List of common conventions

Edinburgh University magazine contents page

Content pages for the red triangle

Target audience:

The target audience for this magazine is for 18+ university students. It can also rank a bit lower for 16-18 year olds as they may be looking to go to the university.  The secondary audience is for teachers, lectures, governors, parents, etc.

Layout:

The layout of the contents page is very neat. Most of the text is in text boxes and the images are separate. Some of the text also curves around the image. The text is all together and is well spread out across the pages. There is some writing on the images thus helping the audience know what page it is on. It is also set out in to columns and subjects, which makes it easier to read about the subject that you want.

Colour:

The colours of the pages are red and white. Using white is a good colour as it is gender neutral. The red makes the pages have a main colour and directs the audience eyes to the page. The colours of the images match that of the background thus making them suit the contents page.

Imagery:

The images on the content page are also formal and very grown up. They show images for both genders and for most subjects. This makes their target audience very wide. The images are very well taken as the lighting is very good in all of them and there not pixelated. Most of the shots are medium to close up shots.

Typography:

The text for the content page is formal thus linking it to the target audience as the text is grown up for the university students. The text on the red page isn’t very easy to read, as it is white writing on a red background. This text is also very small that makes it harder. The bit that’s telling people what’s in the magazine is easier to read and stands out more. This might show that they want people to look at the content page and not the other piece of writing on the page.

Conclusion:

I think that this contents page is very well presented as the colours are unisex and the images show something for everyone thus making them have a wider target audience. The only thing I would change is the white writing on the red background as it is to hard to read. 

Analysis of Edinburgh Napier magazine - front cover

The red triangle

Target audience

The primary audience for this magazine is for 18+ as it is for a university. They could also rank a bit younger for the audience as well for example 16-18 for people thinking about going to the university. The secondary audience are the teachers, governors, parents, etc.

Masthead

The masthead is big which is good as it should take up about 1/8 of the page which it does. The colours of it also are unisex as they are red, black and white. The only problem with it is that the background is to dull. It is just white it should have a design of some sort behind it. The writing is also bold which helps it stand out. It sort of relates to the audience as it’s a unisex title but it defiantly needs an image behind it.

Layout

The layout of the magazine is very good as it just has one main image instead of a few. The image is very well taken as it’s a long shot of the building however there is other stuff happening in front of it. The writing on the side is also very well placed as we can still see the university building whilst the teasers are down the other side of the page. This suits the target audience well as it’s very well placed as has teasers.

Colour

The colours are unisex which doesn’t leave out any of the target audience which helps them get more readers. With the white writing it stands out from the rest. This is also why they have it in bold to make it stand out even more. There are only 3 main colours on the cover which suits the target audience as there isn’t too much to look at.

Imagery

The image is very well taken; it is a long shot of the university with stuff happening in front of the building. It suits the university but maybe should have some secondary images to show what has been happening at the school for example sports etc. They also took the photo whilst it was sunny and blue sky thus trying to show that it’s a happy place to be.

Typography

The text on the front cover is very well presented. The main facts are in bold and white on the page which makes them stand out more. There are teasers to show the audience what is in the magazine. It also has a major story about the year in highlights this basically gets the whole of the target audience involved if you already go to university here.

Conclusion

I believe this university magazine is very well presented to the target audience it tries to get everyone involved. The image is very well taken and the writing is very well placed at the side. The one thing that really could be improved on is the masthead as it is to plain.

Bodmin College magazine front cover

Bodmin College Magazine

Target audience:

The primary target audience is students for both genders 11-19 ages.

The secondary audience is teachers, parents, governors, etc.

Masthead

The masthead does not stand out from the background. The colours are dull and doesn’t stand out from the leafs. The masthead is also to small and should take up about 1/8 of the page instead of it being small like it is. In short it is not set for the target audience as the colours are to dull and do not stand out.

Layout

The layout is poor it has three main pictures, having one main picture would be better with text around the side and also maybe have some minor images. It should have some text to tease the target audience in to reading the magazine. The images are also very poorly taken long shots.

Colour

There is too much colour in the images making them not contrast with the text (3/5 colours). With the white writing of the text it is hard to read especially the bold writing in the middle. The middle part of the magazine isn’t even readable. The text doesn’t suit the target audience as there are too many colours (to much stuff happening).

Imagery

The quality of the images are awful. They are all long shots and are blurred which can make the images hard to see and make out. The purple smoke down the bottom defiantly doesn’t suit the image as it makes the kids look ill. They should have other images for example more sports or older students, as this would relate to a higher target audience.

Typography

There isn’t much text on the front cover. There isn’t even a main story to tell the audience what is in the magazine and what it is about. They have got a title that said about the dance platform which rules out most of there target audience, as if you didn’t get involved (in it or watched it) you aren’t going to want to know about it or else you would have gone to see it.

Conclusion

I believe this front cover is really below average as the images are very poorly taken and the writing does not relate to the target audience. I can barely read the writing, which doesn’t make it stand out from other front covers.

Analysing Existing Magazines

I am going to analyse two magazines front covers and contents pages. This helps me work out the common conventions that I will need in my own work. This will help me represent the needs of my target audience. As well known theorist below show creativity is not simply an instant process but:

“A process needed for problem solving…not a special gift enjoyed by a few but a common ability possessed by most people”  (Jones, 1993).

“The making of the new and the rearranging of the old” (Bentley, 1997)

“Creativity results from the interaction of a system composed of three elements: a culture that contains symbolic rules, a person who brings novelty into the symbolic domain, and a field of experts who recognise and validate the innovation” (Csikszentmihalyi, 1996).

Prelim task

I need to develop my skills in pre-production, photography, photoshop and critical reflection before I start my main task. First I have to complete the following task below in the brief:

My AS media foundation portfolio

For my Foundation Portfolio I have decided to follow the print brief and make a magazine front cover, contents and feature spread for a the music industry. I think that doing this will help my knowledge of the area and also help develop my skills in this area. The brief I will be working on is as follows: