Main Task - Research

Bauer Media

Bauer Media is a multi-platform UK-based Media Group consisting of many companies collected around two main divisions; magazines and radio, widely recognised and rewarded as being industry innovators. Bauer Media is part of the Bauer Media Group, Europe’s privately owned publishing Group. The group is known worldwide, publishing over 300 magazines in 15 countries, as well as online, TV and radio stations. This allows them to have gained a wider range of target audience because there is various range which is guaranteed to peak all kinds of people’s interest since there is plenty on offer in different fields (TV, radio, magazines &etc.)In this task, I will be analysing three music magazines which are; Kerrang!, Mojo, and Q; all published by Bauer Media.

Preliminary Task - Evaluation

Whether it's through a slideshow completed on PowerPoint, Picasa Web or through Prezi; I am now required to create an evaluation in a creative way following six simple questions.

Here is my presentation, created on Prezi.com:

In order to understand which stage I'm at in the preliminary task; I've asked a fellow peer to observe and assess my blog considering three fields which are research & planning (20 marks available), construction (60 marks available) and evaluation (20 marks available).
I'll also assess my own work as it will allow me to really think about how I've handled this task and figure out what I'll have to do to get higher marks for the main task.

I have placed screenshots below of all the fields that are filled with blue boxes (this shows the mark made from my peer- Stefanie) and red which shows the mark I've given myself.

Achieve College Magazine

FRONT COVER:

CONTENTS PAGE:

Editing Process

To put a letter or two behind the model I had to search on the internet for the tutorial because I have never done this before.
I found this website very helpful and so I followed the instructions:
http://planetphotoshop.com/placing-text-behind-an-objec.html
This had to be done in Photoshop. The image below is the finished look after the process of putting a few letters behind the model's hair to make it look professional and similar to other existing college magazines.
I opted for the darkest shade of blue as a lot of the respondents prefer this colour to the rest.

This is my plan for the contents page:

Two Important Questions

I found that the previous survey was not exactly useful since it does not help with the front cover by asking general questions such as getting information about my demographic and geographic. Therefore, I created another survey on SurveyMonkey which consists of only two important questions which are:

The screenshots of evidence are all put together within a slideshow that can be seen below. 

As you can see from the screenshots, I have 34 responses and this is the number I am quite satisfied with to go ahead with the process of actually creating the front cover on InDesign after considering their opinions. This is a good value as it helps me to figure out what students are looking to find on a front cover college magazine - it makes this survey fair due to the results received from a fair amount of students.
For the first question, I asked which front cover title the students proffered out of the three provided. There was also an 'Other' button where they could suggest a name. There were three suggestions:

• Improve
• Aspire
• Dream

These are all great ideas. However, 10 respondents and I like the title 'Achieve' more than the others. This word means "to succeed in finishing something or reaching an aim, especially after a lot of work or effort" quoted by Cambridge English Dictionary found on this link:
dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/achieve.

I understand that majority of the students like the masthead 'Success' more, but the meaning of success technically means the end of a journey. On the other hand, 'Achieve' is a motivational word which could impact people as it almost tells the students to not give up already on education because there's another level of education to come which they should try to fulfill (college / sixth form). I also feel that it would encourage more people to read the magazine partly because of the title.

Moving on the second question, we can see that the most votes go to the third font which is bold yet simple - perfect for a college magazine as it's not too childish but at the same time it's not too formal.

College magazine photo-shoot

During a time when I was waiting to get enough responses on SurveyMonkey, I decided to plan a photoshoot using an SLR camera. I went ahead with what I was organizing in order to make the most out of my sixth-form time when I don't have a lesson to attend (free periods).
After that, I thought it would be a good idea to create three folders and put a picture which best fits the subject of the folder. Therefore, it is much easier for me to be able to pick out an image for the front cover and also which one I could possibly use for my content's page.

This screenshot is an evidence that I have organized the pictures into three folders for short-listing. 

This screenshot showcases images that are blurred/not focused properly and also those that are not of any use because in order to encourage a target audience to read the magazine; there needs to be some kind of interaction.

This screenshot shows that in this folder I have put together all the images which I think would be useful more for the content page than the front cover.

The slideshow above is put together to show all the images that can easily interact with the audience merely because the model is looking directly into the camera lens. During my research of looking at existing college magazines, I had noticed that if not almost, then every front cover had an image where the model is smiling while looking directly into the camera which is an indication of happiness through facial expression. This lets the target audience feel the same way; it is a persuasive trait as it encourages the audience to get the magazine and read it. This is the main reason why I decided to short-list it up to these seven images as I would like to achieve a finished look that is within the similar standard of existing college magazines.  

Having short-listed the pictures, I was easily able to show seven of those particular images and ask my teacher which one she thought would best suit for my front cover. The sixth picture from the slideshow was the one she chose. The reason being is simply because of the composition and the concept of the image shows that the model is smiling and looking directly into the camera lens. However, I finally decided to go ahead with the post-production for the first picture as it's focused and in good quality. 

