EVALAUATION

QUESTION 1
IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR
MEDIA PRODUCT USE,
DEVELOP OR CHALLENGE
FORMS AND CONVENTIONS
OF REAL MEDIA PRODUCTS?

Front Cover

I believe that my magazine front cover contains all the regular

conventions of a front cover. I gave examples of why I think this. I think
that this front cover design is a conventional front cover you would see
on a professional magazine, therefore conforming to the convention of
magazine layout and design.

Masthead,
top left of
magazine.

Buzz/Puff

Issue
Number
Main Image,
Medium
close up of
artist.
Cover
Lines.
More
Important
ones to the
left.

Cover
Lines, less
important
towards the
right.

Colour
scheme
works well.
Colours
complemen
t each
other.

Main Cover Line, central and

larger than the others.

Artist Name, larger than

rest of text. And different
colour and font.

Barcode and Price.

Bottom right and out of
the way.

Cover Lines

Examples from Kerrang, Metal Hammer and Mojo Magazine in answer

The reason for a cover line is mainly to draw a readers attention to an article, and entice them into reading it. I chose
to place my most important cover lines at the upper left side of the front cover, this because they are positioned next
to the Masthead and the Main image which will make them seem more integral to the magazine.
For example on the James Arthur cover line, the text runs over partially onto the main image. This conveys the
importance of the cover line, as it needs to be visible for the audience to see. This is why it goes over the artist on the
image so that the integrity remains, and the enticement of the article is not obscured. Having the artist name as the
cover line is perhaps unconventional, as conventionally the artist is usually underneath the information of the article.
However on the Twin Atlantic cover line from Kerrang Magazine, has also done the same as I have for my cover line.
I believe that having the cover line like this is more effective to attract audience attention, and enticement to the
article. This is because a reader will read a particular article is they like the artist, by positioning it first on the cover
line and larger than the other text. This draws more attention to the cover line this one, which is why I chose this to
feature on my front cover. Furthermore, the same effect has been used on the Metal Hammer Magazine. They have
used band names from the rock genre to feature as the main focus points on the cover line. Such as Slipknot and
Baby Metal, they are popular bands from the rock genre. This amplifies the effectiveness of the cover line to attract
audience attention to the magazine articles. This is also present on the Mojo Magazine, with the Aretha cover line.
In addition to this typography, font style and size are also important to draw audience attention.
After all, the purpose of a cover line is to entice the reader to read the articles in the magazine.
Typography can help represent what type of genre the magazine is, or even the mood that the
magazine conveys. For instance on the Metal Hammer cover line, the band logos have been used
to portray the band as well as the genre and mood of the magazine. This is a typical convention
for Music Magazines, as it makes it easier for an audience to identify the genre of music the
magazine represents. From this I designed my cover lines with the intention of relating it to my
theme. I chose a blue background along with orange text; this was because the colours work
well together and complemented each other. To me this represented a simplistic yet elegant
mood to the magazine, which successfully fit the genre of my all music magazine.
Furthermore on the entire magazines that I analysed, I found that on all of the cover lines the
magazines had used all uppercase letters. This made the text stand out more than usual, and
was effective to draw audience attention. I went for the same approach when designing my
magazine, because I want to attract the maximum amount of audience attention without
compromising the theme of my magazine by obscuring it. By doing this I further conformed my
magazine to the typical conventions of a magazine. I wanted to keep my magazine as
conforming as possible, this is because it is easier for the audience to know what to expect from
the magazine if they are looking at a magazine that they feel familiar with.

Masthead

Examples from Kerrang, Metal Hammer and Mojo Magazine in answer

Conventionally mastheads are positioned at the top of the page; this is so they can be seen clearly by an audience.
They represent the mood of the magazine, as well as the genre. In my magazine I positioned the masthead at the top
left of the magazine, this is so it can still be clearly visible and stand out, but also so it doesnt obscure the focal point
of the main image.

The masthead has been designed so that it fits the style and genre of my magazine. It has a simplistic yet professional
aesthetic; this is suited to my magazine because I dont want to exaggerate the boldness of the masthead because that
would give off an aggressive vibe. How I created my masthead still attracts the audience, but still conveys a friendly
nature. This represents my target audience. Creativity and elegance are the themes of my magazine; the masthead
effectively represents both of those effects. This is because it isnt overly bold or it doesnt have straight and formatted
text. It has a bold yet subtle font; this conforms to the convention of masthead designs. Because the masthead is a
representation of what the magazine contains, such as genre and the language used.
Perhaps a feature of my masthead that challenges convention
is that the masthead has been placed over the image of the
artist. Conventionally the artist on the main image will be
placed over the masthead, to represent integrity of the artist.
This is evident in the example from Mojo Magazine.

