Competitor Magazine

The masthead that they have used is conventional as it is located in the

top left hand corner. The

masthead is in red and white as that suits the house style – it is also quite a classic colour scheme which suits the

style of the magazine.

The cover lines that are used are quite conventional as they are flush right and flush left.

They entice the reader into the magazine because if they see a

heading that they find interesting they will want to

read the magazine. They do this by using a comedic tone and not

making themselves seem too boring and serious.

They use a plug on the bottom right hand corner, this

is very conventional as it shows you about the contents

of the magazine. It shows that they are all about the

music and the bands.

The cover line that shows the main article is larger. This is a

conventional thing to do as they would want the target audience to be interested in that article. They sum up the article in a sentence to give the reader a taste of what

they could expect.

The plug that they have used is in the form of a running

head. This is quite a conventional thing to do, however, it is not widely used. It gives

you information about a segment of

the magazine.

Conventions in El Corriente

I chose the Spanish name ‘El Corriente’ because I wanted to give the magazine a

more exotic feel, as using the English translation ‘The Current’ gives more of a bland, newspaper feel. Using the Spanish version gives the same feel of being up to

date on the news but it makes it more interesting.

My masthead is located at the top the page, which follows magazine

convention.

I chose the red, black and white colour scheme as it is quite a

classic colour scheme. The mast head is mainly in red but the ‘C’ in ‘Corriente’ is in black. This is

so that the colours contrast from the red and white meaning it is more visible on the page. The font that I have chosen is not

plain, this is because I wanted to avoid making the front cover

look plain as to give it a younger feel.

I have used pull quotes on my page to give a more

personal feel and make it seem like you are having a conversation with the

band.

The cover lines that I have used on my cover do not meet convention.

This doesn’t follow convention as cover lines

they are not flush left and flush right. I have chosen to make them unconventional so that the page won’t look so uniform and plain so would appeal to my

younger target audience.

They are placed on the page in correspondence to the

people who have said them. This makes the page seem more organised than if they

were placed randomly on the page.

Cover Lines

The colours that I used match the colour scheme that I have

chosen for the magazine.

The plug that is used on the top of the page is conventional. It lists different bands which shows that

they are serious about their music.

I have used this to show on the cover what could be included in the magazine. This appeals to my target audience as

they would be people who are interested in many different bands.

Plug

I have placed a puff underneath the masthead. I have done this to follow convention and also because it helps appeal to the readers and boost the status of

the magazine.

The feature article photograph is the main photo that is used on

the magazine, by doing this I am sticking to

magazine convention as I am attracting the

reader to the main article of the

magazine, using a band that they would

be interested in.

Feature Article Photograph and Puff

Direct ComparisonMasthead

Although I have followed styles of ‘Q’ and ‘NME’ by using the quirky fonts from Q and the big red letters from NME. However, to make mine for

more of a younger age I have used an exotic font and have made the way it

looks less plain.

NME and Q both use convention by using a masthead. All three magazines have located their

mast head at the top of the page; this is so that the reader/other possible readers know what the

magazine is.

‘Q’ have used a more classic font

for their masthead. This

makes the magazine have

more of a classic feel appealing to

the audience.

However, ‘NME’ font is more of a plain font, which is still quite classic and also shows that they are serious about their music. So they

have both used a masthead to try and appeal to their

magazine audience.

Q Magazine have used witty cover lines to appeal to their audience. Its gets the reader interested in the articles. They are conventional because they are flush right and

flush left and make the page look neat and suits the usual style of Q.

‘NME’ have done something unconventional on their front page as have used pull quotes as their cover lines. This is also unconventional for NME to do as usually they have a

very conventional flush left and flush right cover lines. They may change the convention of the magazine to suit

the style of the band, who are quite quirky.

I have used ‘NME’s cover to inspire my cover but have made it my own. My cover does use elements of

convention but for this edition of the magazine I decided to make it look unconventional. I like the way that NME

have used pull quotes to make the page appeal to a younger demographic. It gives the page a younger feel

and makes it look more vibrant.

Cover Lines

‘Q’ magazine have used a conventional plug on the page, but have done it in the form of a running head. It is telling us

about a segment of the magazine.

I have chosen to use the same style of plug as ‘Q’ magazine. I have changed

how they have used it however, as I have decided to list names of bands. This

shows that the magazine is very music orientated and that we offer information

about a wide variety of bands.

