Ellie Laws created a magazine called FTM that uses conventions of the pop music magazine genre. She includes elements like a masthead, taglines, images, and headlines that magazines typically feature. However, she also challenges some conventions through her presentation of the female artist, who displays attitude and strength rather than being objectified. The headline "Emilia's Breakout" represents her break from stereotypes through her black and white striped dress and demeanor. While using conventions like bright colors and fashion trends, Ellie Laws' magazine both adheres to and pushes boundaries of typical pop media representations.

1. Ellie Laws AS Media Evaluation
www.Elliehgaed.blogspot.co.uk

3. My media product USES forms and conventions of
real media products by using the features that make
up a magazine, such as the masthead, taglines,
images and a headline. These are the required
conventions needed to be a magazine, which I have
clearly used in my magazine.
By using Pink props and colours with a female model
brings in stereotypes of ‘girls like pink!’. The way my
female model is presented shows a stereotypical
view of the way girls are, such as the use of make-up,
the clothes worn (dress) and the colours, such as
pink and white. Pink and white are the two main
colours associated with females; pink to show
femininity and white to show purity.
The use of light colours and natural lighting represents my genre of POP music, which is
seen as light and the way of enjoying music without being serious. The way I have used
lighting in the magazine image, as well as in the background clearly shows this. If I was
to have a dark background, I would not be using forms and conventions as it would
represent another music drama such as rock or rap music.

4. By placing the masthead at the top of the page uses forms and conventions as
this is the expectation where the masthead should be placed. It is expected by
the magazine, as well as the audience expecting it to be at the top of the
magazine. With the bold, capitalized font to attract the audience. The name
‘FTM’ is a simple name for my magazine, which makes it easier to remember,
especially with it being an acronym to be catchy and remembered easily. From
my research, I found that many POP magazines use acronyms to reflect POP
music, as POP music is meant to be catchy, which is why POP magazines have
titles such as mine.
By making my image large and covering a large amount of the page uses and
follows forms and conventions, as this is what the audience expects to
clearly show who the main target is to, as well as what genre the magazine
is. For example, you wouldn’t place a rock artist on a POP magazine or a
actor on a music magazine. This is why image is important, not only to
attract the audience but clearly display who the magazine is targeting at. By
having the headline written over the main image used the conventions, as it
is relating to the main image and clearly representing the main story in the
magazine, which is expected by the audience. From making the headline
bold and standing out to the rest of the page, attracts the audience to the
main story, which is following conventions of a media product.

5. I developed forms and conventions through the way I chose to lay my
magazine out. Although I used forms and conventions, found from my
research into what is expected and from what most magazines,
however the way I laid the conventions out was different to most
magazines. From my research, I found that magazines place their
masthead at the top, but in a variety of different forms. I chose to
follow the way ‘Spin’ magazine use their masthead by placing it in a
rectangular box and in white letters to stand out from the rest of the
page.
I chose to display my taglines in a different form to most magazines, where
they would have them on all parts of the page on the sides. However, I
chose to pace them altogether using different fonts to separate each
tagline. I placed them into two categories to show what is included in my
magazine, for example I show my magazine as being a special ‘The Brit
awards special’ which links directly to music. I included different taglines
underneath this subheading to show different stories connected to ‘The
Brits’. I separated the second category of normal stories in a magazine,
which is expected. This is different to what most magazines would chose to
do, which shows how I developed forms and conventions, which would
attract the target audience as it wouldn't’t be expected.

6. My main forms and conventions which were challenged, was the way I
presented my artist. Although I have shown femininity through the use
of the colour pink, the dress and the make-up, the use of her attitude
presents something different. The challenge was presenting her not
caring about the photo being taken, showing attitude and not
interested in all the ‘fame’. This also challenged the view of femininity
around her, as the over use of colours were mainly black, red and
white, which didn’t follow through with the feminine conventions. It
contradicted the way women are “supposed to be” and how they’re
viewed, as she didn’t pose in a way most females would, with a happy
face or being objectified. Instead she showed strength, power and
attitude, which didn’t follow the view and instead showed what women
are like now.
The title linked to this concept I was making when challenging
the forms and conventions through by making the headline
‘Emilia’s breakout’. The word ‘Breakout’ represents the attitude,
strength and power, as well as making her out to be a ‘Bad girl’
as she’s not acting how she ‘stereotypically’ should. The style of
her dress, with having it black and white striped links to prison
outfits. This also links to the word ‘breakout’ as its like she's
breakout from being closed in and under instruction and now
controlling herself and doing what she wants.

7. My production uses the conventions of my magazine genre of POP
music, specifically through my masthead. Big tabloid industries,
known as the ‘Red-tops’, uses bold, white font on top of a Red
strip, such as The sun, the daily mail and so on. These a very
popular newspapers for working class people, which is why I
chose to follow the conventions of presenting my masthead in this
way. This makes my masthead stand out, meeting the conventions
to attract my target audience.
The use of the bright colours, such as the pink used for the
microphone (prop) and part of the headline, meets conventions of
POP media products, as bright colours reflect POP music. Bright
colours as used in this type of genre, which is why my magazine
meets these conventions of a POP magazine.
Other ways my production uses conventions is through the fashion style
used on the model, such as a dress, long hair, subtle make-up with
‘Smokey Eyes’. This meets conventions of a POP media product as it
reflects the way POP stands for popular; everything popular in the media
is shown through POP media product, such as fashion trends, hair styles,
make-up and so on.