Progression

From looking back at my preliminary task i feel i have learnt a lot in order to improve my full finished product. As firstly the main image for my preliminary did not look effective or professional at all so i had to take into account the outfit, make up, lighting pose etc. when doing the photo shoot for my main images. I also considered the colour scheme for my magazine and wanted it to be suitable for the genre and appeal to my target audience, this is why conducting a questionnaire was useful in my planning as i could find out what the audience I'm aiming at want to see. I also thought about the layout of my magazine a lot more as in my preliminary i wasn't too sure where to place certain information and images, but from researching similar magazines to my chosen genre i decided on a much more effective layout that fitted in with the typical conventions of this genre. I also had to consider how i cut out the images for my magazine as in my preliminary the main image looked very messy and unprofessional because of the edges so i took all of these problems into account and thought how they could be improved.

Technologies

In creating my media product i used the technology programme photo shop this was very useful as it enabled me to continuously develop the look of my magazine. So with the main images in my magazine i could import them to photo shop and then develop them and make them look more professional as seen in real magazines. I could also alter the font so that it looks more effective and follows the conventions of my chosen genre. Photo shop has moved forward from years ago as it has become a lot more intricate and detailed, the first photo shop featured just four programmers and more and more have been added subsequently. For example, Path and layer features were added in early 90's, and more recently the Masks and Adjustments panel was added. All the features add to a wider choice to enable you to develop photos professionally.

Target Audience

The audience for my media product would be young girls aged 15-20 years old, this is because i think that my magazine is more appealing to this audience. As firstly all of the main images in my magazine are of girls in this age group, so the audience would feel they can relate more to the magazine and be more attracted to it. It also still contains a lot of the typical conventions of a R&B/hip-hop magazine but is just made more feminine so challenges these conventions to enable the magazine to appeal to a different audience. Magazine of this genre usually have much more masculine features with a well known male artist on the cover, where as mine is more feminine with the image of a female singer. This creates the opportunity for a magazine of this genre to appeal to a different target audience instead of following the typical conventions. Example of more masculine magazine coverMasculine Cover


Also from researching different articles covered on the double page spread, gave me ideas as to what to include in my intereview. Conducting my questionnaire also helped me decide what sort of questions my target audience would be interested in reading about.

Distribution Ideas

I think that a media institution that would possibly distribute my music magazine would be WWMD as this is a very large distribution company for magazines. Information about the company; WWMD Other options would be to use the distributors of the music magazine 'VIBE' or 'Rap up' as these have the same genre as my magazine, and are of a similar layout and style etc.

Representing Social Groups

My magazine represents the social group of teenagers in particular as it shows them being very independent, mature and approachable young girls. This helps the magazine appeal more to its target audience as it challenges the typical perception people have of teenagers. My magazine also represents ethnicity as in a R&B magazine you would usually expect to see a male figure of a different race, where as i have used young girls. I have represented gender as i have used girls as the main images throughout my magazine instead of following the typical convents of a R&B/hip-hop magazine and used boys, so i have shown that this genre can appeal to a wider audience.

Using, Developing and Challenging Conventions

For my media product i decided to use the print option and make a music magazine with a R&B/hip-hop genre and titled the magazine 'Base'. I think that it fits in with the typical conventions of a R&B/hip-hop magazine as i have researched different magazines of this genre and tried to make my magazine fit these conventions. Firstly the main image on the cover is often a very masculine well known male artist with hip-hop features being shown in his style. However my main image is quite a seductive and revealing picture of a woman that shows a lot a feminine features e.g. having hair down beside face, and some flesh on show, so this challenges the typical conventions for the main image of a hip-hop/R&B magazine. The title of my magazine fits in with this genre as it is related to music and is an easy name to remember. The font used is very big and bold and follows a consistent colour scheme, it is also quite grouped together so i have followed this layout for my magazine. The example that i used for my magazine cover was VIBE eg

The contents page of my magazine again challenges most of the typical conventions of this genre magazine as you would usually see a masculine male artist, where as i have used a female in a very seductive pose revealing a lot of flesh. However i have found another example of this being used; Contents Eg

which is where i got my idea, i think that this has made my magazine consistently appeal to the same audience by making it more feminine.
My contents page has followed the same colour scheme as the cover so that the magazine is clearly the same throughout and looks more effective rather than having a large range of different colours and looking too busy, so here i have followed the typical conventions of a music magazine. The text also follows the typical conventions as i have used a very small font and used to headings about the features inside the magazine which is commonly used in R&B/hip-hop magazines.

The double page spread of my magazine does challenge the typical conventions of this genre magazine as i have again used a female as my main image. She is posed again revealing some flesh to appeal more attractive, and is sat in a pose with her legs up to show them off but in a more descrete way. The layout of my double page however does fit in with the typical conventions as i have grouped the relative questions and answers together to make it clear for the reader to understand. I have also again stuck to the main colour scheme so that it is consistent throughout my magazine, and used a white background to make the image and text stand out, this is also commonly done on the double page spread of this genre magazine. An example of a double page spread similar to mine would be Double Pg Spread Eg
although i decided to use a different pose for the main image.

Plan For Contents Page Photoshoot

This photo will be taken on a plain white background but then edited so that it starts dark at the top and fades from grey into white. So that it is slightly different from the plain white backgrounds i have used and makes the page look more interesting.

Outfit
- Black lace leotard
- High Heels

I have chosen this outfit because i am trying to make the image fit in with the typical representation of woman,and female celebrities. So the outfit is quite revealing , and is very feminine a long with the heels giving sex appeal.

Hair and Make up
- natural base make up
- dark around the eyes

I have chosen t have the eyes quite dark so that they stand out more and i is clear when she is looking a the camera. This make up also helps to give the seductive impression and show the femininity.

Pose
- led down with one leg bent and other kicking up straight
- arms tucked behind head
- serious facial expression

I chose this pose as i think it is quite a seductive pose which is commonly used in magazine for female singers. It also helps to create the effect of her leg kicking the word contents which again makes it look more interesting.

Ideas for magazine

Front cover layout plan

I got the idea for my cover from the R&B magazine VIBE and have decided to use very bold fonts to follow the typical conventions of this genre. Also to maintain a red, black, purple, skin colour and white colour scheme so that it is consistent throughout the magazine and involves bright colours and neutral colours to make certain information stand out. I have also decided to use a large mid shot image of a young girl to appeal to my target audience and challenge the conventions of this genre.