Question 2

Question 2: How does your product represent its target audience Does your representation challenge or support dominant ideas about your social group?

The target audience of Good Vibes is a male or female student or older who is a lover of Indie rock. The colour scheme is involves mid-blue, white and black. This may portray a masculine atmosphere; however, to give the magazine the female twist, the model within the main image on the front cover is female. There are three people in total in the Good Vibes magazine: two males and a female. The two males are in one band and the female is on the front cover as previously stated.. The front cover of the magazine is giving of the unisex aura which entices both genders of reader. To set the style and look for a typical reader of Good Vibes, the models have been carefully dressed to reflect the genre in a way which goes with the design of the actual page and the content which is written. This is very important as what the models are wearing suggesst the social group in which this magazine is mainly aimed at.

The pictures of Ocean Giants in the double page spread portray the genre because there is blue on one of the boys and red on the other, both as a yarn jumper which promotes the light indie rock. If any of the people where to wear all black then the magazine would suggest an audience of metal of heavy rock listeners.

 The ideas behind this social group are that Indie rock listeners are qerky people who have a ‘feel good’ atmosphere around them. The genre is a type of rock so there will be some rebellious attitude but the fact of the matter is, the Indie rock social group are not looked down on as much as the heavier rock social group. What I mean by this is that a lot of the older members of public see people who wear black and listen to rock and metal as thugs. There are many stereotypical attachments to each social group; with the heavier the rock being most looked down upon by the more mature people and the lighter music such as classical being adored by the mature public. The social group of Good Vibes stands in the middle.

Although it may be hard to identify this particular age group, Good Vibes challenges any negative connotations that are associated with the indie rock social group and boost the positive elements to ensure every type of person that this social group is a group to join not hate. Also, the social group that is hardest to understand is the most interesting one to be in.

Question 7

Question 7

What skills I have developed between tasks

In media, it is crucial that use a variety of skills to produce and present your work. These skills can be used through programmes such as InDesign, Prezzi and Slideshare. Here are skills that i have learnt in using new software and IT skills.

displaying information in a certain pattern which works with animation. Prezi is an animated presentation programme which requires knowledge and skill on the concept of animation and controlling the pattern it flows. This links to another skill i have aquired which is chronological organisation of my ideas and information. This means ordering slides in a way which flows in order of time; preventing the reader and audience becoming confused on what was written when. This is easily done on Prezi as you can simply drag the slides you want into what gaps to play in a certain order. It can't get much simpler to operate Prezi

Skills which i have learnt in using slideshare are technoligical

The skills I have personally learnt in media have been applied to producing a piece of course work that I’m proud of. For example, I have learnt how to create detailed flatplans of double page spread, contents page and the front cover. I have also learnt how to compare and analyse different conventions of magazines; comparing their features and applying some to my own music magazine. One other key skill is putting together and producing the actual magazine itself. Media covers a range of key skills which, if you master them, will get you the grade you need.

The preliminary task was to create a magazine regarding all the elements of a typical student. The skills I used in the task at the beginning of the year were basic compared to the ones I use now. As I had never used the editing programme before, it was hard to produce a student magazine that looked professional. On the other hand, everyone else was in the same position which eased the tension slightly. The main skills that had to be included in the prelimary task were mainly design skills as there was little research and evaluative writing to it. The designing and construction was on InDesgin; we had to put together a front cover that represented the right age group, and enticing the reader using the conventional methods we had been taught in lessons such as:  including puffs an plugs, a vibrant left third column and a bold, attractive masthead. Overall, the preliminary task was difficult as we had to apply techniques as we were learning them.

When comparing the skills I have learnt from the preliminary task to the skills used when creating the music magazine, you can see the difference in quality and structure. This is because I was able to advance the skills that I have learnt in the preliminary task further to create a better quality magazine as part of my coursework. One of the skills that I have advanced is the ability to create a better quality layout and structure to the front cover. I have used key features which we learnt in class such as the left third and mast heads to make the magazine look more professional. Some specific skills that I have learnt is how to find a 'path' which is used to make text write around the edge of a shape. This was useful in adding information in a tight area that limited space. Another skill that i have learnt is how to insert a 'drop capital'. These are mainly used for enlarging the first letter of a double page spread. Not only have i learnt how to insert one but i have also learnt how to change the colour and swatch of the drop capital so it fits in with my colour scheme. Also, I got inspiration from other, existing music magazine to see how the experts structured the contents of the front cover, double page spread and contents page. In the main task, there was a lot more research and planning when compared to the preliminary task. The main task expected you to research the genre you wanted to make, why it would sell and weather the magazine you will create will be popular. Also, there had to be comparisons of existing front covers, double page spreads and contents pages to dissect features that you plan you plan to include in your magazine. After you have completed the comparison and analysis, it is crucial that you create flat plans and drafts of each section of the magazine; these can be done on InDesign, however, I used WordDoc as is had more of a basic platform to work on. All that needed to be done was create a page layout of the section you were creating and locate were the features are on the page. For example, to show where the left third is, you only need a box to highlight the area you wish to use. This is why it was easier to use a basic program that I personally had experience of rather than a complex program to do a complicated job. So, there are many skills you have to learn when creating the magazine, much like the ones you would have to learn in real life if you were to produce a magazine. 

To conclude, the preliminary task was based on creative skills; introducing us to the software and challenging us to what we could create. The main task included a lot more planning and research which we had to use a range of skills for, such as analysis and the consumption of research. Also the create skills in the main task we slightly advanced as we had practiced them in the preliminary task. These skills include the 'path finder' skill and the 'drop capital' skill. Here are two images below, one of the preliminary task front cover ‘student.’ And the main task front covers ‘Good Vibes’ as you can see, the skills I have learnt have improved from one to the other.

Question1

In this question I will be comparing my music magazine layout and features with the music magazine 'Q'; how their conventions of a music magazine were adopted into my final design. 

As you can see, the front cover above is a well known music magazine that specializes in rock and light rock music. They are also known for including other popular genres as well. 

Most of the conventions in this magazine have been adopted by Good Vibes and included in the design content. For example, the use of boxing on the mast head to create a boldness to text and to make the magazine have a title which attracts the attention of readers. This has also worked well with the colour scheme and layout. On Good Vibes the various font types and sizes have been amplified as well as adopted onto the front cover. This will act as a puff and plug as well as enticing the reader into the features available to them. This is the main design feature that you are able to see in Good Vibes. All of the conventional features are also included in Good Vibes such as the Mast head, the left third, cover line and puffs and plugs.
The main image of Q magazine is very similar to the one of Good Vibes, this means it is easy to adopt and relate to the layout of the front cover. 

The conventions displayed in the contents page are displayed in both examples of music magazine. However they have been modified to attract the reader to different bits of the magazine.

The boxing theme has been consistent through the front cover and the contents page as this works well in creating a simply layout that looks advanced. The titles of the contents pages on both magazine are similar; they have similar layouts but different colour schemes and the boxes have been slightly altered from each other. Once again, Good Vibes has adopted this theme and put its own twist on it. This has been done for the contents box also; however, the only feature that has been recreated from 'Q' is the white background as it is an easy background to put most coloured  text on. Both magazines have obedient colour schemes also, as they both have them throughout the magazine which adds the professional design to them.

This double page spread has very little features that have been adopted by Good Vibes. The only thing that has been recreated was the large image, however it has been shortened to fit in more images underneath. One other thing that Good Vibes has included in theirs that is in 'Q' is the concept of using drop capitals. On the other hand this was a necessity and had to be included either way.



Good Vibes has a fairly basic double page spread that has a professional look - I think- which also contains attractive and professional images that were taken in a photography studio. The mid-blue form the colour scheme has been amplified in a way in which it determines the title as the band name and carries on as the colour of the text of the introduction. It is important to not add to much blue to distract the readers attention from the story. The black has remained minuscule as the genre is light which requires a light colour scheme. The conventional feature in this double page spread include the pull out quote and an image as well as an enlarged letter at the beginning of the paragraph which has been included and changed into the Good Vibes font of 'century Gothic'

Overall, Good Vibes has included design features of the popular music magazine 'Q' and 'NME' and has incorporated them into its own design to fit the magazines theme, target audience and genre as well as including all the conventional features that are needed in order to make a music magazine popular. 

