Task 4-audience feedback and evaluation

 



As my magazine was a student magazine it was aimed at Leyton Sixth Form Students aged 16-19 for males and females, to create the student magazine, firstly I took some photographs that relate to my genre and everyday life in college. These pictures included students studying / revising in their spare time and AS Sociology students work. After I took these pictures I decided to create my magazine and for this I had to think of a name, cover line, and features to include in the student mag. I came up with many ideas however it was difficult to make it short and simple as I didn’t want to bore the audience.  Also my cover lines aren’t very descriptive, which can lead the audience to read more inside.

The masthead of my magazine is “LSC Student Magazine” in a solid yellow colour the reason why I called it this is because I wanted to make it clear on what it would have inside this magazine and I did not want to complicate things. I then came up with many cover lines such as: how to write a CV, top grades at LSC, 10 ways to success etc. The pull quote for this magazine was “education has changed my life.”  This headline was the biggest out of all of them which indicates that this is the main issue in the magazine. Also it could probably relate to other students as well. Large letters capture the reader’s attention but it does not give too much information away.

The main colours used in this magazine are black, yellow, white and green this is because I wanted to make it stand out and appeal to both genders males and females; I also went for the more natural look. The typography is also in yellow and green which contrasts with the background and is clear and visible for the audience to read.

The image used on the front cover is a direct mode of address because the model on the magazine is looking straight at the audience this is effective as it would grab the buyer’s attention instantly. The camera shot is a medium long shot, where you can clearly see the background and foreground, where the audience can clearly see the books in the background however the student is still the centre of attention which represents her importance. The image of the model/setting can represent the genre of magazine she is advertising.

Moreover my contents page follows the typical conventions as it contains images, list of contents which shows page numbers of each topic. The colour scheme is again neutral, the use of yellow, green and cream this reflects the colour scheme from the rest of the magazine.

Furthermore I have used three different images as it will give the audience a slight idea on what to expect in the magazine and does not include images that does not relate to college. Also I have included captions underneath my images so it evidently shows what the pictures show. On my contents page I have made the important information stand out than the rest for example the reviews, competition. This is a good technique as it will hook the readers to read more inside and find out more. Lastly I did not want to add too much detail on the contents page as it would bore the audience straight away and it would be unnecessary to add too much detail.

The feedback I received overall for my student magazine was “Your front cover is quite professional as there is an appropriate photo and also your colour scheme is constant; which also works really well, of green, yellow and a creamy-peachy colour...this is then continued on the contents page as the constant and complementary colours are used again, followed by the photos...you have followed magazine conventions well! However, personally I found that on your contents page there is a bit too much information and this may bore your target audience and it must be short and snappy; same thing with the front page; I think that there should be less cover lines...but overall a successful piece of work.”- Arilda. The audience feedback helped me as I can improve on my work next time and I could closely focus on the areas of improvement to get myself a better grade.