Billy Turner:

Media Evaluation.
 1. In what ways does your media product
use, develop or challenge forms and
conventions of real media products?
• My magazine follows SOME generic "metal" music magazines,
it uses powerful images and catching headlines which attract
the eye.
My masthead also follows the general feel of a metal magazine,
I used "KERRANG" mag’ as a template for my designs and
whilst looking through this found other styles I could use in the
mag. These being the Unconventional forms. The bottom of my
front page is based on a "KERRANG" issue from 2005, which
on the front cover has a MAIN cover image of a band/band
member and on the bottom has smaller images which then run
on over into a CD which was in bundle with the issue. My
magazine uses the same template but the bottom of my front
page is filled with images from festivals which overlap into an
"ACCESS ALL AREAS" style pass on the front cover.
This KERRANG mag isn’t the exact copy but it’s a rough guide what I
wanted it to look like.
• This being unconventional for a Metal music magazine, this
could be more expected of say a main event magazine, with the
entire front page covered in images and advertisements and
other things for that event. When I was designing my front
cover i decided to use fonts which were powerful and
interesting, something that stood out from the rest of the
magazine. So I used a Russian "look-a-like" text from
"dafont.com". I used this because it looks strong and if I think
of Russia I think power, strength and outstanding. My magazine
follows the lines of "party hard" constantly through it, reading
the sections on my double page spread shows this, and the
numerous adverts for alcohol throughout it also, so the Russian
text also added to that because Vodka being a Russian drink
and me advertising drinks in my mag’ I felt it all fit together.
• My double page spread was based HALF on
"KERRANG" and HALF on "METAL HAMMER", the
reason for this is "KERRANG" often have feature
pages which just have an image on them, and
nothing else-or just a small amount of text. BUT
"METAL HAMMER" is often full pages of text with
smaller images surrounding or fit into the
paragraphs to split them up. I looked at these articles
and put them together like 1 piece using "quark", I
feel this challenges conventional media ideas
because this is 2 magazines of the same sub-culture
but 2 totally different styles of layout and template, 1
magazine being crammed full of text, the other
mainly images. Comparison-THE SUN newspaper
and say THE GUARDIAN? This being a similar idea.
 2. How does your media product
represent particular social groups?
• My magazine was based on "metal". This is a culture which is best known
for fast music, head-banging, Mosh’ pits and heavy drinking. I looked at
each of these things and thought some things branch off from this. The fast
music is different genres that are involved in metal, Hardcore, death-core,
metal-core, thrash metal, grind-core, sludge and Doom. each of these
genres have iconic bands which i then felt fit in with my magazine, like in my
audience profile i looked into "job for a cowboy" who are a London based
doom band, I also looked into "your Demise" who are a ST Albans based
hardcore act. Through these I looked into popular styles like NEW ERA hats
for the hardcore kids and Flesh tunnels, heavy gauge piercings and tattoos
for the doom fans. I looked into "Mosh’ pits" and "slam dancing" because its
popular at metal shows and its something that both magazines "KERRANG"
and "METALHAMMER" both feature images of and write articles about, i
then saw how there are other sub-cultures that come off this with there own
styles. The "hardcore kids" have "2-Stepping" and "slam dancing" whilst the
more Old-school metal fans have there "circle pits" and "Head-banging". I
took all these aspects of metal, the few i have mentioned and more, and
applied them to my magazine so it would attract an audience of all sub-
cultures.
 3. What kind of media institution might
distribute your media product and why?
Whilst designing my mag’, I looked into Independent and major
distributers. I found that My genre(s) of magazines are best off sold
as an independent mag’, due to it being such a small amount of the
audience interested would read it. I have taken influence from 2
magazines which are distributed nationally and I feel by doing that
my mag has a certain feel it SHOULD be distributed and advertised
nationally, but if this was to be an independent, I feel I would have to
dim down on the creature comforts, like less colour more black and
white printing due to cost etc... of printing a professional major
standard magazine on independent budgeting. I took influence from
magazines which were distributed and advertised multinational and
made them a more independent small local distributed and
advertised mag. The advantages to my mag’ going global would be,
money and better advertising so it would almost fund itself, BUT the
downsides to this is plenty of the people listening to this style of
music, reading this magazine would feel selling their what they feel
is personal styles and there faces to the world, is selling out. which
would then effect money and the effect reading numbers.