Plug

‘Q’ magazine have used a feature article photograph, this is conventional as they have used it to show who will be in

their main feature. This would also have been used to draw in their readership by using a band that would be popular

with their demographic.

By using a feature article photograph on my magazine i am following convention and helping to show the readers what

bands and artists will be portrayed in my magazine.

Although the NME cover is mostly unconventional, they have followed convention in using a feature article photograph. They

have used this to show who the magazine is trying to attract and also what the main article is about. They haven’t

challenged this convention because without it the page would look extremely plain and many people would not be interested

in picking it up.

Feature Article Photographs

Q and NME both do not use puffs on their front covers. This is challenging convention as many magazines use this to boost the status of their magazine

and attract their readers.

BRITAIN’S BEST MUSIC MAGAZINE!

In my magazine I have chose to follow convention and use a puff. I have chosen to do this as I thought that it would boost

the status of the magazine. The readers may also be influenced by this as many of them would want to read a magazine that would provide them with the best information on the market,

meaning that more people would buy my magazine.

Puff

Columns have been used to help the page look smart and

organised. This is conventional as most

magazines use columns to organise their pages.

Pictures are used to help assist the reader is

choosing their article. This does not challenge

convention as many magazines do this to give the reader a glimpse into

the article.

They have placed the date of the magazine on the contents page

to tell the reader when the issue was out. This

does not challenge convention as many magazines do this.

They have included a box of extras/regulars in the magazine and have included them on the contents for readers so that they

can find them quickly. The use of page numbers is

very conventional. They have been used to help the reader locate the pages of features

within the magazine.

NME Contents Page

Columns are used to make it look smart, this follows convention and the house style of the

magazine.

The use of the running head used at top of page is

not so conventional, however, is used as part of the house style as we see

it throughout the magazines.

The pictures that are used are conventional as they

help to give the reader an idea as to what is

happening in the magazine and helps to direct them to

certain main articles.

Page is divided into different segments to

show you where to find certain

information. For example ‘Q Review’. This is sometimes used in magazines

but not always so you could say that it is

challenging convention.

Page numbers are located frequently

around the page helps the reader to locate the

text that they need within the magazine. This is conventional as

is seen in many magazines.

Q Contents Page

The subscription box is not always conventional on all

magazines, I have chosen to put one in as i feel that it helps to

fill the page. It also informs the reader where they can go if they

want to subscribe.

Page numbers are used to show the

reader where to go in the magazine, this is conventional as most magazines use this to

help the reader.

The title of the page ‘Inside This Issue’ is just there to give you direction on the page informs you of the page, so that it will be easy to find again

at a later date. This is conventional of a magazine as the contents page is there to be a point of reference.

One convention of a contents page that I have

followed is placing the date of the issue on the

page. This helps to tell the reader when the issue was out so they know they are

reading the most up to date issue.

El Corriente Contents Page

The little descriptions of the articles help to give you an insight in to

what it will be about. They draw

the reader into the article and make

them intrigued as to what the article will

include.

I have included a section of extra pages that are always

included in the issue. This just helps to give the reader a

little help to locate the features, reviews etc.

Columns are used across the page. This

is quite a conventional thing to

do as it helps to divide the page between each

picture; and doesn’t make the page seem

to intimidating.

The use of the drop cap is very

conventional. Most magazines use this as it is a good way to

The heading that has been used is conventional as it tells the reader about

the article. However, it is quite unconventional as it takes up half the

page, meaning that there is less space for the actual article. This challenges

convention as usually they have the rule of thirds.

The use of a standfirst is quite conventional as it helps to show the reader what

the article is about. Also, they include the by-

line which is not conventional, as

usually it is included

separately on the page.

NME Double Page Spread

indicate the start of the article and therefore where they

should start reading.

The picture is also there to entice the reader, it helps to portray the image of the band in a manner

that is more personal. NME have challenged convention by not using a caption, this has been

done so that the picture is the only thing that is on the page, drawing your eye to the main image.

A pull quote has been used here, we can see this by the change

in font and colour of the

text. This helps draw the eye to

it before the article enticing the reader to

want to read the whole article.

They have followed

convention by using a picture on the double

page spread. This helps to

show you who the article is about.

Q Double Page Spread

The use of a pull quote on this page is very conventional as it helps to give the reader an insight to the article before

they actually read it. Q have challenged

convention by placing the pull

quote inside of a picture rather than inside the text. This is usually done to

break up the text, to avoid heavy

paragraphs of text. They have used a drop cap to start the text, however, they have also used it when starting new main section. This would have been done to signify the start of a new section, eg. changing from a narrative style to a more Q and A or a change of topic.

