1. Question 1
In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions
of real media products?
This is my final media products: a cover page, contents page and a double page
spread for a magazine aimed at an audience interested in the Indie Rock genre.

2. From the help of research into the layout of typical indie rock magazines, it helped me
develop my original ideas of furniture and composition for the magazine. The types of
magazines I looked into was NME, Q magazine, Kerrang and Rock Sound. The reason I chose
to look at the suitable elements from these certain magazines is because of the music they
represent and display in their magazines. As indie rock is quite a specific genre, there isn't
any just indie rock based magazines already in the current market.
Typical conventions of an indie Rock/ Rock magazine:
• Subtle colour use, such as red, blue, green, black, white and yellow. Not a use of
extremely bright colours shown in any of the covers, contents or double page spreads that I
looked at.
• Use of images both studio professional shots and also live gig shots.
•Magazine titles in bold sans- serif font in capital letters.
•Cover line and copy in bold capital letters in sans-serif font.
• use of props and instruments in images to show the live element and genre.
•Clothing of indie is dark smart casual wear such as jeans and suit jackets, and also coats
•Clothing for rock is causal jeans ripped dark t-shirts, checked shirts and denim jackets.
•Use of famous band names which are in the interest of the indie rock media eye for the
audience. Bands which they are interested in reading about.

3. Cover magazines used for ideas for my development of my
original cover for indie Rock magazine.

4. Influences from current magazines for draft development.
From the covers that I
looked at to give me
idea I have cropped
out the elements
which influenced my
draft designs. Such as
cover lines, masthead,
banners, puffs,
positioning of
model/musician and
clothing worn.

5. Final product: Cover
This is my final magazine front cover production. I was influenced by a lot of existing
magazines front covers with the same genre style. NME magazine (the Alex Turner and Miles
Kane issue) was a big influence for my final production. Clearly seeing the links in the main
composition and layout of the furniture. I had influence from rock sound magazine, where
they had a list of band names down the side along with cover lines. I added a list of bands
onto my magazine which was has been wrapped instead of being placed over the key image.
Also i used the style of colours that they used in the band list where the colours are different
in every line, to make it clear for the audience to read, i used this style in my cover lines. For
the main cover story I used the style of text used in the oasis issue of NME with the black
background with white font. Originally I didn't have this style of font and I only had the main
cover line in a bold yellow font but it didn't work that well.
Composition
style and layout
Band list and
colours used
within them
Main cover line
style

6. Content Pages used for ideas for my development of my
original content page for indie Rock magazine.

7. Influences from current magazines for draft development.
These are different elements which I have
cropped from existing indie rock
magazines which have helped me
influence my draft designs. Such as the
masthead, image layout, composition of
content and style of font. You can see the
clear links between some of these
elements of my drafts designs.

8. Final product: Content page
This is my final production for my contents page. I was influenced slightly by some existing
content pages. Both from the NME Content pages, the first uses influences of the layout
and composition of how their are three columns sectioning out the different content
making it easy to read for the audience. And my other influence is from the content titles
with the white font on the black background. I think that my magazine challenges the
convention of a usual music magazine content page as it had a lot more content within
them, rather than a normal content page. I have tried to fill up my page with as much
content as possible to make it seem to the audience as if the magazine is filled with a lot of
stories and articles. Most content pages which I have looked at have had larger images and
a lot less content. I think my production challenges the conventions as I think audience may
be scared to read the page because it has so much writing an less images.
Composition
style and layout
Style of text and
cover lines

9. Double page spread examples used for ideas for my
development of my indie Rock magazine.

10. Influences from current magazines for draft development.
For the double page spread idea development I looked
at different existing magazines. I have cropped out the
sections and selected furniture that I like. Such as the
title font and layouts, the arrangement and composition
of the article copy on the page. Also the positioning and
pose of the model or musician, and where they have
been located and set.

11. Final product: Double Page Spread
This is my final double page spread with article for my Indie Rock music magazine. Their
are some very clear links with the influences I had from these double page spreads. From
the first one I was influenced by the style of setting and location of the musician. The pose
and composition of the image and the tones used within it. The main influence is from an
article on The Vaccines, the main composition and layout of the furniture on the page.
Also I used the same type of shapes which add the colour into the page to make it bright. I
think my production develops the ideas and conventions used in the Vaccine article by
adding more conventions within the key image by adding a setting and location which
brings in the elements of the Indie Rock genre. Also by adding the large quote it spreads
the text across the two pages bringing the key image in and linking it to the other page.
Composition
style, layout
and shapes
Style of key
image location
and setting