Evaluation
I think that my magazine does follow the conventions of a
real media product as it incorporates different elements of what you would find
on a professionally produced magazine. For example, I used the ‘Z rule’ on the
front cover of my magazine placing my masthead, the most important information,
and the barcode at the bottom, the least important information. I also included
the use of by-lines to communicate to the reader the information available in
the magazine and to persuade them to buy it and used a puff to advertise the
chance to win a prize which may further entice someone to buy the magazine.
I’ve also made sure that my contents page follows the 50:50 texts to picture
ratio that is often used in professional production of magazines. Though I did
follow these conventions I however did also try to challenge them for example I
did not include a date and issue number on my cover nor did I use a headline
which is often used to indicate a feature/main article. Another example of my
school magazine challenging the convention of a magazine is that I did not give
any clue as to what the main picture is about whereas in a professional
magazine a headline would probably be used to indicate this.
When creating my school magazine I wanted to make sure that
it was suitable and that it would also appealing for my target audience and the
many social groups within that. I wanted to display the horror/Halloween
element of my magazine but I also wanted to make sure that it was still
suitable for younger audiences that attend the school so I tried to use some
clipart and the also incorporate the darker side of the bloody floor and
handprint to appeal to the older audiences. I chose to use a sixth form
student for the front cover picture on
my magazine instead of a younger student
as they do not have to wear school uniforms and also because it would appeal to
the older students and also younger students as they may look up to the older
students and want be like them. I also made sure to include articles that would
be appealing to all year groups and social groups including teachers and
parents.
School magazines tend not to be distributed to anywhere else
other than the school as they are created and sold usually by younger students
(year eights) and targeted towards people who attend the school.
My school magazine is targeted toward the entire school
population, this includes parents and teachers. It is however primarily aimed
at students however as it involves articles that are geared more towards them
like revision tips and quizzes. Articles that may interest parents and teachers
however may be the term dates, Miss Raven’s welcome message and information
about upcoming trips.
I tried to attract my audience by creating an aesthetically
pleasing and interesting front cover and contents page that would catch their
attention and follow the conventions of a magazine. I used large text with a
clear and fun font that reflected the magazines seasonal theme. I also tried to
use a minimal amount of text on the front cover so it would not cover my main
image or make the page look too crowded but I still used bylines to try and
spark the reader’s interest and make them want to read on.
To create my front cover I used Adobe Photoshop, utilising
tools such as overlaying, the magic wand tool and the transformation tool. I
have, through creating my school magazine, acquired a basic knowledge on how to
use Photoshop. Through creating my front cover I have learned a lot about how
produce text and alter its appearance using blending options to make it stand
out more on the page, I have also learnt about how to overlay colours and
images to make them look more subtle and
realistic. I believe that when I start to create my music magazine I
will be a lot more confident using the Photoshop software as now I have
knowledge of how to use the tools and that this will result in a more
professional looking result.