The standfirst that they have used is not very conventional as they have just made the whole first

paragraph in a larger font. This is to introduce the article and get the reader interested about the

article.

Q have followed convention by using a picture on their double page spread This shows the reader who the article is about

and helps to entice the reader to the article. Q have also followed the

convention of using a caption in their picture, this has been done to inform you

who the picture is of.

The standfirst is also quite unconventional as it is also being used as a heading for the article. This is the first thing that we see telling us

about the article.

The use of the running head is very conventional on this page,

as it tells us what part of the magazine we are looking at. This is part of the house style and will have been done on every page as

an indicator.

When creating my heading I

followed convention by using the rule of thirds. This is where the

heading shouldn’t take up more then a third of the

page ad this is what I have tried to do

here.

El Corriente Double Page Spread

I have also followed convention when creating my double page

spread by using a pull quote. This gives the reader quick information about the article, without having to read the whole article, but is there to get them intrigued and makes them want to read the

article.

Using a picture to go along

side my double page spread is

a very conventional thing to do. It help to inform

the reader about who they

are reading about; it also

helps to create a more

personal atmosphere

with the reader and they feel like they know who they are

reading about.

I have included a caption on this photo

which is very conventional. I have done it because it informs the

readers as to what they are looking at in the picture.

A running head is a very conventional thing to include. This is because it

informs the reader of what they are looking at in the magazine and

generally helps navigation throughout the magazine.

I have included a standfirst in my double page spread as it conventional and it helps to inform the reader of

the article that they might want to read. This is conventional as it is seen on many magazines including

NME and Q.

By using three girls on my front cover I am

representing the female music artist. However, I

am not making them seem like the innocent girls in

the music industry. I have done this by dressing them

not in the stereotypical pink that a girl would wear, but by dressing

them in darker, plainer colours. This shows that they are serious about

their music and want to be taken seriously as a band.

The females have also been represented on the contents page,

here they are dressed in a more colourful clothing, but still not in the stereotypical colours of a girl. This also helps to show that they are

serious about their music and want to be taken seriously in the industry.

Gender

I have shown these people to be innocent and have not portrayed them as

thugs. This goes against the stereotype that the media has of teenagers

portraying them as thugs and gang members.

Age

The age that I have represented in my magazine is people of a young age. I have done

this by using young people throughout my magazine. This shows that young people do

take their music seriously and that they do not conform to the stereotype of being hooligans

and gangsters.

ClassI have taken the photos for my magazines against nice areas or have placed them on plain

backgrounds. I have not placed them in ‘rough’ areas

which is stereotypical of a working class background. This therefore means that they are

representing someone who stereotypically comes from a

more middle class background.

I have chosen IPC Media to distribute my magazine as

they are a very large corporation publishing many

magazines. This includes NME which has also influenced my decision. A they publish NME it would mean that they may be interested in magazines who are of a similar genre

and audience of NME.

Media Institution

Also, allowing a company like IPC Media to publish my magazine would be cheaper

than if I publish it independently. As IPC Media

handle all the circulation, sales, marketing and

distribution I would not have to worry about doing all that

independently, making it cheaper for me as I would

have to pay for many things such a printing, advertising

and distribution.

IPC Media is the UK’s leading consumer magazine publisher, by choosing this company it means that I am choosing the best British company to publish

my magazine. IPC Media has published many successful magazines such as ‘Woman’s Weekly’ and ‘Marie Claire’ meaning that my magazine is

sure to be a success,.

Media Institution

The audience for my magazine would most predominately be 16-30 year olds. I have chosen this age because I do not want to limit it to a very age

specific group, this is because this would be harder to cater for that specific group all the time. Appealing to a wider age range means I can vary the magazines

look, meaning some issues will have a more conventional cover than the one that this issue has.

My magazine will appeal to both genders, widening the audience that I am appealing to. Doing this means I can use bands that both genders will like, meaning that it will appeal to a wider

range of people. The people who read my magazine would mostly be people who are into

music that is newly out. They would want to keep up to date with the new artists and would enjoy going to see bands. They would be

interested in the personal side of the band/artist on the cover.

The magazine is aimed at people who want to know the newest information and only want to come to the best sources to find it,

knowing that they are going to get reliable music information.

