FINAL COVER



FINAL CONTENTS PAGE

FINAL DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD

Q7- Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

Q6- What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?

Paint.Net

.I learnt a lot through working with paint.net because that was how I constructed most of my magazine pages, so I had to get to grips with it quickly. I learnt how to make new layers so that I could add in different objects/text and order/move them how I liked. I also learnt how to manipulate text and edit their backgrounds and colours, because I wanted to make certain bits of text stand out from the rest to catch peoples attention. I didn't encounter any problems with Paint.Net, as I found it quite straight-forward and simple to use, so there wasn't any issues that I had to overcome using this. 

Fireworks

 I used Fireworks mainly for editing my images, and changing them around. I learnt how to change the backgrounds of the photographs I had taken, to make them black/white or blur things out so that the image didn't look distorted. This really helped me to get my photographs up to a good quality, ready to be put onto my magazine pages. I did a little bit of text editing on Fireworks too but I had some small problems with this, because I couldn't work out how to make it fit into different boxes, so to overcome this I googled it and watched some tutorials that taught me how to do it. After that, I had no problems using this software.

Blogger

I have really enjoyed using Blogger because it provides a unique way to present things and allows me to be creative with how I go about doing things. I have never used Blogger before, and have never thought to have my own Blog, but since doing this, I have really liked it, as it is an easy way to keep everything together in one place. I found it very easy to use. One problem I did have though was in terms of the layout, I wanted to add labels so that things can be located easily. To overcome this I asked one of my classmates, who has previously used Blogger, to talk me through it. 

Prezi

Prezi has been a really fun, different way to present my work, because it is unlike just a normal powerpoint, it allows links to other parts of the presentation. It was also good to be able to embed youtube clips into it, because that helped when I was talking about music and I could refer to specific examples. I didn't have any problems using Prezi, because it is a very easy software to use and it is something that I will definitely use a lot more of.

Camera

I had never really used the camera on my iPhone for anything like this before, so it was good that I could, because it meant that I could explore different filters and experiment with various apps (tattoo-ing app). Without using the camera on my phone, I wouldn't have been able to add in the tattoos as easy and it would have took a lot of hard work, with lots of problems I would have to overcome, as I have never done anything like that before. This hardware was good because it was handheld, which means that I could be more mobile and move around a lot more freely, rather than if I'd had a camera with a tripod. The image quality might've been better on a proper camera, but I wanted that authentic look to it that I think I achieved. 

Survey Monkey

Survey Monkey was a good website to use for my production because it allowed me to create questionnaires that could easily be distributed to people for them to respond. The results were clear and easy to analyse when they came back, so I didn't have any problems with this at all. The questionnaires were very easy to embed on to my Blog. 

Overall, I didn't realise how much editing goes into making a magazine, and I was surprised by how much different hardwares and softwares come together to create the pages. I am really proud of all of the photographs on my final pages, because I think they all capture a different side to the artist. I am really pleased with how the photographs look after I edited them, without having used the software before. 

Q5- How did you attract/address your audience?

Attracting My Audience by beth sturgess

Q4- Who would be the audience for your media product?

Q3- What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Q2- How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Stereotypes of a hip-hop artist

Women in hip-hop magazines are often presented as sex objects to attract the malegaze. However I tried to minimise doing this to try and change the stereotype that stands. I still incorporated bit of sexual identity in my artist, but not as much as this Beyonce magazine for example. The shots between these two are similar, the Beyonce one is just a bit more of a long shot. these shots allow the reader to see the expression of the artist, and in both of these magazines, it connotes a natural, comfortable feeling. The shots also show some of the body and physique of the artists which would appeal to the male readers because they are both attractive females. The lighting in both shots are also quite similar because the light hits the artist's face and one side of their body, allowing people to see the different sides of the artist. Also the use of the lighting in the Beyonce magazine creates the image that she is glowing which connotes that she is very powerful, successful and important. 

