Evaluation: Looking Back At The Preliminary Task, What Do You Feel You Have Learnt In The Progression From It To The Full Product?

Preliminary Task

 

Final Magazine

 

 

  

I have leant a variety of things from technological to theoretical when backtracking to the preliminary task. All pieces of knowledge has accumulated in order to make a superior magazine when compared to the first rough almost concept design for a magazine.

Research and planning was vital in order to produce a magazine that is going to be a hit or success with your demographic as you need to spend time trying to comprehend your demographic, understand what they are interested in, hobbies, class status, age, gender etc. All of these need to be taken into account and can be found out via Quantitative Audience Surveys. Evidence of the necessity of research is shown as the final "Bonafide" magazine when compared to the Preliminary says a lot, when you take a look at the layout, choice of colour and mode of address on the Bonafide magazine you can immediately have a rough estimate in mind who exactly is the target demographic however when looking at the preliminary task the choice of colour is scare and clashing, mode of address is almost confused between three demographics (adults, children and teenagers) and in general makes it harder to guess who the demographic is. I have learnt as a result of this that Research is vital as shown also in the research into existing text. That task taught me how professional and successful magazines are layout, how the mode of address is altered to the demographic, colour choice etc, and as a result of this my magazine emulated and imitated these magazine within the country music genre to create a well thought out and structured magazine. Other tasks made it clearer to me who the demographic was such as the Audience Profile which accumulated all information about the target market into one document, as opposed to just assuming you know who the demographic are as i did in the preliminary.

 

When producing the magazine for the Preliminary I never planned out the stage in which I would construct the  product for example photo shoots, I never created a photo shoot document that directly told me how and where to take photos and risks involved along with equipment used. As a result of this my main central image on the preliminary task had low resolution and poor contrast. However when I planned out a photo shoot with appropriate information this led to better quality pictures. I have learnt form this in particular that planning is a vital factor in constructing a successful magazine.

 

When producing the magazine for the Preliminary I never planned out the stage in which I would construct the  product for example photo shoots, I never created a photo shoot document that directly told me how and where to take photos and risks involved along with equipment used. As a result of this my main central image on the preliminary task had low resolution and poor contrast. However when I planned out a photo shoot with appropriate information this led to better quality pictures. I have learnt form this in particular that planning is a vital factor in constructing a successful magazine.

Rough designs saved huge amounts of time in producing the magazine on Microsoft Publisher as I already had an estimate as to where content would go e.g. Text and masthead whereas with the Preliminary I spent significant amount of time simply re arranging content which wasted time and again taught me the necessity of planning. The templates done in the Qualitative Audience Research Focus Group helped also in swiftly producing the magazine without hassles or time being wasted.

 

 

One of the major pieces of knowledge i value that have been learnt in the process of magazine construction was my Theoretical knowledge of Theories and Ideologies heavily utilised in mainstream magazines in order to make them successful. This varied from Maslow's Hierarchy Of Needs to Laura Mulvey's Male Gaze Theory. My utilisation of this knowledge is showcased on the front covers of the Bonafide magazine and the preliminary magazine. When looking at the Main Central Image of the preliminary task, it is irrelevant as Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs are utilised on successful magazines main central images making them someone to be looked up to or someone inspirational however a student clenching his fist with an angry expression is not exactly inspirational for the Teenagers and Adults even though it may appeal to younger students of the demographic. Then comparing that to the Bonafide main central image shows what I have learnt, the main central image is inspirational to the demographic and has relevance as the model is replicating Johnny Cash and Woody Guthrie who are prominent inspirational musicians who are appreciated by the Country demographic as shown in my Quantitative Audience research. This taught me how to integrate theories into magazine and how they can be used to sell more issues and become a generally more successful and better magazine for the audience to enjoy and gave me a deeper understanding of the purpose and placement of Cover Artist or Main Central Images located on a front cover of a magazine. (Look at images for reference)

 