Questions 4 and 5

Above is a video explaining a typical reader of Good Vibes; what they look like and their hobbies. However, the video only answers those categories specifically. Other features that need to be mentioned are age group, other media sources a typical reader of Good Vibes consumes and how they spend their time

A typical reader of Good Vibes will be in the age group of 15-25; meaning the music magazine is based on people just finishing school, college and uni students. Obviously it applies to people who chose not to carry on education, however, the majority of the magazines' audience will be in one of these categories. The reason as to why this is, is because this is the age that people start to branch off from the 'mainstream' music that everyone listens to such as pop music, and start to find their own individual bands and artists which they form a personal connection with. Good Vibes is a music magazine which supports this idea and holds a wide range of indie rock music choice, enabling readers to find good indie rock music bands easily. There is, however a percentage of people who will not branch off and start to suddenly love indie rock; many people may stay listening to pop and some may branch way off and take an interest to metal and heavy rock.

All age groups are exposed to media almost all day everyday, however, different conventions of media are aimed at different age groups. The main source of media that the age group of Good Vibes will be most exposed to is the internet. This is a source of media which has a particularly increased impact on people within this age group who are still in education, this is because schools, colleges and universities all incorporate their learning with software which mostly uses the internet. As the age group increases, there is more freedom and incorporation of the internet within education. While older age groups of 55+ will be reading newspapers for news, the good vibes age group will be looking at online versions such as the very popular Mail Online. Other example of media that a typical reader of Good Vibes will consume is TV adverts. This age group is known for spending a great deal of time in front of the TV if not on the internet, they will be consuming media adverts in breaks between shows, meaning that TV advertising is an effective way to get a point across to a younger generation. Also, linking back to online media, another big example of the internet which is constantly being bombarded with this particular age group is social media site such as Twitter and Facebook. As most members of society, especially 15-25 year olds has a smart phone, they are able to access the internet and social network sites through apps of browsers. They are constantly consuming breaking news and events as well as other peoples issues and statuses. This is one of the biggest parts of media which is consumed by this age group on a daily basis. This paragraph also demonstrates how the Good Vibes age group spends their time; obviously readers will have other hobbies to spend their time on such as playing an instrument, partying with friends, and clubbing.

question 3

Question 6

Below is my prezi based on the technology used in the magazine industry and the importance of them in the printing process.

                                             

Final copy of double page spread

This is my final piece for my double page spread for Good Vibes. As you can see, there have been some vast improvements applied compared to my previous drafts. For example, the page layout is more eye-catching and neat whereas the last drafts seemed plain and dull. The coloured text boxes do catch the readers eye as well as the pull-out quote which has just been added. As you look towards the bottom left of the double page spread, there is a link to Instagram to see the images of the band. This addition of on-line features creates a modern twist to the magazine. Magazines like Q and NME use this technique to prove to audiences and readers that music magazines aren't being left behind technologically speaking.
The thumbnail column of extra images down the left hand side compliments the characteristics that are displayed in the interview.
Overall, this final piece is one that was predicted what it would look like; the colours and layout is exactly as I had imagined and I feel that this double page spread contributes well to the magazine as a whole.

1st draft double page spread

This is the first draft I have created for my double page spread. Although it may not look very detailed, the majority of the page will be an image or images of Ocean Giants. The interview will be one entire response to some questions that a reporter has asked the band and it will be set in the two main columns that the trext is currently in as well as three smaller boxes under the image.
I have yet to find and photograph images of the band as it is difficult to find time when everyone is free to do so. I plan to take them outdoors or in some sort of building with good lighting.
The photography will be taken by me, however, as I am playing a role in the band, I plan to use a timer to give me time to get into position before taking multiple shots over a certain period of time.
I also plan to include a pull-out quote that will feature under the main images that will be in the top right corner of the double page spread.

2nd double ppage spread draft

This is my second draft for my double page spread for Good Vibes.
As you can see, the pull-out quote has been added as well as some additional text. This had given more body to the layout which keeps the reader drawn to the story. Also, there has been an enlarged letter at the beginning of the interview to add a professional touch to the magazine and I have added another blue box to put the thumbnail photos in. This is the shade of blue that I have used throughout the magazine; both on the contents page and the front cover.
I plan to get the images ASAP and would like them now to be indoors with good lighting.
Apart from that and some other tweaks and changes, I am finished.