1: In What Ways Does Your Media Product Use, Develop or Challenge Forms and

Conventions of Real Media Products?

1- The title of the magazine

On my masthead I have only used the colours black and white, I have used

these as I believe they are the classic rock and roll colours and the genre of my

magazine is rock and roll. Therefore by doing this I have stuck to the codes and

conventions of many

existing rock

magazines. However,

simultaneously I have

challenged them, while

most rock magazines use a tough, sharp, bold font such as ‘Rockwell Extra

Bold’ I have used a soft ‘Poplar Std’ this puts me at a different angle to all the

other rock magazines currently out.

My masthead could be compared to the, ‘Kerrang’ masthead, we have both

used very similar colour schemes, although I opted for black font with a white

background, but this still shows the common rock magazine conventions as,

‘Kerrang’ is possibly the biggest rock magazine currently circulating.

2- Mis En Scene of images

I believe the mis en scene of my images follow the codes and conventions of

magazines. In my pictures I have used a variety of different settings, from a

derelict and abandoned skip to a forest to a park bench. These are all very

similar to picture settings that would appear in ‘Kerrang’ or ‘NME’. As well as

this the pictures also fit in with my magazine as I was trying to create a rock

magazine and I believe the pictures represent the dark, unknown and

mysterious culture of rock. In addition of this I have depicted the band

members as rebels, and as if they differ from society follow their own rules

and do not care what anyone else thinks but also are not bothered with

anything. This is mainly captured in my contents as a band members mode of

address, he looks away from the camera as if it does not interest him .

3- Costumes and props

I have tried to keep my costumes conventional throughout my magazine, for

example for my contents my main image is of a boy who is dressed in a

mixture of black and grey, these bleak colours convey the mood of rock music

and are usually what is found in real rock magazines. I have not directly used

props however, on my cover I there are some tires with nails stuck in them, I

also believe that these convey the barbaric and unpredictable side of rock.

4-People

The people I have used in my magazine are unconventional, usually in rock the

bands consist of around 4+ members but mine only consists of two. However,

both these people are males, which is usually expected and they are also

young. This is

vital in my plan

as my magazine

is aimed

towards

teenagers.

Therefore by

using young

people I have

created a

band/image

with people

who the

audience can relate to and even aspire to be like. Therefore due to my target

audience it would be more suitable to use a teenage band than a male band.

5- Title Font and Style

I have used a

traditions

sans serif

font

throughout

my

magazine, I

have used

this because

it appeals to

my target

audience,

who are low

to middle

brow. Although the title I have done as edgy and dark and this fits in with my

genre choice and many famous magazine such as ‘Kerrang’ use a similar style.

6- Written content

I have tried to stick to existing codes and conventions for my text, I have done

this by covering similar topics and areas of interest that real magazines would

include. For example, I have information about upcoming tour dates and news

about any new song or album releases etc.. All of these could be found in a real

magazine. As well as this, my stand first follows the conventions of a magazine

as they introduce the band at the start of the interview and inform the reader

who the interview is with and a little about the band.

7-Music Genre And How Your Magazine Suggests It

The music genre I chose for my magazine was rock, and I have kept this clear

throughout by using a number of different devices, for example the limited

colour pallet, sticking to mainly black and whites creates the dark and moody

aspect of rock magazines and

also the scene and style of the images

used. Also by using real rock bands on

my front cover and contents etc.. Real

magazines show their genres by

their images and bands they

include, therefore I have followed the

classic codes and conventions.

8- Layout

The layout of my magazine is mainly conventional, with the Masthead being at

the top and to the left with a selling line accompanying it just underneath. In

addition to this there is also my barcode date and price located in the bottom

right hand corner, where it is normally located. Also the list of bands down the

left hand side of my contents page which is very stereo typical in magazines.