeps up to date with the latest fashion trends so that they are able to feel more accepted in a community even though my magazine aims to stop this mind set of fitting in. My audience will shop in all different types of shops and look for the best deals when they are trying to purchase something new for example if looking for branded shoes (such as converse or vans) they will look around for the best deal before making a choice on the things that they want to buy. They will still be living with their parents /guardians so will be in a range of housing from houses to flats all over the UK and will value the happiness that they have in their lives more than anything else, as happiness and their family means everything to them (I want my audience to value the little things in life).  The music that they listen to will be from a range of different genres however they will enjoy listening to the pop genre and being able to let themselves go when they listen to this type of music as well as being able to relax when it is played, they will be someone that buys albums and buys there music from online stores such as the app store and play store etc, making sure that the people that create the music are the people getting the correct profit for their music (not illegally download music). Along with this they will then be someone that owns a smart phone so that they are able to keep dated with all of the Social Medias such as twitter and Facebook as well as being able to use internet and WiFi. Even though they own smart phones I don’t expect them to be high in the JICNAR scale and be in the social class of E with their parents/carers/guardians being in the social group of B to C2.  

 I then don’t expect the audience to be someone that drives as most of the audience aren't old enough to drive and the people that are old enough will be people that just need a cheap car to be able to get to work and back, but they are people that want to drive girly sorts of cars such as Mini’s etc. They will socialise at youth clubs and at school as well as being able to maintain close relationships with people that they have similar interests with (this will then help the sales of my magazine as the more people that are friends with one another they are then able to spread positive feedback about my magazine for example how it was constructed and company brand).

When asking people there own personal opinions on my products they were able to give me honest feedback on what they thought, everyone was able to give me positive feedback on the media products that I had created whereas they were also able to gave me small improvements on the things that they would like to see on the rest of the magazine. I was able to target the correct audience for my products and the feedback that I got was very helpful in helping me think about the things that I had done well and the things that I could of done better. The good things that I had done were being able to stick to a good colour scheme for my products and audience as well as being able to make the things in my products structured and make sense. 

Question 3 - What Kind of Media Institution Might Distribute Your Media Product and Why?

Question 3 - What Kind of Media Institution Might Distribute Your Media Product and Why?

Question 2 - How does your media product represent social groups?

http://prezi.com/lrv10ud_v0w8/question-2/

Creating My Double Page Spread

I added the grid lines onto the page of where I wanted things to go making sure that I had laid out columns on the page. 

I then added the image that I wanted to use as the main image on my double page spread, once this was added I was then able to add in the text and other things onto the page making sure that they didn't distort or cover the main photograph. 

After inserting my head line and strap line I wanted to add the other pieces of text onto the page so that it would develop more of a structure.

The article was now almost finished as the text had been added.  

I added a drop cap at the start of the article and made key points in the text large so that they would stand out and catch the readers attention. 

After adding some colour onto the page which matches my house style of pink then I was almost finished and decided to add in some more photos in the black space that I had marked out at the bottom. 

My final double page spread was then completed and involves the conventions of a real double page spread along with having its own individuality.

Final Double Page Spread

Question 1 - In what ways do your media products use, develop or challenge the forms and conventions of real media products?

Created with Padlet

http://padlet.com/wall/tg6cptwdds

Final Contents Page

This is my final contents page, it includes a main image of my model Ellie who is also shown on my final front cover. There is a column on the right side of the page that shows the audience/reader what page all of the different articles are on. It follows the same house style that my other products do and follows some of the main conventions that a contents page does such as the columns and a main image that is used to show articles in the magazine.

Double Page Spread Information

 These are 6 ideas that i have for the layout of my double page spread, in every layout plan i have included images, text, header (title) and pull quotes. This will mean that my double page spreads follow a structure and organised pattern making sure that the double page spread is up to the highest standard that it possibly can be.

I looked at a double page spread of a real magazine and looked at the main parts of it such as the image and the text, i annotated why the magazine did the certain things that it did to make sure that the magazine is a good and easy one for the audience to read whilst including all the main techniques. 

