what have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

For this project I had to learn how to use Photoshop and Quark express. Both software's are used to make my magazine look like a real media product in different ways. They both have different tools and techniques to give different effects to my magazine. I used Photoshop to edit images and used tools such as brush tools, colour editing, contrast editing, cropping, brightness editing, and an airbrushing tool. Photoshop was used to create my front cover and contents page.

I also learnt how to use Quark express effectively to make my double page spread. I used columns for my interview so that my layout and font looked professional.

When taking the pictures to feature in my magazine, I had to use a digital SLR camera and learnt how zooming in and contrasting of colours was useful and effective. I also learnt how different lighting affected a picture, as it can make certain features stand out, and also different backgrounds for the photo's are effective as this can make the model stand out, or blend in.

My preferred software to use is Photoshop, as I found this is was a lot easier to use than Quark express, and I had used it before so I knew what tools to use. I also found it made the magazine look a lot professional as I knew what I was doing. It's very easy to use once you know what the tools are, where as I found Quark express took up a lot of my time as I had to toy around with it and once I got the hang of it, it became easier.

I also found using the internet to gather my research was a great help. It meant I had a wide area of research and meant I could view magazines I had never even heard of before. I also used 'dafont.com' to get different fonts for my magazine to make it unique. I then used 'Blogger.com' to keep a blog of every step of my magazine process. I had never heard of blogger before, but found it very easy to use straight away.

who would be the audience for your media product?

The audience for my media product would be both men and women aged 16-25, who are into music that has meaning. My magazine would feature interviews, fashion and other articles such as the lastest news and reviews. On a jicnar scale they would be about C1/C2 and they would be aspriers and hedonists.

what kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

My magazine is aimed at a younger generation aged 16-25, who are loyal readers and will buy the latest issue as soon as it comes out. My magazine is mainstream and therefore be distributed by larger distributors such as Frontline. They are one of the largest distributors and distribute to the largest retail outlets across the country. The benefits of having my magazine distributed through a major company is so that my media product is more accessible to the public, which therefore results in profit and larger sales. My magazine would be sold in large stores such as Tesco, WhSmiths, newsagents and music stores, such as HMV which are the stores my audience visit. This is so that it can reach a wider audience, and is available to more people.

how does your media product represent particular social groups

Media Powerpoint

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In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media product.

Flava - My magazine (urban)

Q magazine (indie/rock)

Top of the pops magazine (pop)

Vibe Magazine (Urban)

My magazine is similar to the real media products in many ways, such as language, technique, style but is also different in these ways to make it unique.

Talking about my magazine, in comparison with other music magazines (as shown above Q, Top of the Pops and Vibe) you can see many similarities between my magazine 'Flava' and professional music magazines. Firstly, all have a masthead, straplines, puffs, fonts, screamers, coverlines, use of text and images etc so therefore I have included all of these in my magazine. However it's easy to see which magazine is for which genre due to differences they have to target their audience. For example Top of the Pops have reversed out coverlines, as this gives a younger look, whereas I felt reversed out coverlines gave my magazine cover a less sophisticated look and made it look out of place and unprofessional. I also chose not to use a Serif font as I felt this made my cover look less sophisticated and more towards a female audience, as it looks more swirly than sans-serif, therefore I chose to use Sans-Serif. Q, Top of the pops and Vibe all use this font. My magazine contained no bleeding as I had my picture as a background and all the text on top, however all 3 of the professional magazine contain bleeding on the masthead, this connotes that the magazine does not need to show the title in order to sell. The colours used depend on what audience your selling to. Top of the pops uses pinks and purples to attract to young girls, where as Q has a much more sophisticated look and uses red, black and white, and has a mellow effect. Vibe use blue, yellow, orange and white which have a professional image but also makes it stand out, so it doesn't blend in. For my magazine cover I used the colours red, blue and white so there is no colour clashes which makes it look a lot more professional and not in your face, but makes you notice it. My magazine also features a contents page as does the real magazines. It features page numbers, articles and pictures. However it can not be compared as all contents pages are laid out differently. As long at it features these 3 things, then it should look like a real magazine contents page. Also most magazines will feature more than one double page spread. I had to only make one, however if I was doing the whole of my magazine I would have created more. Most magazine's double page spread's are interviews with celebrities. Therefore this is how I chose to do my double spread. Most interviews will feature numerous pictures of the celebrity or celebrities and then a small paragraph before the questions start. The questions will be in either bold or a colour, with a different colour/style font for the answer so you can tell them apart.

