IN WHAT WAYS DOES YOUR MEDIA PRODUCT USE, DEVELOP OR CHALLENGE

FORMS AND CONVENTIONS OF REAL MEDIA PRODUCTS?

What are forms and conventions?

• In its simplest form, a form or convention is a tradition• In this case the term ‘convention’ refers to current

ideas and concepts within magazine design that have become accepted as ‘the way things are done’

• A magazine’s use of forms and conventions will depend on its target audience and subject matter

• In my media product (my magazine) I have used some conventions as I believe the reader will already be familiar with them

• I have also challenged a few conventions as well

Genre of magazine I have produced

• The genre of magazine that I have produced is indie, rock and alternative. It is aimed at ‘indie kids’.

• My magazine suggests this musical genre by the use of cracked text, sticky tape and a ‘noise’ effect to create a ‘grunge’ style that connotes indie and rock

• One main magazine that I have taken my inspiration from is Q Magazine which focuses on pop and indie as well as some lifestyle articles

• I have also been inspired by the NME to make my magazine fun and cheeky with a sense of humour to it

• The key difference between my magazine and these other magazines is that my magazine features articles about technology, hence there is a gap in the market for a magazine like this

Similar magazines and my magazine compared

Similar Magazines My magazine

Front Cover• One convention I have challenged is the

masthead (magazine logo) being in the top left of the front cover. I have, instead, positioned mine in the center to fill most of the width of the page. This makes the masthead stand out more and connotes that the magazine is big and worth taking notice of.

• I have featured a competition on the front cover in a yellow circle, in keeping with conventions. I have followed this convention because the colour yellow connotes sunshine, energy and happiness – a similar feeling to the reader when they win that prize.

• In my main coverline (‘Maisie’) I have challenged another convention because the main coverline is not usually larger than the masthead and only covers part of the page rather than the whole page. I have challenged this convention because it brings the readers’ eyes towards it more, therefore selling the contents of the magazine

Contents Page• A convention I have used is adding details of how to

contact with the magazine. On the contents page, I have put the magazine’s fictitious Twitter username. This makes the magazine feel like a singular ‘person’, reflecting how reading a magazine can feel intimate. It also increases customer loyalty; even when the reader has finished reading, they can still be involved in the magazine.

• My ‘Note from the editor…’ is a convention I have used. The word ‘note’ connotes friendliness and is informal. It also gives a human face to the magazine, again making it more personal. Readers can also feel that the editor is approachable because of my photograph.

• The main convention I have challenged is ‘feature articles’ and ‘regulars’ being kept together. I have clearly separated the two types of article. Readers will know the articles they will get every week (the regulars) and they will also know about the one-off articles (features). If the reader is a first time reader, this is particularly helpful to entice them back by giving Zing an element of consistency.

Double-page spread• The headline I have used on my double-page spread is

eye-catching and attention-grabbing. The convention is that the headline will take up at least three quarters of the top of the page and I have used that convention. The text being smashed, cracked and blown to pieces, connotes that the rumours about the artist are going to be blown to pieces – this creates intrigue in the reader’s mind to make them want to read the article

• Zing uses Pull Quotes, another convention in magazines that I have used. They break up the main text of the article into smaller chunks to make it more pleasant to read. Pull quotes also connote that the piece of information or opinion featured in them is of significant importance to the article.

• One convention that I have broken and challenged is that models in photographs should have direct eye contact with the reader, which does have its benefits because it looks like the model is talking directly to the reader. However my model is looking slightly to the right to connote her looking into the future and thinking about her career and plans for the future (the main focus of the article)

The title of the magazine (Zing) and the masthead font and placement

• The word ‘Zing’ means zest, vitality and animation• Defined in the Dictionary as, “A quality or characteristic that excites the

interest, enthusiasm”• I have chosen this title because it reflects the reader’s enthusiasm for

music and their zest for life• The text I have used for the masthead (below) has a cracked effect to it.

As the magazine is about indie rock music, the cracks in the text are to represent cracks in a rock.

Mise-en-scene of images• Props – The props in this photo

include a small whiteboard and larger whiteboard in the background. The height chart on the larger whiteboard adds to the composition of the photo by making the photo an effect of a police mug shot

• Lighting – The lighting in the photograph is low-level to create the effect of a police station room that has no windows

• Character – The expression on my actor’s face is one of disbelief and anger, again adding to the effect of the photograph being a police mug shot

People in photos

• Age – The people in my photos are mostly young people. They reflect the image of the target audience of Zing (People aged 16 – 30)

• Attitude – My models are deliberately not smiling much to suggest the type of music that they produce is rock and indie

Written content• Length – I have tried to keep all written

content brief and to-the-point yet, at the same time, make it worthwhile reading. The typical reader of a magazine like Zing has a very busy life with thousands of different media products competing against Zing for people’s time. These competing products come from a number of different mediums and are not just other magazines

• Type of language – I knew when I started this project that the type of language used would be essential to the feel of the magazine and therefore how successful it is. I have kept all language informal because it would make it feel like the reader is having a conversation with a friend so the reader would form an emotional bond with the magazine

Music genre and how my magazine suggests it

• As mentioned earlier, the music genre of my magazine is indie, rock and alternative

• On the front cover, the background of the page is red with a ‘noise’ effect added to it. Red connotes power, warmth and courage which fits well with the genre(s) of music covered

• One way that the magazine suggests the genres is through the use of a ‘grunge’ style consistently throughout the front cover, contents page and double-page spread

Here are some examples of the grunge style:• Sticky tape – I have used a Sticky Tape style brush in Photoshop to make it

look like various elements of the magazine design have been just stuck on. I have used this particularly on the front cover and contents page.

• Paint splatters – I have used a splatter of black paint behind the masthead

House style

• A magazine’s ‘house style’ is essentially its template that it uses from issue-to-issue to create a consistent look and feel for the magazine, making it easily identifiable on a shelf

• The colour scheme for Zing is simple: Red, black and yellow. This remains throughout the magazine. For example, the red background on the front cover has also been used as the background for the ‘Note from the editor’ as well as the background for Pull Quotes on my double-page spread