Monday, 14 March 2011
Friday, 4 March 2011
Thursday, 3 March 2011
Graphs and evaluations on questionnaire
I asked this question because I thought it would give me a good idea of why people actually buy a magazine. The results show that 50% of people buy magazines because they like the person on the front, and 50% are interested in the cover stories. This tells me that on my front cover of my magazine I should include a picture of a singer and cover stories of what the magazine is going to include as I know from doing audience research this will attract my target audience.
This graph tells me that 50% of my target audience look for interviews in any magazine that they read. 20% look for stories, 20% look for gossip, 10% look for music and nobody looks for images. This tells me that when making my music magazine I should focus more on the layout and writing in my magazine rather than using lots of images to attract my audience as I know this isn’t what catches there eye. I could include an interview on my double page spread then put gossip on my front cover so my audience will want to open my magazine and read it.I left this question an open question to see the amount of variety I got. My graph shows me that only 30% of my target audience enjoy reading music magazines the most. Whilst the other 70% enjoy reading magazines not related to music. However this tells me the style of magazine people enjoy reading such as the other magazines are to do with celebrity and gossip, therefore in my magazine I could include gossip about a singer which means I am including things people like although it’s a music magazine not an everyday magazine.
This question shows me straight away that 70% of my target audience enjoy reading interviews with famous people the most. Only 30% enjoyed reading stories and nobody liked reading about gossip. Since interviews was the most popular I will include an interview on my double page spread as I know this attracts a wide range of people therefore my magazine would be interesting.
Front covers are a huge part to a music magazine as this is what attracts an audience to read it. This graph shows that 80% of my target audience enjoy images the most on a front cover and this is what makes them want to pick it up. Only 20% thought cover stories attracted them to a front cover, therefore when making my front cover I will focus more on the images rather than the writing and make my front cover more image dominant as I know this is what my target audience liked. Nobody said bright colours attracted them therefore I will make my colours darker and not so bright as I know nobody likes this.This graph clearly shows that my results are 50/50. 50% like the contents page to be blocky style whilst the other 50% like image dominant. This tells me that I can do a bit of both throughout my magazine as I know my target audience like both. I could include more images on one page but make another page blocky to give more variety.
This question tells me a lot as I will be able to find out what type of music genres my target audience enjoy the most. My graph clearly shows that 50% like R&B the most, followed by 30% enjoying Indie music, 10% like Pop and 10% like Rock. This tells me that I should make my music magazine more related to R&B music and maybe add a little bit of Pop as these two genres are similar and I know 60% of my target audience would enjoy this. I do not listen too Indie or Rock myself therefore making this magazine wouldn’t attract me or 40% of my target audience. This graph shows me that 40% of my target audience like Rihanna the most, Rihanna is R&B/Pop therefore this fits well with the type of magazine I want to make. 10% liked Lady gaga which is another R&B/Pop singer. However the other 50% liked Indie bands, this tells me that even if I made my magazine R&B/Pop 50% of my target audience would be interested in reading it.
This question tells me that the most popular colour scheme people liked was black white and purple. 40% liked black white and navy the best and 10% liked black white and grey. This gives me good advice as colour scheme is an important thing to consider when making a music magazine as this is a main element that attracts an audience. The colour schemes I have thought about are all dark colours therefore I would have to make my pictures and other text a bit brighter to attract my target audience rather than making it all dark. Presentation and layout is a main thing to consider when making a music magazine as there is so much to include it needs to be presented well. My graph shows that 40% liked it spread out, 40% liked it organised and 20% liked a messy/wild look. This tells me that when making my magazine, at least 80% want it to look tidy rather than wild and all over. However I will probably make my magazine organised rather than spread out as I think it looks more professional and presentable when it looks tidy.
The image on a front cover of any magazine is essential as it’s what attracts the audience to read it. Therefore asking this question was very important to give me inspiration on what to include on my cover. 80% wanted to see a certain singer on the front, 10% wanted to see a band and the other 10% wanted to see a celebrity. However a celebrity would not appear on the front cover of a music magazine as the main image. Since 80% wanted to see the main singer this would be good to include one main person on the front cover as I could take a variety of different pictures with different angles to give it a different look.A double page spread is an important page to put in a magazine and has to look presentable for someone to read. My graph shows that 70% of my target audience would like to read an interview on a double page spread of a certain artist. 20% said they would want to read about gossip, 10% said they would want.
