AS Media Foundation Portfolio: March 2016

Feedback

After completing the draft versions of my front cover, contents page and double page spread I went and asked a few media students and individuals that I knew would represent my target audience, because they were 14-26, and they liked indie-alternate music, as well as other factors that I have discussed.

Front Cover

The majority of the feedback I received was fairly positive, mainly saying they thought the masthead was good because it was conventional and represented the indie-alternate genre extremely well and was easily distinguishable from other genres because of the conventions. Additionally, they said the sell lines and plug used were good because they related and appealed to my target audience. On the other hand, there was also negative feedback.

- "The colour choice on the main feature story needs to be a stronger, more vibrant red”

- "The sell lines could be presented in a more creative way

Most of the feedback I received was positive, for example. the sell lines are appealing and relevant to the genre, but here are some examples of the feedback I received:

- "Your front cover represents the codes and conventions of an Indie-alternate magazine very well. The colour scheme you have chosen helps develop the genre."

- "The model represents the indie genre."

Contents Page

On this product, it was again mainly positive feedback with some faults. From my feedback I found that people liked the band index because it follows the colour scheme, therefore creating continuity, and because its conventional to a magazine. And there were positive reviews regarding the layout of the contents page. Again, there was also some negative comments:

- "The subscription box is messy”

- "The background on the picture od ‘Dan Smith’ is not good".

- "Have to add a page number regarding ‘Callum Brady-Temple."

A person who gave me feedback on this product said "too much text on the contents page which makes it look squished." However, they did also say that "the gig pictures used are unique, creative and appealing to the audience."

Double Page Spread

For my double page spread, I received more negative constructive criticism then the other two products I made. Mainly regarding how most of the page isn’t covered up and it feels a little blank. However, there was some positive feedback, mainly saying that the headline, stand first and pull quote were good.

The feedback on this product was:

- "There is no need for your logo on both pages”

- "There are too many drop caps."

- "The general layout of your double page spread is good, it just needs more to make it look complete."

Front Cover Development Process

When starting my Front Cover, I wanted to plan the whole process in order to create the most conventional and successful Front Cover. Firstly; I created many digital drafts in order to give myself a basic and simple plan of what lay out I wanted to achieve, those of which I will hopefully use in my final design of the Front Cover.

Front Cover Wallthrough

Contents Page Development Process

When starting my contents page, I wanted to plan the whole process in order to create the most conventional and successful contents page. Firstly; I created many digital drafts in order to give myself a basic and simple plan of what lay out I wanted to achieve, those of which I will hopefully use in my final design of the contents page.

Contents Page Walkthrough

Double Page Spread Development Process

When starting my double page spread, I wanted to plan the whole process in order to create the most conventional and successful double page spread. Firstly; I created many digital drafts in order to give myself a primary and simple plan of what lay out I wanted to achieve, those of which I will hopefully use in my final design of the double page spread.

I personally like the layout to this specific design because I believe it's spacious and looks aesthetically appealing and also includes all the conventions such as a pull quote and a stand first which are expected from a double page spread of a magazine.

In this digital draft I have given a brief statement about what each convention will do for my double page spread.

Google Mock Up

This is my google mock up double page spread draft, however i want to change various things in order to improve my mock up in several ways, such as make it more conventional, i looked at other magazines similar to mine to see if i could add anything to improve this.

Firstly, in many other magazines the pull quote was vibrant and attractive, although i think i have a vibrant colour, the font and other things such as emphasis on certain words which was more important was missing, therefore changed the font and placed emphasis on the words 'New Album' as i thought that is what the fans care about the most and therefore made it the most important factor in the pull quote.

Next, i thought i needed to implement my own brand upon the magazine, i did this by adding my logo into the bottom left corner alongside the page number, which i thought was conventional and essential into implementing my brand into the magazine. Also i noticed that the image of the Kasabian album was almost floating and didn't necessarily fit into the magazine so i simply replaced it to make it more in place and i think it makes the magazine look more formal as a result.

Finally, the article looks extremely messy so i straightened the writing and as a result it became more conventional and formal looking and not all over the place.