B.P.M

Best.POP.Music

1) In what ways does your media 1) In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media forms and conventions of real media products?products?

I analysed NME and Rolling Stone front covers to give me a better idea of what forms and conventions add to success of magazines.

Rolling Stone and NME are well established magazines. I liked the way there are a variety of colours- this gave me the idea of

using colour as a method of attraction. Mise en scene in the Rolling Stone issue adds to the comical effect of the

inside article, it also gives us insight into the celebs. Clothing is important as it can give us more information about the people

on the cover. The different style and positioning of the masthead interested me most-

as they are different and this caused me to create various flat plans with different versions of mastheads.

It was the masthead that interested me most therefore I designed a flat plan with a similar style of masthead.

My cover follows the general forms and conventions of music magazines.

The focal part of the image is situated in the 2/3 and 3/3- where my models heads are positioned.

Buzz words, “Exclusive” “Plus” “Free” “more”- attract reader and gives the magazine almost like a high profile image in their eyes.

Masthead- a play on the popular drink BPM which my audience like.

Buzz words- grabs readers attention.

Price/bar code- in conventional area

Various fonts to make the cover more exciting

Popular bands/artists names are included to appeal to readers and encourage them to buy the issue

Conventionally the price code is placed in the bottom third on either left or right. Mine is on the right- as it was more aesthetically appealing.

To challenge the forms and conventions I ensured that I used various typefaces and colours- which are bright and have a “pop” feel as this ties in with my genre.

Slogan

Lure

Strap line

Puff image

MAIN IMAGE

MCU- 2 models smiling and looking at lens-suggests that they are happy and are looking at the reader.

Skin colour/Lighting

Photoshop-Filter- Render-Lighting effects.

I adjusted until I was happy with the brightness.

As Mr Herron pointed out in my draft version the models skin was very pale and to correct this I went to Enhance-adjust colour-adjust hue/saturation and added red to darken their skin tone

Niamh- first of all I cropped the image then I used lens flare to enhance the brightness. Then I adjusted the hue/saturation, and then I filled in her hair using the paint brush. After fixing her red eye/

I corrected all the models red eye using the red eye tool and then to make their eyes brighter, using the colour dropper I added blue. On Orla and Rachel- I wanted to make them more feminine and bright so using the paint brush I coloured in their lips with red.

Clothing- floral prints (blue and purple) denoting femininity, the blue suggests tomboy or strong qualities. Niamh is slightly different- her dress is white with bright multicoloured flowers- white symbolises purity and innocence, cleanliness- as she is a reporter for the magazine this denotes that she is a reliable source giving an element of security for the readers as they can trust our reporters.

Language- informal and snappy. The cover is loaded with text- connotes that there is a lot going on overleaf. Buzz words are essential as they attract the reader.

Mode of address- direct, informal, exclusive and colloquial.

Typeface- varies, I downloaded various fonts for free from 1001fonts. For the POPTARTS font I used action is, shaded JL as it is attractive and appealing for my target audience.

Size- varies depending on the positioning of the text. The most important text gets the biggest font size e.g. POPTARTS exclusive.

Masthead- on contents as a brand name and to keep the magazines name in the readers mind all the time. Image of the cover- remind

reader what initially attracted them to the issue.

Subheading- organises the page and offers a structure

Images- they are a visual tool which sell magazines- the images here correlate with their page number and the article.

Website, date, issue no.- This is not conventionally placed

Introduction- a few lines introducing the article- gives the reader a taste of what the article will be like.

I wanted to develop the forms of music magazines contents page- I wanted to give the readers a flavour of what is to come- which is why I included a few lines to briefly summarise the article overleaf.

Instead of just printing a page number, I wanted to make it more interesting and fun therefore I included a small paint splash- from Photoshop to keep the fun and excitement of my magazine down to the last detail.

Cover line

Size of page number text depends on the importance of the article- bigger text= more significant!

Page number with paint splash- keeps it vibrant!

Images- I constructed an album cover to give away free with each issue. I used Photoshop to enhance the image by using the “glow” tool I was able to create a fun exciting album cover.

