Evaluation- Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

I think that I have progressed an awful lot in my skills, from the preliminary task at the beginning of the school year. I believe that I have particularly improved on Photoshop, learning new skills; I never used to be able to use the magnetic lasso tool without it cutting off parts of the image or having jagged edges, in the end I was able to ensure that the edges were smooth.
My preliminary magazine was extremely simple, looking entirely unprofessional. I also wasn't able to properly portray what the magazine was about, other than the name "Time To Pretend"; as it was a school magazine based on Drama, Music,

Art and Media. However, I learnt from this for the production of my full product; ensuring that there are captivating cover lines and it was clear what the magazine what was about.
After the preliminary task, I was able to experiment with camera angles; though I only used a mid shot for the cover, the posture and expression worked well with it so you could tell from looking at the cover model that she was a band member on the cover of a music magazine. I also used many on the contents page and double page spread; taking shots from all sorts of different angles in order for it to look more professional, rather than a student messing about with a camera.

Putting both of the tasks together, you can see that my camera work has improved a lot, it is more structured and you are able to tell that it had been properly planned. I was able to choose more carefully the models and poses; the ones in the preliminary you could tell didn't quite know what to do and were unprepared for the photos. I ensured the models all had the style I was aiming for and looked confident, expressing the right personalities. The ones before looked as though they did not want to be there, emitting the wrong sort of atmosphere for the magazine. There are more artistic elements to my final magazine, which I had aimed for, and I think I achieved the style and genre very well. Most people I think would base their choice in colours on how they look, or to copy other well-known magazines, whereas I liked to think about the meanings. The colours I used were a main element of style and genre, particularly the purple and black; purple has connotations of mystery and is associated with spirituality, again linking to the artistic aspect of the finished product. Black is said to have conflicting connotations; The connotation I chose it for was again the mystery, and the colour to symbolise rebellion, or mourning. The other colour I used was white, which contrasts with the other colours as it is usually lighter and more 'positive'; it is suggestive of purity, life and happiness. I wanted these to contrast, as to me and anyone else in the audience who would think about it, it would be to signify that there is both light and dark inside of us; we choose what to act on. We can either rebel, or do as we are expected, or simply, do what we want and not care. My magazine was reflecting rebellion and not caring; being yourself, so that wouldn't mean that none of the readers would be pure. With the preliminary task, to avoid complications as I was new to Photoshop, I went with standard black, white and red; I did not want to do this for the final task.
I think that there would certainly be a few changes that I would make to my magazine. First of all, I would make it slightly more busy on the cover, like AP or Kerrang!:

 

I wanted the picture to be simple, but now looking at it I feel as though I should have at least put something more on the right hand side. I would also add perhaps one more intriguing cover line; no more than one as I feel like the "PLUS" bit invited the reader in enough. I don't think that I would change anything on either the contents or double page spread as I feel I achieved what I wanted, with the genre and style clear. Overall, I am happy with my full product, and am pleased it went a lot better than the preliminary.

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

The camera which I used to take most of the pictures was a Nikon DX AF-S Nikkor 18-55mm, which was great to use for the cover picture, one on the contents page and the double page spread ones as I was able to adjust setting well, and did not have to worry about whether or not it would be high quality. Due to the quality, it was easier for me to use Photoshop on the pictures, as I didn’t have to mess about with any blurred ones or any with terrible lighting.

For the rest of the pictures, I used a Nikon Coolpix L4 digital camera, on which I was able to slightly adjust settings, if needed. It was a plus as again I didn't have to worry about the quality as long as I stuck to still images, the camera was great with how clear it needed to be.

On the school computers, I did the basic things to my media product, gaining a higher level of skill by doing so; therefore when I did the rest on my home computer, I got better and better at using Photoshop. I used the school computers to look for pictures of bands which would feature in Delve, art which would inspire the magazine’s style and research.

I found that at home on my computer or laptop I was able to achieve more and had the most patience as it was silent, therefore I was able to concentrate more. I also had a lot more time at home to do it, so was able to take my time on Photoshop and researching etc.

I have Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 at home, which I used throughout the construction process of my magazine. I think that this version of it was the easiest and simplest for me to use, and I was able to try a lot of different things, looking at different effects. I was able to explore common image effects in the filter gallery such as film grain, which I considered using but decided that it wouldn't match the style of the rest of the magazine. I looked at general tools such as the magnetic lasso tool and the magic wand, which I used for all three of the pages of my magazine and improved on throughout the process, as at first I was very unsure of my skills with those tools in particular. I found some tools more difficult to use, such as the clone tool, though it turned out to be simple and easy. 

