1. EVALUATION QUESTION 1)
In what way does your
media product use,
develop or challenge forms
and conventions of real
media products?
2. FIRSTLY; MY FRONT COVER. IN TERMS OF WHAT IS TYPICAL OF A MUSIC MAG, I
HAVE USED A MCU IMAGE OF MY FEATURE ARTIST, WHICH IS CONVENTIONAL OF
ALMOST ALL MAGAZINES, LET ALONE MUSIC-BASED. I ALSO HAVE THE MASTHEAD
CENTRALLY AT THE TOP, WHICH IS TYPICAL. HOWEVER, I DECIDED TO CHALLENGE
SOME FORMS OF THE FRONT COVER TO GIVE IT A MORE UNIQUE PERSONA. FOR
STARTERS, EVEN THOUGH THE IMAGE IS A MCU, I HAVE EDITED IT IN SUCH A WAY
THAT IS UNCOMMON FOR A MAGAZINE, AS I HAVE TAKEN MULTIPLE IMAGES AND
BLENDED THEM TOGETHER IN PHOTOSHOP, YET I KEPT IT SO THAT THE AUDIENCE
WOULD STILL BE ABLE TO TELL THE ARTIST APART FROM ANY OTHER, AS I HAD TO
BE SURE SHE WOULD BE RECOGNISEABLE. AS FOR THE COVERLINES, THEY STRAY
FAR FROM CONVENTIONS AS I HAVE DECIDED TO KEEP THEM VERY SIMPLE AND
WRITTEN JUST THE NAMES OF OTHER ARTISTS TO BE FREATURED IN THE
MAGAZINE. I CHOSE TO GO FOR THIS BECAUSE MY THEME IS THE BOTH CREATIVITY
AND SIMPLICITY, AND THE IMAGE IS CREATIVE, WHERES THE COVERLINES,
MASTHEAD AND ALMOST EVERYTHING ELSE ON THE FC ARE NOT. A BONUS FROM
THE LACK OF INFORMATION IS THAT IT WOULD BE MORE LIKELY TO ATTRACT THE
READER’S ATTENTION AND INTEREST THEM IN FLICKING OVER THE PAGE TO SEE
WHY THEY ARE FEATURED. AS FOR SYMBOLIC CODES, I THINK THAT HOW TYPICAL
THEY ARE VARY. FIRST UP; THE PROPS- THERE ARE NONE. I THINK THAT THIS IS
FAIRLY CONVENTIONAL, AS A LOT OF REAL MUSIC MAGAZINES DON’T HAVE PROPS
IN, AS THE MAIN FOCUS IS THE ARTIST, THEMSELF. AS FOR COLOUR, I THINK IT
BOTH FITS INTO STEREOTYPES, YET NOT SO MUCH AS THE SAME TIME. THIS IS
BECAUSE EVEN THOUGH PINKS AND GREENS ARE USED IN MAGAZINES, IT IS NOT
SO COMMON FOR THEM TO BE ALMOST SCATTERED ACROSS THE FACE AND HAND,
LIKE IN MY OWN FRONT COVER. FINALLY, CLOTHING. NOT MUCH OF THE CLOTHING
IS SHOWN BUT FROM WHAT IS, IT IS VERY DIFFERENT TO WHAT YOU WOULD
GENERALLY SEE IN A MUSIC MAG, SO I THINK THIS ONE ISN’T TOO CONVENTIONAL.
