My media magazine is called Forcast. I have focused on creating a magazine that is unique from others that are on the shelves, giving it a blues and soul background and a fifties feel. I wanted to create a magazine that was independent and had a refined feel.
I believe that as a result it challenges the typical conventions of media publication's in many ways. The front cover does not include the classic bold masthead and it is not saturated with information. My front cover consists mainly of the four images and I tried to encompass only the essential information.
The masthead is positioned in the middle of the cover rather than at the top of the page to catch the audience's attention. I have included a pull quote as many magazines do, but it is just the artists name who is featured rather than a stereotypical quote. I believe this gives my magazine a minimalistic feel and allows the reader to focus their attention on the style of my magazine.
I made my magazine with the intention of targeting mainly an audience of teenage girls. As part of my research, I conducted a survey to see if I had achieved this. When analysed, the results of my survey were positive, showing that I had accomplished this. In total 75% of people questioned agreed that the main age target audience for my magazine was seventeen. In another question based on gender, 61% voted it was for a female audience confirming it effectively worked on gain the interest of my intended audience.
My magazine is music orientated but also has an arty fashion feel. This was concluded by my survey results, as many people commented on the fashion element that they felt the magazine offered but also noticed the musical aspects as well. These things are all closely related so I thought it would help create a wider audience for my magazine.
When questioned people commented that they felt my my magazine had a vintage and alternative, specialist feel. My magazine would be of a specific interest in the music industry, so I would not predict that it would sell in the local corner shop. This is because there simply wouldn't be a market for it. My magazine would be distributed by specialist magazine stockists, for example W H Smiths and larger book stores. My magazine would also be available to purchase on-line.
When looking at the results of my survey I found that people were attracted by the colour choices I had made and the style of the photographs, as well as the aesthetics, there is a good house style. It seemed to be that it is the alternative theme that people responded too, appreciative that it was something unique and different. The font of my magazine was in a similar style of what I had done, it was elegant yet simplistic.
Since my preliminary task I believe that I have learnt to effectively use photoshop in a way that creates interesting and eye catching pieces of work allowing me to attract specific audiences. In a lot of my earlieer photoshop work i tended to over complicate things and use every effect possible. I have learnt that it looks better if you keep things simple. I have inproved my layout and i have designed somthing more creative.
Overall I am very pleased with the way this piece turned out. I feel that I have created three aspects of the magazine, the front cover, contents and a main article and tied them altogether to create a body of work that really fits together. I think I have worked outside my comfort zone and that I have produced something perhaps a little different to both mine and others expectations. If I were to go over this project I would have pehaps managed my time more effectively allowing me to spend longer on certain aspects. Howeve I feel I have made significant progress and really expressed my ideas through my magazine.
