A note to the examiner:

Dear examiner,
I hope you enjoy reading my work and seeing my progress from the start of the coursework to my final product. I have learnt a lot throughout this process, about many aspects of media forms. I believe that my ideas have developed and become more sophisticated as I have gone through the process and the changes and alterations that I made throughout have helped me to produce an end product that i am satisfied with. I hope you can recognize my hard work and progression from start to end.

Final Product

Preliminary Task

Analysis, evaluation and general comments on my front cover

Note: There is three variations of my front cover in which I have handed in to my teacher for marking. This is only one.

I am happy with the design of my front cover and think it looks clean cut, neat and professional, which is the style i was aiming for. I have tried to keep it relatively simple and minimalist. I think that the image is eye catching and the colours in the image stand out above the white background. I learnt during looking at some photography in my research of the importance of an image, especially on the front cover of a magazine or product. I copied the style conventions of clash magazine but added elements and ideas of my own in as well based around my ideas and the way that the image and text fit around each other.

Analysis, evaluation and general comments on my double page spread

I was happy with my double page spread and believe that this was probably the page that saw the most improvements from the original draft. Again, I tried to combine a mixture of features that would be representative of contemporary R&B style and PBR&B style. I did this by keeping the page design like those I had analysed in vibe magazine. For example, one of my main style models when looking at this page was the Bruno Mars page. I tried to copy this kind of style, however adapted it slightly to give a slightly more alternate R&B look to the page. I think that the effects used on my image are effective and i tried to combine a selection of styles from R&B and PBR&B to dress my artist for this page. I kept the style of the page quite simplistic and minimalist which was the general feel that I was hoping for and that I believe I achieved throughout the magazine. If i had the chance to make another draft of this i probably would have made a few alterations, such as the placing and positioning of the branding ('fusion') and the page numbers, to ensure that these did not clash with any other parts of the text on the page. 

Analysis, evaluation and general comments on my final contents page

Above is my final contents page. I am happy with this part of the product but probably less so than my front cover and my double page spread. I understand that this differs quite significantly from the contents that i produced in my first draft, however I believe i can justify these changes. For starters, i would like to mention again how as my research developed i found a new sub genre of R&B that particularly interested me and which i adapted some of my work to allow this sub genre to fit in. This was PBR&B and looked at less contemporary R&B styles that infused other genres such as alternative, and hip hop. I believe that the way i adapted my contents page from the first draft was more inclusive of this sub genre, for example, the image located on the right hand side of the page includes two artists who wear styles more typical of the alternative/indie genre. Where as my main cover star, Aliyah Mae, on the left hand side of the page appears to be more of a contemporary R&B star. I tried to use a combination of the two to create a balance on this page. I believe that as an improvement, if i had the chance to do this again or make another draft, i would've perhaps taken a few more photos of a better quality and where i had more time to put to use the photography skills that i had researched. However my contents page fits into the style that i have aimed for all along, which was a neat, clean cut style, with the main use of a black and white colour scheme. This is what i looked for in most of my style models that I analysed also.

General Comments about the progression of my work

At the start of this project i wished to produce a contemporary  R&B music magazine. However as i went through the process and did more research i discovered the sub genre of PBR&B. This particularly interested me and was an idea that i had in mind, that i had found had actually been classified into a specific sub genre of R&B. This gave me more scope and room to challenge conventions and take features and aspects from a few different genres to produce my final product.  I was glad that my research allowed me to find this as it let me produce something a bit different and unique from already, pre-existing R&B music magazines. As a result of all this the style i was going for changed quite drastically throughout the process, and this can be seen especially by comparing my first draft product and my final product. I believe my first draft product follows a style which is more typical of the conventional R&B style, however my final product is more representative of the PBR&B sub genre i wished to include and of the genre and general intentions i had for my magazine which was to be predominantly an R&B magazine, however with other genres intertwined to create something a bit different.

Changes made to double page spread

I think i was most happy with the improvements that i made between my first draft version of the double page spread and the final product.  In the first draft the columns of text were very out of line with each other and made the page look scruffy and un professional. In my final draft I made sure that the text was in line and made is slightly smaller and added more text in. I also changed the font of the name of the article/ the artists name as although i liked this text i wanted to go for something more simplistic to match the contents page and to create some consistency throughout the pages of the magazine. I removed the patterned design at the side of the right hand page and changed the image as i did not believe the image was of the best quality. However i went for a similar style in the photo, in the fact that my artist is pulling a similar pose. Instead i also made the image smaller but kept it on the right hand page and added a black border around it to keep it more simple and to add to the minimalist design. I removed the quote from the bottom of the page and instead added more text to make the columns longer so that this made up the majority of the left hand page. I also made the page mumbers smaller, changed them and moved the page numbers to the correct sides of the page. I also added the name of the magazine on both pages at the top in order to brand the magazine and for advertisement purposes.

Images For Magazine--Flickr

I was happy with the images that i used for my final product, however the lighting in some of the images was of a poor quality and i therefore had to use photo editing software and apps to increase the brightness of the images. For the majority of this process I used the befunky editing app. I used a Nikon D3200.