 4. Who would be the audience for
your media product?
• I feel the audience for my magazine could be;
metal/hardcore/punk/thrash fans who have a mixture of all these
music tastes in one. I look at my mag’ and see bands such as "your
demise" and "more than life" being advertised, and these are
independent hardcore bands but i also see adverts for "gallows" and
"job for a cowboy" who are both major bands in the "metal scene"
and this makes me think a person with a wider taste of music with a
bigger selection of music styles would read this magazine. I try to
target as many audiences in the metal genre as possible by using
metal/punk/hardcore and thrash bands, were as usually mag’s like
"KERRANG" have feature mag’s which have 1 set theme per mag. 1
week you could see bands like "Medina Lake" on the front cover
saying about how they were bullied at school for being weird, and
the next you could have "behemoth" stood baring swords and
inverted crosses with blood guts and gore featured. I feel something
for everybody each time they read the mag’ would be a lot better
than a set theme through out the mag’ each issue.
5. How did you attract/address your
audience?
• To attract my audience I used cover-lines which I felt were shocking! but still
tame enough to make you want to read on without putting your hand over
your own mouth. In my mag’ I use a really informal writing style whilst
talking with the "artist" which gives a sense of your actually at the location
with them having the chat. On my EXTRA page I also wrote in a more laid
back manner due to it being the page I was speaking about writing the first
article, i wanted people who read it to feel like they were being spoken to
directly by me, like i was sat in the room, feet up on the sofa, having a drink
just talking to them about how stressful writing the first issue was.
My front cover had a mixture of Formal and Informal speech, which was to
give the sense of scandal and to set the genuine feel for the articles and the
other things inside. I speak to my selected audience like I would genuinely
speak to them in actual life, laid back and just hoping there paying attention
and are interested. I feel if magazines are written too formally it can make
you feel like your an outsider to what your reading, when you shouldn’t be-
your reading it because your interested. I like how when I wrote my articles i
read back through them and felt like I was actually there-asking the
questions and getting a true life response-this is the reason for me putting in
emotions and movements what the "artist" made whilst being "interviewed"
E.G "AHAHA mate, no seriously now...".
• 6. What have you learnt
about technologies from the
process of constructing this
product?
• Click Here! For my Videos…
• 7. Looking back at your
preliminary task, what do
you feel you have learnt in
the progression from it to
the full product?
I feel I have learnt a range of different skills.
Photoshop Elements 3 was a programme which I wasn’t
too sure about until I did this coarse. I have learnt how to
use most of the effects and tools I needed to make my
mag, I only needed little pointers which I then used things
like youtube tutorials to help me out alittle further. Using
photoshop I have made my magazine, and now are
looking back at the things I could make better. I look at
my mag I made for college and I also see the same, I
have too much of a block colour and no effect, were as
now I know how I use the effects I would like to change
them which will make the mag look more professional.
• I also didn’t take into terms the
Conventions used in making magazines.
Whilst planning my magazine I looked into
other mags like “KERRANG” and
“METALHAMMER”, I looked at there
layouts and too certain pieces of each and
put them together to make my own
product. Knowing generic conventions I
used them to help me create a piece that
would look realistic, slightly original and
still something new.
• I learnt whilst designing and making my product it
is important to stick to a time frame.
• I learnt that people aren’t always reliable and like
on my magazine I had to change my entire article
and front cover because i couldn’t get in touch with
my feature artists. So my last minute picture and
article change were a rush.
• I also learnt that if I stuck to the generic
conventions which other metal mags follow I found
it easier to create my product. But whilst trying to
create something alittle bit different I did make it A
LOT harder for myself.
• TH

THE END