Blog 10 - Feedback.

I set up an interview and asked many different people to complete the questionaire.

I first interviewed Kayleigh Sell.

My questions in bold. The Interviewee is in normal font.

Front page;

My magazine is targetted to 12-16 year olds, do you think that the target audience is right? Yes.

Why? Because the magazine talks about what kids aged 12-16 are into. Also, its bright, colourful and attractive.

Do you think it appeals to teenage girls? Yes.

Why? Because it holds things which teenage girls look at.

Which working class to you think i should have put it in? (lower, middle, higher) Middle classed.

Why? No comment.

What do you like about it? (positive feedback) Its attractive. Attracts my attention. The theme is entertaining. Interesting subjects are discussed. Pictures are good quality and good use of attractive people which fit well for the genre. The layout is crowded, which makes it interesting and able to appeal to the audience.

What do you think i should improve? Include programme actors which are popular amongst teenagers. Example; programmes like torchwood, glee etc. Instead of just musicians.

Any other comments? No.

Contents page;

My magazine is targetted to 12-16 year olds, by looking at this contents page, do you think that the target audience is right? Yes.

Why? Because of the colours used and the stories involving stuff teenagers are interested in.

Do you think it appeals to teenage girls? Yes.

Why? Because it talks about boys and romance.

Which working class do you think i should have placed it in? (lower, middle, higher) by just looking at the contents page? Middle.

Why? No comment.

What do you like about it? The colours, the layout, the fonts used and the information that it holds.

What do you think i should improve? Include more pictures.

Any other comments? No.

Double page spread;

My magazine is targetted to 12-16 year olds, do you think the target audience is right by the double page spread? Yes.

Why? Because of the colours, the layout, and the fonts used. These are what appeal to the audience the most.

Do you think it appeals to teenage girls? Yes.

Why? Because the image is off an attractive male stood looking straight at the camera with a cheeky grin which attracts the attention of females. Also, the main colour in this double page is pink. Which is a girly colour.

Which working class do you think i should have put it in? by looking at the double page spread? (lower, middle or higher) Middle.

Why? No comment.

What do you like about the double page spread? (positive feedback) The layout, the image, the interview holds lots of information and the fonts used. Especially the title because it stands out and attracts the attention of those reading it.

What do you think i should improve? I dont feel as though there is anything to improve. This is what you'd usually see in a magazine. Although i feel as though you could include more quotations around the page.

Any other comments? No.

Next interview - Sebastian Gladwish.

Front page;

My magazine is targetted to 12-16 year olds, do you think that the target audience is right? Yes.

Why? Very colourful. Eyecatching and lot of things on it.

Do you think it appeals to teenage girls? Yes.

Why? Lighter colours are used like light pink, yellow and turquoise. Girly colours.

Which working class to you think i should have placed it in? Either lower or middle.

Why? Because its not formal or posh.

What do you like about it? Easy to read, not an essay. Colours and shapes really catch my eye.

What do you think i could improve? Instead of a solid background, have a more shapey one. Maybe more detail to the company, for example; a phone number to make it look more proffessional.

Any other comments? Nope, apart from you did a good job.

Contents page;

My magazine is targetted to 12-16 year olds, by this contents page, do you think the target audience is right? Yes.

Why? Includes bright colours and an arty title.

Do you think it appeals to teenage girls? Yes.

Why? Contents is very girly with pink colours.

Which working class to you think i should have put it in by looking only at the contents page? Lower or middle class.

Why? Because its informal.

What do you like about it? I like the way its layed out with the contents to the right and the information clear to the left with the details bottom left.

What do you think i should improve? To improve it should have a more bolder font on the contents to make them really stand out.

Any other comments? No.

Double page spread;

My magazine is targetted to 12-16 year olds, just by looking at the double page spread, do you feel as though the target audience is right? Yes.

Why? Because its bold. The font stands out. The interview is easy to read and is clear. Good use of shapes.

Do you think it appeals to girls? Yes.

Why? Because its mainly pink. Which is the main girly colour.

Which working class do you think it should have been put in with just seeing the double page spread? Middle class.

