Evaluation Question 5

How did you attract/address your target audience? 

To begin planning to make my product to attract a target audience i conducted a survey for my primary audience research to collect some direct information as to what people want to see in magazines. Through this research I found that as an interest, the latest fashion trends are not as popular as video games, which i would include possibly as adverts or features of what is trending within my magazine. From my primary research I also found that interviews were a preferred feature of magazines, meaning to appeal to my audience i have included more interviews within my media product. To ensure I was able to draw in an audience I included a feature of an "exclusive" interview on the front cover of the magazine. 

I also completed secondary audience research by looking at the reader profiles of professional music magazines such as Kerrang! and Rocksound. From this research i was able to create an initial profile for my target audience, giving me initial ideas of how to present my magazine and what include within it to attract the target audience. 

Production Choices and Audience Feedback

When creating my product, some choices I made during the production stage drifted away from my original plans of what would be included on my magazine and how it would look. Looking first at the front cover, the inclusion of the red flannel shirt and ripped jeans brings an element of the genre to the page through the introduction of the fashion which it features. However, 20% of people who answered my survey stated that it is unclear that my magazine is about music. To make this more clear I could include props of musical instruments such as guitars on the front cover to make it clearer to the audience the main theme of my magazine.

The audience I attracted to my product differed from my target audience and looking at my audience feedback it is clear that as i tried to attract a skater audience, answers within my survey show that 77% of responses feel that my magazine is targeted at an Alternative/ Casual rocker audience. As seen by these results there is also the possibility of attracting a wider audience to my product which would be better as it would cause more sales of my product.

By including an unconventional approach to the main image on my fron cover, I have managed to  include a feature which attracts the attention of my audience and looks the most professional, as seen by my audience feedback. 88% of responses stated that my magazine looked professional which is a positive to attract an audience to my product.

Evaluation Question 4

Who would be the target audience for your media product?

The intended target audience of my media product males and females between the ages of 16 and 24, interested in the Pop-Punk genre of music, as seen in the above audience profile. 

However looking back on my magazine I feel that the audience my magazine would attract would be general rock and alternative music fans. If I were to recreate my media product I would alter the costume of the models into merchandise of Pop-Punk bands, in similar costuming the the people featured on my audience profile to bring my magazine back to the original Pop-Punk theme. 

Evalution Question 3

The Role of the Distributor 

A distributor is an individual or a company who purchase and represent products such as magazines to sell to the market and advertise the product to the public. The distributor ensures an increased market coverage of their products within stores which the target audiences visit. this increased coverage can ensure a purchase of the product whenever consumers need it. Within these stores, distributors can also organise discounts or coupons on their products to draw in a wider audience looking for an offer, and they will also carry out local promotions.

How I'll distribute my product.

Kerrang! magazine are one example of a magazine which uses distributing company, Frontline, to distribute their magazine to the market. If my product were to be distributed by Frontline, it could be successful due to the companies knowledge of the target audience and ways to promote my product. However, Frontline or similar distribution companies would not want to publish my magazine as it is similar to magazines such as Kerrang! and as my product targets a similar audience and does not target a 'gap' within the market, my magazine distribution may be more successful if independently distributed similar to Rocksound.

Rocksound magazine take a more independant approach to distributing their magazines. They use an independent publisher and distribute their magazines themselves in store and give away free copies of their product away at Concerts outside of the venues. 

To promote my product online, a marketing option may include features on social networks or physically promoting my product by giving away free copies of my magazine to try and draw in an audience. I will also offer digital download copies of my magazine for people who would rather read my magazine online.Within my research and planning I previously stated that my magazine may be more successful if published and distributed independently.

Evaluation Question 2

Evaluation Question 1

Final Pieces

Production Updates: Contents Page

Production Progress: Front Cover

Costume Evaluation

Image One

 Image One

as mentioned in my research, i have featured ripped jeans as a piece of costuming as a representation of fashion within the genre. Another representation of the fashion within the genre is the feature of a flannel shirt or in this case hooded shirt which has been left open showing a plain black t-shirt. With the reoccurring feature of the colour black is a typical representation within the pop-punk genre, and the colour red also carries negative connotations of emotions such as anger and aggression. If i were to retake this photo again, i would consider having the second female character (left) wearing all black, similar to the male character, to show the female lead (centre) as the only character wearing a feature of colour as a clear signifier of the importance of the character.

