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

Birte G. Barsch

Front cover

COLOURS

The clearest convention for rock magazines is probably the quite strong colours that they often use for the front page. The colours found on most of the rock magazines are Red and yellow as well as black and white. I partly followed this convention as I used red as well as black and white. I did however decide not to use yellow as it would not fit with my idea of the magazine being simplistic and more sophisticated than the magazines already on the marked. So rather than using two colours as well as black and white I decided to use different shades of red in order to make the front page look more simplistic.

My front cover

Kerrang

Front cover

PHOTOGRAPH

Most magazines also have a splash image on the front cover that somehow connects to the main article or main story of the magazine. This is also something I decided to follow as it helps connecting the Image with the magazine a little more. Another convention used to draw the audience towards the magazine is using photographs of people who are looking directly into the camera. This is something I also decided to follow as the eyes create a connection with the audience and make the audience feel like they are a part of what they are reading.

Mine

Kerrang

Front cover

PHOTOGRAPH

Yet another important convention for the images I have used is that the mise en scene is connected to the connotations and conventions of a rock musician. For instance the model I have used for my front page and double side spread is wearing quite dark, black and grey cloth, as well as having quite an unusual hair colour, which is often linked with rebelliousness. Rebelliousness is also often connected to rock music, so my model fits with the music genre my magazine represents.

Mine

Kerrang

Front cover

LAYOUT

Rock magazines also often include plugs that advertise some kind of freebee or a chance to win something. I decided to do this as well as I felt like it would attract my target audience as well as it fitting nicely with how I wanted my magazine to look. Having the barcode quite small and in one of the downer corners is also quite usual for magazines like mine. The reason for this would be the fact that you want the audience to notice all the features of the magazine before noticing the barcode so that they would already have made up their mind about whether to buy the magazine or not by the time they see the barcode. I followed this convention by having the barcode, with the price, in the downer right corner so it would be the last thing that people would notice. As audience in western countries read from the top left corner to the bottom right corner.

Mine

Kerrang

Front cover

LAYOUT

One of the conventions more typical to rock music magazines is having a busy front page. This was something I decided not to follow with my magazine as I wanted my magazine to look quite sophisticated and simplistic. So what I decided to do was only using two fonts as well as a certain font for the masthead. I also decided to not use any images on the front cover, apart from the splash image.

Mine

Kerrang

Contents page

LAYOUT

One of the conventions I found in my research regarding the contents page was that most of the magazines divided their contents page into different parts so that it will get easier for the reader to find exactly what they were looking for. I decided to do this as well as it helps creating a simplistic look for my contents page. I also decided to do a similar layout to what “Rocksound” & “classic rock” use as I have put all the contents in to one Colum rather doing like “Kerrang” using multiple columns. My contents page also includes an ad for subscribing to the magazine which also a convention for “throw-away magazines” such as “Kerrang” as you would expect the audience to buy more than on issue of the magazine.

RocksoundMine

Kerrang

Classic rock

Contents page

FONTS

I have also used my mast head again on my contents page in order to remind the audience of which magazine they are reading. Both Rocksound and Kerrang do the same on their contents page. I also used a banner in order to make my head line (Contents, main featured, every month) stand out more against the black background I have decided to use for my contents. I challenged the convention by not putting date and issue number. I did this because in my opinion this is not so important that it has to be on both the front cover as well as on the contents page. I have challenged the convention by not placing the font largely onto or beside the images used on the contents page. I decided to use this because I used two different photographs and wanted to use connect them, I did this by having a little text just between the two photos and included the page number in this text. I have however followed the convention by only using two fonts for my contents page, one of them only being used for the masthead. I decided to use a serif font which is quite unusual but not unused in rock music magazines. Magazines that are a bit more sophisticated like “Classic rock” often use fonts with serif. As I wanted my magazine to look sophisticated but still appeal to the rock audience I decided to use a font with serifs but making it quite bold so that it would still be recognised as representing the boldness of the rock music.

Kerrang

Mine

Classic rock

Contents page

PHOTOGRAPHS

I decided to use two images for my contents page rather than using one big photograph as well as a couple of smaller images which is what most rock magazines do. I did this because I felt like it looked quite a bit more sophisticated and did fit better with how I wanted my magazine to look. However I did follow the convention as the two images I use for my contents page are connected to one for the cover lines I promoted on my Front cover so it would help the audience find what was promoted. I also decided to take in use another convention, this being the use of images in connection with the headlines in order to create some kind of expectations for what is actually in the magazine & draw the audience into the magazine. Most rock magazines include a mix of studio shots and shots from a performance for the contents page. This is something I decided not to follow as it would make the lay the magazine more interesting to look at and could be connected with the articles in my magazine. I also chose to do it because it fits with what my magazine is all about, rock music and the passion the artist put into their music, as you can really see how much they love what they do when you see a shot from a concert.

Mine

Kerrang

Double side spread

HEADLINES

I put my headline on the top of the page as this would logically be the first place the audience will look. So the headline will draw the audience into the article as much as possible. This fits in with what “kerrang” and “classic rock” have used for their double side spread. I have also put the name of the artist as part of the headline to make it clear to the audience who the article is about. This is similar to what rock sound has done. Also I have spread the headline over two pages which challenges the convention as the magazines I looked at all have the headline on one of the pages. I did it over two pages because I found this would connect the article one the first page to the photograph on the second page. For the double side spread one convention is using a font for the headline to somehow to connect with the article and the photographs used in the article. This is something I decided to follow by using the colour of my models hair for the headline of the article. I did this as I thought it would bring the article together more nicely, as well as creating a more interesting layout.

Kerrang

Double side spread

LAYOUT

I have placed all of the text one page, and the photograph on the other page. This is the same way “Kerrang” and “classic rock” have done it. I have challenged the conventions a little by placing a quote on the page of the photograph and a little photograph in the page with the text. I did this because I thought it would change up the article a little so that it would be easier to read. I also decided to do it because in my opinion it connected the two pages so that it would be clear for the reader that the two pages are one article.

Mine

Kerrang

Double side spread

FONTS

I have also used the same font that I used to announce the article on the front cover as the headline for my article. I did this to help create a connection between what was promoted on the front cover and what is actually inside the magazine. As well as I have used a different font because this is a font that is connected to the artist as this would be the font she uses for her albums and merchandises, so this would be a font that her fans would already be familiar with.

Kerrang

Mine