Evaluation

I have taken the idea of a magazine and transformed it into a new media way of viewing it. I used the new technology of QR codes to help me create a magazine that can be viewed online via the internet. This will appeal to the target market of the media 2.0 generation as it uses a smart phone to scan the code which then directs you to a page online where you can view the magazine. This idea also helps with the global warming situation as it stops trees being cut down for paper to print magazines on. This new way to view magazines could help the environment and continue to grow and expand with other magazines getting involved in the act. I feel that if I was to promote my magazine strongly then I could potentially change the future of magazines and also help the environment through using fewer amounts of paper. 

Before creating my magazine I decided that for me to be able to create a magazine that was going to be popular and increase my sales therefore meaning I could maximise profits, I would have to research into what age, gender social group I was going to address (demographic factors). To decide this I created a questionnaire which helped me to analyse what the potential age group preferred. Due to the fact I wanted to be able to relate to my target market I handed out the question around the sixth form. After collating my results I was able to present my results in graphs. It was quickly aware that the age group I was going to be using to target was ages 13 and above. This meant that my target market would be teenagers. In order to appeal to this age group I researched other magazines which they said appealed to them and generated my idea from their collaborated trends and themes. As well as this, I decided that as part of teenagers you never see them without a smart phone or some sort of piece of technology; I used this to my advantage and decided that to appeal to these young adults I was going to have to get onto their preferred ways of reading. Due to this, I was able to come up with the idea of using a QR code which when scanned by a smart phone would direct them to my website which has the magazine displayed on it. This idea sparked the initial thought to use the Ipad as a border on the front cover I am going to sell in shops. I felt this would grab my target market by using an object which they could relate to. Although I would like to think my magazine could potentially reach all social groups I have devised my magazine to be a rock one. This means that I will be targeting people who like the music rock. I chose this genre of music because after analysing my graphs it was apparent that people popularized the magazine Kerrang which is a rock music magazine.

I decided to attract my audience through using the colour scheme of black and white images alongside bright colours for the text. I decided to keep this theme throughout the magazine as the logo is of this scheme. I used this to create the idea of bright colours because my target audience of rock liking teenagers relate to bright colours. I found that if I was to use these colours with a black and white background then it stood out making my target audience want to read the magazine. I also tried to engage them through using some bright images. After completing my questionnaires it was apparent that my target audience preferred more images than text therefore I tried to recreate this within my magazine.

As well as this to attract my audience I tried to use objects that rock music would be associated with. I did this on the front cover by using an image of the person in a Nirvana T-shirt which is a very iconic rock band. On the contents, I tried to use the images that were going to be in the rest of the magazine however I did use an image of a girl holding a microphone. This shows that the magazine is a music one. I also used the image of “Bethany Marsh” in the double page spread holding a guitar. The instrument, is a very iconic object of rock music. The logo is another image that made my magazine feel like it was a rock magazine. The logo has a cassette included within it which shows that it is a music magazine.

Due to the use of new technology I would like to think that a new media based company could distribute my media product. I have looked at the suppliers of Apple magazine as it would be a great deal if we were to sponsor them. This would lead our magazine to have a good level of promotion to help us with sales figures and profits. Apple magazine is the magazine for the company apple; I have used their products to create the inspiration of my product. If I was to get the same company to distribute my magazine then it could potentially be a good way to market my magazine.

As a result of the production of my product I have learnt to expand my knowledge and skills within the software of Photoshop. I have dramatically progressed in skill through using this software as I was able to apply knowledge I already had to new ways of presenting it. Before I had started this product I was unable to use Photoshop to the capability of impaling two images together that looked like they were one. I am now able to achieve this task as I have shown through my blog using the apple image. I feel that after completing my main task I am now further confident to produce another task such as this. Another way that has increased my technology understanding is through the new media ways of viewing a magazine. After creating a QR code I am now able to use this later skill I have learnt. I have educated myself on the new media ways of today and been able to manipulate them into making a gap to produce and sell my magazine in.

The preliminary task was a good way to help me to see where my strong skills were and were not. I was quickly aware that the task wasn’t as easy as I thought it was going to be. My Photoshop skills were not equipped to produce a high standard magazine but I was able to produce a suitable magazine for what I was trying to achieve. My preliminary task was a very good way to help me to improve my skills alongside educating myself on the key elements of a magazine. I was able to identify what type of shots I was using in my media project such as a mid shot for my front cover. Over the year I have learnt a lot through the way of using Photoshop to produce magazines rather than to edit only the images. I believe that I have increased my skills and understanding of the subject through completing my preliminary task. It has helped me to see where I could expand my knowledge to create a better main task magazine.

I am also going to create a video that explains my evaluation. This is my evaluation that I have typed before I create the video.