Evaluation of Preliminary Task

In what ways does your Media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
My media product includes real media conventions a magazine needs to be sucessful. Conventional aspects such as a masthead, headlines, plugs, photograph, sub-heading, bar codes, date, and a price all make the magazine come together, to make it more sucessful. To develop my magazine knowledge, i needed to research all different genre types, such as fashion, music and gossip. I needed to see what all these magazines have in common, which was the main conventions of a magazine, this helped me to transfer these aspects on to my own magazine to make it presentable and sucessful.


How does your Media product represent particular social groups ?
My media product, was aimed at one social group in particular. As my magazine was a college one, this means that my magazine was aimed at students as a social group. By using a student to model for my main image establishes what group it was aimed for, the props used in the image also gives an idea of how my magazine represents a social group, in this case it was a book, of a particular subject that a student may study at college. However i did not focus on one subject for this magazine, it was an overall college magazine that would cover all aspects of college such as different subjects, upcoming advents, and achievements within the college.
In sub-headings i advertised an avent that had took place at the college, this was a fashion show, by doing this it attracted people that take textiles as a subject, therefore attracting different social groups.

What kind of Media institution might distribute your media product and why?
My college magazine would be distributed by the college it was based on, and in this case it would be Wyke College. They would sell it, or give out copies of my magazine to advertise the college, to gain new students to attend the college. It will also advertise upcoming advents that5 the college had arranged such as trips and college parties to the students that already attend the college, so that they can make them sucessful. The magazine will also focus on the sucess and grades that the students are getting in particular subjects, which could persuade parents of students and also the students that this college is sucessful, therefore they should attent it. Rumour will also feature aspects such as gossip and social matters that may of been brought to attention in college, this will attract the readers to buy the magazine which means that income from the magazine will go on equipment for the college and other stuff to make the college more sucessful.

Who would be the audience for your Media product?

The audience i have aimed my product as, is mainly at students inside the college and outside college. It is aimed at both male and female genders, which means there is something for both different genders that may attract there interest. It will be also targetted at students that have just left school and are looking for a college to go to. My college magazine is based on a variety of topics and aspects that would be found within a college, this means that because of the variety of topics a much larger scale of people would be interested in reading it.


How did you attract/address your audience?
I attracted and addressed my audience by using aspects on the front cover of the magazine that students will be able to relate to, for example the model i have used on the front cover is the same age as the students that would read my magazine, this would attract them by providing a student role model for them therefore it is something they can relate to. Another aspect of the magazine is that the colour used are not gender typical, for example there are a different range of colours which gives the empression that the magazine is for both males and females, this will attract the audience, by ensuring them it is not just a one gender magazine. The language used can also attract the audience. By keeping the text short and snappy, the audience's attention will be caught but it would not bore them with long texts.

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
I have learnt how to present my work on this website we are using, which is blogger. I have also learnt how to use photoshop and how to use all the equipment that it provides on that programme, using this it has made my magazine much more sucessful, and improves how my magazine was presented.

Looking back at the preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Throughout the preparation for making my own product, i have learnt how to anaylise magazines detail, and i have learnt the main conventions of a magazine. I now understand that all the conventions and the layout used on a magazine give meaning and purpose to the whole magazine and also estbablish the genre of the magazine and the audience it is aimed at. I also understand the importance of the length and the language used on a magazine, to make a magazine sucessful, and appealing to the audience. This task has also given me an oppertunity to experience using the technology that is needed to make the magazine sucessful. I now think i am prepared to make other magazines without anyproblems, and i have gained knowledge and understanding of how a magazine is put together and how it is published.