This question tells me the most popular type of article my target audience would want to read. 50% said they would like to read about celebrity gossip, 30% said they would want to read about new music and the other 20% said they would want to read about new bands. This tells me that for my music magazine I should include an article/interview on celebrity gossip or new music as I know this is going to attract my target audience.
Tuesday, 22 February 2011
XXL magazine analysis
By only having one main image on the front of the XXL magazine it straight away tells the reader about the audience which this magazine is attracting. The image used is very bold and immediately stands out. The image also gives off the dangerous sense by the confident strong stance the character is giving and the way he is dressed in full black gives the feeling of danger and threat. Also the way the character is towering over the buildings make him seem more dominant and serious. The colour scheme used on the front cover is quite plain and simple but the bright red attracts the reader’s eye and gives the sense of blood or danger which relates as well with the large image. By looking at XXL you can straight away tell the target audience and genre of the magazine. It is aimed at older teenagers mainly boys but also some girls interested in R&B/hip hop may enjoy it too. The large title has been put in the top left hand corner of the magazine and it seems quite hidden away from the image over lapping it. This makes the front cover look more image dominant as the image seems the most in control. The title instantly catches the reader’s eye and the way the image overlaps the text a small bit makes the reader look at the image after and know what the magazine is about. The artist name Jay-Z has been written in huge text just below him and is bigger and bolder than all the other text showing that this is what the magazine is all about.
This double page spread features of a stereotypically, male, R&B artist. This is the typical artist which XXL magazine target audience would be interested in. The main image takes up the whole left hand side of the double page spread and it shows the artist dressed casually, also sitting casually smoking a cigarette. This makes the page look very laid back and informal. However this image of Usher fits in well with the stereotype he is portraying. The way he has been positioned with the certain camera angle makes it so you can see his clothing and watch and how he is smoking a cigarette gives off the connotations of wealth. The text next to the artist is in a different font to everything else which attracts the reader’s attention straight to that. The word “GREATEST” stands out straight away which emphasises how important the word is. On the right hand side of the page is an interview with Usher, the whole interview uses lower case letters which makes the interview seem more informal and casual just like the image on the left.
NME magazine analysis
Vibe magazine analysis
The contents page of Vibe seems to crease the same layout as the front cover and also other issues of Vibe magazine. However it has a different colour scheme to the front cover. The whole page is set in black and white but there is a sense of grey/navy too it. The contents page has a blank background with a grey/dull colour too it which gives the sense that the writing and images are more important than colour and isn’t taking away all the focus. The word ‘Contents’ is written on 3 lines creating an unstable sort of look but still look original and new. The list of the features of the magazine have been placed in the bottom right hand corner of the page with page numbers in bold so they can be easily seen but the writing in normal font. The artist who appears on the front and the artist who appears on the contents and double page spread will be similar which links all the pages together well and allows different poses and the pictures too all be different.
The double page spread from Vibe magazine focuses directly on a R&B genre. The colour scheme used throughout the double page spread is quite plain just like the contents page. It uses dull colours in the background and the background images using only black, white and blue. However by just using these dull colours makes the double page spread appeal to both a male and female audience and by doing this can be an advantage on increasing the fan base of the magazine. The girl on the double page spread is wearing an orange/red dress with high heels. This image doesn’t use dull colours however uses the total opposite and uses bright colours compared to the background which suggests the image is more important than everything else. From the artist wearing a colourful dress enables her to stand out the most as well as her name being written in the headline before the text in bright blue so the reader knows straight away who she is. The two pages are different in terms of layout as the first one had 3 columns of lots of text compared to the second page where there is only one column and a small quote since there is a huge establishing shot almost dominating the page.
