- The document discusses how the author's music magazine product uses and develops conventions from real music magazines. - These conventions include things like a masthead, banner, central image that follows rules of thirds and shows eye contact, listing featured articles, including a barcode, and highlighting important articles. - The author also discusses how their contents page, double page articles, and other design elements follow conventions like those found in real magazines.

1. { In what ways does your product use, develop and challenge
forms and conventions of real media products
Music magazine evaluation question 1

2. cover
MY PRODUCT
The forms&
conventions:
- Masthead
- -banner
- Central image
- Brief summary
of article
- Featured articles
- Rule of thirds
- Eye contact
- Barcode
- Publisher
- Text relating to
central image
- Studio shoot
- Representation
of
- Artist in central
Image.

3. Masthead
I have created a masthead for my
product as all magazines have a
masthead. It makes a magazine
recognisable, with a masthead on the
front cover it is easy to tell the
difference between different
magazines. This is picture of an
already existing masthead for
Kerrang magazine, and there is also a
picture of the masthead I have
designed for my media product. The
real masthead is for a magazine with a
younger target audience than my
product. The already existing
masthead is bold and exciting as it is
to suit a young audience, for my
masthead I decided to go the opposite
way and use suttle colours as it is for
an older target audience.

4. Banner
I have used a banner in the design of
my front cover as my case study
magazine also uses a banner on their
front cover. A banner is used to give
a short overview of the magazine, for
example in my banner I summarised
the content of the magazine. Where
as in the banner of Q which is my
case study magazine it summaries
the magazine as a whole and
highlights it’s popularity. I used a
banner in my front cover as I felt that
it would grab the attention of my
target audience as it includes the
content of my magazine, which is
about music. The content in the
magazine I have created is aimed to
suit my target audience in the way
that they want to read educated
articles about music, in particular
acoustic music, which is the genre
my magazine is based on.

5. Central image
The central image is an important part of a
front cover, in these two pictures I comparing
the central image that I photographed and the
central image on the front cover of ‘Billboard
magazine’. While I was photographing my
central image I concentrated on getting the
conventions to match those of already existing,
real central images on the front covers of real
magazines. I have done this by using a
background to my photograph that looks like a
‘studio image’, a studio image is taken
professionally in a studio and is the style that
most real magazines use for their central image.
I have included the rule of thirds within my
central image, evenly splitting the page into 3
ways lining important information within this
to assure the audience reads it. For my central
image I concentrated mostly on my models eyes,
it is in every magazine front cover that the
model has direct eye contact with the audience.
As I was developing the conventions of other
media product’s central images I made sure that
my model’s eyes are clearly captured within the
image, creating a sense of eye contact.

6. Featured articles
I have stated the featured articles on the front of my
magazine as I recognise that all music magazines also do
this. From researching into real media products I
understand that the main featured articles are printed on
the front cover of the magazines so that the audience are
able to see the content inside the magazine, and therefore
the target audience are able to be attracted to the
magazine. I have made note of the layout that my case
study magazine, as shown in the image I have used on
this slide. From studying the layout of my case study
magazine I have based my design around this form, I
have stated the featured articles in a list, I have also used
a small line to separate each article. By doing this I have
understood the layout of real media products, and used
tis within my own designs.

7. barcode
I have included a barcode within
my front cover as I can see the
importance of the fact that the
magazine is a product that will
be sold, in order for it to be sold it
must have a barcode. All music
magazines have a barcode and as
I created a music magazine I
included a barcode. I put the
barcode at the bottom of the page
in the corner as that is where
barcodes usually are on real
media products. Another reason
for the placing of the barcode is
that if it’s in the bottom corner it
does not effect any of the content,
especially covering the central
image.

8. Highlighting importance
Having a central image based
on a main article shows the
importance of the article, but I
also added the name of the
person in the image in big, bold
text. This highlights the
importance of this article
within the other content of the
magazine, it makes the
audience aware straight away
what the article is about. From
these images I am showing that
I have used this form from real
media products, and that music
magazines also highlight the
importance of the main article
in the same way as I used for
my own design.