When looking more at different types of double page spreads i began to look at the page furniture that makes a double page spread good quality and simple to read. When creating a magazine double page spread you need to make sure that it looks professional and keeps organised so that the creator and the target audience are able to get the most out of their magazine. 

Contents Page Drafts

This is one of the drafts for my magazine contents page, I've given it a columned structure to make it look organised and professional. I have kept with the colour scheme of my front page which is black and pink as this makes the magazine keep a good look without changing the main elements of the magazine such as the house style which was decided at the start of the project. 

Once I had added all the information that I wanted on my contents page I than began to add pictures. However I am going to take more pictures so that I am able to make them look more professional for the reader to use.   

Contents Page Layouts

I came up with 8 layouts that i can use for my contents page,all these layouts are simple and everything that i have added onto the layouts is structured in columns. All the contents pages include images, information, title which will be 'contents' and then on some of them i will include the masthead and a puff to make the magazine more appealing to the audience.

Contents Page Planning and Conventions

Things that are needed on a contents page:

• title (sub titles) 
• pictures
• page numbers
• colours 
• different font and sizes
• masthead (or parts of masthead) 
• quotes of articles
• columns 
• grids/guidelines
• editors note 
• date 
• issue number

When i create my music magazine contents page i need to make sure that i still follow the house style that i used for the front cover by including the same colour shades and using the same font size and style to make sure that all my products link together. The contents page needs to include the basic information that will make people want to read my magazine by including page numbers and a variation of different articles with a range of different artists. 

Here is some examples of actual media products which are used in magazines: 

Double Page Spread Interview

Hey Sophie! How have the past few months been since you found out you were going on tour?

They have actually been incredible, I’m so lucky to be able to tour with my best friends and perform to everyone! It’s been a life changing experience i can’t wait for it to carry on and what the future holds for me and my music career!

So you’ve been on tour with Ke$ha – how has that been?

It’s been amazing! Touring with her is fabulous and being able to see my best friends every day, is so cool for me. I’m really enjoying it. The tour bus is a little crazy but i won’t reveal too much – nah everyone pretty tired to be honest, and they need to sleep. We have a few shenanigans but mostly it’s sleeping because travelling and performing is abit tiring, really.

Has Ke$ha given you any tips for lasting on tour?

Yeah, she’s been a sister to me! She talks alot more than normal people! Ha-ha! Her main advice is ‘be sensible. Don’t scream and shout all the time – you need to look after your voice’ and she told me the story of how if you want to do something on tour do it and don’t regret it, so if i wanted to sing along with the crowd then i should sing along with the crowd! Don’t spend all your life daydreaming make it reality because you will always be better off staying true to what you believe.

‘’she talks alot more than normal people’’

Have you been naughty?

We’ve been doing a lot of running up and down the hotel corridors but there’s been no shouting!

This is your first tour – has Ke$ha been supportive?

Yeah, I’ve been accepted pretty well. I like to attract new fans who don’t know I’m about, and hopefully they like what i do. I’m doing two of my own songs now, which is crazy. It’s very exciting for me. Ones called Working Man and the second ones called Where Ever You Are, which i wrote with the boys from 5 Seconds of summer.

What were the boys like?

Lovely – they were always giving me advice and I’ve got friendly with all of them too – they said just to have fun and do your thing. We have planned to write more things in the future.

How are you getting along with all tour acts like Before You Exit, Etham Basden and Elyar Fox?

They are all really cool and we all get along well, its weird being the only female act but they are all like my brothers.

Who are the tour jokers?

Etham and Elyar! They like to pull pranks on people and see how long they can go without getting court – they don’t do it very well!

Who takes the longest in the shower?

I would probably say that it’s Toby McDonough (in before you exit) he makes a mess and water goes everywhere, but i suppose that what you get for him being the youngest of us all. He did get better for abit but then he got worse everyone just said ‘he was having a good day’.

What do you all argue about the most?

I wouldn’t say we really argue and if we do it’s about not wanting to get out of bed in the morning! Or about who gets to have a shower first.

Have the other acts changed because of growing in fame?

No, i think they will always be down to earth guys!

‘’they will always be down to earth guys’’

If you weren't a singer what would you be doing now?