Q Magazine analysis
The colours used in Q contents page is the same as the front cover. It uses blacks, reds and white to keep it the same and look tidy and not too messy. It has a serious design look to it by the way the writing and pictures have their own section and are spread out neatly. The fonts used on the front cover and contents are the same fonts and are all bold and straight to the point which makes the cover easy and quick to read rather than a funky font which is hard to read. With the target audience being older mature teenagers, the way the fonts and layout looks quite serious it shows a positive representation to the target audience. There is a main picture of a band standing looking at the reader and a smaller one of one person. These images give the reader a visual sense of some of the things that will be found in the magazine. Also there is a list of what's in the magazine which is neatly laid out on the left hand side next to the main image, although there is a lot of writing the way it’s been laid out looks presentable. The way the contents gives lots of detail of the magazine it gives the reader a sense of the value for money that they’ll get from buying the magazine. The whole layout of Q contents page is presented efficiently with the writing being in boxes which is used to guide the reader's eyes around the contents page.
Q magazine attracts an audience that enjoy listening too indie/rock music and the way Q magazine is presented draws in an audience of people that like Indie music well. The colour schemes used in the double page spread are white, blue and black. The white is used for the whole background which helps to make the black and blue writing stand out well on the page. The main large image of a band shows the 4 members walking through water towards the audience with a serious look to their faces. The blue colour used on the double page spread gives the feel it’s used to represent the water since the band are walking through this the colour and image link well. The smaller image on the right hand page of the double page spread is a close up image of a singer. This image stands out a lot by the mise en scene of the photo as its been taken at that exact moment with the snow and rain so this image as well as the other one links well with the colour scheme. The target audience not just for Q magazine but for this certain double page spread is fans of Indie music which can be both male and female that like enjoy indie/rock music. With the two images being one of the main focuses of the page it also represents the target audience they are trying to attract because of the style of clothing they were this also attracts the indie/rock lovers.
Mix Mag music magazine analysis
From the front cover you can tell that Mix Mag is wild and funky which suggests that it is aimed at a young target audience. The magazine has a title of “Mixmag” which suggests the magazine has a “mix” of different things inside it which will question the reader and make them think of the genre of magazine. The title is right at the top in the middle in big bold writing and has a curved font to it which makes it look more girly and interesting rather than blunt and sharp edges to make it seem serious and strong. The colour scheme all throughout the front cover is pinks and black, this makes it seem very girly and sweet targeting a girl audience, however the black font even though there isn’t much, gives a sense of danger and rebellion which makes the magazine seem not all girly like it has a twist to it. The large image is placed bang in the middle of the front cover under the title with the writing surrounding her. The girl has a different type of stance to her; she has her hand on her hip which looks like a typical laid back “bad girl”, this fits in well with the pink and black fonts where it seems girly, but the black seems dangerous. The camera angle is a full body shot right onto the girl so you can see her full outfit and wild style. Her style gives off the sort of “wild” look with her hair and makeup all done so it’s noticeable. All the bracelets on her wrist and her dog in her hand she seems like a typical girly girl which matches the genre of magazine. The main story on this magazine is “Celebrity DJ’s should just be stopped” the image of the girl seems to be there to back up the argument by the way she had earphones around her neck and is standing in front of a set of decks. This front cover fits in well with the rule of thirds as it looks well organised with the writing spread out and the picture placed right in the middle. The magazine clearly states what the genre is with the head title “The world’s biggest dance music and clubbing magazine”. I think this had been placed here as the image, title and colours don’t give off a big feel of what the genre is with the black and pink, wild picture and mixed title. Therefore by having a smaller title above clearly states to the reader what it is they are reading. Mixmag covers all the codes and conventions of a typical “girly” music magazine such as including a main image of a girl, the same colour scheme throughout and smaller pictures in the corner to give more of an insight to the magazine.