Main Cover Line

Examples from Kerrang, Metal Hammer and Mojo Magazine in answer

Main cover lines also have the same purpose as regular cover
lines, to entice an audience into reading the article. However
the enticement is on more of a grand scale, because it is the
main feature of the magazine. Conventionally the main cover
line relates to the main image. I decided to incorporate this
into my magazine, because it can help the audience indicate
what genre the magazine is from the front cover image. Also
because it helps to give an insight into who and what the
main article is about.

To establish a difference between the main cover

line and the normal cover lines, I decided to
change the font style, layout and size. I did this
because it makes the main cover line stand out
more against the other cover lines, therefore
representing the integrity. I also chose my text font
based upon on what it represents. For me the Jay
Atmosphere main cover line represents a creative,
indie feel to the article and the artist. I thought this
to be effective on representing the theme of the
magazine, because I didnt want to use a font that
would represent the magazine incorrectly and give
off too much of an aggressive vibe.
This effect has been used my other magazine
examples too. The Black Sabbath has been
represented in a different font than the masthead
Mojo

Contents Page

I wanted to create my own design for the contents page; however I still
included some elements that were present in the magazines that I
analysed.

Header, at
top left of
page.

Main
Features
section.

Background
image, model
front cover
image.

Page
Numbers,
relating to
articles.
Images
relating to
articles.

Buzz/Puff.

Page number
and website link.

Convergent social
options.

Exclusive content
extra.

Magazine Articles

Examples from Kerrang, Metal Hammer and Mojo Magazine in answer

Feature articles are conventionally the most enticing

part of a contents page, this is because they tell the
audience about the most exciting content the
magazine has to offer in this issue.
Conventionally a contents page will contain a regulars
section as well as the features. However I didnt want
to overcrowd my page with text. This is because it
would give off a slightly dull appearance to the
magazine, and I wanted the contents page to continue
to convey the creative and elegant aesthetic.
I chose my article headers to try and further entice the
audience.

Drake- This header is perhaps basic, but I felt

that it would attract the attention of the
reader. Particularly if they have an interest in
the artist, because it is the first thing they
would see.
Up Close- The lack of information about the
article acts as an enticement. This is because
the reader will want to find out who the article
is featuring.
Jay Atmosphere- This header relates to the
main cover line, so the reader will know that
this is the biggest feature in the magazine.
Become a Star- This header is effective
because it directs itself to the audience, this
will entice the reader to find out more.

I wanted my magazine to be modern, mostly because I

wanted it to relate to my target audience (16-25). I needed to
represent my articles in a visually interesting way, this is so it
would entice my audience but also not make my contents
page dull.
I decided to create a separate section for my Green Day
article. This was because I wanted to enhance the visibility of
the article to the reader, instead of having it in the same
format as the others. This is because the article features the
buzz/puff from the front cover, I wanted this to be
exaggerated because it is something the audience want to
know more about. Conventionally magazines dont tend to
give a separate section for articles that offer, however I
wanted this article to stand out against the others. However
on the Mojo contents page, they included a separate section
for the main cover line article. So this gave me the idea to
create another section that would create further enticement
for the article.

Images

Examples from Kerrang, Metal Hammer and Mojo Magazine in answer

Images are a crucial part of any magazine, and contents pages conventionally contain many
photos which give an insight to what the article is about.
For the design aspect of the magazine, we needed to include at least four images and I have
included three of those four in the contents page. This is so I can give slight enticements to
the audience about relating to the corresponding articles.
Conventionally contents pages will feature a lot more pictures; however I found that in my
magazine analysis that Mojo and Kerrang magazine both used minimal images in their
contents page. I intended for my contents page to have more to begin with, but I wanted to
exhibit an elegant like mood to the contents page. This I thought would be achieved with
only few photos and not much text either. This idea however was reassured by the Mojo and
Kerrang contents pages, as they both featured minimal images and text. This was a layout I
liked because it didnt make the contents page boring.

I chose to have an image as the

background, this was because I saw it
whilst analysing Mojo and Kerrang
magazine. And I thought that it gave the
audience an extra incentive about the
related article. I wanted to feature my
artist from the front cover image, because
it reinforced the integrity of his article in
the magazine and I wanted the audience to
realise this.

Social Options

Examples from Kerrang, Metal Hammer and Mojo Magazine in answer

I included social options on my contents page, so

that the reader could find out more information. I
chose to do this because my research found out that
the majority of my target audience use technology.
In fact the average reader spends 20+ hours a week
on the internet.. I wanted convergent options to be
available to my target audience, because it is a
simple way for my audience to obtain additional
information.
However during analysis of other magazines, none
of the others featured social links. I assumed this
because of the intended target audience for the
magazine