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? 
When producing my music magazine i closely copied the styles and conventions of pre- existing magazines to allow myself to produce a final product which looked professional and realistic. However, i also challenged the conventions of some real media products in order to produce something which was different and a style of my own. 

I copied the conventions of clash magazine predominantly for my cover page. For example, i copied the bold style and font of Clash magazine, and tried to keep it at a similar size. I also copied the arrangement of plugs/lures down the side of the page, as is seen on clash magazines cover page. As you can see below, i have kept all font on my page the same colour, in black, to distinguish between the background and text, as has the Clash magazine cover below, who have displayed all font in white, to create consistency on the page. I have also displayed the barcode in a similar way to clash with the price displayed underneath the barcode on the page and the date displayed across the side of the barcode.

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For my double page spread i copied the conventions of vibe magazine, an R&B music magazine. Above is a copy of a double page spread from vibe magazine, featuring Bruno Mars. Here, they use a whole A4 side to display a picture and present all font on the other side. They keep a simplistic design, by keeping a white background where there font is displayed as does mine. This keeps a minimilistic design to the page. I also copy the interview style that vibe magazine do, and the way that they present the question and answer structure in different colors to make sure that readers can differ between the two. However, i challenged the conventions of real media products by displaying the image on the right hand page where as in many of the magazine double page spreads i have looked at this is done in reverse by displaying the image on the left hand page. However i think that displaying my image on the right hand worked in my case and therefore kept it this way. I also copied the conventions of the main catchline on this page. For example in the example of vibe magazine above the artists name is included in the main catchline 'when MARS attacks'. Mine is similar in presenting the artists name in the main catchline, however takes a more simplistic approach by directly using the artists name. This attracts the reader and gives a clear layout and structure to the page as the reader can see exactly what it is that they will be reading about/ looking at. 

My contents page is probably the page which challenges the conventions of real media products the most. I have gone for a unique and individual style here but tried to keep the page clear and simple by clearly distinguishing between different sections of the page, for example between the images and the font. However it does copy some conventions of real media products, for example, in the way that i use two columns to display the information, with the contents title displayed at the top. The numbers are in line with the font and the page number is displayed on the pictures as is in the example below and in many music magazines. Furthermore, I have copied the conventions of the magazine below by keeping the images and font distinctly clear. 

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Evaluation Question 5

http://laurenamyharriman.wix.com/mediaevaluationq

Visit my Blog/Website to view Evaluation Q 5. 

Evaluation question 7

Evaluation Question 6

What Have You Learnt About Technologies From the Process of Constructing This Product

Evaluation Question 4: Who would be the audience for your media product?

Who would be the audience for your media product?

My target audience for my media product is young adults between the ages of 18-25. My audience would also more predominantly be female.

I have reflected my target audience through my product by several different features. For example, the visual aspects of my product. My artist is a teenage female, and wears clothing similar to that of my target audience. 

Name:  Holly

Age: 19

Interests: Shopping and style; Holly loves following the trends on twitter, Instagram and other social media feeds. She saves her money to buy clothing from her favourite stores such as River Island, Topshop and branded items such as Nike Roche Run’s.  Holly also has a keen interest in music, being one of the subjects she studied throughout her college education; her GCSE’s and her A Levels. She is a keen singer and loves buying albums off  itunes on her iphone produced by her favourite artists such as Kanye Wests Yeezus,  Rihanna’s Loud and Chris Brown’s F.A.M.E. She also enjoys listening to upcoming artists, such as The Weeknd, and has an interest in new sounds and genres such as PBR&B as is produced by such artists.

Style: Holly’s style is typical to the urban trends. She follows her style icons such as Rihanna, and Beyoncé. At times she loves to make a statement in the clothing she wears and in the styles that she follows. For example, she has been very experimental with her hairstyles over the past few years, and has gone from a short black pixie cut, to long blonde locks and extravagant reds. She loves her collection of high-waisted jeans and leather jackets. She also has several items from the Rihanna River Island collection which she still wears on occasions.

Holly is not a typical fan girl. She is very chilled out and laid back. She supports the artists she admires by buying their music on iTunes and other sites, but does not act like an obsessive fan girl. She does not believe she needs attention from anyone else to make her look ‘cool’ but believes her music preferences and her up to date style creates everything she needs to give her an admirable image.

Holly loves going to the cinemas to watch the newest films and to see some of her favourite actors, such as Will Smith. She enjoys socialising with her friends at the weekend, and going out to her favourite restaurants. She enjoys visiting the classy bars when she goes out at the weekend as a pose to the clubs. She finds these places play music more suited to her style and feels that these places have a better atmosphere.  She enjoys showing off her latest buys when she goes out and takes pride in dressing up when she goes out.

Holly will be attending this years Glastonbury, at which Kanye West will headline. She says she will buy a pair of designer Hunters ready for the festival.
Holly is typical of the Urban Tribe as appointed by UK Tribes. Brought up in suburban London, she is a keen follower of trend and style. Occasionally she slips into the tracky tribe, and wears brands such as above mentioned Nike (Rosche's) etc. 