Why? Its not formal and its not posh.

What do you like about it? Good use of colour. Bold fonts which stand out. Good use of information. I like the competition box bottom left of the first page, makes it seem a more realistic pop magazine double page spread.

What do you think i should improve? Include more detail.

Any other comments? Nope.

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The images attached to this blog is a powerpoint of feedback comments in which I recieved from facebook. I have screencapped the powerpoint slides in order to paste them onto this blog. Recieving feedback from those who are signed up to facebook. These comments giving positive and negative feedback which is needed to help me in order to make the magazine better. Just like other magazines which are sold in stores. Without critism, they wouldn't know what to improve, so to recieve this is good.

I am aware that powerpoints are able to upload to blogs but unfortunately, I have attempted to upload my powerpoint but it is refusing to upload.

Blog 9 - Evaluation of the finished magazine.

Throughout this project we were building up by analysing and gathering information to create our final magazine. We built up all of this beforehand so that it would help us complete our final project. Drawing flatplans, examining fonts and analysing magazines etc really helped me out for my final piece. This was because it got me ready beforehand which would help me alot for working with the software and knowing what to create.

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

Front page;
My magazine relates to other magazines. This was due to analysing real magazines beforehand. The masthead (title) of my magazine is similiar to the mastheads on proffessional magazines. The size and position mainly which appeal to the target audience. Also, i feel as though the information on the front page has the similiar amount as the other magazines. Many pop magazines hold a vast amount of stuff on the front pages. This is to appeal more to the younger audience which they are targetting it too.

The colours on my front page are quite similiar to the colours you are expected to see but they are significantly different in the tone of the colour. This allowing the magazine to appeal more than the other magazines in a newsagents. Also, i would say theres more shapes on my front page than on a proffessional magazine. This appealing more as it makes it more interesting.

Contents page.
I feel as though this page is different to other magazine contents pages. To be honest, compared to other pop magazines, i could have included more pictures and more shapes etc. Afterall it would appeal more to the target audience as the shapes and pictures would catch there eye. I reckon the headlines of the stories the magazine contains challenges other magazines because it holds more stories in unlike other magazines. They'd prefer this magazine which has alot more in. Also the title font would appeal to the audience. Its stylish and attractive. This usually being quite rare in contents pages. Usually you would only see a bold black font.

Double page spread.
I would say that this double page spread is quite similiar to many proffessional magazines. Mainly the layout and what it holds. Example; my double page spread can be compared to the double page spread i analysed on the previous blog. This double page being similiar by the interview layout and the box in the corner advertising a competition.

My double page spread is different to pop magazines because i would say my double page spread uses different colours to other magazines. Not usually would you see a beige background on the image. Usually it would be a colourful colour or a white. I reckon mine may appeal more to the audience because it is different.

How does your media product represent particulur social groups?

The language i have used on my magazine has been informal. The reason for this is because this is the language which appeals more to the target audience. Its understandable and clear to them. It also captures the audiences eye.

The gender for this magazine is clearly directed to females. The colours used, the stories it involves, the images of attractive males and the shapes. These are what appeal most to teenage girls. Something which they can gossip about.

The targetted age for this magazine are 12-16 years old. This is targetted to teenagers. The reason for this is the layout and the language used. It also includes alot of information on teenage interests.

The nationality which i have selected for this magazine is the British. I chose this because its the right language and it can be sold in Britain. Rather than anywhere else.

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

I reckon the shops which would stock my magazine would be local stores. Example; WHSmith. Sainsburys. Local shops etc. This is because it will catch the attention of many people who are looking for a magazine. I reckon my magazine will appeal to the audience. Its bright, its colourful and is attractive. I reckon these shops would stock it in because it attracts the eye of the audience which means if it sells, then they get a percentage of the profit recieved.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

The audience which is targetted to my magazine are middle - classed teenage girls. The age being 12-16 year olds. The targetted gender is females.

The age range ive targetted my magazine too would be to children and young teenagers. This is because it holds music that they like and the font and colour used on it, also expresses to the age range i have targetted it too. The use of font can make a lot of difference to a front page. Whether its going to appeal to the audience which you are targetting it too. Example; for the younger generation, it should be colourful and show excitement. Otherwise there not going to be interested.

