NME Front Cover Analysis

NME Contents Page Analysis

Top of the Pops Double Page Spread Analysis

Top of the Pops Contents Page Analysis

Kerrang! Cover Analysis

Top of the Pops Cover Analysis

College Magazine Front Cover Evaluation

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

My front cover uses conventions of a magazine by having the normal aspects of a front cover – masthead, photo, anchorage text, sell lines, barcode, etc. The front cover also uses media by having a photograph covering the whole page. It makes the cover stand out more to readers and passers-by, they see the colours and the brightness and they stop, look and pick it up. One of the conventions I used is having a barcode on the front cover; this shows that it’s a magazine and not a book. A book’s barcode is usually located on the back. On the cover, I have included the convention of sell lines. Sell lines allow the customer/ reader to show what’s inside, this might intrigue them to pick up the magazine and want to buy it.

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

My magazine represents the social group by having a college student on the cover, which is who the magazine is actually aimed at. Having this student on the cover will attract other students to pick up the magazine and want to buy it. The sell lines also represent this social group because it’s about things they want to know about. I did a survey and these sell lines reflect the things that students wanted to read about such as; tips for saving money, gig listings and student discounts.

How did you attract/ address your audience?

To attract/ address my audience, I used a college student on the front cover wearing a band t shirt so the audience could relate to the cover already. I also used the conventions of typical conventions of magazines that students around college read, such as Kerrang!, NME and Q. I also attracted the audience by using sell lines which they relate to, including how to save money and what gigs were on and when.

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

I have learnt a lot about Photoshop from constructing my magazine front cover. This was interesting as people who work in the media use this regularly. Prior to making this front cover, I had no idea how to use Photoshop at all. However, now I know how to make parts of image transparent, how to layer images, how to make a photo a certain size (I made my front cover A4) and adding in text and changing the colour of that text. Another thing I learned how to do is alter the brightness of an image as the image I used was quite dark so I had to learn.

Results from Survey

Contents Page

Magazine Front Cover

Audience Profile

Survey

I asked people to do this survey around college so I could understand my audience and build an audience profile.

Definition of a Magazine

A magazine is a periodical print publication containing articles, pictures and lots more covering a particular subject. A magazine can be brought out weekly bi-weekly, monthly or even annually. There are lots of different types of magazines and these types are called genres. There many different genres such as; music, animal, sport, craft, hobbies, films, photography, fashion, lifestyle, etc.

1D: This Is Us Trailer

This is an advert for One Direction's movie entitled '1D: This Is Us'. One Direction's agency created this advertisement for One Direction and their management. Music by One Direction is used to attract the attention of fans of the boyband. Using the boys' voices also attracts attention to the ad as people will recognise them and will want to know why they're on the screen, becoming instantly interested. Another creative technique is using news reader's voices as an older generation might look up, thinking that the news or something important is on. Bright colours are also used to make the screen stand up. Bright colours also make people look at the screen that the advert is displayed on. Different people might understand this message differently as there is a lot going on. The advert will make a fan cry, laugh and sing along. They would love it as they are a fan of the boyband. The advert will make them want to go and see this film immediately. Whereas, someone who is not a fan might look at it and hate it. They might think it's just a way to make money or it's just plain 'stupid'. But, on the other hand, someone who is not a fan might see it and be intrigued. They might want to find out about the stories the advert teases you about. In the advert, it features a part where Zayn Malik buys his family a house and they are so pleased with it. That part may trigger your emotions and it will make you want to see the film even more. Many different emotions are triggered by this ad - sadness, happiness, excitement, etc. This is another creative technique used in the advert. The lifestyle of 5 boyband members are represented here and this advert is just a sneak peak into their lives and what they're like. It shows us how they live their lives and what goes on in everyday for them. Family values are omitted from this advert when they boys start talking about their family and how important it is to stay close to them and never forget where you come from, no matter what happens. The boys' own point of view are represented and shown accurately and very clearly. We get a short look into their lives, values and points of view very simply. This message is being shown because One Direction have a movie coming out and it's important for that movie to reach the public successfully. The movie needs press and publication for it to become successful. It's an advert for a movie which is expected to break records and do really well.

All About Me

My name is Amy, I am an A-Levels student at City College, Norwich.
This is my Foundation Portfolio in Media.