For my magazine pitch to show to the class, I used Animoto to portray the type of magazine which I was going to create; adding pictures, music- Razorblade Kiss by HIM- and text. I found Animoto extremely easy and quite fun to use and I was pleased with what I was able to produce on it.

The only other main thing which I used in the process of constructing my music magazine was Blogger, on which I was able to use as a sort of journal. Whenever I had an idea of what I may include in my product, I would add it to my blog in a post, along with inspiration such as music, art and style.

Evaluation- How did you attract/address your audience?

I have aimed to attract my audience in numerous different ways; through the style portrayed through the artists is a main one as people take style inspiration themselves from artists. The cover image is the most simple, but the images on both the contents and double page spread are more the style which I had aimed for, which the audience would potentially have; thus, attracting them to the magazine.

In order to attract the audience to the slightly different genres (rock, gothic rock), I have used specific colours and patterns; the black and purple leopard print can be related back to ‘70s punk, so this could appeal to and address people who prefer the punk rock genre, therefore they would want to buy the magazine to read about bands such as New York Dolls, Sex Pistols and The Ramones or more recent ones such as Sum 41, who are generally referred to as pop-punk. This could also appeal to an older audience, as there would be some who are still fans of Sex Pistols, for example, since they were together.

The use of the cover model’s James Dean t-shirt was to attract people who are appealed to classics, or original gothic rock; stereotypically liking bands such as The Cure, Siouxsie & The Banshees and The Damned, due to the creativity, model and often described as “morose” aspects of their music. Though, of course, all bands that would be featured in Delve would be extremely creative, they each have their own distinct sound and lyrics. The cover model is also pulling a specific pose; confident, yet her facial expression is hardened, looking melancholic, attracting readers who may reflect this themselves.  

Another way in which I attracted the audience was through bands other than the cover one; their taste would potentially be similar to the bands inside if they like the ones listed. In the double page spread, I have mentioned bands such as My Chemical Romance, Green Day and A Day To Remember, which would address fans of post-hardcore or alternative rock/punk rock.

Evaluation- Who would be the audience for your media product?

The target audience for my media product would be anyone who is very passionate for anything that branches off of rock music; alternative rock, gothic rock, punk rock etc. At first, the audience was to be lovers of pure punk, but I wanted there to be more of an option for the reader. I see my readers to be unique individuals, who are fervent in their interests, which stereotypically would be those who of course adore music, and who like to read, watch films and are interested in art. As I have tried to stay well away from the mainstream scene, I think that my audience would stereotypically shop at places such as Voodoo, Haze, Soho’s and Punkyfish. I think that television and film would be quite influential on my audience, watching television shows such as Jackass, The Vampire Diaries, Viva La Bam and Miami Ink. Their movie interests could be ones such as Thirteen, The Libertine, Interview with the Vampire, Shutter Island, Dracula, Sid and Nancy and Girl, Interrupted.
Musical interests could be anything from CKY, Slayer, Metallica, to Nirvana, The Cure, The Used, Iggy Pop, The Damned and Killing Joke. I am aware that this is a wide range; that was my aim. People who like Metallica may be avid fans of 30 Seconds To Mars, too, so I think that this could bring in more readers.
I don’t think that my magazine is aimed at a particular sex; but it would be assumed to interest males due to the style of the magazine and some would think that bands such as CKY are generally more appealing to males.
If you were to stereotype, then 'emos' would probably be the typical audience for my media product; bands featured such as My Chemical Romance and HIM are often referred to as emo or goth, so this may appeal to audiences who have similar taste and style. The iconography in the style of the bands I have made reflect those which feature in my magazine, therefore attracting audiences such as 'emos' who would stereotypically be fans of the bands such as the ones mentioned previously.