Finally my technical skills have improved since  constructed my preliminary task. I have learnt to manipulate images to your own preference, add more intricate and complex backgrounds and colours to documents and correct editing of images and text in order to place them correctly on a document. Evidence of this knowledge can be seen when comparing again the Bonafide front cover and the preliminary front cover. The preliminary main central image has a background which has not been edited or manipulated in any way r from giving the image an "Amateur" vibe e.g. the background is still attached to the model photo even thought he white background does not interfere with text it still does not look professional. The compare this to my Bonafide magazine front cover with its main central image and the knowledge i have learnt is shown as I utilised Photoshop to edit and crop out the background of the photo and added hints of extra brightness ad contrast to give the photo a more lively and interesting tone, this results n better more professional looking magazine as i have learnt in the process of this project. (Look at images for reference)

 

In conclusion this project when looking back to the preliminary task has taught me a colossal amount of information from technical to theoretical to practical knowledge which can be applied to other media projects and it is information I value.



 



Evaluation: What Have You Learnt About Technologies From The Process Of Constructing This Product?

CONSTRUCTION OF MAGAZINE:

 

 

 

Firstly the front cover was constructed via adding a masthead, side articles, and other conventions. It was necessary to manipulate text and image to “None” on the image format as when this is not done it overlapped text and pictures. Then after the photo-shoot and successful Photoshop editing around the photo using the magic lasso i placed the main central image onto the front cover.

 

Before images was added I ensured the text and page number were sized correctly and aligned using the “guideline” feature on Microsoft Publisher. This automatically lined up images for me. An editorial was also made using a AutoShape rectangle and highlighted the text white to contrast well. Then I proceeded to add the images on the page ensuring the cover artist was placed properly and not inverted via the “Format Image” function.

 
 

 



Double page spread was made via adding text and the interview with the exclusive article and vital quotes. Text was highlighted to signify different people speaking in the interview via the “Edit text” function on Microsoft publisher.  I made a tombstone or end of article mark via the rectangle tool on auto shapes. Then images were added some were taken in other areas in the O2 arena (by myself) and others again from the photo-shoot, using the same procedure ensuring it was aligned correctly using the guidelines. Fact file was included onto the bottom of the page via the AutoShapes tool as explained earlier. Image anchor was also created via a text box tool on Microsoft Office placed in the bottom right of the image.

 

What I Have Learnt:

I have learnt a significant amount of Technological knowledge whilst in the process of construction for this magazine, some small and big. Without some of these discoveries such as certain editing features on software, some parts of my magazine may not have been able to be produced.

PowerPoint was a major technological knowledge advancement for me as the techniques i discovered whilst using this was interesting and useful for almost any presentation. As i was presenting survey results i noted that the backgrounds did seem very plain to me and i wanted to give the theme of country music and integrate the theme throughout the presentation and that is why i added a background as i learnt wallpapers can be applied to slides or just one. Auto shapes which was prominent on all Microsoft Office applications allowed me to add shapes onto my documents. In some cases the rectangle did not blend well with document's background however this is when i discovered a feature which was used called "fill effects" which allowed me to apply colour well to my documents and still contrast and blend in well.

 

QuestionPro and various other survey sites such as Survey Monkey was heavily useful and provided a massive learning opportunity for myself. Via this software I discovered that not only could i create thousand of types of surveys and questionnaires but produce them in a professional fashion unlike creating a graph or survey from Microsoft Excel which can have many flaws if not done properly, there were a selection of templates for me to utilise and the general discovery of Survey sites like QuestionPro taught me how to get Quantitative accurate information from a selected sample, this can be applied in many areas in Media etc. which is why I value the knowledge I obtained from this application and software whilst in the process of manufacturing my magazine.

 

Web 2.0 significantly opened my eyes to its wide power. Once the questionnaire was made it was a matter of reaching my demographic specifically American Country Listeners which was a struggle however Web 2.0 with its ubiquitous reach to people worldwide helped. Social Media Sites was the tool to reach out to my demographic/sample. Facebook was utilised as I joined countless Country Fan Pages, via this I knew that my respondents were guaranteed to be Country listeners as the general sample area had already been pinpointed for me via the fan page, it was just a matter of finding that page. I realised from this that Web 2.0 can potentially reach out to anybody and I learnt how to reach out to a desired target market. In addition I also utilised internet forums such as "Save Country Music", this had the same benefits as Facebook's country fan pages as I got the desired sample to respond to my questions. Via the forums I learnt forums can hold communities of people with similar interests like Country music as opposed to doing market research and sampling just via Facebook and Twitter etc.