Who Is My Audience?

To attract my target audience of 16-30 year olds I have chosen to

feature a young girl band in my magazine. This means that the

younger audience may be able to relate to them as they are similar in

age; rather than using an older band which may not appeal to my

age group.

Age

I have appealed to the older

audience by not censoring the swear

words. This shows that it is meant

for an older audience and that we

may talk about topics that might not

be suitable for younger audiences

around 13/14 years old.

Gender

In this issue I have appealed to the female audience

more than the male audience. I have

done this by using a confident, powerful

girl band on the cover. This makes

women feel a sense of ‘girl-power’ and

makes them want to buy the issue to try

and relate to the girls.

By making the girls in the picture contrast it shows that they two sides to them. One side that is serious about their music and they aren’t here

just to have fun; and one side that shows that they can have fun and do not take themselves

too seriously. This appeals to my audience because they want to get to know the artists on

a personal level and also know that they are serious about music.

I also appealed to the more girly audience in this issue by using colours

such as pink and light blue on the feature article. This is part of the house style would help to appeal to girls if the issue was featuring a band that would

appeal mainly to men.

However, the general house style of the magazine has quite a masculine feel to

it. The use of blacks and reds is not commonly associated with the female

stereotype. So by using these colours on my magazines, it helps to appeal to the

male readers.

I have attracted the people who

would want to be kept up to date with the latest music news by

calling my magazine ‘El

Corriente’ this means current in

Spanish. By putting it into

Spanish it helps to keep the

younger more vibrant feel of the

magazine. By including this on my contents page it helps to ensure that the readers have a view of many

different aspects of music. ‘On Repeat’ would be used to show the music that we are loving at the moment; ‘Reviews’ are used to give people the view on the new albums that have been

recently released, to give the reader a hint about if the new

music is any good.

Music

Masthead

I changed the colour and the size of the ‘C’ to help it stand out. I did this by creating a

separate text box for the letter and then lining it up against the rest of the letters.

To get the effect on the letters by

changing the bevel. I did this by using the style settings

and increasing it to 5. This created the

3D effect of the text that we have in the

final masthead.

Creating my masthead I learnt that small effects on the letters can make a

big improvement.

Feature Article Photograph

To get my picture able to appear on the front cover, I had to edit out the background. I had chosen to take the photograph on a plain background that

contrasted from their clothes so that the editing process would be simpler. All I had to do was use the magic eraser tool. This would get rid of any blocks of colour that were the same, making the cutting out process a lot quicker.

In the first few stages, I was removing the main background away from the picture. In the 4th picture, I had

removed all the background from the little sections – between the legs and close to the hair. This ensured that I had a precision cut from the background and made sure

that my photograph looked professional.

1

4

3

2

5

Cover Lines

To create the cover lines I used the rectangle tool to firstly create a box. This would be the beginning of the pull quote cover lines. After this I wanted to give the boxes more visibility; so I used the effects panel and chose a black border – which I then dragged over the box to create the white box with the black border. I then used a text box to add the text over the top. Finally creating my cover lines.

Plug

To create my plug I used the rectangle tool to firstly create a

black box. This would be the base of my plug. I then created a text box to write in all of the band names. Lastly, I used the

circle tool, this comes under the same section as the rectangle

tool.

Contents Page

To get my contents page to the stage where it looked professional I had to use many different tools. I learnt many things, for example, how to make the line tool

to make the columns and use the ruler, to make them even.

To create the transparent background for my

contents page I had use the magic eraser tool

again. I had learnt how to use this from having to cut

out my feature article photograph. This made this process quick and simple to do as I didn’t have to

use any new tools.

The contents page numbers were easy

enough to create. I used the rectangle tool in white to create the white box. I the used the text box tool to make the numbers and had to then change the colour of the text to red and then place them in

the specific areas.

The creation of this photo was a little bit harder. To remove the background I had to use the polygon lasso tool to get an accurate cut of the image. Firstly, I used

the lasso tool to roughly cut around my picture. This just sped up the process meaning that I could be more

accurate with up close cutting out. I then went around the picture using the polygon tool to get a more

precision cut out of the picture.

To create the title for my contents page I first made 2 text boxes, one for each of the levels as it did not work to the

same effect if I had included it in one text box.

I then chose the font that I wanted to use, Times New Roman. I chose such a classic

font as it was part of the house style of the magazine, to have a classic feel but still be

current.