I would say that I have presented my artists in a positive light because she isn't too sexually objected, which connotes more gender equality. Also the fact that I haven't strongly used the stereotypes of a hip-hop artist connotes that she is a change in the music industry, and wants to give out a new look for hip-hop. I think this is effective because I think I have managed to find a good balance between being stereotypical and challenging peoples views. I still dressed my model glamorously in some shots and had her with some tattoos and representing her attitude. This is stereotypical for hip-hop females, and I think by incorporating these few key elements, shows to the reader that she is a hip-hop artist, just one that stands out from the rest.

I was trying to create a new image for hip-hop females through my magazine product. I wanted to show more white females in the industry because at the minute, it is mostly black/tan dominant. The hip-hop industry is very male dominant as well, so by introducing a new powerful female, like Beyonce and Nicki Minaj, makes it a little bit more equal and shows people that hip-hop is starting to accept more female artists. I wanted to create a new Beyonce-type figure, because she is a very influential, respected woman, that inspires a lot of people, so by creating a new artist following in these footsteps would go along way with the audience. 

 

My artist had three different looks through the magazine. The first one, the cover shot, has her in a green bomber jacket, with a white top on. These bomber jackets are often associated with the teenage demographic and usually represent them as being a 'gangsta'/'badgirl'. By me using this on my cover page, connotes that side of her, which is stereotypical of a hip-hop artist. This is further shown with the use of sunglasses, they connote some mystery about the artist and represent the fact that she is new to fame, and maybe isn't very used to being spotted everywhere she goes. 

The second shot of the artist on the contents page has her in a cropped yellow top, with some jewellery on. The jewellery is gold, signifying her wealth and success as a young, new artist. Also the tattoos show that she is conforming to the hip-hop stereotype a little bit, because that is something heavily associated with the genre. She isn't heavily made up in the shot, showing her natural beauty side making her appear as more relatable to the readers. 

The third shot, on the double page spread, has the artist in a short, black playsuit. This playsuit being black adds to the sex appeal of the artist because it makes the red lipstick stand out more. I have used a prop in  this shot, of the earphones, because I think that they stand out against her black playsuit and further connote music. The fact that she is more heavily made up in this shot, ties into the glamour that she is showing. It shows the reader a different side of her and connotes that she could have just been at an awards show or nominated for something, which I think they would find intriguing. Also I chose to have her laughing looking off to one side because it shows that she has attitude, which is something that hip-hop artists are known for. 

Q1- In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Q1 from bsturgess24

Weekly Update

This week I have looked at some examples on OCR Media Weebly of evaluations and what I need to do in order to get a high level for it. I found that I need add in depth detail about each point that I make and also say why I have done something and not just describing what it is. I am also going to produce each question in a different way to make it more interesting and so they aren't too text heavy. I need to use a lot of media terminology and check my spelling, punctuation and grammar to achieve a higher level. I now think that I am ready to do my evaluation.

Weekly Update

This week I made another Double Page Spread after starting over after my first draft. I still don't really like how it has turned out because I don't think it links in with the genre. I think that it doesn't really connote that 'Shan' is from the Hip-Hop genre because she hasn't got that 'bad girl' image, so I think that is something that I'm going to have to change.
Next week I am going to create a new double page spread that fits my genre better and then I will start my evaluation on my 4 magazine pages.

Double Page Spread Draft 2

I don't like the image on this because it isn't very obvious that she's a music and the genre that she's from, so I am going to take some more images to make sure that they fit in better. I also think that the colours need to mesh more because the orange doesn't work very well with the colour palette I have already. I am going to edit it all to make it more like hip-hop genre.

Double Page Spread Draft

I wasn't happy with this being my double page spread because it doesn't really fit Hip-Hop, it is too colourful and I don't think the 3 different images work well together. I am going to rethink my layout and start again, to get it looking more like a Hip-Hop artists article. I might only have one image taking up one side of the double page spread and then have 3 columns of text on the other page.

