Before i started designing my own magazine, i analysed existing student magaines to find out what kind of things need to be included on the front page and how the layout and appearance of it affects how much it appeals to you. The magazines i focused on were 'Student ID' and 'Student Times'.
The first thing that caught my eye from Ludlow
College's 'Student ID' is the use of bright blocks of colour. The black writing on a background of yellow orange and red makes it stand out more, and will draw people towards it as it makes it look suitable for the target audience of students.
For 'Student Times' the layout is more formal and unlike 'Student ID' which uses lots of small pictures, there is one picture as the background and the cover lines are associated with this picture.
For my front cover i combined both ideas by using bright colours for the writing and one picture to cover the background. The picture is quite dull so the colours purple and yellow stand out, and will catch people's eye. The picture is also a reference to what is included in the magazine and the cover line ties in with this.
How does your media product represent particular social groups?
First i decided my target audience would be 16-18 year olds. I thought this would be easiest to do because it was the same age as me so i could relate to them and knew what things to include. The magazine focuses on events, film reviews, exam help, and things aimed at both males and females. Although some things such as relationship advice and horoscopes would be mainly aimed at girls. I included a picture from a previous bash which features people of the target audience. This will appeal to both males and females. The colour scheme is not to girly, and will catch peoples eye.
What kind of media institution might distibute your media product and why?
Because the target age group is 16-18, an institiution such as a sixth form college would be suitable to distribute my media product. Ludlow college would be the most likely to choose this product as the magazine includes information specific to Ludlow, such as the opening of the new 'Spar' which could benefit students from the college. Year 11 students from local school's such as Ludlow, Cleobury, and Tenbury may also be interested.Who would be the audience for your media product?
The magazine is aimed at 16-18 year old students. It will appeal to both males and females, as there are contents to interest both. However, some featurs such as horoscopes will appeal more to females.
How did you attract/address your audience?
I used a bright colour scheme to draw the reader in, as the magazine needs to be eye catching for someone to pick it up. The cover lines refer to a variety of different things that could interest different people, for example, exam advice and news about the upcoming college bash. This will make students want to read more and buy the magazine. I also used lots of pictures which will draw the reader in.
What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?
I have learnt how to use photo editing programmes such as Picasa which helped me edit my pictures to give the effect i wanted. AN example of this is changing the brightness of the picture so it stands out more, and cropping it down so it is positioned properly on the page. Another thing i found was that i could download fonts off the internet, and use this for my magazine. I had never used this before and found there were lots to choose from. I have also gained a better understanding of how to use Publisher to create my front page and contents page.
Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
I have learnt that research is very important to identify the target audience the magazine is aiming for. Also making sure i put detail into every post, and making more initial design ideas so i have more to choose from and spend longer on it so it is a better quality.