The class that i have targetted my magazine to would be middle classed. The price being £2.10.

The magazine is British. It will be sold in Britain.

Tha language is informal, which appeals to the audience i am targetting it too. It holds easy san serif writing, so youngsters are able to read it. It also includes bubble writing which attracts to youngsters, who like that sort of writing.

How did you attract/address your audience?

I feel as though i attract the audience by everything i have placed on my front cover.

Images; I feel as though the images are clear, big and stand out to the audience. They hold facial expressions which are mainly smiles, which attracts the younger generation more. Also, there being plenty of pictures on the front page, makes it more exciting for the target audience.

Language; Language used attracts the attention of the target audience because its informal. It headlines 'Fun' stories.

Colours and shapes; These will instantly appeal to the audience. They're bright, colourful and very attractive. Something the audience i have targetted my audience too admire.

Layout; The layout i reckon on my front page is set out in a fashion which will attract the attention of the audience. This is because its set out neatly but holds alot of stuff which the younger generation love.

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

Using the software was quite easy to use after spending the preliminary task learning about the software we were to use. Although i did find a few things a struggle. For example; i found the creation of shapes quite difficult. To create the stars, i had to past a many sided shape and then move the edges that to form a star. Also, with my first flat plan, i originally had two images as the main image on the page. These two images would be divided diagonally. The top image being a completely different photo to the bottom one. Unfortunatley when trying this, i found it very difficult and ended up not being able to do it. So i created a new flat plan.

I reckon the things i would improve on my magazine if i knew how to use the software better would be;

- Cutting images; i would have made sure that the images were cut a little better to what they are.
- Layout; I reckon if i knew how to use the software, then my first flat plan would have gone to plan. It would have been layed out with two main images which would attract more to the target audience.
- Better use of language; I reckon that i could have used more 'rhythm' in my headlines. For instant, catchy lines like '43 snogs and one broken heart.' If these sort of lines were to be used on my front page then i reckon it would appeal more to the audience.

Blog 8 - Planning and evaluation of the article.

The chosen genre i have chosen to analyse is Lifestyle. The two magazines i have chosen for this particuluar subject is 'Take a break' and 'Fabulous'.

Take a break is a magazine which mainly looks into real life stories (discusses and shares information about the audience.)

Fabulous is a magazine which holds lifestyle and celebrity gossip. As it saids on the front cover 'Britains biggestly weekly glossy.'

Ive chosen these two magazines because they both hold lifestyle inside them and that is what i plan to analyse.

Take a break;

The language used on this double page article would have to be formal. The language is completley different to the language used in pop magazines.

The articles it holds are serious. Theres the audience posting in there problems and trying to recieve good advice.

Demographics -

Age range: This magazine would be directed to the older generation. Ranging from mid thirtys to fortys.

Gender: Female. The reason for this because of the colours used (mainly pinks) and the stories it holds.

Class: Middle classed. The reason for this is because its a cheap magazine which is discussing and giving out advice to the audience.

Nationality: British.

Main Sells:

- 'Here our agony Aunt Katie gets her buddies to advise the famous. This week: Victoria Beckham.' In this article, they have used a celebrity who is giving the advice to the person who has written into the company.

- 'My mum is an alcoholic.' Written from a member of the audience who have a problem and need advice.

- 'I want to heal this family rift.' Written from a member of the audience who have a problem and need advice.

- 'Is it time for divorce?' Written from a member of the audience who have a problem and need advice.

Fabulous.

The language used on this page would be informal i reckon. This is because of the headline etc. 'Whats your BFF?' Cutting down the words to form some of them into slang.

The article would be quite serious as it is basically advertising different perfume products. Which makes it appeal more to the audience and gives them the urge to go and buy these perfumes is by including celebrities who use this perfumes.

Demographics -

Age range: Older generation. Mid thirtys to fortys.

Gender: Female: Because its advertising feminine perfumes, holds pictures of female celebrities, and the colours are mainly red and white.

Class: Middle Classed. The magazine comes free in the News of the world magazine.

