4. By abbreviating my masthead I have used the
media forms and conventions of NME magazine.
By abbreviating my masthead I am appealing to
my target demographic of people in their early
20’s. Abbreviations are becoming a common
part of the British language and culture because
of social networking influences. I decided to call
my magazine 'AMP' as because it is a music
magazine, an amplifier shortened to amp is a
very fundamental piece of technology required
in making Indie/ Alternative music. Also My
magazine is named 'AMP' as it is an acronym
with an underlying musical context.
By using this convention of a real media product
I have made my magazine easier to share on
social networking sites such as twitter as few
characters are used in the name. I have used the
conventions of real media products by having a
bright coloured font so that my magazine stands
out on the page and catches the eye of the
consumer.
5. FRONT COVER ANALYSIS
My front cover uses, develops and challenges media forms and conventions of real media products in various ways. One of
the key uses of media forms and conventions was to have my masthead at the top right of the page. However unlike on my
front cover the example front cover has the logo in front of their main image, on my magazine it is situated next to it. This is
an example of my magazine challenging media forms and conventions. Another way my magazine challenges the forms and
conventions of real media products is by having the person on my main image facing away from the camera, this is going
against the media forms and conventions as by having the person facing away it is less personal to the person reading the
magazine. However having the person facing away can be quite intriguing for the consumer as it creates mystery as to what
the person is looking at. The main image on my magazine is also a homage to the Bruce Springsteen born to run image, which
is an iconic image in my chosen genre.
I have used the forms and conventions of real media products on my front cover by having the masthead logo abbreviated
and at the top right of the page. I have abbreviated it as It takes up less space and is easier to see on the shelf. I have placed
my masthead at the top left of my page as we read from the top and left this makes my masthead the first thing the reader
will read and acknowledge. I have used the conventions of real media products by having my writing staggered, I have done
this because we read from left to right. I have used the media convention of having a selling line at the bottom of my front
cover I have done this as it lets the consumer know what the features of the magazines are without them having to pick it up.
I have used the media convention of having a Buzz word ‘SPECIAL EDITION’ this attracts the consumer and makes them think
that the magazine is rare and therefore the consumer will want to purchase it more.
7. CONTENTS PAGE ANALYSIS
• I have used and developed many conventions of real media products on my front cover. I have positioned my magazines masthead at
the top centre of my page I have done this as it captures the attention of the reader and is the first thing they will read. It also informs
the consumer that it is the contents page. Another way I have used the forms and conventions of real media products is by using a band
index. I have done this as it allows the consumer to quickly look for their favourite band and see on which page they are featured, this
saves time as consumers wont have to look through the whole magazine to find the favourite band. I have put my band index into
alphabetical order is it makes looking for your favourite band even easier. Another way I have included the forms and conventions of
real media products in my contents page is by having the date of the issue at the bottom of the page, however unlike most media
products I have put the date at the bottom of the page rather than the top, I have done this to save space in order to fit all of my
content on the page. I have used the forms and conventions of real media products in my contents page by having the main story of my
magazine in the centre of the page, I have also included a picture and a paragraph from the article to act as a taster for the
consumer, and it clearly shows that the article is the main feature of the magazine. In my contents page I have three subheadings
‘NEWS’, ‘REVIEWS’ and ‘FEATURES’ this is a very common feature and convention of real media products as it neatly organises all of the
information on the page and makes it easy for the consumer to access the information they are looking for. I have used the convention
of real media products of keeping the magazines colour scheme consistent throughout the contents page this is good for the aesthetic
purposes of the page. On my contents page I have included an advert for subscription to the magazine. This is a very common feature of
real media products as it is a way of getting more business for your magazine as by having an advert for subscription on your contents
page the consumer gets to see all of the contents your magazine includes and if they like what they see they may want to
subscribe, therefore putting an advert for subscription on the contents page seems logical
9. DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD ANALYSIS
• One way I have used the forms and conventions of real media products is by using pull quotes, a pull quote is a quote from the article
that is enlarged and bolded or moved to make it stand out to the consumer, this is done to gain their interest in the article. Another
media form and convention I have used is putting the article into columns, I have done this because it makes the article seem less
daunting to read and by spacing the article out you make it easier to read as the text is all cluttered. Like the example real music
magazine I am using I have bolded the questions from the interviewer so the reader can locate the questions easily and pick out the bits
of the interview they want to read. Again like my example double page spread I have positioned the main image of the article on the
left, I have done this as we read from left to right so the reader will look at the picture before they read the article. Unlike the
conventions and forms of real media products I have placed my pull quote on the left side of the page for the same reasons I have put
the picture there, I want it to be the first thing the reader picks up on. My magazine goes against the forms and conventions of real
media products by having a title to the interview, my example article doesn’t, I have used a title as it is easy to spot when flicking
through the magazine to find what they are looking for. I have used the media convention of page numbers in my magazine, this is a
convention of music magazines as it makes the contents page useful, as without page numbers the contents page wouldn’t work
