Music Magazine Evaluation

Music Magazine Evaluation

My media product challenges other real media products as it offers a new design and interpretation on information, which may offer knowledge that others do not. It utilizes other design techniques from various content from other magazines, such as EMM, NME and Empire, even though these are not the same genre it interprets them to create a new style of design. This new style may attract readers due to its unique design, challenging other magazines. It develops not only itself but other magazines as well, promoting design styles that may inspire new designs and offering a newer, modern magazine. Each new magazine that is developed with its own characteristic, fresh design expands the evolution of print media. The contents page of my magazine uses an uncommon colour scheme, using a dark background with white text, standing out key parts of the text with red. My magazine cover picture on the front cover looks to the right rather then towards the reader, this challenges other forms and conventions, as it is an unusual idea used bringing curiosity to the magazine. A convention from another magazine has been used, the left-third of the EMM front cover has been used and interpreted to fit the style of my magazine. The initial look of the magazine from the front cover is intriguing due to the blank white background. It gives the feeling of a stylish, unique ambiance. The double-page spread uses forms & conventions. There is a half image used next to the text to give a more stylish look, this works with the red 'I' displayed behind the text. The 'I' is the beginning of the stars name and to help show the topic of the article. This design was used from an article on Lady Gaga

My media product is based on a dance & house genre music magazine. It is modern and targeted at a young audience with the age range of 16-26. Being targeted at a young audience the initial design and layout of the magazine is inspired from their stereotypical adolescence lifestyle. The style of the magazine is reflected from this stereotype, giving vitality and excitement through an artistic approach. Using various images of people within the targeted age group and adrenaline-fueled places. These images should suffice as they represent the appropriate behaviour of a young generation, images with the aspects of being dynamic, riotous and adventurous.

The media institution IPC may be interested in my product, as the magazines published by this company are modern and popular, one of the magazines published by this media institution is NME which is one of many popular magazines that is distributed. IPC distributes magazines for a wide variety of lifestyles, however they do not distribute any music magazines to a specific genre. My music magazine genre does not link to NME but it offers an expansion into a new market, which has a large target audience. It goes into detail about a particular area of music that is very popular, expanding the media institution's consumer range and possibly improving cash flow.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

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

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Who would be the audience for your media product?

The audience for my media product would be people within the age range of 16-26. The music magazine is a dance & house music genre. These aspects of music are energetic and party based, which is suitable for the selected audience. They will be interested on the latest, most popular music and any party/festival events taking place throughout the year. The genre of music is not gender specific although males are more likely to buy the magazine then females. This is because men are more interested in the details of events where as women tend to just participate in them.

How did you attract/address your audience?

Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

The front page sub-headings are styled with intriguing font designs, these are used to work with the main image to give an insight on the sort of features and attitude the magazine has. The colour scheme I chose gives the feeling of a stylish, exciting look. The image is of a young person with some anchorage text that is displayed with a unique bold style, explaining what it is, this may attract the chosen audience as the picture relates to their age, intriguing them as to who this someone is, being so young. This may attract readers and the content may intrigue them to read on. On both the front cover and contents page there is an advertisement for competing for an expensive prize, bringing curiosity to readers. MixMag is a popular magazine from my music genre, the initial style of my magazine is based on it, especially the front cover, giving that stylish simplistic look that attracts readers.

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

From the start of the preliminary task to progressing and finalizing my magazine, I feel like I have learnt much about the computer software I have used. From starting off to now I feel I have also gained an artistic perspective through a magazine editor's perspective also, thinking about how the design and layout will be seen as well as how it's designed. Also, debating and considering on what designs would be suitable and attract the targeted audience, what will catch the reader's attention and make them curious. Because of learning about this new broadened view of representation and expanded artistic sense, it has interested me about the design aspect of media and may consider moving further into the media design industry. These skills can benefit in the future for example, giving a presentation, when designing it you can think about how it will look and appeal to you though the perspective of the audience. When designing products etc., the consideration of how ideal the outlook of the design will be.

Throughout the process of making this magazine I have learnt that there is much more to modern technology then realised. The software used in computer systems that are simply sold to the public is more powerful and capable of much more than known. Also, through attempting to create my magazine I have learnt that you need much knowledge on using the I.T. software, knowledge of the functions capable, to be familiar and skillful with the tools, and to have a artistic view. The software iPhoto and Preview on the apple computer system are more useful and capable of more then realised. The pictures I used for my own magazine were altered using these applications, it was through the use of experimenting with the features they offered was that I found they had more to them. When it came to experimenting with font designs and creating the magazine, I used Pages and Microsoft Word. Each one offered many designs and I found that each can design fonts and layouts to a more personalised level for one's self, personally I found that the apple software Pages offered more variety and personalisation techniques. Whether it be an apple system people use or a Microsoft system people use, each one is more capable and more advanced then people know. I think that I've acquired skills on how to use these design software features. How to crop and manipulate images, layout, and text to how I see fit, just like how I've done in my own magazine, cropping and editing pictures used in the contents and double-page spread.