I have chosen this audience for my magazine, after reviewing the final product as I believe that this type of music is most popular among young people, especially fitting in this age range. I have aimed it  more at women as I believe that they will be more attracted by other elements of the magazine such as the fashions and style presented by my artists in it. The interview that is presented in my magazine is also something which will mainly attract females. Due to its friendly and chatty tone, and the artist that is presented.

Evaluation Question 3: Produced on PiktoChart as an infographic

Evaluation question 2

Progression Of My Cover Page

Progression of Cover Page

The photograph displayed at the top of the page is of my first draft. Here, my photo was not adequate as although i liked the photo the artist was no looking at the audience, which created no direct appeal. Also the most important part of the page is the top third, and by having the artist look away this creates no striking part of the image that stands out in the top third. However on my final draft which is displayed underneath, the artist is looking directly at the reader, and the dark brown eyes immediately catch the audiences attention and create a direct appeal. I also changed the title of my magazine throughout the process whilst writing my article. I tried to use a variety of vocabulary to make the article more linguistically interesting and came across the word 'fusion' which i thought sounded like a good magazine title and which i could also relate to the magazine, and which had relevant connotations. Fusion relates to the developing R&B genre and the way different genres of music are being intertwined with the genre to form a new generation of R&B music. It also represents social groups, for example those with the roots of R&B music. The R&B genre was first created in America, predominantly by African Americans who used the music as a form of expression in a time when apartheid still had some significance and presence in society. Therefore fusion represents the developments in society and the integration of different races in society which has allowed the genre to become accessible to multiple ethnicity's. Furthermore, i also altered the font of the masthead and size due to the change in the title. I changed the font on the rest of the page as well and made the decision from looking at my first draft that i wanted all font on the page to be displayed in black. From this my basic colour scheme became black and white, a white a background and black text with the cover artist also dressed in black which created quite a slick look to the magazine cover page. I think the photo creates some contrast however, by the colour of my artists hair and the lipstick that i chose to use on her in the image. I also chose to use a different font for my cover lines after looking at the first draft. Although i liked the font that i used and thought it made a statement in my first draft, i don't think it worked well with the pink stripe spanning the page in the background. Therefore i decided to change this and use a font for the cover page and that matched that of the masthead as i believed this created more consistency across the page.  I kept the secondary cover lines relatively similar in font although changed the text to something more endearing. I also added several plugs/lures down the central right hand side of the page to give some extra information to the audience and to entice them to buy the magazine more. I also changed the positioning of my bar-code, so that it did not detract from the image that i used. My final draft changed quite significantly from my first draft, however i was happy with the changes I made and think that they worked much more effectively than the first draft. 

Changes in the process of creating my contents page

On the top is my final product and the bottom image is of my drafts contents pages. As you can see the style that i chose changed quite significantly between these two. In my draft, my text was too big and did not match up with the numbers. Therefore i adapted this for a font which looked better in a smaller sizing. I also changed my wording 'contents' from the right hand vertical side of the page to displaying it horizontally at the top of the page. I made sure that all text and numbers were in line with each other, whilst also adding extra pages numbers, as on the draft i only included up to a page 14.  I also added two images to the contents instead of one so that there wasn't just one artist throughout my three pages. I also wanted to display the PBR&B aspect of the magazine more and think that the alterations that i made allowed this alternative R&B style to fit in better. I decided not to use the patterning down the left and side of the page, although i thought this did work quite effectively and branded the magazine, by using it in the double page spread as well.

Progression of double page spread

Progression of double page spread from laurenamyharriman

Firstly I made sure that the margins were set in place so that i knew the layout of my page and where it would be appropriate for me to position everything. I then added the name of my magazine to the top corner of both of my pages for advertisement and added the page numbers in each corner also. I also added a black border in which i would display my picture. I made sure that that these were all appropriately spaced and fitted in line with the margins i had set up. Secondly, i added my main picture. This was the only picture that i chose to display in my double page spread. I think that having one striking and bold image works more effectively than two on a page that only features one single artist. Next i added my main title for the double page spread, which was the name of my artist 'Aliyah Mae'. I think that choosing to present the name of my artist here compliments the image on the right and is the most effective in attracting the reader. After this I added some extra information to work as an introduction to the main article below the name of the artist. I also made sure that this was in line with the name of the artist/ title of the article. After this I added my three main columns of text, all of which were displayed on the left hand side of the page. For this design i used inspiration from an edition of vibe magazine, featuring Bruno Mars which can be seen in several pieces of work on this blog. I kept a relatively minimalist design to the page which complimented my idea to keep the magazine looking quite slick and clean cut. I changed the color of the questions to a purple color, which complimented the main image but which also contrasted from the rest of the text so different pieces of the text could be distinguished between. Again, i ensured that the text was in line with the margins and was equally sized and spaced by using photo shops grid tool. Finally, as a finishing touch i added the photography credits to the bottom of the page, to add something extra and to brand the product and to show recognition from my work. As you can see all the main bulk of text on this page is presented in the same font, apart from the article title/name of the artist which is presented in a different font to create some contrast on the page.