DRAFT 7. Looking back at your preliminary task (the continuity editing task), what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

In the progression from my preliminary task to my final task, first of all i learnt about the 3 colour scheme and the rule of thirds. When I did my preliminary, I didn't really have much of an idea of the three colour scheme, or the rule of thirds. As I progressed into my final product, I picked up the skills with help from my teachers.
Secondly, from my cover to contents, there wasn't really a consistent colour scheme or layout. Although my cover does show some elements of a professional magazine, such as the large masthead and what looks like some rules of thirds which I didn't notice at the time, there are too many fonts so it looks a bit untidy, and my cover lines are too high and there is too much dead space around the masthead and at the bottom of the magazine.
On the contents page, I felt that the numbers running down the corridor was an effective idea as it would look simple, looking at it I now feel that it looks untidy as the numbers aren't really in line with the wall  and the alternating pattern of colours is lost halfway down the page. also, the lighting is too bright for the image, the image is pixellated and it isn't symmetrical.
Looking at my coursework magazine, there is much less dead space on my  pages and my contents has a lot more structure. I have learnt how to use Photoshop to its full effect, and cut down on the number of fonts that I have used. Looking at them together, I feel that I have drastically improved on style as I have learnt more about magazine layouts, as I did my prelim before any of my research and planning. the masthead is in a more eye catching position and not as over the top as my prelim. I have changed from a mid shot to a closeup for my models as the eyes attract attention to the artist and the cover lines below, which it didn't before as they were too high up with no main cover line.

DRAFT 6. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Photoshop CS6
I learnt quite a lot about using this program throughout the course. Although I had a little experience of it from doing GCSE Art, I haven't used it on as much of a scale as this. I have been able to remove red eye using the painter tool, cutting out the image using the magic eraser by adjusting the tolerance, lower means not as much cut out but more accurate, and high tolerance for larger areas to be cut out. That way you can erase the background of the image (layer) without erasing the rest of the image.  I can also move the text around

Camera (Kodak EasyShare C143)

I used this to take my images with. It has 12 megapixels which is quite sharp and provided clear images. I didn't learn as much from doing this as I have already had experience with using it. 

Laptop/School computers

I used the school computers and my Compaq laptop to do my work on. I didn't really learn how to use these as I have already learnt how to use it. It has been my basis for learning about a lot of the tools used for creating my magazine. I used it for my research and planning, and creating the magazine itself. .
Memory Stick
I used this to carry my work on between computers. I didn't learn anything from doing this as I use memory sticks a lot.
GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program ) 
I used this software to do my draft. Whilst I have used this i have learnt that it is not a good piece of software for major projects as you cannot move the layers and it is difficult to put text in. Photoshop is better.
Blogger
this has been used to document all of my work on this magazine project. I have learnt how to use this website as I have never had a blog before doing Media AS. I have also learnt that it is easier to hand in without having to print all of my work off. It is easier to store my work on as well.
Animoto
I used this for my 25 word pitch. I learnt that it is really easy to use but it doesn't allow a lot of time to present it, only having 30 seconds to present it in.
Google Chrome 
I had no experience of using Chrome before this project. I learnt that it is a lot faster than Internet esplorer and easier to navigate. I now use Chrome as a browser as it doesn't freeze as much.

DRAFT 5. How did you attract/address your audience?

First of all I interacted with my audience by advertising Facebook and Twitter pages in my magazine so readers can interact with the magazine online. 

Secondly, the Masthead on the front cover has a white font on a black background to make it stand out due to the high contrast. 

The black background in itself attracts the audience because it is unlike magazines that you see which have a white background. It stands out to the audience as it is out of the ordinary.

On the contents page, I have made the artist the focus by putting a large white reference to her on the black background of the image to draw the readers eye to it. 

Another large way of interacting with the reader is to have an editors paragraph to put his point across and tell the reader about the goings on and making of the magazine to keep the reader engaged with the magazine and to give them some humour which is attractive to most people. 

Another way of engaging the reader is to use pull lines that are witty with a lot of personality in them. this will intrigue the reader into reading the article to see what it is about, and to learn more about their favourite artists. 

DRAFT 4. Who would be the audience for your media product?

Favourite bands/artists - Muse, MCR, You Me at Six, Bloc Party, Florence and the Machine, Ellie Goulding, Lana Del Rey, Paramore, Linkin Park e.t.c
TV shows - Cartoons, Sitcoms like Friends
Shops: Converse, Vans, New look, Topshop, High street shops.
They would read my magazine as they would like to read about their favourite artists as listed above in a magazine so it would appeal to them that way.

