My Evaluation:

Evaluation

In my magazine I have mainly stuck to the usual conventions of music magazines by linking my front cover and contents page by colour scheme. I have also used a bar code on the front along with a title, a slogan and I have used a puff to attract more attention and my font is consistent throughout the magazine. I have also included a competition for a chance to win something and also a free gift which are usual conventions of a music magazine. I have differed from usual conventions also by having a picture as the background that contrasts everything rather than a plain colour which magazines usually use and this is consistent through the magazine. My colour scheme is also a way I have differed from usual conventions; usually magazines use bright attractive colours to attract attention but I have used darker colours throughout. If a magazine uses a darker colour, they usually put some lighter colours with it such as kerrang; they use black but with white and yellow, whereas I have gone with all dark colours. I have used 3 different colours for text on the front cover which other magazines do not do; they usually use only one or two. I have used a little icon in the corner of each page to keep the title and logo on every page; also I have put more than one quote on the first page of the article when in other magazines is usually only one or sometimes two to emphasise interesting points in the interview. Usually there are more images around the interview but I have only used two so the interview fits on the page without being squeezed together and there is a balance between images and text without being too busy. I have also used a picture type font for my title being the dripping blood; most magazines have plain fonts for their title whereas I have decided to use something a bit different which attracts to my target audience more and stands out from the other magazines. Also in my interview I have asked questions solely about music; most magazines ask questions about rumours or gossip, personal lives and family etc. The person on my front cover has been made to look quite angry and also strong and bold; this is common among people in this scene, also as top of his game as the anchorage text says. His clothing is quite plain yet the bracelet he is wearing connotes he has darker side. The girls in the smaller picture are presented as united as they are all linking arms, their skin is bright which connotes angelic-like qualities, they also represent the different sub-genre’s in the alternative scene as they each dress in a different style within the alternate genre.

The audience for my magazine is people who are in or interested in the rock/alternative scene aged about 15 to 30 as the magazine deals with the rock/alternate scene and music and the language is aimed at the older audience. To attract the target audience I based my magazine on rock/alternative music, I wrote about the type of music they would be interested in and the top artists they would like to read about within the genre. I made the language universal so all ages can read it easily although it is more adult. I added information that is relevant to the alternative scene such as winning a guitar and CD’s, gigs and tours within the rock genre. I also used dark colours and a skull background to attract the target audience as these colours and images are those found within this scene. Also the main image on my front cover uses a direct mode of address and his facial expression is that of anger and strength and serious repressed feelings which relates to the audience as most people in this scene have repressed feelings they let out through music and also almost everyone as an expression like this and it has become expected within the alternative scene. My contents page is arranged in tables to make the information clear and easy to read which is useful to my target audience as some teenagers may not be good readers and also the adults may have poor eye sight and the adults may not buy the magazine if it is set out in a confusing or messy way as they may not take the magazine seriously. My double page spread also has qualities that appeal to my target audience such as the questions asked; they are mainly based on music which is what my target audience is mainly interested in; some people like to know about gossip, rumours and their personal lives but most people in the alternative scene-especially the older reader focus more on the music as it has deeper meaning. The font for the title also appeals to my target audience; the dripping blood has associations with the Goth scene and therefore would attract such a reader. The title itself-Anarchy- attracts the target audience as anarchy is a key theme in the alternate world; with people wanting and enjoying the idea of it and enjoying being an anarchist, it fits in well to have a magazine that does just that and therefore would more likely be bought.
The media institution that would distribute my magazine would be the institution that distributes magazines like Q, Mojo, kerrang and NME such as EMAP as my magazine covers the rock and alternative music covered by the magazines that are owned by EMAP. They also own kerrang radio which also links to the type of music my magazine covers. I have learnt how to use Illustrator and Photoshop; I can now easily use the tools on these programmes. I know how to edit pictures on photoshop and create documents on illustrator to a good standard. I have also learnt how to effectively use a digital camera to take good pictures for my magazine. I have also learnt how to create a blog, upload images and my work onto it, add friends, polls and move between blogs. I have learnt different technical media language that are better descriptions such as connotation, denotation, puff, sell lines and direct mode of address. Also I have learnt that in media technology is used to change images to the way the person or company want them to seem which changes people’s perceptions and opinions of what or whoever the picture is of, they also use airbrushing in photoshop to make people better looking or perfect which deceives the reader into believing they are perfect and sometimes leads to them trying to be like them which can be dangerous. I have learnt that things like font and colour for text are important in making a magazine, the font and colour should remain the same unless for added effect as it is too confusing and most magazines stick to this rule, I used all kinds of fonts on one page and now know this is bad. I have also learnt that the front cover needs to be consistent with the contents page in colour scheme, font and layout, my preliminary task pages had no consistencies at all and I made sure this did not happen in my music magazine. I also picked up on using puffs to make the cover more attractive to the reader; I did not use any attractive devices on my cover and made sure I corrected this in my music mag. I learnt that there is a ‘sweet spot’ where most people tend to look first and that the best information should be put there. Also there should be a balance in images and text, and the image you put on the front cover is a major influence on whether people will buy it or not; magazines that are bought tend to have someone who everyone wants to know about and that is using a direct mode of address as it connects with the buyer. I have also learnt that layout is key in making a magazine as it cannot be confusing or sloppy, I put text randomly on the page in my preliminary task and have learnt this is not the way to organise a contents page, it needs to be clear, coherent and have a balance with images and I made sure this happened in my music magazine. I have also learnt how to use a digital camera properly, and that there are things you can do and use in your magazine to make your magazine more attractive and suited to your target audience like the title name, font and colour scheme and pictures.

Chelsea Williams
Media