Final Main Article

Final Contents Page

Final Front Cover

Evaluation 7: Skills Development

Evaluation 7: Skills Development

When making my final product I used many different techniques that I did not know how to use when I made my draft products.

Some of these techniques include: colour picking (which showed what colours should be used in conjunction with the existing colours), image manipulation (specifically I brightened my main image because originally it was too dark), I used layers which made the whole process of making my products easier as I could switch between different sections of my products and make edits at any time. I also used text box sizing (which helped with all three parts of my products by properly sizing and aligning my text) as well as other photoshop techniques.

When choosing my layout design concept I had to keep in mind the appeal of it to my target audience. My fonts, mode of address and type of feature article are all something that would appeal to my target audience, my mode of address is welcoming for the reader, the feature article contains an interview as well as relevant information to the article and finally my fonts have a graffiti/ informal style which would appeal to my target audience.

When coming up with idea of the content for my article I needed to research current rock, metal and punk magazines, a common trait I found among the ones that I looked at was that most of them had some form of interview, so I decided to include one as part of the content for my main article.

I had little need to share creative ideas, I did however seek feedback which lead to me making some minor adjustments and small improvements on my products. Some of these improvements/adjustments include: the cleanup of my contents page, replacement of the main image and the adjustment of size of the main cover line on the front cover.

I needed to be attentive to small detail such as dividers of text on the contents page and font cover because these are still important things that tell the reader where certain information is. There are also other examples of details such as what is going on in the images (what the person in the image is wearing, how they're standing, if they are making direct eye contact with the camera ect.).

My focus on my written skills/journalism style is the last skill that I developed. I made sure that my content was relevant throughout the entirety of my article and I made sure of this by proofreading it.

Evaluation 6: Technologies

Evaluation 6: Technologies

PC/Mac:

I used this technology to run the applications that I needed for this project, these include:

Photoshop:

I used photoshop in this project to edit images for my products, the images I edited include the main images of the front cover and main article and that shapes used to locate certain pages on the contents page.

I learn how to use photoshop and many of the techniques in photoshop used to edit images.

The advantages to using photoshop are the many tools it has to offer and the ability to edit specific parts through the use of layers. However the disadvantages to using photoshop are its complexity and its price (although it does offer a free trial online).

Indesign:

I used Indesign to assemble all of my images created in Photoshop, I also used it to aid the layout and structure of my products. By using this program throughout my project I learn how to arrange and setup a lout for things such as magazines and websites.

The advantages of using InDesign are its simplicity and some of the many layout techniques it offers. However a disadvantage of this technology is that it is not a free software.

Survey Monkey:

I used this online application to both collect and make graphs out of the results for my questionnaire. By using this technology I learnt how to make an online survey and how to turn the results into data shown by graphs.

An advantage of this technology is that is a free online software that is easy to use for its various functions but it has limitation such as only being able to post questionnaires with ten questions.

Google Drive and Google search:

I used google drive to create documents and to transfer some data between the two operating systems and I used google search for most of my research tasks. By using these two technologies I learnt the best method to work on this project between the two operating systems. If I only used one operating system I would not have needed Google drive.

The advantage of using google drive to store and transfer work is that it is simple and easy to use, it also provides its own versions of microsoft word, spreadsheet and powerpoint for free.

The only real disadvantage to this is that there is a limited amount of storage.

The advantages to using the google search engine over others is that it is quick and to the point and has less clutter and adds shown when searching. There are no disadvantages to using this technology.

Blogger:

I used this as my means of presenting my work. By using this technology I learn how to use it for some tasks such as posting text, images and other files like issu. An advantage to using this is that it is another free online application and it allows for easy uploads of files. But a disadvantage to using this is that it is easy to become messy and unorganized.

Camera:

I used this technology to take pictures for my main article, contents page and font cover. By using this technology I learn that it is important to have a good image for you front cover and therefore important how the picture is taken.

Lights:

I used lighting in my images to simply present the person in my images in an easy way. By using this I learnt that is important to have a well lit shot of whatever you are taking a picture of.

Evaluation 5: Addressing an Audience

Evaluation 5: Addressing an Audience

The main points of sale for my product would typically be in small retailers and corner shops such as newsagents or in music shops. The magazine would be sold in these places because it is where my target audience are likely to buy things.

The front cover of my magazine is likely to attract my target audience because it features an image of someone of the same age using a guitar and using direct address. It also isn't too flashy,it doesn't use too many different bright colours on on the front cover because this would deter my target audience. Another reason why the front cover would grab my target audience's attention is this inclusion of free items.

Other things on the front cover include the bold and easy to read masthead which is all in black, cover lines that direct the reader to specific pages and articles by using words like “must”. I have chosen the colour scheme of black cyan and grey because these colors work well together and are what is typically used on music magazines involving my selected genres. The font style is also what you would typically expect on a metal/punk music magazine, it is goth-like and looks sloppy but professional.

The language and content that I have used in my project is suited and appropriate for my target audience, some of the content that I have written for the main article contains slang and the content is what my target audience would consider interesting.

Throughout my magazine pieces I have used informal language and I made it as if the writer is addressing a friend. This would make the reader feel welcome and want to read on.

The main article has a relaxed feel to it and my use of photos aids this feeling because it is of a typical member of my target audience wearing casual and comfortable clothes.

The overall unique selling point for my magazine is the content and how it is delivered. I expect the images that I have chosen, the colour scheme, the style and language of the magazine and the content to attract my target audience.

All of these selling points were impacted by the survey that I game to multiple members of my target audience. The things that were impacted include the colour scheme, style of content and the image that was used on the front cover.

Evaluation 4: Target Audience

Evaluation 4: Target Audience

In terms of demographics my target audience (late teens/ young adults of both genders) is made up of both employed and unemployed people who live in middle-class areas.

In terms of psychographics my target audience often considered to be obsessed with posting things on social media, interested in the most recent fashion trends and interested in going out to parties. They will often be sociable and carefree people who are interested in punk/rock/metal/other similar genres of music and have a positive attitude towards them.

They lifestyle choices include making decision based on their immediate outcome rather than any long term effects, but will often take consideration for their friends with their main outcome being to have a good time. They would also be interested in other social activities like watching the latest movies with friends, finally they have bad shopping habits such as spending money on unnecessary things and junk food.

This is what a typical member of my target audience would look like. They are roughly 18 years of age, a college student who studies music and unemployed.

They would typically shop at small local corner shops, the music the would listen to would be things like punk rock and other similar genres of music, they probably wouldn't have a favorite TV program of film  but they would have favorite music artists and bands such as linkin park or green day.

Some of these things link into my audience research task such as the place of distribution having the most popular response as newsagents.

Audience:

Gender: Male 60% Female 40%

Median age: 19

Mostly unemployed

Mostly college/ university students

Interested in music

My target audience would buy/subscribe to my magazine because it offers the most recent information about punk, rock and metal music. It would also offer freebies such as posters and coupons.

My target audience as a whole are a viable target for a magazine as dome will have a source of income but not be home or car owners so they will have disposable money. Most people of this age are interested in music so would be interested in purchasing/subscribing to music magazines. This age group is also a good target because they are very social so information get spread easily which could provide good publicity for this magazine.