Evaluation Question 1

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

Masthead – from right to left because that’s how it would be displayed on the shelf.

The name ‘Q’ represents the ‘cue’ used when recording music that indicates when you start performing.

Main Image – Using a well established artist is very conventional for this particular magazine. Q often plays with an artists perception and attempts to emphasise it further; Noel Gallagher can be seen upholding a confrontational pose whilst maintaining his new, more mature dress sense. This mirrors his transition from Oasis to his solo career.

Main Feature Story – Dramatic and controversial quotes are taken from the interview and placed on the front cover to provoke readers curiosity.

Sell Lines –The main articles about the most popular acts are displayed on the contents page. Often a range of artists are included as it broadens the target demographic for the magazine and increases the chance of a new customer purchasing the magazine.

The Barcode – can’t sell the magazine without it!

Issue no. and date

The terms of the layout, the page is split into thirds vertically. The first including the masthead and main cover story, he second displaying the main image and finally the third which shows the other features that are inside the magazine.

Conventions

The colour scheme associated with the Q ‘brand’ is seen throughout most of their magazines. Maintaining fonts and colours help to make the magazine more consistent and professional. It is conventional for the masthead to reappear on the contents page.

The main image on the contents page usually relates to the cover story. As the cover story is the article the magazine focuses on the most, the main image is usually central and towards the top of the page.

Other images are sometimes included on the contents page but rarely impede on the main image and often surround it in order to draw the eye towards the main image. These smaller images help to break up the page and give breaks in the text so the reader is not overwhelmed.

The contents page is often divided into columns. In this instance, the page is divided into quarters. This helps to fill the page evenly and organise the information logically.

Sub-headings are placed in different colours in order to stand out and catch the eye. Again, this helps to categorise the topics within the magazine. Notice each sub heading is music related and short. This stays true to the genre of the magazine and also aligns with its name, being short and snappy.The articles are set in

chronological order usually with the feature story somewhere near the front. The page numbers and artists are emboldened so they are easy to see. The black and red with the white background not only mean the content is easy on the eye, but also follows the colour scheme

Under each article is a little bit of text which is a summary of what they should expect to see when viewing the full article. These should always be short and dynamic to persuade the reader to go and read the full article.

It is common for a quote, taken from the interview, to act as the headline on for the article. Usually such quote will reflect the demeanour of the artist; in this instance, “WE’VE BOOTED THE DOOR OFF ITS HINGES!” represents Liam Gallagher's self proclaiming ego and his combative personality.

The main image features a picture of the artist and also takes on the role of the background. This design technique means readers feel more immersed in the interview because there is nothing unrelated to the article on the page. The image usually displays the artist in a physical location that is associated with music such as a recording studio or a live music venue. This is because such locations are common to the artist in the interview and offer everyday people a glimpse into the life of a global celebrity.

Most double page spread pages include a stand first. The purpose of this is to inform the readers what the article is about and sometimes a little about the artist specifically.

Drop capitals are used to indicate where the reader should begin reading from.

In most cases, direct address is established with the reader through eye contact. However, in this magazine this is not the case. This may have been done to show Liam's unconventional personality and his obsession with doing things differently.

By-lines are found on the main image and contain the location of the photograph. They can often include who has written the article and who has taken the photograph as well as who Is in the photo and when it was taken.

Pull quote’s are used to highlight an interesting part of the article. They are often targeted because they are controversial or may even offend some readers, especially in magazines such as Q or NME which peruse the rock culture.

Logos are conventionally found at the end of the first page to indicate the article continues onto the second page.

My Products

• Front Cover• Contents Page• Double Page Spread

MastheadMy masthead follows the conventions set by other popular music magazines of the indie rock genre. This is because my magazine is placed in the top third of the page and uses a San Serif font which is typical of the genre. Capitalisation is also used to make the word more powerful and increase its overall impact; magazines such as ‘Q’ and ‘NME’ also use this technique. Perhaps something that is slightly less common is the punctual use of a full stop at the end of the word. Although punctuation at the end of a masthead/logo is extremely uncommon, I felt it’s use might add an element of exclusivity to my particular magazine, and make it slightly unique when compared to magazines of a similar nature. The main colours of the masthead are black, white and red. The black and white are contrasting colours and go together in such a way that makes the masthead really bold. Although these colours are perhaps not the most exuberant, their simplicity gives the masthead a more mature essence and captures the darker, adult themes that are common place in the indie rock music culture. The hint of red helps the black and red to stand out even further, but it’s minor use means the masthead does not become to complex or overwhelmed with various colours. Conventionally, black, white and red are used throughout the genre with magazines such as ‘Q’ with the particular emphasis on the white and the red. The three colours are also considered masculine colours, and therefore help to attract my target demographic of male teenagers and young adults.

