Monday, 14 October 2013

College Magazine – Evaluation


College Magazine – Evaluation


            I have used the generic conventions of a magazine to ensure that readers know where to look for each element of my magazine. For example I have placed the masthead at the top of the magazine centrally and I have made the text larger than that of the sell lines for example. I have done this because the masthead gives the name of the magazine and it is usually the first point of eye contact of any particular magazine. I have used a plug and placed it just under the masthead and just above the cell lines in order to attract my target audience of students and teachers to buy the magazine. I have also used a different contrasting colour for the plug because this is an instant eye catching element. The modal I have used in a medium long shot is dominant on the cover because she is larger than the text which again, would attract people to buy the magazine.
            The sell lines I have used are mainly college focused which reinforces the genre of the magazine for example ‘Have you signed up for any extracurricular activities? List inside’ this is college focused and may entice people to take part in any other activities which may enhance their university applications in the future. I also used a direct quote from my model ‘I passed BTEC Sport with no qualifications before I came to Wyke’ which would entice those who may not be so academically gifted but they have other talents such as sport and dance. This directly appeals to all elements of my target audience.
            The house style of my magazine is dominantly blue and red, the blue represents the sport department at Wyke because the blue jumpers they are given to represent the college at sports events are effective. The colour red contrasts completely with blue, making the magazine colourful and eye catching, which are both important factors when attempting to sell a magazine. The skyline of my magazine mentions the new building that is being built in November 2013 to expand the college and make it less crammed and more spacious which may attract those who are appealed to more space and possibly smaller classes. The footer on my magazine directly names some trips that people will have the chance to attend such as New York, Naples and South Africa. I have done this because trips entice many people when they are attending school and college, especially places so geographically interesting.
            The photo was taken directly outside of the front entrance to Wyke because I feel that this is a direct advertisement of the college instead of the photo being taken somewhere else inside college such as ‘Rose Garden’ which may create the wrong impression of the college or even worse somewhere in town wouldn’t be the best place to have in the background because it is not a direct advertisement of the college.
            The masthead of my magazine is ‘Wyke-ly’ I called it this because it shows that the magazine is issued weekly and it also includes the name of the college which is always a good thing when encouraging people to buy the magazine. It gives a direct impression that the magazine is college focused and to narrow it down further to Wyke. The date and price are directly underneath the masthead because this is a particular convention of a magazine. I have priced it at £1.50 because it is a college magazine so has to be affordable for even those who are unemployed because otherwise these people may be deterred from the magazine and the institution wouldn’t make any profit on the magazine. However, if the magazine was monthly a higher price may be an option because £1.50 a week may not seem a lot but it adds up to approximately £6 a month and if it was monthly the charge may be about £3 so a monthly magazine may be slightly more affordable however, the masthead wouldn’t be as effective in that context.
            To conclude I think that the masthead is enticing because it fuses the words ‘Wyke’ and ‘weekly’ to create a sense that it is a weekly magazine. I think the cover looks slightly rushed and I feel that I have learned a better understanding of using Photoshop to enhance my magazine image. I think that in the future I may change the house style as well because I think two slightly less harshly contrasting colours could be used in order to entice my target market to a better extent.

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