I then opened up the style settings on both of the text boxes and added a drop shadow. This gave

the title a 3D effect, which makes it stand out from the background of the

image, not making it seem too plain and boring to

look at.

Double Page Spread

Making my double page spread was the easiest, as I feel that it

was the simplest page in my magazine and I already had quite

a good understanding of photoshop and the tools that I needed to create the spread.

did this mainly using the

magic eraser tool, however,

in the more difficult bits for

example between their feet and over

the darker floor I had to

use the magnetic lasso

tool. This made sure that I got a fluid image

and the edges of the picture were not too

sharp.

To get the picture for my double page spread, I had to edit out the background. I

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

8

Here, I used the magic erasor tool until step 5 – which it then

removed the shows and trousers. This meant that I had to use the magnetic lasso tool

to get a moreprecise cut around the feet and legs. This ensured that the picture looked professional.

To create the masthead I created three text boxes. This was to ensure that I could get the three words

equal in width on the page, ensuring that they

were in the middle. To help me with this I put the

grid on the screen to guarantee that I had them at equal distance from the

edges, making for the most professional look of

the page.

When I made the pull quote on my double page spread, I firstly created a text box to hold the text in. I then had to separate the

surrounding text in to 3 different text boxes. This made sure that I could get them

aligned perfectly, and the pull quote did not just look randomly placed on the page.

Making the drop cap was really simple. All I had to do was create an additional text box on the page and enter the first letter. All I then had to do from then was change the size and colour of the drop

cap to make it more conventional.

School Magazine Preliminary Task

School Magazine Music Magazine

Front Cover

School Magazine Preliminary Task

School Magazine Music Magazine

Contents Page

Front Cover Comparison

much better as I have learnt how to take a shot that will

help my magazine. I have also

learnt photoshop skills which means that the photo

looks better on the page,

rather than having a

background that doesn’t really match the magazine and makes the

cover look unprofessional.

I have improved majorly from the preliminary task. The quality of the photograph is

Masthead Comparison The way that my masthead has been constructed has changed drastically. This is because I have learnt how

to use photoshop a lot better. This also means that the layout of the mast head

would be better. For example, my masthead in

the preliminary task goes on to two lines and this is quite

unconventional. I have made my masthead look

more professional by using a font that was more

suitably chosen for my magazine and looks like it

fits.

I have also improved on choosing the colours for

my masthead. This means that they suit the

house style of the magazine and they suit the colour scheme and

background of the magazine. This is a thing that I have learnt from doing my preliminary magazine, as I do not

think that the masthead for my school magazine

suits the style of the magazine.

The cover lines that I have used on my magazine are not very conventional, however, they are still an improvement to the ones that are on my school magazine. This is because the text that is located on the page is hard to read because it blends in with the background. On my music magazine I have overcome this issue by putting my cover lines in a box, this makes them a lot easier

to read.

Cover Line Comparison

On my music magazine I have also included things that I had never thought to include on my school magazine. This helps to make the

magazine seem more realistic.

On my music magazine I have included a plug this would be to

help boost the status of the magazine. I have not included

this on my school magazine as I did not feel that it was a

necessary convention; and did not realise how much it would have helped my magazine. It has helped my magazine as I have listed bands in this plug which would have helped to

appeal to the audience, them knowing that they would be interested in them bands.

I have also included a barcode in my music magazine. This makes the magazine seem

more real and it is a more conventional thing to place on my magazine, rather than just

having nothing there which makes the magazine seem unrealistic.

Contents Page Comparison

massively as I have learnt how to make the page look professional.

The information that I have provided on the music

magazine is more

informative and is more

interesting to look at, and

keep the reader

intrigued. The use of

the multiple pictures helps the reader to

interact with the page.

The two contents pages have improved

In the change from my school magazine to my final music magazine I have ensured the my

contents page looks professional. I have done this by ensuring that I have used a font that

matches the house style of the magazine rather than a font that I think looks good.

I have also given the text a centre alignment, which I think gives the page more of a body

and more of a centre, which helps draw the eye to the contents page, so the reader will actually

use it. It makes the page look a lot more interesting.

In my school magazine I only used one picture in

correspondence with the text. This made the page seem quite boring and plain which would not have made it appealing to

the reader.

I have improved on this however, by using 4 pictures on my music

magazine contents page. These were all used with text relating to an article

in the magazine. This made the contents page

more visual for the reader, which would make the page more appealing and user

friendly.