1. [Question 1]

3. The top part of the magazine is dominated by the skyline and
masthead, which is clearly visible and readable in both Mixmag and
Spectrum (my music magazine). I had chosen this specific way to
present them as it is a clear indication and customary convention
for music magazines to have. The font used for this is very themed
towards the genre of what the music magazine is trying to show
which Electronic Dance Music is, and is modelled in some kind of
technological way. With the skyline, it helps give an insight or quick
glance of the magazine, just to tell you what the magazine is about.
The masthead is positioned in big and bold white lettering in order
for it to standout and give a three-dimensional feel to it, thus
attracting people to buy it. The main image of the front cover has
the model placed in the centre giving direct address. I have done
this as it is very beneficial to attract my audience’s attention, as the
model is looking directly at them. The main image also mainly uses
black for the background colour. This not only gives the image a
mysterious and enigmatic effect but this will also help text stand out
more and save printing costs as the colour black is cheap to work
with. The model herself is shown in a way that is consistent with
females that are displayed and represented in these kinds of music
magazines. She is posed in a seductive manner through the use of
giving direct address in and giving off a reeling in expression on her
face. This is somewhat beneficial in order to attract the audience
while keeping in with conventions, and is also helping to give an
insight of what the main topic is of the magazine. The model is
posed wearing headphones as well, which signifies the association
with DJs and music producers. The bar code which is positioned
down on the bottom right corner helps to add to the professional
look, I am trying to pursue in order to make this a successful music
magazine based around the genre of Electronic Dance Music.
Overall, the entire layout is something we similar with on the front
cover of Mixmag.

4. The contents page resembles the sell-lines font being used on
the front cover. This is continuity within the magazine as the
theme is continued throughout Spectrum. Also, I feel that this
font is simple, bold and gives off a cool and elegant look that
stands out against the black background. My main image is on
the left-hand side of my contents page, as it would be typical in
an Electronic Dance Music magazine such as Mixmag for
example. I designed my layout so it matched the outlines of real
music magazines. In the main image of the contents page, the
back of my main featured artists is displayed facing an eruption
of neon lights and projections help bring a sense of vivid colour
and vibrancy to contents page to help the reader give a sense of
well-being and eagerness to read further. However, this may not
be seen as common in a music magazine such as this, due to
the fact that the main image is normally supposed to be an
image of clubbers dancing and having fun. Therefore this may
not be seen as a convention and could be challenging an idea
that is running through this theme for this type of music
magazine. The general layout of this magazine is very similar to
that of many music magazines that are based around the genre
of Electronic Dance Music. I made my contents page very simple
so that is was very easy to get to a certain page. The page
features are separated through spaces and page numbers that
are positioned next to them. The text is all in white so that it
stands out against the black background. There is also the
positioning of an editor’s note down on the top left corner. This is
to give thanks to the reader for purchasing a copy of Spectrum
and helping the publication grow.

5. I believe that the images on my double page spreads relate to
the image on the front cover and images seen throughout music
magazines such as Mixmag, as it resembles the genre of
Electronic Dance Music, through the way that the model has
been positioned and how their face giving off expression. They
seem relaxed and toned down which will help the reader get into
the mood for sitting down and taking their time to read the article.
The fact that my double page spread clearly states that my
music magazine is exclusive and that other magazines do not
have this interview. This would encourage the target audience to
read my magazine as they would be the first to get the update on
the latest music buzz and about what’s happening in the music
industry that relate to the genre of Electronic Dance Music. The
model in both of my double page spread is positioned in a way
that relates to the text beside them. She is wearing simple yet
sophisticated looking clothing that seem fitting for the genre that
she is based around. The layout is very consistent with these
double page spreads., with the main body of text being placed on
opposite ends of each other. Also, on the second double page
spread, we see a quote being positioned over the main image,
as sometimes seen in a double-page spread of Mixmag and any
other music magazine like Kerrang or NME, despite focusing on
different genres of music. This follows standard conventions as
this would make the reader want to find out about the
significance of the quote when they first visualise it. Overall, the
simple imagery and selected artist that has been featured will
encourage readers to read about the article with great interest as
well.

6. I believe that my media product which in this case is a music magazine, helps to
develop the codes and conventions of real media products of the same category
rather than challenge it because it mostly follows the codes and conventions of real
media products, and I have developed and brought out my design in order to create,
in my opinion, a successful music magazine based around the genre of Electronic
Dance Music, which would hopefully would appeal to the specific audience that I
have targeted. I have demonstrated my use of knowledge by using the codes and
conventions, working with real life music magazines and altering my magazine so it
fits within the same category. I chose the name “Spectrum”. The name represents
the music magazine’s variety and takes on the many characteristics of the specific
genre that the magazine relates to; it captures the idea that the publication will cover
the whole spectrum of the club scene for its readers to gain knowledge of.