 

 

 

Photoshop taught me that once an image has been taken there are numerous technique to perfect that image whether it be via Hyperrealism or just a simple cropping of an image to fit nicely on a double page spread. An example of the rare but useful utilisations of Photoshop was when I wanted to apply Mise En Scene on my image of my model, I decided that fading the legs and using the eraser tool to give a mystified effect to the silhouette of the image helped.

An example of my utilisation of Photoshop can be seen below via the images where I have cropped out the background of the car park in the original photo and faded the leg outline to give a tranquil "heavenly" or cloudy look. This was a procedure and technique that I did not know before embarking on this project hence showing what I have learnt.

 

 

Finally I learnt the full potential of Digital Cameras as opposed to a phone camera. I discovered that a digital camera wields more higher quality megapixels than the average Smartphone even though the sizes of the two devices told a different story, the images were more crisp and gave models faces in images a defining silhouette. Also I learnt how to integrate good photo shooting techniques when equipped with a digital camera such as taking photos with the photographer's back facing the sun as this avoids faded outlines and model facial features.

In conclusion I have learnt a good deal of useful, practical and interesting knowledge which can be applied both within and outside of Media projects.

 

 



Evaluation: How Did You Attract/Address Your Audience?

I attracted my audience using a variety of differing methods varying from Colours utilised, Language and typography to Design elements and representations.

 

The colours utilised as specified from the start of the project intended not to be childish in the sense that the colours were too bright and vibrant e.g. Pink and Purple as this connotes a younger audience particularly girls, this is unacceptable as my demographic is over 18 and a significant amount middle aged, hence this justified why I selected more darker noire colours to contrast well with the white. Brighter colours have been utilised such as yellow however this is a darker variant with a gold like element to match the guitar. The clothing choice of the model is also a good colour choice as it does not overpower the front however still is given limelight and attention via the matching black and the connotative and iconic themes that are attached to the clothing colour (Johnny Cash aka "Man In Black"

 

Language was a vital factor in my magazine in order to cater to the demographic as it was necessary to make them feel like a community, a close knit group of country enthusiasts and listeners who only they understood the language, this also applies to Maslow's Hierarchy Of Needs as it gives the reader a sense of belonging and love or appreciation. Colloquialisms or Southern American slang was used to cater to the Country demographic, words such as "Y'all" (located in the Editorial to amplify meaning to the reader as they witness the Editor using this language) and "Hankerin" were used (Y'all meaning You All and Hankerin meaning getting hyped or excited). This again makes the listeners feel like a community which is necessary for a magazine to be successful due to further issue sales.

 

The name Bonafide itself is a huge attraction for Country listeners as this is almost a slang type word used in the US mainly meaning "real" or "genuine" and has American 1900s heritage, bearing in mind that the demographic has a significant amount of Americans within, this is a excellent way of attracting the audience.

 

Typography placed a major role in attracting the audience as the masthead "Bonafide" involved a very American heritage like typography with themes of the Wild West in the font itself, this caters to  the demographic and not only catches their eye but again makes them feel like a community as majority of Country listeners are based in the US.

 

 

Design elements were utilised in order to cater to the demographic. Firstly the model for the main central image significantly connoted to major country icons (Johnny Cash & Woody Guthrie) as intended (using the quantitative research questionnaire to my advantage as the sample stated many iconic country stars as their role models). Johnny Cash was connoted to via my main central image dressed in full black, this using semiotics references to the "Man In Black" and is instantly catering and appealing to the demographic. Again only Country listeners will be able to understand the next use of iconography as Woody Guthrie was referenced to also using the text on the guitar "THIS MACHINE KILLS" replicated and emulating the iconic words of "This Machine Kills Fascists" on Mr Guthrie's Guitar. These references and hints to major iconic country artists plays a colossal role in catering to the demographic.