Weekly Update

This week I have edited my Contents Page and finished it. I am still not happy with my second one because I think it isn't very interesting and doesn't connote the genre. It isn't very easy to read because of the text differences, so I will need to consider this.
Next week I am going to finish my Contents Page to make it how I like it and start on my Double Page Spread and hopefully have it finished by the end of the week so I will be on schedule for my evaluation.

Contents Draft 2

This wont be my final one, and I think I should restart, because the typography is all different fonts, sizes and alignment so, I am going to make sure that I made them all the same. The top right image also needs to be changed a bit because the model doesn't fit the genre that well, so I need to add a few features and things to her to change it. By restarting means that I can make it look a lot better and make it fit the genre more.

Contents Draft 1

I really didn't like my first draft of my contents page because it was too bland and not very interesting. I thought that everything was a bit too big and the editors message looked very out of place. I am going to restart my contents page form scratch to make it better and make it look more appealing and exciting. I think I'm going to start with adding a background colour and moving all of the different elements around to create a better look.

Weekly Update

This week I have been editing my images and putting them into a layout. So far I have only got as far as finishing my Cover page, which I am really happy with. I think it clearly represents the Hip-Hop genre and looks aesthetically pleasing.
Next week I am going to continue editing as I am going to start my Contents Page and hopefully have that done by the end of the week.

Cover Page Steps

Cover Draft 1 MLS

I decided not to go with this medium-long shot because it isn't very conventional for a hip-hop magazine, so I am going to crop it to a medium shot so that it suits the genre better. Also I think by cropping the image will make it stand out more because at the minute there is a lot of background still so I will get rid of most of that.

Weekly Update

This week I took photo's of potential locations and decided on the costumes that I want to use for my photo-shoot. By doing this, it means that I will be able to see how well things will work and by having various places/outfits means that the artist isn't always looking the same.
I have also decided on my magazine title on "Insight" which connotes that people are getting an exclusive look into the lives of the artists/celebrities featured in the magazine. I have gone through and found some founds that I think look good and work well for my genre and for a music magazine.
I completed my Technical Research as well so know I have more of an understanding of how to use the programmes and computer software.

Costumes

In my shoot I am going to have 2 boy models and one girl. Their outfits will be quite casual and basic colours because my colour palette is white, black and yellow.


My female model will have outfit changes so I can have 1 smart/casual look and 1 casual look.

• For the casual look I am thinking about having jeans, a plain top and a jacket, to keep it simple but also to keep her looking fashionable and in style
• The smart/casual look will either be jeans or leggings, with a dressy top, because I don't want a shot that is overly dressy because I want her to connote a relaxed side.

The male models I am going to have both wearing blue denim jeans with a grey sweatshirt/hoodie. This makes them have a very casual look about them which is something that my focus group liked a lot. Also because these models aren't the main artist they don't need to be very dressed up. I am also going to have a shot with one of the models in a t-shirt instead of the hoodie, so I have a choice of outfit when deciding what look I prefer.


In some of the shots I am going to have one of the models wearing blacked-out sunglasses to represent the gangsta/badboy image. A few of these shots will have the female model wearing these sunglasses as she will be my main artist and that will help with her slightly gangsta/cool image.

Technical Research

Location

Weekly Update

 This week I have done a risk assessment of the location that I am using for my photoshoot. This is so that I will be able to avoid any hazards and keep the models and myself safe during the shoot.
I also made sure that the models signed the model release forms so that I have their full permission to edit and use the photo's that are taken.
I have also done Institutional Regulations to help me know what to avoid doing so that my magazine can avoid legal problems.
I have done my Final Pitch, to promote my final ideas of my magazine. This will help me now to create my magazine because I know what image/style I am aiming for so I will have more direction.
Next week I am going to start taking shots so that I can start editing and creating my magazine.

Risk Assessment

Institutional Regulations