Forms and Conventions Evaluation

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

Throughout my magazine I followed the forms and conventions of the magazines I had analysed including Q and NME. I found that the following magazines involved conventions of bar codes - which I created myself using Paint.Net, the date and magazine issue which are regularly printed on most magazine front covers, the colours used; I aimed to follow the same colour scheme of black, white and red in order to create cohesion and a tidy layout. The colour red is known to stimulate brain activity and catch the readers attention more so than other colours. Therefore i used this colour when necessary. Another form of convention which I followed are the puffs around the main image, I decided on a simplistic graphology as in Q magazine, which relies on one main image and a small number of puffs surrounding the image, as I believe this is a more professional approach rather than cluttering the magazine with unnecessary text and images. Whilst the contents page consists of puffs, images which are relevant to the front cover, usually dates and issue numbers, a magazine website and features within the magazine. I developed all of these conventions within my own house style to appeal to a specific target audience of alternative rock followers. For my double page spread I challenged the conventions of most magazine double page spread layouts which use a block text box and backdrops; and interpreted my own house style issuing a translucent text box, allowing my readers to see the image underneath. I believe this shows my own personal house style and makes my magazine seem more unique. I followed the normal conventions of most music magazines, including a heading, a lead, sometimes a drop capital to start the article off, a main image. I aimed to vary these conventions by changing the image to A3 size, this allowed me to use the layer tool on Photoshop to bring the text to the front. Not many magazines use only one main image, therefore I used this to my advantage to make my magazine seem more distinctive. But I followed the regular conventions, by applying page numbers along the bottom and following all the normal magazine conventions just inserting my own personal style.

I followed Q Magazine's simplistic graphology and applied it to my own product, as I believe this approach looks extremely professional.

Double Page Spread

This is the final design for my double page spread. I chose a style which followed a similar design as my front cover and contents page, using the same colour scheme of white, red and black also using the same serif font 'century schoolbook' - in-keeping with the rest of my magazine. As well as the language I used in the article, which fitted with the chosen subject's image, I opted for a more laid back approach with regards to my double page spread image. The fact I chose to place the subject sitting on a blue couch strumming to an old guitar, reflecting the rocker's personality. Another point I was trying to make was that he had been out of the public eye for many years now, and is therefore trying to regain his popularity and place himself back in the public eye. I fitted it across two A4 size sheets (A3), then applied a translucent text box over the top in which to place my article. Instead of just centering my main image I wanted to fit my text around it, therefore I applied the rule of thirds, by splitting the image into nine equal parts by three equally-spaced horizontal lines. Having already chose the translucent text box, the remainder of the image was not as important as the subject, yet I wanted this to be seen to give the picture more depth. I chose the black font and red lead, as I felt this is associated more with a masculine themed backdrop. The red is bright and vibrant, yet does not take the emphasis away from the subject - as he takes up 2 thirds of the A3 page. I used a drop capital 'I' at the beginning of the text, following the conventions of many music based magazines, this also gives the magazine a more professional feel.
I believe that the image I used can identify with any middle aged British man, as a portrayal of a working man, wearing plain clothes and not overly-edited so as to clearly show the reader that he is an 'average' person. Today in many music based magazines men are not seen as objects like woman, who rely mainly on their appearance, but rely mainly on their talents or personalities. This was the point I was trying to prove throughout my magazine, which enabled me to use what I had and to not change my main image to make it into something unrealistic and unbelievable. Therefore in creating this image I believe I will attract my target audience of alternative rock listeners, as they are more interested in the music more so than appearance. The target audience of my magazine can fall between any generation, as I believe anyone of any age can share an interest in the same genre of music, regardless of the era is was brought out. The image is representative of the text, in that it states he isn't just a has been, but that he is an average man who enjoys his music, and wants to be heard. The image links to the front cover, as the subject is not posing, but simply showing his appreciation of music.
I included a lead paragraph in a narrative style in order to create a setting for my article and establish some of the history behind my artist. There are some requirements of prior knowledge in that I have mentioned band members names and songs such as, "Towler Flannagan's acclaimed piece, 'Seven Degree Burn,'" and, "The Cure and The Smiths." I also, however, set the beginning paragraph in a narrative style so that the audience, if they perhaps had not previously heard of the artist, could understand some of his past exploits, creating a sense of intrigue. The next part of my article was an interview, in which I chose to use direct quotations from the artist. I had found from my previous research that when music magazines use this form of interview it created a more personal and intimate feeling, giving the reader a stronger affinity with the artist. I also contrasted my more formal style of writing in the first section of narrative, with a colloquial and friendly tone in the interview, such as, "I bet. So where are you touring?", and, "So you have a baby now?" At the end of my article I placed contact information in regards to the artist's tour dates, which followed the conventions displayed in the double page spread features I had analysed, along with page numbers at the bottom of the page.