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

A publishing company distributes bands commercially to make the information accessible to the general public; this may be marketed through books, magazines, newspapers and other informative materials. These may be distributed in bookstores, through the mail or sometimes free, at certain places.
I think that Alternative Press Magazine, Inc. would be a well suited institution company to distribute my media product; they are of course the publishing company for their own magazine, AP, but as my magazine is of a very similar genre the readers of AP could possibly hear about Delve from it, and start to purchase it. The reason I think that would be a good idea is because the readers would have similar interests to those who would want to read Delve magazine anyway. It is not the genre alone that Delve would be similar to AP in aspects of; the style is also very similar. For example, there are the same sorts of bands featured in AP; The Used, My Chemical Romance, Green Day, HIM, Blink 182 etc. Kerrang is another similar magazine which includes these sorts of bands and genres.
Though a major publishing company, I think that Bauer would also be well suited to distribute my magazine; they are the publishers of Kerrang!, which, like AP, has a similar genre and target audience to Delve as they all specialize in rock music, mainly. As Bauer are the UK’s biggest publishing company, it seems to be well-suited for my magazine to be published by them; Bauer is clearly extremely well-known, therefore Delve would potentially spread around, though still appealing to the target audience.

Evaluation- How does your media product represent particular social groups?

 I believe that my media product represents individuals who have a strong passion mainly for music and art, and potentially photography. I think that people who are experimental with rock music, who stretch to different elements; punk, gothic, grunge etc. will be appealed to my magazine, as it is different compared to ‘mainstream’ magazines, which I have stayed far from. The social groups are reflected in both the music and the style, though of course there are people who may not dress in a certain way, but still may enjoy listening to this genre of music.
I have taken style inspiration from people such as Bam Margera, Kat Von D and Lacey Sturm from Flyleaf. Also from bands such as My Chemical Romance, 30 Seconds To Mars and The Used, who are stereotyped as 'emo', which may appeal to and represent those who are socialy dubbed as 'emo' or 'goth'; gothic style is often associated with emo.

There are, admittedly, not many real female artists that I have mentioned, but I am going to compare the similarities and differences between my cover model and Courtney Love, of course from Hole. I am going to use a picture of Courtney from the ‘90s, which was when she was pure grunge, reinforcing this social group.

Before the death of Kurt Cobain, Courtney Love was natural and beautifully scruffy looking, as shown above. In this way, bother her and my model on the right, are very similar; both with the messy blonde hair and pale complexion. Their style in the pictures is similar too; grunge-rock, though Courtney’s is more completely grunge; as Brooklyn is the lead singer in a more gothic rock band, her style is slightly less so. They are both wearing baggy tops, with very naturalistic make up, which is potentially iconic of the grunge style. Both Courtney and the band member, Brooklyn, went through a very destructive time in their lives, which you could say is portrayed in their music. A difference, however, is that Brooklyn picked herself back up; Courtney seemed unable to.
Grunge differs greatly from how it was in the late 80s/90s, originating from alternative rock, hardcore punk, heavy metal and indie rock, now branched into different social groups such as the rather modern stereotype 'emo' or even goth; grunge is simply more stripped down. Due to this, my media product is representative of these social groups, which is a broad range but related greatly as they branch off of each other.

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

Firstly, as the masthead of my magazine would have to stand out and be unique, I titled it “Delve”, so that the readers would be attracted to it, therefore looking into the meaning. I aimed for people to be able to comprehend that the title would be linked to the idea of exploring/unearthing your true self through the music, not necessarily unearthing the music yourself. I didn’t want it to be too simple; I preferred the clever option of making the readers consider deeper meaning. Though a very different magazine, another magazine which readers can look into the title of is “Vibe,” which has many different connotations. Because the name is unique, I think that it is easy to remember; a lot of magazines are either acronyms (AP) or onomatopoeic (Kerrang,) which could potentially be seen as challenging forms of real media products.
Secondly, I think that by having my model in a mid-shot, staring straight into the camera with a hardened expression may also challenge the typical conventions of mainstream music magazines, as usually on the cover of those specific magazines the artist is smiling, the connect with the reader. By not doing so, I believe that this connects with the reader in a different way; developing conventions of rock based magazines.

I have used many different camera angles in the music magazine, in the hope to attract people who have interest in photography, as well as music.
I have used the standard black and white as two of the main colours; however I have found that most music magazines tend to use red too, so to slightly draw away from that, I have used dark purple. With the dark purple, it reflects the look which I hoped to achieve; gothic rock/punk. Another way in which I successfully reflected the genre is through the clothing; the bands are dressed mostly rock, with elements of gothic punk; the necklace which the “Secret Chords” ‘band member’ is wearing on the contents page is the HIM heartagram. The fact that there is black and purple as the background of the contents page also portrays the style and genre which I aimed for.
Lastly, I think that by not doing the standard question and answer interview in the double page spread, this adds to the individuality of the magazine; it can be linked to the ‘gonzo’ journalism, originated from Hunter S. Thompson.