Evaluation

Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

Masthead:

I have chosen to use a masthead on the front cover of my magazine to allow it to be recognised and for it to appeal to its target audience as its placed at the top of my magazine. I chose to name my magazine “MIXER” to show that my magazine is aimed at people with mixed personalities and likes and to represent the young generation being mixed. Also, the use of sell line going across my masthead tells the reader the key features in my magazine and therefore attract them.

Main Image:

My main image is of a young female to show that my magazine is aimed at young females between the ages of 16-21. The posture of the image is dominant which shows the personality of the RnB genre, also the use of her wearing headphones connotes that this is a music magazine and her clothing in simple and casual to show that my magazine is aimed at a young generation. The colour of her clothes also fits in with the colour scheme of my magazine.

Barcode/ Price/ Date:

The use of a barcode on my magazine shows that I have followed the conventions of a published magazine, this is an essential feature to have on my front cover as it allows it to be published. The price and date is also important as it tells the reader how much my magazine is and when it was issued. I have placed these features at the bottom corner of my magazine as they all link together.

Footer:

The use of footer on my magazine tells the reader additional features in the magazine to make them aware of it. The use of the colour pink keeps a consistent house style and also stands out. I chose to use the same font as the sell line on my masthead to keep it original and young as it looks handwritten. Also, the magazines I researched used a footer, therefore I followed the conventions of them.

Flasher:

I chose to use a flasher on my magazine to advertise a set of headphones that can be won through a competition. The use of the circle shape makes my magazine look organised and also the colours follow my house style and colour scheme. It also stands out against the white background of my magazine, the effect of this is to make it attractive to the reader as ‘beats’ headphones are very popular within my target audience.

Pull Quote/ Cover Lines:The pull quote tells the reader what the main story is in my magazine, the colour pink connotes that my magazine Is aimed at girls and it also stands out as its big, bold and bright. I have followed the conventions of a real magazine by having a main cover line. Also my other cover lines show that this is a music magazine because they are mainly to do with the charts and successful music artists. Also the use of the RnB artists shows the target audience that this magazine is for young females who like the RnB genre.

Rule of Thirds:The use of rule of thirds follows the conventions of the magazines I researched because it helps keep my magazine looking organized and keeps the cover lines and my main image in position.

The use of having the word “contents” at the top of the page follows the connotations of magazines as it tells the reader what the page is.

The use of having my masthead at the top follows the house style of my magazine and also follows the conventions of music magazines as the masthead is usually at the top of the contents page.

The use of having page numbers on my images follows the conventions of magazines as the image relates to the cover lines on the contents page. It also attracts the readers attention.

I have used a variety of images on my contents page to make it look more interesting and appealing to the reader, it also relates to what else in involved in the magazine and attracts the readers attention. This shows I have followed the conventions of a magazine as they all have images on them to make it more image lead and appealing.

The use of flasher on my contents page shows that I am advertising the magazine and how the target audience can save money if they sign up for next months issue. The use of colour follows the colour scheme and house style of my magazine and keeps it consistent throughout the magazine.

I have put the magazine website and the date of issue at the bottom of my contents page as the ‘sign up’ flasher is there and it also allows the reader to visit the website and have a look at what else the magazine has to offer.

I used sub-headings to break down the cover lines on my magazine and to keep it aimed at the target audience by having it split into sections to make it more appealing. This follows the connotations of magazines as it shows the reader the features in the magazine and what is included in every issue published.

I also put a list of the most popular RnB artist at the side behind a grey background for it to stand out and also to remind the audience that this is a music magazine. This follows the conventions of a music magazine as in the magazines I researched had a list of artists that are popular this month.

The rule of thirds applies to this page as it keeps the images and text organized and easy to read.

On the image I have included the masthead, who the image was taken by and the issue date. This tells the reader that the image was from mixer magazine and when It was released.

I have used a heading on both pages to show they are linked and to tell the reader that this in an exclusive interview.

This article is image dominated, this shows who the article is about and attracts the target audience. As my image is of two young male artists, it attracts the female audience and draws them in. the posture of the two boys is casual and young, with the finger pointing at the reader makes it more personal.

The use of having the group name on the image tells the reader who it is.

The effect of this image being on the side allows the reader to use the image as a poster, as I used it as a cover line on my front cover, this follows the conventions of a music magazine that I researched as the majority of the articles have a full image that many of the readers can use as posters.

The drop cap shows that I have followed the conventions of a magazine as all articles start off with one.

The use of having the title of my article take up half of the page is to keep it looking funky and informal, I have used graffiti type text to keep it young and aimed at my target audience and to represent the music genre of my magazine. I also used the colour blue as it fits in with the colour scheme and also to remind the reader that the article is about male artists.

Stan fest gives a short summary of what the article is going to be about, this follows the conventions of magazines as it is essential all double page spread articles have it.

The highlighted text shows the questions asked, the font is kept the same throughout the article to keep the house style consistent and also the colour is kept the same throughout. This is to keep it simple and easy for the reader.

the use of the rule of thirds helps to keep the layout and text organized and in position. This follows the conventions of magazines and it is essential to keep the pages organized.

The use of the big text in speachmarks shows that I have followed the connotations of a real double page spread.