Use, Develop, Challenge Conventions of Real Media Products

What I Have Learned

From completing this preliminary task I have learned a variety of things.

For example I learned how to use a Canon DSLR camera that I used to take my picture for my front page. Before I started this task I wasn't sure how to operate the features on the camera such as the manual and auto focus. I learned how to put this is to play when taking photos. Another thing I learned about the camera is how to use it correctly on a steady cam to allow for a smooth movement.

Another thing I learned about different technologies was how to use this website Prezi. Before this evaluation I had never presented anything on here and now I have learned how to correctly insert things such as photos and symbols along with being able to present it professionally.

How Did I Attract My Audience

I attracted my audience through the use of the main image. The main image is of a 17 year old boy, so therefore the target audience will notice the image and see that the person is of similar age to them and know the magazine has some relevance to them.

I also attracted my target audience through the use of the iPad giveaway puff. This will attract the target audience as it stands out on page and will be easily noticed. Also the fact the giveaway is of an iPad which are very popular amongst most age ranges, the target audience would be very interested in trying to win.

The text used is a digital type font that looks very modern and attractive and it also stands out well on the page. This attracts the target audience as it is a modern text that allows the 16-18 age group to relate better than an old school type font would. This is because it fits in with a style of their generation.

The use of the social media logos and links attracts the target audience too. This is because social media is a very popular trend amongst the majority of people and especially teenagers. It will attract the target audience to magazines cross media to allow them to find out more about the magazine on different platforms.

Representation Of Groups

My magazine represents college students because the magazine is about college and how to deal with college and get tips. It represents college students as it uses a college student, age 17, on the main image of the front cover.

It also represents boys within college as the main image is of a boy and the image shows what college boys are like when it comes to their sense of style and fashion of hair and clothes and also their confidence as this image shows some boys may be very confident as he got his picture took to be on the front of a magazine.

What Media Institution Would Distribute My Product

Audience Of Your Magazine

The kind of media institution that would distribute my product would be a school or college.

This is because the magazine is college specific and has a very niche audience so it would do best being sold within a school or college only to people that the magazine is aimed at which is 16-18 year old students.

Because if it was on sale on a more mass scale in supermarkets and post offices it wouldn't produce as much sales. This is because it would be on sale alongside many over types of magazines and the public may oversee this college specific magazine and go for a more interesting magazine such as sports or music as they're there available to them.

But if the magazine was distributed only by a college, the target audience wouldn't have an option to pick other types of magazines, so this magazine would be the one that catches their eye.

The target audience of my magazine is 16-18 year old both male and female that are in college or looking to go to college. This is because the magazine will include specific articles related to college life, such how to deal with college or how to get involved with more social things around college. The contents of the magazine would only be useful to this group of people as they are within the age range that are in college so the magazine would attract them as it only applies to them . It would be no good if the target audience of a college magazine was 35 year old males as they are well passed college and wouldn't be interested in buying magazines related to college, they would be more interested in possibly sports or cars.

Use, Develop, Challenge Conventions of Real Media Products

My magazine uses conventions of real media product as it includes several different aspects that real media products include.

For example my magazine contains a large masthead that catches the eye of the public and makes it stand out on sale.

Another thing is the sell lines and the puff. These 2 things also help attract the target audience as the public will want to know what is within the magazine and these 2 things will let them know what is in the magazine just by looking at the front. The giveaway will attract people as they will notice they have the chance to win something.

Along with these it has a large main image that covers the page that will stand out to the public as it has clear colors so will catch the eye of the public.

Finally it has a barcode with issue number, price and date. These all help the target audience know about the magazine, how recent it is and how much it is.

These are all common conventions on real magazines so it shows the clearly what the product is meant to be, which is a magazine.

Preliminary Magazine

The contents follows real life media conventions to a certain extent. This is because it includes the majority of what a contents should include.

For example it includes the word 'contents' that simply shows the reader clearly what that page is, which is what is within the magazine.

However it challenges the conventions of real life media products as it doesn't include an image which most magazines would. The image is to make the page look more attracting and aesthetically pleasing for the viewer. It will also give them more in-depth knowledge in to what the article is about as some people may learn more through seeing than reading. This would also help attract a wider range of audiences.

It also includes page numbers with the title of the article that is on that page. This allows the reader to gain easy access to the article that they want to read without having to go guessing to find what they want.

Evaluation