The document compares and contrasts the design choices made for the cover and interior pages of Q magazine versus those made for the student's own magazine concept. The student aimed to challenge conventions and present a different mood compared to Q magazine, which they described as "very busy" versus their own magazine, which was meant to feel "very relaxed and chilled." Across multiple pages and sections, the student considered choices made by Q magazine and other similar magazines, taking some conventions and developing their own adaptations and new ideas for their magazine concept.

1. On the cover of Q magazine, the main image
has filled the frame of the entire
cover, whereas I chose a different approach
and allowed the mis-en-scene of my image to
fill the frame. This was mostly so I would
present a different mood and feel to the
magazine. Q looks very busy whereas my
magazine is very relaxed and chilled which I did
in hope to make the readers feel comfortable
The mast head for Q magazine is quite basic and simplistic which at
the same time makes it look modern and fresh. Personally, I
thought it looked quite flat which is why I put and effect on my
mast head to make it more noticeable. However, the brightness of
Qs masthead does make it more appealing. Ensuring my masthead
stands out is important as it’s the first thing readers are going to
notice and remember for when they’re buying the magazine again.
The puff used on the cover is attractive and
stands out from the rest of the cover as it’s
in a brighter and different colour. I didn’t
use a puff as I thought my idea of using
transparent boxes gave the cover an edge as
it is, and already made the cover stand out
from other covers as it challenges the
convention of the puff.
I used a banner on my cover to immediately notify readers that this magazine has more
to offer than others. By using a banner I’ve challenged the use of cover lines as their
main purpose is to inform readers on what’s in the magazine – the styling of them
indicates which are more important that others and by including a banner it has used the
purpose that cover lines fulfill. Additionally, it adds colour to the cover and will
immediately draw the attention of the readers.
The colours I have used
are distinctly different
than the colours used
on Qs cover. I made the
cover black and white to
gain a traditional feel to
the magazine. By
enabling a traditional
feel I wanted to send a
message that the music
is still as important as it
used to be and that the
magazine takes it all
very seriously. Plus the
style of music can be a
factor of why they’ve
been presented
differently.
Florence, from Florence
& the
Machine, produces
quite quirky pop music
whereas Emily Pavitt
produces indie
alternative music so the
styling of the main
image will differ.
I’ve used transparent boxes to make my cover lines look as if they’ve been
taped onto the cover – implying a sense of urgency to read the feature
articles. I feel as though it works quite well with the black and white
background as if I used the technique Q magazine did with block colours, they
would not stand out enough and would lose its purpose. The main image on
Qs cover also influences the way they present their cover lines as her hair is
mainly the background so having white colour on quite a vibrant ginger makes
the use of block colours effective.

2. Q magazine have used an image from their main feature article so I
took this idea to make my contents page look more professional
and realistic like a magazine. It’s important to make my magazine
as similar to a real magazine as possible.
I looked into a few
magazines (similar
to my genre of
magazine)
contents page and
they all categorize
there content or
have a heading of
some sort – with
this knowledge I
did the same with
my contents page.
By doing this it
enables my
readers to find
certain articles
and pages quicker.
It also allows my
magazine to come
across as serious
and professional
about the
magazine and the
music genre it
represents.
When comparing my magazine to Q, I’ve used an editors letter
whereas they have not. I think adding this in challenges the non-use
of Qs contents page. By including an editors letter I think it enables
the readers of my magazine to be on the same level as the editor
and feel more connected to the magazine on a personal letter.
Additionally, I’ve included an image to give the letter more of an
edge – the idea behind it was that each issue would be a different
image chosen by the editor.
Q magazine have used the heading ‘Contents’ whereas I used the
phrase ‘In this month’s issue’. I’ve done this to break down the
formality and provide a more personal approach to the readers –
this will then make them feel more comfortable and more wiling to
purchase the next months issue.
Q magazine has not
used any puffs or plugs
to entice the readers so
I have challenged this
and used one myself. I
have only used one to
not over use the
convention and keep
the purpose of it alive. If
I were to have used
more than one it would
have taken the purpose
of enticing readers
away.

3. In the corner of the page Q magazine have
written ‘Lana Del Rey’ which I did something
similar and developed the idea by using it as a
main heading which I added an effect onto to
make the page look less flat.
For the double page spread an
image of the artist Lana Del Rey has
been used for a whole page, this is
more appealing to the readers but I
chose to separate my pages and my
article by including smaller images
and text on both pages. By
developing this idea it enables me
to include more writing which will
be of more interest to the readers.
On the opposite side of the
spread, an enlarged S has been
placed behind the text which is
good way to fill space, so instead of
taking this idea, I added more
images and text.
At the bottom of the page, a web
link has been added so that readers
can visit the link and get more
involved and more information on
this article or the magazine in
general, I’ve also used this idea
with alongside it the magazines
name shortened to ‘NMTM’. I’ve
done this to brand the magazine
and to also give the opportunity to
involve readers into a lot more.
At the beginning of the
interview (often at the
beginning of the article
also), the first letter is larger
than the rest to make the text
seem more interesting and
have an edge. I’ve used this
common convention within in
own article and enlarged the
first letter. By using this
convention it allows my
magazine to be taken seriously
as it is presented a lot like the
others and uses the same
conventions.
Q magazine haven’t used
this technique in their
double page spread, but
I’ve taken the convention
from another magazine
similar to my genre. I’ve
added a pull quote and
has my text surround
it, by doing this it makes
my text more interesting
and breaks away the
daunting fear of too much
text.