AS reflection on media studies

During year 12 media studies, we explores a lot of themes/aspects and introduced us to many new different things for instance

• Blogging 
• Advanced photoshopping
• adapting to apple macs
• iMovie
• Flipcams
• Pages
• Terminology 
• Shot types 
• Editing
• Mis en scene
• Writing a certain amount under a timed conditions
• Tripods

 We learnt how to do new methods of creating, or researching. For instance this would include the magazines we created for our coursework, had to research a lot of magazines which had different styles and decide what we wanted our ma we magazine to infer,  research also included into the music industry as it was based around our exam. We reflected and summarized back on this by drawing an island to represent out experience with Mr Mazzochi in Media Studies Acland burghley.

The Following points represent different experiences for different times of the year

• It starts on with sunshine on the island as i came in to the new year very optimistic and got on with my work in lessons and had a good relationship with the teachers and completing coursework and homework deadlines to the best of my ability.
• The palm tree in the middle of the island represents a comfort zone, with me showing comfort in the subject and growing to enjoy and learning new things as i go along.
• the grey clouds which occur mid way in the island are representing the stressful times and pressure as it begins to rain, this would be times like exam build up and the amount of revision which had to be complete
• it then becomes sunny again as i came out of the exam feeling that i tried the best that i could and could only wish for the best and remain optimistic. 

The island is a summary of the year i had  with my class and teachers. despite ups and downs media studies is a good subject which I find comes almost naturally to me.

Year 13 Media Studies; The meeting

We started a new module in year 13 which involves filming. We were put in to groups of four to make a short clip of our choice based around the topic 'Meetings'. The purpose of this was to include a total of 12 different shot types which convey different meanings in one clip. We had 2 hours to complete this.

For our clip we decided to base it around the apprentice and made a parody of it. 

We carried out this procedure in a unoccupied classroom and used it as an office by rearranging the tables and chairs to create a headmistress' office and chairs and tables for the three candidates.

We used a flip-cam which was a small device and was quick and easy to use. We used a tripod to keep it steady and use different angles. We followed the story-bored whilst filming as it acted as instructions for us.

Using the flip cam to film The Meeting taught me a lot and allowed me to explore different aspects and different methods of filming. As the flipcam is small and has a small screen to see what you are filming, it is often difficult to hold whilst filming. Technological advances of the flipcam explore different ideas and a variety of ways to filming with low definition camera's however still producing a good short movie

This allowed us to cooperate as a team ensuring to shoot all the relevant and a variety of shots. The group took on the role of producing, filming, writing, and directing. We decided to have shared responsibility on the roles.

What went well with filming:

• Good use of flip-cam and tripod 
• Teamwork cooperated well
• Good use of location
• Good use of limited props
• Improvisation with scripts
• efficiently and quickly completed

When we had completed the 12 shots after a few retakes due to inaccurate camera movement and positioning, we uploaded all of the shots we took on to  iMovie which allows us to rearrange the clips in the right order and watched the movie in full with the removed practice shots.

Limitations and improvements to be made:

• More specific planning and shots
• More camera movement and editing
• Concentrate more on meanings of shots
• Better location
• Sort out props beforehand

Evaluation question 7

Looking back at your preliminary task. what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
From my prelim task, i feel i have made huge progress throughout. just by looking at them i can tell i have learnt alot and have came a long way. my skills have developed overall for example by usuing photoshop, i feel i am now confident using photoshop however before i wasnt, my photography skills have also improved as the image on the prelim task is not very proffesional however i feel my music magazine image is brilliant and connotates all the right things. i have also developed my convetnional skills significantly for instance my headlines are rather slack on the prelim task in which i have put great thought and detail into the headlines and useage of puff and earpeice. 
i am extremly happy with my music magazine and i wouldnt do anything differently if i could do it again as the theme, colours and conventions all work and look very consistant

Evaluation question 6

What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product?


Throughout this process, I have expanded my knowledge on construction on technology programmes such as photoshop and pages.  I found using photoshop both challenging, useful and interesting because photoshop as a whole is presented as a very technological, complicated however useful piece of software. I soon got used to the methods of layers and tools although it was quite tricky at first because some things did not go to plan for example I wanted to have some different images on the front cover however it didn't look good due to the exclusive grafiti filled background. One advantage of photoshop is that you can just about to anything on it. For instance, you can apply as many layers as you like including text, styles ect... there is no limitations on photoshop which i think is very useful. One disadvantage of this process would be very minor however I did have some problems with applying the text on to the background as it was extremly colourful in which i had problems locating the text with the vibrant backgound.

However using pages was great because it allowed me to be creative using a more simpler form of software in comparison to photoshop which is a lot more longwinded. pages was simple and straight forward and allowed me to create layers without complicating anything. I managed to copy and paste my article easily and apply my images. One detail i found of pages very good was the fact that you could simply lock down your layers easily so they would stay in place which helped me a lot because before i discoverd i could do this it was very annoying as everything kept moving out of place. 

