Zoë Freeman

Evaluation of Foundation Portfolio

1. In what ways does your music magazine use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real music magazines?

Before I began to produce my music magazine, I researched a wide range of indie music magazines that already exist to gain an understanding of what the conventions were. I found that the majority of indie magazines had a consistent layout throughout – this included positioning text in the same place on their front pages, using thirds and positioning theory in their double page spreads, and also having a clear navigation system in their contents pages.

Front cover:

Use/Conform Challenge Develop

Masthead – similar to the NME one in the sense that it is short and red, is an actual word like Kerrang!

Date line – same placement as other magazines

Layout – similar to most music magazines, uses one artist as the focal point

Image – model is female, fits the conventions of the magazine, matches the colours used

Male Gaze – has a female model on the front cover, she is well presented and wearing makeup

Coverlines – relate to the stories inside, questions draw the reader in – make them want to read further and find out more

Barcode – positioned at the bottom of the magazine, features the issue number, date and price

Masthead – isn’t abbreviated (NME, Q)

Image – only features one artist, indie as a genre usually focuses on the formation of bands

Positioning of image – whilst it remains the focus, it is not entirely central to the magazine allowing the sell lines and stories to feature prominently

Male Gaze – whilst the model is wearing appropriate make-up, her hair is relatively simple and plain – she doesn’t display the elements of beauty that would be displayed on music magazines that are not indie

Masthead – combines the idea of the two leading indie/rock magazines, this combination could prove popular, fusing the two together

Male Gaze – demonstrates how females subconsciously conform to the idea of the glorification of women

Puff – adds a further ‘statement’ to the front page, stands out from the coverlines

Zoë Freeman

Contents page:

Use/conform Challenge Develop

Title – similar to NME, masthead is bold and ‘MUSE’ has a white outline around it

Layout – similar to NME, columns separate the different topics, use of images to gain attention

Stories – similar to NME and Kerrang!, all articles relate to indie music/musicians, feature stories are highlighted through images

Colour – keeps to the house style, use of red, white and black is prominent in all places

Main image – full body shot – out of context, removed background

Headings layout

Minor images – small, more than two, are of equal size, little text used to describe what they’re about – leaves reader inquisitive, makes them want to find out what story they relate to

Double page spread:

Use/conform Challenge Develop

Thirds – text is positioned like that of most music magazines, three separate columns

Pull Quotes – stand out from the text, bigger than the rest of the text, specifically relate to the indie genre

Page numbers – small, in the typical place – corner

Colour – remains the same throughout, consistent

Written by – informs the reader who produced the article

Image – used a single female, not in a band

Picture – pose is relatively relaxed, is neither a traditional full body shot or a medium close up

Zoë Freeman

Different fonts – allows the title of the story to remain prominent

2. How does your music magazine represent particular social groups?

My music magazine cover gives an indication to the audience that would be identifying it. Using a young, female model I appeal to teenagers and young adults of both genders. Whilst it can be argued that because of Mulvey’s Male Gaze theory, men objectify and glorify the concept of women as a result of her beauty, women equally identify with the beauty and base their ideal concept of what they should look like in terms of fitting in with the ‘indie’ culture. The indie genre itself manifests in all the choices I have made in terms of construction, font choice, typography and also the mise-en-scene of my images. For example, the cover lines I used on the front cover relate to things the indie genre appreciates – good music, independent artists, developing musical talent and also the experience of live performances. I also opted to use gender-neutral colours so I could appeal to a wider audience, as the indie genre is not exclusively associated with a single gender. By using a model that readers would associate with indie music, I represented identity through costume and make-up.

3. What kind of media institution might distribute your music magazine and why?

As I have modelled my media magazine on the layout and conventions of the popular indie magazine NME, I would possibly use the same platform that they use which is ICP Media. As ICP Media is responsible for the publication and creation for more than 60 well-known media brands, using it as a platform for my magazine would help it become successful and achieve the recognition that NME has. Due to the experience this company has with music magazines, the consumer is more likely to be inclined to purchase my magazine. In addition to this, Bauer Media might be a good resource to distribute my music magazine as it also offers a platform for magazines. One of the most popular magazines associated with this company is Q, a music magazine that focuses mainly on pop/indie music with occasional rock artists featuring on it too. This said, as I have chosen to model my magazine on indie music, I might opt to produce it independently and allow the profits of my magazine to go straight to myself instead of the platforms that would otherwise promote it. Releasing my magazine digitally might allow it to reach a global audience, as more people would be able to access it. The online format would also prove popular amongst my target audience as many teenagers utilise the internet in terms of social media and entertainment.

