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

The main conventions of a magazine cover include masthead that is carried throughout the magazine; cover line which stays the same throughout editions; cover lines to give an insight into the contents of the magazine; main cover line to promote a single story and a main image which attracts the reader and is normally based on the cover story. For a double page spread, there is normally a kicker to start of the text, generally a summary of the article to follow; drop-cap to start of the article, and to give it a definitive beginning; 3 columns of text for each side which separates the page up; pull quotes which contain information or quotes from the text; a main image, sometimes supported by smaller or additional images, along with captions to describe them; white space, to even out the page and make it aesthetically pleasing. Sometimes, a double page spread may have a sidebar including additional information or images that link to the article.

I created a magazine based on rock, metal and alternative music. I chose this as my genre because I feel there are many successful music magazines that base on just one of these music genres but I have blended these. Magazines such as NME, Kerrang, Q and MOJO cover some of the bands I wish to cover but not a variety of genres.

For my front cover, I used many of the connotations of a regular magazine. These include putting the masthead at the top of the page and having the image overlay this. The tag line is rather small but placed underneath. The main image is the main focal point and the reader is not distracted by bright text surrounding the image. The cover story line is on the side to interest perspective buyers, unlike my magazines, and is also in the same theme colours. Quite a few magazines use brighter or different colours for this as it stands out from 'the normal' but I felt it was bold enough.

The magazine name, 'Skunk', is not only an animal but is also a lesser known colloquium for the drug weed. This would probably be more known for my target audience of indie scenester/scene kids of around the ages from 15 to 19. This helps to create a personal link between the reader and the magazine because it is such an unknown 'street word', one that would be shared between friendship groups, or age groups, but not normally wide-spread.

The main images of the front covers include a guy sitting on outside stairs and 2 of my friends, posing against a wall. The original images are pasted below. The first image, shot outside the UEA, was taken on impulse so I didn't take time to adjust exposure or other camera options but feel the image is perfectly framed. By using Photoshop, I edited the brightness, contrast and colour levels to give the image more feeling. The fact that the model is facing away from the camera distances the reader which lead me to create a new cover. The second cover has 2 images of people facing the camera. This is more personal and I prefer the extent of editing possible from these shots. Once again, I changed the brightness and contrast after cutting the people from the main image.

The contents page is based heavily on a copy of MOJO because I liked the colours and layout. The main image for this is a lot softer and therefore posed problems trying to fit into the genre. By editing the contrast and changing to black and white, I got a much harsher feel from the image. There is a column for features on the contents page but no regulars because the picture is so big. It is almost templated from the MOJO cover. The masthead is at the top, centre of the page, so to catch the reader’s eye. Because all the text is down the left side, your attention is carried down the page, even though there are strategic uses of lines and font changes to break up the text.

My double page spread is based on cover songs. I have not got a picture of a single band or singer because I feel the article is very open. This left a lot to the imagination and gave me a free range when taking pictures. The first image, of a guitar, occupies most of the left side because it is so big and detailed. I have followed a lot of the layout conventions when making this page. Such as using 3 columns, appropriate use of empty space, gutters, many images but placed in line with text, pull quotes, drop caps and a sidebar. Using Photoshop, I made an initial template, using guidelines and empty boxes to symbolise where I would place my objects. The masthead is carried through and most of the fonts are the same as the front cover and contents page, so to stick to the theme.

These are some of the images used for my double page spread. The first 2 were not edited. On the third, i edited the layering options to make it look different. Some of the colours are distorted and it looks a lot better; also would be more appealing to my audience. The 4th image is an edit of the 5th. I only chnaged the brightness contrast and colour levels. It makes the image seem less flat and has more depth. the background is blurred because of the focus change, its also darker so the subject stands out more. The last image was just cut from the original background for my double page spread. To edit these, I used adobe Photoshop which was relatively easy because I had previous knowledge.