Conventions of a Double Page Spread

Analysis for Initial Ideas 2

Mojo Magazine

Genre: Pop

Institution: Bauer

Target Audience: Older Generation, looks at Pop through time, undefined to one genre or theme.

Analysis: The Masthead quite commonly contrasts the primary colour on the cover, white on black (above), although black on white is also a possible combination. The coverlines also contrast well with the background, as well as the splash, this helps them to stand out and grab a readers attention.  The Masthead is always the same, which is good for brand identity, meaning that the magazine is always easily spotted and recognizable by consumers. 

The central image commonly features a celebrity or celebrities who are featured prominently later in the magazine. The splash also outlines the central image as well as the article later on in the magazine.

The articles featured in the magazine feature both contemporary and older artists and bands meaning it applies to several different generations and many different genres and themes.

Analysis for Initial Ideas 1

Rolling Stone Magazine

Genre: Pop / Classic Rock
Sub-Genre: Film / Entertainment / Politics
Institution: Wenner Media LLC / Publisher: Jann Wenner
Target Audience: Mainstream, Wide Audience, does not seem to apply to a certain age range or theme although it may be preferred by those slightly older, 15 upwards perhaps.

Analysis: The Masthead refers to several different themes, such as Blues Songs, Rock Songs and even a Rock and Roll band therefore giving it a much more appealing look to older people, around 30-40 or onward. 

The House Style is very contrasting, allowing itself to stand out. The red and black Masthead, for example stands out against the all-white background. The colour scheme on the coverlines are also quite stereotypical, themed colours as this issue of the magazine was released in December, close to Christmas.  

The magazine is easily recognizable by its masthead, which is a part of every issue. The magazine also quite commonly has a black on white theme, coverline text normally contrasts the central image.

The Central Image shows a character from a popular film, most readers would quickly identify the character and those interested in the film may choose to pick up the magazine for that purpose. The focus on film characters also shows that the magazine is not primarily focused on music, despite still being a major factor.

The Splash of the magazine is related to the central image, showing that the primary article of the magazine is also featured on the front cover. This shows the article that is most important for the issue and is most likely to attract more readers. The Splash is also anchorage text, it fixes the meaning of the image behind it so there is no confusion. 

The Cover lines show that the Magazine is also focused on multiple different things, though primarily Music. It also focuses on film, TV and more. Artists, Albums and individual singles however seem to be a more significant part of the magazine.

Initial Ideas for a Music Magazine

Initial Ideas

My Initial ideas are:

• A Pop Magazine that focuses on the evolution of what Pop was throughout the decades, e.g 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s Pop etc. Because, as every new decade comes It comes with it's own genre of Pop, while others are lost to the ages, forgotten or take on new names. I think this would be unique as most Pop magazines only base themselves around today's music, but I would aim to look more in to the past instead of the present.

• A Music Magazine that also ties into popular films, looking into some elements of the film industry, perhaps looking into the Music for certain films, their soundtracks and so on. This could also look at how Music and Film are linked, and the effect music can have on film.

Music Magazine Market

The Music Magazine Market

The Images below were created to resemble the music magazine market today. The pictures show magazines aimed at both a mainstream, mass audience and a niche, specialist, theme. Also included are magazines applying to a certain instrument, as they are also included as specialist sub-genres of music.

Introduction to Main Task

Introduction to Main Task

For my main task, I need to create the Front page, contents page, and a double page spread for an original music magazine. I must include at least four original images that I have taken myself. 

Final Student Magazine

Evaluation

 Evaluation Questions

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

My Magazine cover needed to feature some of the main elements of a typical magazine cover, It needed to have a Central Image, Masthead and Coverlines in particular, which I made sure to include. Without these, the cover would likely not look similar to a magazine.

2. How does your student magazine represent particular social groups?

The social group my magazine represented was Students, primarily. I believed that my magazine does apply to the targeted social group, covering all sorts of issues and articles related to young people in college.

3. What kind of media institution might distribute your magazine and why?

My magazine did not explicitly apply to only one location, so It could be distributed as part of any college in the country. Perhaps even getting students involved, sending in their own articles to be published in the magazine.

4. Who would be the audience for your student magazine?

Anyone just starting out at college, whether confused or completely confidence. Everyone needs a hand in the early parts of college life, and those who don't could always do with knowing more about their area and college respectively.

5. How did you attract/address your audience?

The house style I used for the magazine was used intentionally to attract to a more youthful audience, using quite vibrant colours and simple fonts, however the content is still quite formal so the magazine does not come across as childish or inappropriate. 

6. What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing the student magazine?

I have learned how to use Blogger to post periodic updates to my magazines creation process. I primarily learnt a lot about InDesign which I had not used before, grasping most of the basic tools. Learning about InDesign now will allow me to have a much smoother experience with my future coursework for the subject.