 

Utilising the Quantitative research via the questionnaire i catered to the demographic further, my sample had shown great interest in country stars like "Luke Bryan" and "Taylor Swift". Therefore this justified the use of a band/artists index as the audience can immediately see the artist they called inspirational and role models on the front cover and this not only catches the attention of the demographic but causes them to turn the next page and read on as they have acknowledged the fact the artist is featured by reading the index banner placed on the front cover.

Using the design elements I purposely placed an image of the editor in a chequered shirt and American rancher hat in order to "blend" in with the reader and again make the audience feel like a community.



Evaluation: Who Would Be The Audience For Your Media Product?

Via my Existing Text Research and Quantitative Audience Survey i have managed to obtain vital information to who exactly is my 'ideal reader'. My ideal reader is also explained above as the following will give purpose to the array of images located on the Audience Profile.

 

My 'Ideal Reader' is definitely more than 18 years old, has slightly conservative views, is a practising Christian and holds strong family values and moral codes. His or hers Level of education is high, exceeding a minimum qualification of High School and Sixth Form/College.

 

 Their profession is a working class job with a fair amount of physical labour along with mental tasks equally, and if retired enjoys the fruits of pensions.

 

 In he/she's spare time they enjoy the outdoors and other recreational activities such as fishing, hiking and playing the Guitar and other musical instruments. Most obviously is the interest and preference in Country Music.

 

 This reader prefers to enjoy this genre from the World Wide Web clearly showing they are digitally aware/native.

 

 My reader would also make use of CDs and iTunes in order to access music of their preference. My reader believes that £2.25 is appropriate pricing for a magazine, any higher and it is not economically suitable to the reader.

 

 My reader also finds religious figures as influential such as Jesus, and find Country Stars like Tim McGraw and Taylor Swift also an inspiration as their songs are very meaningful to him/her with tones of selflessness, family, appreciation of life and generally a less materialistic tone than other genres e.g. Rap/Hip Hop.

 

All of these beliefs and views are catered to in the magazine Bonafide (e.g. Jack Jameson Jr's story containing religious views) as this is what the demographic requests and I did my job of catering to the demographic for a audience tailored magazine.

Evaluation: What Kind Of Media Institution Might Distribute Your Media Product And Why?

My answer to this question is in the following link; http://www.slideshare.net/Uzzynator/evauation-what-kind-of-media-institution-might-distribute-your-media-product-and-why?utm_source=slideshow02&utm_medium=ssemail&utm_campaign=share_slideshow

Evaluation: How Does Your Media Product Represent Particular Social Groups?

 Firstly stereotypes were one of the most powerful forms of representation and the most evident major stereotype has been reinforced via my usage of cowboy/American rancher hats on my model for the photo shoots for Jack Jameson Jr. This was even included on the Editorial as the editorial wore a rancher hat with a chequered shirt clearly reinforcing the dominant dress code seen in the media and society. When looking at other magazines outside of the demographic then looking at country magazines like Country Weekly, it is clear who I am trying to represent and which music demographic I am appealing and catering to.

 

 

Typical example of Southern Country Attire, then looking  at the editorial it shows I am replicating the clothing to represent social groups in a Southern American way.

Comparison between NME and Country Weekly. The clothing is very different as the Country magazines represent social groups in Southern American Cultural way with chequered shirts and hats as opposed to NME more urban less rural attire and clothing choice. When looking at the Bonafide fictional artist/model it imitates the in which country magazines represent their social group/demographic.

 

It can be said that I reinforced the dominant hegemonic value that Country folk are illiterate(majority) via the excessive use of country slang used by my main cover artist Jack Jameson Jr in the double page spread articles.

Another reinforced dominant value is the fact that country folk are heavy drinkers and this was applied in my main cover artist’s article as his story involved his alcoholism and his burden of drinking problems.

My use of country slang/colloquialisms is based upon the Southern American stereotyped use of language as I utilised words such as “Y’all” which is an abbreviated version of hey you all. Many other usage of slang is mentioned majority of which is located on the double page spread.

Via my camerawork I used high angle shots of the main cover artists to signify his weakness to alcohol this again rubs his problems to the Country folk who are the social group catered to.