Evaluation question 5

What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why?

Through my research and planning of magazine publishers, i have discovered that magaiznes are distributed and delieverd to its audience in very different ways. Some are extremly focussed on webbased forms and their website is a huge percentage of the mechindise. However sdome are mainly printbased and have poor websites, this is to attract people to buy the magaizne pirntbased rather than just go online all the time.
Traditionally, The institutuion my music  magazine might me distributed in newsagents and big supermarkets such as tescos and sainsburys. Prehaps not supermarkets like Marks and Spencer as it is a general Luxury supermarket and mainly caters for higher incomes. This also applies because the target audience are not going to be on high incomes so they would be shopping ast supermarkets such as tesco's not Marks and Spencers.
My magzine would probably not be distributed in shops such as HMV as the genre of music that i am promoting is not massivey produced in mainstream stores such as HMV. However my magazine will most likley appear in vinal stores as the type of music is based around vinal discs which djs use rather than CDS or tapes. My magzine would also probably not appear in formal shops such as Borders which does have a large array of music publications.
More modernly, my magazine will be massivley distributed through an online based distribution. I developed this idea through my research and planning by looking at existing magazines websites (e.g.  
http://www.nme.com/). The website would be very engaging and loaded with useful relevent stuff for example free mp3 downloads and links indate clothes shops to engage the audience. Apps for ipods/iphones and mobile phone applications would also be a relevent way to distribute my music magazine to the target audience as the target audience i am aiming at is a very digital screened social group. 
Useage of puff and earpeice is also quite important to my music magazine theme. As festivals and events for young people are often partly based around drum and bass and dubstep this is significant because to my advantage, i can advertise freebies including tickets to places which will act as a lure to the audience. I will also be promoting the gigs and festivals. 

Evaluation question 2

Who would be the audience for your media product?


The target audience will be UK based and will be for a target audience aged people 16-23. It is equally for males and females and is completely unisex. This is for any race and people of any class, however, majority of them would be students (college students and university students). I have chosen this target audience because the genre of music relates to them significantly as more young people are listening to dub step recently and going to party’s/clubs which are very dub step and drum'n'bass based. This is more aimed at an audience which is on a low-middle income as they are young and the majority of them will perhaps be in university debt and have a limited supply of money which relates significantly back to the price of the magazine. The actual price of the magazine would be £3.10 which is atleast 50 pence less than NME and mixmag, this is also significant to the audience as it infers them and what they can afford which relates back to my previous point about low-middle incomes. This price works significantly and is rather cheap considering it is a magazine which is being sold monthly, however it would be quite expensive if it was a weekly magazine. This will be a magazine, which is sold monthly and will contain up to date events and albums that are taking part in the month that the magazine is being produced.  My audience would listen to this music mostly through the internet (YouTube) and possibly on social networking pages which also relates significantly to the target audience.My music magazine would also fit in to the uses and gratification theory. As my magazine is for older teens/young adults, this would simply be an act of diversion because it’s all about things which are diversion-acted. On the other hand this can hold aspects of personal identity as it is about young artists and people like themselves which have a party-filled lifestyle

Evaluation question 4

How does your media product represent particular social groups?


This is an extremely important aspect of my music magazine. I am representing a particular social group which is crucial to this day and age. I am representing a hopeful however fun, smart and educated audience. I have shown this by the kind of vocabulary i have used throughout the magaizne and the constant optimistic attitude I have used throughout typgraphy,  for example swirly brightly coloured writing.
 I have decided to come to terms with what the youth do nowadays instead of campaigning against it so over all like everyone else does, however not to say that I promoting drug taking throughout my magazine. The magazine is basically on the audience side, for example I have tried to show this by my model having an unlit cigarette hanging out of his mouth. This will attract my target audience to the magazine as now its got something in common with them. I have also based the background on a graffiti site which is significant as many students whom study art are into graffiti ,This will also attract them. My models style and attitude throughout the magazine is positive and fashionable and in date, this will also attract the correct audience as he is wearing chino trousers which are currently in fashion especially in American apparel and urban outfitters which are on the front cover advertised as a shoot and as a competition. This is compared to existing music magaizne such as NME which also promotes style through the front cover of their magazines my dressing the subject in fashionable clothes. This is a smart way to relate personally to the audience.

Evaluation question 1

Please click here to view Question One


//www.slideshare.net/ishmailkoroma/presentation2-ques1

Evaluation question 3

Please click here to view Evaluation question 3


http://www.slideshare.net/ishmailkoroma/presentation1-ques3 

Fusion magazine front cover

Contents page

Double page spread;artist based article.

Evaluating production work

This is also a screenshot simply showing the development of my front cover and my contents page, bearing in mind these are unfinished. They have both been developed on Photoshop. This is also to show how the contents page and the front cover contrast together and compare the similarities and the differences.