Both my magazine and real professional magazines, have all the right sections to a magazine and look like real media products, however all magazines have different styles and features due to what musical genre they are, therefore meaning they don't look the same. How the magazine is styled and wrote depends on what genre they are as this makes them look different to other magazines. As real media magazines have a lot more money and software to use on their products, theirs looks more professional than mine.

I chose to create a urban/hip hop magazine called 'Flava'. I chose this name as I felt this best suited the genre of the magazine, as it's an urban word and is wrote in a slang form. I chose to use my friend Shelley Haden as my model, as I felt she could give the image that I wanted.

Front cover

Contents page

Double page spread

audience reasearch - results.

I have created a moodboard with images that relate to the audience of my magazine. I posted it on Facebook and also asked 16 people what they thought. With it i asked a questionaire. Underneath the questions, is the most popular answer.

1. Do you agree with the artists I have chosen to demonstrate a hip-hop magazine? If not, please state what artists I should add?

Yes.

2. Which colours do you feel suit the magazine most appropriately?

Black and blue.

3. Do you agree with the fashion labels I chose to represent hip-hop clothing? If not, what other brands would you choose?
Yes.

4. Do you feel anything is missing, if so what?
No but maybe more 'bling'.

5. What name do you think suits an urban/RnB/Hip hop magazine most?
Flava.

6. Which font style do you think is most suitable?
3rd & 7th font style had joint amount of votes.

7. Do you think I should include extras such as music reviews, interviews, and other musical genres (reggae/grime/drum and bass) in my magazine? Why?
Yes, to add variety/make it more interesting.

8. What is the maximum price you’d spend on a magazine of this kind?

£2.76 (average price if added together and divided by 16)

9. Where would you expect to see my magazine sold?
Large stores, supermarkets and newsagents.

10. What age range do you think is most suitable?

18-27.

11. What comes to mind when you think of an ‘Urban Magazine’?
'Gangster' 'black people' 'money' 'cars' 'music'.

For the first question, most people agreed with the artists i chose to represent hip-hop, with a few adding extra names such as 'kid cudi' and 'drake'. This is because i only chose 6 artists, therefore people may feel their favourite artists are missing, so therefore add them in. However 13 out of 16 people said they agreed.

For the second question, everyone had different opinions. 9 people said black, 5 people said blue, 4 people said purple, 4 people said gold, 3 people said bright colours, 3 people said red, and 2 people said silver. As I gave a variety of colour choices, the answer was likely to be varied.

For the third question, everyone agreed with the fashion labels I chose, with no suggestions being made.

For the fourth question, everyone agreed with the images and words I chose to display on my moodboard, except for a few people thought I needed to add more 'bling' to give a stronger 'gangsta' effect.

For the fifth question, there was almost a split amount of votes between 'trubble' and 'flava', with flava gaining more votes.

audience research.

The audience for my music magazine will be of mixed genders aged 18+ as my magazine may contain adult content. They would prefer to read about lyrics and meanings rather than just browse the pictures as music is a story to them. They would buy the magazine for information not for gossip, however the female readers may like to know the latest news.

They may not have a favourite colour as i doubt they care, but if they did, it'd probably be red, or blue, and probably hot colours for the women. They would probably like to look at the pictures to see the latest fashions and gadgets, and the men may like to look at pictures of the women.

The readers of my magazine, may not live with their parents and may be in a full-time job or in the music business. They may not be in education due to 'attitude' but they may be in college, the females studying 'hair dressing or beauty' and the males studying 'mechanics or building'. They may work in sport shops or high street fashion shops, but never somewhere down market as this is bad for their image. Some of my readers may not have a job and be on the 'doll' but still aspire to be something, but don't have the motivation. If they do live with their parents they may stay at home in the days as they probably don't go to school, and then go out on the night with their friends. If they drive, they probably drive around the city/town they live in, playing loud music of their favourite artists. Otherwise they may go out to underground nightclubs, and maybe illegal parties.

They most likely smoke marijuana and cigarettes. They may shop at JD sports, JJB and High street fashion shops such as 'Topshop and H&M'. For designer labels, they may get it cheap from somewhere or online. They may watch programmes such as 'my wife and kids' 'skins' 'pimp my ride' 'cribs' and 'run's house'. They may watch music channels such as 'MTV base' and 'Channel aka'. They may have alot of tattoos, and most probably have a criminal record. This may not relate so much to the women. The women most probably like to dance and drink bacardi and coke, or cocktails. Whereas the men may drink alcoholic drinks such as 'Budvar' or something more upmarket to make them look good. The men may have posters on their walls of their favourite artists, where as the women would have the men they are most attracted to, half dressed, as their phone wallpaper or computer background. The women have acrilyic nails on a regular basis, and both genders wear alot of jewellery.

