Evaluation question 1

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

My music magazine follows many of the codes and conventions that you will find on other magazines on shelves today.
First convention i used was the masthead. The masthead is used to create your brands identity and what makes it stand out on shelves. As the masthead is an important feature of any magazine I did not want to over complicate it. I chose to create my Masthead in the 'red rocket' font as this is clear and easy to read whilst still looking appealing, similar to how magazines like Rolling Stones and NME also opt for a more simplistic masthead. In addition to this my masthead is also in red against a clear background to make it more clear and easier to identify when on a shelf by other magazine's.
Another convention I have followed is I layered the main image to go on top of the masthead which is most commonly seen in the Rolling Stones magazine. To do this I had to go onto adobe photoshop CS5 and use the pen tool to create a transparency

In addition a convention of music magazines that I have challenged is that cover lines are regularly placed on top of the image to keep them easily readable. In relation to my magazine due to the framing of my image my cover lines have additional space and therefore do not need to cross over the image therefore creating a more formal and organised format.
Another convention that I have followed is the use of a lure. the lure is something that entices the consumer to purchase your product. On my magazine this can be seen by the free 'Django Django' poster that is displayed in a box out to help it stand out and be more easily noticeable.
The bar code, date and price are located in a similar place to most other magazines but with a slight change to the layout.
In contrast to the rest of the magazine my main image is in black and white this can be seen used in magazines such as NME to create a feel of time and age which is why i used it for my classic rock magazine to do this I had to again go onto adobe photoshop cs5 and select the desired are with the polygamic tool and edit the colouring of the image in the adjustments section.

For my contents page I have made no drastic changes to the theme of the magazine and kept the house colours (black, white, and red) identical to the cover page. My reasoning behind this is that through my research my target audience wanted a informative magazine so to help portray this I followed the colour scheme of a newspaper to help create this connection. Also to help stick with the theme of the magazine the text of contents is in the same 'red rocket' font as the masthead to create a strong sense of brand identity.
The subheadings are used to give a sense of order with page numbers being categorised for easy navigation to the article that the readers wants to find.
Similarly to NME I have placed the page number on top of the image to show that this is in relation to one of the main articles of the magazine and makes it even easier for the reader to locate.
I have also incorporated the magazines website into the contents page.
All font is in serif  font to be more formal formal and again stick with this image of being informative that my target audience desired, again similarly to NME.
Finally the page numbers are aligned to give a structured feel which can be seen in the majority of music magazines on shelves today.

With my double page spread I have incorporated a folio into the top left hand corner in a similar fashion to NME to aid navigation. Also the masthead is maintained in this to again keep brand identify.
Again i have stuck with my house colours throughout my magazine.
Also similarly to Kerrang magazine my title for the article is located in the bottom left hand side of the page and therefore gives more space for the image to be seen.
My article is done is a question and answer format with each question in a different font and colour to its answer to make it clear and easer on the reader.
Like magazines such as Rolling Stone, NME, and Kerrang i have used a drop capital indicate a clear starting position to my article.
My article has been split into two main columns when it comes to the interview to make each question and answer look shorter therefore more desirable to read for the consumer.
Mise en scene has been used on my article image to help portray what the article is about. As the article is in relation to 'Electric Feel's' new album my image has been done to show the band creating the album with the piano being used as the main prop.
Finally to create further brand identity and sticking with the house theme my picture has been edited to be black and white like the picture on my cover page which also aids the classic rock image that I am trying to create.