Nationality: British.

Main sells -

- 'Whats your BFF?' Making clear to the audience that they are talking about perfume. They are advertising these products, and claiming that the perfume is infact a best friend forever.

- 'Do you want powerful, sexy or sweet?' This appealing to the audience, as females would love to categorize themselves under one of these labels and if the smell of perfume helped them along the way of achieving this category then they will definatley buy it.

- 'Find more great beauty tips at fabulousmag.co.uk ', advertising there website.

Blog 7 - Photo Editing.

Photo editing.
Software used: Photoshop. http://www.picnik.com/.

The cutting of images:
On my final piece i cut a few images down.

The front page;

Angela Carella (Miss Brolly) - I cut down one of her images on photoshop to paste on the front page of my magazine into a circle. This was because i did not plan on using any of her body on the front page. I just planned to use her head, to divide from the rest of the other stories that are taking place on the magazine.

Connor Sandalls (bottom left) - I cut around this image using photoshop. It was a close up picture i captured from my camera. The photo was soon uploaded onto the computer and analysed to what i would be doing with it. I soon decided on cutting it down and placing it bottom left of the magazine. Having the advantage of cut, i was able to get rid of the background and make it appeal more to the audience as a picture which looks as though it has connected with the magazine.

The contents page;

Angela Carella (Miss Brolly) - On the contents page, Angela's image was the only photo to be cut down. I cut this down by using photoshop. This was because the background was never intented to stay. There was far too much interferences in the background that i decided to cut. The interferences being either people walking past or background activity. For example; transport etc. Also, this looked more affective by being cut and placed bottom right on the contents page. Especially with the Umbrella which allows the audience to have a clear understanding of why she is called Miss Brolly. This type of image being cut appeals to the target audience which i have targetted my magazine too.

The double page spread;

There was no 'Cutting' used on the double page spread.

Lighting or colour:
On my final piece, there was a few only one picture which was needed to have a colour change. This was the picture of Angela (Miss Brolly) which is on the bottom right side of the contents page. This photo was unfortunatley dark lighting but using http://www.picnik.com/, i was able to brighten the picture and make it look as though it was no longer hidden by shadows of darkness.

Blemish fix:

I used blemish fix on a couple of my photos. Blemish fix being an effect which removes spots or any interference to the face. Makes there face look clean and fresh. This was used on the photo of Connor (bottom left of the front page) and also was used on Aiden (top left of the contents page). This affect was affective because it made there faces look clean and fresh. This is what is expected in pop magazines. The main attraction to be a 'Pretty boy'.

Changing sizes of images:

On the front page, i shorted down the picture of Aiden, Lee, Dan and Angela. This was to be able to fit it perfectly into the correct spot on the front page. Making sure that it wasn't bigger than any of the other headlines and making sure that it was spaced out neatly. Also, it doesn't take up most of the space, so it allows more to be on the front page.

There are two images that were shortened on the contents page. These included in the picture of Aiden and the picture of Kayleigh. These two images were shortened to the same size so that i could place them one on the other pretty much. This was shortened also so that there was enough room for the introduction and contact writing. Which worked out perfectly. If the two images weren't shortened down, then the contents page wouldn't even come close to appealing to the target audience.

Lastly, on the double page spread, i shortened one photo. This being another photo of Karim but it was different and the size was much smaller. I felt as though this being on the top of the page suited well. This was because the picture had filled a big gap and make it look more affective.

Blog 6 - Photos.

The photo to the right of this text i took of my friend Connor Sandalls. I had asked him to wear a black or white shirt as many of the celebrities in Pop magazines are dressed up in a shirt which shows there torso. After capturing the photographs, i decided which ones to use. This photo right, i decided not to use. The quality isn't very good and the facial expression isn't what would attract the attention of the audience which i am targetting my magazine too; teenage girls.

The first picture to the right was an edit i created. Firstly, i got the main image and used it as the background. Then i cut down another image which i took of the same person and edited it. Placing a border around it and pasting it on the top right corner. I felt as though this would work because ive included more on the page. I wasn't wrong, it did work but instead of just that on its own, i placed a border on the double page spread. This being able to appeal more to the audience. The top right photo is the image i cut down and squared into a box which soon was placed onto the main image of the magazine's double page spread.

Again, these images are different images which i took of Karim Martin (Jack Sefron). I decided to take a few images so that if they either turned out to be bad quality or they didn't fit into what was needed, i had other pictures that may just fit in perfectly and this is what they did. The background of the images i decided to have as a clear wall. The wall intentionally being white but when taking the photos, the light had changed the colour. When uploading the photos, i didn't see any problem with the background. I felt as though it fitted in perfectly for the double page spread. Although, the second page of the double page i had to do some editing so that the second page was the same colour as the first. This wasn't too difficult. I just blended the colours over.

I made sure that Karim was wearing something neat and something thats almost fashionable. His coat was perfect for the photo. I also took different photos of his poses. Making sure that he had a few pictures looking away from the camera and a few where he was looking directly at it.

The image i settled with as the main image was the photo which is right from this text. This image suited the background image perfectly. He had a smile on his face, he was looking directly at the camera and the quality turned out great!

The image to the right was a bit too dark. This was because i had turned on the flash which collided with the light of the room and made it look dark. I soon turned the flash off. In this image, Karim wasn't ready for the photo when this image was taken. This is what explains his facial expression.

This is Miss Brolly (Angela) originally i had planned to have her jumping whilst holding the umbrella. This being shown in the images below. I changed my mind about using one of those images when it came to the final piece. Afterall it didn't fit into the pages very well and the quality of the images werent so good. So instead, for the front page i cut out Angela's head and placed it into the circle. This being divided from the rest of the stories.

Also, i cut out an image of her holding an umbrella, and her being cut out from the waist up. This being placed bottom right on the contents page. Which slotted in perfectly.

I took quite a few pictures of Angela to try and get them to turn out in good quality. The background of the images were to be cut from the picture itself. The background was never an intended choice as it was taken at the train station. The only time Angela was able to get her photo taken. I made sure that i brang the umbrella with me when taking her photo. I wouldn't have been able to take the picture of her otherwise as the artist that she is potraying wouldn't fit in well to the description and her name title.

I made sure that she was wearing something casual. Nothing too extreme and nothing which contains innappropriate material.

For every single photo of Angela, i made sure that she smiled because the facial expressions on pop magazines matter alot. Mainly with the celebrities smiling, or holding a cheeky grin across there lips. Or maybe even a face which the emotion is shocked or suprised but you can still see that its in a burst of happiness mood.






Some of the photos that i took didn't turn out very well. Some turning too blurry to be able to put on my magazine. Afterall, the images could not look pixeled. The images on magazines are cut and cleared neatly. Not showing any signs of them being edited.

Unfortunatley some of the pictures turned out quite dark. Editing it on http://www.picnik.com/, i was able to lighten up the picture and change it from being dark to light and able to see the image clearly without it being hidden by shadows.

Unfortunatley when taking the pictures of Angela, many different background distractions were caught in the photo. For instance, the train pulling into its stop and a woman walking straight through the picture. These did not bother me that much as i was planning on cutting the photos anyhow.

I tried to be able to capture a shot of Angela jumping with the umbrella and her whole body in the picture but unfortunatley we couldn't get the timing very good for the jump. This ended up with me having photos which were blurred or bad quality.

This picture on the left being another example of the bad quality the timing had on the camera shots.

The left picture showing an even worse affect on what the timing did.

This picture was originally intended for a band photo that i was taking. The band was going to consist of two male members and a female member. This photo was not intentionally taken this way. Aiden, Dan and Angela were supposed to jump at the same time and smile but unfortunatley the door came open and ended up having Lee pop her head round to talk to us. I looked back at the pictures and decided not to use an image where they were a band. Afterall, it was more easier to create solo artists and place more about them. I did in my final piece use this image though. I found that it was great for using as a story of 'Backstage gossip'. It really represented well as it looks as though there backstage somewhere. I was quite pleased that a non intented photo was taken but fitted in so well on the front page.

The image to the left was the band image. At the time, trying to get the timing right for a jump that they were all going to try and achieve. Allowing the camera shot to hopefully capture them in the air. This was too difficult and we ended up with so many bad quality images.

The image to the left being another example of the above.

The image to the right being another image that didn't turn out to what was expected.

The photo to the right was taken unexpectedly to them. I took the picture whilst they had stopped jumping to talk and try to come to a conclusion of a more simple way of achieving the photo that was intented.

The picture to the right, was another wrong picture. The timing catching the moment yet again.

I found this image to be quite funny, because after the failed attempts of jumping, the group just had a laugh. This could have fitted in well if i was still going to do my double page spread on a band but instead, i decided not to do the band. This would have probably been the image used to show the band to the audience. They look young, attractive and as though they are having fun.

These pictures of Angela were taken before i had created Miss Brolly. I took a few images of Angela incase i couldn't use any of the images i took of other people on my work.

Kindly, Aiden helped me out by allowing me to take some photos of him for one of the artists. I didn't quite have the idea to which page he was going to be on until i actually had created the final piece. I just got him to pose like a pop artist. A few pictures of him looking towards the camera, a few of him looking away, and a few of him with his hands slotted into his trouser pockets. A well known pose amongst Pop celebrities. Making sure that this was a close up.

This photo being similiar to what i wrote above but unfortunatley when this photo was taken, he was distracted by an activity that was going on behind us.

Stepping back and zooming a little out, i decided to take a few pictures of him with his whole body. This turned out quite good as Aiden looked directly at the camera and expressed the expression he was meant to have.

I decided not to use this photo as it looks as though he's laughing. It could be used in a pop magazine, but many of the images in pop magazines are simple smiles or exagerrating on an expression.

Next, i moved onto taking photos of Dan. His top fitting in perfectly with the image as it included colour. Something which many pop magazines hold. I also made sure that the background was clear. A clean background that had no distractions of wrong colours on. This helped out alot because its a clear background to put a lot of text and images etc on.

Stepping back i used a variety of different shots. A long shot, mid-shot and a close up. This helped for when i came to my final piece to see which image i would use where. The double page spread would be a long shot, i had confirmed that. Whoever i decided to use. The front page main image would either be a mid-shot or close up. Etc.

Just like i had asked everybody else who allowed me to take there photos, i got them to give me different facial expressions. Either a full on smile, a soft smile or a straight face.

This being the same on the photo which was taken (right).

Connor (the male on the right) was originally going to be on the front page but this changed when i placed it as the front page. Not because the quality of the pictures werent good enough but because of the background. I thought that having a brick background would suit in the magazine, but when applying it behind all of the text and boxes that i had created, i changed my mind. The text did not stand out very well with the background image and it didn't really fit in, so instead i chose a picture of Dan as the background of his image was clear. It also involved colour because of his shirt, and his facial expressions fitted perfectly for a front page.

So once coming to a conclusion of not using any of Connor's images from the front page, i decided to use one of the photos as the double page spread. I placed them on, but found out that all of the photos i used looked blurry or bad quality on the page. So that idea washed away. One of Connor's photos did come handy for the front page though. Not as the main image but a small image i placed bottom left. Which connected to the small headline beside it of who else was in the magazine.

Some of the images i took of Connor really looked good. His pose and his facial expressions really suited the role of being on either the front page or the double page spread. It was a dissapointed when the photo quality wasn't good enough on InDesign. It just ruined the whole cover.

I made sure that Connor was wearing a shirt and a pair of jeans. Persifically asking him to come in a pair of jeans and either a black or white shirt. I asked him for this because its what you usually see on the celebrities in pop magazines. Artists who show off there torso with a shirt and wear some denim which gives them an attractive look.

So i could get a flavour of different images, i took some pictures of Connor close up. This being for small images or such. This ended up being ideal as i used one of his close ups as the small image bottom left on the front page.

The picture above being the final picture of Connor that i took. I was going to use this photo but i changed my mind on when creating the final pieces. This being because it was infact a really good picture for a pop magazine but there were a lot better pictures which were taken. Which suited the role better and would appeal more to the target audience.