FINISHED

I have now finally finished my student magazine. YAY!!! :D

Evaluation

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

The conventions of a student magazine include a picture on the front cover; it should usually be a mid-close up and relate to what the magazine is about as well as catch the target audiences’ eye. Also a bold and catchy masthead is needed to identify the magazine and attract the target audience it should be the biggest text on the page so that the readers automatically know that it is the masthead and get a general idea of what the magazine is about. Cover lines summarises the most interesting articles of the magazine and persuade the audience to buy and read the rest. In an audience questionnaire that I did most people said that they would be willing to pay around £1-£1.50 for a magazine that was issued monthly, the price should be bold and colourful but not too big so that it dominates the page. The website link advertises the magazine and for example in my magazine there is an advice page so a website allows for the readers to get in touch. The strapline advertises the competitions and activities in the magazine which appeals to the target audience and the banner promotes the most interesting article in the magazine therefore should be bold and stand out for example the banner on my magazine is white with black text this makes the writing easier to read and more eye catching. The colour scheme depends on your target audience because my target audience is college students it needs to be reasonably colourful but using too much colour may make it look tacky or difficult to read which might put people off from reading the magazine, this is why I kept my colour scheme fairly minimal with some colour (blue and purple) to attract the readers eye to particular cover lines, straplines and the price. A typical contents page needs to include page references to the articles included in the magazine it also needs images that relate to the articles this is because people are more likely to look at the pictures this then makes them want to read the article and buy the magazine. Some contents pages also include a small advertisement; however my contents page only contains the page references and the pictures. Overall I have included all of the conventions of a real magazine and haven’t challenged or developed any of these conventions.

 

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

My magazine is for college students. The image I have used on the cover is one of Emily stood in a phone box holding the phone up to her ear this is because generally people consider teenagers to be on the phone all the time. Also it is light and fun and I think that this would catch people’s eye. On the contents page I have used pictures of Emily eating a slice of pizza because this relates to one of the articles I have mentioned “The student diet – what it is really doing to our bodies.” And a picture of Emily and myself sitting in the middle of the road because this relates to the road safety article mentioned, all of the pictures are bright and not taken too seriously which offers a lighter side to a serious topic. I have not represented my student audience too stereotypically as I have not used any pictures of students getting drunk and being rebellious, yet some stereotype is used for example where Emily is eating a piece of pizza implying that our diet is bad. My picture to text ratio is fairly equal I do have a big image on the cover but I have quite a bit of text to match it and on the contents page half of it is taken up by page references (text) and the other half by images.

   

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

My magazine will be sold either in a newsagent where college students are most likely to visit to buy their lunch or the college itself as my magazine offers not only helpful advice but also reviews of the latest music and films. It also has an advice page which I think will help many students who are not coping with college that well and do not wish to see a counsellor. Also my magazine can be distributed around high schools to the year 11s to give them an idea of what coming up to college is all about.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

The audience for my student magazine is college students from the age of 16-18, both male and female some issues and articles may be aimed more toward a certain gender but in general my magazine is aimed at both. Specifically those who wish to go to university as university advice is included in my magazine but also students that are coming up from high school and wish to gain a bit more knowledge about college life. Also I think that my magazine would be aimed at a middle class audience because they are the type of class most likely to come to a public college.

How did you attract/address your audience?

In my magazine I not only included information that college students needed to know but also music and film reviews to draw the audience in. Also I have included competitions and games on my front cover. The language used is quite chatty for example I used “Gossip, photos and news about the previous and upcoming bash.” This will attract people as those who didn’t go to the bash will want to know what happened and also students can relate to the chatty tone therefore don’t feel overwhelmed or bored by it.

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

I have used Publisher to make my magazine, a blog for market research and a camera to take the photos on my magazine. I have learnt how to import files and create my own blog. I have also learnt hoe to navigate through a blog to look at other peoples pages and it has been a good way to gather audience feedback and ideas.

Final Title and Contents pages

More Title Page Ideas

Do you prefer my title page having more colour?  Do you dislike the colour or would you like it to be a different colour instead? Please comment and help me out :) Thank you!!!

Contents page drafts

 Idea 1

 Idea 2

Idea 3

Front Cover Ideas

Hi everyone,
It would be much appreciated if you guys could comment on which front cover you like the best and any suggestions on how i can improve them. Thank you!!!!

 Idea 1

Idea 2

Idea 3

Contents Page Ideas

 Idea one

Idea two

Title Page Ideas

 Idea one

Idea two

Textual Analysis

First Car:

The Mast head is all in capital letters and is white on a black (wob) background this is to draw our attention to the name of the magazine and because it is white on a black background it makes it easier to read so we automatically know what the magazine is going to be about. Also it is the biggest text on the front page emphasising its importance. The Mast head attracts college students because they are at an age where most of them will be looking for a car and starting to drive therefore would buy the magazine to gain more information to pass their driving tests as soon as possible.

The banner attracts a student audience because the writing is yellow on a black background and wob background therefore eye catching and because the banner is talking about 'The Inbetweeners' it appeals to a young, student audience because it is a popular TV program that most teenage students will be watching. The picture relates to the banner because it has the image of The Inbetweeners cast by a car so while attracting the appropriate audience it also relates to the car theme.

The Strap line is advertising technology, competitions, advice and new and used cars this shows that it includes other fun things as well as information about cars but it also helps you to find a car when you start driving. The text is black on a white background so it does stand out but the text is quite small so that is doesn't dominate the page.

The colour scheme is quit minimal with mostly white, black and yellow which makes it seem very male orientated and with the bold title 'First Car' you wouldn't expect a girl to want to read this magazine.



  

What shall i call my magazine?
	Resources
	The Kids are Alright
	Flying the Nest
	The Next Step
pollcode.com free polls

Audience Questionnaire

Male or Female?


Age?


Would you like to know about clubs and activities that are on offer?


Would you like reviews of upcoming or newly released films?


How much would you pay to receive the student magazine?


How often would you like to receive the  student magazine?


What colours would you like the student magazine to be?

Would you like information about universtity options and theory driving tests?

Would you like an advice page?

Comparison of Student Magazines

First Car Magazine

Features:
Dangers of driving and road deaths e.g. using phones while driving
Advice on what first car you should have
Technology section e.g. mobile phones, laptops etc
Theory Test quizzes
Car and Bike Tests - helpful tips
Aimed at both genders, section specific to girls as well as men.

Student ID

Features:
Cartoons
Clubs you can join
Adverts and the latest news
Meet the new teachers and goodbyes and messages to those who are leaving
Articles on popular TV
University advice
Reviews on films
Horoscopes
No specific gender target

ECT Education/Training/ Career

Features:
Adverts for ipods and apprenticeships
Current events "Randomness"
Information on religion and the bible - trying to get the younger generation more interested in religion
Alcohol abuse - the effects
Article on students achievements
Politics
Current, popular music
Careers guru

My Action Plan for the next 4 weeks

Week 1 - 15th November 2010

Write Action plan

Create Blog

Comparison of Student mag’s

Audience Questionnaire

Textual Analysis

Week 2 - 22nd November 2010

Layout designs

Organize photo shoot

Edit photos

Draft Pages

Week 3 - 29th November 2010

Create cover and contents

audience feedback

Week 4 - 6th December 2010

Evaluation