Question1+2
- 1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? 2. How does your media product represent particular social groups?
- 2. - The most key convention is the masthead as it lets audiences know what actual magazine it is and who made it; from this they are able to know what kind of magazine it is or what it will feature. I put mine in the standard place of the top left of the magazine where most magazines have there’s; I decided to follow this idea and not challenge the convention in case it pulls of a bad effect. The selling line was also placed next to the masthead as it’s the next thing the audience will see so most magazines have placed it there where again I will not challenge the convention. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products? - More selling lines were used below the masthead which would hopefully again catch the audiences eye; they use one of the main colours of the magazine with selling points which attracts readers to buy the magazine and participate in. Many magazines use this type of convention and also challenge it further to help make the cover seem more attractive to the reader. - I had the cover stories located at the bottom near the image; they were interpreted in with the stripes of the background to give an attractive finish. I wanted simple one-liners which would persuade the readers to learn more of what the stories are saying; this kind of convention has worked well with other magazines. - Two images were used on my cover of the same model who relates to my cover line; this seemed appropriate than having random photos and trying to find a link for them. I hoped this convention would help catch the audiences attention if they saw the image of the ‘artist’. The image was edited to black and white to blend in with the background of the cover; a disadvantage of the images however is that I have cut them out so the image has no background which may seem not so attractive. - I decided to use a cover line on my front cover as it is one of the key conventions to have on it. I decided to place it here above the photo of the artist where it seems to be most relevant; most cover lines on front covers are near the main image. It was then developed further as I used different colours to make it stand out more; this has been used in other magazines and worked to a good effect so I used it on mine with the main colours used in the magazine. Different fonts were also used in the one line to then develop it further and hopefully make it seem more attractive.
- 3. Some examples from music magazines: Masthead located at top left corner Main cover line located next to main image on the cover Cover has selling line which advertises free gifts; stands out over the image More cover stories and features located at the bottom in a strip; features like these inspired me with my cover Masthead again located in the top left corner, with the selling line directly below it Selling line located again next to the masthead so it immediately gets attention and catches the eye These are some examples of conventions used in professional music magazines; most which I have taken inspiration from and interpreted into my media product, where some I challenged to a new aspect. Some of these magazines have a similar layout to mine where some are different with completely different genres which shows there can be a contrast with the conventions.
- 4. I challenged the idea of usually having the masthead in the top left corner of the magazine; so I moved it towards the right going vertically down where it would give space for the image. It still has features from the masthead on the front cover which I think helps it pull of a good finish and makes it seem more attractive. I decided to have the cover stories in the contents simple like the other contents pages; having the key information listed down with the page numbers next to them. I had the relevant colors interpreted into them; for example red and yellow boxes around the page numbers and yellow font for the heading. This seems more attractive and makes a link between the pages of the magazine. My main images was located next to the content and the cover stories as it was relevant to them; again the image was edited so it goes with the dark background. The background has a lot of straight lines which I think goes well with the stripes and the lines in the page.
- 5. I was inspired to use this convention by another double page spread made by Kerrang! as it seemed to work effectively with a large, central image catching the eye with the artist. Again the image was cut out from the background so this may not seem as attractive, but the darkness of it works well with the background like the other images. The article was located on the second page so it wasn’t overlapping on the other page. I didn’t want it too long like other articles and taking up the page so I made it to a suitable length, challenging the convention. I pulled out a quote from the article which seemed like it would attract readers to look into and placed it near the main image where it would be easy to locate. I used smaller images of the same artist in the corner of the page so I had a contrast in the sizes of images. Although the page is mainly dark with black and grey I tried to interpret the other main colours such as yellow and red to give it a variety and make it seem not so plain. I interpreted it into things such as the heading, text boxes and the article to challenge the various conventions.
- 6. 2. How does your media product represent particular social groups? My magazine is particularly directed towards Drum and Bass and that kind of genre, which seems to single out the genre and the fans of it. However it directs out to other fans which may seem attracted to so the social group may not seem so singled out. Colours used throughout my media product also help represent the social group; the magazine is quite dark throughout using black and grey which makes the genre and group maybe seem a bit more mysterious and possibly more intimidating. Other colours are used against it however to maybe show a contrast against this; red and yellow are continually used throughout the product which shows possibly the brighter side to the social group and a more positive feel. These are some examples of bright colours being contrasted against the dark colours of the background which helps represent the fans of Drum and Bass. This colour difference seems to show them as quite mysterious people but with a positive vibe.