If I wasn't a singer I would be probably playing cricket, nah I’m just kidding, a fire-fighter

Are you planning on releasing a male perfume?

A male perfume wow, I probably should, I probably should, yeah definitely! I’ll just put abit of my sweat in there; every bottle has some of my sweat in it

Who’s been your favourite ever act to see live?

For me there’s a top three who really nailed it – Bastille, Imagine Dragons and Ed Sheeran.  They are all amazing because they put on a proper show aswell as singing, which is great because that’s where i want to get to. I want to have a full show, not just to sing.

So who would you most like to duet with?

It depends on the song that we performed. 5 seconds of summer would be amazing because we both enjoy the same taste in music. But my ideal would be to do a cool song with One Direction they are amazing, beautiful and wonderful.

So what’s happening after the tour?

After the tour I’m going to America and maybe Australia. When you have good songs you can never stop writing you never know when i song is going to materialise – it could happen at any time. Then i want to realise my own music. This is my first proper tour, so now I’m dreaming of doing my own tour – that’s where i want to go. 

Final Front Cover

This is my final front cover, it shows my model Ellie who is wearing a flowery dress that matches with the house style of my magazine which is pink, black and white. The genre of my magazine is pop music and she shows this in the way that she is posed as she looks very feminine with her make up being very plain and simple. The front cover includes all of the main conventions that any other music magazine front cover would include. It shows things that are featured inside of the magazine which makes the reader want to read and buy the magazine as well as including competitions where people are able to win things inside of the magazine. 

Mock Front Covers and Visual Syntax

Here are some of the mock front covers that i have made, these are ones that I was going to use for my front cover but edited to make them better and more professional, whilst also being able to enhance the photos parts to make it stand out more on the page to the audience. 

This image shows the visual syntax that a magazine should have, the reader should be able to begin at the top of the page at the masthead and then work their way down the page so that they are able to view everything that is on the page including the main image and the headline, this is then what captivates the reader to read the magazine so they are able to look more at what is included inside.

Creating Front Page Of Magazine

To make my magazine front cover I first needed to start by inserting grid lines so that I knew my magazine would be structured well and clearly, it would mean that i was then able to add small details around the grids so that things i added are straight and easily seen by the audience to make them want to buy the magazine. By adding the grid lines it meant that I was able to place things where I wanted them to go so that I could make my front cover more professional.

After I had added my grid-lines I added the image that I had chosen for the front cover. I matched the picture up with my grid-lines, whilst putting the photo onto the page i edited the photo on pixlr to make the photo better quality by changing the effects of the photo to make the photo brighter and pop out more. On the photo i changed the colour of Sophie's skin colour getting rid of any red marks that she had on her face as well as brightening up her lips and eyes slightly. 

once i had finished changing the picture i zoomed in on the face and set it as the background picture for my front cover. i put it on the right hand side of the page as then i was able to add the masthead in the left hand corner along with cover lines underneath and smaller details on the left hand side of the page to show the things that were included in the magazine. 

After this I inserted my masthead, making sure that it stood out on the page and didn't overlap any of the picture. By doing this I made sure that all of the models face was seen by the audience. With the masthead I trimmed it so that it was behind Sophie's head so that her face isn't covered by anything on the page.

Once I had added the masthead I was able to start adding my texts to the areas that I had put grid lines this meant that all my writing would be in structured columns. When the writing was in place I was able to move it around to where I thought that it looked best. I also moved the picture to put more things around the image and to make sure that the models face was the biggest thing on the page. Aswell as the main big image I also inserted another image (of Temi on the left hand side) so that the audience is able to see what else is included inside the magazine.

I made the moto of the magazine company stand out by adding a white box behind the black writing.

Once i had done all this i decided to try different images and made all the writing on the page in capitals so that the writing was bold and could be clearly read on the page. 

After creating and changing things such as the colour and fonts on my front page i chose different images and tried them to see what things looked best. Once i had finished deciding what images and fonts that i liked the most i decided that i wanted (the magazine front cover above) to be my front cover, however i then looked at different ideas that i could do and changed things around once again and created: