Comparing Music Magazines

Magazine	Price and no. of pages in magazine	Sections of magazine and no. of pages per section	Sample of advertising	Typical articles (give example headings etc)
Top of the Pops	£2.30 Issue 192 42 pages	Celebrity gossip 12 pgs Party special 1 pg Shameful celeb slip ups 2 pgs How to get a boy like me? 1 pg Celeb interview 3 pgs New Moon 11 pgs Posters 5 pgs Tour secrets 2 pgs Real life 4 pgs Horoscopes 1 pg Quizzes 1 pg	Sky HD Easy piano – Nintendo DS Workshop St Trinnian’s 2 Build-a-bear	Feel the fear and do it anyway JLS do battle Oops! How to get a boy  Like me? The howling heart throb
XXL	£3.95 Issue Oct 10 146 pages	Advertising 27 pgs Music 49 pgs Posters 10 pgs Fashion 4 pgs Real life 8 pgs Information 21 pgs	Nissan Nike Mazda Rockawear	First of the month Pop shots Cooss light
The Source	£3.95 Issue Aug/Sep 10 96 pages	Reviews 5 pgs Coast to coast 3 pgs Cloths 13 pgs Stories 33 pages Advertising 8 pgs Music 13 pgs	Fila Conjure Max fresh Takers Jones	Reviews Gone hunting
Q	£3.99 Issue March 10 146 pages	Sugababes 4 pgs Gorillaz 9 pgs Mika 5 pgs John Cousablance 6 pgs Wayne Rooney Vs Kelly Jones 6 pgs Access all areas 12 pgs Soap box 4 pgs New to Q 5 pgs Cash for questions 3 pgs My record collection 2 pgs Q Hero 4 pgs A round with … 7 pgs Q50 2 pgs Q quiz 1 pg Last requests 1 pg Q review 24 pages	Falcon Audi HMV Ebay Samsung	Contents Access all areas Soap box Gorillaz

Action Plan

week 1 - 3rd Jan 2011
 Action plan
Music magazine comparrison
Textual analysis

Week 2 -10th Jan2011 
Poll to decide on magazine name
Audience questionnaire and analysis
finish textual analysis

Week 3 - 17th Jan 2011
Internet research into institution and readership figures

Week 4 - 24th Jan 2011
Photoshoot
Constution
Drafting of pages

Week 5 - 31st Jan 2011
Audience feedback
Construction - layout analysis

Week 6 - 7th Feb 2011
Construction
Font analysis

Week 7 - 14th Feb 2011
Colour analysis
Treatment sheet

Week 8 - 21st Feb 2011
Evaluation
(finishing off)

Week 9 - 7th March 2011
Evaluation

Deadline - Friday 11th March 2011

Final Post

I have now finished my Student magazine coursework, i am now goint to start my music magazine coursework.

Evaluation

In what way does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

The front cover has to include a mast head to show the title of the magazine. It also needs to include the price of the magazine, what is included in the magazine e.g. celebrity gossip, a sub heading. A typical contents page has the page numbers on the left hand side with what is included in each page and pictures on the right hand side. I included this in my content page by designing it in publisher and adding pictures that I took on the right hand side. Most magazines use a picture as their background for their front cover but I didn’t use my main picture as my background, I added a coloured background. I added a picture of my competition prize in my front cover to make it more noticeable. I used a colour scheme for my magazine and made sure the colours I used go together but I didn’t use too many different colours. I think I stayed with the convention and didn't make my magazine look very different to other magazines. My front cover is very simple like other magazines so that it is easy to understand and straight to the point, I didn't put too much information on my front cover because it would make it look less attractive and won't interest the target audience.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

My magazine is mainly for students, I have represented them as people who are studying and learning. In a couple of peoples the person in the pictures is smiling showing they are happy and in the other pictures they are doing different things, like reading and writing. This shows that they have to study. I think that I didn't stereotype teenagers in my magazine by taking pictures of them studying to show that they enjoy studying and not always being stereotypical. On my front cover picture I used a group picture to that they are friendly.

What kind of media institution might disturb your media product and why?

My magazine is different to others because as well as career advice it also includes things like celebrity gossip and movie reviews. It also includes interviews with the pupils at the college and students that have left the college. So it includes local information and other information which teenagers are interested in. I think that the college would print my magazine and be paid by the student council.

Who would be the audience for your media product?

My magazine would be aimed at people aged 16-19 and mainly for females. It’s for students at college who might be looking for information about what to do after college or want to know more about the college.

How did you address/attract your audience?

I used bright bold colours to attract the audience to my magazine because I think my magazine is a good price I put it at the top of my front cover in bold righting so it is easy to see. I put the price of the magazine in bold righting to show that it is a good deal. I also did a questionnaire to get audience feedback and included what they wanted most in the magazine, I uploaded pictures of different designs that I was going to choose from to see which one my target audience wanted most.

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

I have used publisher to design my front cover and content page, I have also used a digital camera to take my photos for my magazine and the front cover. I have learnt that using a digital camera has more effect than using the camera on my mobile. I have also used a blog which i haven't used before to get audience feedback.

Final Contents Page

Final Front Cover

Draft of contents page

Draft of content page

This is my 2nd draft of my content page for my student magazine.

Draft of Content page

This is a draft of my content page for my student magazine.

Draft of front cover

This is another example of my draft of my front cover for my student magazine.

Draft of front cover

This is one of my examples of my draft front cover.

Photos i am not using

These are the pictures i dont think i am using but i might use a few but i'm not sure. I am not using these pictures because a couple of them are blury and not as good quality. Some of these pictures are the same as the ones i am using because i made sure i took 2 of the same picture just incase i lost one.

Photos I am using for my Magazine

 These are the pictures i am using in my student magazine, i am using these pictures because they are better quality and they show student life well. I am using one group picture and the rest are individual. I am also using a picture of my prize for the compitition for my front cover. The settings for the pictures are in the college to make it look more of a student magazine.

Questionnaire

How much would you pay for my magazine?

70p            £1.00             £1.50            £2.00           More than £2.00

 

What size would you like the magazine?

Handbag size            or          Normal size

What would you prefer most to be in the student magazine?

Interviews                reviews             horoscopes          celebrity gossip            career advice

What prize would you most want in a competition in the magazine?

IPod           hoodie             games           mobile phone            tour tickets to see your favourite band    

When do you want it to come out?

Weekly     or    monthly

Textual analysis of magazines

Name of magazine - Smart Talent - content page

On half of the page their are pictures in a sort of collage with students at work and views of places. It has two sections one general  content and one for talent education. This page shows that the magority of the magazine is about education. The 2nd half of the page is much more colourful than the first half which is plain and only has 2 colours which are red and white these are dull colours.

Textual analysis of magazines

Name of magazine - Smart Talent - front cover
This magazine is a handbag size and the front cover is colour coordinated with not too many different colour, the main colours are brown, white and pink these colours arn't bright but they do catch your eye. The master heading is simple but bold which catches your eye with the brown background. This magazine is £2.25 which i quite expensive for a student magazine however it is a glamourous magazine which can fit in your handbag. On the front cover it gives information of what the magazine contains e.g. career choices which is very revalent to students. At the bottom of the magazine it gives you the link to the magazine website. The colours brown and white represent the season winter. The person in the middle of the cover is very glamourous and well groomed.

Initial comparrison of magazines

Name of magazine and features
Student ID Xmas edition
Content section
Interviews with pictures
Theme page
Pictures of bands
Horriscopes
Tips for revision
Movie review
Says whats on the next issue

Student ID - (Issue no.13)
Content page
Interviews
Pictures from events
Interviews with people who have left college

ETC education/training/careers
Welcome page
Conent page
Information page
Pages of pictures
Info about alcohol
Film pages
lists of bizare laws

Action Plan

 Welcome to my blog this is my action plan. In my coursework i am making a student magazine and in this blog i will add all my work to do with my student magazine.

Week 1- November 15th
Set up blog
Initial comparrison of magazines
Create action plan

Week 2 - 22nd Novemeber
Decide on name of magazine
Audience questionaire poll
Create front cover and draft

Week 3 - 29th Novemeber
Photoshoot
Take pictures and edit
Get audience feedback
Ceate content and draft

Week 4 - 6th Decemeber
Evaluation

10th December - deadline, must be completed by this date