Orla and Rachel’s image (POPTARTS) was enhanced in terms of lighting (brightened) and makeup- red lips and red eye was corrected.

TEXT

In terms of mode of address- colloquial, catchy, informal and direct.

Buzz words such as “Exclusive“ “backstage” “scoop” “gossip” etc, appeal to the reader and make the magazine appear to have an inside link to all the upcoming stars.

Pull Quote- a typical convention of a DPS. I developed this form as I not only included it on the image, I placed one under the article and above another image- this is not conventional- however I feel that it works and appeal to my readers- who look for excitement and fun.

Fandom- typically there are not many magazines who dedicate a section of a DPS to fans of the artists- I feel that it is important to give the fans a spot as they are my readers- I want them to know that they are appreciated. I have challenged this form and I feel that it works.

Typically magazines don’t specify where their images were taken- I felt that the magazine should be important (brand wise) their for I included “in our studio” on the larger image of the band.

As the brand is important I included the BPM symbol on the DPS to add an element of familiarity with the magazine for the reader.

Drop caps- professional looking, eye catching and break up the text.

Subheading- break up text and keep it organised and professional

First thing reader will see-positive!

Same symbol/splatter beside pg no. for continuity

Plug for the website- more appropriate in these times- youths are more ICT capable and interested.

Byline- writers credit!

Album (free CD) plug!

I know that images are important however in an interview, personally I feel that what the artist is talking about is more significant and therefore deserves to be treated that way.

Which is why my double page spread consists mostly of writing- and this writing is from the interview of the band.

It is friendly, enjoyable, with some elements of humour to entertain the reader.

Informal, direct and colloquial jargon is employed consistently throughout the article.

In terms of positioning, there are three columns, which when looked at on an a4 page- I page is covered with 2 columns of the interview and the other consists of 1 column of the interview and then images of the band/CD.

As you will have noticed there is a particular colour scheme to my magazine. Red, Purple, and Blue- in my questionnaire which I handed to potential readers

these are the most popular colours which came up. Red is a strong colour symbolic of love and passion- which is brilliant as it helps to

denote the fact that the magazine is passionate about pop music. Blue is calming. It can be strong and steadfast or light and friendly- I want my

magazine to come across as friendly and in terms of the language I want it to sound friendly and from someone who is the same age as my readers.

Purple is the colour of good judgment. It is the colour of people seeking spiritual fulfilment. It is said if you surround yourself with purple you will have peace of mind. Purple is a good colour to use in meditation. Purple has been used to symbolize magic and mystery, as well as royalty. Being the combination of red and blue, the warmest and coolest colours, purple is believed to be the ideal colour.

What is your favourite colour?

Blue

Green

Purple

Pink

Red

This is a graph from my results of my questionnaire

2) How does your media product 2) How does your media product represent particular social groups?represent particular social groups?

My demographic refers to those aged 16-25. Mainly due to the fact this this is the range of ages that I handed my questionnaires out to, and also due to the fact that this age group are prime targets in the advertising side of the media.

16-25 year olds have the most disposable income (well, they are more eager to spend than save!)

Through my images it is clear that my target audience is for those of the pop music persuasion. Through bright, bubbly fonts females are targeted more heavily than males however due to the eye candy on the front cover there is nothing stopping the boys buying their copies!

Due to my questionnaire results, it was clear that POP was the most popular genre- I have represented this genre through various colours and fonts- lively, bright and funky typefaces which will attract the reader to my magazine.

Those in minority groups, and other ethnic groups are not represented in this particular issue as they do not fit the style of the issue.

What genre of music do you listen to?

POP

Hip-hop

Rave

Rock

Indie

RnB

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

NatMag- publishpublish Company, Esquire, Cosmopolitan, Zest amongst Company, Esquire, Cosmopolitan, Zest amongst

others. Generally lifestyle magazinesothers. Generally lifestyle magazines The National Magazine Company is one of the foremost luxury consumer

magazine publishers in the UK, reaching 14.9 million adults every year.

NatMag currently publish 20 magazines and 63% of all ABC1 magazine reading women aged 15-55 engage with a NatMag brand.

They do not publish music magazines yet! Their sales figures per annum are excessive and they would be prime publishers and distributors to be associated with.