DRAFT 3. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

I feel that a distribution company advertises and distributes the magazines to the different shops

"Bauer Media Group is a magazine publishing company who have published magazines such as Kerrang! and Q magazine. They also have a 50% stake in the British Television company Box television who produce these music channels: 4 Music, The Box, Heat, Kerrang!, Kiss, Magic and Smash Hits.
I feel that Bauer Media Group will fit the genre of my magazine because it publishes a well known indie (Q) magazine and a successful rock magazine (Kerrang!). they also partially own a company that produces several music channels, one of them being Kerrang!. They have experience with both indie and rock magazines and so will provide the best experience for my magazine.
My magazine will be weekly as most of their magazines are weeklies. They will know how to tailor my indie rock magazine to its audience."

^^ this is taken from my research and planning page 

The distribution company for Bauer Media Group is Bauer Vertriebs KG so I feel that these would be the ideal distributor for my magazine as they are a subsidiary of Bauer so they will know how to advertise my weekly magazine. 

DRAFT 2. How does your media product represent particular social groups ?

My magazine represents indie fans, such as indie scenesters as the artists hair has a boho edge that is often used with indie artists. they try and create an image that is distinctive to themselves. 

my magazine represents a rock audience in the sense that the background throughout my magazine is black which is often a colour stereotypically associated with rock. Also the leather jacket is an example of black. 

All of the artists are similar in the fact that they have a distinctive feature in their hairstyle or outfits, for example Florences hair or Avrils outfit. the main difference on mine to the others is a background of the cover. Mine was taken in the dark to be out of the ordinary which is what indie scenesters like to do. 

DRAFT 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? (i.e. of music magazines)

The title of my magazine is called 'Breakout' in which I feel the indie rock genre represents as most of them appear to break out of nowhere to create great hits which are very popular with music listeners. it also represents that you don't really see many indie rock artists in the UK charts at all nowadays so maybe they intend to break into the charts.

I have used a kind of broken font to show the rock side of the magazine. It represents that the music is loud and broken. this challenges the fonts of indie rock magazines like Q who use bolder more monochrome fonts to appeal to my audience. this masthead was inspired by Kerrang! magazine. an exclamation mark is also used just like Kerrang! in order to add to the statement of the magazine.

I kept the Graphology and Layout simple and based on other magazines in order to portray a style similar to currently used indie rock magazines such as Kerrang!, Q and NME in order to portray the information in a professional way. This would maintain the attention on the artists and features in the magazine. I maintained the same colour schemes throughout the magazine to make it consistent like other magazines, but challenged these things by using a black background on the cover and contents to explore a darker side.

I dressed my model in an outfit that represented the aspects of both rock and indie. the outfit itself was more rock based with a leather jacket and dark jeans, whereas the hair was more indie themed, with a boho themed plait on the underside of her hair that was visible in the photos. Boho is often associated with indie music.
I stuck to natural poses and angles for my model following feedback that my photos were awkward and indie rock kind of poses are natural anyway.

I based my magazine on a mixture of magazines, Kerrang!, Q and NME in order to show elements of indie and rock magazines. 

The colour scheme is the typical for an indie rock magazine, black, red and white.  

Final Cover, Contents and Double Page Spread

Pages so far

Improvements that I have made following my feedback

I have taken a large selection of new photos for my magazine following feedback that my model looked awkward and unhappy in my previous photos, and the lighting was too dull. I decided to take pictures in the dark so the flash on the camera would light my model well, and it is easier than using camera equipment. my model was a lot happier in the photos which will benefit as the musician would look like they are more confident which is important as a musician. 

I have also removed the strokes as they are not a british band. 

Cover

I have removed banners following the fact that feedback explained that it didn't work very well 

I have changed from a mid shot to a closeup as inspired by the Florence NME cover that I analysed earlier in the topic in my Research and Planning. I was advised to take inspiration from a cover page. I feel that this has benefited my cover page quite a lot as it has more of a structure and less dead space. 

I have cleared the instrument section as it does not make sense according to the music magazine. it is about the musicians themselves, the reader would not care about the instruments. 

I've also changed the tagline to one with more personality as the other one was not as individual and was too 'soft'. 

In a nutshell, I have redesigned the whole cover of the magazine to make it look more professional. 

Made the Barcode smaller. 

Contents

Again, I have taken inspiration from another magazine, this kerrang contents page. I feel that this was more professional looking than the draft page that i did which had no structure, the font was too large and messy. 

inspiration picture: 

Spread

I have redesigned the whole page here as well. 

I have taken extra care on the margins on this page as advised by my teachers. I have also created a fold in the page that wasn't there before.
I have also made 3 complete columns so there is no dead space.
inspiration:

spread progress

spread progress

Progress - Contents and cover!

contents page progress

New Photos