Evaluation ideas

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

My media project uses and challenges many conventions of real media products. Starting chronologically with my front cover of the Element. SHOWS FRONT COVER. I experimented with my masthead however quickly came to the conclusion of using Minion Pro, a default font on the Apple Mac which I used to create my main and ancillary tasks.

The brand I created 'The Element' is used as a dominant masthead alike my examples from my research. My brand uses the definite article of 'the element' similar to the guardian which also uses lower-case as their brand.

Another convention from local and national newspapers is the use of adverts. I took influences from the lay-out of papers such as the Bristol Evening Post to create my ears. However initially I planned to use the spaces above the masthead as solely adverts for external companies however now the 'ears' as you can see in my paper are used to act as directions for my reader for stories or features inside my paper.

This is a convention commonly used in the new-look Evening Post. I used my original photos to act as images and the businessman snap also overlaps the clear structure, which is a feature often used by tabloids as well as the 'i' paper both.

The 'i' paper, a modern and chic version of the Independent was a main example and influence on my local newspaper. For example the use of using facts alongside stories such as on my inside page. This feature is used frequently in national newspapers and I adapted it successfully into the Element brand.

The use of bold and expressive colours is also courtesy of the 'i' paper as I decided that it's approach could be used to a certain degree for the Element. I used large images on my front cover as well as more evidently on my inside page..

I used technological convergence in order to appeal to my audience. My audience as we know are the whole family however predominantly young parents up to the middle ages, a demographic that heavily use modern social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook which are used in my Radio advert.

The inclusion of such technology in my advert as well as the website on my front cover are also examples of newer conventions that are now in newspapers. The regular conventions remain in 'the Element' front cover and inside page. For example the use of a byline to tell the reader who in fact wrote the story they are reading.

Whilst even necessities such as price, slogan and captions were added without thought. Such conventions are essential and once again create a sense of professionalism for my media products. The use of a slogan is vital to my whole brand and the 'keeping you up-to-date every weekend' is also a careful reminder of what my newspaper is and when the audience can purchase it.

The use of putting my intro for each story into bold also uses a convention from all newspapers which acts to grab the attention of the reader. I used directions from my front page to send my reader into my inside page from my cover story which continues inside.

 The appearance of the front cover includes glimpses of many media publications including football magazine WSC and more importantly local newspapers such as the North Somerset Times, Portishead People and the Bristol Evening Post, as seen in my research and planning.

I also had to ensure my lexical choices were correct therefore researched the vocabulary and tone of articles in newspapers. I managed to do this through my experience in journalism and by analysing stories from my case studies.

The logo I created is another key factor in my newspaper. A logo in which I have purposely incorporated a local landmark in the form of the angel, a piece of abstract art in the area.

How effective is the combination of your main product and ancillary texts?

My main product, the local newspaper clearly combines sufficiently with my ancillary texts, the radio advert and my poster. For example the 'Element' brand is instantly distinguished when flicking through all of my media products.

The combination is arguably most evident when comparing my poster with the cover page of the newspaper. In the cover I advertise the pull-out of a 'FREE Gastropub guide' which not only is an example of a convention in using the capital letters but the actual advert is clearly on the cover page whilst the guide is the main advert for my brand on my poster.

I maintain the house style throughout. The use of this quirky purple colour scheme is another  example of continuos links between all of my products. The colours appear on every page and ooze the 'Element' brand with ease.

The use of the italic font on my slogan is another reminder of the combination between my products. The slogan usually aligns on the page in front of the house style, usually in a dominant position. The slogan is just as vital to the brand as the masthead, a statement that is echoed when listening to my radio advert which hinges on the slogan at the end to pull everything together.

The logo which is in itself a combination of 'text' - the element and a picture of the angel also appears on both cover and poster. A mark of the clear link between the two products.

I also maintained the same font for my stories between cover and inside page whilst the house style.

What have you learned from your audience feedback?

Through producing questionnaires and reacting to the response of them I have fathomed out what exactly my audience desire. I have discovered during this process that audience feedback is integral to the products that I have created.

Examples of initial response from my questionnaires can be viewed on my blog however I constantly throughout the production of my tasks have listened to feedback from not onl the wide audience but friends also creating media products to assess my choices.                                                     
I targeted a range of ages to be able to narrow down and find my audience for my product. As a result I found my market and successfully created and prepared content to cater for my audience; that of the greater family audience.

Therefore I have created a minimalistic theme which appeals to the whole family. An indulgent colour scheme was thus created which appeals to both the older and younger generations. The news stories remain in-depth however the complimenting images and statistics are features that are revolutionary to the conventions of newspapers.

The whole brand wouldn't have been possible without the on-going audience feedback.

How did you use new media technologies in the construction and research, planning and evaluation stage?

The role of media technologies was invaluable during the construction of my media package. The use of PhotoShop was key to the editing of my images. I used tools including the blur tool, to bring certain areas of the image to prominence whilst pushing other aspects of the photo to the background. The burn and sponge tools were also used in an attempt to emphasise images, for example the picture of the 'White Lion' as well as the picture of the footballers on my poster and on my cover page.
The common use of textbox and rectangle marquee tool allowed me to focus on particular areas on the page. Whilst the textbox allowed me to create overlapping text. For example on my travel advert.

The use of tools such as the colour pallet to assess what colour and gradient I need to create aspects of my product such as my house style, text and when editing images. An effect I used whilst on PhotoShop was the the artistic effects to create my travel advert for my front cover, which uses this effect to ensure its minimalistic advert; again to fit with my target audience and the style of advert I was going for.

Another effect I used on PhotoShop was the 'dry-brush' which enabled what before was arguably a dull and uninspiring photo of the White Lion. The transformation of the effect sees the Pub come to life, maximising the advert.

When editing such photos the use of the lasso tool, quick selection tool and the magic wand were vital to ensuring my photo was the best it could possibly be, and the correct size.

InDesign was the base and core structure of all of my printed products; front page, inside page and poster. InDesign is a professional application used by the media industry. The key features I used of the programme were the use of layers, the colour pallet and the use of columns. I also frequently changed the view from Preview to 'Presentation' in order to keep track of how my product would look to my audience.

For the production of my Radio advert I used GarageBand in order to record my voice to create a compelling and convincing advert. I used this application to create a 'new project' using a programme which has been used by worldwide music acts such as Rihanna to create music. Using the voice recorder on the Apple Mac, I was able to record my voice as well as other peoples, in order to create my busy and realistic Radio advert.

I could also import music via iTunes, including clips that were recorded from my home computer by myself such as 'clash of beers'. It was via this method that I was able to have the Specials playing throughout my advert.

I also edited my clips frequently by selecting snippets that were deemed surplus to requirements.

I regularly used 'Blogger' in order to track my progress through the production of my media products. Using such technology allowed me to write and record videos about my feelings about the progress and advancements I made since beginning my A2 Local Newspaper in the summer.

The use of an online and free blog allowed me to successfully record my up-to-date thoughts on my media package whilst using an mp4 feature to submit videos onto my video, as well as uploading photos.

Throughout my media work I have used basic programmes such as Microsoft Word and 'Notepad' to scribe down my ideas immediately whilst creating a 'Notepad' nearly every week to make a 'to-do' list in order to ensure I fulfilled all of my objectives.

I used my Fujifilm Camera to take my original photos throughout. Including these snapshots..