The contents page of Mix Mag is very similar to the front cover as it uses the same colour scheme of black and pink but uses white font. Again, using the pink and black put together still makes it look girly but with the black doesn’t make it seem to “girly and perfect”. The title of the page is at the top of the page in the right; this is so the audience can clearly see what it is they are reading. The huge image underneath immediately draws the reader in too look at the image especially with the bright colours and wild look. The image is a medium shot of people dancing in a club, looking down on them with party poppers all around them. This huge image takes up a whole third of the page and is there to highlight one of the cover stories that is mentioned at the right hand side of the page. The writing fits around the big image well as it doesn’t overlap to make it look too over crowded it starts on the left and works its way around the picture. There is a smaller image on the image which follows from the front cover picture and is a similar picture to the front with the same girl but doing a different pose. This tells the audience what page this is on and with it being a big image on the front cover they’ll recognise the image straight away. The style of font on this page is different to the front cover as the front covers font was mostly curved or bubbly to make it seem girly and fun however the font on the contents has more sharper/bold edges which has been done to make it easier to read as the reader will want to check pages therefore making the writing easy to read will help the reader.
The double page spread from Mix Mag is very different front the front page and contents. The colour scheme is totally new colours using blues and yellows immediately attract the reader’s eyes from being so bright. The main story on this page is the main story on the front cover. When the reader looks at this double page spread they will immediately look at the title 'Welcome to Lame Acadamy”. The main title stands out so much because it’s the biggest thing on the page and takes up half of an A4 piece of paper. The background behind the black text is bright yellow which has been used to highlight the page. The yellow background has good use as it gives off different messages. Firstly it shows off the huge title straight away and almost seems as if it’s acting like a sun. This is shown through the way it has been placed in the top right hand corner and is also shaped like an interpretation of how someone would draw a sun. The lighting on the picture seems to be coming from the yellow in the corner looking like a sun shining down creating this affect. The blue and yellow colours have been used to create a different feel to the magazine rather than having the black and pink throughout. This whole double page spread seems completely based on the image of the girl because the picture takes up the whole of the other side of the double page spread and the girl is dressed very glam and by having all the paparazzi surrounding her and being interested in her wanting to take her picture.
Friday, 18 February 2011
Questionnaire
Questionnaire
1. What makes you buy a certain magazine?
- The person on the front
- The cover stories
- The colour scheme
2. What do you look for in a magazine?
- Stories
- Gossip
- Music
- Interviews
- Images
3. Which magazine do you find most enjoyable to read?
4. What types of things do you like reading in magazines?
- Interviews
- Stories
- Gossip
5. What do you like about front covers?
- Lots of images
- Bright colours
- Stories
6, How do you like the layout of contents pages?
- Blocky style
- Image dominant
7. What type of music do you listen too?
- Indie
- R&B
- Pop
- Rock
8. Who is your favourite band/singer?
9. What colour schemes do you find interesting?
- Black, white and purple
- Black, white and grey
- Black white and navy
10. How do you like everything presented?
- Spread out
- Organised
- Messy/Wild look
11. What image would you expect to see on the front of an RNB/Pop magazine?
12. What would you prefer to read about on a double page spread?
- Interview
- Gossip
- Music news
- Article
13. What type of article would you enjoy reading on a double page spread?
- Celebrity gossip
- New music
- New bands
Wednesday, 9 February 2011
My front over and contents page
School Magazine Evaluation
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of meal media products?
In my magazine the codes and conventions I used in my magazine was keeping the same colour scheme throughout my front cover and contents. I used the colours blue and white which are quite simple colours and don’t clash. Using the same colour scheme made my magazine look presentable but not too over the top with colour. I got this inspiration from the style models I looked at in the lesson as they all kept the same colour scheme as well in there front cover and contents. All the magazines I looked at had an image on the front cover which I thought was a huge code and convention to a front cover as it gives the reader a good understanding of what the magazine is about therefore I used my own image on my front cover and contents which showed clearly what my magazine was about. All the style models had a big title at the top or middle of the page which immediately got the readers attention and I got inspiration to do this too by using the schools name at my title in big writing. The rule of thirds was used in most of the magazine covers which made them look organised but still presentable so with my magazine cover and contents I used rule of thirds to organise my writing and pictures.