Main ImageThe main image on my front cover follows the convention of creating a connection with the reader by using a direct mode of address, meaning the individual on the cover is looking in the direction of the camera, creating the effect that he is looking at whoever is reading the magazine. The main image is also significant and takes up a large portion of the page. Conventionally, this would determine the main image, but in my particular case, I chose not to add any other images to the cover in order to avoid drawing the readers eye somewhere else. The image itself challenges the conventions of a cover star somewhat, as the colour of his skin has been unnaturally altered. This was done in an attempt to make the image stand out against the white background and also give another unique element to the cover. Not only that, but the blue cohesively links to the article displayed on my double page spread. Finally, it is often considered conventional to chose your cover star in relation to your target audience – in my case, young males are my target demographic and therefore I have chosen to make my main image a young male, making a greater connection between the audience and the magazine. The individual in the image has a beard giving the stereotypical rugged look, whilst his complexion has been slightly adjusted to erase any imperfections and make his more conventionally attractive.

Main Feature Story

My main feature story displays the name of the artist (Roccia James) and is in the form of a pull quote. Pull quotes are often used within the main feature story on a front cover, as they are usually interesting remarks made by the artist that aim to grab the readers attention and convince them to read the entire feature, ultimately resulting in the purchase of the magazine. The quote also helps to link the text with the main image, as the pose used in the main image loosely resembles that of someone playing a game and thinking. The main cover story also converges with the convention of being the largest bit of text on the page (excluding the masthead), showing the readers that it is the most important feature in that particular edition of the magazine.

Header/SkylineThe header uses the convention of using a different background colour in order to make its content stand out more. Conventionally, a skyline may have a similar function to a plug and contain words such as ‘exclusive’ or ‘plus’ however mine simply promotes events such as Glastonbury and Reading and Leeds festival which are firmly associated with the indie rock genre. Therefore my skyline just reinforces to the audience that the genre of the music magazine is indie rock.

Plug A plug is conventionally used for presenting a secondary feature story, or highlighting some sort of competition or free gift that acts as an incentive for the audience to read and buy the magazine. The plug on my magazine functions as the latter, and highlights prizes that could be won in the form of physical merchandise such as albums. My plug is made to stand out with bright colours such as pink and yellow, and catches the eye more effectively because it adopts a spherical shape. In addition, the plug also conations the buzz word ‘win!’. The variations in font size, design and colour also help to attract attention to the plug.

Stylistic Elements

Subtle components on my front cover can change the overall impression of the magazine. The line used as part of the skyline helps to separate the two chunks of text contained within the skyline. The line also fills the space and makes the skyline look complete. In addition, the ‘plus’ sign is used instead of the actual word because it looks more visually interesting and also helps to partially frame the sell lines in the bottom corner of the page. Simple features such as these make the magazine appear more professional and interesting. A processional finish is essential because my target social class (middle class) will want to buy quality products, whilst also getting good value for money. The plus feature is conventionally visible on similar magazine covers such as NME and Q.

SloganI have chosen to include a slogan on my media magazine front cover. Existing magazines such as Q use a variety of slogans such as ‘the worlds greatest music magazine’ and ‘the UK’s biggest music magazine’. Conventionally, slogans are catchy, memorable and positioned close to the masthead. I have chosen to conform to these conventions, with my slogan being a very short simple sentence. The only use of polysyllabic lexis is the second word ‘music’ which places more emphasis on the word because it is surrounded by one syllable words (monosyllabic lexis) such as ‘where’ and ‘lives’. It presents the magazine in a positive fashion, highlighting how the magazine revolves predominantly around music. I have also followed the convention of making the slogan catchy by the means of a literal technique; using personification, the slogan implies that music is a living thing and therefore once again places real emphasis on the magazines love of music. In terms of the visual appearance of the slogan, mine may be considered unconventional because the text is slightly larger then other slogans on similar magazines. This was once again done to reinforce the purpose of the magazine, and make it stand out from a far so readers get a clear and concise feel of what the magazine has to offer them.

OverlappingConventionally, different components on a magazine front cover can overlap. For example, the masthead of a magazine is sometimes partially obstructed by the main image however my masthead actually sits over the top of the main image making it slightly unconventional. On the other hand, my magazine displays other examples of overlapping such as the sell lines and the main feature story slightly overlapping the sides of the main image – this is an example of how my magazine also uses conventional overlapping techniques.

Bar CodeMagazines have a barcode so they can be scanned through the till when being bought. Although not in every situation, it is very conventional for barcodes to be placed on the bottom left corner of the page. My barcode is in a bottom corner, however it occupies the bottom right corner showing how my barcode placement is not entirely conventional . This was done because I felt the left hand side of the page better complimented the main feature story.

The Price

The Date

The price is conventionally found on the barcode and my magazine does not take exception to this. My price has to be on the magazine somewhere in order to show people how much the magazine will cost them. The price has to be appropriate for a middle class demographic.