Contents Page

My final design for my contents page follows the same colour scheme of red, white and black like my front cover. These are an extremely popular choice of colour for music magazines, both Q and NME regularly follow the same colour scheme. I applied these colours in order to create the same professional appearance.

I placed the masthead from my front cover on the heading of the contents page following the conventions from magazines such as Q, Mojo and NME. This establishes my magazines house style, and will distinguish 'Zee' magazine from its competitors. I used layers to my advantage, placing the different elements in a well-constructed layout for my header, contents list and images.

I opted for the same serif font throughout my project to create a sense of cohesion and uniformity, applying a bold font for the cross heads. The banners also follow the same font style.

The images display distinctly different representations of the sexes; the first being of a young female, which I edited to accentuate her pale skin and pink lips, which is associated with the vigour of youth. The male image, however, is only minimally edited with the focus being on mainly his rugged manliness, rather than his attractiveness. This also shows his talent on the guitar, whereas the female is merely seen posing.

I organised my contents page under a cross heading titled 'features.' This created better continuance through the piece, meaning it was well ordered.

I also chose to place a banner text within a circle to attract the reader's attention and help create a fuller layout, with less white space.

Following the conventions of a typical music magazine's contents page I applied contents numbers under each image, for the purpose of letting the reader know which page the chosen article comes under with ease.

I added a banner at the bottom of my contents page to allow my magazine to have its own house style - applying the 'Zee' within 'Magazeene' and the type of genre 'Zee' magazine is influenced by; rock and indie.

I have listed a a numerous amount of different features to attract an audience who aren't only interested in the main article, this allows for a wider target audience.

Initially I was going to use the image to my left, i edited the colour of the couch using Photoshop - the magic wand tool as I believed this looked more like a studio couch more so than the blue one. But as the setting was supposed to be laid back, I believed the colour black to be a more intimidating colour, blue is much more country. I also edited the colour of the subject's T-shirt, from grey to green allowing a more professional approach to the 'photo shoot' - a change of clothes.

Magazine front cover

I decided on an alternative rock theme, based on indie rock music which was extremely popular in the late 1980's early 1990's, and is now regaining popularity. Using Adobe Photoshop elements aided me in being more creative with my design.

The masthead 'Zee' is a pun on the letter Z, using it's phonetic spelling, along with the 'zine' sound in magazine; which I think gives the magazine a playful, quirky tone from the offset. By using a serif bold font in block capitals this gave the magazine a more striking focal point, along with the white font on the red backdrop. I chose a red, white and black colour scheme throughout my magazine in order to link all of the pieces. These colours are common within the field of music magazines, as they are bold, eye-catching and give a professional appearance to the design.

The main image itself represents an aging rock star, upon his comeback to the music industry. I chose not to edit the image excessively to make the subject appear more attractive, as the haggard and rugged appearance is more associated within this particular strand of the rock genre. I have included the original image (right) in order to show the comparisons between the two. I used the magic wand tool to remove the background of the image for the purpose of formulating my own contrasting background. I used the red-eye removal tool - to remove any traces of red-eye caused by the camera flash, which had made my image seem unprofessional. I made the image seem brighter by adjusting the contrast, and by altering the colour range in order to give it the look of a real photo shoot. The central focus of the image is the guitar itself, the contrast tool worked well in relation with the wood, making it bright in comparison to the grey background. The purpose of the unsmiling expression was to represent the rock star's personality and the way that he was portrayed by the media. I have learned from analysing many music magazines, rock star's do not generally pose smilingly on front covers, and emanate a more melancholy persona. I edited the colour of the t-shirt for the purpose of the making the magazine seem more professional, by using the magic wand tool and selecting the t-shirt then filling it with a much darker colour.