Image Two

Image Two

With the costume consisting of all black and is dark and negative connotations, it connects into the stereotypes of costuming in the genre. The pale complexion of the character also emphasises the darkness and the different shades of the costume. If I were to retake this image and alter the costuming I would take into consideration the feature of jewelry such as necklaces and bracelets to add more to the costuming with the possibility of addition of some colour into he all black costuming. 

Double Page Spread: Secondary Image Choices

Image one

Image two

I will use a selection of additional images on my double page spread to give the reader a closer, humorous look into the life of the band. By using alternative images, I will break away from the conventions of just a singular image on my double page spread.

Image One

The positioning of the band show the stages of authority within the group. Keeping one model in the middle of the group is a clear indicator of who the "front woman" of the band is. The body language the male character is slightly slouched compared to the "front woman" of the band who is stood upright showing more to the different levels of authority within the band.

Image Two

This image shows the connection between the two female character as stronger than the connection between either of them to the male character. The male band member is wearing all black meaning he blends in well with the background, showing how his character is less significant than the other two.

Image three

Image Three

This image shows how the two female characters look up to the male character. The way in which the front woman has been positioned in the middle of the group clearly indicating her importance. The variation of colours and brightness also shows the different levels of authority within the band with the front woman wearing the brightest colours of red, with connotations of anger and aggression which links in with stereotypes of the genre.

Choice of Front Cover and DPS main images

Image One

Image Two

I was able to narrow down from my selection of images taken on the day of the photoshoot two images to use as my main image for my front cover and my double page spread. 

Image One

With this image i tried to recreate the look I wanted which was on my flat plans yet none of the models are looking into the camera, and from the selection of photos taken to fit the flat plan this was the best option. However , because none of the models are looking into the camera i was unable to use this image for my front cover so i decided to use it as the main image on my double page spread instead. 

Image Two 

with all models looking forward in this image I decided this would be a fun image to use as the main image on the front cover of my magazine. With using this image it is non conventional as it moves away from the standard image of the band simply standing there. With all models looking towards the camera it seems as though making eye contact with the reader which is conventional of music magazines.

Photoshoot Outcomes

This is a presentation of the images which were taken for my production from a planned photoshoot. Here i have a selection of images i could use for my front cover, contents page and double page spread. As there are more group images, i will use those for my front cover and double page spread. the single model photos will be best suited for my contents page. With all images taken on the same date, the mise-en-scene of each group image is the same which adds to the continuity of the feature on the front cover and the main image on the double page spread itself.

images taken before this photo shoot may be included in my production, however this selection of images presents better examples to use. I will test the look of previous images in my production.

Production Action Plan (Shooting Schedule)

Call Sheet

Model Release Form

Risk Assessment

Project Title: Magazine Photoshoot

Shooting Date:  19^th December 2016

Location: Studio

Hazards which apply to location:

·      Cables

·      Costume / Make-up

·      Fire / Flammable Material

·      Lighting

Evaluating Hazards

Hazard- Cables

What could cause harm?

Tripping over cables and falling with the chance of causing injury

How will the risk be managed?

All cables will be pushed to the side and kept to a minimum to avoid any chances of tripping.

Hazard- Costume/ make-up

What could cause harm?

One model could have an allergic reaction to the makeup used fro the photo shoot.

How will the risk be managed?

Makeup will be kept to a minimum and female models are to bring their own makeup so that it is suitable for their skin.

Hazard- Fire / Flammable Materials

What could cause harm?

Fabrics over lights could catch alight.

How will the risk be managed?

Turning the lights off when we are not using them.

Hazard-Lighting

What could cause harm?

Models could look into the lights and blind themselves

How will the risk be managed?

Covering the lights with white fabric will dim the brightness of the light and position the lights so that they do not blind the models.

Reece

Flat Plan Comparison

Prelim. Front cover

Prelim. Contents Page

my production front cover includes puffs which are formatted in a more appropriate place than which were included  as alternative sell lines on my prelim task. i have also included most features of a magazine front cover on my production task. The mast head font of my front cover is also the same for my contents page for continuity, similar to my preliminary tasks.

unlike my preliminary contents page I have included different categories to separate the different articles which readers may hold interest in. similarly to my preliminary contents page i have included a caption to go with the images on my contents page.

overall i feel that my production flat plans are generally better than my preliminary flat plans as i have included more features of a magazine yet in a more simplistic manner to avoid the front cover from looking too busy and compacted with information.

Production Front Cover 

Production Contents Page

Production Double Page Spread

Flat Plans

These are my flat plans for my production which show a basic idea of text layout, images and colour scheme across the featured pages. i have chosen to continue my plan of featuring a red and blue colour scheme across the pages. I have also considered the colour scheme within the planned images.