The date is also conventionally found on the barcode, as it is on my magazine.

Secondary Feature StoriesThe secondary feature stories are conventionally placed to the side of the main image, and not central. Both use the same bright yellow but the slight difference in font style ensure readers don’t mistake the feature stories to be related. The cover story on the right places its main text in boxes which makes the feature more interesting and visually engaging, whilst also further implementing the colour scheme. This boxing of individual words can be seen in a variety of indie rock magazine front covers, but isn’t considered extremely conventional nor unconventional.The feature on the left is conventional because its short and concise, and the feature story on the light displays the conventional technique of a pull quote which aims to obtain the readers focus.

Contents Page

On the contents page it is conventional to have a subscription panel/box. The purpose of this subscription panel is to get people to subscribe to the magazine.

The cover story image on the contents page is the longest and also the first to meet the readers eye as we read from left to right starting at the top of the page.

It is unconventional for the main image not to be of the cover star, but I felt the image was one of the strongest and had to be fully utilised.

Some sort of title on the contents page is conventional, however it does not always have to be ‘contents page’. My title was inspired directly from a NME contents page.

Page numbers are made to stand out with the use of small white boxes and red letters – techniques of similar nature are conventional throughout indie rock magazines.

A plus panel or something similar in function is conventional for a contents page. It shows the remaining features that haven't been picked out and represented with a picture.

Using separators such as lines is conventional in arranging the layout of the page. However, more structured columns would be considered more conventional.

It is very conventional for other images to be included on the contents page as they draw attention to a select group of feature stories.

Double Page SpreadIt’s conventional for the main title/heading to be a pull quote from the text itself. The title is large and is placed in the upper half on the right side of the double page spread which is where it is most conventional.

The left page is taken up almost entirely by the main image – direct address with the reader is achieved once again.

Words such as ‘exclusive’ are often seen on a double page spread to entice the reader and further engage with the audience

The stand first which serves the purpose of summarising the article so the audience know what to expect. These are often made catchy in order to encourage the audience to read the whole article and are very conventional.

Drop Caps are used to indicate where the article begins. Drop caps are very conventional and make the typography more interesting.

The button contains some extra information about the article/artist. It is conventional to have additional bits of Information however I have created a unique graphic in which to present it, which may not be considered all that conventional.

A small icon is conventionally found where the text ends on the double page spread. This icon is an indication that the article continues on the following pages.

Emboldened text is sometimes inserted between paragraphs of the article. Conventionally, these emboldened paragraphs might be from later on in the article, and they offer the reader an incentive to carry on reading whilst also breaking up the text slightly, and making it less formulaic and overwhelming.

Page numbers are conventionally placed in both corners of the double page spread. The date is not a necessity but often included also.

The name of the photographer is often revealed through the use of by-lines

Columns are used throughout the vast majority of double page spreads. Usually, the text is divided into 2 or more columns in order to break up the text and make it less overwhelming.

Colour SchemeThe colour scheme for my magazine is not the most conventional. The bright blue, yellow and pink are more commonly associated with the pop genre, and magazines aimed at a young female audience. However, I chose to challenge the regular conventions because I felt the completion for music magazines is intense, and my magazine needed to stand out from similar magazines such as Q and NME. Q has a strong brand association with red, white, black and gold, and usually displays the same colour scheme with every issue of the magazine. However, I felt the colour scheme should change from issue to issue, meaning visually, the magazines will always be looking fresh and unique. Because of the inclusion of these bright colours, I felt it was necessary to include black and white in order to sustain a professional finish, and not run the risk of my magazine looking chaotic or even childish. Throughout the front cover, the contents page and the double page spread, the background has bee white. Black and blue have also been used on every page, with yellow making a small cameo appearance on each of them too. This consistency is key and helps to create the impression that each of the three products are from the same magazine.

Although the intension is for the colour scheme to change from issue to issue, the branding of the magazine will carry on throughout every issue. For example, the main colours of the magazine logo (black, white and red) will be used in every edition and create a stronger brand image and more continuity between each issue of the magazine. These colours may be less obvious, however the page numbers on the contents page are an example of the red that is part of the core three colours of the magazines branding. In addition to the colours, The Ringo logo will be used throughout every edition of the magazine. The logo itself is visible three times on the front cover, four times on the contents page and twice on the double page spread. The repeated emphasis of a the brand logo is a conventional throughout virtually every magazine of every genre.

Branding

FontsThe repetition of fonts is evident throughout each of the products, and continuity is created for this very reason. Not only does this mean the magazine looks professional and complete, it also means that ,when combined with the repetition of a colour scheme and an emphasis on branding, a house style is created. Magazines create house styles because they show consistency, and the audience will know what to expect. On the majority of features on my front cover, and again on the double page spread headline, the spacing between each letter was minimalised. This creates an organised, sleek look and is a conventional technique throughout music magazines.