Below is the before and after, edited on Pixlr.com and put together for comparison on Picmonkey.com - both are websites which allow for easy and straightforward editing process to happen. 

  Before                                                                                                        After

The process of achieving the finished look:
*First, I cropped the image so that the audience can see the model's facial expression better. The composition now looks a lot similar to the other existing college magazines.
*I then increased the brightness, contrast, and the saturation so that when viewers look at the image; their perspective would be of a positive response as it's no longer dull. Rather, it is vibrant (compared to the original picture) although it consists of only three colors in sight; green, black and blue.

Analyzing results

After receiving 31 results on SurveyMonkey, I thought it was finally time to analyse it and consider the responses I have received.

The slideshow below shows all the screenshots.

I will be using darker shades of blue with black text, possibly along with a dash of orange. This is because most people want a colour scheme consisting of deep, dark colours for the front cover such as navy blue. However, I would like to add a pop of colour as my target audience is mainly college students (this can also help secondary students) and from my perspective I'm sure it wouldn't encourage them to read if it were to be filled with dull colours. I will be publishing it in an unconventional way since most students want a mixture of informal and formal in reference to my survey.

Survey created via SurveyMonkey

I have created a survey with the help of Survey Monkey. The answers that I receive will help me collect all the information in order to plan what the final turnout will be of the front cover and context which is to be created later on this task after receiving at least 25 - 30 responses.

The images below show all the questions that I have asked the students from year 7 to year 13 for their opinion on what they would like to find in a college magazine.

Evidence of when this survey was created + How many responses I've received so far

Preliminary Task

I have posted an image below of my so-far planned schedule. It includes certain things I will need to be doing during my lessons to make the most of it and also how I will use my time outside of the sixth form effectively. 

Looking at existing college magazine

Front cover

Structure // Layout of this magazine

Brands Eye: CHOICES

Core Proposition: "Guidance for free!"

Brand Personality: Helpful.

Target Readers: School & college students and parents.

Says about you:

• A student who is confused which direction to take in terms of which college to go to.
• Parents who would like to check all the options their child has locally and all around west London.

How does it make you feel:
-Gained knowledge of the many different schools and colleges there are in around west London

-Know if an apprenticeship is suitable after school or college as a result of reading what it is all about.

Benefits: All kinds of guidance are provided for free -- from the case of knowing how many colleges (these are advertisements) there are to what apprenticeship is, all on this magazine.

InDesign

In this task, I was required to duplicate the front cover of TRIBU-TE's magazine. This was my first attempt, all done on the software InDesign; allowing me to create the completed look which is posted just below in a Jpeg format alongside with the original front cover underneath it. As you can see, they aren't exactly the same picture as I had not been able to find it anywhere on the internet. Hence, I had to choose an image which I liked and thought would be best in terms of compatibility. They both have a black-and-white effect, but the main reason why I had chosen this is because the model's (Jennifer Lopez) hair looks very classy and elegant. Therefore, it fits in well with the content of the magazine since it is a hair & beauty magazine. 

Brands Eye: TRIBU-TE

Core Proposition: "Be artistic with your hair!"

Brand Personality: 

• Amazing quality
• Classy and Sophisticated
• Artistically helpful
• Rich of glossy paper 
• Luxurious

Target Readers: (Super)/Models who work in the hair & beauty industry and hair stylists. Also females who are interested in buying new, quality products. 

Says about you: Audience spends a significant amount of time on their hair most probably because it is their profession. They are genuinely interested in knowing and learning more about different yet contemporary hairstyles. 

How does it make you feel: Gained more knowledge of hairstyles that are now in trend.

What do you perceive: Good set of galleries of different hairstyles for female. 

Benefits to you: Save money by buying the best hair products as a result of reading the magazine. 

Technology

The importance of computers, laptops and phones in our modern world:

The use of technology is increasing day by day, we all depend on technology and we use various technologies to accomplish specific tasks in our lives. Today we have various emerging technologies which impact our lives in different ways. 

• Technology allows us to contact and work with those all around the world. 
• It allows people to access their data securely from anywhere. It helps save lives, e.g. emergency response teams can coordinate rescues quicker
• It improves quality of life, e.g. those without limbs can have them replaced with bionics
• All resources can be found when studying so computers/laptops are absolutely helpful

I will be using the internet throughout this journey for all the research I need to make just like I had already done to find the meaning of all the primary colours when annotating quotes. The use of technology will also assist me if I need any help with Photoshop or InDesign at some point of the editing stages within the preliminary task, I can simply be independent by searching for tutorials on YouTube.
YouTube greatly helps in all kinds of ways such as finding how to create a slideshow on blogger of all the pictures of a magazine. I will be using Google Drive for all the work I need to store so that if by any chance I lose my USB, I can easily access my pictures and MS Excel (of the schedule) etc. through this way.

Typography (Quotes)

Typography is used in a design which is deeply rooted in its overall theme, tone and message. It works with your layout, grid and colour choice to create a well-rounded design. Typography is the visual component of the written word.