3. AS FOR MY CONTENTS PAGE, I DECIDED TO KEEP IT PRETTY BASIC, AND THEREFORE
DID NOT CHALLENGE CONVENTIONS TO A LARGE EXTENT. FOR EXAMPLE, THE WAY IT
IS ALL LAID OUT IS VERY SIMPLE, AND IS TYPICAL DUE TO THE USE OF COVER,
FEATURED AND REGULARS TITLES, WHICH I CHOSE TO DO BECAUSE THEY CAN
NAVIGATE THE READER TO WHERE THEY WANT TO LOOK, AND I MADE THEM BOLD,
AND IN A LARGER FONT, MEANING THAT THEY WOULD STAND OUT A LOT MORE
THAN IF THEY LOOKED THE SAME AS THE REST OF THE TYPE ON THE PAGE, MAKING
THEM EASY TO FIND. TYPICALLY, I ALSO INCLUDED THE FOLIO FOR EVERY ARTICLE,
INTERVIEW ETC. THAT WAS INCLUDED, AND SOME OF THEM EVEN HAD SOME EXTRA
INFORMATION, GIVING THE READER MORE OF AN INISGHT BEFORE READING ON,
WHICH FOLLOWS CONVENTIONS. SOMETHING ELSE THAT IS ALSO TYPICAL OF A
MUSIC MAGAZINE ARE IMAGES OF THE FEATURE ARTIST, WHICH I INCLUDED TWO
OF. I DECIDED TO HAVE THOSE AS THE ONLY IMAGES IN THE CP IS BECAUSE I
THOUGHT THAT I WOULD BRING ALL OF THE LIGHT TOWARDS THE FEATURE ARTIST,
AS SHE IS, WELL, THE FEATURE ARTIST; SHE IS PROBABLY WHAT A LOT OF PEOPLE
WOULD BUY THE MAGAZINE FOR. IT ALSO REINFORCES THE SIMPLICITY OF PARTS OF
THE MAGAZINE, WHICH IS THE LOOK I WANTED TO ACHIEVE. HOWEVER, EVEN
THOUGH I STUCK TO CONVENTIONS A LOT FOR THIS PAGE, I ALSO DID SOMETHING
THAT IS PRETTY UNTYPICAL, WHICH IS COMBINING SERIF AND SANS SERIF FONTS
TOGETHER. I DID THIS BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT GAVE IT BOTH A FANCY, YET CASUAL
LOOK, AND I THINK IT WORKED OUT QUITE SUCCESSFULLY.
4. LASTLY, THE DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD. I THINK THAT OUT OF THE FC, CP AND DPS, THIS
HAS THE PRIZE FOR THE LARGEST RANGE IN CONVENTIONS, AND FEATURES THAT
CHALLENGE THEM. IT IS CONVENTIONAL OF A MUSIC MAGAZINE FOR MANY
REASONS. THE FIRST IS THAT THERE IS AN INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERVIEW, AND
WITHIN THIS, THERE IS A DROP CAP. BOTH OF THESE ARE SOMETHING THAT CAN BE
FOUND IN ALMOST ANY MUSIC MAGAZINE, SO IT IS VERY STEREOTYPICAL. ALSO, I
HAVE INCLUDED THE NAME OF THE ARTIST, AND ‘THE GREEN HAIRED BEAUTY’,
WHICH IS MEANT TO BE SOMETHING THAT FANS WOULD KNOW HER BY IF SHE
REALLY EXISTED, SO THERE’S A SENSE OF FAMILIARITY. I THINK THIS IS SOMETHING
THAT IS CONVENTIONAL A LITTLE, BECAUSE OTHER MAGAZINES DO IT, BUT NOT
ALWAYS IN THE WAY I DID. I ALSO LAID OUT BOTH OF THE PAGES IN SUCH A WAY
THAT THEY FORM THE ‘6’ AND ‘9’ SHAPE, SHOWN TO THE LEFT. THIS IS INCREDIBLY
CONVENTIONAL AS MANY REAL MAGAZINES HAVE THIS, AND LAY THEIR PAGES OUT
IN EITHER A 6 OR 9 AS THAT IS TYPICALLY THE WAY MOST WOULD LOOK AT A PAGE.
NOT ONLY HAVE I DONE THESE THINGS THAT ARE TYPICAL, BUT I ALSO INCLUDED
NAMES OF THOSE WHO DID THE INTERVIEW, WHO TOOK THE PHOTOS AND WHO
CHOSE THE CLOTHES JESS WAS WEARING, WHICH SHOWS CREDIT TO THE PEOPLE
WHO ‘PRODUCED’ THE MAGAZINE, JUST LIKE REAL MAGAZINES WOULD HAVE IN
THEM. LASTLY, I HAVE INCLUDED THE FOLIO. HOWEVER, THIS IS UNCONVENTIONAL
AT THE SAME TIME DUE TO THE PLACEMENT OF IT, WHICH IS IN THE MIDDLE. I DID
THIS BECAUSE I DIDN’T LIKE THE LOOK OF IT AT THE BOTTOM, AND THOUGHT THE
MIDDLE LOOKED EMPTY. WHAT CHALLENGES CONVENTIONS THAT I HAVE DONE, IS
QUITE A MAJOR ROLE IN THE DOUBLE PAGE SPREAD, WHICH IS TO DO WITH THE
TYPE. TYPICALLY, THE TEXT WOULD BE IN NEAT COLUMNS; USUALLY ABOUT 3-4 TO A
PAGE. HOWEVER, I DECIDED TO DO SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT AND
INSTEAD, I CHOSE TO HAVE 3 COLUMNS IN DIFFERENT AREAS, AND OVERLAPPING
IMAGES. I THINK THAT IT MAKES THE PAGES MORE VISUALLY APPEALLING AND
UNIQUE.
