Preliminary Task - Evaluation

Looking forward towards your main task, what do you feel you have learnt about the production process that will help you as you approach the full product?

I feel that the development for the preliminary task went fairly well. I have found that time management was vital for the completion of the task. Towards the end of the project I felt a little pushed for time. If my planning had been more structured and I had set a time schedule I would have been able to produce a better media product. The one thing I feel that I would have wanted to change are the photos that I have used. If I had used my time management more wisely I would have planned my photos better. Composition of my models and the environment will be a big factor in my main task. I feel that if I had used better composition then the final preliminary product would have been stronger. My magazine was then based around school sport and so more shots of different sports would have given me a wider variety to chose from. Such as in my plans, where I have included different sports. The time management would have included lessons dedicated to finding out and taking the shots when the different sport activities were going on. When going into the main task the first factor to consider is a planned time schedule, to allow for a smooth and structured process. 

If the video above does not work, the link below should take you to the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wl_Hn2gpy-k

Preliminary Task - Evaluation

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of 

constructing this product?

After two years of media studies in GCSE I feel that I have gained a good knowledge of Photoshop. However, I had only used Illustrator briefly and had not gained much knowledge about the program. At the start of the preliminary task InDesign was a completely new program for me to learn to use. As well as a basic knowledge of Photoshop, I only had a basic understanding of taking photos that would be to a good, professional standard. This is shown from the lack of studio based shots or experimentation with shutter and aperture speeds. I also lacked to knowledge to try and use depth of field, rule of thirds etc. to gain a more interesting, intriguing shot that would be more attractive to the audience. I do however, feel that my knowledge of InDesign, Illustrator and camera shots have improved quickly and I will be able to take my new skills into the main task. 

To further my own knowledge and help me in the use of Adobe InDesign I went to 'YouTube,' where I found a 2-part tutorial that went through and explained the basic of the program, InDesign. I found this extremely useful, as it taught me things such as wrapping text, adding columns etc. Skills that I used in my own preliminary task. Although the tutorials are on an apple mac, the program is still very similar and I was still able to learn where the buttons were. Below I have included the videos that I used:

  

I feel that at the end of this project I have gained a great deal of knowledge that I feel I will be able to use effectively in my main task.

Preliminary Task - Evaluation

Who would be the audience for your media product?

Below is a video where I have asked the audience to look at my final versions and to type about who they think the magazine is targeted at. I asked the audience three questions that would help decide who would be the most suitable audience for the media product. From the comments made by my peers, the audience that will be most interested in the magazine will be students in the school that are interested in sports and sports related news. Another audience would be the parents of the children, so that they can keep up to date with their child’s sport activities. It may also be the parents of children that are interested in coming to the school, who want some more information on the activities in the school.

If the video above doesn't work I have added the link below that will take you to the video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EnEUO2Pwkis 

Preliminary Task - Evaluation

How did you attract/address your audience? 

The audience was asked to comment on the final versions of the magazine. The audiences were asked to comment on what they found attractive and what attracted them to the magazine. A wordle has been created to show the good comments made by the audience. Words from the development, made by the audience about the draft versions, have also been included in the wordle.

Below are my final versions where what was used (e.g. Gaze theory) to attract and address the audience is explained. 

1. Gaze Theory

In order to attract the audience, I used a photo that would relate and reflect the target audience. The key image that has been used is of a male in his late teens, to reflect the target audience. The model is wearing a white PE polo shirt, which represents the genre of the magazine (Sport). The model is seen to be posing, which is so that he is seen more attractive. The means that gaze theory can be used. The women interested in sport will find the model eye catching and aspire to be with him or someone like him. While the male audience will see the model and want to look and be like him.

2. Font Style

The font style that has been used for the masthead attracts the audience through being eye catching and extravagant. The 'Sport' reflects the genre of the magazine, as the font style represents the fast and existing nature of sport. The font style used for the cover lines and the lures are consistent throughout the cover and contents page, this is because they both follow a house style. The colour’s that have been used contrast with each other that makes it stand out. I feel that this attracts the target audience that my magazine is trying to attract.

Preliminary Task - Evaluation

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

The institution that I believe would distribute my media product is Trinity school. The magazine is going to be about the sports department of the school. In order for the audience to be able to relate the magazine back to Trinity, I used the same layout of the Trinity logo and only altered the images to sports equipment; this is so that it still represents the sports department and sport genre of the magazine. The reason for the school distributing the magazine is to keep the audience in the school up to date with the sports news. As Trinity is a Church of England school, the church could also give away free magazines. I have decided to do this because the school will then be able to attract a wider audience.            

I used this link to gain ideas about the images I could include in my magazine:

http://www.afpe.org.uk/ 

The sports department in Trinity would distribute the magazine because of the images, text and house style that has been used. The model that has been used is a teenager, around the age of 17. This means that the magazine will be more attractive to 6th form, although other years will use it. The PE department would also be more inclined to distribute it because the model is in the stereotypical PE white shirt, with the school logo on the left.

      

Preliminary Task - Evaluation

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Below is the link that to the Prezi presentation. It shows how the final version represents its particular social group and target audience. 

http://prezi.com/cnvi8s9lfbxo/how-does-your-media-product-represent-particular-social-groups/  

Preliminary Task - Evaluation

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

Below is an annotated magazine cover page and contents page. The codes and conventions have been labeled and explained so that the reason for the codes and conventions is clear. Below this is the final version of the cover page and contents page, they have been annotated to show what codes and conventions were used, developed and challenged.

Preliminary Task - Final Versions

These are the final versions of my magazine. I have taken into account the comments made by the audience, from these comments I altered and improved aspects of my work until I was left with error free versions.

