18. Looking back on your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt from it to the finished product ?

When i look back at my preliminary task i see a lot of good ideas and a good understanding of what is needed in a magazine however i can tell that it has been constructed by someone with little skills and experience, however making mistakes is part of making something an helps us to reflect on where we went wrong, if i had not of made these mistakes i probably wouldn't have had such a high quality finished product. I feel the research i did on the preliminary task is instrumental to the look and feel of my magazine, it was in fact the market research which helped me to come up with the niche concept of 'northern soul'. I feel my photography skills have come on leaps and bounds to the point were i have used a tripod in my front cover and also used the grid system effectively. My editing skills have gone from non existing to existing a i have edited most of the photo's in my magazine simply and somewhat eloquently , i now feel confident enough to use the phrase 'it's ok, i'll photo shop it'. Finally my journalism skills which i think have come on very well i had fun interviewing myself which i feel is reminiscent of Tennessee Williams' The world i live in and i feel works quite effectively. As this is my final blog i would like to say thank you for reading, i hope you enjoyed it,

"The mind is its own place, and in itself, can make a Heaven of Hell, and a Hell of Heaven" - John Milton

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

Through the process of making my magazines i have learnt a lot about how and when to use certain technologies when i first started i was very amateur at taking digital photographs as you can probably see in my preliminary pictures, however i feel i have progressed a lot as i feel my final piece shows good photography with understanding of theory, also when i started this work i had never used photo shop in my life, however i feel after a bit of playing around with it on my preliminary task i soon got the hang of it and have produced some simple yet effective pieces of work. I think using technologies like this was very important to the success of my work i think without these technologies it would look a lot more amateur.

16. Who would be the audience for your media product ?

I have already talked about this quite in depth in blog no 14. my audience are people from the north of the country and not the south.

i feel that there is already a strong ethos of togetherness in the north and this magazine will be like a badge of honour for them people, something that is by northerners for northerners, championing talent and culture. from my research which you can see in earlier blogs, the tipical reader is between 16-30 with a 60%/40% male/female divide among readers who are interested in culture, music, the arts and alcohol.

15. What kind of media institution would distribute your magazine and why ?

if my magazine were to be published, my first choice would be Dennis publishing for a number of reasons. Firstly Dennis have lots of brands ranging from mac user to mens health, however they do not yet publish a music magazine couple this with the fact that my music magazine is also a niche market i feel it would fit into Dennis without rivalling any of their other titles. Secondly Dennis call themselves a '21st century publisher' for good reason they are at the forefront of webzines and websites to accompany magazines so i feel them publishing my magazine would mean my magazine has longevity for the future of new media. Finally I feel Dennis' ethos fits the best with my magazines.

'Dennis Publishing is a true 21st-century media company.'

14. How does your media product represent a particular social group?

I have aimed to represent the social group of northern English culture, tapping into the fact that the south may be the official capital but places like Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and Middlesbrough are far more culturally advanced. i have tried to use an ethos of 'keeping the faith' which means that places like this don't need to be force-fed southern riff raff but can in fact produce their own music and culture and now their is a magazine to go with.

i have tried to address my readers with the look and feel of the magazine, i have used strong powerful colours like red and black to show the tough ruggedness of northern history which lead to the culture it holds today also on the front cover we are championing northern bands who have made it as the magazines figureheads i.e Arctic monkeys, oasis.

13. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Evaluation

For my media product I have tried to both use and challenge conventions see blog 07 for conventions i've found in the NME, i have tried to do this in a few ways such as house style, using the grid system with photography and fonts.

House Style.

I have tried to create a house style that mirrors the magazines ethos, in this way i feel i have challenged conventions of magazines being glossy and perfect with my magazine i have tried to achieve a raw feel by using a strong primary colour with reds and blacks to dennote the ethos that is enstilled within the northern part of the country, also the logo of a clenched fist wich is repeatedley shown to empasise the dexterity of the north and its acompanying magazine Northern Soul.

Photography, Use of Grid system.

in the three main photographs in my magazine i have tried to use the grid system as efectively as possible by using third were possible to help fit text in and also spread the pictures out, i think i have done this effectively.

Fonts and other stuff.

in my project i have reused the same and very similar fonts throughout because i want to create a consistancy also the fonts i have used are blocky fonts to show power other things i have done is create a ethos that invite readers in to become part of the magazine this way i feel people will want to own the magazine because they a part of a community i have tried to do this with things like the clenched fist to empower readers under one banner also the slogan keep the faith, in time i hope my magazine will become as much a magazine as a religon people buying the magazin every week like people would go to church every week.

12 Music Magazine Front Cover