Medium Close Up Shot (MCU)

Images from http://cache4.asset-cache.net/xc/rbgt_25.jpg?v=1&c=IWSAsset&k=2&d=EDF6F2F4F969CEBDAD8E03F71D6809E4BDA432D5B9ED423A19581F762063A964 and http://cache3.asset-cache.net/xc/rbrs_0062.jpg?v=1&c=IWSAsset&k=2&d=EDF6F2F4F969CEBD560F30E01B33C2E401BFBAE9B5183CD063989BD3CEDD0E6A

• The two photos shown above are both examples of Medium Close Up shots (or, MCU's).
• They both show the head and the shoulders of the person in the shot and are close enough to show emotion and convey feelings of the depicted person, but are far away enough to allow for dynamic angle (i.e. the man in the photo on the left) and can also be taken from angles to allow for a more interesting photo outcome (woman on the right).
• As shown in the photo on the right, they can even be adapted for magazine use (the space on the left could be used for the Main Cover Story).
• I will take things such as Text placement into account when taking photographs for my magazine cover.
  

Cover Stories

• I have learned from my research that the stories included in a magazine would obviously have to appeal to the intended audience of the publication.
• So, for my college magazine to appeal to the target audience (age range 16-18), it will have to feature stories which are relevant to the younger audience, consisting of students of the college.
• I could approach this in the manner of aiming the magazine as a whole to more specific sub-sections of my intended target audience, (i.e. female students).
• This would affect the stories featured as I would want them to be relevant to the audience, so, for example, if I was aiming the magazine at female students I would include Cover Stories such as "HPV: Harmful or Not?" and other subject matters which would be of more interest to female audiences (in this case relating to the recent H.P.V. Vaccinations).
• However, as I would liek my magazine to appeal to all, or most, of the students in the college the stories the stories I feature would have to either be directed at a much wider audience, or I could have a mixture of stories which would make the magazine as a whole appeal to the desired wider audience.
• Here are some initial ideas for stories which I could feature to appeal to a much wider range of audiences (I will add to these at a later date):

• HPV: "Both Partners Benefit"
• Bullying - Who to talk to and how to get help
• Wyke Results Wow Ofsted
• Wyke Party a Positive Success!

Target Audience

• From looking at other magazines and thinking about the institute which makes College magazine (educational establishments) I have decided that the Target Market for my college magazine is going to be people in the age range of 16-18 years old.

• I have decided that, so that most people at the college will be able to enjoy the magazine and it will be available for their needs, to make the target market gender neutral, so it will be aimed at both male and female students of the college.

• So that the magazine is more generic and will appear to a wider range of students, (and not, for example, just those who are linked with certain subjects,) I have decided that I will adapt the conventions and include features (i.e. cover stories) which would appeal to all or most of the students at the College.

• These will include information about social events linked with the college and general goings-on in and around the college.

• I will also include the college name in the title so it appeals to the students as it will cause a sense of collective pride as the people will see the college's name on something which they will hopefully view as modern and interesting and then they will feel proud to have something to do with it.

• To appeal to the younger audience i will make the 'image' of the magazine modern, colourful and make it look 'cool'. This is because I will want it to appeal aesthetically to the target audience, as if they think it looks awful they will not want to read it and therefore they will not take an interest in it even if the content would be relevant and/or of interest to them.
  

Magazine Tutorial - Paint Shop Pro

Here is a video tutorial, with information of how to make a magazine front cover in Paint Shop Pro. The same principles (i.e. tools used and methods) will be used for making the contents page.

Magazine Tutorial - Photoshop

Here is a video tutorial, with information of how to make a magazine front cover in Photoshop. The same principles (i.e. tools used and methods) will be used for making the contents page.

Magazine Front Cover Analysis 02

(image taken from: http://www2.kedst.ac.uk/web/publications/king%20eds%200607/Front%20Cover.jpg )

• In this post I will be analysing the front cover of a College/University magazine front cover and I will talk about how this specific magazine uses the conventions in its own way for its own purposes and how the conventions are successful or even unsuccessful in what they do.