Famous distributors and publishers of NME IPC Media produces over 85 iconic media brands NME is now a national institution whose reputation for arrogance and

aggro far outstrips its relatively benign tone. In the weekly Music sector, sales of the NME are looking very strong

with an ABC of £72,557. Circulation of the magazine has fallen continuously since 2003. In the

first half of 2009, the magazine's circulation was £40,948, 44% down on a 2003 figure of 72,442- - however this may be due to the growing popularity of its online magazine.

NME has grown as a brand due to the support from IPC- NME now have a major online magazine, NME awards, NME radio and TV etc.

I feel that IPC are a brilliant company who offer a great deal of support especially when brands try and expand in the media- I feel that IPC would be the best publishers and distributors for my magazine!

4) Who would be the audience for your 4) Who would be the audience for your media product?media product?

C1, C2, D- the social grade according to NRS grading system. NRS is a not-for-profit company which is funded by the UK Institute of

Practitioners in Advertising (IPA), Newspaper Publishers Association (NPA), and Periodical Publishers Association (PPA). The NRS social grade definitions have been in use for decades, apparently for audience profiling and targeting by the media, publishing and advertising sectors, and have become established as a generic reference series for classifying and describing social classes, especially for consumer targeting and consumer market research.

My readers are aged 16-25 My colour scheme would suggest that my product is aimed at females however blue

is incorporated to represent the small minority of males that do buy the magazine. The demographic is simple- my product is targeted towards those who love POP

music.

5) How did you attract/address your 5) How did you attract/address your audience?audience?

The style of my DPS is a Q/A form. The lexis is informal, colloquial and direct.

As the band should be accessible for my readers.

From my results of the questionnaire I found that content was especially important to my readers, as it is the influencing factor in their decision to purchase a music magazine.

I ensured that I made the content interesting buy giving away a free CD (the bands new album).

I employed humour and colloquial jargon to involve and thrill my readers. (I want them to enjoy what they are reading)

What influences you to buy a magazine?

Content

Colour

Brand Name

Cover

Free gifts

In terms of the front cover.

I ensured that my cover was busy, bright and bubbly.

The fonts played a crucial role as they gave my cover a persona!

My main tool and method of trying to attract readers was by listening to what they wanted!

I looked to my results of the questionnaire constantly for guidance- my readers preferred bands over solo artists and they wanted something fun- I feel that I have achieved this.

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

Technology was a vital part of this task. I have learned so many new skills due to tutorials and experimentation. Photoshop was one of the most frequently used forms of technology. During my preliminary

task I found it a nightmare, it was difficult to get to grips with. However throughout the construction process and from watching various Youtube tutorials

and through experimenting with different tools in the end I found it quite enjoyable once I got comfortable with the different tools such as:

Paint brush-magnetic lasso- colour dropper-filter-glow-diffuse colour-lighting effects-healing brush-crop tool-blur tool- lens flare-feathering tool-magic wand-red eye removal tool-hue/saturation

The blogging site where I documented my work was PBworks, possibly the most frustrating of all the technologies I used, as we could not access Youtube in school, I was unable to change the layout of the page, and eventually in my side bar I couldn’t change the colour of my pages!

I used publisher to create my flat plan designs. Powerpoint for this presentation. Excel to create graphs to tally my results from the questionnaire. I also used: Digital cameras-card readers-1001 fonts- You Tube and I will use

Vimeo to show the recorded version of this presentation.

What other things would you like to be

included?

Celebrity Gossip

Gigs

Agony ant

Posters

Stickers

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

Take a look at my preliminary task

It does follow some of the forms and conventions however it doesn’t have the same professional look as my main cover!

It is evident that my skills in Photoshop have improved.

I have also improved my communication skills- I have learnt that email is a powerful tool.

When Pbworks was annoying or I had a problem I left a comment on my peers blogs and emailed them.

I have a wider knowledge of print media- I am able to easily recognise various forms and conventions, and can analyse these.

I have a vast knowledge of various technologies and have significantly improved my ICT skills.

MastheadCorner grabber

Puff image

Coverline

Free prize

Logo