Via mise en scene in my photos In model photo-shoot I have created a representation of country folk and rural area residents as I have utilised semiotics and inter contextual references. Firstly in my Jack Jameson Jr photo I have purposely made the model wear black as this using semiotics connotes to the “Man In Black” Johnny cash and everything that he stands for is being applied and rubbed onto the social group that I focus on which is Country residents living in rural areas. Same also applied via my uses of iconography as my model wielded a guitar that stated the words “ This Machine Kills”, this is a inter contextual reference to Woody Guthrie and all of his ideologies and everything he stood for is rubbed on my demographic representing them in a particular way of the country artists referenced to.

 

Replication of Woody's Guthrie's guitar.

Johnny Cash the "Man In Black" is very similar to my Main Central Image as I intended, this was necessary in order to cater to the demographic. This affects how I represent social groups as his ideals and beliefs are passed onto Bonafide readers who are mainly American this however is justified as artists like Johnny Cash were prominent in my Quantitative Research in the "Who Are Your Role Models?" question.

 

I have broken a major dominant value that Southern Americans or Country Folk living in any rural area are not up to date with modern proliferated technology and via my usage of Web 2.0 for connecting with Bonafide outside of the magazine like on Facebook and Twitter, I have broken this attitude and view of them making them be seen and represented as digitally native. I even gave the artists YouTube channel to watch and listen to his music. This can be seen in the images below as the website links were frequently placed on pages much like Country Weekly and NME and other major magazines in order to make the company and magazine successful.

 

 



Evaluation: In What Ways Does Your Media Product Use, Develop Or Challenge Form and Conventions Of Real Media Product?

In my country magazine “Bonafide” I followed a majority of the codes & conventions typical of that of the major magazines within the industry.  Evidence of this is explained in the following. Most obviously the usual features have been utilised such as a front cover and masthead etc however  however more notable are subtle features like a Super Imposed Main Central Image which is a conventions of making the main central image to overlap the masthead giving a sense of high importance.                              

Super Imposed Main Central Image.

 

 

I have also utilised social media which is expected of in the magazine industry even in the country demographic to have in order for a magazine to be successful, utilising Web 2.0 the reader can engage with “Bonafide” outside of the magazine using proliferated hardware and apps etc.

Also rather than using a full stop for a ending sentence to an article I followed the codes and convention of the major magazines and used a tombstone or ending of article proof mark, this tells the reader the articles has come to a conclusion via a company logo or a Black Square as i have done so. (This technique is evident in major magazines such as the NME as seen in my exosting research of magazines)



 



In order to make the demographic feel part of a community or a club whom only ‘listeners’ will be able to understand and comprehend I utilised colloquialism or slang related to my demographic. This information was found during my demographic research area of the task. I utilised a slang term in my double page spread in two articles; the interview and fact file. For example I wrote in the text for the editorial “Y’all” this is a abbreviated or shortened term for “you all” utilised in America particularly the South in which country music is heavily listened to and produced along with major Record Labels are stationed from. This is following a convention from major magazines as they utilise colloquialisms to cater to their audiences and demographics also e.g. using words like "Sick" in a rap magazine such as The Source. The editorial shows some of the slang language used.

 

Also I have utilised a band or artist index which is a modern developing convention used by major well known magazines such as the NME. It showcases the artists featured within the magazine to attract attention using major artists as a selling point such as Country Superstar "Taylor Swift" who has reached out to a colossal amount of music listeners outside of the Country demographic such as Pop and Dubstep listeners. By using ubiquitous Artists who cater to more than one demographic and is placed on your magazine banner on the front page, the magazine reaches out to thousands of more potential subscribers and frequent purchasers of your magazine.

 

However I have broken some conventions both within the major magazine industry and the country music demographic magazines. Firstly I have used a unusual un-formulaic masthead which is not typical of the magazine industry. It is a wooden signage masthead with the text “Bonafide”.

 

Also I utilised iconography which is a convention, the iconography used is the wooden banner symbolising the Wild West and the country music demographic Wild West Heritage staying loyal to its roots. Also a community of country listeners again is being catered to via the use of the word “ Bonafide” this means genuine or real which is used majority of the time by Americans and only the Country listeners will identify this colloquialism making them feel like a close knit society of country music listeners which is vital for a successful magazine.