They will wanna know all about up coming concerts, album releases, new artists and other latest information about their favourite artists.

My magazine will be distributed every month by Frontline and sold in major stores such as WhSmiths and large supermarkets so it is easy accessible and has a wider reader scale. A website and radio station would also be created, to allow the audience to listen to their favourite music and to know the latest updates inbetween issues.

research - distribution.

There are two types of magazine distribution, Major and Independant. The scale between the two is the main difference. Major distributors are well known for selling popular magazines, for instance, Frontline is one of four mainstream distributors along with Marketforce, Comag and Seymour which distributes major magazines such as Heat and Take a Break. These type of magazines produced are main-stream and appeal to a wider audience who will frequently purchase them. The companies that publish these magazines are huge conglomerations such as the BBC, Haymarket and Bauer, Bauer publish the most popular monthly music magazine, Q. The audience for this type of magazine are people that are set on achieving what they want and have a strong love for music. Q uses a 'multi-platform strategy' of distribution, such as a music channel on television and radio, which therefore makes it accessible to a large audience and also people who may want to know the latest music news without having to buy the magazine. Mainstream distributors are very money motivated, and a profit and good sales are their main aim. Mainstream magazines are sold in places such as Adsa, Tesco, WhSmith, newsagents, and other large stores that sell magazines. This shows how much money goes into planning and distributing these magazines and how large the scale is in which magazines are distributed.

Independant distributors are very different from major distributors as money is not there main priority. Vice is an independant magazine sold in stores such as Urban Outfitters, Size and Retro Bizarre. The audience of Vice, are commited audience, and will go to the places Vice is sold and know exactly the type of magazine they are purchasing. The audience of Vice are alternative and non-following metropolitans aged 18-30, who like to set their own trends and live in large cities. Vice are their own distributors which shows independance and a tight company. Sales of Vice do not need to be near enough as large as Frontline, as Vice are their own publishers as well as distributors, they do not need to make a large fortune to break even, as not as much money has been put into it.

detailed research into forms and conventions part two.

I have chosen to create a music magazine of the Hiphop/RnB/Reggae/Urban as this is the genre of music i know most about, so will beable to write a lot and use my knowledge in my magazine. The readers of 'Vibe' and 'XXL' are Aspirers/radicals, Hedonists (social value) and of a C2/D jicnar scale. Reasearching magazines from my genre will help give a better idea about my magazine as I know who my competition are but also I can use them to get a better idea as to what the magazine has to be about and what it should feature. I can use the different styles and layout to make my magazine unique and maybe combine the two.

detailed reasearch into forms and conventions.

For my main task i am going to produce a music magazine cover, contents page and a double page spread. I have chosen the hiphop/RnB/urban/reggae musical genre. I searched for 3 magazines similar to the one i will be creating. These are 'the source', 'XXL' and 'Vibe'. I have chosen all covers with Lil Wayne on the cover, so i can get a true comparison. On all front covers, the three main colours used were red, black and white, this shows quite a basic layout, with not very much variety. However it gives the cover a sophisticated look. other than magazines such as 'popstar' which have bright colours to grab attention in a more childish way.

For my main research i will only use two magazines, which will be 'vibe' and 'XXL' as these are the most popular. i will use these as inspiration for creating my magazine, as they are from my genre.