9. Double page spread
Heading
Subheading
By line
Drop capital
Pull quote
Main image
Extra image
Body text
Header & footer
Page number
Coloured text ,
according to
importance.

10. Heading & subheading
I have used a heading and a
subheading in the double page
spread I have created as I have
recognised this as a form in real
media products. At the top of all
double page spread articles in
magazines there is a heading and
a subheading. These conventions
tell the audience what the article
is about which allows them to
decide if they are going to read
the page or not. It puts emphasis
on the importance of the article
by having big stand out words.
The subheading gives a brief
description of what the article is
based upon which again makes it
clear to the audience of what they
are reading.

11. By line
A by line is used in magazines to
summarise what the article is
about which would avoid any
confusion of the audience. They
also give an awareness of who has
written the article. I have used a
by line so that I can show I have
developed the form of the by line
in real media products, I have
created my own related to the
article that I have written for my
double page spread.

12. Drop capital letter
I have used a drop capital at the start of the article in
my magazine as it is a form that is more or less always
used within magazines. A drop capital gives the article
an all round professional style, it fits into the template
and space provided within the article. The drop capital
that I have used is the same colour as the title of my
article, this highlights the importance of where the
letter is placed, which is at the start of the article. This
attracts the reader’s eye to the start of the article, and
therefore persuades them to read the text.

13. Pull quote
A pull quote is a section of the main body text
that is selected and made visible and
contrasts to the rest of the text. I have used a
pull quote to guide the audience’s attention to
that direct part of the page, through doing
this I have provided the message of the pull
quote which will intrigue the audience to
read the article. I have also made my pull
quote the same colour as the other sections of
importance throughout the magazine which
will again attract the audience’s eye.

14. central, full bleed image
I have used a main image within my
article as it creates a visual picture for the
audience, based on the text in the article.
The image I have used is full bleed,
meaning that it covers the entire page.
Having an image breaks up the amounts
of text within the article which allows the
reader to have a break from reading,
which would avoid them getting bored
and skipping the content of the article. A
full bleed image would be of interest to
the reader making them stop on the
certain page to notice the image,
therefore they would notice the article
that goes with the image.

15. Layout of body text
I have recognised that within
real magazines the text is set
in neat columns, I have found
that this makes it easier for
the audience to follow and
therefore read. I have studied
the layout of real media
products and used it within
my own, for example for the
body text of my article I have
set it out in neat columns
which allow my audience to
avoid confusion and have an
easy access to the text.

16. Header, footer & page number
I have included these conventions of
media products as they give a
professional finish to my product,
they tie the whole magazine
together. Having the date and the
magazine name as the footer at the
bottom of the page gives a clear
understanding and
acknowledgement to the audience of
what they are reading. The page
number allows the content to easily
be found according to the contents
page, which avoids confusion within
the product. Also having a header
allows the reader to have an idea
straight away of what the content is
about.

17. Contents page
- A banner
- Contents title
- Magazine name/logo
- Featured articles
- Page numbers
- Images with page for
main articles.

18. Title and magazine logo
I have added the
magazine logo on my
contents page as I have
discovered that all media
products use this form. It
is a way of continuing
the recognition of the
product throughout. The
contents page needs to
have a clear title so that
the audience know
where to find it and
therefore where to look
for what articles.

19. Featured articles
I have listed the features within my
magazine on the contents page as it
reassures the importance of them. It
makes it easy for the reader to
allocate where the features can be
found. I have found that in real
media products the contents page
only states the featured articles as
most of the other pages are
advertisement. This is a way of
getting the audience to search for
the main articles but also see the
adverts throughout the product.

20. Images of main articles
I have included images of the
main articles within my
magazine on the contents page
as I want them to stand out
amongst the other features.
The main articles have an
importance over the rest of the
content in the magazine. By
adding an image that
highlights the content of the
article and also adding the
page number with it I am
attracting the audience’s
attention to read the main
articles.