Another breaking of the conventions this time is within the demographics’ magazines itself as via the screen print of the magazine cover of ‘Country Weekly’ and Bonafide it is easily notable that I have avoided making my magazine cluttered but still added many side articles to give a packed full of content feeling to the cover. ‘Country Weekly’ has more than 3 images on the cover whereas mine only has one in comparison which is the main central image.

 

 

 

Another point to mention is the fact that I abided by the use of another convention which is the use of Maslow’s Hierarchy Of Needs. My main central image features a fictional artist with the stage name Jack Jameson Jr. A segment of Maslow's hierarchy of needs is called "Self Actualisation" which is a human desire to reach your optimum potential. Though actually achieving this is nearly impossible my Main Central Image emulates exactly that as he is an inspiration to middle aged country listeners (majority of country listeners middle aged via my research- Country Questionnaires) as the main article of the magazine states, He was an Alcoholic, his lifestyle had a huge negative impact on those around him if it be family or friends etc however he defeated the odds and is now a highly acclaimed Country Superstar. As you can tell this is a "Redemption" type of article and is inspiring (particularly to Country listeners/demographic) as it involves religion heavily and religion and faith with some aspects of Conservative views is present in  the Country demographic. Via the utilisation of a "Redemption" type fictional artist I have successfully used the theory (Maslow's) and catered to the country demographic simultaneously. My main central image can be seen below.

 

Yet another convention followed is the appliance of Mise En Scene in photos and images which are utilised in magazines. Mise En Scene is "everything on scene" and this reveals subtle and obvious elements of the photo which can connote, symbolise and use iconography to reveal stories and hidden meaning within that one image. My main central image utilises heavy usage of Mise En Scene which cater and appeal to the country demographic, as you can see the model above is wearing black clothes which connotes to Johnny Cash using semiotics and symbolisation as Johnny Cash is a well known American songwriter and artist who performed Rockabilly and various other forms of music genres which reach out to the country demographic. He was known as the "Man In Black", this is instantly recognisable via his clothing connoting that.

 Another piece of Mise En Scene utilised is the Artist's acoustic guitar stating "This Machine Kills", using iconography and semiotics this guitar is replicating Woody Guthrie's guitar that stated "This Machine Kills Fascists", he was a famous country artist who is immediately recognisable by Country demographic and hence makes the readers feel like a community of country enthusiasts with specific content tailored for them, this also gives a sense of belonging and love which can be linked to Maslow's Theory. The fictional artist even talks to the readers who do not recognise the icon he is trying to replicate as a tribute, via this the magazine caters to a much older audience of country listeners and blends it together with the modern country listening audience and using the Juxtaposition of these two elements the magazine has brought an old icon into a modern context.

Another piece of Mise En Scene utilised is my image of the fictional artist sitting down, tilting his head toward the ground and Hypereality utilised also to fade the legs and give a sense of victory or emerged from the darkness type feel (all of those photos can be located in the Double Page Spread sections of the Bonafide magazine) ( Hypereality catering to yet another convention used to perfect Humans in a fictional way with almost impossible human aspects like the "perfect body" with no visible flaws or seams, found in majority of front cover main central images within the magazine industry). Sitting down with a high angle shot using camera techniques tells the reader this man was once weak and is humbled, head tilted down shows a element of shame in his persona for his acts in his "dark age" of the man's past, finally the low angle shots show dominance and power clearly suggesting this man is successful and has superiority over his drinking problem adding to the inspirational and redemption themed article atmosphere. Via the images below it is clear who I am  trying to replicate in order to make my fictional artist appeal and cater to the country music demographic.



 



 

It can be argued that "Bonafide" magazine is formulaic in its use of codes and conventions within the magazine industry however within the country demographic it is abstract and a new interesting form for the listeners to enjoy. It has codified content that has been pre determined to cater and appeal to the Country demographic varying from via language, use of colloquialisms specific to the demographic and imagery all the way to Mise En Scene and Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.