What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
I had to use Photoshop and a Nikon D3000 SLR camera in order to construct my magazine together. Photoshop was used to create the actual magazine front cover and contents and I used all the appropriate tools to help me create it. I had to learn about all the tools in Photoshop to be able to use it effectively. I also had to use the camera to take my own photos of things I wanted in magazine therefore I had to learn about all the different buttons and settings on the camera in order to take a suitable photo for my magazine. The photo I needed to take was a medium close up of anything I wanted, I used two students from Whitley Bay High School to make my magazine look more realistic and give a clear view of what my magazine was actually about. To make my photo look professional I had to use all the skills I learnt in lessons such as auto focus and zoom to make my photo a medium close up, this took time and patience but it worked effectively in the end.
Tuesday, 1 February 2011
School Magazines and what they include
School magazines and what they include
Fusion
Front page: The front page of “Fusion” is very eye catching with the large picture and big title. The title is placed in the top right corner but spread across the whole of the top and the picture is placed in the centre of the page at the bottom. This magazine fits in well with the rule of thirds where everything looks neat and well placed. The writing follows down from the title which will make the reader instantly read down the magazine to that writing and see what the magazine includes. The front page keeps the same colour scheme throughout it and uses bright colours to attract the reader’s eye, red and white.
Contents page: The text used in the contents page of “Fusion” uses bright colours which immediately draws the reader’s eyes to see what the magazine includes. However it doesn’t keep the same colour scheme as the front page, since it’s the contents page they may want the audience to read it all therefore using bright colours will attract them to read it. The contents page is written in two smaller lists this makes it all straight to the point and it shows that the magazine includes lots of information and the magazine is worth the price paid. The contents page only includes an image of a tape player, by not using a big picture makes the reader want to read the writing more and not be distracted by photos.
Evolve
Front page: Evolves front cover doesn’t include much writing on the front page, mainly because children won’t be interested in lots of writing they will want to see pictures. The writing is centred and most of them follow the rule of thirds aspect which makes the magazine look more organised but still interesting. It follows the same colour scheme throughout it which makes it interesting but not look too over done. There is a big bold title naming the magazine but also has a sub heading of the schools name.
Contents page: The contents in Evolve is similar Fusion contents page in which the writing is set in columns which again is straight to the point and it shows how much information is included. The colour scheme is different to the front page but still uses bold, eye catching colours. This contents page doesn’t include an image, which again like Fusion shows the writing is more important.
Top Terrace
Front page: The front page of “Top Terrace” is bright and eye catching from the title and colour scheme. The images are placed underneath the title to make the cover flow better and you can see the big image straight away. The title on all of the magazines is placed right at the top in a big font, this is done because the reader will begin at the top and work there way down. All the images on the magazine covers are all big and straight to the point. This immediately attracts the audience’s attention and if the photo is interesting it makes them want to instantly look at it.
Contents page: All of the contents pages keep the same colour scheme throughout which makes it look not too over the top but still interesting and easy to read. The contents page is different to others as it doesn’t include as much writing and has more pictures than writing. The images are spread out in different sections of the rule of thirds but they still all fit in well.
Chill
Front Page: Chill has a big title, e.g. “CHILL” which stands for the schools name being Chapel High in Long Lane. The casual language fits in well with the target audience, making children want to read more. The pictures are placed to the right of the page and all the text is on the left. This fits in with the rule of thirds and everything looks neat. The same colour scheme of red and black is used throughout the magazine just like the other magazines, by using the same colours attracts the readers attention by keeping it simple but noticeable.
Contents page: Chill has a picture of children doing an activity which straight away will attract attention to the school by looking at what sort of things they do. In the magazine “Chill” the language is quite casual, since the audience is for a younger age it all fits well for example “What’s Going On?” The contents is given in a long list which makes it all straight to the point and it shows that the magazine includes lots of information.
Front page: Bishop Briggs doesnt include much writing on the front page, mainly because children won’t be interested in lots of writing they will want to see pictures. The two pictures are centred underneath the title which makes the page flow and you can immediately see the image.
Contents page: The contents page on Bishopbriggs Academy is in a long list which is similar to other magazines and again this makes the magazine look like it includes lots of information and the reader will learn a lot. The colour scheme throughout the magazine is kept the same which makes it look more sophisticated rather than bright and colourful which would look too over done.
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