The back drop is simply the work of the gradient tool, by using the colour grey and selecting the area in which you want the gradient to fall, you will then get this effect. Many magazines including Q use this simple technique which lifts the backdrop completely and enables a sharper image.

I opted for a more simplistic magazine lay out, following the likes of Q who rarely clutter their front covers with images and puffs. As 'Towler Flannagan' is my main story I based my magazine around him. Choosing only a small amount of puffs to fill the space around the main image, so as not to make the cover seem too overloaded with information and putting the main emphasis

on 'Towler' himself. I chose '200 greatest albums of all time' in order to follow Q magazines compilation of lists, I thought followed some of the conventions displayed within music magazines.

From my previous studies of magazine front covers I had already discovered that there is always a date of the issue, a bar code and the price on the front of the magazine, so I included all of these.

I also used a 'page turn' effect in the corner of the cover to provide an alternative way of displaying a puff, as I felt this made my front cover more unique. I finally used the same font throughout my designs as I found this to follow the further conventions of music magazines and provided a sense of unity throughout the whole production.

Initially I decided on a much more unique approach, something which is not seen very often on front covers of music magazines. I varied the gradient tool for the background, to make the left side of the magazine much darker than the right. But I then decided this technique does not look as professional as the other magazines I recently analysed, and changed it to an even sloping gradient commonly used on many front covers.

My main influence for my front cover came from Q magazine. They also use a dull coloured background on most editions, in contrast with an instrument or skin. The large red masthead, which immediately attracts attention, the contrasted image, the simplistic graphology - without clutter.

Mock up front cover

During the process of planning my main task, I aimed to create mock-ups of both a front cover and a contents page in order to follow a specific detailed outline of what I want from my magazine.


I want to keep the graphology of the front cover neat and simple, with one main image of my chosen artist and their name title which is the main focus of the front cover. I am following the conventions of any typical music magazine, just with a much less busy front cover. Following Q's example of a more professional image and font.

Main Task Plan

For the purpose of completing my main task, it is essential to formulate a plan of action of which I can employ to successfully construct my magazine. As my magazine is highly influenced by alternative rock music from the 1970's early 1980's, I will use older models to show that they are emerging back into the media and into our musical awareness.

• Firstly I must create a plan for my chosen magazine layout, including pictures for my Front cover, contents page and double page spreads. Apply a colour scheme throughout following conventions of most branded music magazines.
• Secondly I will have to assemble a double page spread article - using my chosen 'model' from the front cover as my main focus.
• Then I will take pictures for my front cover, contents page and double page spread applying a colour scheme and editing the images to fit with the conventions of my chosen house style, using Adobe InDesign CS4 to work to my advantage.

My Chosen Magazine Institution

As I am going to produce certain features of a music magazine, I thought I should research the kind of institution that would publish my finished product.

I believe that in order to create a magazine based upon a specific genre of music, there would be no need for a major publishing firm like Bauer who own a chain of different magazines; from FHM, Closer, Q and Kerrang and who are an international company. I feel as though my magazine would benefit IPC (International Publishing Company) as it specifically applies to the British consumers - with its use of home life (25 Beautiful homes) Women's Weekly, which appeals to a female audience and NME which has highly influenced my own music magazine, although this is mainly indie music, I have already established my magazine as Alternative Rock - highly specific in order to appeal to my target audience and so as not to rival NME, another IPC publication. I feel that Alternative Rock music is increasing in popularity, with older bands being re-introduced; and now would be a good time to publish a 'grunge' 'gothic and punk rock' magazine not necessarily only indie/pop like NME, but instead introduce a different music not as common. My magazine would need a publishing company with the abilities to familiarise with a British audience.

IPC is the UK's leading consumer publisher, two in every three women and 44% of all men read an IPC magazine. They sell up to 350 million copies per year. IPC's brand are at the heart of the UK's cultural life. As IPC has been around since 1963 I believe it has the experience and funds to publish my magazine - working to my advantage.