Final Cover Page

Final Contents Page

Preliminary Task - Development - Draft Version (Contents page)

This is the draft version of my contents page. This draft is going to be evaluated and commented on by other students, from which I will be able to adapt and edit aspects of the magazine to improve it.

Harry Stone
                                                                                                                                           
I like the layout of the contents page as the text and images are easy to read and see for the audience. The images have borders around them to split them from the text, which makes them stand out but also makes the text around easier to read for the audience. The headings for each page have been made a larger font size, underlined and made bold. This makes them eye catching to the audience, the audience will be attracted to the headings and encouraged to read the pages. The pages the audience will find the most interesting or the pages that the magazine wants to draw attention to have been labelled with a rugby ball. By doing this the audience's eye is drawn to that section and influenced to read the certain page. I think that the colour of the background could be improved; I am going to experiment with several colours so I can choose the best option that is most attractive to the audience. The 'issue number' and 'date of release' could also be made more attractive and vibrant.

Kiren Cottingham (Media student)

I like the background colour that has been chosen as it is effective as it makes the text and all of the images stand out and easy for the audience to view. The heading of the contents page is effective as it stands out and looks attractive. I think the use of the issue number is a waste of space as it could be displayed on the front cover and not the contents page as then the audience will want to be able to see what issue number without turning the page. Although the layout of the contents page is attractive, it is hard to follow the order in which the pages are because there is no set order.

Alex Mwanza (Media student)  

I like the background of the contents page as it allows the text to stand out. This makes information for the audience easier to digest. The key image for the contents page is vibrant and attractive this is good as the audience is then influenced to look into the magazine. I like that the images have borders around each of them, I like how it makes them stand out to the audience. The headings are also made to stand out by them being bold and underlined. The rugby balls draw the audience's eye to the important pages which I admire about the magazine.

Alex Harrison (Media student)

The background blends too much to the title. The background being too dark may put a viewer off of the magazine. The boarders around the pictures are too bland, try to make them more interesting. Also there is a lack of on the magazine, not enough brings me in. I look more at the pictures than the text with this one so creating a bigger size font to make things stand out may be a good idea, as well as adding more information (To fill the blank spaces).
Good points- I like the lines between each content, and I like the header though it blends to much to the background.
The design overall is good but there is a few things that may need changing, colour is the main issue, but I like the design.

Preliminary Task - Development - Draft Version (Cover Page)

This is my draft version of my cover page. The draft is going to be evaluated and then several students will be asked to comment on the draft, commenting on what is a good aspect and what could be improved.

Cover Page

Harry Stone

The logo on my models top does not reflect the sports genre. Therefore the audience may get confused, in order to correct this I am going to use Photoshop to rid the logo and put the Trinity logo in its place. The font used for the title is intriguing and is a signifier to the audience. The font used for 'Sport' is bolder then 'Trinity' and stands out more. This was on purpose to make the target audience and the genre for the magazine was clear, 'Sport' would stand out to a sporty audience and it tells the audience the magazines genre is sport. This idea came from the research and evaluations of the existing covers and contents. The red and yellow used for the lures and the cover lines contrast with each other and the background, which makes the text stand out. The red text made bold stand out to catch the audience’s eye, which then influences them to read the lures. The black background behind the smaller images make them stand out and look more attractive, which will intrigue the audience and encourage them to pick the magazine up. The glow around the circle stands out catching the audience's eye, the audience will then look at the rest of the images.

Kiren Cottingham (Media student)

The masthead that has been displayed is very clear and makes it easy to read. The masthead also shows to me (the audience) what exactly that this magazine is about, through the use of the word 'Sport' which is displayed in bold. The images at the bottom of the magazine are eye catching due to the fact that the images have been displayed as though they are over lapping and this is a very interesting effect. The logo that is displayed of the key images T-shirt is not suitable due to the fact that it has the wrong logo on and showed be displaying a trinity logo, this makes this part of the magazine front cover look unprofessional

Alex Mwanza (Media student)

I thought that Harry's magazine cover is a very good attempt at a 'real' magazine cover. He has included all of the conventions of magazines, which has included cover lines, a masthead etc. the copy is easy to quite read although i feel that he may be able to either change the colour of the copy, or maybe add a shadow. The banner at the bottom of the page is quite good as it is something you may not see in every magazine, this adds an interesting twist on Harry's piece and something i feel that would add marks to his grade.

Henry Lee (Media student)

Overall I thought Harry's work was well designed and has included a good use of creativity. I like the title has been well designed with the 'SPORT' in italic which shows sport is fast and active. The colour of the copy including the Masthead, Subtitles and main copy fits in well with the magazine. The designed logo and the underlining of the masthead shows house style and is effective and shows professionalism. However, I think that the date and issue number looks unprofessional as it is in a text box; if the text box was to be taken away the magazine would look more professional. The image needs a caption as the image doesn’t have a meaning and Harry's targeted audience would not understand the relevance to the magazine. The footer of the page looks very unprofessional and personally I think ruins the magazine, the font style and the colour of the text boxes should match the colours in the logo to maintain his house style. I don’t know why a black box is behind the footer but if Harry was to make these corrections the magazine would look improved.

Preliminary Task - Development - Chosen images from selection

The link below is to the Prezi I created in order to show the images that I have chosen, which will be most attractive to the audience and relevant to my genre. I have also described why I have chosen the images.

http://prezi.com/rystidz5ol-z/chosen-images/

Preliminary Task - Development - Original photography

These are a selection of my original images that I took for use in my magazine. I had to take several shots using different angles and locations so that I had the option to chose from a selection of photos. I concentrated on taking shots of football because it is the more popular sport to the audience. The shots I have taken also relate to the genre of my magazine, which can all be used as signifiers to symbolise the genre to the audience.

The link below shows my selection of images in prezi:

http://prezi.com/ufxgq1wohnhv/collection-of-original-images/