Here is a cover of Vibe magazine. The rapper 'Lil wayne' is the main feature. Vibe in the english dictionary means 'a distinctive emotional atmosphere; sensed intuitively'. However vibe is a very common slang word, used regualrly by people of an urban nature and younger people. I went on the urban dictionary (searched by Google) and it states that Vibe means 'rhythm', 'signals or messages sent out to someone' and 'chill'. This then links to the genre of the magazine, as it's a music magazine so 'rhythm' suits perfectly, and you normally 'chill' with a magazine. It is also used frequently by the audience of the magazine, so therefore has a less formal approach to it's readers, as it can have various meanings. The cover uses red, white, black and yellow fonts, which arent sexist colours, so therefore the magazine is for both males and females. Some fonts are in bold, italic and outlined, this is so certain text stands out and it doesn't all look the same. The main feature is rap star Lil Wayne, who is pictured in a medium close up, wearing a black suit. Text along side him says 'I'm more afraid of life than death' which may relate to the suit (funeral, judgement day). Lil wayne bleeds into the title of the magazine, which suggests he's the main appeal and the magazine doesnt need to show the title for readers to want to buy it. It also suggests that he may be more important than the magazine or that the readers dont need to beable to see the magazine title to know what magazine it is. The magazine contains music reviews, celebrity gossip column, up-coming artists and several photo spreads with the latest fashions. This links to the fact it's a music magazine as legendary hip hop artists such as Sean Combs (P Diddy), Nelly and 5O cent have all created urban clothing labels. Vibe usually shoots artists, rather than bands, seeing as there aren't many bands in the hiphop/RnB genre. Most other features within the magazine, are displayed along the right hand side, with some on the left hand side, which appears to break up the amount of text. The text 'Lil Wayne' is the only other font in red apart from the masthead, which immediately attracts your eyes. This shows that Lil Wayne is very important and this is what they want the reader to see first. He's the only picture featured, which shows he is the main sell for this issue. The cover features alot of straplines, but does feature two screamers, 'Yeah!' and 'Bowlin'!' which are both quite informally spelt, as most young people and some older people spell yes as 'yeah' (and also say it like 'yeah') so its then connecting with the readers. Also many people of an urban nature and alot of young people, drop the g's on the end of 'ing' words when they speak. 'Bowlin'' is a perfect example of this, and therefore gives a laid-back approach.






As you can see, XXL magazine is very similar to Vibe as the colours selected are almost identical and they both use a Sans Serif font in bold and italic. However, the title this time is a red filled square, with the letters XXL in white. XXL means extra extra large, which can be in collosal/mass, or in clothes size. This doesnt relate to the genre of the magazine, as this has nothing to do with music, however it may relate to how popular and big the magazine is, as they may think its very popular and well-known. This gives an 'ignorant' approach as they may feel the magazine is 'extra extra large'. This time Lil Wayne isn't shot in a medium close up, but in a medium long shot. Once again he is covering the masthead, just like Vibe, which shows the magazine doesn't need to show it's name to sell. This magazine doesn't have any screamers, but does have one strapline. 'Lil wayne' is written as a reversed out coverline in black, italic font, with a white background. It's the largest text on the cover, which therefore immediately draws the readers attention. He is wearing a black t-shirt with 'I am hip-hop' written on in white, which immediately gives away that he is a legend in the industry, or so he thinks he is. He is posing with both thumbs facing towards him, with a smug expression on his face, as if to say 'look at me'. This matches Lil Wayne's personality as in many of his lyrics he states he's the 'best rapper alive' and that he 'is it'. The magazine contains nearly identical features to 'Vibe'. XXL features music reviews, celebrity interviews, and the latest fashions. Fashion is a crucial part of the magazine, as the one of the most important things to the urban lifestyle, is their 'swagger', this involves looking the part, and wearing the latest clothes. XXL is focused more towards rap and hip-hop, whereas Vibe is more RnB. XXL is more male orientated as there isnt many female rap artists, with only featuring a female on the cover once. However, this does not make it sexist, as if there was more female rap artists out there, I'm sure they'd be featured. It IS a unisex magazine, but just features male artists. Underneath the masthead there is a puff, which says 'Hiphop on a higher level'. The cover looks a lot more bare than the Vibe cover, as there's not a lot of text, which gives it a less professional look.

Here is the cover of Lil Waynes, new unrealeased album 'Rebirth'. He is pictured slouching on an old fashioned sofa, which gives the effect, he doesn't care and is laid-back. He has an electric guitar on his lap, but isn't touching it at all, which connotes he's not bothered about it, and that he's done using it. He has a mean expression on his face, but even though hes wearing sunglasses, you can still tell exactly what his facial expression is. The album title 'Rebirth' suggests that he has been born again, which may indicate that it's a fresh start, or a new beginning. There is very little font on the cover, with the only words situated along the middle of the cover saying 'Lil Wayne Rebirth'. Lil Wayne is wrote in bold, white font, which makes it stand out against the beige background. Rebirth is then wrote in red, which doesnt stand out as much as the white font. This may be because his face is far away from the camera, and he has sunglasses on, so people may not know who he is, and at a quick glance, all they see is the words 'Lil Wayne' which will sell it its self. The album cover is different to the magazines as it has neutral tones, and no bright colours, where as the magazines, have white, black and red, which are all quite in-your-face colours. This is something to consider when creating my magazine.

initial research into forms and conventions part two.

After finding three magazines from different genres, i have decided to base my magazine on hiphop/R'n'B/grime/reggae genres. This is because this is the type of music i listen to and know alot about, and also i feel there is not a magazine like this in the magazine industry. I now need to find 3 magazines from the musical genre i have chose and evaluate them.