Analysing a children's magazine

Brands Eye: In the Night Garden

I've put together all the pages of the magazine into a slideshow which can be accessed below:

Core Proposition: "Let's have fun!"

Brand Personality: -- Full of fun games and activities involved (stickers, Iggle Piggle toy phone and crayons to be artistic).

Target Readers: Toddlers interactions are made through pictures hence there aren't as many texts on the front cover (compared to a magazine such as Elle). Therefore, the parents/guardian becomes the target reader because they are the ones who will be buying products for their children hence the attraction needs to be carried along to them too.

Says about you: A child/kid who spends a significant amount of time watching this show. Someone who is artistic when it comes to coloring on a page. Someone who likes reading short stories would also love to buy this.

How does it make you feel: 

-Feel artistic when coloring wherever it is needed

-Enjoyable magazine

-Creative side comes to life

What do you perceive: A nice, simple and short story is added. There are several different activities to be done.

Benefits:
There are many creative activities:

-Children's get to be artistic by coloring a page or two on the magazine

-Reading is generally good for people, especially young kids as this improve their English.
-Learning the numbers is good as it improves young children's basic Maths knowledge.

Front Cover

 The picture above shows the front cover of the magazine 'In the Night Garden' which is a children's show featured on Cbeebies, bought from Morrisons. 

Why/how does the design appeal to the chosen audience?

• Straightaway the most distinct feature about this front cover is the use of colour palette. The colours are rich and vibrant filled with all the eye-catching primary colours there are. This magazine has used all shades of blue from sky blue to royal blue. Seeing the colour blue actually causes the body to produce natural chemicals that are calming which is great for kids as their childhood is all about being playful and energized. I have claimed this statement from a research that was made on the internet about the meanings and/or associations of various different colours. This is the specific website: https://precisionintermedia.com/color  

• The presentation is quite playful not only due to the colour scheme but also because of the split on the front cover. We as viewers are able to observe all the characters there are in the animated show when uncovering the left-hand side of the split page. 

• The first thing that really caught my eyes in comparison to the rest is deep, dark colours used to present one of the main cartoon character -Upsy Daisy, published in a huge size.
• The second most noticeable feature of this particular magazine is the name of the show (In the Night Garden) written in white coloured font which placed in a little, royal blue leaf shaped text box to be fit and compatible with the theme of nature. The name of the font appears to be the biggest font used in the front cover indicating the need for recognition at first sight and also to showcase the significance. 

• The fonts consist of simple and small sized texts which may cause one to be confused at this element merely because, on a children's magazine, extravagant fonts such as bubble writing are commonly used. However, in this case, it goes against this typicality. The reason for this being is because the customer is clearly going to be an adult who purchases it for the consumer who is the children. 

• The presentation of the layout is very well-suited for young kids as it displays an understanding of what young children engage well with and what they find most appealing + eye-catching. Furthermore, the writing style fits the parents need to be able to read not only the front cover to decide if they want to buy it for their children but also be able to read aloud the pages inside to help the toddlers understand as generally, at such a young age most do not have great knowledge just right at this point in terms of reading and speaking fluently. 

In order to analyse this particular magazine in more depth, I have put together a target analysis within a table format which can be seen below. 

Product Analysis

Price	£2.75
Advertisers	A children’s magazine – The Furchester Hotel which include great gifts and lots more.
Reader Interaction	Iggle Piggle toy phone, plenty of stickers and crayons.
Promotion & Competitions	·         Hands Up! – A special campaign which encourages children to learn about friendships and how to get along with the people around them. The competition requires a child’s outline of their hand to be drawn on the page, therefore, they can design it however they want. This then needs to be sent for a chance to win an IPad Air. ·         To be in with a chance of winning 1 of the three In the Night Garden bundles; it requires the child or rather the parents to tell the organisation what colour Iggle –piggle’s blanket is. ·         A promotion that is included inside the magazine involves an issue which was on sale on 16th September. With this, there was a free Makka Pakka (this is one of the characters of In the Night Garden) toy bath set along with ‘lots of big stickers’ and ‘special bedtime pages’.
Content	This magazine includes a page full of stickers that are to be stuck in the right places, on the right pages. There is also two pages worth of short story that can be read at any time by the parents or the children’s themselves.

Market Segmentation

Demographic	*Not suitable for children under 18 months because it may not be of any use if this was to be purchased specifically for them.
Geographic	No specific but mostly appropriate for toddlers who generally love to watch this programme in the UK.
Benefit	There is a chance of grabbing a voucher to get into Chessington World of Adventures resort for free, only entitled for kids.  Toddlers would have several creative activities to do. Kids often like to show off what they know hence this is another benefit of buying this magazine.

Introduction

Hello! My name is Momeena. I am currently studying Photography, Applied ICT, Product Design and OCR AS Media Studies.
The main purpose of blogging is to publish everything that I do to get the tasks finished. I will be making my own magazine cover, contents page and double page spread to showcase different set of skills and ideas (using InDesign). The journey that I begin will be based on everything I learn in AS Media Studies.