1) The magazine cover image challenges conventions by including balloons in addition to the artist. Other details like the masthead, tri-color scheme, and fonts conform to typical magazine conventions. 2) The contents page includes typical sections like "Features" and "What's New?" along with pictures and page numbers for articles, following conventions. 3) The interview feature uses initials as is common to save space while including relevant information. Continuity is shown through consistent colors and fonts.

1. Evaluation Anna Rockall Media Coursework

2. How Dose My Magazine Conform Or Challenge The Usual Music Magazine Conventions?

3. Challenges Conforms The Image, though it is a mid shot of artist she is holding balloons, she is in the far right third of the picture. The image also includes balloons, magazine front cover main images don't usually involve anything other than the artist themselves. This can be seen as a unique selling point of the front cover, because the image is unusual, and it will stand out above other magazines because of this. The Mast head is at the top of the Magazine, this allows for the Title to be easily read or recognised by buyers, when the magazine is shelved. Tri-colour scheme, this is typical of magazines, it enables the front cover to be colourful, without losing structure, and without it appearing random. The colour scheme also reflects the magazine usually, I have chosen the pastel colours because it reflects the stereotypically innocent and cute image of a girl (blond hair blue eyes) holding balloons, which have connotations of childhood themselves. Smaller details such as the bar code price and website, I included because the details can make it look more professional, I also included the date and issue number. The Font, is often in threes as well, the mast head and the font that is used in every issue, for example the slogan at the bottom. The other fonts are the sub headings and the font below them. These need to be clear and easy to read, it is better to have three rather that more because it could end up not looking planed or structured, much like the colour scheme. The image is a mid shot of the feature artist .

4. Continuity is included in the colour scheme carrying on. The ‘features’ is a common part of any music magazine contents page. It includes the articles and content that is seen every week. States the contents , like most other magazines do, the continuity is kept because the font id the same as the mast head was. Continuity is an important convention in magazines, to keep them looking professional , and I did not want to challenge it. ‘what's new?’ or something similar is normally included in a music magazine to keep buyers updated on the news of the genre. The page numbers for the feature articles are normally on the pictures, the pictures will grab attention and the reader will turn to read the article. This is why pictures are also needed in the contents page, they detract from all the texts making it astatically pleasing, and keeps the graphology from being boring., and deterring the audience.

5. Interviews are often used as a feature article. It offers information from the artist themselves. The initials are often used so that full named don't have to take up space that could be used for more relevant information. Continuity can be seen again in the colours and the text. The caption at the top of the page, determining the interview is another common convention, it is showing the reader what the feature article is. Captions are often used as ancourage to a picture, it keeps it relevant and can sometimes be added humour. Quotations from the article are used to draw attention to the article. They can sound odd and strange out of context and encourage the reader to read the article.

6. How Dose Your Magazine Represent Particular Social Groups? My magazine represents teenagers or young adultsinterested in the Folk-rock genre of music as, females or feminine as I have portrayed the genre itself to me mainly female and have chosen a colour scheme using stereotypically female colours. The language used is slightly more challenging, therefore i have assumed they will understand and when read with the casual register, with ease as if it is their everyday casual language.

7. What kind of media institution might distribute your media product and why? A media institution that may produce my product may be ‘Bauer Media’ they publish magazines such as Q and KERRANG; they also produce music radio programmes and nationally broadcasted music channels. Although this shows they have an interest in the music genre, this is not the only genre in media that they publish, this may make it harder to get their attention because they have a broader range of options, and even though Q and KERRANG are related to the rock genre like my magazine (though being a hybrid genre), they are very well established magazines, unlike mine. Sonic Publishing covers magazines and websites in the music genre; this makes it easier to be noticed. A lot of their audiences are for the ‘individual’ sub-culture, like my magazine. This smaller window of the media genre makes it easier to be noticed by them, and the similar audiences suggest that my magazine would be something they would be interested in.

8. Who would be the audience for your media product? My audience would be teenagers or young adults interested in the folk-rock genre, the content is relevant to them and the images are typical of the folk rock genre. I was able to address my audience in a casual register and a conversational tone, as to put them at ease, and so that the Magazine is something relaxing to read in their spare time, because it involves their interest, they should not be put off by the language. Language linked to cultural context should be familiar to them ‘front man’ ‘releases’‘on the road’the music genre ‘jargon’ will be familiar to my audience, because they already have an interest in the genre they will have prior contextual knowledge. ‘anticipating’ the language is relevant, it cannot be mistaken for a younger audience, because they would not understand it all, therefore it is more interesting to read because the words are not spoon fed to them. The Folk-rock genre is a popular choice of music with the ‘individual’ sub-culture, the connotations of this sub-culture is their individuality, difference to other people which makes them interesting and standing out, they should therefore want something interesting and different to read, as this is the way they distinguish themselves. I chose to reflect this in the image for my front cover, it doesn’t follow all the normal conventions of the music magazine, because it involves the balloons, this connects to the context of the magazine; therefore it is a unique selling point. This link and non-conforming front cover suggests the magazine is different and interesting, therefore attracting my target audience.

9. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing this product? In my preliminary task I did not use an image manipulation program, my main task however called for Photo editing, in order to make it as similar to a real magazine as possible, because it is one of the conventions, also because my music genre called for the effects of vintage and others, because it is a convention of the genre. I therefore was able to learn how to edit photos, something I was inexperienced with before. I used the programme called ‘Picnik’ and also ‘Gimp2’, I was able to air brush photos and I learnt how to get rid of the background of a picture. I was already familiar with the Microsoft Publisher Program and chose to use this because I would get the best results from a program I was familiar with. However I had never used a blog before so this technology was new to me, I was able to create tabs and pages to make sure my blog was easy to navigate.

10. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product? In my preliminary task I looked at the layout and conventions of general magazines, this was partly because collage magazines were difficult to find. This meant that during my main task I had a general understanding of magazine layouts and conventions, but I was able to look at specifically music magazines, this was useful because I was able to be more precise. I was able to show my understanding through smaller details such as the issue number and date. I was able to thoroughly look at content pages and therefore the conventions, such as the ‘features’ column. I was also able to take analyse some double page spreads and there conventions such as the captions on pictures, and the articles, and language used in interviews, i.e. (laughs). I was able t incorporate a unique selling point on my front page, the different picture, that doesn't follow all the conventions making my magazine stand out. I was able to truly show the continuity of the magazine through caring through my colour scheme and fonts. I was able to add more details such as dates, pricing and page numbers est.. These add to the authetisity.