Evaluating production work.

This is another screenshot i have developed to show how I changed the smoothness/Sharpness of this photo to soften the colours and allow them to brighten and blend together. This also gives his complexion a matte finish which has also brung out a bright brown colour at the same time.

Evaluation production work.

This is a photo i have taken which i have decided to transfer into black and white to create a dingy atmosphere for the article. I have achieved this by simply clicking on tools and image correctiona nd adjusting the contrast, saturation and the brightness. I now have a sucessfully changed image.

Research on contents pages

This is mixmag's contents page which is significant to my magazine as it relates to it remarkably. Its background colour, black is an idea I have taken in to account and I will apply to my contents page also. The variation of fonts and the outburst in the main photo is also inspiring.

This is NME'S contents page which hugely inspires my magazine contents page image and font type wise. overall it looks a bit mad and random which is exactly how I would like to create my contents page, the colours are extremely vibrant which isn’t really how I would approach my music magazine contents page but however certainly works in this case.

Photography analysis

This image was taken in a location which I thought about carefully before going ahead with the idea. I decided to shoot the variation of photos in Acland Burghley behind top pitch which is covered in graffiti because it suits the artist type and the target audience I am aiming for.

This photo is edited by adjusting the hue, contrast, sharpness, brightness and colour. I simply did this on apple images. This image is of Nathan posing as the artist subjecting my music magazine. This is a midshot dedicated for the front page. I decided Nathan should wear headphones around his neck and have a cigarette in his mouth to imply the type of artist he is and also dedicate to the target audience as these would be the type of people he would be aiming his music at, it also shows rebelliousness which connotes his age, an 18 year old which says that he is no different from his target audience in which automatically builds a relationship between them.

These are some of the photos I have taken to go into my magazine UNEDITED.

A close up to infer personality hense the big smile.

Another mid shot of the artist hanging of a balcony to show the normality of his life outside music

Semiotics

Semiotics is an attempt to create a scientific study of sign systems and their role in the construction and reconstruction of meaning in media texts.

The three types of semiotics:
Symbolic- A sign that represents an object or concept solely by the agreement of the people who use it.
Iconic- Signs which have a connection with what is bein signified but however is not
Indexical- Signs which have direct connection with what is being signified.

Below is a semiotics analysis of an magazine front page:

There are a several specific uses of semiotics used through this magazine front cover. The shot used in this magazine is a close-up shot taken at eye level. The subject  fills majority of this frame allowing the audience to see the detail of the subjects face. This shot allows emotion to be created from the subject. The angle of the camera allows the camera and subject to be the same level making the audience feel equal to the subject. This shottype, in semiotics would be called Iconic as it represents a shocked face, but however could easilly represent a differnet meaning, for example he could be estatic.

There are various indexical, iconic and symbolic signs used to construct and reconstruct the image. An symbolic sign on the subject is the tattoo across his arms and so on.

Research and planning in depth. Relating to music magazine

This is the magazine which is mostly suited to the magazine genre that I want to create as this will be great help to me as I will form my ideas from here to see what and how they apply their techniques to their target audience. For instance, although mixmag is about dance music and drum and bass, they have Madonna on the front cover in which she caters for pop music. This shows great controversial skills and inspires me to expand my target audience as this obviously attracts a wider target audience.
The masthead on this magazine matches the format very successfully, it is a pale pink which stands out on the wooden textured background, it also emphasised Madonna and makes her look like the subject of the magazine rather than the masthead. It is spread across the very top of the page and is bold and peculiar. The circular motion that is going on behind the M on the masthead suggests the genre of the magazine hugely; it almost resembles a large speaker which is pumping out loud music. I will bear this in mind for my magazine as this is dropping minor hints which could make a huge impact on the target audience.

Flat Planning

This is my flat format of the plan for my music magazine, my front cover, contents page and double page spread. I have planned this out surface based because it gives me a real idea what it would be like to look at the magazine in the A4 format which it would be. I have roughly sketched the front cover. The things I have established on my flat plan, are not for certain, for example the masthead 'neurotic' is not 100% settled in stone. However I have taken my photo's which would go into the magazine and this is what I would like the front page to look like, layout wise.

The contents page is simply, understandable however quirky. The splatter of relevant photographs in the centre of the page gives an insight of the contents of the magazine as it is ironically on the magazine. This page would be coloured a dark shade to emphasise the text and images. This contents page works out successfully and I think I am able to achieve this.

The double page spread article is simply a sketch of where I want the images and the text to be layed out. I have related this back to the article I have already written to so I have considered this. The headline is simply an extract of the interview which I have written where I thought it was relevant to the readers, I chose this carefully. The images are also photos I have took and chosen carefully to connotate and suggest the purpose of the double page spread.