• The first thing I noticed when I looked at the front cover, was the striking colours and bold text of the masthead. This both draws attention to the magazine due to the boldness of the two different colours contrasting with each other and the fact that they are brighter colours also gives the magazine a more 'fun' and 'modern' feel, which I believe would help it attract the younger audience which it is aimed at, as younger audiences conventionally prefer brighter and more striking colours, when compared to a lot of magazines which do not appeal to younger people, which are mainly boring and less bold or individualistic.

• The front cover does not, however have a Bar Code. I believe this is because due to the nature of the magazine (created by a University and to be given to the students) it will have an incredibly narrow target market (i.e. only the students of the University) and it will therefore not be mass produced and therefore there will be no need for a bar code because it will not enter retail so a bar code would be obsolete. Also, due to the fact that the publication is made by the educational establishment and made for those who attend the establishment (a University, so in this case Students, who generally don't have the money to spend on magazines) chances are it will probably be free, which is another reason for there to be no bar code.

• The Main Cover Line says "Nick Love - British Film Director Interview". This is to advertise the main topic covered in the magazine. I believe that the specific nature of it (as it will only appeal to either fans of the director, or maybe people who are studying Film, or have an interest in British cinema) means that the magazine probably has some sort of an academic purpose. This means that it would include articles which help with people's studies (i.e. articles about a director for Film Studies students).

• Even the less important Cover Lines follow the theme of being aimed at people who're studying specific subject. For example: "Foreign Exchange" (for Language students) and "Visit To Auschwitz" (most likely aimed at History students.) This is a very good aspect for a college magazine to have, as it helps it sell easily to a thin target market, so i may try to incorporate something similar to this in my College Magazine. (e.g. subject related articles, i.e. "Wyke Climbing the Football League" (it would appeal to sport students and even those who do not study sport but have an interest in Sports/Football).

• The Main Image itself is also appealing to those at the University, as it shows two students who seem very happy and pleased in general (so people who see it will seem happier and associate the happiness with university life which the students are experiencing, and then feel better about it) and there is also no indication of what they're studying, so it puts across the message that 'Anybody can be happy at this university', which i believe helps the magazine put across a more positive image.
  

Magazine Contents Page Analysis 01

(Image taken from: http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=4789802360063351260&postID=2352799649559534693 )

'Kerrang' is a modern music magazine, catering to the more alternative music tastes (i.e. Rock, Metal, Punk etc...) I will now once more analyse the magazine extract to see how conventions are used and adapted to suit the individual needs of the magazine. I will be ble to apply the individual uses of conventions to my magazine, due to the fact that they are, despite not having the same content, both aimed at a teenage audience and will therefore have to reach out to their target audience in similar ways.

List of main articles: The list of articles and the pages they are on, (a convention of all magazines, not just those aimed at a teenage audience,) though in this particular magazine, they are making the list more dynamic and appealing. For example, the fonts used suit the image of the magazine and the black and yellow sub headings go well with the colour scheme, and portray a modern, outlandish feeling which the magazine tries to display. Also, unlike most conventional magazines, the article list isn't fully in the order they appear in the magazine. They are instead put into sections and then ordered in their respective sub-sections. This break of convention makes the contents page seem more interesting and out of the ordinary.

Photographs of Main Article Subjects: As the chances are people who bought the magazine will have some interest in the main featured bands, and therefore, would be attracted to their photograph in the contents page and then see the page reference making it easier for them to find the article which they most want to read. The photographs also make the page seem more interesting and colourful, and a lot less bland than a lot of magazines around.

Foreword from the Editor: Not a main part of the contents page, as it is in small writing and in the top corner, but I believe people would want to read it as it would help them relate with those who make the magazine, as they could see similar views and expressive opinions, (if they can relate to those who make the magazine, they would be more likely to relate to the magazine itself and then More likely to buy it.)

From analysing this contents page i have decided that I will most likely include an eye catching colour scheme even for the inside so that people remain interested in the magazine, and then i could perhaps show that college magazines don't have to be boring and give it a new 'life'.

I would also like to include a similar part to the Foreword from the Editor, but perhaps make it from a student of the college so that the readers can relate to the magazine more, as it is hinted at being made by people of their own age who know what they want.