4. Who would be the audience for your music magazine?

I aimed to target young adults and teenagers of both genders. The audience I decided to target influenced the choices I made in regards to the production of my magazine, for example I largely included social media as a way to allow my audience to connect with the magazine as the younger generations I am aware of the large amount of time they spend on the internet. The price of my magazine is another indication of who my target audience are, priced at £2.50 the magazine is perhaps something the pre-teen ‘pop’ audience would not be able to afford, but something teenagers about to embark on adulthood would be interested in buying as they can afford it. I

Zoë Freeman

purposefully used a female teenage model so readers would be able to identify with her in terms of her costume she is wearing and the presence she has. She appears to be confident and strong on the front cover and contents page, however I chose to juxtapose this with her stance on the double page spread to allow the reader to be able to further identify with her as a person. Also, my early questionnaires about which gender my peers prefer to see on the front cover of a magazine suggested that the girls preferred someone they can identify with and the boys someone they could admire. I chose to use the information that was given to me by my peers to use to my advantage and make my music magazine appear like something they would be interested in reading themselves.

5. How did you attract/address your audience in the forms and conventions used in your music magazine?

I modelled my contents page specifically on previous NME issues so to keep within the conventions of a music magazine. As there are already established magazines that use similar styles, I believe my audience will be able to identify with the indie genre I am attempting to portray. Each artefact I have produced mentions the website of my magazine – I have done this as I know it will attract the audience and fits with the conventions of a music magazine. My contents page also uses an ‘@’ symbol which signifies the magazine has a twitter account where they can find more information about the magazine and the artists that are inside. Additionally, I use a ‘#’ on my double page spread in the text before the interview begins so those with a twitter account can ‘trend’ the interview and further publicize my magazine. In terms of the format of the magazine, I would plan to release it online as well as having physical copies due to the advancements in technology and the knowledge I have about what my target audience would be interested in having available. Doing this would allow me to reach a larger audience – whilst the indie genre predominantly focuses on small, undiscovered bands/artists, my magazine would theoretically be a business and I would need to make some kind of profit on what I produce.

6. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing your music magazine?

I have learnt an incredible amount about the production and distribution of music magazine as result of researching and using different technologies in the process of constructing my music magazine. One of the technologies I have learnt the most about is Photoshop – a programme I had never used up until now. Having used it for each piece of my foundation portfolio, I feel as though I now have an adequate understanding of the processes that take place and how to use it sufficiently. Initially I struggled to use it as I found myself lacking the understanding that many of my classmates had from previous subjects such as Art and Photography. However, as my confidence grew in my product so did the complexity of the work I was doing. I was able to remove the backgrounds of my images and crop them appropriately; I also learnt how to use some of the different editing tools such as the dodge and burn tools. During the later stages of production, I constructed my own barcode on Photoshop to make it look realistic and fit the brief that I wanted it to. Aside from the things I learnt on Photoshop, I also learnt how to import different fonts from a website called dafont.com and was able to successfully use specific fonts that fit with the messages my magazine is trying to convey. It also came in useful when I wrote about the indie band ‘Paramore’ as I was able to use the bands actual font to make my magazine look more realistic. The research I conducted about which media outlet would possibly produce and distribute my magazine allowed me to find out about the

Zoë Freeman

technology that would be involved to mass produce a magazine similar to my own. Taking my images and working with a SLR camera was an insightful experience as again, I have never had the opportunity to work with one before. I learnt how to import photo’s to the Mac computers and how to transfer photo files to different places in my area.

7. Looking back at your Preliminary Task, what do you feel you have learnt in progression from it (the preliminary task) to the full product (the music magazine)?

The most obvious progression I have made is my understanding of the conventions magazines and how I can replicate those conventions in my work. In terms of the construction of my music magazine, I my development in knowledge is shown through application to resemble what the brief is asking me to produce. One of the main problems with my preliminary task was that it didn’t really look like a school magazine - something I hoped to avoid when producing my actual product. I feel as though I have successfully fulfilled the task this time to a higher standard than before, manipulating the resources I have available to produce a strong piece of work. During my Preliminary task I struggled with my organisation and time management, something I was worried about when I started producing my music magazine. Towards the beginning of the task I did fall behind a few times, but I learnt from my mistakes and made sure I made up the time and work I missed during my free time so I could ensure my work was completed in time. I now feel as though I am able to plan more efficiently and stick to a given task for a long period of time and develop the critical feedback I am given. Finally, I strongly believe I have become more independent and self-motivated during the production part of this course. Working with challenging software and learning to adapt to new situations has been difficult but worthwhile when I see the outcome of my effort.